by Kendall Ryan
“I just think that it might be worth talking to him about it. Maybe running back to California all angry and broken isn’t the best way of going about things.”
Puta madre. I always hated it when she was right.
But that didn’t mean I had to listen to her.
“I didn’t fall for him. We fucked one time. And besides, what am I going to do, pick up my life and move to the middle of nowhere for a good lay?”
Charlotte winced, and I immediately felt like shit. I guess that’s kinda what she did. Only Luke and her are the real deal—totally in love and all that shit. Things never had the chance to get that far between Duke and me. Tossing the pair of jeans I’d been folding onto the growing pile in my suitcase, I joined her on the bed, placing my hand on hers.
“Look, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that. You and Luke are great. I’m just…I’m so embarrassed. I can’t believe I let myself get involved with Duke, even after you warned me about him. And oh my God, Char, I don’t know how you deal with the freaking gossip in this town. I swear they even turned off the music to eavesdrop on us the second his ex walked up to the bar.”
She laughed, shrugging and downing the last of her wine.
“You get used to it. Molly didn’t say anything about the music stopping, but she did mention that the whole town thinks the kid is Duke’s too.”
“You mean he didn’t even know about the kid?”
Charlotte shook her head. “Amber never said a word.”
Wow. That’s a hell of a lot to deal with.
“Qué pinche culero,” I muttered. I laid back on the bed with a huff, a tension headache already forming at the base of my skull. All I wanted was to be back in my apartment, soaking in the clawfoot tub I saved up for six months to splurge on, a thousand miles away from my problems.
Charlotte flopped down on the bed next to me, our heads sinking into the fluffy blue comforter.
“Are you sure you have to go back? I feel like you just got here.”
A familiar sting welled in the corners of my eyes. I’d been so wrapped up with Duke these past few days, I’d barely spent any time with my best friend. And now I was leaving because of him too? I hated the way he affected me so much, hated how his stupid, arrogant, beautiful face made everything feel so messy and complicated.
But I knew that if I stayed, it would only make things worse. Clearly, he wasn’t in a position to be seeing anyone new. Not if he had a kid he was just finding out about. There was only one thing left to do.
No matter how much it broke me to do it.
“You and Luke can always come to LA,” I said, rolling over onto my side.
Charlotte mirrored my position, propping her head up on her wrist.
“We were already talking about flying out to see you in the fall.”
That did me in. Tears fell freely down my cheeks, half out of love for my best friend and half out of heartbreak over Duke. I didn’t want to admit it, but I had fallen for him, whether I wanted to or not.
And that was why I knew I couldn’t stay. I had a great job at a successful law firm in California. My family was there. I had a lease on an apartment. In the real world, you didn’t just ride off into the sunset for some hot country guy. No matter how nice his biceps were.
But Charlotte was still frowning at me.
“I just think Duke is better off working it out with his ex. It looks like they have a lot to catch up on, and I don’t want to make him choose between a woman he hardly knows and the family he didn’t know he had.”
Charlotte nodded, tears welling up in her eyes as well. She pulled me in for a hug, rubbing my back like she always did when some pendejo broke my heart. She’d always been there for me, no matter what, and in that moment more than ever, I was grateful for my friend.
Her phone chimed, and when she checked it, a nervous smile spread across her face.
“So, don’t be mad, but Molly’s here. She’s the one driving you to the airport.”
Okay, scratch what I said about being grateful for her. I knew Molly was Duke’s younger sister, even if I hadn’t formally met her yet.
I sat up, a mixture of confusion and frustration brewing between my brows.
“Why Molly? I haven’t even met her yet.”
“I know, I know! But look, she was planning to drive into the city today, and once you booked your flight for this evening, it didn’t make sense to drive you out myself if she was already going.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“Besides, she wanted to finally meet the woman with a mouth that could shut her big-mouthed brother up.”
I snorted, warmth spreading over my cheeks. Is that really what people have been saying about me?
“Ugh, fine, I’ll ride with the little sister. Is there anything I need to know before I meet her? Not that your warnings have done much good in the past.”
Charlotte rolled her eyes. “Molly’s an absolute sweetheart. She can just be a little…protective of her brothers sometimes. But it comes from a good place. She has a good heart.”
“Oh, great, so I’m about to spend the next hour in the car with someone who hates my guts.”
“Not necessarily. She just wants to meet you for herself.”
Twenty minutes, three more rounds of hugs, and a fresh batch of tears later, I was sitting shotgun in Molly’s pickup truck, desperately trying to think of something to talk about. The sky seemed to know how I was feeling, its normal perfect shade of blue quickly turning dark gray with huge, heavy-looking clouds moving right toward us. Fantastic.
“Looks like you guys have some crazy weather headed your way,” I said. Am I really resorting to talking about the weather? Fuck me.
“I bet you’re pretty happy to be on your way back to LA right about now,” Molly replied. Her voice was light and friendly, but I could smell a gossip from a mile away. She was testing me, trying to suss out how I felt about her brother. Game on. Bring it, baby.
“It’ll be nice to stop living out of a suitcase, but I enjoyed Shady Grove more than I expected to.”
“Oh?” Molly’s ears practically perked up, ready for me to spill something about Duke.
“Sure. The bar’s dirt cheap, the food is swimming in butter, and my best friend lives here. Plus, your brother showed me that swimming hole, and I can guarantee there’s nothing like that place in LA.”
She stiffened, her eyes growing wide.
“Duke took you to our spot? The place through the woods off the backroads?”
I nodded, studying her face as she processed the news. She didn’t look upset. It was more like she was surprised. Shocked, even.
“None of us have been back there since…” She trailed off, clearly lost in thought.
I was about to ask her what was wrong when a huge bolt of lightning struck way too close to us, immediately followed by the loudest crack of thunder I’d ever heard. Molly and I both yelped, the pickup swerving slightly before she corrected course. Heavy rain poured down on us out of nowhere, the wind aiming the drops directly at the windshield. Even on full blast, the wipers didn’t stand a chance, water totally obscured our line of sight. I definitely wasn’t in California anymore.
“We have to pull over,” Molly said, her voice straining over the downpour.
I groaned.
“But my flight leaves in an hour.”
“Trust me, that plane’s not going anywhere.”
Shit. She was probably right.
As if on cue, my phone chimed with the notification that all flights out of the local airport were cancelled. Leaning back into the headrest, I took a deep breath to try to calm down. Can’t just one thing go right on this pinche trip?!
We rolled to a stop on the side of the road, the only car on the highway for miles. While Molly frantically typed on her phone, I pressed my forehead to the cool glass of the window, watching lightning flash around us, the thunder shaking the whole car.
I guess Mother Nature doesn’t want me to lea
ve either.
Chapter Eight
Duke
My phone buzzed in the back pocket of my jeans as a crack of thunder rumbled through the house. My place was totally dark and I didn’t bother turning on a light—the darkness matched my mood perfectly right now.
I closed the door to the refrigerator, the glass bottles of the six pack I’d just bought clinking against each other. I pulled my phone out and leaned against the counter, brows furrowed in confusion. The text was from my sister. My sister who was supposed to be halfway down the highway right about now. My sister who never texted while driving.
Storm is too bad—had to pull over.
A second text rolled in. A text that changed everything.
Valentina’s flight is cancelled.
I quickly texted her back, moving my thumbs as fast as they would go.
Where are you?
She replied that they were fine, but pulled over in a wide shoulder, waiting for the storm to pass, or at least let up enough for them to drive again. I shot Molly another text, my stomach sinking.
I’m sure Valentina’s pretty upset about her flight.
When she’d stormed out of the bar the other night, I knew she was walking out of my life forever. Somehow, I just knew. I always knew a girl like her, classy, smart, and beautiful didn’t belong with a redneck like me. Sure I could fix her car with my own two hands, start a campfire, or catch her a fish for dinner, but I didn’t know shit about fine wines or art. And as much as it stung to watch her leave, I couldn’t blame her. Who would want to be with a man who had a ten-year-old son he’d never met?
Why don’t you come down here and give her a reason to stay?
Molly’s text took me aback. It wasn’t like her to encourage me to date anyone, let alone someone she barely knew.
I’m not sure that’s a good idea.
Duke, she told me about the swimming hole. Don’t pretend you don’t have feelings for her.
She was right. I’d played it cool when I took her there, but Valentina was the first person outside my family who’d seen our spot. I didn’t know why at the time, but some instinctual part of me wanted to take her there. But now that she was leaving, I understood. Being around her changed me. She tapped into a side of me I didn’t think was there, opened something in me I didn’t think I’d ever have. Fuck, she split my chest wide open somehow in those few short days, and I already felt the pangs of her departure.
That’s when I knew for sure.
There was no way in hell I was letting her go. I still had no clue what would happen with Amber and Payton, but I knew I couldn’t lose Valentina.
The second Molly sent me their exact location, I grabbed my keys and got in my truck. The rain beat down on the windshield as I drove to the highway, lightning striking on the horizon. A storm like that hadn’t come through Shady Grove in years. Molly wasn’t a bad driver, but I was glad she’d pulled over. Because even with my windshield wipers on full tilt, I was having a hard time seeing the road ahead of me.
Lucky for me, Molly and Valentina hadn’t gotten far, and just ten minutes later, I pulled up behind them on the shoulder, my headlights flooding the backseat. The rain was pouring harder than ever, but at that point, I didn’t care. I had to see her, had to talk to her, had to let her know how I felt.
I climbed out of my truck and jogged the few short yards between our cars, yanking the backseat door open and tumbling in. Valentina cursed loudly in Spanish, turning and looking like she was ready to smack me all the way to next Tuesday.
Somehow, I even loved that. She was feisty as hell, and it only made me smile.
“Relax, baby. It’s Duke,” I said, raising my hands in surrender.
“Puta madre, pendejo, what is your problem?!” Valentina shouted, chest heaving, eyes wild.
“I think that’s my bad,” Molly said, pulling her lips into a tight, apologetic smile. “I should have told you he was coming.”
“You think?!”
“Warning or not, I’m here now. And darlin’, you and I have to talk.”
Valentina rolled her eyes, muttering more Spanish curse words under her breath. Molly whistled through her teeth, shifting her eyes out the window.
“I, uh…I’ll give you two some space,” she said, reaching for her door.
“No, I’ll go,” Valentina said, grabbing my keys and climbing out into the rain, slamming the door closed behind her.
I immediately followed right behind her, exiting the car and closing the distance between us in two strides. It was pouring so hard that we were both soaked in seconds, my gray T-shirt sticking to my skin.
“What could you possibly want?” Valentina asked, crossing her arms and squaring her shoulders at me.
“Isn’t it obvious?”
Lightning flashed, and for a brief moment, I could see her expression clearly. Surprise. Pain. Frustration. A hint of anger. And somewhere deep inside there, something softer, more tender.
“No, Duke, in this situation, what you want from me is the one thing that isn’t obvious.”
“I probably deserve that. But goddammit, woman, do you have to make this so hard?”
Her eyes grew wide, and she threw her hands up in the air. “What the fuck are you talking about?”
“You, Valentina. I’m talking about you.”
She paused, her hands slowly lowering to her sides. “What do you—”
“I want you, you crazy, sassy woman. More than anything else. I didn’t realize it until you were about to leave my life forever, but I’ve fallen for you, and the last thing I want you to do is leave.”
I paused to take a breath, shoving the wet hair plastered to my forehead out of my face.
“Even if it turns out I’m a father.”
“Duke, I don’t know…”
“You don’t have to make a decision now. Just please, don’t leave yet. I’m meeting with Amber tonight to talk about what’s going on. Don’t throw this away over something that might not even be true.”
She sighed, bringing her hands to her forehead and rubbing her temples. The rain was finally starting to let up, a few small patches of sunlight appearing around us. Further down the highway, the storm raged on, continuing its course through the sky.
“Fine. We can talk in the morning. But that doesn’t mean I’m not getting on the first flight out of here once your pinche pequeño airport opens back up.”
“Fair enough, darlin’.”
A smile erupted on my face, but Valentina only half-smiled back. She had every right to be cautious, and I totally understood why she felt that way. But as for me? I had a little bit of hope. Hope that she might stick around, that we might get a chance to let this crazy, awesome, infuriating-as-hell thing between us grow.
And in that moment, that hope was all I needed.
* * * *
That night, I walked into the Drunk Skunk to find Amber waiting for me at a high-top table by the windows. Originally, she wanted to meet for dinner, but drinks made it a little more casual. Plus, I had no idea what kind of news I was about to receive, and it was probably best to have a whole lot of whiskey nearby.
Every eye in the room was on me as I walked over to her, and I smiled when she looked up and noticed me. She smiled back, and the warmth in her pale blue eyes took me right back to all those years ago when this place used to be our spot. We’d plant ourselves in the middle of the bar and get rip-roaring drunk, ending the night by hopping in the bed of my rusty old pickup and knocking boots ’til the cops came to kick us out.
It’s safe to say that I’ve matured since then. Or I’ve just learned how not to get caught having public sex. Take your pick. Good thing the local sheriff is a buddy of mine from high school.
“Hey there, Duke. I ordered us a couple glasses of your whiskey. I hope that’s okay.” Amber pulled me in for a hug, her perfume more floral than it was when I knew her.
“If I wouldn’t drink it, I wouldn’t sell it.”
I sat down across f
rom her, taking a good look at her face for the first time since she surprised me last night. She had a faint shadow under her eyes and a small, shallow line between her brows that deepened when she smiled. When she tucked her hair behind her ear, I noticed a few gray hairs coming in around her temples. She didn’t look bad—she was still as good-looking as ever—but it was clear those last ten years had done a number on her.
Makes sense if she’s been raising a child all on her own.
We clinked glasses and took a sip, an impressed smile forming on Amber’s face as the whiskey hit her tongue.
“I’ve got to be honest, I was expecting this to taste like shit.”
We laughed and some of the awkward tension between us lessened. I leaned my elbows on the table, shrugging and rubbing my neck.
“It hasn’t been easy. But me and Luke worked our asses off to turn that distillery into something we could be proud of.”
“Well, it paid off. I knew you had it in you. It was always just a matter of everything else lining up right.”
“That means a lot coming from you. I appreciate it.”
She nodded, and when we smiled at each other, for a moment, it felt like everything was normal. Like we were just a couple of old friends catching up. Like she didn’t have a son who might or might not be biologically mine. I decided to proceed with caution.
“Where’s Payton hanging out tonight?”
“With Opal. I think they’re having a movie marathon or something like that. She’s really taken to him.”
“Yep, that sounds like Opal. She was always doing nice things for my brother and me when we were kids.”
“Yeah, she mentioned that. She also told me about all the rumors spreading around since Payton and I saw you last night. About you being his father.”
A pit formed in my stomach, and I folded my hands on the table in front of me. I guess we were doing this now.
“I’ve been wondering about that too. The math adds up. I just can’t believe you didn’t tell me.”
Amber paused, her lip curling at the edge. “You’re joking, right?”