And I don’t know why this finally breaks me.
I let the tears flow freely and sit back. All the nasty things come back to me; the harsh words, the shoves, stealing things that meant something to me. Within weeks, she’d had my own mother wrapped around her little finger.
Cas leans over and wipes the tears away. “I’m sorry,” he whispers. “I’m so sorry.”
I shake my head with a strained laugh. “I don’t know why I’m crying. That’s so on brand for her.”
“I should have told you sooner,” Casper murmurs, “but I wanted to protect you. I would have done anything to protect you. And I need you to know that the only reason why I evenentertainedthe idea of Stella was because I thought I could keep her away from you.”
My stomach bottoms out when I meet his concerned stare. There’s something in his eyes that tells me he isn’t lying, and I don’t feel like he is, either.
It’d always rubbed me the wrong way that he decided to give her a chance. It was a betrayal of our friendship—of my love for him. So, knowing now that he did it to protect me?
I don’t really know what to think.
“She said she’d stop,” he continues, “if I just…chose her.” Casper shakes his head as he cups both my cheeks between his warm hands, thumbs wiping away stray tears. “I thought that maybe I could do it. Could get her to leave you alone.”
“But she was worse,” I whisper, leaning into his touch. “She made my life a living hell because she was with you. Because on the outside, it looked like you turned on me, too.”
Casper’s eyes shutter and he drops his head. “I can’t make up for what I did before. I thought…I really thought I was protecting you. But now…” His eyes open, and he takes me in with such reverence that it makes my heart skip a beat. “I love you, Hattie Simms. More than anything. I thought staying here would be what’s best, but I see now that I was wrong. I want a life with you, a future—and I don’t care where that is. If it’s in Willow Ridge or New York or Milan. I’ll follow you anywhere in the world as long as I get to be with you.”
His words have my heart racing, belly flipping for entirely different reasons. “You’d leave the ranch…for me?” I ask, breathless.
Casper bows his head in a single nod. “Yeah, shortcake. I get why you don’t want to stay here. Your family are here, and they…they would make our lives hell if you stayed. I understand that now. It was selfish as fuck for me to make that deal. I get that now, and I?—”
I cut him off with a kiss. Casper melts into it immediately, his fingers moving to cup the back of my head, bringing us closer, deepening the kiss. My hands stray to his chest. If I could get closer, I would climb the centre consul in a heartbeat to mould our bodies together.
But he breaks the kiss with a gasp, resting his forehead against mine. “What was that for?” he asks breathlessly.
“It was for everything,” I whisper. “For trying to help me. For having my back tonight. And for choosing me.”
“I will always choose you, Hattie.” He meets my stare with a fierceness that has my heart stuttering. “I always have.”
Emotion thickens my throat, making it hard to breathe. But I swallow hard and pull back to take all of him in. It still surprises me that he’s willing to give up his life on the ranch. That he’d follow me around the world if that meant we got to be together. I never thought I’d ever get lucky enough to find someone willing to do that for me.
But I also know Casper, and his life is on this ranch. My dreams used to be here, too.
“I’ll make you a deal,” I say, voice hoarse. Casper’s eyes darken, but he gives me a nod, remaining quiet so I can continue. “One year. We spend one year abroad. We travel and see the world together, just like we said we would. And then we come home for good.”
Casper’s lips part like he wants to say something, but I quickly shake my head. “I always wondered what life would be like here. With you, your family. And I know that you’re not meant for big cities like New York, Casper. You’d hate it. I barely even tolerate it.” He barely hides the smile pulling at his lips, one that makes my chest warm. “So, let’s do one year together away from the drama that’s going to come. Stella won’t take that lying down. But I’m tired of wondering what they’ll do to me. I’m so sick of being scared of them.”
“They can’t take anything from us,” he replies, leaning in closer so our noses brush. “Not anymore. No more years apart. I accept your deal, shortcake. I’ll go with you for as long as you want. We’ll see the world. And when we come back, we’ll build our home together.”
A shiver rolls down my spine at the promise in his words. “Deal,” I whisper, closing my eyes as images of what life will look like spring to mind.
And I really, really like the idea of it.
ELEVEN
CASPER
“Are you excited?” Hattie asks, glancing at me from the passenger seat of the truck. Her cheeks are flushed with excitement, eyes bright with the future that lays ahead of us. For the first time in years, I feel alive with the same emotions.
I meet her stare briefly before turning back to the road ahead and the looming airport we’re driving towards. “Of course, I am,” I reply, heart racing. “I’m with you.”
Hattie snorts, though I still feel the weight of her eyes on me. “You’ve never been to New York. Or Paris.”
“I’ve only ever left the state for work, and barely anywhere exciting,” I point out, grasping her knee with my free hand. “This will be an adventure to tell the grandchildren about.”
