Wait—she thought I’d come here to tell her off? Nothing could be further from the truth, but if it made her willing to listen to me, I’d play along for a while. I tried to match her somber expression. “Like ripping off a Band-Aid?”
She nodded. “I know it was rude and inconsiderate. I just... well, I guess I kind of panicked. And every time the phone rang and I saw your number, my heart would go into overdrive, and I didn’t know what to say, so I just didn’t answer. I’m really sorry I handled it that way. I—I just thought it was for the best for both us. I didn’t mean to treat you badly. I mean, it was bad for me, too. In retrospect, I realize I should have called you before I left, or maybe told you in person, but... well, I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. It was just too painful.”
Painful was good. Painful meant she cared. And apparently she still cared, because she was doing that rambling thing she always does when she’s nervous. I rubbed my jaw, trying hard to hide the delight rising in my chest.
“I don’t blame you for being angry,” she continued. “You have every right. It was selfish of me to just avoid you like that. You deserve to tell me off. You’ll feel better after you vent, so go ahead. Get it all off your chest.”
I stifled a laugh.
“Seriously.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. Her expression was so earnest that it made me want to grin, even though my chest felt like it was being squeezed in a vise. “Let’s get it over with. I don’t think you can say anything that I haven’t already said to myself, but you deserve the chance to say it, so let me have it. The buyer will be here soon.”
“He’s already here.”
“Oh, he is?” She turned toward the closed conference room door, then looked back at me.
“Not out there. Right here.” I pointed at myself.
“What?”
“I’mbuying your grandmother’s house.”
“You’reProperty Investments, Inc.?” She stared at me, hard.
“Yes.”
“But what... Why... why didn’t you...”
I moved around the conference table and sat beside her. “Hope, don’t take this the wrong way. I’m not trying to control you or manipulate you or anything. Or maybe I am, but not in a bad way. It’s just that, well, I thought that if I bought the house, you’d have a place to stay when you visit Wedding Tree. And if not, well, it’s a good investment, with all the new people moving to town, so...” I drew a deep breath and decided to just lay it out there. “The truth is, I needed a reason to make you come back, sit down, and talk to me.”
She stared at me, her lips parted. I couldn’t tell if she was angry or incredulous or what. “You bought my grandmother’s house to make me come back here and talk to you?”
I hurried on. “There are some things I wanted to tell you during our weekend in New Orleans, but you skipped out before I got the chance.”
She held up her hands in a “stop” motion. “Is Gran in on this?”
“She, um... yes.”
Her wide eyes grew even more enormous.
“Here’s the deal, Hope. If you’re really happy in Chicago, the girls and I can move up there. I can find a law practice easily enough. Jobs and places aren’t home. People are. And you... you feel like home to me.”
Her arms dropped, and so did her jaw. “What... what are you saying?”
“What I wanted to tell you in New Orleans, damn it! I love you,Hope. I want a life with you.” It took my entire air supply to say that—and then I couldn’t breathe until she answered.
She took so long my vision started to grow fuzzy.
“Matt, I know you’ll always love Christine,” she said. “And don’t get me wrong—that’s beautiful, and you should. But... the thing is, I don’t want to be second best.”
Was that her only objection? Relief flooded my veins. “You aren’t. You never have been. You never could be.”
“But...”
“No buts about it. Yes, I loved Christine. But loving her doesn’t mean I can’t love you just as much—or maybe even more.”
Uncertainty clouded her eyes.
I leaned forward. “I loved Zoey to death when she was born. I couldn’t imagine ever loving another child as much as I loved her, but then we had Sophie, and I fell head over heels all over again. And any children you and I have together—well, it would be just like that. Love isn’t something you run out of. It’s not a finite resource. The more you give, the more you have to give. I’ve had more experience loving now than I did when I married Christine. And when you project it out over the course of our lifetimes, that means I’m going to love you more.”
