“I was waiting for you to trust me again.”
That took the wind right out of my sails. If I was honest, trust wasn’t an issue between us. I knew that if Ridge said he was going to show up, he would be there barring an emergency. If I called, he would come. If I needed something, he would provide. I knew those things in the same way I knew how to breathe. It was effortless, natural, and unquestioning.
“The thing is, I do trust you,” I said. Ridge looked as though the words would have knocked him over if he had been on his feet.
“Do you mean that?”
“Yes. I didn’t realize it until just now, but there is zero doubt that you would show up for Liam and me. No matter what, you would be there for us - both of us. I know that without a single ounce of hesitation.”
“I would also never betray you, Vi. You have to know that when…”
I turned my hand in his and squeezed. “I know that. I know that it was a damn mistake, one we paid dearly for. One that I don’t think you would ever make again, considering. I don’t know why I didn’t tell you before. It’s all been simmering near the surface. Maybe that’s why I got scared and needed a reminder of what I might lose.” I shook my head as if I could clear the rest of the cobwebs that were in the way. “I said ‘yes’ to a date with another man because I wasn’t sure how to tell you that I wanted that man to be you.”
“That was dumb. I think we should work on your communication skills, sweets.”
“That’s not a bad idea. Maybe we should work on things with a professional.”
“Like a marriage counselor?”
“Well, we’re not married, but yeah.”
“In my heart, we were never divorced, Vi.”
“Ridge, can we go home?”
“I’ll take you back to your apartment, but our home isn’t ready just yet.”
“What does that mean?”
“You’ll see soon,” he said to me as he stood and held his hand out for me to take after he tossed a wad of bills onto the table. We hadn’t even managed to order a meal yet, but I guessed Ridge was making up for the reservation we used up as well as the drama we’d obviously caused.
When we got back to the apartment, I was surprised to find a note on the kitchen counter. DD took the baby to my parents’ house to hang out with Drake and my dad for the night. Mom went to visit her sister in Alabama. She and Aunt Janice had been estranged for more than a decade, though no one knew why. I guess with the rest of her family mad at her, she felt the need to go fix at least one relationship.
“DD took Liam to my dad’s house.”
“I know.”
I turned in surprise to see Ridge smiling at me as he reached behind himself to lock the door.
“How exactly do you know this?”
“Well, you just told me, but also DD informed me of her plan earlier when she told me all about the date my wife went on.”
“She ratted me out?” I asked, shocked that my bestie would do so and yet not shocked at all. I knew she had been team: Get Back Together with Ridge as of late. I guess this was her version of a push in his direction.
“She did, and I have to say, I’m incredibly thankful. This dress was wasted on that asshole, sweets.”
“In all fairness, he only saw me for a few minutes before you interrupted.”
“Good. He didn’t deserve the view and couldn’t in a million years deserve the woman who goes with it.”
“I don’t suppose you could point me to someone who does?” I teased.
“Right here, baby.” Ridge shot back. He didn’t need to say anything else as he pulled me into his embrace and kissed me like he did on the first night we met. It left me breathless and wanting the way he always did in the past. “God, I missed your lips.”
“Is that all you missed?”
“Not by a long shot, sweets. I have to get you to your bedroom to show you the rest, though.”
