I pause on the porch, my hand hovering over the doorknob to the house. Taking a deep breath, I push it open and step inside. It’s quiet—too quiet. Everyone’s still asleep. The stillness feels heavy, almost like it’s holding its breath, waiting for me to decide what to do next.
I tiptoe into the kitchen, my feet silent on the worn floorboards. There’s no way I’m going back to bed. My mind’s spinning too fast, caught somewhere between confusion and heartbreak.
I find the coffee, scoop some into the machine, and watch it brew like it holds the answers to what I’m looking for. When it’s ready, I pour myself a mug and settle into one of the island chairs, wrapping my hands around the warm ceramic and debating on whether I want to throw the mug against the wall out of anger towards my caffeine addiction which is the whole reason I’m sitting here instead of back in Wilder’s warm bed, waking up to his cock.
The house stays quiet as the sun creeps higher into the sky.My thoughts churn, loud and chaotic, but I can’t make sense of them. Wilder. Willow. The storm. The way he looked at me—like I’d stolen something from him by meeting her, even though I hadn’t meant to.
I understand having secrets you’re not ready to reveal and would have preferred he’d told me about Willow on his own time, but fate had other plans and those must have included a mistake that pulled us apart. My cheeks warms as I reach up and brush it gently with the pad of my fingers, realizing I’m crying.
Fucking, shit.
I grab a napkin and dab at my eye, trying to pull it together. It’d been just a weekend, there’s no reason for me to be getting this emotional. But the pain tied to thinking about the loss that Willow and Wilder endures feels too fresh and raw and the realization that I’d been falling for him makes it even harder.
And what did Cody mean by not telling Ryder that I was with Wilder?
At 6 o’clock sharp, the front door creaks open, breaking the silence and my spiraling thoughts. I glance up to see Ryder stumbling in, his hair a mess and his shirt streaked with dirt. He freezes when he spots me sitting there, then straightens up like he’s been caught sneaking in past curfew despite this being his home that I’m staying in.
“Oh, hey Teagan. You’re up early.”
My eyes narrow as I watch my future brother-in-law avert his gaze and stroll towards me. I’ve been around plenty of liars and cheaters before, yet I'm baffled how I could have missed the signs with Ryder. Is he just enjoying his last nights as a bachelor with his friends? Or is there something more going on here?
“I’ve been up since five,” I respond carefully, studying his every movement.
He nods and walks toward the coffee pot, grabbing a mug and filling it to the top.
“What did you do last night?” I ask.
“Went out with the boys,” he says, smiling. “We crashed at Frankie’s house.”
I nod, blowing on my coffee before waiting until he takes another sip, and his mouth is full for me to attack.
“I spent the night with Wilder Cameron,” I state neutrally, not entirely sure what kind of a response I’m expecting. I’d hoped he wouldn’t react at all. Maybe say he has no idea who that is, but in my gut, I had a feeling all along that Ryder knows exactly who Wilder is. That their pasts might be more intricately connected than I ever hoped to know.
He chokes as soon as the words leave my lips, and spits coffee all over the countertop. Quickly he reaches for the napkins next to me and swipes at the mess, cleaning it up while he pounds his chest, attempting to clear his throat and not make too much noise to wake up the girls.
I set down my mug calmly and lower my voice while I wait for him to finish.
“If I ever hear that you’ve touched another woman since you’ve gotten with Shawna, I will personally come down to Lonestar Junction and castrate you. And if you’ve been fucking around this weekend, I’ll find out and tell her to call the whole wedding off now. Don’t fuck with me or my sister.”
He finishes wiping the counter and nods. “I’d never do that to Shawna. I’ve never cheated on her. We’ve had a few, fun, wild nights celebrating my last nights as a single guy, but I’m not a cheater.”
Just participated in Mercedes cheating on Wilder, I guess.
I nod my head, and then slide off the chair, prepared to pack up my belongings and head to Houston earlier than planned because now that I know why Wilder was uncomfortable dropping me off here, and what he’s processing with the loss of Willow’s mother, there’s no reason for me to stay anywherearound Ryder.
“Good. Keep it that way for the rest of your lives. I'll see you in two weeks at the wedding,” I say. I turn to leave, but before I can, there’s another knock at the front door.
Oh, no...
I hurry to open it before Ryder can reach it and crack it open, shielding the inside of the house from the view of the outside.
Wilder, just as I suspected.
“Hi," I greet, cautiously.
“Can you talk for a few minutes? Please, Teagan?” he asks, his eyes desperately searching mine and full of remorse now. I open the door a little wider to step out, but I’m too slow.
“Who's at the door this early?” Ryder asks as he comes up beside me, his eyes widening when he notices who has shown up at his front doorsteps.
