"There she is, the new representation," Jagger crows when Willow enters the barn.
She glares at him. "You're so annoying."
"I told you, you were going to represent him," he boasts.
"Jagger, shut up," I interject.
He eyes me with disdain. "Don't tell me your soft spot for her is back."
Another round of guilt assails me. As much as Willow and I hid our relationship, he did always allege I took her side too often over his.
He glances between us. "You two are super testy today. I'll see you at eight, Wyatt," he says, then disappears.
Willow steps closer, and my pulse starts to rise.
"Hey," I cautiously offer.
She looks at me, opens her mouth, then snaps it shut.
It's the same look she'd give me whenever I'd go out with Jagger and leave her at home. Back then, I had the best of all worlds.Or so I thought. Today, I'd give anything to make different choices and stay home with her every night, even if it meant the Cartwrights knowing about us.
I force myself not to touch her. "What's wrong?"
She shakes her head, and her expression hardens. "Nothing. Can you go to my dad's office with me? We have to go through contracts."
"Willow, I don't know if we should be doing this."
"Doing what? This is nothing more than a business arrangement," she states, stabbing me in the heart.
I study her.
"Don't look at me like that."
I glance around to make sure nobody's around and step closer, closing the gap between us. I put my hand on her cheek. "Listen, I know?—"
She ducks out of my grasp, lecturing, "The only way this is going to work is if we keep it professional. I'm going to settle my debt to Jax, and you're going to make good on your debt to me. That's it. Understand?"
Reality sinks in. I open my mouth to speak, but she cuts me off.
"Please, don't even try. I don't need this to be harder than it is." Her eyes plead with me to follow her wishes.
I cave. "Okay."
"Thank you. Can we go look at the contracts now?" she questions.
My heart sinks. "Sure."
We leave the barn and go back to the house, walking in silence. We pass a couple of her siblings, nieces, and nephews before we get to be alone in the office. She shuts the door and then sits down in her dad's chair.
I sit across from her and jokingly say, "So official." It comes out awkward, and I shift in my seat.
She nods with a sad expression. "Yeah, it is."
A world full of hurt and regrets blooms between us.
Wanting to move past the discomfort, I clear my throat and ask, "Okay, what have you got for me?"
She opens a folder and slides the first set of papers toward me. "This is a contract for you and Jax. Do you want me to go through each point?"
