She hadn’t felt the need to tell Trenton about her past before now, but if the secret could come between them somehow, Andie would rather tell Trenton than lose him over a lie about her past.
Sparks of fear flared up in her gut as she considered it further. If it came down to telling him or losing him, she’d tell him. Men like Trenton McGrath were few and far between, and no matter how furious Richard or even Emmitt might be with her, Andie refused to lose the man who’d won her heart.
Chapter 18
Trenton leaned into his chair among the small crowd of tonight’s gathering, eyes set on the mock stage up front.
“We have just one more trick in our show tonight,” Dominique said while casting a glance up at her assistant.
Andie gave her a nod, then prompted her with a few hints. “It’s the one…”
“Oh, yeah,” the little girl blurted while lifting her magic stick high in the air. “It’s the one you’ve all been waiting for—the disappearing act.”
Gasps made their way over the crowd.
“Watch as my assistant steps inside this…um…”
“Ordinary,” Andie whispered.
“This ordinary black box.” She swung the door wide open and motioned for Andie to enter.
Trenton had probably been smiling like a fool in love for the duration of the show. Because that’s just what he was. Madly in love with a woman he hadn’t even known when the season started. Enough that the sale of his ranch was officially on hold.
Andie put her hands on either side of the box once she was inside, then theatrically brought them to rest crisscross over her chest. As if she had no intention to move even a muscle.
“Stand very, very still,” Dominique said as she pushed the cabinet door closed. She turned to the audience next, flung the length of her hair over one shoulder, and fluffed her cape a bit over her arms.
“Now, this will only work if I say the magic words and tap the door three times. Are you guys ready?”
“We sure are,” one voice hollered.
“Oh, yeah,” her father cheered.
“Go, Dominque,” her brothers encouraged.
A draft blew over the patio as the little girl uttered the magic words. Ceremoniously, she tapped the door three times with her magic stick, then twisted the small knob to reveal the outcome.
Nothing but black walls and shadows.
Gasps echoed over the small audience. And then came the claps. “Bravo,” someone called.
Trenton joined in on the round of applause, a knot of discomfort pressing at him from deep inside. He knew Andie was behind the secret compartment at the back of the cabinet—heck, he’d played the assistant a time or two himself andbeen the magician in his youth as well. But that didn’t stop the upset that stirred within him at the sight of her sudden absence. The fear of Andie vanishing one day, just up and leaving him and The Homestead behind, had been a very real one.
He knew enough about abandonment issues to know that the fear likely stemmed from his parentless childhood. At least, being raised by someone who was not his parent, and never having a clear picture of who they were.
But this train of thought led Trenton to the same place each and every time: back to their conversation on the porch swing. When she’d nearly sworn to him that she had no plans to go anywhere other than where she was. That this was where her life would be. It was exactly what he’d wanted to hear. Wanted to believe. Yet the odd sense that there was more behind her words, a secret he wasn’t privy to, continued to haunt him.
And that wasn’t the only thing that caused concern. There was still the unanswered question about Milt selling half of the inn, only to hand the money right back to the buyers.
Stop trying to psyche yourself out, Trenton.He’d finally found an incredible woman. One who wasn’t just floating through town. One that—despite her very different upbringing—seemed to value the same things he did.
Dominique reversed the spell, and her lovely assistant reappeared in all of her hazel-eyed splendor. Trenton’s heart skipped two full beats as her gaze found his among the crowd.Tell her you love her,a thought came.
Trenton joined in on the applause, adding a few exuberant whistles for effect. Perhaps the time had come to really tell her how he felt. It would be a good way to get past his fear, putting himself out there once and for all.
The idea stuck with him as the night’s entertainment came to a close. Even as Don thanked the group for coming out, listed the following day’s activities, and encouraged guests to grab some of Mable’s treats from the kitchen, Trenton dared himself to speak up and tell Andie how he felt.
“We still planning on that movie at my place?” Andie asked after they’d said their goodbyes.
