Amy frowned. If for some reason she needed to leave Providence, both Kallie and Ben would be hurt.
“I still wish I could make things easier for him.”
Hope hugged her again. “Sometimes the only thing you can do is pray.”
* * *
Ben parkedbehind the repair shop and turned off the engine of his truck. He made no move to get out, letting the darkness envelop him. Just as it had his heart almost a year ago.
He’d enjoyed taking care of Kallie tonight. He had almost been able to pretend she was his daughter, and he was still part of a family. Allowing himself to think like that probably wasn’t healthy, but Kallie’s sweetness made it so easy.
Amy’s words stung, but he knew she didn’t mean them maliciously. Forgiveness was easy. Forgetting wasn’t. He couldn’t forget the night his life fell apart, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t pick up any of the pieces and put them back together.
He didn’t know how long he sat in his truck, but the chime of a text notification startled him.
He read the text from Amy.
I know my words hurt you, and I’m truly sorry. Please tell me what I can do to make it up to you. Thank you for taking care of Kallie tonight. I appreciate it.
If only someone could take away his pain. He’d reached the point where he was ready to let them. But no one could take it away. He needed to be willing to let it go. He wasn’t ready to move on by any means, but maybe Paige had a point. He needed to make an effort to live a little.
He’d involved his heart a little tonight. That hadn’t turned out so well. Maybe, he needed to focus on things that didn’t involve his heart.
He picked up his phone but didn’t text Amy back. Instead, he typed a group text to Robert and Jake asking if they wanted to go four-wheeling and target practicing Friday night. He paused before hitting send.
It was after ten. Robert was undoubtedly asleep with his phone by his bed in case of an emergency. He shouldn’t disturb him.
He’d send the message in the morning.
Maybe.
If I don’t change my mind by then.
* * *
A headache greetedAmy the next morning, a lingering effect of last night’s tears. A lack of response to her text confirmed Ben was more upset than he let on.
When she spotted the toys Ben brought over, she wanted to be angry that he felt the need to buy toys for her daughter, but she couldn’t bring herself to say anything. She’d already hurt him enough.
Focusing on her work, she mulled over the best way to get Robert and Jake to agree to the auction.
When Robert walked through the front door whistling an unrecognizable tune, Amy fought the urge to bolt to the restroom.
“Good morning, Amy. How are you?”
“Fine.”
She tried to match his cheerfulness but apparently failed, because he sat on the corner of her desk and stared at her.
“What’s the matter?”
“Nothing.”
His eyes narrowed. “I don’t believe you.”
If she didn’t respond, would he walk away? Probably not.
“I said something I regret to Ben last night. I didn’t mean to; it just came out wrong.”
