I shake my head. “No, you didn’t do anything,” I say, heart leaping into my throat. “You’ve actually been amazing. Better than I expected. Then I…deserve.”
Ford’s brows furrow as he stares at me. “You deserve the world, Olivia. And I want to be the man that gives that to you. If I haven’t made that clear enough, then I will.” He pauses for a moment, the frown deepening, and sighs. “I’ll move closer to you. Quit.”
“What?” My brows shoot up in surprise, stomach flipping. “No, that’s not?—”
“You said you want to move closer to your sister, anyway. And to make this work, I should probably look at doing something a little less…time consuming.”
My heart stutters, crashing inside my chest. “Ford?—”
“Unless you’re about to tell me you don’t want to continue this anymore. That despite tonight, you still want the annulment?”
Bile rises in my throat. Uncertainty hits me full force, colliding full force with all the conflicting emotions curling deep inside me.
I have to tell him. I can’t keep holding this back. He deserves to know, before he gets too invested.
It might already be too late for that.
“I’ve been keeping something from you,” I start, voice shaky. “And it might change how you look at me. No, I think it definitely will. Because it will change how we go forward. Which is okay. Whatever you choose, it’s okay.”
Confusion swims in his eyes as he inches closer. “Are you about to tell me you’ve got another husband out there I don’t know about?”
“That might actually be easier,” I reply, hands trembling as I put them in my lap. “But no. It’s not another husband. There is no boyfriend or fiancé or man in my life. Not technically.”
Ford blows out a breath and runs a hand down his face. “You had me worried for a second there, Olivia. I might be a lover, but I don’t wreck homes.”
“That is good to know,” I tell him with a shaky laugh. “It might be a little more complicated than that. I, uh, have?—”
More shouts sound beyond the trees, turning from fun to blood curdling.
Ford shoots up, on his feet before I can think or move. “I have to check that out, I’m sorry.”
I shake my head and stumble to my feet. “No, no. That’s okay. We can?—”
More screams, and then a shout for help.
Ford grabs my hand and together, we make our way through the trees, leaving our things behind. I don’t even think twice about my purse or our blanket. All thoughts of Christopher are tucked away, concern replacing the terrible sickness curdling in my stomach.
When the tree line breaks, we come to Lake Woodbridge and the small dock. The early morning sunrise allows us to see everything in stark, sickening clearness.
Someone swims to the edge of the water, another person floating alongside them. From here, I can’t make out if the second person is unconscious or not. But there’s definitely blood. A group of people in towels stand at the edge shaking, while others from the early fishing group gather by the bank.
“That looks like one of the staff,” Ford says, eyes locked on the pair. “You stay here. I’m going to see if he needs help.”
Before I can respond, he presses a quick kiss to the top of my head and releases my hand to rush down and help the gathered people. I remain locked in place, heart hammering, as I watch him. From here, his voice is low, and I can’t catch anything he says.
Part of me feels disappointed I didn’t have the guts to tell him the truth. All night, I’ve put it off out of fear, because now that I’m here, I don’t want this to end.
And yet, as I watch him help get the swimmer onto the shore, as he and the other staff member of the ranch perform CPR, call it in, the disappointment disappears and is instead replaced with respect.
He could have ignored it. Could have played the scream off. It could have meant anything.
But he didn’t. He jumped right into action and now, someone is alive.
I can’t be disappointed in a man that would drop everything—even me—to help a person in need. It’s admirable.
And it makes the guilt worse.
NINE
