Letting Go (Vista Falls #3) (3 page)

Sage watched Colt throw back a drink before she sighed. “Fine, maybe I was a little hard on him. I’ll go make nice.”

***

Colt felt Sage’s presence behind him before she said a word. But he wasn’t interested in another tongue lashing, so he continued to check his phone, pretending she wasn’t there.

She stepped up beside him, planting her hands on her hips. “So that’s how it is now? You’re just going to ignore me?”

“I think you’ve said all you have to say, haven’t you?”

She made a grab for his phone then opened his black jacket and slipped the device into his pocket. “No, I haven’t.” She smoothed his lapels before adjusting his white rose boutonniere. “You and I were the best of friends once.”

The four of them had been inseparable in high school, and when Sage was having problems with Wes and needed a guy’s perspective, she’d called him. In fact, Colt had learned she was pregnant even before Wes had.

“I know.” His tone softened when he scanned her strapless, beaded gown. “And who thought then we’d be standing here now?” He took her hands and kissed them because no matter what she’d said, he couldn’t stay mad at her.

“I meant what I said earlier,” she said, her eyes filling with tears as she inclined her head toward where her husband and best friend were still talking. “I do love you, Colt. But I love Gabby too, and I don’t want to see her get hurt.”

“I get that.”

“But she’s not the only one you hurt.” She sniffled, withdrawing her hands from his. “You hurt me too.”

“How did I hurt you?” He hated to see a woman cry, and tonight he’d been the cause of two women breaking down.

“You didn’t just leave Gabby without a word twice. You left me too. I thought we were friends.”

Colt had been so anxious to get the hell out of Vista Falls all those years ago, to leave all the bad memories behind, he hadn’t taken the time to say good-bye to any of his friends. No wonder he’d received a lukewarm reaction when he returned home over a year ago to reopen the business. Leaving a second time had obviously hurt more people than he’d thought.

“I’m sorry.” He’d already accepted that he’d be saying that a lot over the next several weeks if he expected to make amends with everyone. “You’re right. I should have reached out to you, but with everything Wes was going through after high school, I guess I was just trying to be there for him.”

“You knew I was having a baby,” she whispered, her voice cracking with emotion. “You didn’t even call to see how I was after the baby was born.”

Colt felt another wave of guilt. That had been a lousy thing to do given how close they’d once been. “I guess I thought it was better if I didn’t know.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I was afraid you wouldn’t want Wes to know, so if I called you—and believe me, I thought about it a lot—I assumed you’d ask me to keep anything you told me between us.”

“And you didn’t think you could do that?”

“I wasn’t sure I had the right to,” he said, rubbing the stubble on his jaw. “Wes was a wreck, Sage. Anything I could have said or done to make him feel better, I probably would have. Even if that meant breaking a promise to you.” He shrugged. “I wouldn’t have wanted to do that, but it would have been tempting, so I kept my distance so I wouldn’t break your confidence.”

She shook her head slowly. “I guess I can understand that. If our situations had been reversed, I would have done anything for Gabby too.”

He’d known this discussion would eventually circle back to his ex-girlfriend.

“Why did you sleep with her again?” Sage asked. “Especially when you knew you didn’t intend to stick around. That was so unfair.”

“Gabby was the reason I couldn’t stick around.” He hadn’t intended to admit that, but it was true. “Being back in town was tolerable, even with all the bad memories, but being with Gabby and not being able to give her what she needed, I couldn’t handle that.”

“Then why are you back now?”

“I’ve spent the past year working through some things.” He scooted back on the bar stool so he and Sage were eye to eye. “I’ve thought a lot about my family, Gabby…” His gaze hit the floor before he forced his attention back to Sage. “Those first few weeks I was back in Houston, I realized something.”

“What?”

“I didn’t belong there anymore.” That realization had come with panic because that was the only place he’d ever felt he belonged. “Wes was gone. Most of our employees, who I’d considered family, were gone. There was nothing left there for me.”

“So what did you do?”

“I went on a couple of different outdoor expeditions. Camped out in the woods for a few weeks at a stretch.”

Sage smiled. “I remember you used to say the woods were your church.”

“They still are. It gave me a lot of time to think, being by myself all that time. It was what I needed to get my head on straight.”

“And?”

He opened his arms. “I’m back, aren’t I? This is where I belong. Good or bad, Vista Falls is home.”

“I know you have a lot of bad memories here, Colt,” she said, resting her palm against his cheek. “But you have some good ones too, and you could make even more if you’re serious about sticking around.”

“I can’t keep running, can I?” He’d told himself that he hadn’t been running when he moved to Houston, that he was building a new life for himself. But with all of the unfinished business he’d left behind in Vista Falls, he knew he’d been lying to himself.

“Just do me a favor?”

“Sure.” He only hoped that favor wouldn’t involve staying away from Gabby, because he didn’t think he could do that. Not even for Sage.

“Sort through all that old baggage before you ask for another chance with Gabby.” Before he could respond, she raised her hand to silence him. “Her divorce took a lot out of her, though she’d never admit it. It made her feel like a failure, and she began to question whether she’d ever have the family she wanted.”

Family.
That word sent a bolt of fear through Colt. Whenever he thought of a future with Gabby, he imagined being her boyfriend. Could he really see himself as her husband, the father of her children? That would, of course, be what she wanted eventually, but could he be a family man… given the example he’d grown up with?

“So please,” Sage whispered, leaning in to kiss his cheek, “think before you act this time.”

***

“We need to talk,” Sage said, sitting down beside Gabby at the now-empty head table.

“No, you need to go find that handsome husband of yours,” Gabby said, looking around for Wes. “He must be dying to throw you over his shoulder and get you out of here by now.”

Sage waved off her friend’s concern. “We have the rest of our lives together. I just need a few minutes with you.”

Gabby didn’t want to hear another warning about how Colt would ruin her life if she let him. She already knew that, and being reminded only hurt her more.

“We can talk when you get back from your honeymoon,” Gabby said, reaching for her glass of champagne. “Here’s to Curaçao.” She winked.” And hoping you never have to leave your room.”

“I know what you’re doing,” Sage said, taking Gabby’s champagne and setting it down. “You’re trying to distract me, and it won’t work.”

“Can’t blame a girl for trying,” Gabby muttered, kicking her high heels off under the table.

It reminded her of the last time she’d taken off her shoes… and clothes. God, what had she been thinking, throwing herself at Colt like that? Sure, she had been mad and frustrated and maybe a little hot, but that didn’t mean she had to humiliate herself just to make a point.

Not that Colt had seemed embarrassed on her behalf. Judging by his reaction, he was anything but. Aroused? Definitely. Mortified? Hardly.

“You seem off,” Sage said, studying her carefully. “Care to tell me what happened when you and Colt disappeared earlier?”

“No!”

Sage grinned. “Ah ha! So something did happen. I knew it.” She curled her fingers, demanding Gabby give it up. “Tell me everything.” When Gabby downed her champagne instead of responding, Sage pouted. “I’m not leaving until you tell me. So unless you want to be the reason I’m too tired to give my husband a wedding night to remember—”

“Okay, okay,” Gabby said, rolling her eyes. “You want to know what happened? I’ll tell you. I stripped and told him to take me. He politely declined. End of story.”

Sage gaped. Half laughing, half scoffing, she shook her head. “Let me get this straight. You propositioned Colt, and he turned you down?”

“Something like that.” It didn’t matter that he’d been undoubtedly tempted by her offer. It was still a blow to the ego.

“That doesn’t sound like Colt,” Sage said, her eyes drifting to the man in question. He was now laughing it up with Wes as though he didn’t have a care in the world. “Are you sure that’s how it went down?”

“He basically told me that he wanted me but not while I was still questioning whether I could trust him.”

“Interesting,” Sage said, tapping a manicured fingertip against her glossy lips.

“What’s so interesting about it?” Gabby asked, reaching for the bottle of champagne the waiter had left on the table at the request of the groom. She refilled her glass as she glared at Colt. Why did he have to look so happy while she was miserable?

“Well, think about it,” Sage said, leaning in. “If he just wanted sex, he wouldn’t have hesitated to take you up on your offer. It sounds like he wants something more.”

“Well, he can’t have anything more.” Gabby knew she sounded like a petulant child, but she couldn’t help it. Not only had she lost her prospect of a healthy relationship in Dave, she’d also lost out on a chance for a little fun with Colt.

“Are you sure about that?”

“Weren’t you the one telling him not more than twenty minutes ago that he couldn’t have me?” Gabby drained half of her glass. “Now what? You’re on his side?”

“No, not on his side,” Sage said, shaking her head. “You know I’ll always want what’s best for you and do anything I can to protect you. But…”

“But what?”

“What if Colt is the best thing for you?”

“I can’t allow myself to think that.” She was tempted to cover her ears so she wouldn’t have to hear anymore, but that would have definitely been crossing the line with twenty of their closest friends looking on.

“It’s too soon to say for sure,” Sage said, “but after talking to him, I think maybe he’s changed, Gab. I know for a fact he feels guilty for the way he treated you.”

“Good! He should.”

Sage leaned in and kissed her friend’s cheek. “You know I love you, right?”

“Yeah, sure,” Gabby said, fighting back tears.

“Then I have to ask one little thing of you. Don’t do anything crazy ‘til I get back?”

That was one promise Gabby couldn’t make. A hell of a lot could happen in a week. Especially where her ex was concerned.

Colt showed up at Gabby’s hotel room door the next morning with hot coffee and fresh pastries, hoping it would be the ticket to getting his foot in the door. But not even the aroma of fresh brew could wipe the scowl off her pretty face.

He chuckled but tried to keep a straight face when she frowned as she opened the door. “I guess I don’t have to ask how you’re feeling this morning.”

She eyed the take-out cup. “That better be for me.”

He handed it over, knowing it would be the coffee or his life. “You bet.”

She turned her back on him, but she didn’t slam the door in his face. He took that as an invitation to step inside. Her blond hair was tousled, her face free of makeup, and that sexy body was all wrapped up in a nondescript white robe that hit her knees. She shouldn’t have looked so hot, but all he could think about was how much he’d like to see her like this every morning.

“Guess what else I have?” He held up the white bag, hoping that would get her attention.

“What?” she asked, looking curious as she sniffed the air. “Is that…?”

He grinned. “Chocolate croissants.” She made a grab for the bag, but he held it just out of her reach. “Not so fast. Before I give it up, you have to do something for me.”

“What’s that?”

“Go for a swim with me?”

She eyed her open suitcase on the luggage rack in the corner. “What if I told you I didn’t bring a swimsuit?”

“We never let that stop us before.”

“Shut up.” After setting her coffee down, she snatched the bag. There was a triumphant gleam in her eye as she poked her nose inside the bag, inhaling deeply. “For trying to blackmail me with my very favorite treat, I should eat both of these.”

“You wouldn’t do that.”

“How do you know?” she asked, extracting one and taking a big bite.

He smiled as her eyes drifted closed. She’d always been a sucker for a good sugar high, and he intended to use that to his advantage in his ploy to win her back. Unlike most of the girls he’d dated, Gabby was a simple, small-town girl. She wasn’t impressed by fancy cars or expensive jewelry. Give her a blanket in the back of a pickup truck on a clear night, and she could watch the stars for hours, reminiscing, dreaming aloud, making love…

“What are you thinking about?” she asked, licking chocolate off her full lips.

“Honestly?” He’d promised himself there would be no holding back with her this time, so he told her the uncensored truth. “I was thinking about all the times we made love in the back of my pickup, under the stars, watching the sun come up.”

Her eyes softened when she said, “It’s a miracle we didn’t end up in the same boat as Sage and Wes, isn’t it?”

“You mean pregnant?” He’d thought of that dozens of times over the years. Even though he still wasn’t ready to be a father, seeing how much having his son in his life had changed Wes had made Colt realize how amazing it would be to have that connection with someone.

“Yeah.”

“I heard about your miscarriage. I’m sorry.” If the rumours he’d heard were true, the miscarriage had been the catalyst for her divorce.

“Thanks.” She sank back on the bed, polishing off the last bite of her pastry before passing the bag back to him. “But I guess it happened for a reason. My marriage wasn’t…”