Page 32 of Aisle Be The Groom (Bristlecone Springs #1)

OZZIE

G ray tightened his hand on mine and drew me to a halt on the porch. I’d slept fitfully last night and had been too tired to speak much since waking up. He must have known I needed some space without me asking because he hadn’t pushed for conversation. What was there to say? I was hurt by finding out about the inheritance. Why had Gray kept that secret from me? Had I known I would have been able to put things into perspective much earlier.

Who made that kind of stipulation for an inheritance anyway?

I was disappointed in Gray, which was a new feeling. Since we started going out together, he’d been perfect in every single way. Then he let me down, a good reminder I shouldn’t put him on a pedestal. Our relationship wouldn’t stand a chance if I didn’t see him as an equal—human. Things might have gone well between us, but Emma’s revelation last night dispelled the rose-tinted glasses through which I’d viewed our relationship.

We would have fights. We would require space away from each other sometimes. We would need to work on our relationship. There were no shortcuts, even if he was a good man.

“Ozzie, are you upset with me?” he asked softly. His face was haggard in the midmorning sunlight, his usual easy smile replaced by a grim line. He had smudges under his eyes. He hadn’t gotten much sleep either, and not just because I’d had to wake him several times to check on him.

I frowned. “You should be in bed. You’re not resting like the doctor said.”

He raised my hand and pressed a kiss to the back of it. “I’ll be fine, but I need to know. Are you upset?”

I opened my mouth to brush what happened under the rug like I would have done with Carter to keep the peace. But why should I have to? That hadn’t worked with Carter and me.

“I don’t know what to think.” I blinked rapidly to ward off the tears threatening to fall. “Maybe I’m upset a little, but mostly, I’m disappointed in you. I feel like you let me down by not telling me the truth. Why didn’t you?”

He squeezed my hand. “I know, baby. There’s no excuse for it, except I was in an awkward position. For one, I thought it was insulting to assume that’s the reason he wanted to marry you, especially when I got to know you and saw how sweet, funny, adorable, and incredibly sexy you are. Even though I thought it, I didn’t want to believe that my son would use someone so good in such a cruel way. I also admit I didn’t want to seem as if I was using the situation to steal you for myself. Somewhere in the whole mess, I was trying to be a good father.”

“I still wish you would have said something.”

“I’m sorry.” Gray rubbed my upper arms, looking serious—worried even—as if he thought what he’d done wrong would influence the way I saw him and us. Was he worried that he might lose me because of this? Nobody had ever cared whether I walked away.

Smiling, I nodded. “This isn’t exactly a bad thing. I looked up to you so much like you’re some sort of god. I put you up on this pedestal. That was wrong of me. Now I know we’ll have tiffs. You’ll disappoint me sometimes, as I will you, but as long as we can talk about it and be open with each other, we’ll get through it.”

“You never have to worry about me taking your feelings for granted, Oz. If I ever do anything that upsets you, I want to know so I can do better by you because you deserve nothing but the best, baby.”

I wrinkled my nose. “You keep saying all the right things like that, and I’ll always let you off the hook.”

“No, don’t let me. I don’t want to take advantage of you ever.”

“Okay, then, I won’t.”

“Good. I just wish I could go with you today.”

To the airport to pick up Carter.

Gray wasn’t allowed to drive yet because of his concussion, so Matty volunteered to take me because I wasn’t comfortable driving the unfamiliar route. I preferred confronting Carter on my own. Only a fraction of what I had to say to him was about Gray and cheating on him. The rest was all about him and me.

“It’s better this way,” I said. “But I’m sure Carter will want to talk to you too. You can say whatever you want to then.”

“I’ll still worry until you get home.”

“And I’ll worry unless you get back into bed and rest.”

Gray’s lips stretched into a small smile. “Ozzie, you’re so good to me.”

Wait, wasn’t that my line?

He pressed his mouth to mine. My first reaction was to pull away in case anyone saw us, but we didn’t have to hide anymore. I shifted closer to Gray and wrapped a hand around his neck.

“Ahem.”

I did jerk back then. Emma, her chin hitched high and shooting daggers at me, stepped out onto the porch. I resisted the urge to hide in Gray’s arms.

No more using him as a shield from the world.

No more having him protect me.

No more waiting for him to stand up for me.

I had to stand by him through thick and thin.

“You can’t even wait for Carter to find out the truth before acting out in public,” Emma snapped.

Gray sighed. “Emma, we’re hardly in public. We’re in our home.”

“Don’t get it twisted, Gray, or have you forgotten that half of this house and the property belong to me?”

Oh god, how could I have been so dense? With Gray asking Emma for a divorce, his assets, including his beloved land, would be divvied.

“Gray,” I said.

“That’s nothing for you to worry about.” He squeezed my hand. “Talk to Carter. Focus on that.”

A truck rumbled on the gravel, and Matty drove his Ford up to the porch.

“You ready, Ozzie?” he called.

I nodded. “Go back to bed, Gray. Promise me.” I held up my pinkie.

He linked our fingers. “I promise.”

Emma made a sound of disgust and walked down the steps. “I should go to the airport as well. Carter will need the support of someone who actually cares about him.”

My heart lurched. Emma couldn’t be there when I talked to Carter. She would manipulate the discussion. Carter, I could manage, but not the two of them.

“You’re not going, Emma,” Gray said sternly. “This has nothing to do with you. Let them work it out on their own.”

“On their own? And haven’t you influenced everything that’s about to happen today by sleeping with him?”

Gray mumbled under his breath, asking for strength. What was I supposed to do? Emma wasn’t being unreasonable. She was worried about me hurting her son, as any good mother would be. But that didn’t mean I wanted her at the airport.

“Mom, you coming along won’t help the situation,” Matty said. “If I didn’t have to drive, I wouldn’t even be there. Only two people are in that relationship, and they have to find a way to end things their way. If Carter needs you, he can talk to you when he gets home.”

I could have kissed Matty. Emma’s face turned red. She gave me a nasty look, then strutted back inside. The door shut with a bang that made me wince.

“Come on, Ozzie,” Matty said. “I’m not fond of this whole situation either, but we gotta make the best of it.”

I cupped Gray’s face to draw strength from him one last time, then hurried down the steps and climbed into the truck. In the rearview mirror, I watched Gray on the porch until he was just a spot on the horizon. With a sigh, I sank back against the seat and checked my phone. Carter’s flight was on time.

Matty wasn’t a talkative person, and as I’d expected, he turned on the radio, and country music filled the cab. The soulful songs and jaunty rhythms did nothing to dispel the ache in my chest and the nervous flutter in my belly. I’d never broken up with someone, and certainly not with someone I’d been about to marry.

Carter couldn’t be all that disappointed, though. The man had abandoned me in an unfamiliar town. If he genuinely loved me, he would have been in Bristlecone Springs with me, planning our wedding.

Thank god he went away so I could spend time with Gray and learn what it means to be cherished by someone.

The short time I’d been with Gray only showed me all the things that were wrong in my relationship with Carter. Did I think Carter was a bad person? Not entirely. Maybe he could make someone happy, but I wasn’t the one. I needed the snuggling, the touching, and the kissing. I needed the I love yous, the sincere babys and sweethearts. I needed the whispering in the night after we made love.

I wanted to be told I was beautiful.

My stomach settled until we arrived at the airport. I thought I had it all figured out, but my heart threatened to leave me stranded.

“We’re here,” Matty said.

“We’re here,” I whispered but didn’t move. My limbs had gone heavy, and my brain was spinning. My throat was so tight it felt like I couldn’t breathe.

“You should go in. The plane already landed.”

“Yes, thank you.”

Mechanically I released the seat belt and got out of the truck. Head down, I shuffled through throngs of people to the designated area to wait. The airport was crowded, which didn’t help with the tight compression on my chest. People ran to each other, hugging, kissing, laughing.

There would be no joyous reunion for me.

My phone vibrated, pulling me out of my trance. I dug it out of my pocket and checked the screen. Warmth spread through me, and my lips curved in a smile.

I love you.

Gray’s words were all I needed. My breathing slowly adjusted to normal. The tightness in my chest released, and I unclenched my intestines. I held the phone tight, hanging on to those three words.

I love you.

I closed my eyes, picturing the way I’d woken up this morning in Gray’s arms. I let the memories of the past weeks with him take over, bolstering my confidence and resolving my purpose.