Page 35 of Take My Name

Silas orders the same and then his gaze is back on mine. “So?”

“Impatient much?”

I’m stalling for the inevitable freak-out, but I need to talk about this with someone I’m not related to. My siblings have been blowing up our group chat now that they all know she’s here and that we’re still married. They’ve been relentless, so I had to mute it.

Mom and Dad haven’t said much since finding out she’s here, but I know what they’re thinking. They want me to move on so I don’t get hurt.

A little too late for that.

“Well, yeah. The last time you told me you had news, it was about Maisie sendin’ the divorce papers again and you sendin’ ’em back again…”

Lowering my gaze, I nod to confirm his suspicions.

“Oh shit, she sent ’emagain?”

“Worse.”

He arches a brow. “How much worse?”

I might as well get it over with and tell him what he wants to know.

“She showed up at my house two nights ago, asked me for a divorce so she can marry another man, but I said no and slammed the door in her face. A few minutes later, I caught her sneakin’ in through the patio door and said I wasn’t signin’ ’em because we never got a real chance to make things work. The next day, she showed up to the stables in heels, demanding we talk. Told her I didn’t have time, and if she wanted me to listen, shecould ride out to the pasture with me. So I gave her some boots and put her on Lilith, who ran off before I caught up to her, then took her over to see Posey and the goats. My loud-mouthed sister blurted about the house, and Maisie asked to see it, so I took her there next,” I reply quickly, hoping he catches it all.

When I look up, his jaw is on the floor and his eyes wide as saucers.

“She…saw the house?” He blinks. “The whole thing?”

I lick my lips. “Yep.”

“Then what?”

The server brings our drinks, we quickly order our usuals, and then Silas’s attention is back on me. “What’d she say about it?”

“She seemed to like it but was surprised I built it for her. Then told me I needed to move on.”

He grimaces. “Shit.”

“And I told her I couldn’t.”

“She’s engaged to someone else?”

“Yeah, some guy from New York. Asked me to let her go and that I deserved to be happy, so I needed to let someone else in.”

“Well…” He shrugs cautiously.

“That’s not all.”

“Why am I not surprised?”

“I told her I’d let her go, sign the papers, and move on if she gave me seven days to prove we deserve a second chance.”

“Even though she’s with someone else?” He looks at me as if I’ve lost my mind, and maybe I have, but I’m not going to admit that.

“She’s still my wife,” I remind him. “If I have to give her up for good, I need to know I tried everythin’ first. That means showin’ her what we could be if westayed together.”

“I dunno, Warren…” He scratches the back of his neck. “That sounds like a recipe for disaster. Especially if she’s gettin’ married to someone else.”

I lift a shoulder, not caring about that part. “She isn’t married to him and we aren’t divorced. That means I still have time to make her doubt her decision.”