Page 33 of Bedding The Best Man (Bedding the Bachelors)

“You’re wrong. I know Eric. I didn’t know about the dreams, and I can see why he flipped out, but he’s going to fight for you. He’s going to be back to claim what’s his.”

Something about his words stirred Brianne. “Do me a favor,” she said, her voice low. “Stop talking about me like I’m a thing.”

“Huh?” He turned to her, confusion in his eyes.

Typical man.

No matter how special he was, he was still an infuriatingly stubborn, clueless man.

“I’m not his. I’m not yours. I’m mine. My own person.”

“I’m sorry,” Gabe said, his head bent. “Bad choice of words.”

“Extremely bad,” Bri agreed, simmering. “Now all that aside, Eric left me, but he did it to give me time and space to figure out what I really wanted.WhoI wanted. And I thought I made it clear last night that I was choosing you.”

“But Eric—”

“Gabe, I felt like the world’s biggest piece of garbage for hurting him, even when I didn’t mean to. But right now, I’m not his biggest fan. He could have stuck around. We could have worked it out, even if we decided not to go through with the wedding. We could have stood side-by-side and told everyone we made a decision together. But no, he ran away instead. I don’t even know what he’s thinking. And here you are, ruining what went on between us. For what? For someone who can’t be bothered to stay and fight it out?”

“Don’t you feel the slightest bit of loyalty?” Gabe asked. “Don’t you feel a little bit of guilt?”

“Of course I do! But I thought you and I could work that out together,” she said. “Just the way Eric and I could have worked out what was happening between us. But you’re so much alike. You would both rather run away.”

The muscles in his face worked. He wanted to say something. Brianne wished he would just say it. Say anything. It had to be better than watching him shut down.

But no. it wasn’t meant to be.

Instead of denying what she’d said or even responding to it, Brianne watched as Gabe walked into the yurt. She heard him taking things apart inside.

Oh God, she couldn’t believe it. It was over before it had barely begun.

So suddenly. So fast.

She cried out in despair, clamping a hand over her mouth to mute the sound and turning away. Just when she’d thought she was about to have everything she truly wanted, it was taken away again.

She walked down to the river, sitting in the grass with her feet in the water. She heard the sounds of Gabe taking things down, but she didn’t dare turn around to watch. It would be easier this way, not witnessing him tearing apart everything beautiful that had happened between them.

* * *

Gabe didn’t know what happened. All he knew was he’d woken up and she hadn’t been there, and he’d panicked. He didn’t deserve her, anyway, and now he’d gotten her into trouble. She’d wandered off and hurt herself, and it was his fault for thinking he could be with her. It had all been a dream—how else had he ended up with Brianne?

But there she was, outside the yurt, watching the sunrise in his sweater. She had looked beyond adorable, sexy and innocent all at once. That was who she was. The perfect combination of woman and girl.

And it had hit him like a thunderbolt.

He’d slept with Eric’s fiancée.

He’d stolen her from him without even meaning to.

At least, that’s how he’d felt.

Granted, Eric and Brianne weren’t technically together, not after he’d left her at the altar, but he hadn’t even seen or talked to Eric since the night before the wedding. It would have been a lot easier if the prick would just contact him already. They could talk it out. He could apologize, and see where Eric thought his relationship was going. It didn’t seem right to move forward with his own life without knowing where Eric’s head was.

Brianne had accused him of not caring how she felt. Of course he did. But it went against everything Gabe believed in to take advantage of Eric’s absence.

But walking away from her, knowing how upset she’d been, had torn him in two.

Chapter Fourteen

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