Page 54 of Tangled Up With You

“Oh God, I’m so sorry,” I started. “I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

“That makes two of us.”

My eyes came up and landed on Blythe. “Oh, hi.”

She gave me a small smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Hi back.”

I gripped the handle of my cart and shifted from foot to foot. “Again, I’m really sorry for crashing into you. Guess I’m as bad at cart pushing as I am at driving.”

“It’s all good,” she said with a tiny chuckle. Her smile faded as she scanned my face. “Are you okay?”

I was sure I looked a wreck. Not that I’d bothered to check a mirror before I left the house earlier. “Oh, yeah. I’m fine.” Isniffled and brushed at my cheeks. “Just stupid boy stuff.” I tried to play it off with a small laugh that fell flat.

She cocked her head to the side. “I’m guessing the stupid boy in question is the one who came with you to your first doctor’s appointment?”

I nodded, sniffling again as my eyes began to water. “Yeah,” I croaked, no longer caring if I had a breakdown in the middle of the grocery store. “Things are... complicated at the moment.”

Sympathy washed over her features. “Do you love him?”

I nodded silently as the tears began to fall.

“Then can I make a suggestion?”

“Please.” I was willing to hear anything at this point.

“Uncomplicate it,” she said firmly. “Whatever the issue is, if you love him, do not stop until you find a way to make it work.” She reached over and placed her hand on top of mine. “Believe me, your life can change in the blink of an eye, and when that happens, you won’t even remember the complications. You’ll only remember the things you miss.”

With one last squeeze, she released my hand, untangled our carts, and kept going in the direction she’d been heading.

I stood rooted in place for what felt like an eternity before what she said finally sank in. Ditching my cart right where I’d been standing, I spun around and jogged out of the store, pulling my phone out of my purse and dialing as I ran to my car.

“Ivy?” Rae answered halfway through the first ring. “Are you okay?”

“I will be. You guys feel like going to a rodeo with me tonight so I can tell the father of my baby that I’m in love with him?”

She answered by shrieking through the line.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Connor

What the fuck am I doing?

The din of voices around me faded into nothing more than background noise as I sat in the changing room waiting for my number to be called. I couldn’t even remember how I’d gotten here. My brain had shut down after Ivy walked away from me last night, and I’d been running on autopilot ever since.

All I could think about was the sadness in her eyes. All I could hear was her quiet, worried voice pleading with me. She was scared. For me.

She didn’t give a shit if I was the best bull rider on the circuit. She didn’t care what my name garnered in this world. All she cared about was my well-being. My safety. That was it.

“Is that the only reason you’re riding? To stick it to a few miserable people whose opinions shouldn’t matter?”

She was the only person to ever ask me why I was still doing this. The only one to carewhy.And looking back on my reasons now... they weren’t good enough. I didn’t love riding anymore.Not like I used to. And it wasn’t because of Dusty or Amber or that fuckface Vance Grimes. I’d just outgrown it. I was older. I wanted different things. I looked at what Zach had with Rae, and I wanted that more than I wanted some belt buckle.

Reaching beneath the padded vest I was wearing, I pulled out the envelope I still hadn’t opened, the one that held my future with Ivy.

When I died, I couldn’t take any of that shit with me. But I could damn sure carry Ivy’s love with me into the great beyond. I could take the memories of the family we built together. Ivy had been right.Thosewere the things that mattered. Not the opinions of a few miserable assholes and an arena full of strangers.

So whatthe fuckwas I still doing here?

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