Page 3 of Billionaire Unforgettable: Tanner

Mom had just celebrated her seventieth birthday.

Granted, she was extremely independent and capable, but after that scare with her heart attack and her cardiac surgery, I wanted to spend as much time with her as I possibly could.

Even if that meant that I’d have to deal with the life and the heartache I’d left behind in Crystal Fork years ago.

“The older you get, the faster time seems to pass by,” Silas pondered. “Joy will love having you closer to her, but she doesn’t want to see you miserable in a place where you’re not comfortable.”

I swallowed more of my coffee before I answered, “That’s just it. I’ve always loved it here. I missed Crystal Fork and the people here. I guess I didn’t expect to be treated like a pariah. Everyone adores the Remingtons, and I’m basically an outsider now.”

“I’m not defending the way that people are treating you, Hannah, but he was pretty heartbroken. He wasn’t himself after it happened, but he never wanted to talk about it,” Silas mentioned. “I still think you should talk to him. He could set the record straight.”

“I’m not sureheknows what happened,” I confessed reluctantly.

“Then maybe you can set him straight on the whole thing,” Silas suggested. “He broke your heart, and he still thinks you left him for someone else.”

“I got over it,” I informed Silas. “And I’m not the same woman that I was seven years ago, Silas.”

He shook his head. “I think you’re exactly the same woman you were seven years ago. You just hide that soft heart of yours better than you used to.”

Ha!I didn’t just hide it. I’d shoved that part of myself that had loved Tanner more than life itself so deep that it would never see the light of day again.

Our relationship was part of my past, and I’d probably never let myself be that vulnerable to anyone again.

“I grew up,” I told Silas before I swallowed the last of my coffee.

I’d left Crystal Fork devastated, but I’d found success in Seattle beyond my wildest dreams.

I’d gone to Seattle to start a business with two cosmetologists that I’d known in New York, and we’d built that business into something special and lucrative.

Giving up my partnership in that business had been one of the hardest things I’d ever done, but I’d had to do it to make the move back to Crystal Fork.

I’d lost that identity and reputation that I’d worked so hard for in Seattle, but the experience and confidence it had given me was still incredibly valuable to me.

“If it means anything, I think you grew up way quicker than Tanner,” Silas mumbled. “But he seems to have his priorities straight and his head more together now.”

I took a quick look at the clock over the bar before I leaned forward and gave Silas a quick kiss on the cheek. “I have to go. I need to open the store soon.”

Sweet Mornings opened early and usually closed by early afternoon because my mother ran out of donuts.

“You call me if you need anything,” Silas insisted. “I’m right across the street.”

My heart warmed because of the sincerity in his gaze.

“Thanks for the advice and the coffee,” I told him with a smile.

“I’ve got more of the same whenever you want it.”

I wanted to kiss the older man again for being so kind to me.

Probably because kindness from the people in Crystal Fork was in very short supply for me right now.

Tanner

“Anything else I can get for you boys?” Charlie asked as I pushed my empty plate away from me so she could collect it easier.

I shook my head, and then looked at my two brothers, Kaleb and Devon.

I was stuffed full of the best biscuits and gravy in Montana.

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