Page 18 of Secret Southern Promises

She shook her head slowly, her curls bouncing slightly. “Magnolia Grove. Why are you here after fifteen years?”

There it was. No small talk, no avoiding it. She wanted the real answer, not the polite ones we’d been dancing around.

I leaned back in my chair and rubbed the back of my neck. “Well, this is my home, Dolly,” I said, pausing for a moment to gather my thoughts. “Even though my parents moved years ago, I still think of this as my home. Had a bad ride a few months ago and knew riding was over for me.”

Her head tipped to the side, and her expression softened just a little. “I saw. I’m sorry.”

I shrugged. “Nothing to be sorry about. It was a damn miracle I was able to ride for as long as I did without major injury. I’m just thankful I was able to retire with a few titles under my belt and my legs still working.” I tried to laugh it off, but the truth of it weighed on me. Losing that part of my life—it hurt more than I liked to admit.

“You were good, Boone. Really good,” Dolly said quietly, her voice barely above a whisper. “You could’ve kept going if that last ride hadn’t...” she trailed off, her eyes flickering with something I couldn’t quite read, something buried deep behind the years and the distance between us.

I shook my head, trying to brush it off. “Nah, it was time. That last ride just pushed me to face it sooner rather than later. I am surprised to hear that you kept up with me.”

She smiled, but it was the kind of smile that didn’t reach her eyes. Sad, almost resigned. “You were a world champion, Boone. It was hard not to follow you. I always knew you were going to be something amazing once you left Magnolia Grove.”

Her words hit me harder than I expected. I glanced down at my bagel, suddenly feeling like it was the least important thing in the world. She had always said that back when we were in high school—always telling me I was destined for something bigger. I’d believed her. I’d always figured she’d be right there beside me when I became that something, cheering me on like she had for every practice, every small-time rodeo.

Instead, I’d done it all by myself.

Two weeks after we’d graduated, everything had changed. Dolly changed. She became more distant, pushing me away for reasons I couldn’t make sense of at the time. She started talking about how she needed to be here, how Magnolia Grove was her home, her responsibility. The store—Magnolia Mart—had been in her family for generations. She felt like she couldn’t just walk away from it.

I’d gotten that. Hell, I respected it. Family meant something, especially in a small town like this. But I also thought we could figure things out together. I believed we could make it work. I was ready to find a way, to balance rodeo and being with her, even if it meant slowing down or staying closer to home.

But then, she broke up with me.

Told me to go chase my dreams and forget about her. That she couldn’t leave Magnolia Grove. Ever. I remembered standing there, dumbfounded, trying to understand what the hell had just happened. It didn’t make any sense. We’d always talked about a future together—her and me, side by side. I’dpictured her cheering me on from the stands at every rodeo, the way she always had.

I’d tried to talk her out of it, told her we didn’t have to split up. That we could both do what we wanted and still stay together. I could ride on the weekends and travel when I needed to, but Magnolia Grove would be home. I’d always come back to her.

But she didn’t want that. She insisted I needed to go, to leave her behind, and live the life I was meant to live. She didn’t say it in so many words, but I knew she thought she’d just hold me back. That if I stayed for her, I’d resent it one day.

So, she broke up with me.

And just like that, the future I thought we’d have vanished. My parents had already been talking about moving down to Florida. With Dolly pushing me away, there wasn’t anything left in Magnolia Grove for me anymore.

So, I left. Packed up my dreams and my broken heart and hit the road.

And Dolly? She stayed.

Sitting here with her now, in the same town where we’d once made plans for a future, felt like stepping into a time warp. The same streets, the same storefronts, the same memories lingering in every corner. Only now, we were different—older, more worn down by the lives we’d lived apart.

I looked up at her, her face familiar but changed in ways I couldn’t quite pinpoint. She wasn’t that girl anymore, and I wasn’t the boy who had been in love with her. But somehow, being back here with her made it feel like we were still unfinished business. Like the book hadn’t been closed, just left with a chapter unwritten.

“Dolly,” I said, my voice rougher than I intended, “I didn’t want to leave you behind.”

She looked at me, her expression softening for a moment before she shook her head. “I know, Boone. But I couldn’t go with you. I couldn’t leave this place. I tried to make it easier for you, but...”

“But it wasn’t,” I finished for her.

She nodded, her eyes downcast. “I didn’t think you’d come back. I figured once you were gone, you’d find your place in the world and forget about me. About Magnolia Grove.”

I stared at her, letting that settle in. I hadn’t forgotten her. Not once, not in all those years. But maybe that was part of why I’d stayed away so long—because I couldn’t come back here without thinking about what we lost. What I lost.

“I never forgot,” I said quietly.

Her eyes lifted to meet mine, and for the first time, I saw a flash of something in them that looked a lot like regret.

“Neither did I,” she whispered.

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