Page 98 of Hero's Prize

She. Hadn’t. Done. This.

He needed to find her now more than ever. He’d stopped by her house last night, but she hadn’t been there. He should’ve gone by again this morning—hell, camped out in front of her front door—but he’d thought he’d been in the right and had gone rock climbing to try to take care of his own mental needs instead.

Putting himself first. Goddamn it, Ella constantly put others’needs in front of her own. They all took for granted the fact that she never let them down.

And then he’d gone and accused her of the unthinkable.

He had to find her and make this right. If hecouldmake this right. He was sliding out of the booth as Tony slid in across from him.

Colton shook his head. “Whatever it is, it’s going to have to wait.”

“It’s about Ella and what happened on social media.”

“She didn’t do it, Tony. I know it looks like she’s the one who leaked our location, but I promise you she’s not the one who did it.”

The other man looked surprised. “I know that. But how doyouknow that?”

“I just know.” Tony’s other words registered, and Colton tilted his head at him. “Wait, how doyouknow?”

“I know you don’t want to talk, so I’ll make this brief.” He flipped around the tablet that was always in his hand so a signature page was facing Colton. “This is an employment termination notice for Rick. I found out he was the one who released the information about you being at the store. He must’ve been following you. He’s the one who opened that social media account and knew exactly where to post it. Then he tried to blame it on Ella by pretending to find that sticky note.”

Colton wanted to put his fist through the wall. But he was just as pissed at himself as he was Rick. Rick may have been the one who started the problem for whatever dumbass reason, but Colton should’ve been the one to shut it down before it ever went anywhere.

“We can talk about the details of everything later,” Tony continued. “Just sign, and hand me your phone so I can finalize everything.”

Colton did what the other man asked almost in a daze. The true ramifications of what he’d done—what he’d accused Ella of—were finally starting to hit him. Fear was a fist in his throat at the knowledge that he’d broken something so precious.

He signed and slid the tablet back to Tony and took his phone back from the other man. “Okay, done. Rick Wynnsworth is no longer in the employ of your team, and I’ve notified him that there will be an official inquiry into everything. You can probably sue him for what he did.”

“Money isn’t going to help.” Colton scrubbed a hand down his face. “I have plenty of money. It’s not going to change the fact that I accused Ella of something unforgivable.”

Tony let out a sigh. “I don’t know. She seems like the forgiving sort to me. Maybe you just need to give it a little time. A little distance.”

“What if I’ve lost her over this?”

“You went rock climbing this morning, right?”

Colton nodded. He wasn’t sure how Tony knew that, but then again, it was Tony’s job to know pretty much everywhere Colton went.

“How did you feel up there? Better? Worse?”

“Better, I guess. It always helps me clear my head.” But then again, he hadn’t had all the information when he’d been out there.

Tony gripped the edge of the table and leaned forward intently. “Colton, I’ve been with you day in and day out for over a year now. I know things are in a state of flux with you, but I’m telling the truth when I say I think you might ought to give this a little bit of time and distance. Let’s just get back to work. You want to simplify for a while? No problem. No social media. No television. But let’s get you back out there doing what you love. It’s what you need. Then, when the time is right—six months, a year—you can come back here and see if you still feel the same way about…everything.”

Colton stared at the other man. Maybe Tony was right. Maybe he’d jumped the gun when he’d decided to retire. Maybe staying here in Oak Creek was the wrong plan, even with Ella.

His hands started shaking, jerking him out of those thoughts.

No. Damn it,no.

“No. I’m not going back into stunts full time. Even if Ella won’t take me back, I’m still done with that part of my life.” Immediately,his hands stopped shaking. Because he was making the right decision. Because he wasn’t going to allow himself to be talked into a life he didn’t want any longer.

“Colton, I really think you should reconsider?—”

“Have we switched to day drinking?” Bear didn’t even wait for an invitation, just slid into the booth beside Colton, forcing him to scoot over.

Tony shook his head. “I’ve got to go take care of some things. Think about what I said, Colton. I’ll catch you later.”

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