Page 68 of Second Chance Husband

No, I had been worried about myself.

Worried about hurting the person that I loved, and then I ended up doing it anyway.

It made no sense, and I had been scared. Scared something had been real, and now I couldn’t take it back.

I wouldn’t be surprised if my family never talked to me again after realizing that this was permanent. They would take Paisley’s side like they should, and maybe I would see them on holidays. If they let me. Maybe I could video chat with my nieces, so they would remember what Uncle August looked like. I frowned as I set down my backpack. I was a twin. They didn’t need me, did they? Because they always had Heath. Meaning they could just say Uncle August looked like Heath and move on.

Hell. I was all my own disastrous making and there was no turning back.

I went outside, cup of tea in hand, and sat down on the porch to lament.

I just needed to think. To formulate a plan.

To just be.

When the Mercedes skittered up the path, its traction not that great up on this hill, I nearly dropped my mug. Instead, I set it on the porch railing, and clambered down the steps.

I already knew whose car it was, and while I wasn’t surprised at the red-haired woman that stormed out of the door, I was still damn surprised she was even here.

“August Cassidy. We are going to have a talk. Finally. And you’re up in this remote cabin, so you can’t run away from me again. There is no running. Only answers. Do you hear me?”

I blinked at the woman I loved, the woman I thought I would never see again, and swallowed hard.

“Paisley?” Maybe I was dreaming? Though I wasn’t sure if I’d ever dreamed her so angry before. She moved forward, hair flying, and I held back a smile. Oh yeah, I’d dreamed her this angry before.

“Don’t Paisley me. You know exactly who I am. Surprised to see me? Well, maybe because you left me, not once, but twice. I guess you should be a little surprised to see me. But anyway, fuck you. Fuck you, August Cassidy.”

I held up my hands.

“Do you want some tea. A drink?”

“I don’t want anything from you but answers.” She folded her hands over her chest, as a strong wind hit, and I cursed.

“Come inside, Paise. It’s getting cold.” As the first snowflake dropped, Paisley glared up at it.

“Are you telling me there’s going to be a storm? It is not winter.”

“It’s close to it. I mean, it’s Colorado. You sort of just expect weather at all times.”

“I am not being snowed in a cabin with you.”

“Then I would get down the path right now before you get snowed in, though, I don’t know if your Mercedes is going to make it. I have always loved that car.” I whistled through my teeth, and she stomped toward me. She wasn’t wearing weather appropriate clothing, and looked damn sexy when she was all fiery. But I would never say that misogynistic thing out loud. Especially not right now while she was fuming at me. I valued my life, and my balls.

“August. Why are you so scared? Just talk to me. After all this time, just talk to me. And then I’ll go away and never ask you again. But now I’m the one standing up and trying to be strong. To be brave. But just tell me. Why did you leave all those years ago? What happened?”

“Let’s go.”

“No. Because we’ll do something stupid like sleep together.”

I raised a brow, and she just scowled at me.

“I know it’s what we do. We get angry with each other, and we pretend that we’re fine, and then we’re not. Because in the end, we both are so good at avoiding our problems and real decisions, that we just fall into this pattern. And I’m not going to let it happen again. I fell into a pattern with my mother for so long, and standing up to her today? Standing up to her and Jacob and whatever nefarious plans that they had? It felt amazing.”

“What the hell did they do? Are you okay?”

I was in front of her in a flash, checking her for marks and bruises. But I had a feeling it was only the emotional bruises that were left. I had caused my fair share of them.

“They came to me wanting, I don’t know, for me to marry him again?”

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