Page 82 of Against All Odds

It was Wyatt’s idea to enlist the help of the people who cared about Sable. There weren’t many at first, but since she’d taken over the Wildflower, I’d seen how Ben, Casey, Elijah, Mackenna, and even Natasha had rallied around her. They were Team Sable, and I was grateful she had them—something she hadn’t had before.

She’d probably thought she had me, too, and I’d let her down. Hurting Sable hurt me in ways I hadn’t expected. I never wanted to cause her pain, but I had a sinking feeling I’d done worse than anyone else who had ever hurled insults her way. She’d trusted me, and I broke that trust.

The thought of it made my chest tighten. What if she never forgave me? What if she couldn’t move past this? The idea that we might never get the chance to trulyknow each other, to become what I knew we could be for each other, left me panicked and hollow.

“Oh, look, the prodigal dumbass returns.” Casey arched an eyebrow when she saw me approach the table where she sat with Ben and Hillary at Poppycock’s, which was known to serve the best breakfast in Aspen since 1971.

“Now, Casey, I invited the man, and we’ll be nice to him,” Ben admonished gently.

Casey glared at me.

“What she said,” Hillary clipped.

I sighed. “May I?” I pointed to the empty chair. Ben nodded gracefully, but Hillary and Casey didn’t.

Our server came then, and everyone peered at their menus.

“Sincehe’spaying,” Casey mused, “I’ll have the Ultimate Indulgence.”

A Poppycock’s special, the Ultimate Indulgence, was macadamia nut oatmeal pancakes with strawberries and maple syrup, and house-made pistachio sausage patties. It was all your two thousand calories of the day in one meal.

Hillary chuckled. “Eggs Benedict for me, Grace.”

“Sure thing, Hillary.” Grace, our server, then turned to Ben and me.

“A strawberry smoothie for me.” Ben set the menu aside.

“Coffee, black, Grace. Thank you.”

Grace smiled widely. “No breakfast, Heath?”

“I already ate breakfast with Juno,” I told her.

Juno came here a lot and was addicted to theirFrench toast, which they made very well. In fact, everything at Poppycock’s was terrific, but then, when you’ve been in business for over fifty years, you must be doing something right.

“Well, what do you want to talk about?” Hillary demanded, crossing her arms.

I felt like I was back in high school, standing in front of the cool kids, trying to convince them to let me sit at their lunch table. “I need your help,” I admitted.

Casey laughed—a sharp, disbelieving sound. “Oh, this should be good.”

“Casey,” Ben tried again, and when Casey rolled her eyes, he added, “Now, you know, and I know that Sable isn’t happy. If Heath herecanget his head out of his ass, I think he can make her happy, which will mean she won’t want to sell the Wildflower to me and leave Aspen.”

Both Hillary and Casey looked worried at that. I was, as well. When I talked to Ben, he confided in me that Sable had spoken to him about selling the tavern back to him, even at a loss, and leaving town. I’d move anywhere with Sable, but I couldn’t until Juno started college—which meant that I had to convince her that staying was worth it. Staying with me by her side was even better.

I took a deep breath, running a hand through my hair. “I need your help to fix what I broke with Sable,” I tried again.

There was a beat of silence, and then Hillary set her water glass down with a deliberate clink. “You’re saying you want to win her back?”

I nodded, feeling like an idiot. “Yeah.”

Casey snorted again. “You mean after you humiliated her in front of the whole damn town? Good luck with that.”

“I know I screwed up.” I looked around at all of them. “I know I don’t deserve her forgiveness, and maybe I won’t get it. But I love her and…I think she loves me.”

That shut them up. Even Casey stopped smirking, her eyes narrowing as she studied me.

I knew Sable loved me—I’d felt it. And wasn’t that why I’d run? Why I’d found excuses to keep things casual, to maintain some distance? When the opportunity came to make things real, I’d shut it down, thrown up roadblocks, anything to avoid facing that truth. Now, all of that was coming back to bite me in the ass.

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