Page 62 of Stay for Me

“For you,” he countered. “Which isn’t surprising in the slightest.”

I flinched. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“It means I’m not blind. Denver and everyone else at Hallow Ranch just can’t see it.”

My mouth dropped open. “I—”

“Saw it the second you two were in the same room for the first time, Diana,” he cut me off, his handsome features softening. “I wasn’t blind to it. I just never said anything.”

“You—wait—you know?” I stammered, my chest heaving now.

“Know that he’s head over heels for you? Yeah, I do,” he clarified.

Suddenly, the only thing I could hear was the pounding of my heart, thundering in my ears, drowning out the world around me.

Mags, head over heels?

For me?

My mind snapped back to last night, the sting of his rejection slamming into me all over again, more painful than before. Shaking my head, I tried to ignore the tears. “You’re wrong about that, Chase. You’re right about a lot of things, but you’re wrong about that,” I rasped, my voice thick.

A muscle in his tanned cheek ticked, his eyes scanning my face. “You wanna tell me why you got tears in your eyes?” he asked slowly.

I pressed my lips together and dropped my head. The first tear fell onto my arm, the warmth of it shocking me as the second soaked into my skirt. He’d come for me, he protected me, he’d held me in his arms. Then, it was shattered—the dream of him. One word from that cowboy, and all my hope disappeared.

No.

I heard Chase shift, and then, I felt him close to me. “Diana, look at me,” he ordered gently.

Shame coated me like slick oil, difficult to wash away, leaving irreversible damage. I lifted my head slowly, my hair hanging down around my face. I found the Sheriff on his haunches in front of me, his hands hanging down between his knees. “Tell me about those tears, Di. Tell me what’s happening right now.”

The pain in my chest made it difficult to breathe, and I braced for the incoming panic attack. Sometimes, they snuck up on me, while others, I felt them coming from a mile away. That was a different form of hell entirely. “I don’t want to talk about this, Chase. I’m here to discuss Lucas.”

“That fucker isn’t worth my energy or yours. He’s being released tonight and escorted to the edge of town. If he comes back again, I’ll shoot him,” he clipped.

Oh, no.“Chase—”

“Enough.”

I flinched at his command, the anger in his voice. I knew it wasn’t towards me.

His next question came out quick and sharp. “Why the fuck is my best friend crying over a cowboy?”

“I—”

“Don’t want any damn bullshit. I want the truth.”

I cut my eyes from him, attempting to swallow the lump in my throat.

“He hurt you?”

I shook my head. I couldn’t talk about this with him—or anyone. I felt crazy enough about it already. Speaking about it to a third party would make me look even more foolish.

“Diana, talk to me,” Chase pleaded.

“I’m in love with him, alright?” I snapped, my admission bouncing off the walls.

His blue eyes, usually warm and inviting, were now cold.

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