Page 87 of Pretend To Be My Cowboy
Her head came up, and his chest ached at the detached expression. Her gaze was unfocused and her eyes…
Oh heck, her eyes. They were red-rimmed and puffy.
She’d been crying.
The realization nearly took him down at the knees. “Emma, I’m so sorry my father said what he did.”
She stared at him for a long moment. “Is it true? Was all this…” She gestured to herself, to the heels. “Was all this just to get close to me so I’d—I’d fall for you? Marry you? Just so you could get a hunk of land with your name on it? Why even bother pretending in the first place? Some fake relationship? I don’t even understand what you were thinking!”
Her voice wavered, and his heart cracked in two.
“It wasn’t like that. That wasn’t my plan.”
Her lips trembled. “How do I know that’s true?”
That stung. Worse than he ever thought it could. “I’ve always been honest with you, Emma.”
She gave a little scoff of disbelief that was so out of character, it might as well have been a slap across the face. “You’re lying to your family and friends just to avoid telling them the truth about what you really want in your life.” She arched a brow. “Why should I believe that you’ve been honest with me?”
He winced. Her words cut. But then, he supposed the truth was brutal like that. He hated that she had a valid point. He hated it even more that she didn’t trust him. That she couldn’t see how he felt, when it seemed like she was the only one to truly see him for who he was.
He loved the way she looked at him. Well, hehadloved the way she looked at him—until now. He recognized the distrust and disappointment in her eyes. It would no doubt haunt him for the rest of his life.
He moved closer, entering the gazebo. When she stiffened, he moved to the bench opposite her, afraid of scaring her off again. “You’re right. I don’t exactly have much credibility right now, do I?”
She didn’t smile. The hurt in her eyes was like a dagger to his heart.
“I only wanted to protect you,” he said, his voice so gruff he was surprised she heard him.
“Protect me? From what?”
He shrugged.Everything. “I saw how much stress you were under with the inheritance and finding out about all these sisters.” He shook his head. “I didn’t want my father pressuring you.”
Her brows drew down. “So you asked me to pretend to be your girlfriend?”
He swallowed hard. When she put it like that, it sounded ridiculous. “I really did need a date to the wedding,” he said. Nodding toward the restaurant, he added, “And the rehearsal dinner.”
She stared at him for a long moment.
He huffed and admitted just how selfish he’d been. “It’s been nice not having to make excuses with all those relentless matchmakers in town as well. Having a girlfriend definitely makes my life easier.”
She shook her head. “And by staying close, your dad would believe that you were working an angle to get your hands on the land.”
It wasn’t a question, and he flinched at the bitterness in her tone. But he couldn’t deny it. Even if he hadn’t set out to make his dad think he was weaseling his way into her life and her inheritance, his father had leapt to that conclusion, and he’d done nothing to stop it.
They sat there in a long silence, and when she dropped her gaze to the ground again, he nearly fell to his knees to see her expression. Did she believe him?
She had to believe him.
He reached for her hands, but she shifted away before he could touch her.
Such a subtle shift, yet it felt like a punch in the guts. “I didn’t mean to hurt you, Emma.”
Her gaze flickered up and moved over his face, like she was trying to read something there. He stared back, hoping his expression was open enough. All he wanted her to see was raw honesty.
“I think I believe you,” she finally whispered.
He tried to smile, but couldn’t.
