Page 452 of Conveniently Wed
“You have to eat.”
“What do you care?”
He wanted to shout that he loved her, and beg her to forgive him, but that would scare her off for sure. “I never stopped caring.”
“You care so much you’ve made arrangements to end our marriage.”
He gulped back the knot in his throat. Her words held too much truth. “Open the door so we can talk.”
“Did you, or did you not, file for that annulment?”
Did she want a yes, or a no? He had no idea how to answer. Did she want to be with Colby? At this point, he just wantedwhatever she wanted. Three weeks was a long time to stay holed up. His worry for her was eating him up inside.
“Answer me, Josiah.”
“Yes, I did.” Was that a sob coming from her room? He couldn’t be sure.
“Then go. I’m no longer your concern.”
Everything in him wanted to bust the door down and take her in his arms. Tell her she would always be his concern. Instead he dropped his head and turned away. It was too late. He’d failed her miserably. The one person who mattered most to him.
He headed down the steps for a late evening meal. He could care less about food, but he had to keep up his strength.
The day had been long and difficult. Not even hard labor helped erase the error of his ways. Josiah grabbed his meal from the edge of the wood stove and slipped into his chair. When he slammed his plate down, the metal clanged on the table.
A mad sorrow ripped through his aching heart. He had wasted over a year trying to avoid her because of a half-truth. He’d ruined everything, including their friendship. He deserved the agony he was feeling. She, however, deserved none of the sorrow he’d brought on her—not being pressured into an arranged marriage, not being shunned by the one who’d promised to show her what true love was, not the secret her parents kept from her, which would only bring more feelings of abandonment.
He cringed at the thought of giving her up, but he’d do anything right now to make her happy. Colby cared deeply for her and had been left to pick up the broken, confused pieces of her heart. And in the process, had found what Josiah had so freely given away—a kind, tender soul so easy to love. Josiah had no one but himself to blame.
He pushed the plate away and buried his face in his hands. His head pounded. Would it do any good to pray?God, what should I do?
Then it came to him, a thought, a plan. Tomorrow he would put it into motion.
Josiah had Jeb and Colby just where he wanted them…together. He didn’t call Jeb away from the farming aspect of the ranch that often, but he needed a good excuse for some uninterrupted conversation. A section of the fence had to be fixed, and he needed their help.
They rode in silence as they made their way to the spot.
“Where’s that section you were talking about?” Colby asked.
“Coming up.” Josiah pointed ahead.
“You would’ve had some better help than me had you grabbed a few of the ranch hands,” Jeb said. “This shoulder of mine will never be as strong as it once was.”
“There are two reasons I asked the both of you to join me. I wanted a chance to talk without any listening ears. And the fence needs mending. We can work and talk.”
“Spoken like a true rancher.” Jeb chuckled.
When they reached the fence, Josiah swung from his horse. The other two were right behind him.
Without words they spread apart and worked like a team. Josiah motioned to the downed section. “We’ll flag where the posts need to be replaced and reinforce enough to keep the cattle in. I’ll send some of the young cowhands out to do the tough digging.”
Jeb nodded. “Sounds like a plan I can live with.”
“Why are these down? The post isn’t rotten, but looks like it’s been chopped.” Colby’s brow scrunched.
“That’s one of the things I wondered about,” Josiah said. “You both think this can’t be an accident?”
Jeb took a closer look at a few more posts. “Yup, this damage looks intentional.”
