Page 133 of Red Mountain Burning
Showing a side she protected with all her might, Adriana burst into tears.
He could barely handle the sadness in the room and grabbed her rigid arm. “Tell me I’m wrong. Tell me that my relationship with Zack isn’t the reason you love me. The only reason.”
“I don’t know how to love anymore.” It was the truest and most authentic thing she’d said in months.
Brooks chose his words carefully. “I love Zack like a son, but I can’t follow you to Florida for him.” He rolled over to her. “I almost would. You two mean more to me than just about anything in the world, and I’d honestly sacrifice my life for you. I’d move down to Florida and pretend that you and I are happy just for Zack. But then what?”
He shook his head. “I’ve spent a long time thinking about the merits of that decision, and I’ve finally realizing it’s a terrible idea. Zack deserves better than to grow up in a superficial world where his mother pretends to love a man…”
“I’m not pretending,” she spat.
“I believe you want to love me, A. But you don’t love me. That’s the difference. I can’t rip up my life here to gamble on you one day coming around.”
“I need time, Brooks. I need time for me.”
“Then take your time. I get it. You know I’ve been there. But I can’t wait around and pretend to be a father to Zack in Florida while you try to find yourself. It wouldn’t be right for Zack or for me.” He fell back onto his pillow. “I want to love someone who loves me back. Not when the moment suits…or for her own agenda. I’ve spent too many years alone. Only now do I have my parents and brother in my life. It’s been a long broken road, and I’m tired of going it alone. I want a family that will be mine forever. I want a woman who—for some crazy reason—is crazy about me.”
He looked at Adriana and knew this might be the last time they would ever share a bed, but he’d mustered the courage to be real with her, and he couldn’t stop now. Ultimately, it was better to address these issues now rather than later.
“It doesn’t seem to me you want the same things, and I just didn’t want to see it. I’ll never forget your face when I brought up our having a baby. That should have been a warning bell, but I was so desperate to have a woman like you love me that I ignored it. Just like I ignored every other sign. The fact that you’re not disagreeing says it all. Our entire relationship is built around your amazing boy, and I finally know how unhealthy that is. As much as I love him, I am not a part of your family. Not totally—”
Brooks’s phone rang on the bedside table. Zack had recently changed the ring to the chirp of crickets. He recognized the irony as he reached for the phone before it woke up Zack.
It was Joan. “What are you doing up this late?” he asked her.
“Brooks, there’s a fire. Otis needs you.”
Brooks jumped out of bed and nearly dropped the phone. “Where?”
She spoke quickly and nervously. “Château Smooth is burning down, and the fire’s spreading.”
“Has anyone called 911?” Brooks pulled up his jeans.
“The firefighters are already here, but I don’t know exactly what’s going on. Otis just ran in and woke me, told me to call you. Then he said something about turning on all the irrigation and ran back out the door.”
“I’ll be there in a few.” When he hung up, he reached for a shirt and said to Adriana, “Château Smooth is burning. Sounds like we have a possible wildfire on our hands. I’m going up there. Take Zack and get out of here. I don’t know how bad it is, but it’s dry out there, and the fire could spread quickly.”
“What about everyone else on the mountain?” Adriana asked. “What about Épiphanie?”
Brooks’s heart was racing so quickly that he hadn’t gotten that far. “Call everybody. Spread the word. Please tell Jake to turn on our irrigation at Lacoda.” He suddenly remembered Shay and Abby’s new house. “Call Shay and Abby first, please. If the fire jumps Sunset Road, they’ll be in trouble.”
“I’m on it.”
“Make sure you have your phone on you, okay?”
She was telling him to be careful as he rushed out of the room and down the stairs. He laced up his work boots as the garage door opened. The idea of the mountain burning—the wineries and vineyards—was nearly too much to comprehend. They’d worked too hard to lose it now.
He climbed onto his Triumph Scrambler and darted out to Demoss Road. After a short run on the paved road, he cut left and sped up into the vines.
