Page 78 of A Montana Secret Admirer
“Her boys are her responsibility, Reese,” Jane said flatly.
“Yeah, I get that,” Reese muttered. “But something is going on, and no one is talking to me.”
“Maybe because it’s none of your business.” The words could have been spewed with irritation, but they were actually spoken softer, with empathy—like Jane didn’t want to keep whatever it was from him. Her eyes told the truth. As much as she might want to share what she knew, she wouldn’t be budging an inch.
Reese scratched his cheek. “How am I supposed to help if I don’t know what’s going on?”
“You can’t.”
He groaned. “Jane?—”
“Reese. You’re going to be leaving tomorrow. The best thing you can do right now is make sure you all your ‘I’s are dotted and your ‘t’s are crossed. You’re doing this for the charity and for yourself. Don’t allow yourself to become distracted. I don’t want you to walk away from something that’s important to you. Neither does Serenity. She would never forgive herself if you ended up unhappy after all was said and done.”
This time, he scowled at her. There was no chance in that happening. He would never resent her for wanting him to stay for her. But he couldn’t exactly tell that to Jane. Not only was she Serenity’s sister, she was technically a boss of sorts. What would she think if he told her he was willing to risk his career for a woman?
Whatever she would think, it wouldn’t be good.
He sighed, resigned to being left on the outside. It was as if the training program finally working out was all it took for him to be dropped. If Serenity was so willing to let go of him, then he had to ask himself if what they had was actually as real as he’d thought it was.
Jane waved a hand in front of his face, drawing his attention. “Don’t worry about it too much, Reese. You’re going to make such a difference with the training you’re going to get. And when you get back? Maybe you can revisit your relationship with Serenity.”
It took a great deal of effort to keep his mouth shut. She knew how he felt about Serenity, and the fact that she brought it up made it even clearer that he was part of the reasons for Serenity’s poor mood.
She left to find Leo, leaving Reese with more unease than he’d started with. He completed his work in a sort of daze, and when he left the barn, he nearly bumped into Tegan.
The boy looked up at him, startled, but that surprise quickly shifted to disdain. He scowled and attempted to move past him to enter the barn. Reese didn’t know what Tegan was up to, but it didn’t matter. After he’d caught Reese kissing his mother, Tegan had refused to speak a single word to Reese.
Turning on his heel, Reese followed the boy into the barn. “Hey, bud. Can we talk?”
True to Tegan fashion, he kept his lips sealed tight. He continued toward the stall that housed the horse he preferred to ride.
“Tegan, I think it would be good for us if we could?—”
“I don’t want to talk,” Tegan muttered.
Reese blew out a breath to maintain patience he didn’t have at the moment. “I get that, but the fact is, we have some stuff we should figure out.”
“I don’t want to talk to you,” Tegan repeated.
“Okay, how about I talk?”
His scowl deepened.
“I really care about your mom, Tegan.” Reese craned his head around so he could get a look at Tegan’s expression and wasn’t surprised to see that the kid’s features remained tight. “Right now, things are a little up in the air, but I want you to know that nothing has changed for me.”
This time, the kid huffed. “You’re leaving.”
“Yes,” Reese hedged, “I am. But I will be back, and if your mom still…” He pinched the bridge of his nose. At this point, he wasn’t even sure how Serenity felt for him. All he could go off of was that kiss they’d shared, and right now, he wasn’t even sure if he’d imagined the passion that she’d given him when her lips had met his. “Your mother doesn’t want to try to keep a relationship going long distance, and I’m going to respect her wishes by giving her space. But that doesn’t mean I don’t care about her. Quite the opposite. I’m going to still be here for her, no matter what. No matter where I’m living. She makes me happy.”
“She’s not going to marry you,” Tegan snapped. It was such a surprising statement that Reese had to lean against the nearby stall. What was he supposed to say to that? Had she said something to him? Made assurances?
Tegan’s words were like a sucker-punch to the gut. Reese couldn’t even bring himself to ask Tegan to clarify why he’d say such a thing. And to confront Serenity? That wasn’t going to happen, no matter how much he wanted to. She’d made her decision.
And he’d made his.
He closed his eyes briefly and centered himself with another sigh. “Maybe not. But if one day she decided she cared for me enough, then I would move heaven and earth to give her everything she could ever want. I love your mother, Tegan.” One day, he hoped he’d be able to win her over. Their timeline simply wasn’t matching up right now.
They were two ships passing in the night.
