Page 60 of My Montana Valentine

Annie had already put the bag on Vivian’s bed, though. “You’ve been moping around this house for a whole week. It’s depressing and unnecessary. You’re going to Portland.” She opened her phone. “Pack, I’ll look for flights.”

With her heart hammering away in her chest, Vivian stared at the contents of her closet. “What do you wear when you’re on your way to tell a man you love him? And you don’t know how he feels?”

Annie was busy on her phone. “My knowledge of what a man wants is zero”—she grimaced—“but I would think anything sexy could work.”

“Sexy?” Mitch asked, entering Vivian’s bedroom.

“Trust you not to miss sexy,” Annie teased him.

“So, what’s going on here?” Mitch asked, pointing at the bag on the bed.

Annie winked at Vivian. “Viv is on her way to Portland to tell Aiden how she feels about him, to try and convince him to make their relationship more permanent.”

Mitch opened and closed his mouth a few times before he was able to talk. “If that’s what you want,” he eventually growled. “I will, however, seriously hurt him if he does anything more to make you cry. I can’t stand to see you so unhappy.”

Vivian hugged him. “Come and sit on the bed. We all have reasons why we guard our hearts. I’ve buried myself in work and played down my femininity because of what happened with Brett Carson. Janice finally made me see it.” She grimaced when she saw her siblings’ surprised faces. “I’ve finally realized I have to let it go; otherwise, I’ll always have that burden to carry. I love Aiden, Mitch. He has his own troubles keeping him from living his life.”

Mitch snorted. “What troubles?”

“There was this girl…” Vivian began.

“Isn’t there always?” Mitch asked mockingly.

“She was only fifteen…” Vivian ignored him and proceeded to tell them about Samantha Taylor. Mitch’s scowl slowly turned into something else. Not quite respect, but at least the murderous look in his eyes was gone.

Tears were running down Annie’s face, and she tried wiping them away. “The poor child!” She sniffed, grabbing a tissue. “Aiden must have been devastated.”

“He probably blames himself for everything,” Mitch said.

Still sniffling, Annie glanced at her phone again. “I’ve got bad news, Viv. The first available flight is tomorrow afternoon at four. The good news is, by that time, my guest will have left and I would be free to take you to the airport.”

“We can both take her,” Mitch said. “But as I’ve said, he’d better…”

“Oh, shush, Mitch, seriously,” Annie snapped. “I want to see what you look like when you fall in love.”

Mitch snorted. “Not gonna happen. Ever.”

“We’ll see.” Annie chuckled. “That means we can have lunch together tomorrow to talk about your strategy before you leave for the airport.”

Strategy? So she needed a strategy? With her heart in her throat, Vivian could only nod. Excitement and dread were taking turns to feed her thoughts. She wasn’t sure whether she was giddy because she was feeling sick or because she was excited. What if Aiden didn’t agree? What if…Good thoughts only.And breathing deeply, she repeated the words.

Chapter Nineteen

Riley had orderedpizza for them, and Dylan had had a snack and was playing with his dinosaurs—his favorite toys at the moment—when Craig cleared his throat.

“I don’t like the sound of that,” Aiden said. “But I’ve been wondering who of you have the guts to tell me why you’re here. On a Saturday night, no less. Don’t you have dates?” Since their arrival nearly an hour ago, it had been obvious his cousin and sister had something to say, but apart from a few furtive glances between them, he had yet to hear what it was.

“I’m off dating for a while now, but we’re here to talk about you. We’re worried about you,” Craig said, shifting in his chair, clearly not comfortable with the situation.

The doorbell rang. Craig got up and moved towards the front door. “I’ll get it. Hopefully the pizzas.”

Riley leaned forward. “You’ve admitted you love Vivian, so why are you here and not with her? You’re obviously miserable. You’ve lost weight, you’re not sleeping—look at those dark circles under your eyes. Frankly, you look wretched. And don’t tell me you’re no good for her—that is simply not true!”

Craig put the pizzas down and opened the boxes.

Before Aiden could react, though, his phone rang. “Sorry, I have to take this. Steward tried to call me earlier; it could be him on another phone.”

As he turned away to answer the call, he caught Riley and Craig exchanging a look. What were these two up to?

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