Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 67095 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 335(@200wpm)___ 268(@250wpm)___ 224(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67095 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 335(@200wpm)___ 268(@250wpm)___ 224(@300wpm)
“If you did, I suggest you turn and start to run, because I will shoot your sorry ass.” He wipes his dirt- and oil-covered hands on a red towel before resting his hands on his hips.
“No, I didn’t marry her. But when I’m done talking to you, I still may find myself needing to run,” I say truthfully.
His brows pull together as he studies me with a fist on his hip and his feet spread wide. His size makes him an intimidating man, and so does his shaggy red beard. From his slightly defensive stance, I know I need to phrase what I’m about to say very carefully.
“What happened?” he asks, or rather growls.
Stepping into his shop, I take a seat in an old metal folding chair. I need to open up to someone, and I trust he’ll understand.
I tell him everything. I tell him my reasons for moving to New York, about getting Mackenzie pregnant, and then finally I tell him about losing her because I’m a hardheaded idiot. When I’m done talking, he doesn’t look happy, but I can tell that he doesn’t hate me, either.
“You screwed yourself, didn’t you?” he finally says.
I let out a long breath.
“Yeah.” I swallow, leaning back and crossing my boot-covered feet and my arms over my chest. “I fucked up and lost the best thing that has ever happened to me.”
It feels good to admit something that has been killing me since I forced Mackenzie to walk away from me.
“Is your heart still beating?” he asks.
I nod.
“Nothing is impossible unless you’re dead. You’re not dead, so you can still fix this.”
“So how do I do that? How do I get her back?”
“I think the question you need to ask is how you fix yourself. You have to do that before you can fix what happened between you two. You’ve been torturing yourself because of what happened. You need to deal with that first, before you try and talk to Mac.”
“You’re right.” I rub my hands against the stubble covering my jaw.
“Talk to someone about what happened. Be honest about how you feel, and then tell Mac. If I know my girl at all, I know she wanted to help you. You took that from her. Our girl may act like she’s hard, but she’s sensitive—she always has been,” he says.
I know he’s right, and that just adds to the guilt I’ve been feeling. I hate that I hurt her and that I didn’t give her what she needed. I didn’t open up to her, but that is all she was asking me to do.
“You’re right.”
“Now”—he leans back, crossing his arms over his chest—“let’s talk about you getting my daughter pregnant without her having a ring on her finger.”
“I—” I start to tell him that if I had my way, she would already have a ring on her finger, but he cuts me off.
“Save it. I don’t expect you to marry her right now. Actually, I’d prefer if you didn’t. What I want is for you to do right by her—and my grandchild.”
“I always will!” I state vehemently. Family is the most important thing to me.
“Good,” he says. His eyes and his voice both soften. “Now tell me—how is my grandbaby?”
“Healthy. I . . .” My lungs burn as I attempt to breathe through the sadness in my chest. I missed Mackenzie’s doctor’s appointment, but Libby sent me a text letting me know that everything was perfect. The doctors determined that Mackenzie was already about nine weeks along, so she must have gotten pregnant the day she came to get her phone.
“It will be okay.” Aiden pats my shoulder, bringing me back from my thoughts. “You haven’t lost her, so stop acting like you have. Women are crazy creatures. There are times you two are going to fight and think this is it, this is the end of us. Then the next day, you’ll wake up with that dispute being nothing more than a memory. My daughter loves you, and I know you love her, so that right there will get you through everything.”
“Thanks.” I run my hand through my hair, then tuck my hands in the front pocket of my jeans. “I’m gonna head out before the roads get bad. They’re predicting that the storm will dump eight to ten inches between tonight and tomorrow.”
“I need to move to Florida.” Aiden shakes his head.
I start for the door, smiling, but he stops me.
“Wesley?”
“Yeah?” I turn to look at him.
“If you need to talk, I’m here.”
“Thanks.” My throat clogs with emotion.
He lifts his chin by way of farewell, and I lift mine in return, then head out the door.
“Wesley!” He calls to my back again when I’m halfway across the yard.
I turn around once more. “Yeah?”
“You tell Levi when you see him that we are gonna have a few words next time I see him, so it might be best he keeps his distance for a bit.”