Page 73 of Falling For You

Owen

I sat in my truck outside Buttercup Lake’s coffee shop. My hands gripped the steering wheel so tightly my knuckles had gone white. The engine was still running, but I couldn’t bring myself to turn it off and step outside.

Not yet.

The whole town felt suffocating now. The weight of what I’d done was pressing down on me from every angle. It felt like everyone knew I was the out-of-towner who'd ruined one family’s hopes and dreams.

The thought made me disgusted.

And I think last year, I laughed about it with my brother.

What was wrong with me?

I’d just walked away from Violet. I had told her the truth about the land deal. The look on her face when I confessed—God, it was like I’d gutted her right there on the spot.

I could still see the shock in her eyes, the pain that followed so fast was like a knife twisting deep inside her. And I put it there.

The one person who had made me care about something other than business and the endless pursuit of money… and I had destroyed it all.

I had destroyed her in less than a week.

This was why I wasn’t cut out for relationships.

And what had I been left with after all this heartache? Nothing but guilt and the knowledge that I was exactly the kind of person I had always thought I was.

An ass.

The engine hummed softly beneath me, but I didn’t move.

Buttercup Lake had felt like a second chance since I arrived.

No, that wasn’t true.

Buttercup Lake felt like a second chance the moment I met Violet.

This last week had been a break from the constant grind. I hadn’t planned on meeting someone like Violet.

I never expected to care about someone like this. But she made me see the world differently. Yet here I was, sitting in my truck, knowing I’d ruined everything.

The deal was set to close tomorrow. I’d been part of the machine that swallowed small towns like this whole.

And for once, I actually cared.

But it was too late.

I couldn’t face Violet again.

Not now.

I needed something to ground me before I lost it completely. My eyes flicked to the coffee shop, and I spotted Abby inside. She seemed like a close friend of Violet’s. Maybe she could tell me if there was any hope or if I’d truly lost the one person I finally cared about.

The warm lights spilled onto the sidewalk. With as cold as I felt inside, it looked inviting and warm.

Maybe I could go in, get a coffee, and find some clarity. I had no idea how coffee would fix any of this, but I needed to do something.

With a sigh, I turned off the engine and stepped out into the crisp evening air. I wasn’t sure if I could stomach talking to anyone right now, but the alternative was sitting in my truck or hotel room, drowning in my own guilt.

I pushed open the coffee shop’s door, and the familiar aromas of fresh coffee and baked goods washed over me. The place was cozy, filled with a handful of regulars chatting at their tables. Buttercup Lake’s residents weren’t shy about conversations, and I knew most of them could probably sense something was off in the town.

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