Page 16 of Love Fast

He huffs out a laugh. “If you say so.” He takes a sip of his hot chocolate and makes a humming noise that reverberates over my skin and echoes between my thighs. If I didn’t know better, I’d say it almost sounds like a growl. A sexy, powerful growl, rather than a growl where I think a limb might be in danger of being gnawed off.

“You approve?” I ask.

“The marshmallows make all the difference,” he says. “Otherwise, I might have charged you rent.” His tone is serious, but his humor is back. Maybe this is him—a mixture of stoicism and humor. He lays his head back like he hasn’t a care in the world. It’s the first time I’ve seen him relax. In the bar last night and even when he pulled up tonight, it seemed like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. With a little hot chocolate and a porch swing, Atlas has set down the heavens and earth.

We sit in comfortable silence for a few minutes. Byron speaks first. “My dad died when I was a kid. My mom remarried, moved away and sorta reinvented herself. So coming back to Star Falls is… tricky. There’s no family to visit.”

While I’ve been trying to start inane chitchat, Byron has gone bone-deep straight off the bat. It’s intense but not awkward. “I’m so sorry,” I reply. “I just assumed you’d be visiting family. That was insensitive.”

He glances across at me and shakes his head slightly. “It’s different than I thought it would be.” A couple of beats pass and I can tell he’s thinking. “I hadn’t been in town at all before last night at Grizzly’s. I’ve been keeping myself to myself.”

If he had stayed away last night, we wouldn’t have met. Marv and I might have occupied the same stretch of Main Street for the night. “Too busy?” I ask.

“Maybe,” he says, pulling in a breath it feels like he’s needed all day.

“Or maybe you’ve been avoiding people?”

He turns to look at me. “Says the woman who rode into town in a wedding dress.”

I can’t help but laugh. “Yeah. I’m definitely avoiding a lot of people right now. Just not in this particular town.”

“Did something happen?” he asks. The question’s open-ended on purpose, I suspect, but I know he’s asking about the reason I called off the wedding.

He went deep, so I’m going to dive right in.

“It took standing in the white dress with minutes to go until the ceremony for the reality of the situation to sink in. I thought I could marry a man I didn’t love to make my family happy.” I don’t know why I’m telling him this. He wasn’t prying. But he’s sharing his secrets, so I don’t mind so much telling him mine.

He doesn’t say anything but I don’t feel any judgement from him.

“He’s a good, decent man, and I know I’ve hurt him,” I say. “But he deserves someone who loves him back.”

“We all deserve that,” Byron says on a whisper.

“I should have realized sooner.” I don’t know if I’m talking to Byron or myself. Both of us, maybe. “I caused a lot of hurt feelings and wasted money. Hopefully, one day, he’ll see it’s for the best.”

“No regrets?” he asks.

“None.” I sound resolute, because I am. Calling off the wedding was the right thing to do. I’m just not sure whether running away was.

“So what now?” he asks. “You start fresh in Star Falls?”

“Maybe,” I say. “I don’t have a plan figured out right now.”

“But you have a job,” he reminds me.

“Yes. I have some breathing room to strategize.”

“Ahh,” he says sagely. “So you’re pre-plan.”

I grin. “Pre-plan. Yeah, I like that.” I take a sip of hot chocolate. “What about you? Are you mid-plan?”

He nods slowly. “Yes, definitely mid-plan.”

“That’s vague,” I reply, wanting more detail.

“I’m also pre-sharing my plan.” A smile curls at the corners of his mouth. It makes him look younger, more carefree.

When I laugh, there’s a howl in the distance in response.

---