Page 53 of Marrying Bonnie

Instead, he ascended the steps to the front door where he met Noel as she opened it.

“What on earth is going on out here? I heard the two of you yelling at each other all the way from the kitchen.” Noel’s eyes searched his face. “Are you okay?”

“Nope.”

She frowned. “I take it that it wasn’t just the party.”

“Nope.” He wasn’t in the mood to talk and tried to push past his sister anyway.

But Noel grabbed his arm on the way past. “What happened, Jace?”

His shoulders dropped as the weight of what that meant hit him squarely in the chest. “I think I’m losing her.”

Chapter Eighteen

“You’re losing her? Like she’s quitting so you can be together without complications? Or like she’s moving to England because she hates your guts?” Noel stared at Jace, clearly confused.

“Something in between.” He sighed. “She said she’s going to give her two-week notice on Monday.” He wasn’t in the mood to talk about this right now. “How did Gunner do? Is he asleep?”

Noel’s eyes widened as though she couldn’t believe her ears. “Gunner? Yeah, he did fine. He’s fast asleep.” She shook her head. “I knew I should’ve gone to the party, too,” she muttered. “What do you mean? She’s quitting? What are you doing standing here?” Noel motioned to the front door. “Go talk to her. Tell her you love her. Convince her to stay.”

“She doesn’t want me.” The words stung, and the weight of what they meant sat on his chest like a boulder.

“Okay, you have got to tell me what happened.” Noel grabbed his arm and steered him to the couch. She waited for him to sit before joining him. “I’ve seen the way Bonnie looks at you. I’m about as sure she’s in love with you as you are with her. One stressful afternoon doesn’t erase that or the last two years you’ve spent getting to know each other.”

Jace replayed the conversation he’d overheard in his mind. He wanted to find another way to interpret it, but he couldn’t. He took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and then told his sister everything about the birthday party.

She remained silent, but the reactions on her face spoke of her shock at how rude Bonnie’s parents had been, her happiness at the way Bonnie reacted to the bracelet, and then her confusion and hurt over what he heard Bonnie say to her mother.

“I can’t believe she’d say something like that. Maybe you misheard or misunderstood her?”

Jace shook his head. “I don’t think so. In the truck, she told me that she’d only be trading her family’s money for mine. And that she needed time to figure things out.” He went over what he’d said and frowned. “I might have told her I couldn’t go back to being just friends.” It’d be incredibly difficult to set aside his feelings for her and return to friend status after getting a taste of what a relationship with her would be like.

He groaned, and Noel kicked him in the shin. “Well, that was a stupid thing to say. Or at the very least, one of the worst times to say it.”

He rubbed his shin. “You’re not wrong. But I can’t unsay it, either.”

Noel crossed her arms in front of her. “I still think you should go over and talk to her.”

“She said she needed time. I’m going to give it to her. And maybe she’s not the only one.” He let his hands hit his knees and then stood. “Bonnie’s stubborn. No one can tell her what to do. She’ll have to make up her own mind.” He headed toward the staircase.

“She’s not the only one who’s stubborn,” Noel muttered as she got to her feet and followed him. “Did you hear me?”

“Yep.” He was tired of talking. “Look, I’m going to check on Gunner and then work in the office for a while.” He engulfed his sister in a hug. “Thanks for watching Gunner for me this evening. I appreciate you.”

“You’re welcome.” Her voice was muffled against his shirt. “I’m sorry today wasn’t better.”

He gave her a smile that he hoped reassured her at least somewhat. After he peeked in on Gunner and pressed a kiss to his son’s cheek, he grabbed the baby monitor and headed back downstairs. He’d just entered the living room again when headlights caught his attention. He pulled back the curtains to see Bonnie’s car driving away from the house.

It was nearly nine o’clock. He sure wished he knew whether she was going into town for something or staying somewhere else for the night.

What he needed was a distraction and going over the financial books for the ranch was a good one. Besides, he was already in a foul mood. Seeing how much they’d lost with the stolen sheep wasn’t going to make it much worse. Jace sank into his office chair and leaned back to stare at the ceiling. All thoughts of going over finances fled his mind as his thought kept churning through everything that had happened. How could he go from being blissful and positive about his future to losing the woman he loved in the span of a day?

He rested his elbows on the desk and his forehead in his hands. “What am I supposed to do now?” he prayed.

* * *

It was Saturday morning,and Bonnie was sick of crying. Her eyes ached, and her nose was in a state of permanent stuffiness. She stretched her arms above her head and hit the arm of the futon she’d slept on last night.

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