Page 86 of Second Chance Wedding
“Well, itdoes,” she said in a small, tight voice. “How can it not?”
“I know. I know it does, but this was about Ben needing answers and being foolhardy enough to seek them out like he did. You have to remember; he thought asking you would hurt you more. He didn’t want that. Sneaking out was his solution.”
Ana’s expression broke his heart. She stared into the flames, her gaze tormented.
“He never asked me. Never. I thought… I thought it meant he didn’t miss something he never had,” she said in a soft voice. “I actuallybelievedthat we could be our own family, that I could be enough for him, and he wouldn’t— He wouldn’t??—”
Her voice broke, her thoughts unfinished as her breath hitched and she pressed both hands to her face.
Cole watched as she collected herself, admiring her strength and resilience in the face of the curve ball Ben’s behavior had revealed.
“Thank you,” she whispered after a long pause. “Thank you for taking care of him and going after him and—caring.”
“You don’t need to thank me for that, Ana. Ben is a good kid. He’s an extension of you. I made it clear to Ben at the restaurant that no matter what happens between you and me, he’s family now. My brothers and I will keep an eye on him.”
“Oh, Cole, that’s— Wait, what? At the restaurant? You said Brooks saw him at the gas station. That you picked Ben up halfway to Wrightsville.”
Cole bit back a curse. “I did. Ben and I sat in the Jeep and talked and… Ben told me where he wanted to go.”
“And then you brought himhome.”
Cole clenched his jaw so hard his teeth were in danger and forced himself to hold her stare, resolute.
“And then I took him to the restaurant and sat with him while he watched for his dad.”
Ana shot to her feet and paced away from Cole. He stood but waited where he was. Waited for the impact of the blast and the fallout he knew would come.
“Howdareyou.” Ana’s voice shook with the force of her anger. “Not only did you not call me and tell me that my son had snuck out, but you—you—decided to take him to meet the man who made clear he wantednothingto do with him? You thoughtthatwas a good way to handle the situation?”
Cole settled his hands on his hips and nodded. “I did.”
“You are unbelievable! How could you do that? Why would you— Can you really not see that wasn’t your decision to make?”
“Ana, you didn’t see Ben. I had to make a judgment call because he was in rough shape. He needed to go. He needed to do that. I don’t know why, but he did.”
“No, hedidn’t! You should’ve brought him home. You should’ve called meimmediately!”
“Ana.”
“You need to leave.”
“Ana, come on. Don’t do this. Don’t use this as an excuse to push me away when we’re finally making headway.”
“Headway? You think you madeheadwaythis weekend?”
Cole moved until he stood toe to toe with her, glaring down at her upturned face. She was beautiful in her fury, passionate and fiery in her mama-bear element. Determined to set him straight and rip him a new one in the process.
She was everything he’d always known she would be. Protective and caring but now blindsided by pain and unable to see the truth right in front of her. “You’re scared of what’s happening between us. That we’ve reconnected and the chemistry is still there. Don’t deny it.”
“One has nothing to do with the other.”
“Doesn’t it? Ever since Jonesie opened his mouth, you’ve made excuses to back away from me. This is just another one.”
“You are not his parent, Cole! You had no right to make such a decision. No right to take Ben there. You not only rewarded his bad behavior, but you undermined my authority as his mother andonlyparent. If he wanted to do this, he should have come tome.”
“He knew he couldn’t, Ana. He knew you’d say no because you wouldn’t understand his need to do what he did,” Cole said, lifting his hands and reaching for her.
Ana backed up until she stood out of reach, shaking her head.
