Owned for Christmas by Willa Edwards Page B

you never did. He offers me a life.” She stared up at him, her chest heavy. The space between them pregnant with regret and longing. “You left me, Grant. Don’t forget that.” Kate heard the catch in her voice and hated giving him any indication that he’d hurt her.
    “My father died. I had to come back here and help my mom run the ranch. You see I had to. I didn’t have another choice.”
    Kate shook her head, tears blurring her vision. “I understand why you had to come back here. But I don’t know why you had to leave me. Why couldn’t you have told me what happened?” She swallowed, trying to force back the waterworks, even though the effort was futile. “Instead of leaving a note at my door that I was free. I deserved more than that. I trusted you…” She lost the battle against her tears.
     
    The sound of her crying echoed in his ears, stabbing him in the chest. Kate stared down at the ground, refusing to meet his gaze. She trembled. When she jerked her hands back, he let her go, even though every instinct in him said to hold onto her, keep her attached to him. If he let her go this time, he might never get another chance to touch her.
    She immediately stepped away from him, wiping away the tracks of tears from her face with the sides of her hands. Her chest rose and fell with her ragged breathing and her shoulders still shook with sobs.
    His gut clenched. I really am a bastard . He’d never meant to cause her this kind of pain. But he always did. He always hurt her somehow. That’s all he was good for—inflicting pain.
    He should just walk away from her forever. Let her have her happy life with his brother. At least then, he’d stop being such a fucking asshole to his brother too by chasing after his girl. Then he’d finish hurting one of the people he loved. He wished he was that strong. But he couldn’t do it. He couldn’t let her go.
    “Kate, please.”
    He reached out for her again, but she shook her head. She didn’t say a word, just stumbled out of his reach. His stomach sank. She was running from him, and he couldn’t blame her. He hated it all the same.
    She turned away from him and his chest ached as if he’d been punted by old Bertha square in the heart. Kate fled the stable, fled from him, kicking up hay as she ran. No doubt she was returning to his brother, to his soft comfort and loving protection. Hiding even further from the person she truly was.
    More than his next breath, he wanted to chase her. He wanted to run after her, pin her down and force her to take him back. From what had happened in this stall, he was fairly sure he could do it. But she’d hate herself for it and for hurting Daniel. The last thing he wanted was to bring her any more pain.
    He’d thought he’d been doing the right and noble thing by releasing her from their connection. He’d moved hours away with no prospect of ever coming back. It wasn’t as if he could spend a few weeks or even months at the ranch and fix it up enough to make it manageable for his mother. He was moving there—well, here—for good. The ranch required all his time and attention. There was no point in Kate waiting for him. It had seemed easier to end their relationship. Even if it was the last thing he had wanted to do.
    What he’d never anticipated was how much he’d miss her. How much he still wanted her even a year later. He hadn’t realized then that no one would ever replace her.
    He fisted his hands at his sides, wishing he could punch himself in the face. He definitely deserved it after everything he’d done to her. He’d been such a fucking idiot.
    Of course, she was right. He should have talked to her in person and let her know why he was leaving. She’d deserved that. And he’d tried. He’d gotten to her front door but, standing on her doorstep, he’d chickened out. He couldn’t tell her. He couldn’t look into her eyes and let her know he was leaving.
    He was just as big of a wuss as his brother. Maybe