It’s been long enough, I should be over it.”
Beside him, Abby clasped her hands behind her back as she walked. “It can take a long time to recover from betrayal, Jason. Even after you no longer love the person, the self-doubt can linger.”
“I haven’t loved Bree for some time,” he told her truthfully, wondering whether what he’d felt for Brianna had been love or something more like infatuation. What he knew for certain was that he’d intended on spending the rest of his life as her husband. The only time he’d come close to wanting someone else had been the night he met Abby, and his intense attraction to her had caused him deep pangs of guilt when he returned home that evening.
At the time he’d been blissfully unaware of Brianna’s rendezvous with another man that same evening, involving much more than flirting.
Abby was right, of course. Though he no longer cared for Bree, Jason still distrusted himself. “To this day I wonder why I didn’t see it,” he said, struggling to explain the fracture that lingered in his heart. “Not just the infidelity, but the type of person she is, and the way she manipulated me. It seems so clear now.” He drew a shuddery breath, as fresh anger surged through him. “God, I wish she hadn’t shown up tonight. I didn’t want you to see me this way.”
Abby’s slim shoulders lifted. “To be honest, I’m relieved to see a vulnerable side of you. It’s good to know you’re not actually perfect.”
“Perfect?” he echoed, her response surprising him.
“You always say just the right things, Jason. It’s lovely—you’ve made me feel very special, but it doesn’t help me get to know you. And I really would like to.”
Jason slowed his pace and then stopped, turning to face her under the canopy of an elm tree. Her words settled warmly in his chest, drawing a soft smile to his lips. “When you do, maybe you can tell me why I’m so pathetic as to even notice what my self-serving ex-fiancée is up to, when I’m here with someone sweet and genuine—who, until now, has thought of me as perfect .”
Abby laughed, errant curls fluttering around her face in the warm evening breeze. “You’re only human, Jason. At least you had the courage to put an end to things when you found out Brianna wasn’t who you thought she was. I wish I’d known when to cut my losses with Colin.”
Jason stroked her arm lightly, feeling goose bumps stipple her flesh under his fingertips. “You must have known, Abby. But I suspect Colin hurt you somehow. I think that whatever he did must have eroded your confidence, and that he did this to keep you from leaving. Am I right?”
She looked at him sharply, the raw emotion in her eyes startling him. Her lips parted, but it took her a moment to reply. “You’re not wrong. But I kept thinking I could fix it. My parents had such a solid marriage, I suppose I expected the same. When it didn’t work out that way, I felt I’d failed.”
The pain of the memory was plain in her shimmering eyes and in the subtle quiver in her voice, and Jason suffered an echoing ache in his own chest. He realized he had been just the same, expecting to recreate the ideal marriage his parents had enjoyed—or, at least, his memories of what they had shared before his mother passed away when he was fourteen. Maybe he’d wanted it a little too much, and Brianna had been a convenient choice. He would have saved himself the heartache had he followed his father’s example after his mother’s death, pursuing a series of relationships but choosing never to commit himself long-term to one woman. Owen Brinleigh had, after all, died a confirmed and very contented bachelor.
“Never mind, Abby.” Jason felt eager to comfort her. “You’re a beautiful, kind, talented woman. You can start over now. Don’t let Colin Bennett stop you from being who you are.”
“I’m trying my best,” she said, blinking back her tears. “But starting over isn’t easy.
Beside him, Abby clasped her hands behind her back as she walked. “It can take a long time to recover from betrayal, Jason. Even after you no longer love the person, the self-doubt can linger.”
“I haven’t loved Bree for some time,” he told her truthfully, wondering whether what he’d felt for Brianna had been love or something more like infatuation. What he knew for certain was that he’d intended on spending the rest of his life as her husband. The only time he’d come close to wanting someone else had been the night he met Abby, and his intense attraction to her had caused him deep pangs of guilt when he returned home that evening.
At the time he’d been blissfully unaware of Brianna’s rendezvous with another man that same evening, involving much more than flirting.
Abby was right, of course. Though he no longer cared for Bree, Jason still distrusted himself. “To this day I wonder why I didn’t see it,” he said, struggling to explain the fracture that lingered in his heart. “Not just the infidelity, but the type of person she is, and the way she manipulated me. It seems so clear now.” He drew a shuddery breath, as fresh anger surged through him. “God, I wish she hadn’t shown up tonight. I didn’t want you to see me this way.”
Abby’s slim shoulders lifted. “To be honest, I’m relieved to see a vulnerable side of you. It’s good to know you’re not actually perfect.”
“Perfect?” he echoed, her response surprising him.
“You always say just the right things, Jason. It’s lovely—you’ve made me feel very special, but it doesn’t help me get to know you. And I really would like to.”
Jason slowed his pace and then stopped, turning to face her under the canopy of an elm tree. Her words settled warmly in his chest, drawing a soft smile to his lips. “When you do, maybe you can tell me why I’m so pathetic as to even notice what my self-serving ex-fiancée is up to, when I’m here with someone sweet and genuine—who, until now, has thought of me as perfect .”
Abby laughed, errant curls fluttering around her face in the warm evening breeze. “You’re only human, Jason. At least you had the courage to put an end to things when you found out Brianna wasn’t who you thought she was. I wish I’d known when to cut my losses with Colin.”
Jason stroked her arm lightly, feeling goose bumps stipple her flesh under his fingertips. “You must have known, Abby. But I suspect Colin hurt you somehow. I think that whatever he did must have eroded your confidence, and that he did this to keep you from leaving. Am I right?”
She looked at him sharply, the raw emotion in her eyes startling him. Her lips parted, but it took her a moment to reply. “You’re not wrong. But I kept thinking I could fix it. My parents had such a solid marriage, I suppose I expected the same. When it didn’t work out that way, I felt I’d failed.”
The pain of the memory was plain in her shimmering eyes and in the subtle quiver in her voice, and Jason suffered an echoing ache in his own chest. He realized he had been just the same, expecting to recreate the ideal marriage his parents had enjoyed—or, at least, his memories of what they had shared before his mother passed away when he was fourteen. Maybe he’d wanted it a little too much, and Brianna had been a convenient choice. He would have saved himself the heartache had he followed his father’s example after his mother’s death, pursuing a series of relationships but choosing never to commit himself long-term to one woman. Owen Brinleigh had, after all, died a confirmed and very contented bachelor.
“Never mind, Abby.” Jason felt eager to comfort her. “You’re a beautiful, kind, talented woman. You can start over now. Don’t let Colin Bennett stop you from being who you are.”
“I’m trying my best,” she said, blinking back her tears. “But starting over isn’t easy.
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