Chapter Fourteen

Several months later, Sara was brushing out Dream Catcher in her stall when two men walked into the stables. She recognized their voices but didn't call out to them.

"Jesus, I just heard Grant bought the old Williams place. It has over two hundred acres."

"What about the house that's on it?"

"He'll probably tear it down. No one has lived in it for years. Besides, he has the big house here that he grew up in, and I can't ever see him leaving. It's been in his family for three generations," the first man said.

Sara hadn't realized she stood there frozen. So many things ran through her mind, but the one thought that hit her the hardest was that Grant had been lying to her for months. She just couldn't figure out why, besides the fact he was playing a joke on her, and the thought of him and his men laughing at her stupidity made her nauseous.

The two men walked away.

She patted the horse for a moment but knew she needed to leave before she started crying.

"Goodbye, girl. I will miss you forever." The thought of leaving and never coming back killed a part of her inside, but she couldn't see her showing her face at his ranch again. It would be too embarrassing.

She walked out of the stall and put the brush away before heading toward her car. Her focus was on staying calm and getting away as quickly as possible. She was just about to get to her car before someone called out to her.

"Hey, Sara," one of the ranch hands, Brian, yelled from several yards away.

She stopped and turned. She caught the look in his eyes of concern, telling her she must have looked bad.

"Where are you going? Grant said he'd be here in the next half hour."

She nodded. "I know. Can you tell him I'll call him later, please? I forgot I had something to do."

"Are you okay?" Brian asked as he walked her way.

"Yes. I just have a little tummy ache."

"Get some rest."

"I will. Can I ask you a quick question?" she asked.

"Sure."

"Were you aware of the fact that I didn't know Grant owned the ranch? I thought he was the manager?"

She could tell immediately that he did and felt herself blush. She tried to laugh. "I guess I'm a little slow on the uptake, huh?"

"No. Wait. Listen to him. He really cares about you," Brian said.

Sara chuckled. "Well, damn, I wish I could say I believe you, but we've been together for four months, and he's kept up this charade the whole time."

"Just give him a chance to explain," Brian said.

"When I'm ready, I'll listen, but not for a while. Just tell him I'll call him when I'm ready to talk and to please not try to find me."

Brian held out his hand. "I've never seen that man in love with a woman until you."

"I'll listen later. Thank you, Brian. Take care."

She ignored him, trying to get her attention again, got in her car, and drove off.

Her thoughts were so chaotic that she about drove off the road twice. She shook herself. Just get home , she repeated over and over.

Sara exhaled when she pulled into her driveway. Instead of parking in the attached garage, she hid her car behind one of the barns. She guessed he'd probably try to find her unless it was a joke and he'd had all the fun he could with her.

She made her way into her house and locked the door. She greeted the dogs and grabbed a glass of water before walking out onto the back patio. The memory of them fucking on the lounger and the hot tub slipped into her mind and made her want to turn around and walk back in. But the patio had always been a place of solace for her, and she wasn't going to let him take that from her.

She moved the chair into the shade and sat. Watching the dogs play kept her attention until a wave of remorse slammed into her. A sound close to a wounded animal slipped from her mouth.

She pressed her face into her hands and wept for a long time. Her dogs felt her anguish and came to her, trying to console her the best they could. When she finally calmed down, she stood to get a box of tissues and went back out into the yard.

She had no idea how much time had passed when she heard a truck pull into the driveway and then pounding on her door.

"Sara, goddammit, where the hell are you?" he yelled.

Sara sat still and waited for him to leave. She was in an area hidden by bushes, so he'd have to come into the backyard and around the line of bushes. Her stomach dropped when her phone rang inside. She remembered putting her purse on the counter, and she prayed he couldn't hear it.

She didn't hear anything for a long time and then relaxed when she heard his truck drive away. She knew she was acting like a coward, but she just needed a few days to gain back her strength and get her emotions under control.

A few hours passed before she looked around and saw the shadows of the night starting to grow and her dogs whining to get fed.

"I'm sorry, guys. Let's get you taken care of."

She fed them and then took a shower. She kept the lights off as much as she could. As the water hit her back, more tears came. God, the pain was excruciating. It felt even worse than what she felt when her husband died. Maybe because she'd given everything to Grant, and they'd had a bond she'd only read about.

After taking the tie off and combing her hair out, she pulled on a nightgown she hadn't worn in a few months because he had forbidden it and crawled into bed. The only light was from the moon coming into the window and the nightlight in the hallway. Everything else she kept off.

She didn't think she'd be able to rest, but with the emotional heartbreak she'd felt, her body and mind were exhausted, and she fell right to sleep.