Absentminded Angel(Divine Creek Ranch 20)(82)

He held out his hand to her and sat down next to Jared on the love seat and drew her into his lap. All the thoughts swirling in her head and in her heart coalesced into a knot in her chest. Evidently feeling her tension, Kendry gently squeezed her but remained quiet.

“My chest hurts,” she whispered, the ache in her heart intensifying as she rubbed her breast bone.

“That’s scary for a heart transplant recipient to hear, kitten. I shared with Jared some of what you told me the other night.”

Jared reached out to her hands as she looked up at him and she said, “I’m sorry for the way all of this came about. I should’ve told you both sooner.”

Jared intertwined his fingers with hers and said, “You’re human, angel, and you couldn’t control what happened tonight. I’m still reeling from it, myself.”

“O’Reilley’s was where we originally met. He talked his brother and his manager into taking a detour through Divine on their way to Houston, just on the slim possibility that he might cross paths with me again.” Unsure how much Jared knew, she told him the full story, her cheeks grew hot as she related moments of intimacy with another man. She hoped that was the last time she had to explain herself, and her idiocy, to anyone ever again.

“That’s who you were, Presley Ann. We love the woman you are today,” Jared said. “You aren’t an idiot. If you had the past to do over, would you do any of it differently?”

She thought of the conversation on the bus, the pain and loneliness she’d felt as she’d made a life for herself and her unborn child, the pain of telling her father and her sister, and the regret of not telling True her name up front.

But then she thought of the first time Jared smiled at her, the night she’d met him. The way he’d tilted his head and really listened to her as she’d told him about herself. She thought of the laughter she’d shared with Kendry on the Pony’s dance floor that same night. Her heart had cracked a little when she’d explained to them that she was expecting. She hadn’t said she was single but it’d been obvious. No wedding ring, no man meeting her that night, and no idea if Leah had shared the news that she was a single mom or not. She’d let it go unsaid, and they hadn’t pressed her. And they hadn’t judged her either. They’d asked her what kind of music she liked and if she liked living in a small town. No pity…and no judgment, either.

“No.”

Jared stroked her knuckles and said, “No?”

“I regret the shock we all suffered tonight. I regret not being able to tell True sooner. He asked me to go with him tonight. He invited us to join him on the road. He wanted to spend time with Whit…and with me. He said he regretted leaving me behind that morning, and with each passing mile he regretted it even more.”

It was obvious her words were making the men uncomfortable but she needed to get it all out so they’d understand.

“All of their big hits right now were written by True and inspired by the night we spent together.”

“Angel,” Jared murmured, his words sounding like he was crawling over broken glass. Kendry drew a shaky breath as he scrubbed at his forehead.

She drew Kendry’s hand down and waited until she had their undivided attention. “I looked into his eyes, the same eyes I see when I look at Whit, the same gaze that I remembered from that night, and…all I could feel was gratitude toward him for having Whit in my life, for knowing that kind of deep, encompassing love. Whit changed my life and I’m grateful to True for him. But in my heart, all I could see were two pairs of eyes, in differing shades of blue-gray. I knew where I was meant to be…if you still want me.”

Her tears finally overflowed as their jaws dropped and their relief was palpable. Jared let out a deep breath and rubbed the heels of his hands against his forehead while Kendry shook and the deep rumble of laughter vibrated in his chest.

“Fuck,” Jared said, his voice rasping as he gently grasped the back of her neck and met her halfway with a kiss.

“What?” she asked as she swiped her tears and looked back and forth between them. “I know a good thing when I see it. There’s all kinds of emotions mixed up in all of this, but I love you guys. I love you!”

Jared chuckled and said, “I was ready to beg.”

Kendry nodded as he caressed her cheek. “I was set to grovel, too. You’re sure? He can provide a lot for you and Whit. They’re both probably set for life and then some.”

Presley Ann knew that matter would come up eventually. “He told me as much. But that’s not what I need. Right now, I deal with a little bit of small town gossip but can you imagine how that would balloon to a global scale? I don’t want that for Whit…or for myself.”