There was too much burden. Niya. He couldn’t seem to let go of her. Didn’t want to let go. She was taken from him too early. His life had fallen apart after that. At least, that’s how he felt. Would he ever be able to reach her daughter? Would she ever forgive him? He needed her to. Maybe then he could begin to get past Niya’s death. Until then, he had a fierce obligation to remain loyal to Niya. Betraying her was unthinkable. Women had tried to lure him and failed. While he couldn’t say Savanna was trying to lure him, she had come closer than anyone in succeeding. What made her so different? Maybe it was the wealth they had in common. And their heartaches. Regardless, he’d steer clear of the temptation. Aside from honoring Niya with his loyalty, he didn’t think he ever wanted to feel the way he had for her again. He’d had his one true love. He didn’t need another.
If he could walk away from Savanna now, he would. Instead, he was stuck in this yurt. Though spacious for a yurt, it was still confining.
Korbin went over to her and sat at the table where she had all the cards spread, satisfied smile soft on her mouth. She only glanced up at him before resuming her concentration.
Solitude really did suit this woman.
“You could stay here all winter, couldn’t you.” He stated rather than asked.
That brought her look up to him, where it stayed. Then she scanned the interior of their snowy lair.
“I might run out of food.” Her gaze hit the window. “Not water, though.”
“Why do you like it so much?”
She shrugged. “I’ve always been that way. Although, my mother seems to have forgotten that. She thinks I moved here to get away.”
“And you didn’t?”
Placing the card she held down onto the table, her happy contentment faded. This was not something she freely spoke about. Her personal affairs were tightly guarded secrets. He didn’t think she’d answer.
“Yes, and no. I went back to my roots, that’s all.”
“After your fiancé called it off?” he asked.
And again to his amazement, she answered. “Yes, except he didn’t call it off. I did.”
He could see the breakup had been very painful for her. “Sorry.” She’d told him that he’d found someone else.
She leaned back against her chair and stared across the yurt.
“How did you catch him?” he asked.
She turned back to him. “What makes you think I caught him?”
He shrugged. “Lucky guess.”
Picking up the card again, she tapped it on the table. “He ran a kids’ play center, you know, the kind that have all the inflatable jumpers and bounce castles. He met the mom of one of the kids. One night he didn’t come home when he’d said he’d be there and he wasn’t answering his phone. So I drove to the jump center. He didn’t even lock the front door. I walked right in, even though it was late and no one else was there. He was in his office with her. Going at it.”
She turned her head, the pain of memory sticking with her even after all this time.
“They didn’t even know I was there,” she said. “About an hour later, he came home and I called off the wedding. That was seven years ago.”