Chapter 2
Three Months Later
Dallas
Dallas sat at the kitchen table in front of his father. His mother was out with Cheyenne running errands. While his father was engrossed in a crossword, Dallas fidgeted. His knee bounced and he tapped his right fingers on the table.
Three months ago, his life had turned upside down and inside out—in the most beautiful way. He’d fallen for a girl he couldn’t get out of his head.
Dallas had followed Cheyenne to the country club because she’d been acting strange since the moment she got back from town. He’d figured she had met someone and didn’t want their parents to know so they couldn’t disapprove.
But then he’d seen Camilla, and all thoughts of spying on Cheyenne had gone by the wayside.
There had been no words to describe Camilla. He’d been shell-shocked, which was why he’d plowed through several people to bump into her just so he had the excuse to speak to her. But then she’d made her way through the crown, as if she were trying to get away from him.
Imagine his surprise when the person Cheyenne was supposed to meet was, in fact, the beautiful woman he’d set his sights on.
Dallas raked a hand through his hair at the memory. He’d fretted for nearly two hours as he tried to convince himself to go home. Cheyenne was protective of her friends, and normally that didn’t matter. Dallas had never been attracted to anyone she told had him was off limits.
But Camilla?
He’d known that they were destined for each other. And if he destroyed what little remained of his relationship with his sister in order to win over the woman of his dreams? So be it.
In his left hand, he held tight to the ring box he’d picked up two days ago from the jeweler. It wasn’t a sizable ring by any means. The stones were small since Dallas barely had any savings. But the sacrifice had been worth it.
Camilla was his forever.
“You going to keep twitching over there or are you going to tell me what’s going on?” The gruff tone of his father’s voice pulled him from his reverie. His father eyed him with a look that was both concerned and amused.
Dallas exhaled through pursed lips. “It’s Camilla.”
His father settled back in his seat and folded his arms. “Everything okay?”
“Everything’s perfect,” Dallas grinned before slapping the box down on the table. “I’m going to ask her to marry me.”
There were many expressions that belonged to his father. Dallas had seen them all. This one? Where Dallas had hoped to see pride and congratulations, all he saw was concern.
Brows pinching, Dallas shifted in his seat. “What’s wrong?”
His father pressed his lips into a thin line. “You’re twenty-two. You’re still in college.”
Dallas scoffed. “I’m graduating in May.”
A nod. “Then what?”
“What do you mean, then what?” Dallas said. “Then we’ll start our life together. We’ll get a place. I’ll find a job. Lots of people have started out with less.” Even as he uttered the words, Dallas couldn’t shake the feeling he was doing something wrong. “What more do you want?”
“Son, marriage is a big commitment. You’ve known this girl for what? Two months?”
“Three,” Dallas said.
“Three, then.” His father nodded to the ring box. “Am I correct in assuming you spent most of your savings on that ring?”
This time Dallas didn’t respond.
His father sighed. “Think about it, son. Marriage is hard, and that’s without the concern for finances.
You barely know each other. You don’t have a penny to your name.
Is marriage really the right decision? Perhaps get a steady job lined up.
Or build back your savings. Don’t go into debt for a fling. ”
Dallas swiped the ring from the table and shoved it in his pocket as he launched to his feet. “Camilla isn’t a fling. She’s the love of my life. She’s the only one I want to be with.”
“And I’m happy for you, but—”
“Are you though? I would have thought if you were happy for me, you’d congratulate me and maybe offer some sage words of advice.”
“That’s what I was doing.” Now his father sounded more tired than anything else.
“Trust me, Dallas. There are more things to consider when making this decision. Money and feelings are but two of many. Before you go doing anything rash, think this through. Make a plan. I’ll support you in whatever decision you make, but I want you to make the one that’s right for you. ”
Hands clenched into fists at his sides, Dallas turned to storm from the room, but his father’s quiet question stopped him in his tracks.
“Do you really love this girl as much as you say you do?”
“Yes,” Dallas said with conviction. “I really do love her.”
“Then you’ll do what I suggest. You’ll consider everything from every angle.
Not for your sake but for hers. Don’t let your selfish desires be the thing that tears the two of you apart.
It might not happen today. It might not happen five years down the road.
But if you jump too quickly into something that neither of you are prepared for, you’ll find you’ll both end up shattered and alone in the end. ”
Dallas stood there, his back to his father, as he let the words sink in. He didn’t want to believe what he’d said. He didn’t want to put anything on hold. It felt right to buy the ring. It had felt right to plan the proposal for tonight.
But the longer he let his father’s words get to him, the harder it became to stick with those plans.
Dallas flipped open the box, then snapped it shut.
He sat, hunched on his bed, his father’s warning dancing through his skull, mocking him.
There was a very real possibility that his father was right.
Currently, Dallas was so in love with Camilla that he was blinded to any complications that could arise.
While he knew they were compatible in every sense of the word, the fact was the world didn’t care.
Floods, tornados, and other natural disasters didn’t care what was damaged when they ripped through a city. Stocks and investments paid no mind if people in love were affected. The strains of life itself would always threaten to tear even the most committed individuals apart.
So maybe his father had done right by him in warning him to plan ahead.
Dallas sighed, dragging a hand down his face. The door to his bedroom opened, and he didn’t have to look up to know his twin had entered.
“You here to gloat?” he muttered derisively.
“Dad told us,” she said softly, prying the velvet box from his hand.
He glanced at her in time to see her make a face at the ring. But then she caught him looking and schooled her features. She handed it back to him. “I thought it would be fancier,” she said lamely.
Dallas yanked the box to his chest as if to protect it from getting hurt feelings.
But the only feelings that were hurting right now were his own.
He’d made an impulsive decision. But that was his way, wasn’t it?
He’d never been the type of person to think things through.
When he wanted something, he went for it.
“You’re supposed to go out tonight?” she asked quietly.
“Yeah, what do you care?”
She shrugged.
“What do you want, Cheyenne. We both know you’ve never liked the fact that Camilla started dating me.”
“That’s because when you inevitably break her heart, it’s going to mess with my friendship.”
He snorted. “That’s never going to happen. I love her.”
“Yeah, well, you don’t have to break up with her to break her heart,” she snapped back.
Dallas glared at her with a dark look. If she thought for one moment that Dallas would do anything to hurt Camilla, she was sorely mistaken. He would never cause her pain. Ever.
“What are you going to do, then?”
“I don’t know,” he said after a beat of silence.
“What can I do? I’m still in school for a couple more months.
I do have a few prospective jobs lined up, but they’re out of state.
There’s nothing available locally. Those sorts of positions are reserved for specialists in my field, and I’m not there yet. ”
“Maybe you take what you can get, and in a few years…” Cheyenne shrugged. Was she actually trying to help? He couldn’t believe it. Cheyenne never cared about his relationships. She steered clear of the girls he’d dated before.
Maybe her friendship with Camilla made this time different. Maybe Camilla would be the thing to pull them together.
His frown deepened as he stared at the ring in his hand. What was he supposed to tell Camilla? He couldn’t exactly ask her to wait for him.
Could he?
No.
That wouldn’t be fair.
But he had to tell her something—especially if he decided to leave town.
He swallowed hard. “What do I tell her?” It was an honest question. Cheyenne knew Camilla better than anyone. “Should I tell her my plans?”
“No.”
His gaze cut to hers. “Don’t you think she’d want to—”
“It would hurt too much. The two of you have gotten so close. I’m pretty sure she’s expecting you to make some sort of grand gesture or commitment.
” Cheyenne nodded to the ring. “Do you really think she’d want you to take her out tonight and instead of proposing, you tell her you’re going to leave for a couple years to take a job? ”
“No,” he groaned. Geez. Love wasn’t supposed to be this hard. “So, what, then? A letter?”
“You… could,” Cheyenne hedged. “I’d say go on the date tonight. Make it memorable. Don’t say a thing. Then call around to those job opportunities. Snag one and go. I’ll give her your letter. I’ll break it to her nice. Leave the ball in her court if she wants to stay in contact.”
He scowled. “You want me to promise not to call her? Not to write? I can’t do that.” Even to him, the venom in his voice stung.
His sister held up both hands. “All I’m saying is that leaving is hard for everyone involved. You can’t expect her to be okay with it, either. But if you leave everything else as a choice she gets to make, then… you’ll have a better shot at reconnecting when you come back.”
While he wanted to say what she said made sense, there was a part of his brain where alarm bells were ringing. But Cheyenne loved Camilla, too. She wouldn’t want Camilla hurting more than what was reasonable. She was a woman. She understood the female mind better than he did.
Swallowing hard, Dallas nodded. “You’re right. Thanks.” He got to his feet and tucked the ring box into the back of his dresser. “After I get back, I’ll write the letter. Just… make sure she doesn’t get it until I’m gone.”
She smiled grimly at him, nodding but not speaking. Then she stood and left the room.