Chapter 9
CHAPTER NINE
SAVANNAH
Ican't breathe.
The courthouse steps blur beneath my feet as I flee, wedding dress clutched in my hands to keep from tripping. My chest feels like it's collapsing, lungs refusing to expand properly. Tears stream down my face, ruining the makeup I spent an hour perfecting this morning.
What have I done?
The look on Colt's face when I said I couldn't go through with it will haunt me forever. Confusion. Hurt. Betrayal. All the things I never wanted to cause him.
I reach my car and fumble with the keys, hands shaking so badly I drop them twice before managing to unlock the door. Inside, I sink into the driver's seat, forehead pressed against the steering wheel as sobs rack my body.
This wasn't how today was supposed to go. The plan was simple. Marry Colt. Get the inheritance. Continue our mutually beneficial arrangement for six months. Then part ways, no harm done.
Except I've gone and done the one thing I promised myself I wouldn't. I've fallen in love with him.
The realization hit me three days ago as we lay in bed, his arm around me, my head on his chest. The steady rhythm of his heart beneath my ear, the way his fingers traced absent patterns on my skin. The absolute rightness of being there with him. It terrified me.
Because in two weeks, this fake marriage became more real than any relationship I've ever had. And in six months, when our arrangement ends, walking away will break me.
I couldn't marry him knowing I'd be living a lie.
Pretending this was just business when every touch, every smile, every moment together meant everything to me.
And I couldn't tell him the truth, couldn't risk seeing pity in his eyes when he realized the pathetic sheriff's daughter had fallen for him for real.
So I ran. Like a coward. Embarrassed us both and confirmed every terrible thing my father ever thought about this situation.
My phone buzzes relentlessly in my purse. Probably Sylvie. Or my father. Or worst of all, Colt. I ignore it, starting the car instead. I need somewhere to think. Somewhere to hide until the humiliation subsides enough for me to face the consequences of what I've done.
Without conscious decision, I drive to my grandmother's house. The inheritance I was so desperate to claim that I concocted this whole charade. The house sits empty, waiting for an owner who cares enough to bring it back to life.
I use the spare key hidden in the garden gnome, letting myself into the dusty interior. Nothing has changed since Grandma died. Same furniture draped in sheets. Same faded wallpaper. Same kitchen where she taught me to bake.
I sink onto the sheet-covered couch, not caring that my white dress will be ruined. Nothing matters now. I've lost Colt. Lost my inheritance. Lost my dignity. All because I couldn't keep my heart in check.
"I thought I might find you here."
My father's voice startles me. I look up to see him standing in the doorway, still in his dress uniform, face unreadable.
"Come to say I told you so?" My voice is hoarse from crying.
He sighs, moving to sit beside me. "No. I came to check on my daughter."
The gentleness in his tone undoes me. Fresh tears spill down my cheeks. "I messed everything up."
"Seems that way." He passes me his handkerchief. "Want to tell me what really happened? The truth this time."
So I do. Everything spills out in a rush. The inheritance condition. My impulsive proposal to Colt after seeing him harassed on Main Street. The contract we made. Moving in together. And then, the part I hadn't planned for.
"I fell in love with him, Dad." The admission feels both painful and freeing. "Really, truly in love. And I couldn't go through with a fake wedding knowing my feelings were real."
"Why not tell him how you feel?" he asks, surprisingly reasonable for a man who wanted to arrest Colt less than three weeks ago.
"Because our arrangement was just business for him. Six months, then divorce." I twist the engagement ring on my finger, the one Colt crafted with his own hands. "I couldn't bear to see the pity in his eyes when he realized I'd fallen for our own lie."
My father is quiet for a long moment. "You know," he says finally, "for a smart woman, you can be remarkably blind."
I look up, confused. "What?"
"Those vows he wrote. The way he looks at you." Dad shakes his head. "That man isn't acting, Savannah. And he's not the person I thought he was."
Hope flutters in my chest before reality crushes it. "It doesn't matter now. I humiliated him in front of everyone. He'll never forgive me."
"Don't be so sure." He nods toward the window. "Looks like you've got company."
I follow his gaze to see Colt's truck screeching to a halt in front of the house. My heart stops, then restarts at double speed.
"I'll give you two some privacy." My father stands, straightening his uniform. "For what it's worth, I was wrong about him. And I'm sorry."
The admission stuns me silent as he walks past Colt at the door, exchanging a brief nod before disappearing down the porch steps.
Then it's just us. Colt filling the doorframe, tie gone, shirt collar unbuttoned, hair mussed like he's been running his hands through it repeatedly. He looks wrecked. Because of me.
"Savannah." Just my name, but the way he says it unravels me.
"I'm sorry," I whisper. "I never meant to hurt you."
He crosses the room in four long strides, dropping to his knees before me. "Then why did you run?"
"Because I couldn't lie anymore." I force myself to meet his eyes. "Not to everyone else, and not to myself."
"What lie?" His voice is rough, urgent. "Tell me."
"That this is just business for me." The words tumble out, unstoppable now. "That I could marry you, live with you, be with you for six months, and then walk away unscathed. That I haven't completely fallen for you."
His expression relaxes, something like wonder replacing the hurt. "Say that again."
"I've fallen in love with you." The truth burns bright between us. "And I couldn't go through with a fake wedding when my feelings are real. When every moment with you these past weeks has meant everything to me."
His hands come up to frame my face, thumbs wiping away tears I didn't realize were falling again. "You think this is still fake for me? That what we've been building isn't real?"
"Our arrangement. The contract." My voice breaks. "Six months, then divorce. That was the deal."
"Fuck the deal." The intensity in his eyes steals my breath. "Savannah, I fell for you somewhere between you proposing in my workshop and berating my kitchen that first night. Every day since has just made me fall harder."
Hope blooms in my chest, terrifying in its fragility. "What are you saying?"
"I'm saying I love you." He says it simply, definitively. "I love your courage and your determination. I love the way you fight for what you want. I love how you see me, really see me, not just what everyone else assumes I am."
A sob escapes me, half laugh, half cry. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"Same reason you didn't tell me." His smile is rueful. "Afraid you were still seeing this as just business. Afraid of what happens in six months when our arrangement ends."
"What does happen in six months?" I ask, hardly daring to hope.
"Nothing." He takes my hands in his. "Because I don't want an arrangement with an expiration date. I want a real marriage. With you. For as long as you'll have me."
Joy surges through me so intensely I can barely breathe. "Are you proposing? Again?"
"Better this time." He reaches into his pocket, pulling out a small wooden box I've never seen before. Inside sits a ring even more beautiful than my engagement ring. A perfect match, designed to sit alongside it. "I had this made for today. A real wedding band for a real marriage."
I stare at him in wonder. "You knew? Even before today?"
"I knew what I wanted." He takes the ring from the box. "I just didn't know if you wanted the same thing. If you were ready to admit what's been growing between us is more than convenience or great sex."
"It's so much more." I slide my hand into his, letting him place the wedding band alongside the engagement ring. The fit is perfect. "I love you, Colt Reeves. I've been falling since you knelt on that coffee shop patio."
"So marry me." His eyes hold mine, vulnerable and hopeful. "For real this time. No contracts. No arrangements. Just us choosing each other."
I launch myself into his arms, nearly knocking us both to the floor. His laughter rumbles through his chest as he catches me, arms strong and secure around my waist.
"Is that a yes?" he murmurs against my hair.
"Yes." I pull back enough to see his face. "But we're going to need a new wedding venue. And I'm going to need a new dress. This one has dust all over it."
"We could elope." His hands trace up my back. "Just us. No audience. No pressure."
"My father might actually arrest you if we do that." I smile, remembering my father's unexpected support. "Besides, I think he's finally starting to like you."
"Miracles never cease." Colt stands, pulling me up with him. "So what now?"
I look around at my grandmother's house, seeing it with new eyes. Not just as an inheritance to claim, but as a home to build. "First, we clean up this place. Then we plan a real wedding."
"And then?" His arms tighten around me.
"And then we live happily ever after." I rise on tiptoes to kiss him. "Just like we're supposed to."
His mouth meets mine, the kiss sweet and sure. Everything that was tangled inside me unravels, replaced by certainty. This is right. This is real. This is where I belong.
What started as a business arrangement three weeks ago has transformed into the greatest love story I could have imagined. Not because it's perfect or easy, but because it's ours. Built on truth, and trust, and the courage to be vulnerable.
"I love you," I whisper against his lips.
His smile is everything. "I love you too, future Mrs. Reeves. For real this time."
For real, and forever.