CHAPTER 7
KILLIAN
I’m halfway home when headlights illuminate the dark lane and Noah’s truck pulls up beside me. He doesn’t wind down the window and tell me to get in, he just waits there, on the side of the road until I do it.
I narrow my eyes slightly, trying to get a glimpse of the inside of the truck, and once I’m sure it’s just him in there, I climb in the passenger side.
“You good, man?” he asks as he makes a U-turn and takes off down the road in the direction of his family ranch where my truck is still parked.
“Peachy,” I grunt.
“You wanna tell me what happened back there?”
“Nope.”
He stays silent a moment before asking, “you sure?”
“She couldn’t even fucking look at me. Did you notice that?” I ask.
Noah shoots me a pitying look before focusing back on the road. “Yeah. I noticed. Think everyone did.”
“I don’t get it, Noah. What could I have possibly done that she can’t even look at me?” I ask the question that’s been plaguing my mind all night.
Noah releases a long sigh. “I’m going to say something here that’s probably gonna piss you off.”
Turning my head to look at him, I raise a brow and wait.
“Have you ever thought that maybe it’s not something you did and in fact it’s something she did?”
I stare at him, dumbfounded.
Surely, he’s not suggesting what I think he’s suggesting, is he?
“Elaborate,” I say, breathlessly, knowing exactly what he’s going to say next and dreading the moment he speaks it into existence.
“You know what I mean, Kill. It’s sort of the only thing that makes sense. Why else would she just up and disappear on your wedding day?”
My jaw ticks. “You think she cheated on me and couldn’t go through with the wedding? That’s what you’re suggesting, right?”
Noah shrugs casually, as if his words aren’t completely tearing my world apart right now. “It’s possible.”
Is it? I try to think back to the lead up to the wedding day, searching for something I may have missed.
The thought never even crossed my mind until he said it and now, I feel like I could throw up.
Did she behave differently? Not that I can remember. Fuck, I don’t remember us even spending enough time apart for her to cheat on me.
I shake my head. “No. It’s not possible.”
But there were those few days she went away for her bachelorette.
Oh my God, it’s possible.
“Pull over,” I mutter quietly.
Thankfully, Noah hears me and pulls the truck over, slamming the breaks just in time for me to open the door and empty the contents of my stomach on the side of the road.
***
“Jesus fucking Christ, I’m dying.” A voice, that is definitely not female, groans beside me causing my eyes to open at an alarming speed.
I wince and squeeze them shut again.
“Ouch. What the fuck?” My own voice is hoarse and unrecognisable as I roll over in bed.
“Shhh. Turn the lights off, Killian.” The deep voice beside me says, a hand batting at me, and I shoot up into a sitting position.
I blink against the bright light streaming in through the windows, giving my eyes a moment to adjust before I turn and look at the intruder in my fucking bedroom.
“Noah, what the fuck?”
He mirrors my earlier movement, shooting up in the bed, his eyes slightly crazed as they fly around the room. “What?”
“Why the fuck are you in my bed?” I shout.
The fucker blinks at me, his brows furrowed in confusion. “What?”
I grit my teeth. “I said, why are you in my bed? And why do I feel like I’ve been hit by a truck full of whiskey?”
He groans, throwing himself back against the pillows -my pillows – and making himself comfortable again. “Because you drank your body weight in the stuff last night.”
Like an epic horror movie, the events from the night before come rushing back. The bar. The argument with Daisy out front. The ride home. Throwing up on the side of the road. It all becomes a bit hazy after that.
My stomach lurches and I swallow against the bile rising in my throat. Scrubbing a hand down my face, I shake the memories away and focus on the issue at hand. “That still doesn’t explain why you’re in my bed.”
“This ain’t your bed, man,” Noah grumbles into the pillow.
My frown is immediate.
I take stock of the room around me, my confusion growing as I take in the unfamiliar furniture. My eyes move to the bed. Dark sheets and pillows that are in fact not mine.
Holy shit, he’s right. This isn’t my room.
I take a seat on the edge of the bed and cup my head in my hands. “Fuck, I think I’m still drunk.”
A throaty chuckle sounds behind me. “I’m not surprised. You were college girl level wasted last night. You stumbled in here and asked if you could sleep with me.”
I scrub at my face and groan in mortification. “Fucking hell.”
“It’s okay, man. I’ll be your big spoon any time. Just gotta ask.”
“Fuck off, Noah,” I grumble as I stand, swaying slightly. I pause, giving myself a moment to gain my balance before I stalk out of his bedroom, his laugh following.
I need coffee and a shower. I’m pretty sure I’ve got puke on my shirt, and my sweat is ninety-percent Jim Beam.
Instead of waiting around until I’m sober enough to drive myself home, I walk the short distance to Hunter’s house in the hopes that he can give me a ride home.
I rap my knuckles against the door and wait. There’s a childlike giggle followed by small feet bounding on the wood floors before the door swings open.
My attention is drawn downwards to the little girl bouncing in the doorway before catching on her very pregnant mother as she rushes into the hallway. “Reign, what have I told you about opening the door to strangers?” Savannah scolds.
“But it’s not a stwanger, mummy. It’s uncle Killian,” Reign argues and if I weren’t so hungover I would laugh.
“But you didn’t know it was Uncle Killian until you opened the door, did you?” Savannah counters.
“Sorry,” Reign mutters, dipping her head in disappointment. My heart squeezes at the sadness on her face and I bend down, scooping her up in my arms before turning my attention back to her mother.
“Sorry for showing up out of the blue. Is Hunter here?”
Reign fidgets in my arms and I adjust my hold on her. Savannah glances between us, clearing her throat. “No, he’s doing a walk-through with the new groomer today. He’s up at the barn.”
Savannah frowns at Reign as she wriggles against me and I look at her, noticing her face screwed up in disgust. “You okay, Reigny?” I ask.
She shakes her head, pinching her nose between her fingers. “You smell bad, Uncle Killian.”
Savannah gasps and a loud laugh bursts from my chest as I set the child back on the floor.
“I’m so sorry,” Savannah winces, though the look on her face tells me she’s holding back a laugh of her own.
I shake my head. “Don’t be. Nothing will humble you faster than a five-year-old.”
“Ain’t that the truth,” she chuckles before sobering her features and giving me the once over. “Are you okay?”
“All good. I just had a little too much to drink last night and need a ride home. I’ll see if one of the ranch hands can take me.”
She nods. “As long as you’re sure.”
Smiling tightly, I step back. “I am. Thank you.”
Savannah says her goodbyes and closes the door, and I make my way toward the main barn up by the big house in the hopes of running into someone that can drive my ass home so I can crawl into bed and rot.
It’s not until I’m walking through the open doors of the barn that Savannah’s words register.
He’s doing a walk-through with the new groomer today.
The new groomer, who just so happens to be Daisy.
Daisy, who is currently standing in front of me with a horse brush in hand as she takes in my current semi-inebriated state.
Fuck my life.