Chapter 12
I speed down the road that leads to my family’s ranch. My gut twists in rhythm with the pain hammering through my chest. When the familiar sprawl comes into view, the tears start falling. I drive past the main house and head straight to Silas’ house. I rush up to the door and knock impatiently. When my brother pulls the door open, I fall into his arms, crying into his freshly pressed shirt.
"Whoa now, Magpie. What happened?" Silas closes the door behind us. The question tightens my throat, and all I can manage is another strangled wail. I bury my face deeper against him, wishing I could crawl back in time to before any of this was even a thought. He half-carries, half-drags me into the living room.
Silas’ place is a museum of sports memorabilia mixed with the typical bachelor pad furnishings. I'm leaking tears all over my twin, and he still grips me tight like he's trying to physically hold me together. He slides a box of tissues my way while pulling his phone from his pocket.
I lean against him, crying my eyes out while he calls Hudson.
"Get to my house now," Silas growls, his voice a low rumble, before abruptly ending the call.
Within minutes, the front door flies open with a loud bang, and Hudson rushes inside, his eyes wide with urgency. "What the fuck happened?" he demands, his voice sharp with concern as he drops down beside me, offering a reassuring pat on my knee.
The tension in the air is palpable, a heavy weight pressing down on us all.
Not long after, the sound of hurried footsteps echoes through the hallway. Silas must have called Tanner and Cole as well because they come storming into the house, their expressions a mix of alarm and determination, ready to confront whatever has unfolded.
"Hey, hey. What's all this about?" Cole asks as he walks over to the sideboard. He sloshes whiskey into a glass and presses it into my shaking hands. I choke on the first sip, my entire body heaving in disarray.
"He's—he's—" I hiccup, gripping the whiskey glass to my chest. "He's leaving."
"Fuckin' hell," Cole mutters, reaching up to ruffle his sandy hair. He’s a blur through my tears.
"Just like before," I wail as pain slices through my chest.
"I get dibs on the first punch," Tanner huffs as he sits across from me on the coffee table.
Hudson paces like a caged lion while Tanner and Cole discuss who gets to break Todd’s throwing arm. They all keep casting concerned glances my way. Silas leans in, eyes sharp and calculating. “I get to shove my foot up his ass.”
"I get to cut off his balls." Hudson cracks his knuckles. "Take his most valuable assets first."
I gulp in a ragged breath, the air catching around the tangle of emotions lodged in my throat. "I don't want you to hurt him," I manage to wail.
Cole frowns, filling my glass again. "Now, y'all probably already know this, but I actually know how to hide a body where no one'll find it." There's a lilt of humor in his voice, but the look in his eyes is deadly serious.
The room feels dense, suffocating with concern and anger. Tears run freely down my cheeks, and I swipe at them, just trying to breathe. Knowing my brothers have my back warms me from the inside out, but nothing can ease the overwhelming pain I feel.
"Maggie." Silas, always the perceptive one, watches me with that knowing twin look. He kneels in front of me, cutting through the chaos with one steady word. "Explain to us what happened."
The tears threaten to drown me again. My words bubble out, gasping and uneven. "I overheard him. On the phone. With his agent. His agent had already made flight plans for him."
Hudson clenches his jaw so tight I can almost hear the enamel crack.
Cole stares, a slow-building storm of understanding spreading across his face. “The dick," he breathes.
A collective growl rumbles through the room as the overabundance of Carrington testosterone reaches critical mass.
Silas raises an eyebrow, calm and irritatingly collected. "How did Todd respond?"
I think back, trying to remember exactly what I heard. “He asked if it was this coming Monday.” I twist the soggy tissue in my hand, my voice dropping to a whisper. "I didn't wait around to listen to Todd arrange his flight." It's so quiet I might be saying it just to myself.
"Maggie." Hudson is gentle, a side most folks don't get to see. "Then how do you know he's leaving?"
It's a direct hit, that question, the one I can't bring myself to answer because I don't have one. My heart feels heavy and empty all at once. "Because…" I stammer out, realizing I didn’t hear him confirm my worst fears. Damnit. As soon as I heard his agent’s words, I imagined the worst and freaked out. What have I done?
The room falls silent, and the anger simmers down. They all exchange a look, exasperated yet concerned.
Silas sighs and pulls out his phone. "Maybe we should hear his side before we murder the guy."
I inhale deeply, silently berating myself for being an idiot. The past few weeks have felt as surreal as a vivid dream, one where reality blurs at the edges. Fear of losing Todd has consumed me, driving me to behave like a madwoman caught in a whirlwind of emotions. I put Todd on trial in my mind, judging and condemning him without giving him the opportunity to fulfill the promise he made to me.
Now, I have to find out if he’s really leaving or if I owe him a huge apology.
When the door blasts open yet again, Todd comes crashing in here with a desperate, half-crazed look on his face, sweat glistening across his perfect jaw. "What happened?" he demands, searching the room for my face. "Why did you leave?" His deep, frantic voice pounds against my aching heart. Goddamn, I love that man. Losing him would kill me.
But my brothers have a different view on the matter. I’m leaning against Cole, who’s got me wrapped up in a protective, slightly overbearing bear hug. He sees Todd, and I feel him tense. Todd charges toward me, eyes blazing and confused, like he doesn’t understand why I’m curled up and sobbing in Cole's arms. Before Todd gets halfway across the room, Hudson stands up and squares his shoulders.
Todd tenses up, glaring at my eldest brother. "Get out of the way," he snarls.
"First, you need to explain what happened with your agent," Hudson says, his drawl thicker than usual.
Todd glares at him. "What the fuck are you talking about?"
Cole joins in, "Did you agree to return to San Francisco?"
Todd’s eyes widen as he runs a hand through his dark hair. "You think I'm leaving?" He lets out a deep breath and shakes his head. "You think I'd fucking leave again? I came back to Silver Spoon Falls for her, you assholes." My tears start to dry up. He's here. He came back for me. He's not going anywhere. "I told him I'm retiring. I’m moving here to chase my real dream. Knocking up your sister. Now, move," Todd repeats, staring Hudson down. "Or I'll move you."
Hudson frowns. "You fucking break her heart again, we'll take turns breaking you," he says.
Finally, Hudson steps to the side, and Todd rushes over to me.
"You damn well better marry her before knocking her up, or you'll still be in a body cast when the baby arrives," Silas interjects before suggesting to the rest of my brothers that they should give us some privacy.
As they walk out, Tanner shoots a look at Todd and says, "We'll be just in the next room."
Once we’re alone, Todd gently wipes his thumb over my cheek, catching the lingering tears that glisten in the dim light. "Why did you run?" he asks softly, his voice a soothing balm.
I let out a shaky breath, feeling the weight of my fears as I admit, "I thought you were planning to go back to San Francisco, and it broke my heart." My voice trembles with the confession.
He shakes his head slowly, his eyes filled with earnestness. "Silver Spoon Falls is my home," he declares, a tender smile curving his lips, and he corrects himself. "Actually, that isn't right. My home is anywhere you are." In that moment, the pieces of my shattered heart begin to come together, like a puzzle finding its perfect fit. He isn't leaving me. A warmth spreads through my chest as I hear him say, "I need you more than I need my next breath. I'm not going anywhere." His words wrap around me like a comforting embrace, chasing away the shadows of doubt.
"Oh, Todd," I say. "You don't know how happy that makes me."
He grins, and it's the cocky, slightly wicked smile I remember from when we first fell in love. It makes my heart beat in a funny rhythm. "I love you.” He stares into my eyes. “I’m not ever letting you out of my sight again.”
I shake my head, still half in disbelief. "That sounds great to me." Then a sudden thought flashes through my mind. “Wait.” I blow out my breath. “What if you miss your NFL career?” I don’t want him to ever regret his relationship with me.
“The NFL wasn’t my dream. Not after I met you. I only played football so I could make enough money to take care of you. And our family.” My heart squeezes in my chest as I see sincerity shining from his eyes.
“What if you miss all the excitement?” I have to know he isn’t going to blame me for giving up his dream.
“I’m going to have plenty of excitement in my life. I’m hoping you’ll help me create a sports program for underprivileged kids through the Carrington Charitable Foundation. Between coaching kids and chasing after our own kids, I’ll be too happy to even think about my past NLF career.” My heart melts in my chest. He’s choosing me over his career. All the hurt from years ago turns into intense happiness now that we’ve found each other again all these years later.
“Now that we’ve straightened all that out.” He tugs me closer, and I feel his breath warm against my neck. "There's just one thing left to discuss—how soon you’re going to marry me," he suggests. "We should get it done quickly since I’ve been trying my hardest to get you pregnant for weeks, and I definitely don’t want to be in a body cast when our baby arrives."
I laugh and cry simultaneously, my words getting caught in my throat. "Sounds like a plan to me." He kisses me deeply, and I melt into him as happiness flows through me.