Chapter Fifteen
Several weeks passed. Victoria noted that things hadn’t really changed.
He’d taken her out a few times, but it was for quick dinners in town.
After the meal, there was a rush to get back home to bed.
She tried to stay positive and hoped that eventually, he’d come to really care for her.
He still hadn’t taken her to his house or started a conversation about the future.
Victoria pulled up outside the feed store when she caught sight of Cole’s truck. She parked her truck and got out. She straightened her clothes, smiled, and opened the store door. Right away, she could hear Cole’s deep voice mixed with Brownie’s.
A feeling of disbelief, then despair, hit her and took her breath away when she got close enough to hear their words.
“So, I heard you got her?” Brownie said and chuckled.
“Yeah, it took some maneuvering, but I did it,” Cole said.
“You said you’d have her even if you had to lie, beg, or steal.”
“When I want something, there’s very little I won’t do to get it. She’s not much to look at, but I think she’ll make strong babies.”
A wave of pain, unlike any she’d ever felt, swept through her, ripping her soul apart. His words made it next to impossible to breathe and had slowly annihilated her. She could find no relief from the crushing emotions inside her.
Victoria turned and slowly made her way out the door. She was in her truck and halfway home before she could take a full breath. She bit down on her tongue to stop the noise that slid from her, which sounded like a wounded animal dying.
She somehow made it home, slowly trudged up the stairs into her bedroom, and sat on the mattress staring at the wall. She had some hard decisions to make, but at that moment, all she could do was concentrate on breathing.
Cole found her an hour later in the same spot. He crouched down beside her and took her cold hand. “What’s going on?”
Victoria swallowed. She knew a buildup of pain would eventually be impossible to hold back, but she just wanted to be left alone to make the decisions that needed to be made.
“Victoria, you’re scaring me. What’s going on?”
Victoria looked down at him vacantly, then tore her gaze away. “I’m leaving. You’ve finally got what you wanted.”
“Leaving? Where? Why?” Cole asked in alarm.
“Because no matter what, it’s been beaten into me emotionally, and I have finally come to the absolute conclusion that I’m nothing and I don’t deserve a home.
I still have people telling me how ugly, stupid, or weak I am, and I had enough of that growing up.
I’m not going to put myself through it anymore.
I’d rather be alone in a small apartment in the middle of the city than be hurt anymore. ”
His thoughts were so scattered, he couldn’t talk. The only thing that mattered right now was to prevent her from leaving.
“What the hell happened?”
“I’ve just had enough. I’m tired.”
“I thought you were tougher than that.”
Victoria cringed, making him feel like an ass. He always seemed to screw up around her.
“Well, I’m not. When someone tells you something often enough, you start to believe it.”
“Like being unattractive.”
She cringed again. “Yes.”
“But you’re not.”
Victoria looked away. “Nothing you can say will make me feel better about myself right now, so why even try?”
“Because I don’t want you to hurt.”
“Well, you should have thought about that before you took away the only home I’ve ever had or wanted.”
He stayed crouched down in front of her. They hadn’t talked about her ranch in months. He didn’t want it, and frankly, he never really had it.
“Tell me again what you see when you see your future.”
“Now, nothing. I’ll go back to the city and work, and maybe after a while, meet other people.”
His stomach turned. “That’s not what you told me before?”
“Oh, you mean the fairy tale?” She laughed bitterly. “Yeah, that doesn’t happen for people like me, and I’m okay with it,” she said with a shrug. “Or I will be eventually.”
Cole sat down beside her and gripped her hand when she tried to pull away from him.
“Tell me what the hell happened. You were fine this morning when I left.”
Victoria hesitated. Did she want to embarrass herself by informing him she eavesdropped? “I heard you.”
“Heard me where?”
“At the feed store.”
Cole shook his head. “I’m still not understanding. What did you hear?”
“You talked about always getting what you wanted.”
“Go on,” he said, still not understanding.
“Y-you told Brownie I wasn’t much to look at, but I’d make sturdy babies.”
A look of understanding came over his face before anger darkened it. He stood abruptly, took a few steps away, and turned. He stared at her for a long moment as he ran a hand over the back of his head in frustration.
“You don’t trust me at all, do you?”
Victoria’s head snapped up. Why the hell was he mad?
“Victoria, I was talking about a heifer I bought from a neighbor.”
Victoria’s teeth bit into her lip, and then her chin lowered.
“Look at me.”
She shook her head.
“I said, look at me,” he demanded.
Victoria looked up.
“I don’t understand how you always think the worst of me, or that I have no feelings for you. What have I done to make you feel insecure?”
“You’ve never told me how you felt. The only emotions I’ve gotten from you are anger or desire.”
A look of disbelief crossed his face. “How can you not know that I love you?” he yelled.
Victoria sat stunned. She thought he cared about her, but love? No.
He sat down next to her again and growled in frustration when she turned away.
“Tell me,” he demanded.
“How am I supposed to know that?” she cried out. “You’ve never said anything about how you feel.”
Cole straightened as he thought back over the last months. She was right. He couldn’t name one instance in which he gave her the words.
“And then there’s the fact that besides the few times you took me to town, we rushed right home and into bed.”
He caught her expression. “What else?”
“You’ve never taken me to your house. Not ever.”
Cole reared back with a look of pure shock as she’d slapped him.
“God, baby, I never realized ... Jesus, I’m a dumbass. I can’t think of a way to make you understand.”
He turned her to face him, then cupped her face in his hands.
“I need you to believe I love you.” He paused when she shook her head.
“Tory, how do I make you see how much you mean to me? I understand what you’re saying, and I’m surprised at how truly stupid I’ve been.
I love you, baby, more than anything else in the world. ”
Victoria’s eyes saw the astonishing truth, and her body relaxed, and the ball of misery inside her started to go away.
He loved her. She could see he meant every word, but she was afraid to end up feeling like she had earlier.
It scared her how much she loved him, and to lose him would indeed break something inside her that could never be fixed.
“I love you, too,” she whispered as tears filled her eyes.
“What else? I want to get everything out in the open tonight.”
“Can you tell me why you’ve never taken me home or on a normal date?”
He swiped away her tears as they continued to fall.
“I saw how tired you were when I got here every day, and I can honestly say I selfishly want your remaining energy to go toward making love with me.” He waited for that to sink in before he continued.
“I love everything about you, and my desire for you is off the charts. I’ve never felt this level of sexual need.
Hell, I never thought it existed. All I could think of when we were on our dates was getting you to myself. I hated sharing you with others.”
“I don’t understand?”
“For the short time we were out, how many people stopped by the table to talk or meet you?”
Victoria shrugged. “Several, I guess.”
“More than that, and I wanted to snatch you up every time and tell them you were mine and to stay away. I know it makes me sound like a spoiled child. I stopped fighting my overwhelming possessive feelings for you early because I knew they wouldn’t go away, and they have, in fact, grown stronger.”
Cole relaxed a bit more when she smiled and then set her hands on his chest. His hands dropped to curve around her and maneuvered her a bit closer.
“As far as taking you to my house, I thought about it a lot, but I was afraid if I got you in my house, it would hurt too much to see you leave. I desperately want you in my home, but then you can never leave.”
Victoria sputtered out a laugh. “I don’t live that far from you.”
“A foot is too far for me.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead and then leaned back enough to see her face. “I have to ask, are you going to be able to handle my possessiveness? I know it’s over the top, but I can’t see it settling down anytime soon.”
A shiver of awareness skated down her spine. “If I know you love me, I can deal with a lot, but don’t expect me to put up with your arrogance. That really irritates me.”
He threw back his head and laughed. “It irritates a lot of people,” he admitted and then laughed. He raised a hand and swept her hair over her shoulder. “So, we’re in agreement, we’ll get married, and you’ll move to my place.”
“W-w-what?” she screeched. “We never talked about marriage.”
He had a look of disbelief. “Of course, we have to get married, especially when we start having kids.”
Victoria giggled and shook her head. “Going a little fast?”
“Hell, no. I do think we should fly to Vegas and get a quickie marriage, unless you’ve always dreamed about having a wedding?”
“No, I never have. I’ve just dreamed about a husband and children.”
Cole slid to his knees in front of her and took her hands in his. “My sweet Tory, will you marry me and give me children and gray hair?”
He saw her tears start again but knew this time it was happy tears from the bright smile on her face.
“Yes, I will marry you and, of course, drive you crazy.”
Cole released a breath and pulled her into his arms. He pressed his lips to the top of her head. “No more taking chances.”
She shook her head. “No, I promise.”
He tilted her head back and pressed his lips against hers. From one moment to another, the kiss deepened and became hungry. He lifted his head and smiled down at her.
“Before I tear your clothes off, is there anything else we need to cover?”
Victoria frowned and then nodded. “What are we going to do with this ranch?”
“Keep it in your name and have Tomas run it. Maybe someday one of the kids will want to go into the family business and live there.”
“Oh, God, I love that idea.”
“I will do whatever I can to make your dream come true. I promise.”
She bit back a smile. “In my dream, the man was never a giant with possessive and arrogant issues.”
He leaned forward and bit her neck and then laughed when she squealed. “People change their dreams all the time. You’ll damn well be happy with the man you have, or we’ll have issues.”
Victoria tightened her arms around his neck.
“I couldn’t have chosen a better man.”
“God, woman, I love you so much.”
“I love you, too.”
Cole lifted her as he stood, then dropped her on her butt on the mattress, and grinned.
“Maybe I should rethink that last statement.”
She screamed and laughed as he lunged for her and wrestled her down to the mattress.
“What about now?” he asked with a growl.
Victoria giggled. “Okay, you’re still perfect.”
“You’re damn right I am,” he murmured before he lowered his head. He whispered he loved her right before their lips touched, and then there was no more talking until the morning.
The End