31. AVA
AVA
He won’t be so lucky the third time.
I received that message earlier this morning, just as we were getting Zane home from the hospital. I don’t need to be a genius to know who that message is from. Those words keep ringing over and over in my mind, torturing me beyond all rational thought.
After her initial threat, part of me was praying and hoping that my mother was just being sour because Zane beat Estevan up and she wouldn’t go through with it.
Then came the mechanical bull accident that Zane was lucky enough to walk out of with just a back injury.
Now he’s lying in bed with a broken leg and no bull riding career.
I’m so grateful that he’s alive and all he has is a fibula fracture.
Watching that bull charge at him and toss him in the air like a doll is one of the scariest things I’ve ever witnessed.
I was so sure Zane was dead, and those eight hours before he regained consciousness were torture.
He woke up, thank God, only to be told that he can never ride a bull again.
He has been working so hard for the past five years to rebuild his bull riding career, and once again, because of me, it’s all gone. I’ve managed to crush his dreams for the second time, and I will be damned if I cost him his life as well.
The one thing I’m sure of is that they will try again, and this time, they’ll be sure to succeed. This can only mean one thing—I need to protect Zane, and the only way to do that is to stay as far away from him as possible.
With shaky hands, I dial my emergency contact, and she picks up on the first ring as if she was waiting for my call.
“Ava, are you okay? I just saw Zane’s accident on the news.”
“I’m fine, and so is he. He just broke his leg and is resting at home now.”
“Thank heavens. I was so worried. How are you holding up?”
Her words trigger me, and I look up to stop the tears from falling. I’ve already cried enough. “Not so good, which is why I need you to do something for me—don’t ask too many questions.”
“You’re scaring me. What is it?”
I take a deep breath, my mind already made up. “I have to get out of Wrangler Creek today, so please make all the necessary arrangements.”
“What is going on? You still have a week left! I thought you were going to ask me to extend your time there, not pull you out early.”
“Lou, I said no questions. I just need to leave before he dies because of me,” I cry.
“Who dies? What are you talking about?” she prods further.
“Lou, will you be able to do it or not?” I demand, growing increasingly frustrated from all the questions.
“Of course I will.”
“Thank you. Text me as soon as you’ve made all the plans,” I reply and hang up before she can ask anything else.
I hug my phone to my chest and lean against the wall, tears streaming down my face. And here I thought I was done crying—seems not.
My three months here have ended faster than I would have liked, and even though everything in me wants to stay, I know that I cannot.
I was sad about it before, but I’m so glad Zane and I haven’t talked about the future of our relationship yet.
It would have been so much harder if we’d already given us a label.
I won’t tell him about the baby—he’ll not let me go if I do.
I just need to get out of here first, make sure he is safe away from me, and maybe one day, when my family has been punished and put away for their crimes, I can tell him about this beautiful life we have created together.
All I can hope for is that he will be kind enough to understand my reason for leaving.
Angrily wiping away my tears, I get to work, packing everything up, erasing the past three months from this room. I know I’m going to miss him, so I pack all the clothes I’ve stolen from him as well. Something to remember him by and hold onto while all this gets resolved.
Once I’m done, I shove everything in my closet and leave my room. I know it will take a while for Lou to make the arrangements, so I am going to spend that time with Zane.
I run into Ella in the kitchen, cutting up apples to make a fruit bowl.
“Don’t tell me you were crying again,” she scolds as soon as she sees me.
I shrug because there’s no point denying it when my red eyes are evidence enough. She pulls me in for a hug, rubbing my back soothingly. “He’s okay—a bit grumpy since he will be immobile for a while—but he’s alive, and that’s worth smiling about.”
“I know. I am grateful,” I reply.
“Good, me too. Now help me cut this up and take some to him,” she requests, fetching an extra knife and handing it to me.
I smile and take it from her to help as requested.
Ella is her usual chatty self, and I try my best to match her energy, but even I feel myself lacking.
We promised no more secrets between us, but if I tell her that I’m pregnant and that I’m going to leave, she will tell Zane, and I can’t have either of them trying to stop me.
When we’re done, I give Ella one big hug as I’m leaving the kitchen, knowing this is going to be the last time we can interact in a while.
“Not that I’m complaining, but what is this for?” she asks.
“Just because. Thank you for the past three months—they have been incredible,” I appreciate her.
“You’re welcome, but it’s not time to say goodbye yet. We still have one more week, and I have lots planned,” she declares.
She looks so excited, and I nearly crack and tell her, but I hold back. “I look forward to it all.”
“Okay, go see your man now before he starts throwing a fit,” she says, nudging me out the door.
I laugh as I exit the kitchen, headed for Zane’s cabin. I’ve taken this path so many times the past three months, I’ve already imprinted on the grass. It’s going to grow back now that I’m leaving, and that makes me sad.
I recall how unwelcome I was the first month, but now Zane and I are in love and happy—as happy as we can be with everything going on. But my love for him is toxic and could kill him, so I’ll leave and he will be safe.
He’s not in his bedroom when I walk in, and I’m about to call out to him when I hear the shower running. I set the bowl down on the nightstand and start stripping so I can join him.
In the bathroom, I take a moment to admire him, take in his sexy physique that I am going to miss so much. He turns around, smiles when he sees me, and beckons me with his finger. I slide the glass doors open and join him.
“Hi there, gorgeous,” he greets, pulling me flush against him.
“Should you be standing for so long? Your leg,” I point out.
“I’m okay. I had to wash the hospital smell off me, and it was taking you too long—otherwise I’d have asked for a sponge bath,” he teases.
“I’m here now.”
“Good, because I need you,” he declares just as he picks me up.
Instinctively, I wrap my legs around his waist as he pushes me against the wall.
“Zane, your leg!” I exclaim, trying to get down, but he won’t let me.
“My leg is fine—another part of me, however, is not,” he rasps out, rubbing the head of his cock against my sensitive lower lips.
I moan, all previous protests forgotten as he starts pushing forward, slowly at first, his thick cock sliding into me inch by inch until he is all the way inside me.
“Fuck, you feel so good,” he grunts as he buries his face in my cleavage.
I can’t stop the tears from rolling down my cheeks as I caress his hair. Thankfully the water is raining down on us, washing my tears away.
This is goodbye, and it hurts even more that I’m the only one who is aware.
He starts moving me, steadily raising and lowering me on his cock. How is he so strong with a broken leg? Either that or I weigh next to nothing.
But he’s proving to be stable, so I hold on to his shoulders, throwing my head back against the wall in ecstasy. He sucks on my nipples, playing with my breasts, driving me mad with pleasure.
I’m going to miss him so much.
I pull his head up and kiss him hard, pouring all my emotions into the kiss. He matches my energy, leaving me breathless. He grabs my ass and adjusts our position slightly so that now his thrusts are slow, meaningful, and hitting just the right spot.
“Zane,” I moan, feeling my pussy walls clench—a sign that I am close.
“I’m here,” he groans, maintaining his pace.
I want to see him as I climax, so I open my eyes and look at him. He is staring at me with every emotion under the sun playing on his face, and it tugs at my heartstrings.
“I love you,” he rasps out.
“I love you, so much more.”
“Cum with me,” he begs.
That’s all he needs to ask as I climax hard, clamping my walls around his cock. He comes inside me in one long groan, dropping his head onto my chest. We stay like this for a while until he pulls back, kisses my forehead, and sets me down on my feet.
I pick up the soap and loofah and proceed to wash him. He smiles as he lets me take my time with him, not knowing that this is one of the last acts of intimacy between us. Come dawn, I will be gone and he will be safe.