Chapter 34
I stood in the center of the rail house, not seeing anything but the ballroom in my mind. There was a lot of work that would have to be done to make this a usable space to host weddings, but I gave myself time to build a dream before I started rebuilding walls.
Before I could even contemplate for too long, I heard heavy footsteps coming up to the door. I figured Calvin would be here soon, I had asked Vicky to send him my way, and it wasn’t like him to sleep in too long.
Even though I was expecting him, the vision of his hulking frame filling the open doorway sent a jolt of electricity through me. The look on his face would have terrified me if not for already knowing exactly how gentle his hands were on my skin.
Garrett had warned me, but Calvin wasn’t just mad. He was furious. There was a fire raging through him, and I had been the one to light the match.
“What have you done?” It was hardly a question as he growled, annunciating every syllable of every word.
“I invested in a business opportunity.”
“Three and a half million dollars, Stella?” I’d never heard him yell before, and certainly not at me, but this man didn’t scare me.
I had seen his pain and knew this anger was just the way it was showing itself.
“That’s not a smart business move.” The fury in his eyes kept growing, but he didn’t close the distance between us.
“I think I should be the one to decide how I spend my own money, don’t you?”
“But that’s the thing, Stella. It’s your money, and this is my farm.”
“Exactly. And now you get to keep it that way! You should be thanking me!” I was starting to grow a little frustrated.
I knew he was upset and that I should keep my cool, but in the past few months I’d been in Love, I had worked on my self-confidence.
I knew my worth and I knew what I was capable of, and Calvin’s controlling comments were triggering that flight-or-fight response.
But instead of running away, I was now fighting for what I knew I deserved.
“Thank you?” he said with a dry laugh. “How could I thank you for throwing your life savings away for me?”
“I didn’t throw anything away!” I was desperate to make him see, but his anger was blinding him. I begged for him to see things from my perspective. To see the magic I saw. “Just look at this space! Don’t you see its potential?”
“This!” He gestured around the room and then crouched down to rip a board right out of the floor with his hands.
The way it peeled out like string cheese made me cringe for the water damage that must be under there but didn’t waver my determination in any way.
“This has the potential to ruin you. This is garbage. An absolute dump. You should have spent that money on you. To give yourself a better life, not be damned to the same fate we are. Stella, this was stupid.”
No. What would be stupid would be awarding another man the opportunity to make my decisions for me.
My blood boiled at his words. Damn him. He was going to see things from my perspective, or he could get out of my way.
I took a deep breath to collect myself. “Calvin, I love you.” His face paled as I calmly continued.
“But I also love your mom and your grandma. I love Melody and Garrett and Olivia. I care about Patrick and Casper and Cami and Teddy and Gloria and every single person that makes up the community of Love.” My words sped up as I listed all the people who’d had an impact in helping me pick up the pieces of my soul.
These were people who helped me discover new parts of myself along the way.
The puzzle I pieced together and saw when I looked into the mirror each morning was a work of art and labour that I admired.
I had sculpted myself into the most favourite version of myself I’d ever been and there was no chance I was giving that up.
“I did this for you, but I also did this for them. And even more than that, I did this for me. I don’t need anything more from you because you’ve already helped to give me back my life.
I hope you’ll be part of the journey, but this…
” I said, pointing down to the floorboard that he had ripped up.
“I am going to make this happen whether you want to witness it or not.”
I turned around with angry tears streaming down my face, but I made a point of not storming out of the rail house and instead calmly walked away.
This was my space now and I refused to let anyone chase me from it.
However, I did need to put some distance between us for the time being. There was work to be done.