Chapter 20 #3
At that, Brianna’s eyes narrowed slightly.
The warmth in her gaze gave way to a flicker of worry, with her brows drawing together.
She took a small step back, barely noticeable, but enough that it felt like she was bracing herself.
As though preparing for something that might hurt.
Her arms folded across her chest, a shield of instinct more than intent.
Whatever she’d expected, it wasn’t this.
And that subtle shift in her told him she felt the change coming too.
The painful silence stretched taut between them, as the sounds of the paddocks faded into nothing.
Even the birds seemed to hush. All the while, Hayden’s pulse thudded in his ears – the change in her body, the way her eyes cooled just a fraction, it carved into him like a knife.
He wanted to reach for her, to say her name like a promise, but his hands stayed frozen at his sides.
The air thickened with unsaid things, the pressure building like a thunderstorm ready to break.
And still she waited, quietly, openly, visibly breaking a little more with each beat of his ear-ringing silence.
‘That first night we spent at the pub together, Bri, it wasn’t an accident. Me approaching you like that, maybe flirting a little … well, it started as a dare. A stupid bet between me and Gavin.’ The words rushed out.
Brianna didn’t move. But her breath hitched, barely audible, and her eyes narrowed with disbelief. Her spine had gone stiff, like her body had braced for a blow and it had landed, clean and unforgiving, and he felt it all hit him at once as the pivotal moment unravelled, thread by thread.
He stepped forwards, just slightly. ‘I fell for you, Bri,’ he said, voice frayed. ‘Quickly. Fully. It scared me how fast it happened. But it was real. Every time I looked at you, I felt like I was coming back to life. You made me feel like I wasn’t just surviving anymore.’
Her gaze locked onto his, hurt battling with disbelief, her hands clutched across her middle like they could hold the ache in place.
‘I should’ve told you straight away. But I was already too far in, and too afraid of what telling the truth might cost me.’
The silence pressed tighter between them, thick and ragged and teetering on the edge of a permanent goodbye.
‘I meant everything that happened after that, Bri. Every moment.’
Her expression barely changed, but he saw the light fade from her eyes.
‘So, I was a dare,’ she said quietly.
‘No. Not after that first moment. I promise you.’
She shook her head as the hurt crawled across her face. ‘And you didn’t think to tell me before this?’
‘I wanted to. Every day. But then everything with Molly happened, and the investigation, and I was scared I’d lose what we were building.’
‘You were building it on a lie,’ she said, her voice breaking as she stepped back.
‘Brianna, please …’ His hand lifted, reaching for her like he could bridge the space between them.
But she was already moving.
‘I need to go, Hayden.’
He followed her to the steps, each stride heavier than the last, but she didn’t look back.
The sound of her boots striking the timber planks cracked through the silence, too loud, too final, like every step was splitting open the distance between them, making it impossible to close.
Hayden stood frozen at the top of the verandah, his heart hammering, his breath caught somewhere he couldn’t release it as his hand dropped uselessly to his side.
She didn’t turn around. And the absence of a single glance cut deeper than any words she could have left behind.
And in her retreat, he felt the slow collapse of something he hadn’t even realised he’d built so carefully.
The hope of a life with her, of a forever with her.
It crumpled under the weight of his mistake.
A cold wash of shame coursed through him.
Not just for the dare, but for how long he’d let the truth sit in the shadows while he basked in the light she gave so freely.
He’d wanted her too badly to risk it. And now she was walking away, and he couldn’t blame her.
And the space she left behind was gutting.
Everything around him blurred. Was he crying?
Numb, shellshocked, angry with himself, he dropped into the chair beside him, staring blindly out over the paddocks, unable to breathe past the wreckage.
She had trusted him. And he’d broken it.
He didn’t even know if there’d be a chance to fix it.
The low growl of her diesel engine cut through the silence, and his heart lurched.
He jumped back to his feet and moved to the edge of the steps, just in time to see her Hilux reversing, then a spin of the tyres as she turned and shifted gears.
The wheels spun again as she planted the accelerator, this time kicking up a fine spray of gravel and dust that clouded in the golden light. And then she was gone.
Just like that.
The haze from the tyres hung in the air long after she’d gone.
Hayden stood frozen, watching the dust drift back down like ash from a fire that had just burned everything good in his life to the ground.