Page 20 of Saltwater Cowboy

“I knew the whole yoga thing wouldn’t last—you get bored too easily.” Thad shrugged. “Honestly, I’m surprised you didn’t bail on the move too.”

“You thought I was going to bail?”

He nodded smugly.

“Why would I do that? I’ve put so much time and effort in to making this smooth.”

“Yeah, but I thought it was only a little project for you to manage.”

I felt like I was going to be sick. “Do you have any faith at all in me, Thad? Or has all of this,” I waved my hands in the air. “been you patronizing me?”

“I mean, I know you can do amazing things…” He trailed off.

It was clear he didn’t have anything else to say that he wouldn’t immediately get put in the doghouse.

“You don’t believe in me.”

“You’re just so hard to love, Rose.”

My heart shattered, crashing to the ground like a delicate wine glass knocked off the counter—fragile, broken, and impossible to piece back together.

Thad stood there, stunned—caught off guard, like he hadn’t expected me to see right through his patronizing façade.

I stared back, wide-eyed, my fingers tightening around the car door handle.

“Where are you going?” he called after me.

“Home.”

A soft laugh drifted through the air, but I refused to look back.

“Before you go, I’m going to need the ring back.”

Without a word, I slipped it off my finger and pressed it into his palm. Cold. Final.

The driver pulled away from the curb, and I watched as everything I’d ever known faded into the distance.

Numb. My entire life—my entire plan—had just blown up in my face.

DIE FROM A BROKEN HEART

Present

“So that’s how we ended up here.”

“He let you leave…” Blythe trailed off, tucking her hair behind her ear.

I nodded, tears spilling over as I dropped my head into my hands.

“I hate him,” she said, her voice was sharp with anger.

I sniffled. “I mean… he wasn’t wrong. I do tend to abandon ideas.”

“Stop defending him, Rose!” Blythe snapped, shaking her head. “You justify everything he says and does. His family talked shit about you, and you just let it slide. The Rose I knew before Thad would’ve decked him in the face and stood up for herself.”

Pregnant Blythe was sassy.

“What happened to the version of you who didn’t take anyone’s crap? You stood up to our asshole boss when your career was on the line, and you didn’t even hesitate.”