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“Don’t.”
He stiffened. “What?”
“Don’t lie to me.”
“I’m not lying.”
She sighed. “Out of everyone I know, you are the one person who would have a strong opinion about their child keeping something from them. You expect me to believe that you would be okay with it were one of your daughters who decided to keep their whereabouts from you?”
He took in a deep breath, held it for a moment, then blew it out. “Not that it’s any of your business, but Brielle snuck off to Vegas right out of high school and got married.”
The shock on her face might have been humorous if it weren’t for the current situation.
“It’s taken me several years to accept that if I had known all those years ago that she’d done it, nothing would be different than it is today. She’s an adult. I did my best to raise her—all of my daughters—and they have to live their lives the way they see fit.”
This time Agatha let out a wry laugh. “And yet you can’t offer me the same courtesy.”
Zeke shook his head as he removed his hat and ran a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry, but is this about Thomas and his lying to you or about something I’ve done?”
“Both.” Her shoulders drooped. The stiffness of her body left—replaced by something that could only be described as giving up. “I can’t explain it, but I have this feeling that ever since the fire, everyone in my life has been putting me in this… box.”
“No one is putting you in a box. Do you hear how ridiculous that sounds?”
Her gaze darkened. “I wouldn’t expect you to see it. What do you call what happened yesterday? What’s happened since the very beginning? All I’ve wanted to do is be involved as my home gets repaired. That’s it. I know I can’t do everything, and maybe it’s one of my shortcomings, but I need to feel… competent. That’s just part of who I am. And having you standing just a foot away telling me I’m incapable of doing any of it is just so… exhausting.” She finally relaxed, her eyes sad. “I can’t live my whole life fighting to maintain what is inherently my identity.”
“No one is stopping you from doing anything.”
“Is that what you think? Because when you told me to leave my home, that’s exactly what you were doing. Whether you like it or not, you’ve turned this into something it should have never been. You’re still just as controlling as your reputation made you out to be, and honestly, I’m tired of feeling like all you want to do is babysit me.”
He wanted to tell her she was wrong—to fight against what he could sense was coming next. Everything he thought he could control was slipping through his fingers, too. And that was when everything started to make sense.
Zeke couldn’t believe he hadn’t seen it before this moment. They would never work. They were far too similar, and at this point she probably had the best idea. They needed to separate before they did any deeper damage.
“You’re right.” He cut her off before she could say anything that would further hurt him. “You’re right about all of it. I’m never going to be able to step aside because, let’s face it, that’s just who I am. I’m set in my ways.” The words tumbled from his lips even as his heart revolted. You could change if you really wanted to, it seemed to say, but he wasn’t having any of it. The wounds inside him already ran deep. He’d lost too much in his life to risk losing another woman.
“That’s not what—”
He held up his hand. “I was a fool for thinking I could change you, and as much as I hate to admit it, that’s exactly what I was trying to do. I wanted to fit you in a little box, but you didn’t belong there.”
“Zeke, wait—” she stammered.
“No. I’m not going to force you to be something you’re not. And I suppose I just want the same courtesy. It’s best if we just part ways before either one of us gets really hurt. I’ll take you to the house, and that will be that.” He motioned toward a stack of cardboard boxes. “Do these need to get loaded up?”
She glanced toward the stack, but her eyes seemed glazed over. He’d finally got her to stop talking, but it did nothing to ease what he was feeling. He could almost feel his body revolting against what his head knew was the path he needed to take. His heart, stomach, every inch of him demanded that he take back what he’d said.
Fight for her, you idiot.
Zeke clamped his mouth shut, then without waiting for her to make a comment regarding the boxes, he picked up the first one. Once he reached the door, he stopped but didn’t face her. “You have good instincts, Agatha. I wouldn’t forgive myself if I didn’t let you know that you are right about your son. You might find me controlling, but that’s just the kettle calling the pot black. Thomas is worried about disappointing you. Perhaps level the playing field before you have that conversation with him.”
24
Agatha
Agatha felt utterly numb. This wasn’t how things were supposed to go. She’d expected Zeke to be upset about her putting him in his place. She’d seen men put up defenses like the Great Wall of China over small insignificant things, but this wasn’t that.
He’d blasted through that wall and tore everything down that they’d created.
Well, could you blame him? You practically told him that he was driving you crazy. Nobody wants to feel that way.
