My heart ached for him, for the man I thought I knew, for the friend I’d found in him over the year we’d spent together. I stepped forward, wanting to comfort him, but the instinct died as soon as he leveled his cold, hard eyes on me again.
He shook his head, a disgusted look on his face. “After all I did for you, all I could have done for you… you ungrateful bi—”
The curse didn’t even leave his mouth before Noah got his chance to return the favor from Anthony’s sucker punch earlier. His fist landed hard against Anthony’s eye, busting it open as he flew backward, the crowd gasping in horror again.
“Sorry, your warnings are up,” Noah said, shaking out his hand. “Now, if you won’t leave, then we will.” He turned to me, then, offering his arm out for me with a smirk. “I’ve got your getaway car parked out front. What’dya say, Ruby Grace? Want to give this town something to talk about?”
My heart swelled in my chest, and I stepped forward, threading my arm through his as I leaned up and pressed my lips to his.
“Bonnie and Clyde,” I whispered.
“Except a way better ending,” he replied, and then he kissed me again — this time to the tune of four-hundred clapping hands and a frenzy of cheers.
Noah broke the kiss long enough to bend down and scoop me up into his arms, which earned us another loud cheer as I laughed, head back, eyes cast up to the church ceiling. I looked back at the congregation as Noah walked us toward the doors — at my parents, who both had tears in their eyes; my sister, who smiled at me reassuringly, though I knew she was hurt in her own way by what had happened that day; my best friend, who threw her fists into the air in victory; my town, who wore expressions ranging from excitement and scandal to confusion and anger.
And when I found Betty, I smiled, waving and blowing her a kiss.
Thank you, I mouthed.
She just winked, waving me off as the church doors swung open and Noah carried me out into the Tennessee heat.
I didn’t know what came next.
I didn’t know how my father’s debt would be paid, or how Anthony would react once the dust had settled, or where Noah and I would go from here. I didn’t know if my mother would ever forgive me, or if I would ever forgive her. I didn’t know what the future held, but there were two things I knew for sure.
Everything would be okay as long as I had Noah.
And that day was a day that the town of Stratford, Tennessee, would never forget.
Chapter 19
Noah
Staring up at the stars my father had made in the tin roof of our treehouse with the weight of Ruby Grace’s head on my chest, I decided there wasn’t a single moment in my life that anything had felt more perfect than it did right now.
I ran my fingers through her long, silky hair, still wavy from the braids I’d unfolded slowly before I slipped her out of her wedding dress. That dress now hung from a limb outside the tree house, and her bare chest rested against my rib cage, her arms wrapped around my middle, legs tangled with mine under the flannel blanket that covered us both where we lay.
The crickets sang a song outside the house, the sound mixing with the smooth, steady breaths Ruby Grace and I exchanged. She drew lazy circles on my chest with her manicured nails, and I could feel the curl of her smile against my chest as I let her hair fall from my fingertips before reaching back down for her scalp to start the trail all over again.
It was a dream.
It had to be.
It didn’t seem real — the church, the wedding — or rather, the not wedding. I wondered if I’d imagined Ruby Grace running toward me in her dress, if I’d dreamed her into my arms now.
But the soreness of my jaw told me that sucker punch from her former fiancé was real. The dozens of missed calls from my family and half the town on my now-dead cell phone told me it had all really happened. Ruby Grace’s hair in my hands, her breasts against my skin, the sweet, sated euphoria we both bathed in after spending the entire evening making love told me it was far, far from a dream.
It was the best reality I’d ever existed in.
I sighed, wrapping her in my arms tightly before pressing a kiss to her hair. She squeezed back, and after a moment of silence, she chuckled.
I felt the vibration of it through my chest, and I smirked, cocking one brow as I looked down at her mess of red hair. “What’s so funny, Legs?”
She shook her head. “Just thinking about the look on Pastor Morris’s face when you scooped me up and high-tailed me out of the church.”
A short exhale of a laugh hit my chest. “I think he might need therapy after today.”
“I think the whole town might.”
“Any regrets?”
She leaned up on one elbow, then, resting her other arm over my chest as she faced me with bent brows. “Not a single one. You?”
I pressed my lips together. “Come on, now.”
Ruby Grace smiled, leaning her cheek down on top of where her hand rested. Her golden eyes searched mine before they trailed over every inch of my face, like she was about to paint it, or like she was memorizing every detail.
“I feel like there’s so much to talk about, but I don’t know where to start.”
I twirled her hair around my knuckle, letting one strand fall before I picked up the next. “Why don’t you start with the first thing on your mind.”
“How did you find out about the real reason I left that night we were here?”
“Oh, that’s easy. Betty.”
She rolled her eyes. “Well, I know that — at least, now I do. But I don’t understand how, or when.”
“She wrote me a letter,” I explained. “Slipped it under my screen door while I was at work.”
“How in the world did she get away from the nursing home… and did she walk to your house? How did she even know where you live?”
“She said something about having a little helper,” I offered.
Recognition lit up in her eyes, then. “Annie.”
“Maybe,” I said. “Anyway, she — or they — left it the night before the wedding. Otherwise, I would have come a lot sooner.”
“Why do I have a feeling she did that on purpose,” Ruby Grace said, smirking as she shook her head. “That woman lives for the movie-like drama.”
I chuckled. “Yeah, well, she got some today.”
“That she did.” Ruby Grace was still smiling, but it slipped as another moment passed between us, her fingers trailing up and down my chest. “I wish I could tell you all the hell I’ve been through these past three weeks, from the moment my mother told me about my father’s debt. I know it probably doesn’t make any sense to you, but… I felt this obligation to my family, to my father. I couldn’t abandon them, couldn’t walk out on them when it seemed I was the only way we could save our home, our possessions, our reputation, our… everything.” She sighed. “I feel foolish saying it out loud, but, it’s who I’ve always been. It’s the way I was raised.”
“Hey,” I said, tapping her chin until she looked at me. “I understand. I promise, I really do.”
“How can you, when I don’t even understand myself?”
“That’s easy,” I offered with a shrug. “I would have done the same for my family.”
Her brows rose. “You would have?”
“I understand that family tie. Blood is thicker than anything. And no matter what knucklehead in my family gets in trouble, we all rally behind them to make it okay again. There is no judgment, no pointed fingers — only love and understanding and, like you demonstrated, sacrifice.”
She smiled. “I’m thankful you understand… but I think you and I both know what my parents did goes a little past what’s acceptable.”
I swallowed. “Yeah… it does.” I paused, heart stopping on my next question. “Do you think you could have really gone through with it? Marrying him?”
“No,” she answered immediately. “I thought I could. I had the decision made, solidified, and I was walking to the grav
e of what I thought my life could be as I walked down that aisle. But when I saw you… I knew I couldn’t. I knew there was no path I could take that didn’t lead to you in the end.” Ruby Grace bit her lip. “And, honestly, I knew even before I saw you. I was walking down that aisle in a fog, trying to figure out what to say, when to say it, how to get myself out of that church and that dress and that whole situation. When I saw you… well, it was just the last kick of courage I needed.”
I smoothed my knuckles down her cheek, over her jaw. “You surprised the shit out of me when you came barreling back down that aisle.”
She chuckled. “I think I surprised everyone. Well, except for maybe Betty, who seemed to be plotting it this entire time.” She shook her head. “I can’t believe she stood up like that and offered to pay part of my father’s debt.”
“She loves you,” I explained. “Plus, according to the letter she wrote me, she insisted that she couldn’t take it with her when she goes, anyway. And she doesn’t have any kids… other than you.” I smiled when Ruby Grace’s brows bent together. “Those were her exact words.”
She frowned. “Wait… so you were both talking about paying off my father’s debt even before today?”
I shrugged. “We didn’t have a plan or anything… but, I think both of us knew we would do anything to keep you from having to be responsible for a debt that wasn’t yours. Like I said, Betty loves you.” I paused, eyes searching hers. “And so do I.”
Ruby Grace melted into me, and my heart galloped and stuttered as she swept a hand through my hair, wiggling her way up my chest until her face hovered over mine.
“I never said it back,” she whispered, hazel eyes dancing in the light from the makeshift stars. “And I’m sorry I didn’t. Because you were right, when you said it the first night you brought me here. I love you, too.”
Her eyes watered as I swallowed down the lump in my throat.
“I do, Noah,” she said, shaking her head. “I’m so sorry it took all this for me to admit it out loud. I was scared. I was… lost. As much as the wedding planning and pressure from my family was smothering me, I chose to hide under that rubble instead of trying to break free. I think a part of me was worried about what I’d find on the other side…”
I nodded, understanding completely. I knew what it was like to have the town talk about you, to have your entire life uprooted in one single day. And I was sure that if I’d had a choice in the matter, I would have avoided it at all costs.
“But, that worry was unfounded,” she continued, her plump lips spreading into a gentle smile. “Because I should have known from the very start that as long as it was you, as long as it was us, together?” She shook her head again. “There’s no way life could be anything but perfect.”
I smirked, capturing her chin in my hand. “It’s okay,” I whispered. “I’d be embarrassed to love me, too.”
That earned me a laugh and a swat on the chest, but I killed her laughter when I pressed my lips to hers.
We both breathed into the kiss, inhaling each other, and when she let out a soft, longing moan, all the blood rushed to where her leg rested between my legs.
I groaned, rolling my hips to let her feel me. “It hasn’t even been twenty minutes, and I want to bury myself in you again.”
She bit her lip on a smile. “What are you waiting for?”
“Energy,” I confessed honestly.
Ruby Grace laughed, kissing my nose before she balanced over me again. For a while we just stared at each other, listening to the insects, fingers trailing lightly over each other’s skin.
“I think I want to do it,” she whispered after a while.
I groaned. “Me, too, woman, but I need water. And a protein bar. And, like, at least thirty more minutes.”
“Not that,” Ruby Grace said, wide grin splitting her face. I counted the freckles that dotted her cheeks as she shook her head. “I mean AmeriCorps.”
My heart stopped at that. “Yeah?”
She nodded. “Yeah. I can’t believe you applied for me. I was so overcome with emotion when you told me… I just wanted to throw myself into your arms and thank you and thank God for sending you into my life. It was the first moment I realized you loved me… before you even told me. Because no one had ever done anything like that for me before. Ever.”
I ran my hand down her cheek. “So, you want to go?”
“I do.”
“Good,” I said, smirking. “Because an email came through to my inbox yesterday. They want a phone interview for the position in Utah.”
Her lips parted. “What?”
“They want—”
“AN INTERVIEW!” Ruby Grace screeched, throwing her arms around me and rolling until she was on top, surrounding me in every way with every limb as she squeezed and squealed. “Oh, my God. Noah!”
I laughed. “If this is the reaction I get, I’m going to apply for every job that exists in AmeriCorps.”
Ruby Grace just squeezed me more before sitting up. She straddled me now, her legs around my waist as she pressed her hands to my chest. Her eyes searched mine, worry etched in the creases. “And you’ll wait for me? If I go?”
“Are you kidding?” I asked, maneuvering until I was sitting up, too. We were chest to chest, then, and I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her close. “Anything, Ruby Grace. I’d do anything for you.”
She kissed me, long and slow, our bodies melding together again before she fluttered her eyes open once more.
“I’ll go, if they hire me. But only on one condition.”
“And what’s that?”
“Well, two conditions.”
I chuckled. “Okay. You going to tell me what they are or just keep adding on?”
“One, you have to come visit me. Every chance you get. And I’ll come home when I can, too.”
“That’s a given.”
“And two,” she said, trailing her finger down my chest and tapping it once. “When I’m done, we sail around the world together.”
I threw my head back on a laugh. “It takes a lot of money to do that, Ruby Grace. And a sailboat.”
She frowned. “Fine. Then when I’m done, we go sailing. Period. We can drive down to Florida, or up to Maine. Charter a boat. Whatever we have to do to get you on the open seas.”
I smiled. “Why is this a condition?”
She shrugged, adjusting herself in my lap. “Because you’re making one of my dreams come true,” she whispered. “I want to make one of yours come true, too.”
I swore, if any of my brothers could feel the way my heart melted at her words, they’d punch me in the arm and call me the biggest wuss in the world.
But I didn’t care.
When it came to Ruby Grace, I was the biggest wuss in the world.
“You already did,” I whispered back, brushing her hair from her face. “I dreamed of finding a woman like you, of finding a love like this.” I smirked. “And here you are.”
“Here I am,” she said, giggling. Then, she rolled her hips, eliciting a sharp inhale from me as she painted on a face of innocence. “So, what do we do now?”
“Oh, I can think of a few things,” I said, devouring her lips and pulling her back down into the bean bag.
“I thought you needed water. And a protein bar. And at least thirty minutes,” she teased.
“Shut up and let me make love to you.”
She giggled louder when I flipped her over, kissing her neck and pinning her arms above her head. And for the rest of the night, and well into the morning, we sealed our promises with every inch of our bodies, with every ounce of our souls, with every beat of our hearts.
When you hear the word Tennessee, what do you think of?
Maybe your first thought is country music. Maybe you can even see those bright lights of Nashville, hear the different bands as their sounds pour out of the bars and mingle in a symphony in the streets. Maybe you think of Elvis, of Graceland, of Dollywood and countless other musical landmarks. Ma
ybe you feel the prestige of the Grand Ole Opry, or the wonder of the Country Music Hall of Fame. Maybe you feel the history radiating off Beale Street in Memphis.
Or maybe you think of the Great Smoky Mountains, of fresh air and hiking, of majestic sights and long weekends in cabins. Maybe you can close your eyes and see the tips of those mountains capped in white, can hear the call of the Tennessee Warbler, can smell the fresh pine and oak.
Maybe, like I used to, you think of whiskey.
But after that summer, Tennessee only conjured up one thing in my mind.
A girl.
No, a woman.
One who flipped my entire world upside down in just six weeks’ time. One who gave Stratford the biggest scandal they’d seen since the distillery fire. One who would change the world — because she was destined to do so.
And one I knew I’d spend my forever with.
What a lucky sonofabitch.
Epilogue
Noah
Four Months Later
“Thank you again for having me over for Thanksgiving,” Ruby Grace said to Mom as she helped clear the table. “And for having it a little earlier in the day on my behalf.”
“Are you kidding?” Mom asked, stacking plates. “I’ve been the only woman at this table for years. It was a blessing to have someone else to help wrangle these heathens.”
“Hey,” Logan said with mock offense.
“Besides, you’re family now,” Mom continued, pausing long enough to smile at Ruby Grace genuinely. “And we’re all so proud of you for chasing your dream.”
My heart swelled at that, because it was true. My brothers had adopted Ruby Grace like she was the sister they never had, and Mom was happier than I had seen her in years when Ruby Grace was around — even if it was just for dinner or an after-church lunch. She hadn’t just filled my life with light and love, but my entire family’s. And now, on my favorite holiday, it was almost impossible to fend off emotions watching her clear the table with my mom.
Fall in Love Book Bundle: Small Town Romance Box Set Page 304
