“I don’t want to.” The honesty in those words scared Hayden.
“Good.” Rhett got down two coffee mugs. “Now we just need to figure out how to win her back.”
Chapter Twenty
A few days later, Hayden showed up around noon at Nellie’s house, relieved to see Evie’s car was in the driveway parked next to a row of bandaged garden gnomes.
This was it. The big attempt at reconciliation he and Rhett had worked out. It was simple. Use the L-word—love—as often as possible. And grovel. Grovel a lot.
Hayden knocked on the door to the bungalow and waited, a hopeful smile in place and a loose bouquet of daisies in one hand.
“Hayden,” Evie said after opening the door. She looked good in her pink scrubs, probably better than he did in his Saturday night duds. She looked rested. Her smile was warm, although at second glance, that warmth wasn’t reflected in her blue eyes. “How’s Irene?”
“Gran’s doing well. No more wandering. Doc Merritt gave us lots of good advice—a tracking device in her boot, a motion alarm on the front door and the back door, and on the gate to Nugget’s stall.” Hayden was babbling. Nerves had taken hold. He drew a bracing breath. “We’re all working together to give her the best possible care while she recovers. But we miss you. I miss you.”
“That’s nice. I…I didn’t expect to see you so soon.” Evie reached for a thick manilla envelope sitting on a narrow table next to the door. “These are…the divorce papers.” She extended them his way. “It’s relatively straightforward since we’re both in agreement.”
This wasn’t part of the plan.
Hayden felt sucker punched. Acting on instinct, he drew his cowboy hat from his head, holding it over his heart. “I don’t want a divorce, Evie. I love you.”
His declaration was met with silence.
“I love you,” Hayden repeated, pushing onward with his campaign. There was too much at stake to stay quiet this time. “And I’ll do anything to win you back.”
“Hayden…” Evie seemed at a loss for words. Her gaze lingered on the bouquet of daisies in his hand.
His gaze lingered on those divorce papers.
He forced himself to press on. “Evie. You may have fallen for me first, but I… I’m sorry that I’ve been slow to recognize love or to trust my feelings where my heart is concerned. When my mom left… When my dad died… When my grandfather washed his hands of me… Even what happened between Violet and me…” Hayden paused to steady his breath, setting his cowboy hat back in place. “I was like a turtle, retracting into my shell.”
She smiled a little.
He didn’t stop to find out why. “It’s hard for me to stand in front of the woman I love and risk saying I love you, even if you told me how you felt first. I was scared. To be honest…I still am.” He didn’t want there to be any secrets between them.
Evie’s blue eyes filled with tears. She gripped the front door handle but said nothing.
I deserve that. I deserve this to be hard.
Hayden swallowed thickly.
A man can carry the world on his shoulders as long as his cowboy boots are planted firmly on the ground.
His grandfather’s words. They’d been tumbling back into his head lately. And they were just what he needed right now.
Hayden planted his boots on the porch. “I broke your heart while trying to protect my own,” he admitted softly. “It was cowardly. And you deserve better than me. You and Katie deserve a man who’s willing to go out on a limb and admit his feelings.” Hayden got down on one knee, placed the loose daisies on the deck, and extended the wedding ring she’d left on his dresser. “I love you, Evie. You’re the one and only woman for me. And I will move heaven and earth to show you I’m the one and only man for you. I’ll move into town if you need me to. Missoula, if need be.” Because home was where Evie was.
Evie bit her lower lip.
But she didn’t take Gran’s ring or fall into his arms and kiss him.
It was time for Plan B. Hayden tucked the ring back in his pocket.
“I love how much you nurture everyone.” Hayden handed Evie a daisy.
That, she accepted.
“I love how you never gave up on your dreams.” He handed her another daisy. “I love how patient you are with thick-headed cowboys.” A third flower passed hands.