But the pieces were falling into place. Hannah's betrayal explained why he'd shut me out this morning. Why he couldn't trust what we'd shared last night. Why the walls around his heart were reinforced steel.
"Is that why you left for ten years?"
"Yeah." Mitch's eyes went distant. "I packed a duffel, jumped on my bike, and took off. I didn't even say goodbye to Cassidy or my brothers." He shook his head. "I was a bloody idiot. A fool. My first love was paid for, and Frank knew exactly how to pull my strings."
"So why do you care so much about finding him?"
He jerked back as though I'd slapped him. "I don't give a shit about that asshole."
"But you came back to look for him."
"I came back for Cassidy and my brothers. They asked for my help." His voice turned flat. "Once we figure out what happened to Frank, I'll leave again. So yeah, Charlie. I have some shit going on."
My heart broke for him. For the young man who'd been betrayed by both the woman he’d loved and his own father. For the good man who'd learned that love could be bought and sold like cattle.
And God help me, it made me fall for him harder.
The realization hit as bright as lightning. I was falling for him. Hard. This broken, guarded, impossible man. I loved the way he'd protected me even when he was hurt. I loved the strength in him despite everything trying to break him down. I loved the tenderness he'd shown me last night, despite every reason he had to never trust anyone again. What we'd shared hadn't just been sex. It was real. I knew it was real.
But how could we ever make this work? How could I ask him to trust me when the last woman he’d loved had been paid to deceive him?
We were both so damaged, both betrayed by partners we’d loved, and both attempting to run from emotions we couldn't escape. It was time to stop.
"Mitch," I whispered, not knowing what else to say.
He looked at me with those green eyes full of pain and a raw vulnerability. Terrifying and fragile.
"I'm not her," I said. "I'm not Hannah."
"I know." His voice was rough.
"Mitch…" I reached for his arm, and he softened beneath my touch. "So much has happened to me in the last couple of days, and yet the only thing I think about is you. The way you look at me and care for me and touch me… something is going on between us, and as much as it scares me?—"
"Scares the hell out of me, too." He tilted his head, scanning the red earth around us.
"Mitch, I want?—"
His gaze snapped toward the distance. His whole body went rigid.
"What?"
"Stay here." He grabbed Razor's reins and swung up into the saddle in one fluid motion.
"Mitch, what's wrong?"
But he didn't answer. He kicked Razor hard and took off across the scrub, leaving me standing there with my heart in my throat.
"Mitch!" I shouted after him, but he was already a blur against the red dirt.
What the hell?
The distant thump-thump-thump of rotor blades cut through the air. I gasped as a helicopter appeared on the horizon, black against the bright sky.
I waved my arms frantically. "Help! We're here!"
The chopper banked hard and headed toward where Mitch had disappeared.
I gripped Zeus's reins tightly, bracing myself in case the helicopter spooked him. His ears flicked back and forward, but he held steady.