“Chloe, I wish for once you would open your eyes and see what is right in front of you.”
My mouth dropped open. “Excuse me?”
“Do you know why Rip left Texas A&M early?”
“Yes, he had the credits to graduate early.”
“No. He busted his ass and took classes and then finished out online. He still needs two classes to graduate.”
“What?” I gasped.
“He didn’t tell you because he didn’t want you asking why he was going back home. He had to get out of there because he couldn’t stand seeing you with Easton.”
“That’s insane. I’ve dated other guys before, and he’s dated other girls.”
“His longest relationship was with Heather. And that was an off-and-on thing. You dated a few guys before Easton, nothing serious. Then Easton came along, and things got serious. Rip told Mike he couldn’t take seeing you with him. He had to leave.”
I stared at her in disbelief.
“No,” I said, with a chuckle that sounded more like choking. “He knew how I felt about him, Alyssa. If he had feelings for me too, he would have told me.”
“You were dating someone else, Chloe. You were happy. That’s all he’s ever wanted for you. He wasn’t about to risk losing your friendship when you were seriously dating someone.”
Turning away from her, I wrapped my arms around my body.
“I’m sorry. Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything. I mean, you love Easton, right? You love him enough to marry him and move away. It was wrong of me to say anything. I’m only repeating what Mike told me, and after seeing Rip just now, I thought maybe you might have had a change of heart about him. Maybe you should stop and think about all of this. Chloe, I know you care for Easton, love him. But do you love him like you love Rip?”
Staring out the window, I saw the barns in the distance. “I need to go check on Patches, and I want Easton to meet him. I’ll see you around, Alyssa.”
As I walked to the door that led to the backyard, Alyssa called out after me. “Chloe! Wait. Chloe!”
I kept walking, my eyes scanning the crowd. Then I found him. Easton was talking to my Uncle Cord and Uncle Trevor.
“There’s our girl!” Trevor said, picking me up and spinning me around. He set me down and kissed me on the cheek. Uncle Cord followed.
“Welcome home, Chloe Cat,” Cord said.
“Thank you. It’s good to be home. Uncle Cord, Mom said Maebh and Katlyn were in Ireland.”
He nodded. “Yeah, they went back to visit Aedin and Aunt Vi.”
Cord had married Maebh, a woman from Ireland who moved to Oak Springs years ago to open her own restaurant. Her mother had been from the area and met her father in Ireland. After she passed away, being in Texas made Maebh feel closer to her. Katlyn was their thirteen-year daughter.
“Easton, hey. I was looking for you.”
Stopping by his side, I tensed when he put his arm around me. I found myself looking around for Rip.
What in the hell? I’m going to kill Alyssa for putting that thought into my head.
“I need to go check on the barn locks, and I really want to see Patches. Want to come?”
“Is this your pet?”
“Yeah. You do want to meet him? Right?”
“Uh…sure. If you want me to.”
I pouted, and he laughed.
“Fine, I’ll go meet your lamb.”
“Goat,” Cord and Trevor said at the same time. “Son, if you’re going to marry a country girl, you better learn farm animals.”
“How did you know?” I asked as I looked at Easton accusingly.
Holding up his hands, he laughed. “This one is on your dad. He introduced me to everyone as your fiancé.”
“Ugh. Can I not do this the way I want to?” I said, almost stomping my foot like a child.
“Sorry, babe.”
He took my hand in his. “Let’s go see your lamb.”
“Goat!” Trevor and Cord called out.
“Is there a difference?” Easton asked with a laugh.
“Yes!” I replied as I lightly punched him in the stomach.
We walked in silence the first few minutes before Easton spoke. “I saw Rip.”
“Really?”
“He came up and congratulated me. Guess you told him. When?”
“Oh, yeah, he was in my father’s office doing something for him. I ran into him there. He asked how things were going, and I told him.”
“How did he take it?”
Turning to look at him, I furrowed my brows. “What do you mean?”
Easton laughed. “Please, Chloe. You can stop the whole I’m not aware Rip likes me act.”
I jerked my hand from his. “You think I’m putting on an act?”
He looked down at me. “Yes. I do. He was clearly not himself when he came up to me. He was pissed. I saw it in his eyes.”
Placing my hands on my hips, I shook my head slowly and deliberately. “First off, Easton. I don’t put on acts for anyone about anything. Our freshman year of college I told Rip I wanted something more than friendship. You know this. I told you the story. He didn’t feel the same. We moved on, I got over it, and here we are today. Am I going to have to defend my friendship with him for the rest of my life, because if so, it’s going to get old really quick.”