I closed my eyes and ignored the tears that fell freely down my face.
Abby
I watched as the river meandered along Boggy Creek Valley like it was answering a call in the distance. I felt like that river. Running to—yet away—from something I had never truly been able to pinpoint.
With my knees pulled up to my chest, I rested my chin on them and closed my eyes, taking in the sounds of the rushing water, the birds singing, and the wind blowing gently through the trees. I wasn’t even sure how long I’d been sitting there. Two, maybe three hours. I had left Bishop’s house and couldn’t think of anywhere else to go.
I also wasn’t sure what I’d expected earlier when I saw him. I knew he’d be angry and hurt. I had expected that. When he’d admitted to being with Jax, it had been a blow, but one I knew was coming. One I deserved. But nonetheless, the pain felt like someone had stabbed my heart with a knife. And the worse thing was, it kept coming. Over and over again until I wanted to scream for it to go away.
“What did you expect would happen, Abby?” I asked out loud.
“I thought I might find you here, but I hadn’t planned on you talking to yourself.”
Looking over my shoulder, I gasped and jumped up. “Aiden!”
I ran to him, and he caught me up in his arms and hugged me. “Hey, Abby.”
“How did you know I was here? In town, I mean?”
He smiled, then motioned for us to sit back down.
“I got a call from Arabella when she wasn’t able to get ahold of you. She said you went to talk to Bishop this morning, and she was worried about you.”
I let out a soft laugh and sat down again. “She’s always had such a kind heart.”
He nodded, looking out over the river.
Facing him, I asked, “What made you come here?”
Aiden met my gaze. “Our senior year of high school. You and Bishop had gotten in that huge fight—I don’t even remember what it was about, to be honest with you. You drove off upset. Arabella asked Hunter and me to follow you. We did, and you came here. We must have sat in that group of trees for hours, while you sat here and just stared at the river. Hunter thought you’d do something stupid, so we stayed until you left.”
Smiling, I shook my head. “I never knew you guys followed me. That was sweet of you both.”
He shrugged. “It was Hunter who drove us. I complained the entire time that you were old enough to take care of yourself, and it should have been Bishop, not us, making sure you were okay. But Hunter would have jumped over the moon if Arabella had asked him to.”
My smile faded, and I looked back over the river. Sighing, I couldn’t help but wonder why life was so fucked up.
“Want to talk about it?” Aiden asked. “I hope you’re not upset with Arabella, but…she told me about the baby.”
I felt that familiar pang in my chest, but noticed it seemed to be easing up some.
“I don’t know if you know this, Abby, but when I came back home after the Navy, I was in a pretty bad place. I suffered from PTSD, had some pretty wicked nightmares, and was in complete denial. If it hadn’t been for Willa…”
His voice trailed off, and I turned to look at him. “I can’t believe you two are married and expecting a baby. The girls filled me in last night.”
A brilliant smile lit up Aiden’s face. “She saved me, Abby. When I didn’t want to fight, she fought for me.”
Drawing my knees back up to my chest, I rested my chin on them again. “I’m so glad you found happiness, and Willa too. You both deserve it.”
He grinned like a man who was completely and utterly in love. “I started a business with one of the police officers in town.”
“Really? Who?”
“Mitch Hathaway. He was also a former Navy SEAL. We mainly offer counseling to those who suffer from PTSD, but we also have folks who come in to talk about other things. Abuse, addiction, loss.”
I looked back over the landscape. “I came back to town to stop running from my past and to give Bishop the answers he deserved. Plus, I was miserable as hell.”
“You still love him?” Aiden asked.
A single tear slipped down my cheek. “I’ve never stopped.”
“Why did you leave?”
I sighed. “I was a coward, if we want to get right to the bones of it. At the time, I didn’t know how to talk to Bishop about my fears and feelings after we lost the baby. He kept talking about trying again, and honestly, I couldn’t even imagine being pregnant again. The thought terrified me. I ran because I thought I couldn’t give Bishop what he wanted. I couldn’t see through my grief that Bishop was also just as lost. I don’t know, Aiden. I think I might have had some kind of nervous breakdown. I couldn’t see straight…if that makes sense.”