The Cowgirl's Chosen Love - Vivian Arend Page 0,97
build a house next to them.”
His brow rose, but he waited patiently. “And…?”
“And we’re lying to them.” She barely got the words out.
Everything snapped into crystal clarity. What she wanted was to sit down and have a really good cry, but that wouldn’t change anything.
The only thing that could fix this was the truth.
Julia took a deep breath and went for it. “When we went to Whiskey Creek, I enjoyed seeing the ranch. And the Colemans are good people, really kind and caring. I couldn’t understand why I was so glad to get out of there. Why the entire time we were driving home, I was so angry inside.”
Zach closed the distance between them, wrapping her up in a hug and holding her against his body. “I had no idea.”
“They hadn’t done anything wrong. In fact, they did everything right. It wasn’t them I was angry at.” She pushed back far enough so she could look into his face. “I’m so angry at my mom. I love her immensely for everything she did for me over the years and all the sacrifices she made. But she deliberately chose to keep the truth from me—and it was wrong.”
“Oh, Jules. I’m sorry.”
Emotions continued to flood in, understanding rising. Julia needed to put into words why this was so important, here and now.
“Mom didn’t just keep the truth from me, she kept it from my dad. She kept it from my sisters. I’m not pretending that we would’ve all had some magical happily ever after, because we don’t know if she and dad could’ve made it as a couple.
“But she stole a future where I would’ve gotten to know my sisters. Where my dad could’ve had a chance to have different people in his world, and the trickle-down to that would’ve been huge for the Whiskey Creek girls.”
She rested her head against Zach’s chest, listening to his heartbeat under her ear.
He rubbed her back slowly. “You’re right. And I’m sorry,” he repeated.
The next thing had to be said. “She lied, and I really wish she hadn’t. I have to do better.”
Zach went still. “Go on.”
“I don’t want us to lie anymore.” She wiped at her eyes but stepped back, standing firmly as she met his gaze. “Okay, that doesn’t mean I want to share every detail, but I really think we need to tell your family part of what’s going on.”
He swallowed hard. “And what’s going on, Julia?”
“That we accidentally got married. That we’ve agreed as friends to make this work.” She frowned. “Does your family know about Bruce?”
Zach’s lips twitched. “Yes. Bruce was one of my dad’s best friends, so they pretty much understand he was a wild card.”
The tight knot in her chest began to ease. “Are you okay if we do this? I feel as if I need to take charge of at least one little corner of my world. And while it doesn’t change what my mom did, or how it affected the Whiskey Creek world, it means your family won’t be imagining things that aren’t real.”
He smiled, although his eyes didn’t light up the same as usual. “If it makes you happy, of course we can go tell them. Although I think we may want to continue to call what we’re doing dating. I don’t think Mom and Dad would be comfortable with the concept of friends with benefits.”
Damn. She hadn’t thought of that. Julia supposed there were layers to truth-telling.
“As long as it slows them down from making wedding plans for us in the spring.” Even with the dating twist added, her sense of relief continued to grow. “Can we start with your parents? And not do a big general announcement?”
Zach curled his arms around her, squeezing tight before pushing her toward the bathroom with a pat on the butt. “My parents will be suitably shocked, amused, and horrified on our behalf. And my sisters as well, once we tell them. I’ll grab Mom and Dad and light the fire pit. You wash up, and I’ll meet you there.”
Which is how, not even fifteen minutes later, she and Zach sat across the fire pit from his very curious parents.
Julia caught Zach’s hand in a death grip as she stiffened her spine and took a deep breath before admitting the truth. “We accidentally got married this past fall.”
21
Julia’s words triggered a response in Zach’s parents that was pretty much what he’d expected. Shock, naturally, followed immediately by amusement mixed with equal parts of concern.