Two to Tangle (A Tangle Valley Romance #2) - Melissa Brayden Page 0,112

the lake house, and when they pulled off the gravel road into the drive, Ryan looked over at Gabriella, unable to hold back the question a second longer.

“When you said that you fell for me, did you mean in love?”

Instead of answering, Gabriella sighed in exasperation, opened the door, stormed out, placed her hands on her hips, and looked out at the calm water.

Ryan watched her a minute before joining her there. “Gabriella.” The feel of her name leaving Ryan’s lips was like a welcome caress. She’d missed saying it.

Gabriella turned, both hands placed on the small of her back. Her earnest hazel eyes found Ryan’s and held on. “Yeah, I did mean in love.”

Ryan swallowed as the weight of the declaration came over her. She had trouble believing it, but Gabriella had never been anything but honest with her. She let it sink in.

“But that’s the tricky thing.” Gabriella smiled through the obvious pain. “Love is a two-way street, and what could be the best thing ever to happen to a person becomes the worst when that love isn’t returned.”

Ryan didn’t think. She didn’t try to understand anymore. She came up behind Gabriella wordlessly and wrapped her arms around her. Gabriella bristled, nearly shrugging out of the touch at first, but then her body relaxed. Gabriella gave in and leaned back against Ryan. After a bit, her arms covered Ryan’s, and Ryan and Gabriella stayed that way, watching the sun hover over the water in some kind of free pass of a moment, conflicts shelved and hearts honest. Having Gabriella in her arms, knowing that they loved each other, was everything. She marveled for a moment. Maybe they could actually do this. But not yet. She needed to say the words first. Her stomach flip-flopped at the scary concept, and her lips nearly vibrated in anticipation of the words.

“I better go,” Gabriella said, disentangling herself. Without looking back, she returned to the Jeep, grabbed the biscuits and a coffee for Ryan, placed them on the driveway, and climbed back inside.

“Hey, wait a sec.”

Gabriella shook her head. “No more waiting.”

Ryan’s entire being sagged in defeat. If there had ever been a chance to fix what had gone wrong between them, it had been in that moment. Yet she’d failed to open her damn mouth.

Gabriella pointed a finger at her through the open window. “And if I ever hear about you getting locked up again, not only am I going to leave your ass in jail, I will personally kick it when you get out. Do you hear me, Ryan Jacks? You’re too good for bar fights.”

Ryan eased her hands into her back pockets and bowed her head. “Loud and clear. And thank you for…today, busting me out. The breakfast. You didn’t have to.”

“I did not.” Gabriella popped her sunglasses on and with a final wave drove away. Ryan watched her Jeep wind down the lonely road back to civilization, and along with it, her whole heart.

Chapter Twenty-three

“I’m sorry, what?” Lana asked over the phone, incredulous. She was still in Portland, having stayed the night with Tasha. Because she’d set her phone aside, she was just catching up. “Scott came after you. Are you serious?”

“Yes. He was angry as hell, but that’s not the point.”

“And you both went to jail?” Lana asked.

“That’s what I said. I heard from the chief, and he says the charges are in the process of being dropped. Just waiting on the formality.”

“Hell, I leave for a short time, and the world goes crazy. Sorry, back to your thing. Gabriella has thrown you for some kind of loop. Proceed.”

“Big time.” Ryan paced the length of her kitchen, with Dale following behind her, changing direction when she did. Lazy as he was, he was a loyal dog who knew when times were rough. It was Tuesday evening and she’d had hours to mull over her morning with Gabriella. “She said that she fell in love with me. Did you hear that? Love.” Ryan shook her head. “So that means she might still be in love with me. How long do those things last? You know, in normal people?”

“Well, I would think a long time. So you hit him? You hit Scott?”

“Yeah, I’m so sorry. I wish I’d handled it differently, but he was not backing down. Apparently, I’ve seen a few too many movies.”

“I’m impressed.”

“But what do I do?”

“I think you make sure you get the assault charge dropped, first and foremost. If you run into a hiccup,