“You never said anything.” Della frowned.
“I didn’t know how. I tried to joke about it a couple of times, but Dad overheard me and told me to give you a break. He said who cared if you loved each other so much that it was a little creepy? I should be happy you had each other.” She laughed. “But you have to understand, I have two brothers, so I know what siblings are like and, I’m sorry, but you two? You were never siblings.”
I froze.
All along, I’d believed my lie was ironclad and impenetrable.
Turned out, the only person believing it was me.
Everyone else was just waiting for us to wake up, grow up, and admit it.
“Fucking hell.” I coughed.
She hugged herself tighter, giving me a helpless shrug. “It’s done now. Secret’s out.”
“I can explain.” Della stepped forward, her fingers twirling the cheap gemstone ring I’d bought her. The ring that promised a marriage, a life, a forever.
It was a testament to how distraught Cassie had been at her mother’s funeral and how grief-blind she’d been this past week that she hadn’t noticed Della’s tattoo, her ring, or my bracelet with its missing diamantes.
We hadn’t taken them off—not that a tattoo could be taken off.
They screamed the truth even when Della didn’t want to voice it.
Cassie’s eyes tracked her, narrowing at the glint of fake sapphire. “When are you getting married?”
“We can’t. Not yet,” I said.
Before Cassie could ask any more questions, Della jumped in. “I know we hurt you, and I wanted to tell you…so many times. I just didn’t know how without coming across as cruel or vindictive or proud.”
Cassie softened a little. “I knew how you felt about him, Della.”
“I know.”
“Walking in and seeing you guys together is worse than being told point-blank.”
“I know that, too.” Della’s shoulders fell. “We didn’t plan it. It just…happened.”
“Well, I’m never coming in here unannounced again.” She gave a wry smile laced with hurt. “God, the images…I can’t get them out of my head.”
“I’m sorry,” Della said softly. “Truly.”
Cassie looked at the ceiling before shaking away her anger. “I just have one more thing to say and then I’ll let it go.”
“What?” Della asked.
“You didn’t tell me the biggest thing in your life—when we’d all practically grown up together—but you acted miffed that I didn’t tell you about my daughter. Kinda hypocritical and it made me feel terrible. I get that you’re together—I even accept it and saw it coming, but I’m hurt that you hid it.”
Della balled her hands. “I agree. It was my fault. Ren wanted to tell you, but I…I was nervous.”
“Nervous. About me? Why?”
Della looked away.
“Ah, I get it.” Cassie laughed sadly. “You thought I’d try to steal him from you, is that it?”
Della flinched, twirling her ring again as if it could invoke a spell and fix this mess. She looked as if she didn’t trust that promise on her finger. The proposal I’d made. The conviction that one day I would marry her.
I stepped forward, taking the heat off Della. “I’m the one who’s made a mess of this. Not her.”
Cassie chuckled softly. “Same ole’ Ren, taking the blame when it isn’t his fault.” She gave me a smile that wasn’t cruel or sarcastic but honest and hurting. “You didn’t make a mess of this; we did.”
Moving toward Della, she stood before her awkwardly. “I guess I owe you an apology, too. I know what I was like in my youth, and I’m not proud of some of the choices I made. I hate that those choices made it seem like I would take Ren away from you.”
I scowled, pissed off that they spoke as if I were some possession to be passed around. As if I had no say in the matter.
Della nodded slowly, looking younger but sterner and far more regal. “You don’t owe me anything, Cas. So many times I wanted to tell you the truth. I’m sorry for not trusting you like I should have.”
Cassie sighed. “I just wish I’d known sooner.”
“I wish I’d told you sooner.” Della gave her a tentative smile. “So…you’re okay with this?”
Cassie nodded. “Of course. It’s not like it’s even a shock. We’re family and I love you both.”
Della wrapped her arms around Cassie, hugging her hard. “Thank you.”
They clung to each other for the longest moment before Cassie pulled away. “I grew up the moment they put my daughter in my arms, and that’s why I can honestly say I’m happy for you guys. I’m overjoyed that you figured it out and are together but…not everyone is.”
“Wh-what do you mean?” Della threw me a worried look.
“I mean…I didn’t come here to catch you guys doing, um—” She waved her hand. “I came to tell you something, and I’ve already taken too long.” Casting a look over her shoulder, her entire body stiffened. “You don’t have a lot of time.”
My system leapt into high alert, adrenaline flooding me as she glanced at the open door again. “What do you mean?”
“I mean…Liam just called. He’s doing work experience with the local police to see if he wants to join.”
“Why is that a problem?” I clipped, doing my best not to let my mind run away with nasty conclusions.
“It isn’t.” Cassie rubbed her arm. “He’ll do great at it. But it is a problem when he calls me in a panic because he overheard a conversation mentioning you.”
“Mentioning Ren?” Della asked sharply. “What did they say?”
Pacing in front of us, Cassie twisted her loose hair into a rope until it draped over her shoulder. “God, I don’t know how to fix this. Having you guys back has meant the world to Dad. He can grieve without worrying about the farm. And I know he wants you to stay on indefinitely. But…I don’t know how that’s going to happen.”
“Why?” Striding toward her, I grabbed her shoulders and spun her to face me. “Spit it out, Cassie. What’s going on?”
“They’re on their way over here.”
“Who?” I growled. “Who is on their way?”
“The police.”
My insides turned to ice as Cassie gave me a terrified look. “The town’s been talking, Ren. They know something’s going on. There’s been rumours for years about how fast you disappeared and theories about why.”
Letting Cassie go, I stormed toward Della, staying close to her side, sensing a threat but unsure how to protect her from it. “Theories are pointless. Besides, it’s none of their goddamn business.”
“I agree, it’s not. But Liam, bless his heart, overheard what you told Mom and Dad that night. He was hiding on the stairs.”
“What?”
She winced. “He knew you’d been bought, and the people who kept you were called Mclary. He heard Della was theirs and how you ran away with her.”
I tripped backward. “Oh, fuck.”
“Oh, no.” Della turned white.
“Goddammit!” Raking a hand through my hair, I glowered. “I only told John and Patricia, so I could prove she wasn’t my sister—not for that information to become public knowledge!”
“I know. And he feels sick about it, but he was a kid, Ren.” Cassie’s face etched with apology. “All he heard was a story about cattle brands and fingers being cut off and you saying the police were probably after you for kidnapping Della. It was too juicy not to tell his friends.”
“Shit.” I hung my head. “I should never have said anything.”
“But Ren never kidnapped me,” Della said, strained and stressed. “He didn’t know. And anyway, my parents weren’t exactly the best people in the world. He did me a favour taking me from them.”
“I know that.” Cassie nodded. “And Liam knows he screwed up. I’ve yelled at him—many times. Only, the gossip he shared when he was in school has circulated enough for it to reach the ears of parents and teachers, and now…well; now you’re back in town, and I guess it got them talking again.”
Squeezing the back of my neck, I paced the small room. At the time, when I’d stood before Patricia and John and given them enough information to ruin my life, I’d been fully prepared to be waltzed out of there in handcuffs.
Back then, I didn’t care as I would’ve sacrificed my freedom to ensure Della could stay with them.