Page 8 of Conail
Her heart ached at the tone of his voice. She remembered days when he would whisper in her ear and make love to her until she was mindless with pleasure. The Colin standing before her was a far different man and she had a lot to do with his change of attitude. She had broken his heart by leaving, only to find out that she belonged here after all. And that she was still in love with him. But after what she did, she had little hope that he would forgive her.
"I want to say I'm sorry."
"Good, now get the hell off my land and let me get some work done."
"Colin, please. I--"
"No." He held up a hand. "You do not get to breeze back into town and smile at me and say you're sorry. We had something special, and you broke it." Taking a shuddering breath, he turned away from her. Standing here with her, smelling her elusive perfume, seeing her beautiful face had the ache burgeoning inside him. He could not do this now. He was too vulnerable. He had too much on his mind to deal with this. He was not prepared.
Madeline stood there, her eyes pleading with him. She had rehearsed this moment countless times, but now, faced with Colin's palpable anger and hurt, all her words seemed to vanish. The silence between them stretched, heavy and oppressive.
"Colin," she finally whispered, her voice trembling, "I know I hurt you. I was wrong. I thought I was doing the right thing, but I should have fought for us. For you."
He stood still, the muscles in his back taut. "Madeline, it's too late for apologies. The damage is done."
She took a tentative step towards him, her eyes filling with tears. "Please, just hear me out. I came back because I realized I can't live without you. I know it's a lot to ask, but can we try again? Can we find a way to fix this?"
Colin turned to face her, his expression filled with a mix of anger and longing. "You think you can just come back, and we'll pick up where we left off? Life doesn't work that way, Madeline. I have responsibilities. I can't afford distractions now."
Madeline's heart sank. She knew convincing him would be difficult, but she hadn't anticipated the depth of his resistance. "I understand," she said softly, "but I want to help. With the farm, with everything. Let me prove to you that I'm here for good."
He shook his head, his eyes steely. "This isn't about the farm, Madeline. It's about trust. You broke mine, and I don't know if I can ever get that back."
Madeline swallowed hard, fighting back her tears. "I know. But I'm willing to do whatever it takes to earn it back. Please, Colin, give me a chance."
Colin sighed deeply, the weight of their shared past pressing down on him. He looked at her, seeing the earnestness in her eyes, the sincerity in her words. He didn't know if he could trust her again, but a part of him wanted to believe.
"You broke my goddamn heart." His voice was low and throbbing with emotions, ones he could not control. "I spent nights wondering if I did the right thing. If I should have gone after you and I almost did. My place is here, and you knew it. You knew that my dad was ill, and I could not leave. I had to stay, hadto be with them, to lend a hand. And you left, you did not want to understand."
"I thought I wanted more!" Her lips trembled, and she had to press them together and fight back tears. "I thought I wanted the big city, and I made a mistake." She reached out a hand as if expecting him to take it and when he didn't, she let it fall at her side. "I know different now and I want us--"
"There's no us!" He spun away from her, his heart throbbing painfully. All he wanted to do was to gather her in his arms and kiss her until they were both mindless with desire. But he would be a fool to forget the incredible hurt and pain she had caused. The sleepless nights, the hole where his heart was and the anguish and pain when he heard that she was seeing someone else. Taking a deep breath, he turned back around, the calm settling over him.
"I have work to do." With that, he turned and walked away, forcing himself not to run.
*****
"This all of it?"
"Yes. Two suitcases and a carry on." Yasmine tried not to let the hurt show on her face as he stowed the cases in the trunk of his jeep. "I'm sorry I took you away from work. I could have rented a vehicle."
"What the hell for?" He was in a bad mood and was certainly not feeling charitable. "It's not like I was snowed under with work. As you know, the farm is all but at a standstill." Sliding around to the driver's side, he got in and waited for her to do the same.
Slamming the door, she buckled in and stretched her legs out. She had expected resentment and anger, but the animosity emanating from her brother was palpable. "How's dad?"
"He's fine." Adjusting his mirror, he made his way from the curb and onto the main street.
"It's hot. The heat just snuck up and hit me like a hot poker."
He merely grunted as he concentrated on the road.
"Colin, can you please talk to me?"
He spared her a glance, taking in the oversized white cotton shirt she had worn over dark blue capris. They had both inherited their father's lofty height, she coming in at six feet and he three inches taller. But they had both inherited their mother's good looks and looked more like twins than anything else. He was three years older than her, but there was a time when they were growing up that she would trail after him. He had not minded it one bit. When she left, she had taken a piece of his heart with her.
The distance between them felt more like miles than inches, and Yasmine tried to bridge the gap with conversation. "Colin, I know you're angry. I know I hurt you and Dad when I left, but I had to figure things out for myself."
He remained silent, the tension in the car thick enough to cut with a knife. The familiar landscape of their childhood home blurred past as they drove, the fields of green stretching out endlessly.
