Chapter Seventy-Four

In a weird role reversal, it was now Jennifer's turn to keep a relationship secret from her younger sister. She didn't want to call whatever was going on a proper relationship yet, as it was still Blake after all, but she was feeling cautiously optimistic about what was going on. 

They tended to see each other on the weekend, when Molly and Jake were more likely to go out, either for the day or the evening. 

After three weekends of spending time together like a couple, Jennifer couldn't help but wonder if this was too good to be true. So, as scared as she was, she decided to ask him. 

"Blake?" she started carefully, her head against his bare chest and his arm around her shoulder. Her fingers slowly drew circles on his skin. 

"Yeah babe?" he indicated he was listening. 

"I was just wondering... is this... us... for real? How long will you be staying?" she dared to ask now. 

"Oh, didn't I tell ye? I'm leavin' on Tuesday," Blake said nonchalantly. He knew he hadn't told her, but he'd actually been hoping he wouldn't have to. It was so much easier to just slip away, where he wouldn't have to deal with emotions and goodbyes. 

"Leavin'? Just like that?" Jennifer asked, not being able to stop her voice from breaking with distress as she sat up a bit to be able to look at him. She knew she should've listened to her gut instinct when he'd first come back, when Molly told her to stay away from him. She couldn't believe she'd let him dupe her for a second time, and this time as an adult rather than a star struck teenager. 

"Ye didn't think I'd stay forever? I have a life back in Fort Worth," he told her, forgetting that no one actually knew where he'd been living this whole time. 

"So that's it, wham bham thank you ma'am?" the brunette said horrified, gathering the duvet to cover herself as she leaned as far away from him as she could without falling out of her bed. She was even more annoyed when he chuckled. 

"Well, I wouldn't've put it like that, but..." 

"But that's basically right, ain't it?" she forced him to say it. She needed to hear him say it, so she wouldn't waste another decade of her life wallowing for him. 

"Don't be like that Jenny," Blake now tried to sweeten her up. "We're both adults here, havin' fun." 

"Not anymore. Get out," Jennifer finally found the strength to reject him. 

"What?" he asked surprised. 

"You heard. Get out Blake and don't ever come back here," she repeated, shrinking away from him when he reached out to go through her hair. 

He realized that she actually meant it this time. "Fine," he shrugged. It wasn't actually like he cared too much. The majority of the past couple of weeks had been about the challenge she presented. First, winning her back and then seeing how much she was willing to go through to keep seeing him in spite of her sister. She watched him pull his clothes on and leave her bedroom, assuming he would leave through the unlocked back door. 

As soon as she heard a second door close, she hid her face in her duvet to cry. This time almost hurt more than last, as she'd walked into it with open eyes. She knew, her sister knew and even his cousin knew, that he couldn't be trusted. How could she have been this stupid? 

Jake and Molly were just coming back into the yard with Maximus and Bullet when they noticed Blake leave through the back door. 

"Oh no, what was he doin' there?" Molly said, sitting up in her saddle to have a closer look. She really hoped that maybe he'd knocked and found that the house was empty. Those hopes were dashed almost immediately when he spotted them, giving her a cheeky wink and grin as he past them into his uncle's ranch. "That nasty...." she started muttering under her breath as she was about to climb out of her saddle, feeling her boyfriend hold her back. Without saying anything, she turned her horse around to make her way around the fence and towards her own ranch. 

"Molly," Jake called after her and, with a sigh, made Maximus follow her. He reached her just as she'd let herself slide out of the saddle and was tying Bullet to the porch railing. "I'll take care of that," he told her, seeing her turn to him in surprise. "Go check on Jen," he explained, which she didn't need telling twice. She handed the reins over to him and rushed into the house. Instead of tying her horse up, Jake guided him back to his own land to bring him back to the stables. The way he figured, Jennifer didn't need an audience. 

"Jen," Molly called out as she rushed up the stairs to find her sister. "Jen," she repeated when she didn't get an answer, not bothering to knock on the door before she burst in. She'd tried not to imagine what she might find, but she had tried to prepare herself for the worst. Even so, what she found broke her heart. Her sister was curled up in bed, crying her heart out. "Oh Jen," the younger Matthews said sadly, slowing down as she approached the bed and carefully sat down behind her sister, one hand reaching out to stroke her hair gently. "What happened?" she asked softly, though she could probably guess from the tears and the fact that her sister was, unfortunately, obviously naked under the duvet. 

"I let him win me back," Jennifer answered after a few minutes, trying to swallow down her tears. "I was so stupid. I should've listened to you," she cried louder now, making her sister's heart break again. 

Molly now laid down behind her sister and wrapped her arms tightly around her, hugging her close. "Oh Jen, I'm so sorry," she said softly, fighting back her own tears as her sister's sobs racked them both. 

While Molly was consoling Jennifer, Jake focused on getting both horses brushed down and back in the stables. He wanted to know what had happened, but he didn't think it a good idea to talk to his cousin right now. Obviously, it wasn't anything good. 

"How's it hangin' cuz?" Blake's voice interrupted his work and decision not to get involved right now. 

"I dunno. Ye tell me," Jake said, not turning to look at him as he continued brushing Maximus down. 

"Nothin' much," the older cousin said with a shrug, walking over to Sunny and stroking his mane. He was trying not to gloat too much, not sure if his cousin would see it as the victory that he saw it as. "We should have a barbecue tomorrow before I head off," Blake said, thinking that would be a good send off. Of course, Jennifer and Molly probably wouldn't want to come any more, which would diminish how much fun both Jake and probably Beth would have. But still, he deserved a nice send off. 

"Head off? When are ye headin' off, and why didn't ye mention it sooner?" Jake asked, turning around to face him now. This was the first time he'd heard of Blake leaving soon. 

"Did I not tell anyone? I was sure I had," his cousin said puzzled instead of answering. "But yes, I'm leavin' Tuesday," Blake said now, seeing the younger Rodgers narrow his eyes. "What?" he asked innocently. 

"Bethy has really come to like ye and got used to ye bein' here. Ye can't just up 'n leave like that," the young rancher objected. "Yer actions have consequences Blake. Ye can't just behave or treat people like they don't matter." The shrug of the shoulders that the older cousin gave was enough to make the younger finally see beyond the hero image he'd held onto from his youth. "God, yer so selfish, ye only think about yerself. Why bother draggin' it out 'til Tuesday? Why not just up 'n leave now, save the goodbyes?" Jake confronted him now, seeing he was taken by surprise at this turn of events. So far, Jake had been cordial and stood by his cousin, even if he didn't always agree with some of the stories he'd heard about him from years ago. But it sounded like even he had now given up on him. 

"Jake, come on buddy," Blake tried now, holding his hands up innocently. 

"It's too late for that," he responded with a shake of his head. He turned away to focus back on the horses, turning his back on his cousin literally as well as figuratively.