“Well, at first we thought it had been a huge mistake and we’d just get the marriage annulled, of course, so why would we even tell anyone about it, right? But we’d both been really drunk and couldn’t exactly remember what happened that night, except we were both pretty sure there’d been sex. Only we couldn’t remember if we’d used protection or not, and there was a possibility I could be pregnant, so to be safe, we decided to hold off on the annulment until I got my period. And then we talked to an attorney who told us our circumstances didn’t qualify for an annulment, so we’ve started divorce proceedings while still waiting on that whole baby-or-no-baby thing.”

  Another smiley grimace while she waited for their replies.

  “So not only are you married, but you could also be pregnant?” Erin asked.

  “No, I’m not pregnant. I just got my period,” Honor replied.

  “And yet you couldn’t tell us any of this?” Brenna asked. “Your own sisters?”

  “We didn’t tell anyone. I didn’t want anyone to know.”

  “Because it’s Owen,” Erin said. “And you knew you’d made a huge mistake, right?”

  Honor frowned. “No. That’s not it at all.”

  Erin stood and started pacing. “Of all the irresponsible—I cannot believe you did this, Honor. How could you?”

  Her voice had gotten loud. And then suddenly their mother was there.

  “Aren’t you supposed to be talking things out—”

  “She’s married, Mom,” Erin said. “Honor and Owen have been married to each other since her trip to Las Vegas. She’s been lying to all of us.”

  She felt dizzy and sick. She hadn’t meant to spill it this way, to hurt Erin—everyone—this way.

  Honor’s mother looked over at her. “You got married in Las Vegas?”

  She didn’t feel very good, and suddenly Owen was in the room, his cool hand on the back of her neck, his gorgeous face in front of her.

  “Are you all right?” he asked.

  “I need some water.”

  He disappeared for only a few seconds and came back with a glass of ice water.

  “Take some sips.”

  She did, and it helped, because her throat had gone dry. When she looked up, everyone was there. Her family, her friends, all staring at her as if she’d done the most terrible thing.

  “I . . . I . . .” She had nothing.

  And then she was being pulled up, out of her chair.

  “She can’t do this tonight,” Owen said. “You can talk to her about it tomorrow.”

  “You have no right—”

  “I have every right,” Owen answered Erin. “She’s not up to this, and I’m taking her home with me. We’ll all talk tomorrow.”

  Honor leaned against Owen, grateful to be taken away from her family. All she wanted to do was hide, to shut out the accusatory voices of her sisters and her mother.

  Owen helped her into his truck and buckled her in. She closed her eyes and let herself feel the lull of movement as he drove. If her eyes stayed closed, she was floating, and happy. She could shove out those last minutes as if they didn’t exist.

  “Come on, babe,” he said, his voice soft as he helped her out of the truck and led her into the house.

  And then her clothes were off and she felt cool sheets and a soft pillow. She reached out for him and he was there.

  “Thank you,” she said.

  He kissed her lips, and then she fell asleep.

  CHAPTER

  thirty-two

  OWEN PACED THE kitchen and drank his coffee, waiting for Honor to wake up.

  It was nine a.m. He’d already been out to feed the animals. He’d fed Bettie and taken her on a walk through the pastures. Then he’d come back inside, figuring she’d be up by then.

  She wasn’t up. Not that he could blame her. Not after last night. He wouldn’t want to face the questions her family had thrown at her, either.

  He hadn’t noticed she was drunk. Enjoying her wine? Yeah. But drunk? Nah. He didn’t know what had happened, but somehow she’d told Erin that they were married. Had she done it deliberately, or had it slipped out unintentionally?

  “Hey.”

  He looked up to see Honor standing in the doorway. She’d obviously washed her face and brushed her hair, having pulled it into a ponytail on top of her head. He was glad he’d thought to grab her purse before they left last night, knowing how important purse-things were to women.

  “Hi. Want some coffee?”

  “Yes, please.” She walked into the kitchen and took a seat at the table, running her fingers over Bettie’s fur as she stared outside.

  He brought her some coffee and pulled up a chair next to her. “Do you feel okay?”

  “No. I feel miserable. And stupid. I can’t believe I told everyone that we were married.” She looked over at him. “Can I just hide out here at your house? Like . . . forever?”

  He smiled. “Yes.” Actually, he’d like that, but he wasn’t about to tell her that.

  She curved her hands around the cup and took several swallows, then sighed. “Now I have more explaining to do.”

  “No, we have more explaining to do. You didn’t do this marriage thing alone, Honor. We’ll go together, explain it, and then it’ll be done. All out in the open. No more secrets.”

  She nodded and stared at her coffee. “Okay.”

  “But first you need some food in you.”

  “That’s not necessary.”

  “Yeah, it is. You can’t go into battle on an empty stomach. Everybody knows that.”

  She gave him a half smile. “Of course, they do.”

  He made eggs, bacon and toast, along with some sliced cantaloupe, then poured some glasses of orange juice. He didn’t expect Honor to eat much, but to his surprise, she cleaned her plate. She was either hungry or avoiding going home.

  Maybe a bit of both.

  After they cleaned up the dishes, she dried her hands and turned to him. “Do you need to take a shower or anything?”

  “I already did that while you were sleeping. I used the other bathroom.”

  She sighed. “You could have come in and used your bathroom.”

  “I didn’t want to bother you while you were sleeping.”

  She pushed off the counter and came over to him and laid her head on his chest. “I’ve made a mess of things, Owen. Including your life. I’m sorry for that.”

  “Hey.” He peeled her away from him. “You have nothing to be sorry for. And you didn’t make a mess of my life. Before we go to your place, you need to change your mindset. Be positive and upbeat. Be happy about where we are right now.”

  “Right. And where is that exactly, since we’re supposed to be only temporarily married? With a divorce to come.”

  “Oh, yeah.” This was kind of a mess, wasn’t it? “I don’t know. We’ll figure it out together. In the meantime, we’ll just explain what happened. Hopefully everyone will laugh.”

  She cocked her head to the side. “Really, Owen?”

  “Okay, they won’t laugh. But we’ll get through it together, okay?”

  “Okay. Might as well rip the Band-Aid off. I’m ready whenever you are. Let me just text Brenna to let her know we’re on our way.”

  After she sent the text, they climbed in the truck and Owen brought Bettie along, figuring she’d be a balm for Honor.

  Whatever happened, he’d be ready for it. And ready to support Honor.

  They parked outside and Owen noticed no one was waiting in the yard with shotguns. Not that he expected that. Okay, maybe he did, at least metaphorically. So at least that was a relief.

  He put his arm around Honor, felt the tension in her body. “It’s going to be okay.”

  She gave him a tight smile. “It will.”

  They walked through the front door and down the hall, and there they all were, sitting at the table.

  Bettie greeted everyone. They might be mad at Owen and Honor, but a dog was always welcome at the Bellinis’. She got lots of pets and then sat next to Johnny, who rubbed her head.

  “Took you long enough,” Brenna said.

  “Sorry,” Honor said. She started forward, then stalled. “I . . . need a shower and a change of clothes first. I’ll be quick, I promise.”

  She looked to Owen. “I’ll be right back.”

  He gave her a nod. “Go ahead.”

  She disappeared up the stairs.

  “Oh, come on,” Erin said. “I’ve got things to do.”

  “Erin,” Maureen said. “Give her a minute.”

  “I’ve given her weeks.”

  Owen just stood there, not knowing what to do or where to go, which was so unusual since this place had always been his second home. Finally, Maureen asked, “Owen, would you like some coffee?”

  “I’d love some, thank you.”

  “Well, I’ve got a few calls to make, so someone nudge me when the queen makes her grand entrance.” Erin got up and left the room.

  Owen tried not to wince at Erin’s sharp tone, instead following Maureen into the kitchen. Louise was in there cooking up something delicious, as always.

  “Hey, Louise,” he said.

  She gave him a bright smile. “Hi, Owen.”

  Maureen poured him a cup and handed it to him. “Thanks.”

  He turned and followed Maureen back into the dining room, feeling like all eyes were on him. He took a seat and Finn gave him a sympathetic look.

  Bettie came over and lay down by his feet.

  And then Jason walked in.

  “What are you doing here?” Brenna asked.

  Jason shrugged. “I don’t know. Erin told me I needed to be here for this. I had a farm call nearby anyway, so here I am. Hey, Owen.”

  Owen nodded. “Jason.” Well, this should be fun.

  Honor came back downstairs, her hair damp. She wore a pair of shorts and a T-shirt and when she sat next to him, she smelled so damn good he wanted to hold her and kiss her and tell her everything was going to be all right. But the way everyone stared at them as if they’d done something wrong made him not so sure that was the case.

  Maureen went to get Erin, and the two of them came back in and took their seats.

  “Okay, Honor,” Maureen said. “Why don’t you tell us what happened in Las Vegas between you and Owen?”

  Honor inhaled on a shaky breath, then let it out. “We ran into each other at the hotel. It turns out we were both there for conferences. So we had a drink in the bar, and we were going to have dinner together. Only one drink led to another drink—”

  “Which led to shots,” he added, smiling at her.

  She smiled back. “Yes. Lots of shots.”

  Erin cleared her throat, which caused Honor to pull her attention from him and back onto her family. “Anyway, we woke up the next morning in a different hotel. Married.”

  It went silent after that.

  “And that’s it,” Erin said. “You got drunk married. So why not just laugh it off and get it annulled?”

  She chewed on her lower lip and hesitated. Owen put his arm around the back of her chair.

  “Because there’s the possibility that Honor might be pregnant,” Owen finally answered. “We decided to wait it out since we might decide to stay married if Honor is pregnant. So we figured we’d keep it a secret at least until then, knowing everyone would freak out.” He made it a point to look directly at Erin.

  “Are you serious?” Erin asked. “I thought you said you weren’t pregnant?”

  Honor looked down at her lap. “I’m definitely not pregnant.”

  Owen looked at her, feeling as if he’d been punched in the stomach. “You’re not? You didn’t tell me.”

  She lifted her gaze to his. “I’m sorry. I just got my period a couple of days ago. I meant to tell you, but there’s been a lot going on.”

  “Okay, then,” Brenna said. “Now you can get your marriage annulled or get your divorce or whatever. Unless there’s some reason you don’t want to.”

  They continued to look at each other, neither of them saying a word.

  “This is so ridiculous,” Erin said. “Drunk married at the drop of a hat, keeping it all a secret like it’s some game. It sure didn’t take you long to marry this sister, Owen.”

  “Hey.” Jason grasped Erin’s hand. “What’s this all about, babe? Why does it even matter to you that they got married? You’ve been at Honor ever since you found out they were dating. Do you still have feelings for Owen or something?”

  She shook her head. “That’s not it at all. I’m just trying to protect my sister.”

  “It seems to me that you’re angry about her being with Owen, which makes me think you’re not over him.”

  Now Erin shifted in her chair. “No, that’s not it at all.”

  “Isn’t it? Maybe you should start thinking about how you feel instead of butting into other people’s feelings.” He got up and walked out, leaving Erin staring after him.

  When he left, Erin got that angry look on her face. Owen had definitely seen that look before.

  This was not going to go well.

  * * *

  • • •

  HONOR COULDN’T BELIEVE this was all happening. It was the last thing she’d wanted. She felt like she was hurting everyone she loved.

  “Erin, I’m sorry you’re hurting, but believe me when I tell you we didn’t deliberately set out to cause anyone pain.”

  “Are you in love with him?” Erin asked.

  “What?”

  “With Owen. Are you in love with him or is this some game you’re playing?”

  “Of course it’s not a game.”

  “You didn’t answer my question. Are. You. In. Love. With. Him.”

  Honor saw all the expectant looks on the faces of her parents and Brenna, and the angry, hurt look Erin directed at her. She shifted to Owen, who gave her the sweetest, half-apologetic, half “I’m here for you” smile.

  Of course she was in love with him. She had been for years. Wasn’t that part of the reason she’d made a mess of every relationship she’d had during her adult life? Because she’d wanted Owen. Even when he was engaged to Erin, deep down she’d wanted him, knowing she’d never have him.

  Now? All she had to do was say that yes, she was in love with him.

  But seeing that pained look on Erin’s face made her pause. She’d already caused her sister so much heartache. Could she really dig the knife in deeper, now, when Erin seemed so vulnerable?

  “I . . . I don’t know.”

  Owen’s face fell. “I, uh, think I have to go do some things.” He stood and walked toward the door.

  She hurried after him, stopping him on the porch.

  “Owen, don’t. I just . . . didn’t know what to say. We’re in this huge group and my family is all staring at me. I didn’t know what to say.” She was repeating herself and she knew it, but she couldn’t get the right words out, the ones she’d wanted to say but couldn’t. Because those words should be said for the first time when it was just the two of them. And when everything wasn’t so confusing.

  “It’s okay. I get it. We both knew this was temporary and now it’s over.”

  “No, it’s not. Don’t say that. Look, I get that it was tough in there—for both of us. But we can work through it, right?”

  “I’ve caused nothing but pain for you and your family. This is all my fault—again, and I need to stop the cycle of hurt.”

  She frowned. “I don’t understand.”

  “I can’t continue to be the source of all this turmoil between you and your sister—with you and your family. I can’t keep putting you or your family through it.”

  She couldn’t believe he was taking this all on himself. “Owen, it’s not you. It’s—”

  “What are you going to say? That it’s Erin? No, Honor. It’s me. I’m the problem, and this time I’m removing myself from the equation so your life and Erin’s life and your relationship with your family can get back to normal.”

  She crossed her arms, the need to protect herself so powerful it made her want to run inside and lock the door so she could lock away all this hurt. “So you won’t stay and fight with me. For me.”

  “I think we know how we both feel about this.”

  “Oh, you know how I feel?”

  “You made it pretty clear in there.”

  The problem was, she hadn’t. And that was on her. But Owen just had. He wasn’t willing to fight for her. To choose her.

  “Fine. Walk away. No, run away again, Owen. It’s what you’re good at, isn’t it?”

  She refused to acknowledge the look of pain that flashed across his face. Instead, she stood with her chin held high as he walked down the steps to his truck and drove away.

  She’d hurt him. Badly.

  She sat on the steps and stared out at the vineyard, not knowing what to do next. She’d screwed up so many things, had hurt people she cared deeply about.

  Why hadn’t she just told her sisters about the Vegas marriage as soon as it had happened? Maybe Erin would have reacted differently and they would have all laughed about it.

  And why couldn’t she have admitted just now that she loved Owen? What was she so afraid of? She didn’t want to hurt Erin any more than she already had.

  Or maybe she was afraid that Owen didn’t love her back.

  Her mind was jumbled and her head hurt.

  She didn’t know how long she’d been sitting out there, but she heard the front door open and hoped it wasn’t Erin, because she didn’t have the emotional bandwidth to go through another battle with her sister.

  Instead, her dad sat down next to her.

  “I’m sorry, bambina,” he said, running his hand over the top of her head like he’d always done when she was little and feeling sad. “Things didn’t work out like you thought they would.”