She’d been absolutely right when she’d accused him of pushing her away. Truth was, he didn’t care all that much that she’d slept with Cooper Grady. After an initial bout of jealousy, he’d realized it didn’t even matter. So what if Maddie had had sex with another man. He’d slept with countless other women.
But that was the problem. Maddie had said the past wasn’t important, but damn it, it was. He hadn’t told her about the disloyal reaction he’d had to that woman at the wedding, but he hadn’t been able to stop thinking about it. He was supposed to be with Maddie, supposed to want only her—so why had his body reacted? It wasn’t just the semi-erection that scared him. Men got turned on by hot chicks. It was a fact of life. Temptation. It was always there, and most men were strong enough to ignore it.
But most men weren’t Henry Bishop’s son.
Owen let out a groan, tired of thinking in circles. Might as well meet his brothers for lunch. Hopefully they wouldn’t bring up the subject of Maddie. He hadn’t told his family about the breakup, and he was pretty sure they’d yell at him when they found out. All his brothers loved Maddie, as did his mother.
And so did he.
When she’d pleaded with him to tell her how he felt about her, he’d almost blurted out the truth. Told her that he loved her so damn much his heart squeezed at the mere thought of her. But he’d held his tongue. Loving Maddie was one thing—staying faithful to her was another. Maybe it was a silly fear, as she’d said, but it wasn’t a risk he was willing to take. Maybe hurting Maddie now was better than hurting her later.
Jake and Austin had their heads bent together in discussion when Owen strode into Betty’s diner. They were in a corner booth in the back, talking in hushed whispers, and both looked up guiltily at his approach.
“What’s going on?” he asked warily as he slid into the booth.
“Nothing,” they said unison.
Flagging down a passing waitress, Owen ordered a cup of coffee and a BLT, then fixed a suspicious look on his brothers. “You two are terrible liars. So what the fuck is going on?”
“Uh…” Jake leaned back against the vinyl padding, splaying his hands on the checkered tablecloth. “We were…”
“Trying to figure out which side we should take,” Austin finished, his green eyes flickering with resignation.
Owen was distracted for a second, floored as usual by the sight of his younger brother’s eyes, which were the darkest green he’d ever seen. Along with his brothers, Austin had inherited their father’s dark hair, but not Henry’s gray eyes or Della’s brown ones. Their mom blamed the green eyes on some maternal grandmother on the family tree, but Owen and the other boys used to cruelly tell Austin he was adopted. Since his face was all Bishop, nobody actually believed it, but it was fun to tease him about it.
Realizing he’d gotten lost in thought, he focused on Austin’s comment, wrinkling his brow. “What are you taking sides on?”
Jake and Austin exchanged a look. “Jim Wilson was just here,” Jake finally admitted.
Owen gulped. “Maddie’s brother?”
“Yeah. He asked us if we’d be able to help with the move tomorrow,” Jake added, reaching for his coffee and taking a long sip. “Apparently Mr. Wilson and the other two brothers are out of town this weekend, so Jim needs some extra hands.”
He shot Jake a blank look. “What move?”
His brothers glanced at one another again, both wearing matching expressions of discomfort. “Maddie’s leaving Paradise,” Austin revealed. “At least that’s what Jim said.”
His heart dropped right down to the floor. Maddie was leaving Paradise?
“No,” he said roughly. “She can’t be leaving town.”
Austin softened his tone. “Jim says she is. Apparently she’s going to stay at Josh’s place in Denver until she finds a job.”
He started to reach for his coffee cup but stopped. He ended up laying his trembling hands flat on the table, knowing he’d spill his damn drink if he tried to hold it. His twin immediately noticed Owen’s shaky condition, frowning deeply.
“What exactly happened with you two?” Jake demanded. “You haven’t mentioned her all week, and now she’s leaving town?”
“We broke up,” he said flatly.
Jake shook his head. “What’d you do?”
His nostrils flared. “Why do you assume I did something?”
“Because you always do,” Jake said, rolling his eyes. “You haven’t had a relationship that’s lasted more than a week. You always screw things up.”
“Mom says he’s scared of love,” Austin piped up. He rolled his eyes. “Pansy.”
Owen scowled. “Why were you and Mom talking about my love life?”
“What love life?” Austin countered.
Jake sighed and put down his cup. “O, you know normally I’d take a bullet for you, but this time, I think I’d step aside. You’re a real idiot, you know that?”
“Gee, thanks.” His jaw was so tense he could barely open it to get the words out.