A Marriage Deal

Talk!

Alonzo's POV:

I rode everywhere around the ranch looking for Jade but I cam up empty. I checked her favorite trails, her secret place but I couldn't find her anywhere. This whole mess made my heartache and my head progressively get louder. The sun was going down and night was beginning so I headed back to the ranch. I untacked Whiskey and put him in his stall before walking back to the house. 

When I came through the front door, I saw my parents with Jades father on the couch. My mother held Annamae while Dylan played with Arabella on the ground in the living room. All the stares were too much for me so I headed to the master bedroom. I closed the door behind me and locked it so no one could bother me. I tore off my shirt and discarded it on the ground. I sat on the edge of the bed and fought back tears. Everything was different and being in this bedroom no longer felt right. 

I fiddled with my fingers and looked down at my wedding band. I began twisting it on my finger and thought back to all the memories that Jade and I have shared. They were happy memories, now clouded with regret and disgust. 

Just then, Dylan began banging on my door. 

"Go away!" I shouted. 

"Alonzo, get out here," He demanded. 

"Just leave me alone!" I instructed. 

"Alonzo, Jade just rode up to the stable!" Dylan said. 

My eyes went wide and I shot up from the bed. I unlocked the door and swung it open before taking off past Dylan. I ran out the house and headed toward the stable without even bothering to put on a shirt. When I got to the stable, I saw Jade standing across from her father. Silence filled the air.

***

Minutes Earlier

Jade's POV:

After hours of being away from the ranch, I decided to head back. I managed to make it to the stable where I could feed Diablo and put him back in his stall. I thought I had successfully gotten away without anyone seeing me from the house but my father appeared in the barn. 

I paused and stared at him for a few minutes while he leaned against his cane. 

"Jade," He started. "Can we talk?

"I don't know if I wanna hear what you have to say," I snapped. 

"Jade please, let me explain," He begged.

Just then, Alonzo came running over with no shirt on. Could this get any worse? I was very uncomfortable. Two men acted together and hid a momentous thing from me. I deserved to know and I couldn't believe that Alonzo of all people participated in it.  

"I'll give you two some privacy," My father said before walking out of the barn. 

Alonzo and I were left alone. The air was silent and the two of us were awkward with each other. I was angry and sad at the same time but another half of me couldn't be mad at him. 

"Can we talk?" Alonzo asked. 

I couldn't form words so I simply nodded my head. Before Alonzo could say anything, my curiosity got the best of me to where I blurted out, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I was scared. How do I tell the woman that I love that I am the man who ruined her life and got her pregnant," Alonzo defended. "I felt bad the second I learned you were pregnant and after that I felt compelled to do everything to fix it."

"You thought an arranged marriage would fix that!" I snapped. 

"That wasn't my idea, your father thought of that. I was willing to pay for everything. I didn't think I would ever fall for you but I did." Alonzo shouted. 

I got control of my feelings. Alonzo and I both calmed down. 

"Give me the whole story with nothing left out. Start to finish." I said. 

"Just know I'm sorry," Alonzo began. "I really really wish things were different." 

He sighed and took a deep breath. He sat on a barrel of hay and looked over at me. 

"To me, Jade Scott, was a talented barrel racer who was well known on the circuit and came from a very wealthy family whose father's name was known nationwide. I never focused on girls, you could ask anyone, I've always been rodeo focused. That night, I had seen you drinking with your friends and I'm not gonna lie, you were intoxicated. Later that night, I had begun drinking with some of my friends. You were on your way back to your trailer when you ran into one of my buddies. They were all over you. I'd be lying if I said I knew what I was thinking from that point on. My buddies later told me that you were all over me and convinced me to walk you back to your trailer. Nothing is known after that so when I woke up the next morning, in your trailer, the both of us were naked under the covers. Once I realized who you were, I panicked and couldn't believe what I did. I snuck out of your trailer and kept my mouth shut." Alonzo explained. 

"Did you ever wonder what I thought?" I asked. 

"You never left my head after that." He answered. "I thought you would have wanted nothing to do with me which is why I never said anything to you."

I understood his perspective and sympathized with it a bit. I hurt knowing that he was the guy I was with and that he got me pregnant over a drunken night but at the same time I was relieved it wasn't some crazy stranger. 

"When I found out I was pregnant with Arabella, I didn't know what to do. Obviously he didn't approve. For the longest time I considered abortion. I didn't want to have a child especially since I didn't know the father." I confessed. 

"I beat myself up everyday for leaving that morning," Alonzo mumbled. "I eventually heard that someone thought you were pregnant. Before the rumor could spread, I met with your father and confessed that I was the father. He proposed that I marry you to cover all of this up. He arranged everything and I agreed to do it in hopes that it would provide you and our child with a decent life. I never thought I would have fallen in love with you the way that I did."

Alonzo started to cry but quickly wiped them away and prevented himself from crying any further. 

"I'm so so so sorry, Jade! I know I can't fix or that you may not be able to forgive me but please please don't leave me. I can't live without you," Alonzo pleaded.