Breaking Through to Sue (4th in Breaking Series)

Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

Susie stepped into the bank and Justin looked up from his window where he was currently tending to an elderly widow named Penny Yates who lived just outside of town. Susie gave him a small wave and he smiled in greeting before putting his head back down and going back to his customer.

Susie knew that Sally and Liza were waiting outside to help her if she needed them but she was determined to do this herself. It wasn't fair to herself or to Justin for this to continue. She sat down on the bench against the wall and waited for him to have a free moment.

It was nearly ten minutes later before he finally made his way to her, "Susie, to what do I owe this surprise?" he asked.

Susie patted the empty space on the bench beside her and he sat down, "Mr. Vicks, I'm afraid that you and I have to talk."

Justin wiped his hands on his pants as he sat down, "About?"

"I think it would be best if you didn't come to court me anymore. I do not think that we are right together and in order to be fair to us both I feel we should end this," Susie blurted everything out at once in one quick rush of air.

It took Justin several moments to realize what she was saying. It wasn't the first time he'd been told to leave a woman alone. He wasn't exactly the best catch and some women, even the desperate ones, would rather be alone than be with him.

"Can I ask what brought about this sudden change of heart?" he asked though it hurt him to have to be kind when what he wanted to do was yell at her for being a tease and go nurse his wounded ego.

"Well I... Um..." Susie floundered for words. How did you tell a man that you couldn't see him anymore because there was another man that you liked more than you liked him?

"There's another man isn't there?" Justin demanded with hurt in his voice. He honestly hadn't thought he'd have any competition for a woman like Susie, "I really care about you, Susie. I was hoping we could become more than what we are."

"Even if there wasn't someone else, I would still feel the same way," Susie assured him, "There simply isn't a spark between us, Justin. Wouldn't you rather be with someone you have a spark with?" Susie realized with horror that Justin was about to cry as his blue eyes widened and became wet with tears.

He looked down at his shiny, polished shoes, "I felt a spark," he sniffed, "Who is the man? Who is the man who stole you away from me?"

"He didn't steal me away, Justin. You and I were never serious," Susie reminded him.

Her words only served to make him angry and more hurt. He had no right to be hurt seeing as how he was married and only interested in using her for a quick rut and a bit of company, but he was hurt just the same. He had actually sent a letter to his father-in-law this morning saying that he had moved to Wyoming in hopes that the man wouldn't come here looking for him because he had wanted to give himself more time with Susie. Now she was telling him they couldn't be together.

"Who is he?" he asked again.

Susie sighed. This was not going how she had hoped it would. Justin was crying... Which startled her greatly. She had never seen a man cry. The closest she'd ever come to seeing tears in a man's eyes was when Brody had come to the farm all those years ago and seen with his own eyes that his wife wasn't dead.

Susie Atkinson had made a man cry. That had to make her a monster.

"Ryder Hampton," she replied softly.