Page 77 of With This Ring

Hud set his glass on the small table next to his chair. “We were hired at another software company around the same time and worked our way up together. We just clicked and became good friends. Next thing I knew, I had convinced him to start a company with me. Then we managed to sell it for a nice profit.”

“Wow.” She nodded slowly. “You got what you always wanted—financial stability and success in a big city.”

Hudson took a long drink from his glass and kept those sky-blue eyes focused somewhere across the yard.

Silence stretched between them, and she considered how much their lives had changed since they’d broken up. She longed to ask him if he was in a relationship, but what did it matter now?

“I overheard you talking to Nick, and I was surprised when you said you’re working for Gavin.”

He angled his body toward her. “Why would that surprise you?”

“You always seemed to want to be the boss.” She set her glass down. “I’m just surprised you’re working for someone else.”

His smirk made her laugh.

“Do you like working for Gavin?”

“Believe it or not, I do.” He drummed his fingers on his calf. “It’s nice to not have to shoulder all the responsibility for once. Plus, I’m learning a lot more about construction than I learned back in the day.” A strange expression overtook his face. “And I’m determined to prove to my sister that I’m still cut out for the work.”

“What does that mean?”

“She thinks I’m too full of myself to do manual labor.”

Dakota pivoted to face him. “Too full of yourself?”

“Yeah.” He pressed his lips together. “She bet me that I wouldn’t stick to the job, so now I have no choice but to do it. You know, pride and all that.” He sighed. “I’m trying to show her I’m not the snob she thinks I am.”

“Huh.” She thought for a moment about all he’d just said. Then she asked the question that had been haunting her all evening. “Why Bahrain?”

He paused before answering. “It’s a great opportunity.”

“But you’ll be so far away.”

When he raised an eyebrow, she realized what she’d said.

“From your family,” she added quickly, but heat was already creeping into her cheeks. “You’ll be so far away from them. Won’t you miss your aunt and your sister?”

“Of course I will.”

“Didn’t you miss them when you were in New York?”

He nodded and sipped more iced tea.

She studied his face and longed to know what he was thinking.Do you still care for me? Is there any chance we could try again?

She mentally pulled herself back.

“You look like you really want to say something, Kot—Dakota.” He set the glass down again. “So just say it.”

“Why isn’t Flowering Grove good enough for you?” Her quiet voice wavered.

His eyes narrowed and then recovered. “Is that what you think of me? That I believe I’m too good for my hometown?”

“Hud, I don’t know what to think.”

He moved his fingers over the arms of the chair. “I had to move away to make enough money to take care of my aunt and my sister. I couldn’t have done that if I had stayed here.”

“Yeah, I know that.” Her voice was so tiny she could barely hear herself.