When the Heart Falls (2 page)

It felt like someone had punched her in the stomach. She felt sick and dizzy. Who was this man? This man that she had been with for so long had all of a sudden become a stranger.

“
You did 
what
?” She couldn’t believe what he had just told her. A few hours ago it was just the last year of their marriage that was a lie; but now she realized that all ten years were a lie.

“
Get out!” she said, trying to sound assertive.

“
Excuse me?” he asked.

“
You heard me. Get out! I can’t even look at you. The fact that you would go behind my back and sleep with another woman just because we wanted different things out of this marriage disgusts me. You are a liar, a cheater, and a horrible person. How dare you lead me on like this all these years! Get out!” She was crying so hard now that her breath was ragged. 

“
Not to ruin your moment there sweetheart, but this is my house too. More mine than yours because my parents gave us the down payment. So if you don’t want to see me then
you’re
 going to have to leave.”

She looked at him, stunned by his arrogance and yelled
,
“Fine! I’ll get out of
your
house and then you can feel free to bring your whore over whenever you want!” And with that Misty stormed past him to their bedroom, slamming the door behind her. She flew open the closet door, grabbed her suit case, and started throwing clothes and necessities in it. All the while she was thinking of what she was going to do next. All of her friends had families of their own, so staying with them wouldn’t be an option.

The only solution was for her to go to her parents’ house. Not that it would be so bad, but she hadn’t been completely honest with them about her marital issues. So it would be a complete shock to them when she showed up on their front door step. What was she going to say to them?

“
Hi Mom and Dad! Well it turns out that my marriage is a sham and Brad’s been sticking it to his receptionist for the past eight months. So, is it okay if I stay with you until I get things straightened out?”

She’d think of something better to say on the drive there.

She took one last look around the room and glanced at the wedding photo on her nightstand. With a tear in her eye, she removed the ring from her left hand and laid it next to the picture frame. She picked up her suitcase and headed for the front door. Brad was nowhere in sight as she walked out of the house.
Good,
she thought to herself. It was going to be a long car ride but at least it would give her time to calm down and think. With that she pulled out of the drive, leaving her suburban life behind and headed to her parents ranch in the country.

CHAPTER 2

It was around midnight when she arrived at her parent’s ranch. The moon hung high in the sky with no trace of clouds. It was almost peaceful and serene. A calming sensation went through her as she pulled in the familiar driveway. She had truly missed this place. She loved the country; loved the tall grass that grew in the fields and the crickets that chirped at night. It was like a lullaby that had helped drift her to sleep many a night growing up.

Looking back now she wondered how Brad had ever talked her into moving so far away. Oh yes, she remembered. They had moved to the suburbs three hours away because Brad’s father had arranged a job for him there. He very well couldn’t turn down that job because he would have a family to provide for. She remembered the day they left and how she had cried in her mom and dad’s arms. She promised to visit all the time, to come home every weekend to see them. That promise was never kept. There was always an excuse as to why they couldn’t come back.

She felt sad for hurting her parents with empty promises seeing as they were always there for her when she was growing up. They were there for her when she told them of the pregnancy. They supported her marriage and they were there when she lost the baby. She cleared her mind of the sad memories and headed toward the main house. The dogs barked announcing her arrival and she saw the curtain from the kitchen window move. She was pulling her suitcase out of the car when the back door of the house opened.

“
Misty?” her mother asked, surprised and confused.

“
Hey Mom, I’m so sorry to show up unannounced like this, especially at this time of night. Did I wake Dad up?” Misty asked with an apologetic tone.

“
No sweetie, he’s still up in the room snoring away. You know that man can sleep through anything. What brings you here this late, darlin’?” Misty’s mother asked with concern in her voice.

Misty dropped her suitcase on the porch steps and wrapped her arms around her mother. She buried her face into her mother’s shoulder and let her tears flow freely. Maggie responded to her daughter’s action by in turn wrapping her arms around her and gently stroking the back of her hair.

“
There, there now. Why don’t we go in the house and I’ll make us some tea and you can tell me all about it,” Maggie suggested.

She grabbed Misty’s suitcase, still keeping one arm around her daughter’s waist, and escorted her into the house. Misty took a seat at the family table and proceeded to explain to her mother the earlier events of the day.

“
Well, Brad is a pig,” Maggie replied in frustration. “I don’t want this to come out the wrong way sweetie but I’m happy. I’m not happy that he put you through this, especially for as long as he did. But I’m happy that he’s finally out of your life and now you can move on and be happy.”

Misty stared down at her cup, spinning it around on the matching saucer. Her mother’s words were echoing in her ears.
Move on and be happy.
Oh how she wanted to be able to do that right now. But she knew very well that it would take more time than she would care to think of. She stifled a yawn and looked back at her mother.

“
Thanks for everything Mom, and thanks again for letting me stay here.”

“
You are always welcome here sweetie, you should know that. I’m so happy to have you here. Stay as long as you like.”

Maggie pushed her chair back from the table and walked over to where Misty sat. She wrapped an arm around her daughter and placed a kiss on the top of her hair.

“
I’ll go put some fresh sheets on your bed. Make sure you get some sleep tonight and I’ll see you in the morning. I love you Mis, and don’t worry, everything will be ok.”

“
I love you too, Mom.”

Misty watched her mother walk out of the room, then stood up from the table and placed her tea cup in the sink. She grabbed her suitcase and headed up the stairs. Photos of her childhood lined the walls leading to her old bedroom. She walked slowly, looking at each one and smiling. For the first time today she felt happy. Misty took one step inside of the room and placed her suitcase on the floor.

It was just as she remembered. The walls were lined with a delicate floral patterned paper. It complimented the quilt that covered the bed, which coincidentally had almost the same floral pattern in its design. The bed itself was an old hand me down. Her grandfather had built and carved out the intricate pattern in the headboard with his own two hands. Misty looked around the room and saw her collection of stuffed animals resting on her window seat. This was no doubt a child’s room. After all, she had only been a child when she left it. At that moment she wished she could be sixteen again; an age where she was carefree and had no worries. She would do things a lot differently had she known the outcome beforehand.

But here she was, twenty eight years old and on the verge of divorce. Life had truly not gone as she expected it to. With a sigh, she changed into a pair of lounge pants and a tank top and walked over to her old dressing table. The reflection that looked back at her was almost unrecognizable. Her emerald green eyes were masked by the redness that surrounded them. Her sun-kissed skin looked pale and tear stained. She took the hair brush from the table and ran it through her long brown hair. She then walked over to the bed and curled herself up under the sheets. Never again would she cry over Brad Prescott. He was out of her life and she would put him out of her mind. Misty took one last deep breath, closed her eyes and let sleep over take her.

***

The sun bursting through the lace curtains woke her. She sat up, flipped her legs over the side of the bed, raised her arms over her head and stretched. The height of the sun had made it clear that it was definitely not early morning. Misty glanced at the clock on the wall and saw that it was almost one o’clock. Good grief! She had nearly slept the day away. She quickly got out of bed, grabbed her bag of toiletries and went to the bathroom to take a shower. When she was finished she threw on a pair of old jeans, her favorite t-shirt, put her hair up in a messy bun and headed downstairs. She was sure that her mother had already filled her father in on why she was here. Thank goodness, because no doubt she was tired of talking and thinking about it. 

The smell from the kitchen had traveled all through the house. Misty’s stomach growled when she caught the scent of apple pie. She was sure her mother was making it just for her because it had always been her favorite. Misty had to smile. It had been so long since she felt so loved and wanted. It was funny how something as simple as a pie could show that. Misty walked into the kitchen and slowly breathed in the aroma.

“
Mmm smells delicious! How did you know apple pie was my favorite?” she asked with a giggle.

“
Lucky guess,” Maggie replied with a smile. “How did you sleep?”

“
I slept way too good…obviously. I’m sorry I slept so long. I can’t believe how late it is,” Misty said apologetically.

“
Don’t apologize sweetie, you needed it.”

“
Does Dad know why I’m here?” Misty asked, grabbing an apple from the bowl on the counter. She wasn’t sure how her father would react about hearing of her husband’s infidelities. She was pretty sure he’d react as any father would; ready to pull out his hunting gun and teach the son of a bitch a lesson. Jack Donovan wasn’t a violent man by any means, but he also wouldn’t let people harm his family if he could help it.

“
Yes he knows, and he’s not too happy with Brad right now. If Brad knows what’s best for him he’ll not bother you anymore,” Maggie said with a wink and brushed a stray lock of her brown hair away from her face. 

Misty smiled and took a bite of the apple in her hand. “Where is Dad?” she asked as she chewed.

“
He’s in the barn checking out the new mare that Travis Larson brought over this morning,” Maggie informed her.

Misty’s eyes lit up and she couldn’t help but show her excitement. She loved it when new horses arrived at the ranch. She turned to run up the stairs for shoes when Maggie stopped her.

“
I’ve got an old pair of your boots in the closet by the back door if you want to wear those.”

Misty went to the closet and grabbed the worn cowboy boots her mother spoke of. She took them outside and sat on the porch steps to put them on. One of their black Labrador Retrievers, an older dog named Buck, came trotting over to where Misty sat. He climbed the steps and covered her face with kisses.

“
Aw, Buck it’s nice to see you too!” Misty told her old friend. “I was just on my way out to see Dad. Want to join me?”

The old dog wagged its tail enthusiastically and trotted alongside Misty to the barn. Once they arrived at the barn she told Buck to stay outside. She wasn’t sure how this new horse would react to dogs. She slid the door to the side and entered the barn. The smell of hay, leather, and wood brought back memories of horseback riding and playing in the hayloft. Many a night she would come out here and take one of the horses out for a midnight ride. Of course that ended when her parents found out and told her it was too dangerous for her to be riding alone at that hour.

She walked past the empty stalls and headed toward the other entrance of the barn. She saw her father standing with Mr. Larson and a beautiful bay mare. The mare was young, maybe five years old at most, and had beautiful markings. A white blaze went down the front of her face and she had two white stockings. She was truly a magnificent animal. Misty walked up to the men just as they were shaking hands.

“
Thanks for bringing her over, Travis. She’s going to make a nice addition to the herd,” Jack said with a hint of his southern twang.

“
Not a problem, Donovan. I hope she works out for you. She’s sure to bring you some nice foals. Well, I guess I’ll be on my way; best of luck to you.” Travis tipped his hat toward Misty and headed toward his truck.

Jack looked at his daughter with concern on his face. She could tell that he was worried about her. Just then the look of concern was replaced with a mischievous smile and he lifted one eyebrow.

“
I see you’re finally up,” Jack said jokingly. He always tried to keep her spirits up by keeping the mood light and fun.
“No sense dwelling on things you can’t change,” 
he would say. She always admired him for that and wished she could have his forgive and forget attitude.