Ryder cracked open a can of beer as he sat at the edge of his dock and stared out at the lake. Still vast. Tranquil. Loaded with fish. Sun still glittered off it without mercy. Nothing about the vista had changed over the past four days.

Unlike him. He hadn’t been the same since New York.

Hell, he didn’t even really remember driving home the other night. He’d been numb, operating on autopilot. It wasn’t until he’d passed a frowning Ben by the armory that his dazed brain had realized he was back in Pennsylvania.

His buddy had signaled for him to stop, but he shook his head and kept driving. No reason to stop. Talking wasn’t going to help. And he hadn’t been in the mood for any type of company, so he’d gone straight home, parked in the driveway, and stared at his house. A house full of memories of the woman whose betrayal cut so deep it hurt to fucking breathe.

Even now, his chest was too tight to get a full breath into his lungs. But the beer was going down pretty smooth. He sucked down the cold brew and eyed the boathouse.

He hadn’t been inside there yet, either. Or his workshop, because he had memories of her in those places too. Didn’t leave him with many choices to sleep that first night. So he’d grabbed a sleeping bag from his shed, and slept in the back of the truck.

For three nights now.

Work was good, though. Busy. A godsend. He’d thrown himself into it, glad his volunteer work was done at the theater. Until the next show. Sophia had one more to design, but screw it. He was going to sit that one out.

Maybe he’d sit on the dock and have a beer then, too.

“You ever going to answer your phone?” Ben asked from behind, his boots clomping on the stairs…along with another set.

Ryder’s heart stopped a few beats, as longing—the traitor—trickled through his chest in the hopes it was Sophia. Although, he didn’t even know if she was back in town yet.

He turned around to find the oldest Wyne brother approaching too, and told himself it was relief that ricocheted through his gut.

“You didn’t toss it in the lake, did you?” Ethan asked.

Ryder smirked. “Thought about it.” Even went so far as to grip the damn thing in his hand. It was loaded with texts and missed calls and voicemails from family and friends, but the majority were from Sophia. He didn’t want to talk to her. Didn’t want to see her. “I shut it off and shoved it in my glove box.”

Didn’t matter, though. He’d had little peace since then. Not from his mind, anyway.

“You didn’t show up for our lunch today,” Ben said, easing down beside him, before opening the cooler to peek inside. “A liquid diet, huh?”

Ethan sat down on his other side and smirked. “That’s nutritious.”

“I remember those days.” Ben tossed a beer to Ethan, before securing one for himself.

Ryder knew what they were doing, and it wasn’t going to work. “Don’t get too comfortable. I don’t want company, and I’m not in the mood to talk.”

“That’s okay,” Ethan said. “We’ll do the talking.”

“Yeah.” Ben cupped his shoulder and nodded. “We’ve been friends a long time, and I get where you’re coming from, I really do, but I can’t let you be. Not now that your sister is involved. She’s worried about you, and losing sleep over it.” He squeezed his shoulder. “You have to understand, I won’t let her suffer. So, it’s time for an intervention.”

Ryder muttered an oath. Lea wasn’t getting a ton of sleep with the baby as it was, he didn’t want her losing even more over him. “Tell her I’m fine and not to worry.”

“Yeah, you’re doing great, all right,” Ben scoffed, releasing him. “You have a sleeping bag in the back of your truck, and you’re drinking beer for lunch. She’ll be thrilled to hear that. I’m sure she’ll sleep better than our daughter, now.”

He scrubbed a hand over his face and shook his head. “Look, I’m fine. This is the first beer I’ve had since…all week.” He couldn’t bring himself to reference that night in the city.

The hiss of air escaping the can pierced the air as Ethan cracked open his beer. “We’ve been where you are, Ryder. And believe it or not, it only got better when someone pointed out we were acting like asses.”

“Okay, so we still act like it sometimes,” Ben added. “But, my brother’s right. When it came to the women we love, we were blind to our misconceptions. So, chances are, that’s what you’re dealing with, too. Surely, the three of us can figure it out.”

“And if not, Phoebe and Lea are on standby.” Ethan nodded, patting the phone visible in his shirt pocket.

“After all, they’re the ones who told us what went down in New York.”

“How’d they know?” He certainly hadn’t told anyone.

“Sophia,” Ethan replied. “She’s been calling daily, hoping we’d see you and ask you to call her.” The guy looked deadpan at him. “Ryder, can you please call Sophia?”

“Not gonna happen.” Not in this lifetime. He’d had enough betrayal from women. He was done.

Ethan pursed his lips and nodded. “You could always go see her. She’s back in town. Arrived last night.”

The news hit him like a blow to the solar plexus. He straightened his spine and drew in a breath. Did she even try to find him? He brushed the stupid thought aside. Didn’t matter. He wouldn’t have spoken to her anyway.

“Okay, then, it’s time to hash things out,” Ben said, before swigging down some beer.

“Nothing to hash out,” he muttered. “She’s a Colarusso. Knew about my issues with them and said nothing. Probably had a good laugh, too. Oh, and she’s engaged to some guy named Gino, who I suspect was the one putting in the bids. He looked familiar. She was probably telling him about the jobs I was trying to get. She’s devious and conniving, and I’m done.”

Ben glanced around him at his brother. “Was I that stupid?”

Ethan nodded. “You were worse.”

“I think we’re done.” Gritting his teeth, he made to get up, but each man gripped one of his shoulders and held him in place.

“No. Not hardly, so stay put,” Ben said, voice firm and serious, all signs of teasing gone. “First off, she’s not engaged and hasn’t been. That was some yahoo who won’t let her alone.”

“What?” Without permission, Ryder’s insides knotted and a strong urge to beat the shit of the guy surged through him.

“And she didn’t lie about her last name. It’s Nardovino. But her family does own Colarusso Construction. It was her grandfather on her mother’s side who started the business.”

“Whatever,” he muttered. “She never told me.” She kept secrets. End of story.

Ben quirked a brow. “Did you ask?”

He jerked his head back. “What?”

“Did you ask her if she was a Colarusso?”

“Of course not.” Ryder finished his beer then squeezed the empty can in his hand. Fucking idiot.

His buddy cocked his head. “Then explain exactly how it is she lied.”

“By omission.”

Ben smirked. “That’s thin, man.”

“Real thin.” Ethan nodded.

“See through,” Ben continued, doing a great job of pissing him off, too.

Ryder opened the cooler and tossed the crushed can inside, before grabbing a new one. “This has been fun. Not,” he said. “Are you two going to come to a point soon? I need to finish drinking alone.”

Ben inhaled, then spoke. “From what I gathered from your remarks, you think Sophia used you to get the locations of the jobs you wanted to bid on so she could pass it on to some stalker that works for her family, so her family could bid lower and get the jobs. Am I right?”

“No. Yeah…Christ.” He blew out a breath. “I don’t know.” His brain hurt. When he heard it out loud, it sounded stupid. “She lied to me.”

Ethan shook his head. “No, Ryder, she just didn’t tell you everything, and it’s my guess that she was worried how you’d react.”

“Yeah, it sucks that she’s related to the family undercutting your bids, but it’s not like she did the actual bidding. And, damn, man. It’s no secret how you feel about Colarusso Construction,” Ben said. “You actually put her in a tough situation. If she told you, you’d be mad. If she didn’t tell you, you’d be mad. There was no way out for her. No answer.”

Well…hell.

He exhaled slowly, and stared into the murky abyss below his feet. It was true. Still. “Lying is never the answer. Jinan kept her family a secret too. And look what happened.” He ended up betrayed and alone.

“Ryder, listen to me.” Ben set a hand his shoulder again. “Sophia is not Jinan. She did not choose her family over you and marry another man. You need to think back. Did you ever talk to her about Colarusso…I mean by name? Because you and I discussed them, but she wasn’t there.”

He rubbed his temple, trying to dispel the dull ache. “Yeah, I mentioned them to her when…” He paused, trying to recall when he’d actually said the name to her, and…damn. It was recent. The first time that came to mind was at the theater. The day before she left. “We were finished working on a set. Cathy told me I lost the ice cream parlor bid.”

“Lost?” Ethan frowned. “Didn’t you get that bid?”

He nodded. “I originally didn’t, though. They called back the next day to offer it to…son-of-a-bitch.” His whole body stiffened as his heart dropped to his gut.

Ben grinned. “Looks like we have an aha moment.”

“Care to share?” Ethan grinned too.

Ryder tossed the unopened beer back in the cooler and pushed to his feet. “I need to talk to Sophia,” he said, heart pounding a little easier in a chest that was no longer tight with unrelenting fingers of betrayal. “Where did you say she was?”

Christ, he had some apologizing to do.

“At the theater. Where else?” Ben stood up and grinned. “I’m sure if you hurry, you can still catch her.”

Ethan got to his feet. “If not, she rented a room at the resort.”

His steps faltered, and he turned to face them. “Why? Is something wrong with Keiffer’s condo?”

No one told him about any issues.

“Yeah.” Ben nodded. “I think she’s having the same problem you’re having with your house.”

His heart took a hit, hard enough to make him blink. Memories of them together kept her from sleeping there?

A smile tugged his lips and he drew in another easy breath.

Maybe he hadn’t screwed up so bad that things weren’t fixable.

Yeah, he was an ass. He’d hurt her. And his insides were fisted tight with self-disgust. But he wasn’t going to let it stop him from fighting for the woman he loved. Not this time. Not with Sophia. She was worth the effort. She was worth fight for.

She was worth…everything. And he was going to do everything in his power to make it up to her.

If she’d have him back.