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“My father is chaire Ranch just outside of town But we do all work hard for our money,” he said

Then it dawned on her She had heard of a man who had been shot and was now in a counned down for no apparent reason She hadn’t paid any further attention to the story Until now

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” she finally said Callum came from lots of money, then Hazel felt herself stiffen and erect a barrier She was froround and her last encounter with a rich guy hadn’t turned out so great

“Don’t be”

“I grew up in a small Colorado mountain tohere everyone knew everyone and there were no conveniences, no big-box stores, no chain restaurants or movie theaters We lived outside of town on several acres in a s satellite television and going to community events with my older brother and our parents”

“Sounds char”

His handsoo pack but she didn’t feel she knew enough about hi to be near him for the unforeseeable future

“In so up that way made me a little naive I e and nant, he left”

“How does that make you naive?”

Edgar Lovett had lied to her about al he hadn’t lied about was his college degree “I should have known he wasn’t reliable I had never

people He wasn’t at all what he pretended to be He told e family and that his parents were dead”

He also told her that he had never been married before “I didn’t find out until after he left that he was the son of a wealthy Arizona senator and his parents were very e He divorced his secret wife before I met him and we moved to Arizona”

Hazel didn’t knohy he had lied She could only guess he had done so because he was afraid she was using hi in Florida off his trust fund Hazel had tried to get child support but he always evaded the atteave up and chalked him up as a deadbeat dad, albeit a wealthy one She didn’t have to be told he had abandoned her and Evie because he was incapable of accepting any real responsibility She wanted to thank hile with a man like him She also held a lot of animosity toward him, a man who could have easily afforded to help her out but had not What kind of person did that? And how had she never seen that about him?

“You weren’t naive,” Callum said “I bet he liked you, her expectations than he could deliver on when it co a fa identified as a senator’s son”

Of course, she thought the same, except her expectations were pretty simple She didn’t require anyone rich or anyone with specific personality traits She only wanted soood and honest rown up around