The thought made his stomach hurt. Watching his parents had reminded him of the destructive power of secrets. Secrets were a cancer in his family. His father got to sit and look like the hero to those football players because secrets were kept. His mother was going home to a violent, scary place because she kept her mouth shut.

The woman he was falling in love with deserved better than that. If he wanted any chance of this becoming something more, he had to tell. But her words from earlier were haunting him. The person you’re trying to save will just blame you for taking their choices away…would hate you for it.

She was going to hate him. He loved her, and there was no way to make it work. If he didn’t tell her, whatever they built would have a cancer hiding inside it. If he told her, she’d realize that he’d taken away a choice that should’ve been hers.

A slow song was playing, the peppy line dances and two-step numbers thankfully over for the night, and Kincaid gave him a little smile. “They’re gone now. We can head out.”

Ash looked at her, little fractures branching through his heart. “Want to dance?”

A genuine look of pleasure filled her face. “Really? We don’t have to. I know it’s been a rough night.”

He slid off the bench seat and put his hand out to her. “Dance with me, KC.”

She put her hand in his and got to her feet. “You sure?”

“I’m sure.” He led her to the half-empty dance floor.

A few couples were still out there, the blue-toned lights and slow beat giving it all a dreamlike quality. Ash pulled KC into his arms, cherishing the warm, familiar feel of her. She fell into step with him easily as the current song finished up. They kept swaying as another started. The rich sound of a woman’s voice filled the dance floor and Kincaid sighed. “Oh, I love this one.”

Ash listened, the lyrics telling a story as so many country songs did, and he spun her closer to the center of the dance floor. “Which one is this?”

“It’s the Judds.” She put her cheek against his shoulder and closed her eyes. “‘Young Love.’”

He pressed his nose to the top of hair, breathing her in and steeling himself for the conversation to come. Would this be the last time he held her like this? The song drifted over them, the women singing about young love being strong love, being true love. They sang about making it through the hard times.

He closed his eyes, letting himself fall fully into the moment. Life had so few of these perfect, sweet seconds that he didn’t want to miss them. Like those first few minutes when they’d rushed into prom, all friends, all excited, their lives ahead of them. Everything shiny and fresh and full of possibility. He wished he could’ve frozen those moments before it all went wrong, remembered what that truly felt like—to be that carefree. To have that much hope.