Anna
Anna repeatedly told herself that time apart was healthy, but that didn’t stop two straight days of obsessing over the three words Drew had said that both thrilled and sent her into a panic. After everything he’d confessed, the gentle way he’d reassured her, she physically needed to see him and make sure it hadn’t all been a dream.
He’d worked at the hospital the past three nights and would be exhausted by the time he finally made it home. So Anna decided to surprise him with dinner.
Driving through the city limits of Sage Hill, every place she looked held a memory of their time together. The drive-in where he bought her a milk shake and asked her on their first official date, the one-stop parking lot where they sat on Saturday nights with friends, the baseball field where she watched him in that pinstripe uniform. A few make-out sessions where she straddled him on the bench in the dugout. The rolling hills told a story of their life together, and after so many years of pushing it away, she slowly let it all sink back in.
But she still couldn’t wrap her head around Drew’s confessions.
He’d missed her all those years?
He was jealous?
He was at her wedding?
She had no idea he felt that way. No idea he had any real feelings for her beyond a distant friendship, a happy birthday text message every year. When they broke up, she held on for so long, daydreaming of him showing up at her dorm, red roses in hand and begging her to take him back.
But he never did.
Then one scorching hot August day while carrying a box of books up two flights of stairs, she literally slammed into a man so beautiful she couldn’t find words to speak her apologies. A vintage AC/DC t-shirt hugged his chest and biceps to perfection, jeans sat low on his hips, and he had a you know you can’t resist me smirk on his face. Her heart took flight at the sight of him, something only Drew had ever made her feel. He was incredible. A raw hotness she’d never encountered before and his eyes focused on her like he’d found something he’d been desperately searching for.
He grabbed her hips, saving her from a broken neck, and their gazes locked together. The box made its way from her hands to his, and he introduced himself as Mason, their new neighbor. The rest of the afternoon, he and his roommate, Ryan, moved every single box to the girls’ apartment in the 100-degree heat. They celebrated with beers after the last load was finished and talked into the early hours of the morning. Anna actually felt light and happy for the first time in longer than she could remember.
A week later, she found her seat in the first day of an eight o’clock public speaking class trying to keep her eyes open when someone nudged her shoulder. The goose bumps told her exactly who it was before she even met his crystal blue eyes.
She liked Mason, a lot, but the shiver he caused with just the brush of his arm made her pause. That instant connection screamed how much it would hurt if things didn’t work out, so she dodged every one of his relentless date requests.
Four months later, she met some friends for dinner at the college bar where Mason worked. She waved a hello as he mixed a drink, but he sat the bottle on the wood with a thud and pulled her behind the bar. He held her face in his hands, begging permission with his eyes before consuming her in a long, intoxicating kiss. She completely forgot they were in a room full of people until the cheers and whistles rang out. Completely forgot why she needed to guard her heart.
Now, will you please go out with me? He’d whispered the words softly into her ear. She couldn’t fight him anymore, and more than that, she didn’t want to.
Anna blinked away the moisture in her eyes and shut down her trip through memory lane.
The Sage Hill grocery store lot had only a few open spots, and she gathered her dinner supplies from the shelves while more than one well-meaning neighbor asked her about Drew.
Were they back together?
Was she moving home?
When was the wedding?
She smiled politely and dodged every one of their relentless questions.
Driving down the gravel road toward Drew’s home, it occurred to her she had no plan for getting in without a key. Fortunately, a familiar truck sat beside the garage. Luke leaned over it, trying to fix the old piece of junk he’d had since they were kids.
“Well, look who it is,” he said, meeting her as she opened the car door and pulling her into a bear hug. Care-free, light-hearted Luke never failed to bring a smile to her face.
“I just saw you an hour ago at work,” she squeaked through his breath-stealing hold.
Luke Worley had been one of Anna’s best friends since they were babies. But Drew, Anna, and Luke’s trio had once had a fourth member. Their friend Allison was beautiful and kind and had been taken from them far too young in a car accident the summer after graduation. Allison was Luke’s other half, and Anna knew he’d never completely recovered from losing her. He had the confidence, the charm, the sense of humor, and he was hot as sin, but he’d also never been seen with the same girl twice. Most brushed it off as him being the town playboy, but Anna knew better. Though she’d tried talking with him about it more times than she could count, he refused to completely open up. The walls he’d constructed around his heart after losing Allison, then his father less than a month later, were thick as iron because he couldn’t let anyone else in and risk losing them.
He tapped the tip of Anna’s nose then smacked the bed of “Allie,” his electric blue Dodge pickup. “The old girl is overdue for a tune up, and Drew had a few tools I needed.”
“Are you ever going to buy a new truck?”
He feigned offense, hand slamming into his heart. “Why? She’s absolutely perfect.”
They’d spent so many nights driving around in that truck. It made her inner teenager happy he still had it.
“Drew’s had a few long days, so I thought I’d make him dinner,” she said, gesturing to the bags in her backseat.
Luke grabbed the groceries, leading the way through Drew’s garage into a spacious kitchen. It had been completely remodeled with modern appliances, but the exposed beams and white cabinets still held the country feel she’d always loved when visiting Mr. and Mrs. Collins.
Luke placed the bags on the island and gave her a patronizing pat on the head. “So you’ve decided to give the boy a chance? Put him out of his misery?”
She narrowed her gaze, but he laughed as she went in search of pots, pans, and utensils for dinner. Luke sat on a bar stool studying her. He’d be relentless until she gave him an answer.
“We’ve had two dates,” she said, though he already knew that. “It’s really hard to imagine I’ve been on his mind all these years.”
Luke walked around the island, leaning beside her. “Believe it, my friend. I’m the one who watched him get drunk and cry on your wedding day.”
“Really?”
“Anna, here’s what I can tell you. He’s dated and broken up with several girls. Some he dated for months, and then one day he’d just walk away. They never knew why.”
“Very comforting, Luke.”
He grabbed her hand that chopped stir-fry veggies, stopping it. “But here’s the thing. He’s never come back to anyone but you, never stopped asking your sister for updates, never stopped talking about you. It’s always been you. When you got married and he’d lost you forever, it destroyed him. But this second chance, there’s no way in hell he’ll let anything mess it up.”
She looked away, hot tears stinging her eyes. “I want to trust him.”
Luke let out a sympathetic sigh. “I know, I do. Give it some time and be willing to accept the fact that he never stopped loving you in the first place.”
She nodded, considering the notion that the first man to ever break her heart might possibly have loved her all along.
“You know there’s still the issue of us living in different states. When this project is over, I’ll be back at my office in the city.”
“Is that what you want? To be back there?”
“What do you mean?”
“I’ve been thinking.”
She laughed. “Oh, now that’s scary.”
“Frank has been asking me to buy out the construction business for over a year. He’s ready to retire, and Marilyn wants to travel. I know you love your job at Green & Russell, but what if you moved back here and we worked together permanently? We’re doing a damn good job at Yoakum Ridge, and with your design and project management skills, we’d make the perfect team.”
Move home and work with Luke? It solved the ticking clock of her leaving. Did she want that? She’d been working toward a vice president spot at Green & Russell her entire career. But the idea that she could do what she loved, live close to her family, and…be with Drew was incredibly tempting.
He never stopped loving you in the first place.
One thing still nagged at her, and she couldn’t seem to let it go. “Luke, I can’t stop thinking that I should tell him.”
The sound of Drew’s truck pulling into the garage had Luke walking toward the door. He flashed his kind smile, the one he always used to comfort her. “That’s up to you. I made you a promise, and I kept it, but I’ll support you either way. Just think about what I said, okay? You are the love of his life, Anna. I wouldn’t say it if it weren’t true.”
Things may have gotten complicated, but Luke never stopped being one of her best friends. “I know, and I will.”
“Hey, man.” Luke patted Drew on the back as he walked through the door.
“Hey, guys.” Drew sat his bag on the ground, grabbed Anna’s legs, and scooped her up in his arms. Her squeal was cut off as she completely melted into his soft slow kiss.
“Thought I’d repay you and make dinner tonight,” she whispered, running her fingers across the slight stubble on his cheek.
“You’re amazing, you know that?” He spoke the words against a kiss to her forehead.
“Luke, you want to join us?”
“Nah, I’ll let you two love birds have some alone time.” He watched them from the door, winking at Anna over Drew’s shoulder. “We still fishing on Saturday?”
Drew set Anna on her feet but wrapped an arm around her waist. “Yep, meet you here at six?”
“Anna, you should join us,” Luke teased, knowing she’d never get up early to freeze her butt off on a boat.
“I’ll see you two when you get back at a reasonable hour. What possesses you to sit out there at six a.m. when you could be warm and comfy in bed, I’ll never understand.”
“Maybe you should try it sometime,” Drew whispered, his breath tickling her neck. “I know someone who could keep you warm and entertained. You never know, you might like it.”
Goose bumps broke out all over her body, Drew’s grin growing wider in triumph.
Luke rolled his eyes, laughing as he walked out the door. “You two are disgusting. I’ll see you later.”
“Thanks for making me dinner,” Drew said as the door shut behind Luke.
Reaching up on tiptoes, Anna brushed her lips with his. “You’re welcome.”
He grabbed her hips, lifting her onto the countertop. Strong hands slipped under the edge of her sweater as he pulled her closer and nudged between her legs. Warm chocolate brown eyes pierced her heart, making it impossible to even pull in a breath. Incredible and gorgeous and he wanted her.
“What if we skipped dinner and did this all night?” Drew whispered.
He never stopped loving you in the first place…
Anna’s fingers brushed softly along his cheeks, his jaw, and his eyes fell closed with a sigh. She grabbed his neck and pulled him to her, kissing those perfect lips as his hands ran up and down her back. He squeezed her hips as they broke away breathless.
She wrapped her legs around him, pulling his tie loose with a smile. “That does sound appealing, but I’m sort of starving.”
Did she actually want food or a distraction to stop herself from unbuttoning the small white buttons of his dress shirt? She wanted him, all of him, but terror fought its way into her mind with thoughts of giving him that part of her. How much more it would hurt to lose him after that level of intimacy? Because sex had always made things fall apart.
He took her hands and helped her down. “I have to say, I am too, and it does smell delicious.”
After dinner, Drew walked her into the living room. The couch hit his legs, and she fell on top of every granite hard curve of his body. High school Drew was handsome, sexy, but this Drew, the man he’d grown into, was beyond her wildest fantasies.
“Damn, Sunshine, I’m so happy you’re here.” His crooked smile was wider than she’d ever seen as he traced her jaw line with his fingers. They stared, gazes intense and locked together.
For the first time since he’d caged her against that car at the wedding, she allowed herself to dive in and search the depths of the feelings shining with a fiery passion in his irises. To trust the promises there were true.
He never stopped loving you in the first place…
***
Drew
“See you soon.” Drew hit end on the call, staring at the picture of his Sunshine until it disappeared from the screen.
After fishing with Luke, he’d agreed to help his dad fix the barn door on Saturday morning. An hour in, he snuck away to give Anna her daily wake-up call.
“Where did you go and what are you smiling about?” his dad asked as Drew rounded the corner.
“Just making a phone call.” True statement. The need for further details unnecessary.
His dad studied him like the times he and Luke lied about stealing beer from the garage refrigerator as a kid. “Might you have been talking to Anna?”
Drew wanted to shout to everyone he knew that he and Anna were together, but he also didn’t want to spook her. The brokenness, the Anna he didn’t even recognize a few weeks ago, was slowly slipping away with each minute they spent together. But he feared it might all come crashing down if she felt pressured. The perfect story Sage Hill’s residents would put together of the hometown love story reunited, married with a houseful of kids, might send her running.
He wanted it all with her, but he wouldn’t rush her into anything after Mason had chipped away pieces of her with his betrayal. Even if it killed him, he’d take things as slow as she needed him to.
His dad stared, still waiting for Drew to answer.
“Yeah, it was Anna.”
“Well, okay then.” He dusted his hands, placed his tools in the box.
How very cryptic of you, Dad.
“What do you mean by that? Because it feels like you’ve got thoughts?” Drew said.
“Nope.” He shrugged.
His dad had always loved Anna, and he’d mentioned her more times than Drew liked over the last decade. The comments always gave Drew the impression his dad knew he’d made a mistake letting Anna go. Although at the time he let her go, Drew wasn’t exactly speaking to his dad…or taking his advice.
“I don’t have an opinion, son.” He patted him on the back. “I just want you to be happy. Does Anna make you happy?”
Drew closed his eyes with a rough breath. “Happier than I’ve been in years.”
“You know Anna is very special to us. I’m happy you’ve found your way back to each other.” He stood, leaning against the barn wall. “I’ve gotta get back to the house and meet your mom for our lunch date. You can finish up now that I’ve done all the heavy lifting, right?”
Drew rolled his eyes but smiled at his parents’ happiness. “Sure, Dad, I’ve got it.”
An hour dragged while he worked in the unseasonably hot mid-morning sun. He stood and wiped the sweat from his face with the bottom of his t-shirt.
“Drew Stevens, is that a tattoo on your chest?”
Drew pulled the shirt from his eyes slowly, and his Sunshine leaned against the corner of the old red barn, wearing tight cut-off shorts, cowboy boots, and her wicked smile.
He met her smile with one of his own, eliminating the distance between them. “Yes ma’am, it is.” He turned his ball cap backward, and his lips stopped inches from hers. “Do you like it?”
Anna’s neck and cheeks instantly pinked, sliding her hand over his shirt. Her fingers lingered in the spot with his tattoo beneath. “It’s very sexy.”
The bright, excited green irises of his Anna stared back at him until he smashed his lips into hers. He’d never be able to get enough.
“Your dad?” Anna laughed, trying to squirm away.
He tightened his grip. “I’m thirty years old, Sunshine. I can make out with you anywhere I want. And he left me out here an hour ago with the excuse he had to go meet Mom.”
“Are you finished?” She ran her fingers though his hair, her touch causing every part of him to come alive.
“Kissing you? No, I’m not finished kissing you.” Drew’s fingers threaded through her hair, leaning her into the cool metal barn with a protective hand behind her. He touched his lips to hers tenderly, tracing the seam with his tongue and diving in to taste her again. They devoured each other, both demanding and fierce, his hands skimming from her thighs up to her lower back, thumbs taking a leisurely path along her ribs.
He lifted her chin to kiss down the silky skin of her neck, across her collarbone, and back up the other side, tilting her back to him and taking her lips again. He’d never been this turned on in his life, and he was sure she could feel the evidence. No woman had ever affected him like she did, made his heart feel complete every time she stepped into his arms.
With a gulp of air, she smiled. “That was…”
“As sexy as the tattoo?” he asked, placing a kiss on her collarbone.
“I didn’t even see what it was.” Her fingers slid under the hem of his shirt, sliding up his abs, but when her gaze met his, she stilled.
Fear flashed in her wide eyes, and her head shook slightly before she slipped under his arm that pinned her to the barn.
“Break time’s over,” she said, trying to play it off with a smile and hands on her hips, but he wasn’t buying it.
Drew wanted to ask what had thrown a bucket of ice water on her thoughts just then, but he decided it better not to push. “If you insist.”
He kissed her forehead and returned to his work. Anna watched him from a hay bale next to the door.
“So how long have you had it?” she asked.
He kept his eyes on the door. “Had what?”
“The tattoo.”
Drew turned to face her with a grin. “You’re still thinking about my tattoo?”
“Maybe…” She practically purred the word, a tomato red blush filling her beautiful face.
“I got it in college. The entire team got them my junior year. I guess there are some things we don’t know about each other’s lives.”
Anna’s eyes narrowed playfully. “You mean like things you couldn’t get out of my sister while she was cutting your hair?”
“She told you I asked about you?”
Anna shrugged with a grin. “She never told me you had a tattoo.”
Drew turned back to the door, sliding it smoothly across the track. “So tell me then. Give me a five-minute recap of Anna’s life since your freshman year of college. Do you have any crazy piercings or tattoos?”
He chuckled, but when she didn’t answer, he turned to find her biting the side of her lip.
“Are you kidding me?” He dropped the wrench in his hands and moved to squat in front of her.
She glanced up through those long lashes. “What?”
No way. “Anna?”
“So what if I do?”
He scanned her body from head to toe, curiosity driving him crazy. “Which one?”
“Both.”
“Both?” She was killing him. Drew’s blood pumped so hard and fast it might be a heart attack.
“Well, I had both. I took the belly button ring out a few years ago.”
A tattoo…there was a tattoo somewhere on her skin. “What is it? Where is it?” He took in her soft curves and even softer skin as he skimmed his hands up her calves and over her exposed thighs.
She crossed her legs, chin resting in her hand. “That, you will have to wait and find out.”
His growl only made her laugh. “Give me the rest of your recap before I start strip searching you.”
“It’s not very exciting. You already know Layla was my roommate at the start of freshman year, and we stayed together until she married Ryan. We did what all college kids do: went to class, went to work, went out and then did it all over again. I interned with Green & Russell during my senior year and then stayed on full time after graduation. I’ve been there ever since.”
Drew noted she hadn’t mentioned Mason, not that he wanted to hear the prick’s name, but he would always be part of her story. Drew couldn’t decide if she was protecting him from hearing about her ex-husband or protecting herself from speaking about it.
Drew put his tools away and reached to pull her from the hay bale. “Take a ride with me?”
Anna nodded, and they saddled the horses in silence. Drew helped her up, and she stroked the mane of Flicka, her favorite horse.
“Have you missed me, girl?” she whispered before straightening and taking the reins.
Drew’s horse, Topper, nickered while he led them into the pasture. They trotted along at a brisk pace, and he decided to nudge Anna just a little. “You left quite a bit out of your recap, Sunshine.”
She looked his way with wide eyes. “So I did.”
“So give me the rest.”
“You really want to know?”
“Hell no.” He gave a rueful laugh. “But I can handle it.”
She let out a long breath. “Okay. Mason and I started dating during my sophomore year. He was a senior. He and Ryan were our neighbors when we moved to the apartment. The four of us spent most of our time together. Ryan and Layla got married at the end of our junior year. Mason and I dated for two and a half years and got engaged when I was a senior. We were happy, at least I thought we were. Then I came home from work one day, and he told me he’d slept with someone on a business trip.” She paused, glancing at the sky. “I moved in with Layla and Ryan and signed his divorce papers. Pretty much sums it up.”
He pulled Topper’s reins to stop him, and Flicka followed. Drew took her hand in his with a reassuring squeeze. “Was it a one-time thing?”
“Mason cheating?” she asked, and he nodded. “He said it was, but he said a lot of things.”
She was strong, stronger than she even seemed to realize, but the pain was still there.
The horses started walking again, and he realized the familiar trail they were taking on instinct, even after all these years. Anna’s gaze snapped to his, so many emotions playing across her face he couldn’t pin one down. She looked away, gave Flicka a tap of her heels, and took off running in the opposite direction.
Ah, hell.
Drew scrubbed a hand down his face. He’d pushed too far. Topper took off after Flicka, and Drew caught up just as they met the fence line.
Her eyes were closed, her chest falling in slow deep breaths.
“Sunshine?” He stopped so close that their legs brushed, and she looked his way. He started to ask if she was okay, but she beat him to it.
“Just needed some air. To catch my breath. It’s your turn. Tell me about Drew’s life.”
“You mean besides obsessing over what an idiot I was for leaving you?” He answered with a wink, hoping to get them back to the light mood of the hay bale.
She laughed, rolling her eyes. “Yes, besides that.”
“College was study, play ball, and study some more. There may have also been some fun going on in there, too.” She nudged his leg, and he continued. “Playing in college was all I’d ever hoped it would be. I started all four years, and we won the conference championship my senior year.”
She looked down at her hands on the saddle horn. “I know. I was there.”
What?
“What do you mean you were there?”
She shrugged timidly. “I convinced Layla to come with me. You were unhittable that night. A shutout with ten strikeouts and the game-winning RBI. I can’t say it’s the only one of your games I ever watched.”
“Why didn’t you ever say something? Why didn’t you find me after the game or tell me you were coming?” His stomach clenched; he couldn’t believe she’d been there watching him.
“Honestly? It would have hurt too much. I missed you, and I wanted to share those moments with you, even if you didn’t know I was sharing them, even if it was only as a friend.”
She’d been there for him, even then. Damn if that didn’t make him love her more when he didn’t think that was possible.
Drew reached for Anna’s hand, raising an eyebrow in question to see if she’d follow his lead. She stood in the stirrup and swung her leg over Flicka. He grabbed her by the hips, lifting her to straddle him in his saddle. His heart threatened to bust out of his ribcage just to be closer to her. “You are the one person I would have wanted there. The one person I would have wanted to see.”
She squeezed his hands. “Go on with your story. When did you commit to pre-med? When we left for college, you were having doubts.”
He’d doubted everything in his life then. “My sophomore year. Trying to study and keep up my grades to get into med school with games and practice was brutal. You know your brother crossed paths with me once during my internship?”
“Max?”
“Do you have another brother who is also a doctor?” he teased. “He was consulting on a patient during my emergency room rotation, but he didn’t see me. Probably best since he’s still not my biggest fan. Anyway, my dad started thinking about retiring five years ago. He asked if I wanted to come home and take over the practice my grandpa built. In college, I thought I’d want to work in the city, but the minute he offered, I knew it was where I was supposed to be. He signed the practice over to me a month ago. I still need to find a partner, but we’ve got some time before Dad’s ready to hang up the white coat for good.”
Anna nudged him in the side with her elbow. “Now who’s leaving things out?”
Drew scrunched his face in confusion.
“You were engaged?” she whispered.
“Damn small-town gossip.” A dry laugh escaped as his thumb nudged her face back to his. “I wasn’t.”
“But Beth said…”
“I met April at an open house for a building both she and Luke remodeled. We dated for about six months. Everyone I knew was married and having kids, but I hadn’t even been able to say ‘I love you’ to anyone but you. I thought maybe looking at rings would get me there, so I went into Traci’s jewelry store. But you were the only woman I’d ever pictured getting down on one knee in front of. Beth not so subtly mentioned your divorce a few days earlier, and I couldn’t get you out of my head.”
“I’m sorry?” she teased, her hand cupping his cheek.
She joked, but his face stayed completely serious. “I was so afraid to wish for a second chance with you, another chance to be the man you deserve. I cared about April, and I’m not proud of hurting her, but I want her to find this kind of love.”
Anna smiled, tears forming in her lids, and he held her gaze, hoping she truly felt the sincerity of his words. “I love you, Sunshine, and I will spend every single day proving to you just how much.”