Three months later

The pawn shop was cluttered with everything from musical instruments to macabre looking skeleton parts from a museum display. The rotund pawn shop owner walked out at the sound of the bell. He was chewing a mouthful of, from the aroma in the otherwise musty smelling shop, something with onions.

He wiped his hands on his shirt and walked up to the counter. "Do you have something to sell or buy?"

"Uh, I'm looking for a particular necklace. It's gold with a tear drop shaped pendant that has a diamond inside of it."

His gray eyes assessed me for a moment, and he seemed to decide that I was legit. He walked to the back without a word and returned a few minutes later with a large box and a key. He set the box on the counter and opened it. He reached in and held up a gold chain with a sparkling pendant. I had never seen the diamond necklace, but something told me this was the one. I could almost picture it hanging around her long, graceful neck, partially shrouded by her mass of wavy brown hair.

"How much?"

"Eight hundred. It didn't come in a box."

I pulled out my wallet, paid the man and walked out holding the necklace in my hand.

I climbed back into the truck. I had a long enough drive to think about everything that had happened in the past few months. I'd broken off with Emma almost the moment I'd returned from scattering Dad's ashes. She was upset and angry, but, in the end, I think she realized that it hadn't been working for a long time. Naturally, my resignation from my job followed, especially when my boss, Emma's dad, asked for it. I was glad to be free of the place. It gave me time to write. I'd never been a big spender, and with a small chunk of inheritance money, I decided to give myself a year to become a writer. If nothing came of it, I would head back to the work force. But I needed to try. Dad's incomplete novel had pulled me in, and I immersed myself in the world he'd created. I found the words flowing right along behind his. Everything had changed, and there had been only one more thing on my list. It wasn't a bucket list but more of a life list. And I had to check off the final thing.

I knew that there was a good chance Denni had already moved on from Redmond. There was a good chance she'd found someone else. There was a good chance she wouldn't even be happy to see me. Maybe it would even take her a second to recognize me. All of the possibilities I faced were heartbreaking, but I had to try.

I drove past the world famous chili dogs and the miserable little outbuilding where Denni had hidden. That was the place, the moment where my life had changed completely.

The drive felt longer this time as if the road was being stretched with each rotation of my tires. It was a crisp winter day, and the sky was a sharp blue interrupted only by a few lingering clouds from an earlier storm. It seemed there were even less cars than usual on the road.

When the sign for Redmond appeared on the side of the road, my heart hopped into overdrive and all my earlier worries returned. I'd convinced myself that this would more than likely end with disappointment and heartbreak, but it would have been worse not to know the ending.

I drove over the speed limit. My truck hurtled down the uneven road. I clutched the steering wheel hard, afraid that if I loosened my grip, the truck would turn around on its own.

Redmond was a distinct little town with its bat adorned street signs and bus stop benches. It was small enough to drive around in less than twenty minutes. Its shops and houses were dilapidated and out of date. But I hadn't come for the ambience of a small, remote town, famous for its winged mammals. I came for the woman who had changed my life so dramatically in one weekend that it made me feel as if the rest of my adult life had just been a dull, meaningless dream.

I parked along the curb across from the motel. Up the street, a row of pigeons were perched upon the sign over the diner. I stared at it, wondering just how I'd handle the disappointment. Hell, it wasn't going to be disappointment. Disappointment was finding out there were no chocolate glazed left in the break room donut box. If Denni was gone or worse not interested or not happy to see me, it would be nothing short of heartbreak.

I took a deep breath and climbed out of the truck. The brisk air helped revive me from a long drive mired in deep thought. My focus was on the diner as I headed across the street, but it was a soft familiar voice that caught my attention.

"Luke?"

My gaze shot in the direction of the voice. She was wearing the diner uniform, a cheesy fifties skirt and blouse, and she rocked it like a top model on a designer runway. Her long mass of hair was tied up in a ponytail and her eyes . . . those hazel eyes.

I walked toward her but in the end, we were both running. She flew into my arms and our mouths crashed together for a kiss that had been three months in the making.

Denni lifted her lips from mine and smiled. "You came back to me. I was hoping you would."

"Yeah, I just needed to take care of a few loose ends. Oh—" I reached into my pocket. "And I brought you this." I held up the necklace.

Her eyes rounded. "My necklace!" she squealed. And we kissed again. A first in a long life of kisses.