Charlotte clutched her phone as Nate’s rich voice poured over the speaker. Her heart pounded so loud she could barely make out what he was saying. But then the words became clear. All at once, her tears spilled over again. “Nate, I’m so sorry. I was being childish, just like you said. But I had no idea people would think you were dead!”

She was rambling, nearly incoherent, but she had to get it all out, explain, before he told her he never wanted to talk to her again. Lanelle, who’d been sitting across the room watching the news with her, got up and came over to sit beside her on the couch. The cushion dipped down under her, and her soft arm went around her shoulders. It felt nice, like her grandmother was there holding her too.

But then Nate was speaking again. “I know you didn’t. Sweetheart, don’t cry. Look, I’m about to get on a plane—”

“Where are you?” Charlotte interrupted. Part of her anxiety had been caused by not knowing where he was or when he’d be back. Not being able to get to him and explain had nearly made her insane.

“I’m back in Tampa. I have a press conference scheduled in an hour, and who knows how long that will take. Then there’s all kinds of business before I can fly back to Chester, so it will be late.”

“Does that mean you want to see me?”

“Yes. Of course I do. Do you want to see me?”

“More than anything. I just need to apologize. I’m so sorry.”

“Charlotte, it’s okay. I’m handling it. But listen, we need to talk.”

A shaky sob escaped Charlotte. “I know. And I don’t blame you.”

“No, you don’t understand. I don’t want to have this conversation over the phone though. It was bad enough by fruit basket. Which was my secretary by the way, so don’t go thinking I’ve gone crazy.”

“Your secretary? All of it?”

“All of it. I should have given her better instructions.”

Everything suddenly made so much more sense, but it also hurt that he hadn’t cared enough to do it himself. She was only a task on his to-do list that he could pay someone else to take care of.

Nate was still talking. “I’ll come over as soon as I can get away. You might want to turn the news on.”

“I haven’t turned it off for two days.”

“You sound angry. Dang it. See, phone conversations don’t work. Okay, I’m getting off here to go resurrect myself. Hold tight a bit and try to trust me, okay?”

But when Charlotte got off the phone, she couldn’t imagine what he wanted her to trust him about. There was no way the man was still interested in her. The last few days had been a nightmare as she’d realized what she’d done. All her anger had evaporated with her remorse.

If only she hadn’t been so judgmental and petty.

Nate had been so thoughtful and patient. Sure, he still had a few things to learn about barreling his way into people’s business, but since he obviously did it from the kindness of his heart, maybe it wasn’t such a bad character trait after all.

She’d been such a blind fool. Nate was not perfect, but he was nothing like Daniel. He could be the richest or poorest man on the planet, and she’d still want him. She finally knew that she loved him, because he was real and genuine and kind. Even when he made mistakes, his intentions were always good. All Charlotte could do now, though, was hope she would get a chance to fix the mess she’d made.

Lanelle was still patiently rubbing her shoulders and holding the nearly empty box of tissues where Charlotte could reach them. “There, there, honey. Get it all out. If Nate is coming back, we’ve got to get you looking decent again.”

Charlotte couldn’t help but laugh. “Do I look terrible?”

“Like a drunk on Sunday, dragged backwards through a bush.”

“Great.”

“Come on. You go take a shower and I’ll straighten up around here, then slip on home to warm up the gumbo I made yesterday. At least, I will if Paul hasn’t eaten it already.”

“Lanelle, you’re amazing. Even if you do boss me around a lot.”

“That’s what Paul always tells me too. Now go on.”

Charlotte took a shower, put on some clothes, did her makeup, fixed her hair, generally obsessed over the way she looked for the first time in days. And it showed. But finally feeling human again, she plopped in front of the couch and waited for Nate’s big news.

Soon, there was Sam, in front of Nate’s mansion, with dozens of microphones and cameras directed at him, announcing that Nate Haverton was very much alive and that he had several big announcements to make. Bars of “Breaking News” scrolled across the screen as Nate emerged from the mansion, dressed in slacks and a dress shirt with the cuffs rolled up. He looked relaxed, as if he found the whole nightmare extremely humorous.

“Good afternoon,” Nate said to the reporters. “I admit, when I planned to make these announcements, I hadn’t planned to have such a big audience, but the news is certainly worth it. First of all, I’ve signed a deal with The McDaniel Corporation selling them the majority of my business and holdings. Details of the deal will be made available in the future after all parties and employees concerned have heard first. No layoffs, demotions, or decrease in pay will result from this deal. I value the people who have worked so hard to make these businesses a success, and I promise they have been provided for. The transition will be slow and flexible, but I also have the utmost confidence in McDaniel’s ethics and business acumen.

“This is a big step for me, but I have decided that I would like to spend more time on my charitable interests and personal affairs. As many of you may have surmised, I was busy negotiating this deal for the last few days. However, there is another deal which is dearer to my heart that I am now free to announce as well. Beginning next month, the National Society for the Preservation of Small Town America has agreed to partner with me in restoring downtown Chester, Alabama—my home town. We will endeavor to beautify and refurbish Chester and keep her going for another hundred and fifty years. Thank you for being here today and taking such an avid interest in these exciting developments.” Then Nate grinned and waved before going back inside, refusing to answer any questions.

Sam stepped back up to face the reporters, but the broadcast ended, apparently uninterested in Sam. Which likely suited him fine. Charlotte listened to the news hosts’ commentary for a minute, but got frustrated when they only touched briefly on his announcements and continued to speculate on the mistaken death fiasco. She continued to change channels, obsessively trying to gauge the reaction to Nate’s reappearance. By the time Lanelle arrived, she was grateful for the company.

Lanelle fed her and Taylor gumbo, then tucked Taylor into bed for her and came to join her in the living room again. Hours had passed since Charlotte had last talked to Nate, and now the local news station showed a video of his plane touching down on a small runway in a dark field. She couldn’t believe enough time had passed for him to arrive from Tampa.

The cameras recorded the small crowd that waited in the pool of lights around the hanger, focusing on the t-shirts worn by so many of them that read. “In Loving Memory of Coach Nate.” They were all cheering and hugging as they saw Nate step off the plane.

“Well, wasn’t that nice,” Lanelle said. “I wonder who thought of getting those t-shirts.”

“Probably Delynn. What on earth are they going to do with them now, though?”

Lanelle chuckled. “Knowing folks around here, they’ll probably think it a great joke and keep wearing them.”

Charlotte’s lips tilted in a lopsided smile. “I wonder if Delynn has an extra one I can buy from her.”

The doorbell rang and Charlotte’s heart burned in terror. “You don’t suppose that’s him, do you? No. There’s no way he could be here already.”

Lanelle laughed. “There’s only one way to see. Go answer the door.”

Charlotte stood and dashed to the door like the ridiculous idiot she was. She flung it open and caught her breath when she saw Nate standing there under the porch light, looking more perfect than she’d ever seen him. Maybe because she’d finally given in to the love that had been growing inside her like a determined dandelion. For the first time, her eyes met his full of love.

But there was also fear and shame and uncertainty.

“Nate—”

He stepped inside and yanked her into his arms. “Shhh,” he said. “I said we’d talk later, remember?”

Then his lips were on hers as he wrapped his large hands around her face and angled the kiss, overwhelming her with a rush of euphoria. Unable to restrain herself any longer, she stood on her tiptoes and pressed eagerly closer, trembling with the sheer joy of being held so close to him, of feeling their hearts beating in rapid unison.

Lanelle’s voice broke through the fog of her bliss. “I’m going to go home, honey.” Then she chuckled, and the next thing Charlotte heard was the door closing behind her.

The click jolted Charlotte to her senses. She leaned back, licking her swollen lips. Feeling self-conscious, she pressed her face into Nate’s chest. He ran his hand over the back of her head until she mustered enough courage to look up at him. “Nate, I—”

“If you apologize to me one more time,” Nate said, “I’m going to have to keep kissing you until you give up. Because, it’s my turn to apologize—first of all for asking Zoe to send you gifts. I should have done it myself, but I didn’t have much time and I was afraid I would mess it up.”

Charlotte laughed. “Honestly, even though I dumped them all in your driveway and started a media frenzy, I was secretly touched at all the gifts, even the really goofy ones.”

“Well, I promise you will never get another gift from my secretary.”

“According to the contract—”

“All you have to do is agree that I can buy you whatever I want whenever I want and the problem is solved.”

“Now why would I do that?”

Nate tightened his hold on her and his expression grew serious. “It isn’t really practical to not let your husband spend money on you.”

“My husband?”

“Yes. I’m desperately hoping you’ll let me have the position. I know it’s a big promotion from not-your-boyfriend, but I swear it’s a better fit for my talents. And I love you, Charlotte—more than anything. Is there any way you might love me back?”

Both jubilant and relieved, Charlotte laughed. “Yes, heaven help me, I do.”

Nate grinned. “Enough to figure out how to build a life together? Enough to spend a lot more time with me? As I hope you heard, I sold the majority of my businesses. Now I can be around you as much as you can stand.”

Charlotte was smiling so big now, her cheeks were starting to hurt. She was also crying. “Yes, I love you that much. But we’re going to have to work some things out first, like how you deal with Daniel and how badly you can spoil Taylor, and—”

But then Nate’s lips were on hers again, smooth and coaxing, until she gave in and let the moment be. There would be time to work all these things out, and she knew just who to call about working out the details. But for now, a really hot billionaire was giving her his full attention, so she could be pardoned for melting into his kiss and basking in his love.