Page 29 of When Forever Stays

She blows out a puff of air, making a piece of hair rise off her forehead.

“Honestly, I don’t know. Everything just felt like a lot all at once?—“

“It was.” I clear my throat. “For me and for you.”

Her eyes soften. “I can’t imagine how you felt when you found out about Oscar. I guess—,“ she starts, then snaps her mouth closed. “I guess I can understand why you didn’t reach out to me.”

My eyebrows shoot up in surprise. “You do?”

She lifts a shoulder. “I mean, you had just discovered you had a son who was in a literal life-or-death situation. It would be hard to think of anything else.”

Without thought, my lips pull into a smile; I feel increasingly undeserving of this woman’s forgiveness. I take a step toward her. “I can promise you, Little Siren, I won’t make that mistake again. No matter what happens I need you to know I’m not running again.” Opening my arms wide, I add, “I’m all yours. Ifyou choose to give me a second chance.” She’s quiet but doesn’t deny that she will give me that opportunity, so I add, “Let me prove that I’m a man who will work hard every day to be worthy of your affection.”

“Oh, okay, well.” She looks at the ground. “We’ll have to see about that. But I think I’d like to be friends. Just friends.” She looks up at me from beneath her lashes. “At least for now.”

Crossing my arms over my chest, I ask, “So is that a yes then? Are you giving me a second chance?”

She chews on the corner of her bottom lip before saying, “Only time will tell.”

I can’t help but smile at her. “Oh, so it’s gonna be like that? I’ll have to work for it?”

Dana tilts her head to the side and gives me a flirty smile. “Absolutely. You clearly don’t know me at all if you thought I’d just let you right back in.”

Her request is fair, but her playful smile has me pushing her a little.“Why don’t we try to pick up where we left off?” I wrap my arms around her waist and lean forward. Instead of giving in to me like I hoped she would, she takes a step back, forcing me to release her.

She lifts her hands and playfully pushes me. “Oh no, no, no. You don’t get to kiss me. Not yet. We’re starting over.” She chews her lip again as if she’s nervous. “I think we need to take things slow this time. Allow ourselves to really get to know each other as friends and not dive in head first because of our chemistry.” Despite her words, I can feel the pull she has toward me, the magnetic field that surrounded us even when I had no memories of anything or anyone.

I try to use that to my advantage and drop my voice an octave. “Is that so? And here I thought you were mostly attracted to my charming personality.”

She lifts her chin. “Charm is deceitful.”

“And beauty is vain. But a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised,” I finish.

Her pretty lips lift in a smile. “That is so. Besides, Amber Island is my home now. It would be more than a vacation fling with the hot tennis instructor I wouldn’t need to worry about seeing again.”

“You were never a fling. No matter what happens, I need you to get that through your thick but pretty head.”

She looks down at the floor. “I know.” Then she opens her mouth to say something but snaps it closed.

I tilt her chin up with the tip of my finger until her gaze meets mine. “Dana Swann, will you go out with me tonight?”

Her eyebrows lift, and she removes my finger from her chin. I tuck both hands into my pockets and take a step back, to give her the space she craves.

She asks, “Would this be a date?”

“No. From what you just said, I’m assuming you want this to be a just friends outing.”

Despite her flirty tone, she says, “You would be correct in that assumption.”

I can’t help as my lips tilt into a smile, welcoming the challenge Dana Swann just dropped into my lap. She may be reluctant to give me a second chance, but I won’t waste this opportunity. Itmay take some time, but I will show her how much she means to me, and how good we can be together as more than just friends.

“Did Dr. Woodhouse free you to go home?” she asks.

“Yes.”

“That’s great!” She claps her hands, then asks, “Would you like a ride there?”

“That would be great.”

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