Page 39 of Love's Harvest
“Wasn’t that the first time we kissed?”Aaron asked.
Sarah nodded.“We’ve always been such good friends, even when it became a little more than that.”
“Yes, I know,” Aaron said quietly.
“Saying goodbye to you on my way to college was one of the hardest times ever,” said Sarah.“But when I came back home for Thanksgiving break, you’d already moved on.”
“Not exactly.I was dating casually, but it was nothing serious.Just killing time until you came home again.And then you and Jesse became a couple.”
“Jesse and I should’ve waited before we married,” Sarah said, not for the first time.“But here you and I are now, still friends.You have no idea how much that means to me.”
“You know how I feel.”
“For the first time since Jesse killed himself, I’m optimistic about the future, excited to see how things unfold.”Sarah gave Aaron a steady look, hoping he’d see how much she cared.
But he’d turned and was staring out at the woods and the river beyond them.When he faced her, he said, “I was lucky you understood me when we first met.It was weird for a big kid like me to play football and spend time reading poetry and enjoying other things guys my age weren’t doing.You know, like taking long walks in nature.”
“You told me you did some of those things to honor your mother and what she taught you,” said Sarah.“That made you very special in my eyes.”
“My mother would’ve liked you,” said Aaron.“She would tell me you and I knew one another in a past lifetime.”
“I sometimes think that too,” said Sarah.“That’s why I don’t understand why we seemed to drift apart so quickly after high school.”
“It wasn’t our time,” said Aaron, his dark eyes focused on her.
“And now?”she asked.
“We shall see,” Aaron said.“We’ll know when it is.”
They sipped their wine in quiet and stared out at the woods, hearing the sounds of night creatures in the rustle of leaves, the cries of an owl.
Sarah took a deep breath and leaned against the back of her deck chair.Just spending time like this with Aaron was as pleasant as it had always been.
“Do you want children of your own someday?”Sarah asked.
He turned to her.“Yes, as many as we desire together.”
“I’m glad,” Sarah said and let that idea settle between them.
“I’ll be going away for a few days,” said Aaron.“At this time of year, I usually take time to go visit my grandfather who is living with the Abenaki tribe near the Canadian border.It’s a promise I keep for my mother.It’s where I grew up.”
“It’s important that you do that,” said Sarah.
“Yes, though we’re busy at work, I need to go before the winter weather arrives and hunting season starts for me.”
“I’d forgotten you lead hunters into the mountains during that time,” said Sarah.
“Hunting is a good sport but only if you’re respectful to the animals you kill.I like to teach hunters how to take care of the bodies correctly, so it benefits other creatures.”
Thinking of Tessa’s remarks about wanting to be with a real native, Sarah’s stomach twisted.There was so much more to Aaron than a large, fit, handsome man who wore his dark hair loose or tied back.
“I’m glad I found you for a friend,” said Sarah.“It still means a lot to me.”
“I know,” Aaron said, tugging on her hand until she rose and climbed into his lap, like she’d done in the past.
She leaned her head against his broad chest and let out a long satisfied sigh.She’d made a lot of progress in the last couple of weeks.She’d work on herself until she was ready for much more with Aaron.He was her home.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
