Page 20 of Love at First Slice
“Oh… Does he get mad? I mean when he visits. That you still have his ex’s painting up?”
“I’m not sure.” I swallowed. I could have left it at that, but there was this overriding need for her to know who she was about to get involved with. “I haven’t seen him in well over a decade.”
“Really?” The surprise was clear in her gaze. “I couldn’t imagine not seeing my sister or even my brother for that long… well, maybe sometimes, when they annoy me, it would sound great, but… I think I would miss them.” I chuckled roughly.
“We’re not close. None of the three of us are, actually.”
“Oh…” She chewed on her bottom lip. I could see the wheels spinning. She wanted to know more about my family, so I helped her out.
“We were never close. Ranger and I especially butted heads a lot. But when he was with Shelly… she kinda softened him up. It was easier to be around him.”
“And then they broke up?”
“Sorta. My parents passed away, and he’d just enlisted into the military. I think he needed to get away from...”The guilt he carried, I wanted to say, but it felt wrong. Like it wasn’t my place to talk about how he may or may not have felt about my parents. “Their death changed him.”
“I can’t even imagine.”
“Anyhow, he was far away, overseas, and she was going to school and…” I shrugged. “Sometimes, at that age, young love, it doesn’t make it.”
“Did you have that? A high school sweetheart?” There was no judgment or jealousy. And fuck me, I liked that. I liked talking about the past without any worries about saying the wrong thing. Abby was crazy easy to talk to.
“I dated. Not seriously at that time.”
“But you’ve had a serious relationship.” She turned, leaning her shoulder against the wall.
“What makes you think that?” I enjoyed the way her lips twitched.
“I don’t know. I guess I’d call it a hunch. You have that vibe about you.”
“A serious vibe?” She stared up at me, not blushing or shrugging off the subject, and fuck me, I liked that. “I told you I was in one for five years.” She whistled; it made my lips twitch.
“That’s a long time,” she acknowledged.
“It was.”
“And you didn’t get married or engaged in all that time? It never came up?” I didn’t mind talking about this again even though I’d already shared.
“No.”
“Why?” I opened and shut my mouth, trying to come up with the right words. I hadn’t been sure back then, but as I stood in front of the girl of my dreams, I knew why. No matter what Roxie and I’d had, it wouldn’t have worked out. Not because neither of us wanted it to but because we weren’t right for one another.
“She wasn’t the one,” I answered honestly. “It sounds rude but?—“
“It’s real,” she cut me off. I stepped closer to her, close enough that I could reach out for her if I wanted to, but for some stupid reason, I kept my hands in my pockets.
“And you?”
“I told you.” She looked at me from beneath her lashes.
“No one? Ever?”What the hell is wrong with the men in this mountain town?
“I mean, I’ve had guys ask me out but…” She shrugged. Her eyes dipped to the ground, and when they rose up to meet my gaze, my heart rate slowly started to pick up. “It never felt right if I didn’t feel…” Her voice drifted off, and before I could stop myself, I walked towards her. Abby’s back hit the wall as she stared up at me with those pretty, hazel eyes of hers.
“What didn’t it feel like, Abby?” I asked, encouraging her to keep talking, sharing.
“Home. You. I mean…” My hands came out of my pockets. One rested against the wall while the other brushed her soft jaw.
“You had it right that first time,” I growled, and fuck me, gods forgive me, but I kissed her right then and there.
