This Time Forever: Second Chance Romance (Finding Forever Book 3)

by Rebecca Raine

  “I can’t blame you man,” Derek said as he followed the line of Jake’s gaze. “She’s a beautiful woman.”

  “Who’s a beautiful woman?” Julia asked as she and Trina joined them.

  Derek slid an arm around Julia’s waist and drew her in close by his side. “You are, of course.”

  Smiling, Julia raised up on her tiptoes for a kiss. “That’s what I like to hear.”

  Trina, meanwhile, focused narrowed eyes on Jake. “All right, mister. What’s going on with you and Kelly?”

  Jake raised his eyebrows. “What do you mean?”

  “Don’t play coy with me.” She pointed an accusing finger at him before leaning in and lowering her voice. “I know you and Kelly got all physical the other day.” She paused, as if giving him time to assimilate that information before she continued, “I’ve never known anyone who could work as fast as you.”

  “Hey, she came on to me,” he replied, holding up his hands in a defensive manner.

  “So she said.” She raised an eyebrow at him. “And I suppose you were completely innocent?”

  He remembered how he’d teased her about not being able to handle being around him. “I may have provoked her,” he held up two fingers to demonstrate, “a little bit.”

  “Oh, you are unbelievable,” she cried, slapping him on the arm.

  “Hang on a minute,” Derek managed to drag himself out of Julia’s eyes long enough to interrupt them. “Didn’t you two date for a while forever ago?”

  Jake didn’t meet the other man’s eyes. “Yeah, but only for a short time, about five weeks or so.” He took a swig of his beer and hoped that would be the end of it.

  “Dated, yeah right,” Trina scoffed, dashing those hopes with a swift verbal kick. “The two of you were attached at the hip from the day you met.” She turn to Derek. “You seriously don’t remember the saga of Jake and Kelly? I got all pissed off at Jake for being an arsehole and we didn’t talk for over a year?”

  Derek’s face screwed up as he appeared to delve back into the far corners of his memory. “I vaguely remember something about it. I didn’t know it had anything to do with Kelly, though.” He gave Trina a questioning look. “Why didn’t I know that?”

  “I’m pretty sure you weren’t paying attention at the time. You had your hands full dealing with your own romantic dramas.” Trina lifted her chin in Scott’s direction. They all saw the blond man sprawled in a chair at a corner table. He was occupied talking to Amber’s fiancé, Lincoln, and pretending that being in a loud, crowded bar wasn’t his least favourite thing to do on a Friday night.

  Julia made a feminine cooing noise that drew Jake’s attention back to the couple at his side. “Aw, you were all distracted by the hot builder and missed everything going on around you. That’s so sweet.” With a big smile she slid one hand around the back of Derek’s neck and drew him down for a tender kiss.

  Jake shook his head and took another swig of his beer. “Watching the three of you is confusing,” he announced when they came up for air. “It’s awesome the way you make it work, sure. But bloody confusing.”

  Derek just laughed and held up his own glass in salute. “It’s good for you. Keeps you on your toes.” The two of them left then to join Scott, who pulled a squealing Julia onto his lap the moment she got close enough.

  “You still haven’t answered my question.”

  Jake looked down to see Trina still staring at him. Her arms were crossed now, a sure sign he wasn’t going to fudge his way out of this conversation. “I want her back, Trina.”

  “I figured as much.”

  Jake raised his eyebrows in surprise. “You did?”

  “Come on, Jake. You could easily have stayed at my parents’ house for the night when you got back to town. There was no good reason to subject yourself to our lumpy excuse for a couch. Couple that with the fact you could barely take your eyes off Kelly the whole time you were there and, well, it doesn’t take a genius.”

  He cringed. “I was that obvious, huh?”

  “Please, sweetie, I almost puked in my breakfast cereal.”

  He snorted. “Well, subtlety never was my forte.”

  “Neither was sticking around.”

  Jake’s head snapped up, his previous humour forgotten. “I never meant to hurt her.”

  “Yeah, but meant to didn’t mean shit to Kelly after you left and it doesn’t mean shit to me now.” She took a long swallow of her drink before she added, “Blood may be thicker than water, but not by damned much.”

  “Fair enough.” Jake put his empty bottle onto a nearby table before crossing his arms. “I know I screwed up, but even if I had stayed ten years ago there’s no way it would have worked. You know it as well as I do.”

  “I know,” Trina nodded. She knew about the pressure he’d been under as a young teenager. The level of responsibility he’d been forced to shoulder. She also knew what his freedom had meant to him in those first few years after he’d left home. “I never blamed you for leaving, Jake. But the way you did it sucked.”

  “Yeah. No kidding.”

  She sighed, shrugging at him. “So why now?” she asked. “What’s different?”

  “Kelly’s single now,” he stated simply. “She was with Simon for a long time and I assumed she was happy with him. I never would have messed with that. I’m not that selfish.”

  Trina raised a sceptical eyebrow at him. “So, what, you sat around hoping they’d break up so you could swoop in?”

  “Yes, and I kept a shrine to her in the back of my closet.” He managed to keep a straight face as he said the words, but broke into laughter when he saw the appalled look on Trina’s face. “Of course not. When I first moved to Sydney I didn’t think I’d ever see Kelly again. I went on with my life, finished University, worked my arse off to get to where I am now. And while I didn’t go back to screwing around the way I had been, I was no monk either. I’ve been with some amazing women over the years but, in the end it never lasted.”

  Those words brought the frown back to Trina’s face. “Why?”

  “Because women don’t want to be in a relationship with a man whose thoughts keep straying back to his ex-girlfriend.” He glanced up at Trina then, but she didn’t say anything, just stared at him in a baffled sort of disbelief. “I know how ridiculous it sounds, but when you told me Kelly and Simon had broken up, it was like the universe was giving me another chance to get it right. Like everything I’ve ever done in my life was leading me right back here—to her.”

  “Holy hell, Jake,” Trina said with a dramatic sigh. “That is a lot to take in. Does she have any clue you feel this way?”

  “Not yet, she doesn’t.” The possibility Trina might spill the beans hadn’t occurred to him until now, but after the blood versus water comment he suddenly wasn’t so sure she’d keep his secret. “Are you going to tell her?”

  It took her a long time to answer, but then, “No, I won’t say a word. But don’t take too long to out yourself or I might change my mind.”

  He made a sign of the cross over his heart. “I promise.”

  “Here I was worried about Kelly getting hurt again. Now I have to worry about you instead.” Trina shook her head as she stared morosely into her glass. “Karma’s a bitch.”

  “Can be,” Jake agreed. “But I’m going to win her back, Trina. As it turns out, there’s no other choice for me.”

  “I see you’re as humble as ever,” Trina said, shaking her head at him. “She’s a grown woman now, Jake. She won’t fall into your waiting arms, thanking her lucky stars.”

  “I seem to remember her being in my arms a few days ago,” he reminded her.

  Trina took a fortifying breath. “As far as Kelly is concerned the two of you had a good time, nothing more,” she blurted, cringing. “I’m sorry but, she told me so herself.”

  “And you believe her?” He raised a sceptical eyebrow.

  “Yes, I believe her,” she groaned, thrusting her hands out. A moment later s
he heaved a dramatic groan and rolled her eyes at him. “Mostly.”

  He grinned. “Exactly.”

  They stood in silence for a few minutes, simply enjoying each other’s company. He could occasionally see Kelly through the crowd. She sat at a table on the other side of the room now, talking and laughing with his friends, all of whom seemed eager to win a smile. He knew she did it to drive him crazy.

  It worked.

  Trina’s concern was written all over her face as she watched him. “Do you really believe you have a chance?”

  Just then, Kelly’s eyes flickered in his direction, only to dart away again when she saw him watching her. One slender arm rose to fiddle with her hair before her hand slid back down along her bare shoulder in a sensual caress. Jake smiled, slow and wide. She might want to appear indifferent to him, but she wasn’t. That was all he needed to know.

  “Yes, I do,” he replied, wrapping one arm around Trina’s shoulders. “It’s good to be home and see everyone again. It’s been a long time.”

  “Too long,” Trina replied with a nod. “I want you to be happy, Jake. I do. But I’ve hardly seen you in the past ten years.” She shrugged her shoulders, seeming embarrassed by her admission. “I missed having you around.”

  “I missed you, too.” Jake buzzed her temple with a kiss. He looked over at the table where Kelly had been sitting to see her chair empty. A quick scan of the room showed her heading toward the bar. “And now, I’m going to go further my quest to win the heart of the fair maiden.”

  “You’re full of shit, Jake.”

  “Yep,” he said, before starting to head in Kelly’s direction. “Wish me luck.”

  Kelly had only just reached the bar when Jake approached her from behind. The bartenders were still serving customers at the far end, so it was quieter down here.

  He leaned in to murmur in her ear, somehow managing to keep his hands to himself. “It’s not going to work, you know.”

  She started at the sound of his voice, then turned around to face him. They were only a few centimetres apart, but she didn’t move away. Instead, she leaned back to rest her elbows on the hard, wooden surface of the bar, and bent one leg, propping the heel of her boot on the foot rail. Finally, she added a lazy smile and tilted her head slightly to the left, as if she was puzzled as to what he was talking about. The meticulous show of nonchalance had just enough blatant sexuality to make his body tighten in all the right places.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Jake.”

  “Sure you do,” he replied with a slight lift of his chin. “You come here dressed like an invitation to some teenager’s wet dream. Then you spend the entire night flirting with every unattached male here while pointedly ignoring me.”

  “I’m allowed to flirt with whomever I like,” she pointed out, wagging a finger at him. “I didn’t occur to me you would feel left out.”

  He placed an arm on either side of her to trap her against the bar. The mixture of lust and devilry in her eyes made him burn. “You’re trying to make me jealous.”

  She laughed, as if delighted by his conclusion. “Is that what I’m doing?”

  He nodded.

  “How predictable you would try to make my behaviour all about you. Maybe I’m having a good time, nothing more.” She placed her hands on his shoulders and he had to fight not to press his body against hers. “Maybe,” she said, leaning close enough he could feel the warmth of her breath against his ear, “you should get over yourself.”

  The smugness of her grin, as she pulled away again, told him how much she relished her role as temptress. Seeing her enjoy herself so much almost made the frustration worthwhile. Still, after the torment she’d put him through tonight, he couldn’t resist turning the tables on her.

  “There’s only one problem with your theory,” he pointed out.

  “And I suppose you’re going to tell me what it is?”

  “Of course.” Now it was his turn to make her squirm. One hand dropped to her waist, drawing her closer, so their lips were almost touching. “You keep looking at me, Kelly. All those sidelong glances to make sure I’m still watching, that I have eyes only for you.” He made a tutting sound to let her know she’d made a big mistake. “Your eyes gave the game away, gorgeous.”

  Those same big, green eyes widened before she lowered the mask of indifference back into place. “I couldn’t care less who you look at. You’re imagining things, Jake.”

  His gaze wandered down her body. “Oh, I’m imagining all sorts of things I assure you.” With a tug on her hand, he led her away from the bar and onto the nearby dance floor. “Starting with this.” He slid his arms around her waist, holding her close.

  One hand began to stroke the length of her back, following the gentle lines of her body from her waist up to the nape of her neck. She sighed and relaxed into his arms.

  “It’s a good thing you didn’t let anyone else hold you like this,” he murmured. “I may have had to resort to violence. Tearing arms off, that sort of thing.”

  She snorted. “How barbaric. I thought you said I didn’t succeed in making you jealous.”

  “I thought you said you weren’t trying to make me jealous,” he replied with a raised eyebrow.

  “I wasn’t. I’m merely pointing out you said you weren’t and—”

  He kissed her. He couldn’t help it. She was so adorable when she babbled. For a moment she stiffened in surprise, then her body melted against him like warm honey and she opened her mouth to deepen the kiss.

  By the time they parted, her eyes were heavy-lidded with desire. “Were you saying something?”

  He chuckled. “Come home with me tonight.”

  She hummed in pleasure, her expression the very picture of contemplation, as if she was busy weighing the available options. “It could happen, if you give me a good enough reason why I should.”

  Leaning his forehead against hers, he held her tighter. “So I can worship your naked body till dawn. Is that good enough for you?”

  “Oh, now it’s certainly a proposal worth considering.” He saw her swallow, noticed her breathing had picked up a notch. “Are you sure you’re not doing this just to find out what my wayward finger will do?”

  “The idea has kept me up at night—in more ways than one.”

  “Well then, maybe we should see what we can do to alleviate your curiosity. In the interests of you getting your beauty sleep.” She began to scrutinise his face, as if searching for something. “We wouldn’t want you to lose your good looks now, would we?”

  Jake threw back his head and laughed. “We wouldn’t want that.”

  Chapter 12

  When Jake had first suggested a picnic to Kelly, she’d been reluctant. “The location of this tryst sounds a little… problematic,” had been her first response. They’d been sleeping together on a regular basis for nearly a month now and, despite his best efforts, they only saw each other when sex was involved, so he couldn’t blame her for assuming the outing was supposed to include sex. Still, he was determined to move this relationship closer to what Kelly referred to as ‘date-mode’ if he had to lie through his teeth to do it.

  “Here’s the thing,” he’d told her, drawing her into the circle of his arms. “I had this wickedly erotic fantasy about you.” He’d dropped a light, lingering kiss on the corner of her mouth. “It involved sunlight on your bare skin.” Removing the clip that held her hair back, he’d spread the length of it around her shoulders before running his fingers through the strands. “The breeze teasing your hair.” Leaning in, he breathed the next words right into her ear. “All the while you were riding me like we were the only two people in existence.”

  She’d grinned as she pulled away. “You do like to flatter yourself.”

  “Hey, it’s my fantasy,” he’d said with a shrug. “I happen to know of a secluded little spot in a park about an hour from here. Not many people go there. We can have lunch, feed the ducks,” he’d given her a wink, “whatever co
mes up.”

  Glancing down, she’d laughed. “Oh, I think something may already be coming up.” Returning his wink, she’d begun to back toward her room. “Give me ten minutes.”

  Thinking about it again now, as he lay back on the grass staring up into the clear blue sky, he couldn’t help but give himself a pat on the back for that little manoeuvre. He sat up to drain the last of his orange juice from a plastic picnic cup and dropped it onto the grass beside him. Now all he had to do was convince Kelly they belonged together and everything would be perfect—just like he’d imagined.

  He gazed out over the large man-made lake, enjoying the warmth of the late afternoon. It had been over a decade since he’d been to this particular park, but he loved the familiarity that came with visiting places he’d played in as a child with his brothers and cousins. Denying the passage of time, the lake still teemed with the same life he’d seen in it all those years ago. Turtles could be seen sunning themselves at the lake’s edge and the local kookaburras laughed overhead. All in all, the area still provided a relaxing place to spend an afternoon and he was glad he’d thought of it.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever been to this part of the park before,” Kelly remarked. “I’ve been to the restaurant on the other side of the lake, but I don’t think I’ve ever been in this area.” She paused to munch on a strawberry. “Apparently neither has anyone else, considering we haven’t seen a single person in the past hour.”

  “I told you it’s secluded.” The small glassy clearing was surrounded by trees and low shrubs, providing a relatively private piece of paradise. “You do get people coming along here, but not many and generally not at this time of day.”

  She eyed him suspiciously. “You make it sound like you’ve done this before.”

  “Not this exactly,” he told her, gesturing between them. “When I was a kid I used to come out here with my family sometimes when Mum wasn’t working. It didn’t happen often but, I remember having a good time running around out here.”

  “Sounds like fun.” Kelly lay on her front beside him, propped up on her elbows so she could pick chunks of fruit from the bowl in front of her. The position gave him a mouth-watering view of her cleavage.