Charmed by Chocolate (Love at the Chocolate Shop Book 6)

by Steena Holmes

  It was also the last time he’d spoken on the phone with Leah. But she’d said nothing…

  “Ahh, you do remember.” Dylan punched him in the arm, hard.

  “What was that for?” Wade rubbed his arm. For a desk jock, the guy could throw a good punch.

  “My sister told you she loved you, and you hung up the bloody phone. What do you think it was for?”

  No way. “I’m pretty sure I would know if Leah said the words I’ve been waiting years to hear.” He looked up at the house, hoping for a glance of her. What was Dylan talking about? She’d never said…

  Toward the end of the call, there’d been a lot he hadn’t heard.

  His gut twisted and his heart swelled like a rooster about to crow with the possibilities of all the things he hadn’t heard her say.

  “You heard me about the Betsy and her crew part, right?” Dylan nudged him with his foot.

  Wade tore his gaze from the Leah’s bedroom window. “What about Betsy?”

  Dylan chuckled. “Say the word love and you’re a lost cause, aren’t you? Betsy wants to come and do a feature on Leah and you—on the love you both share. Except Leah won’t do it because you turned her down.”

  “But I—”

  Dylan stopped him. “You didn’t turn her down. Yeah, yeah, I get it. Except she thinks you did and so she refuses to stay. But having that film crew could be good for Marietta. It could also work wonders for Leah getting back in everyone’s good graces once they find out what she said.”

  Wade let that sink in. Good for Marietta and for Leah, but only if she stayed in town.

  “And you want me to…what?”

  The man in question snorted like a pig waiting for its slop. “Do I really need to spell it out?”

  Wade looked back at the house. Her window had grown dark, but the light to the stairs was now on.

  No, he didn’t need it spelled out.

  “Why don’t you tell that sister of yours to come out here and tend to her snowmen? Someone’s been eating their noses.” A smile grew across Wade’s face. He dislodged the carrots from the snow, put one in his pocket, and took a bite out of the other.

  “Good chatting with you, man.” Dylan bounded up the stairs and opened the door, calling to Leah before closing it.

  Wade mulled over everything while he chewed on that carrot. He was leaning against his truck when Leah came outside, the scarf he’d knitted her wrapped around her neck.

  “Wade? Why are you here?” She slowly climbed down the stairs and made her way toward him. “Is that a…carrot?” she asked when he took another bite.

  He reached into his pocket and took out the other one, handing it to her. “Hungry?” He just wanted to see a smile on her face and ease the tension in her shoulders. She radiated stress, and he wanted that to change. Starting now.

  “You never did join me for our late-night owl watching session.” He thought that might bring a smile to her face, the memories of all those nights outdoors, binoculars in hand… Their best conversations were in the woods when it was just the two of them, the darkness, and only the animals to keep them company.

  But that smile never showed up.

  “Maybe next time,” she said softly. There was a sadness there he wanted to erase.

  Strike that. He was going to erase it.

  “We both know that if you leave tomorrow morning, the chances of there being another time are slim.”

  He caught the flash of honesty in her eyes before she looked away and stared off into the dark.

  She wasn’t going to deny it, and he appreciated that.

  “Are you here to say goodbye?” Her voice carried in the cool wind that blew. It was another sucker punch. He wasn’t sure how much more he could take tonight.

  “No. I’m here to talk you out of leaving. Your brother—”

  “No.”

  “Let me finish.” He didn’t move, didn’t raise his voice, didn’t do anything but smile.

  “I’m not staying,” she repeated.

  “Will you let me finish?”

  He waited, watched her look everywhere but at him until she finally stood beside him, leaned against the truck, and held out her hand.

  He handed her the carrot with a smile and took that as a yes, he could finish.

  “I think taking Betsy up on her suggestion is a smart move. Not just for you, but for Marietta. You could really do this town a favor by letting that camera crew come in and do whatever it is they do. So many businesses here could use the boost, and they’ve got to stay somewhere, right? From what I hear, the Bramble House is empty right now and, well, you know Josie would shine in the spotlight. Do you really want to take that from her?”

  “Bringing Grams into this is not playing fair.”

  Wade’s smile grew even wider, to the point where it started to hurt. “Darlin’, I think the time for playing fair is over, don’t you?”

  The look on her face was priceless. He wiped the smug smile off his face and tried to act serious when all he wanted to do was jump for joy.

  He’d honestly thought her saying she was already in love with someone on television was a ploy, that it was a way for her to get off the show. In fact, he’d even texted her that after finding out she went on it without realizing she didn’t have her phone. But if Dylan was being honest…he was the one she was in love with and that changed everything for him.

  “Wade, as much as I agree with you, my brother, and even Sage about how good this could be for Marietta, I can’t stay. You, of all people, should understand that.”

  She sounded distressed.

  If Wade was a gentleman, he would take away all his angst and save her the embarrassment…but he couldn’t.

  He’d made a promise to her that he wouldn’t share how he felt again until she did so first. And, despite being told she already had, he needed to hear it from her directly.

  So, the goal was to get her to admit it.

  “Refresh my mind, Leah. Why exactly can’t you stay?”

  She grunted with obvious frustration and stamped her boot on the ground. “Don’t do this,” she said between clenched teeth.

  It took all his strength not to smile.

  She looked so cute standing there, arms crossed over her chest as she stared at the ground.

  He gently placed his fingers beneath her chin and forced her to look at him. “You’ve been talking in circles since you’ve gotten here. How about you just tell me straight?”

  “I have not been talking in circles. You know exactly what I’m talking about, so you can wipe that smile off your face.” Leah’s lips pursed into a tiny white line. Uh-oh. The last thing he wanted to do was get her mad at him. “I don’t get why you think this is so funny,” she muttered.

  “What I find amusing is the way you’ve been avoiding me.”

  “I’m not avoiding you!” Her fist pounded against the side of his truck.

  “Easy there,” Wade said. “Abigail doesn’t like being mistreated.” He winked, hoping to ease the tension that was between them. It must have worked because he caught the way Leah glanced at him out of the corner of her eye.

  “It’s either her or you.” Leah looked straight ahead, but Wade caught the slight movement of her lips.

  She was trying not to smile.

  “There’s many things I love about you, Leah girl, but you hitting Abigail isn’t one of them. Next time, hit me. I’m a big boy, I can handle it.”

  She startled at his use of love. Good. He was going to say it more often too rather than work hard not to say it.

  It amazed him how easily it slid off his tongue. Like honey. Or, rather, like biting into a piece of Sage’s chocolate and having it melt into a gooey mess of goodness.

  Love. He loved her. There was something about her that made him feel alive—just her presence, the way she talked and was animated by life in general. The way she moved reminded him of a ballerina—both on and off the ice. He’d taken Josie and a few of her friends to the city
last year to watch the Nutcracker Ballet, and he’d been mesmerized by the grace of the dancers. Leah reminded him of them, the way she moved, how her head always tilted while she listened to someone talk, the rigid lines of her body, yet the gracefulness of her walk. She was such a tiny thing.

  “Yeah, well, there are many things I lo…like about you, too, but annoying me isn’t one of them.” She pushed herself away from the truck, stuck her hands in her jacket, and kicked her feet in the snow.

  He’d heard like, but he knew it was forced.

  She’d wanted to say love; he knew she did.

  “I’ll take annoyance over the way you’ve been with me lately.” Wade looked her solidly in the eye, not breaking contact with her, daring her to look away. “If I hadn’t been here waiting for you earlier today, you probably wouldn’t have come skating, would you have? You would have found some excuse to not see me at all and that hurts, Leah. It hurts deep.”

  “And that went so well, didn’t it.” She continued to hold his gaze. He could see a bit of fire in her eyes, and it was exactly what he wanted to see.

  Her leaving tomorrow equaled her running away, and running was something Leah never did. Ever.

  She was one of the strongest women he knew.

  “I think it went fine. Sure, you got some backlash over what’s being said about you, but you knew that was going to happen. Ethel stopped by Kindred House afterward to talk to Josie, did you know that?”

  Leah’s shoulders slumped. “What did she say?”

  “That she was sorry she’d been so hard on you earlier. She’d hoped you were there, to be honest. I think Josie thought you might as well. She’s missed you.”

  “Maybe I’ll bring Grams out to stay with me for a while after I’m home.” Leah let out a very long and weary sigh. Perhaps the thought of leaving hurt her as much as it did him.

  “Or you could just stay and make this your home.” He paused for a moment. “Like we’d talked about before.”

  She swallowed hard. “That was before. You know that.”

  “Before what?” He wanted her to say it, to say that she loved him. He needed to hear her say it.

  “Before I realized things couldn’t be the same between us. Okay?” She lifted her hands up in the air before dropping them to her side, hard. “Is that what you wanted me to say? To admit? That things can never go back to normal between us? This,” she motioned between them, “this isn’t working. Not anymore.”

  She went to walk away—to leave him again before he could say the one thing he knew she wanted to hear but was afraid he wouldn’t say.

  He reached for her arm and pulled her close to him. Not close enough that he could wrap his arms around her, but close enough that she could read the love in his eyes.

  He hoped.

  “Then let’s change it. Let’s make it work. Don’t run from that…from me,” he practically begged her.

  He wasn’t sure his heart could handle her leaving him. Not now. If she’d been strong enough to take a chance on him once before, hopefully she would again.

  She looked at him, searched his eyes for the message he hoped she received, and then slowly placed her hand on top of his.

  His chest swelled so hard he couldn’t breathe. It didn’t matter if she didn’t say it first. Not anymore. She’d rejected him once, and he’d survived. But he knew—he knew this time she wouldn’t.

  “Leah, I—”

  “No.” The word left her mouth and hung between them, its poison weaving a web between them, separating them and tearing his heart at the same time. “We’ve changed, Wade, and that’s okay. I’ve made my peace. I’m…” Her eyes clenched tight, and it looked like she fought with whatever she was about to say to him. “I’m sorry I used you like I did on the show. I took your advice and said I was in love with someone already, never realizing the damage it would do. Things have changed between us, and it’s because of me. It’s my fault. If I could take everything back,” her voice hitched, “I would. Trust me.”

  Wade couldn’t move. It was a miracle he even breathed. His heart dropped and shattered upon impact, the poison of her words completely destroying him.

  She’d said no.

  “That’s not…that’s not what I meant when I sent that text.” Of all the things he could have said, should have said…this was all that came out.

  “I’m sorry.” She stood on her tiptoes and very gently laid her lips upon his stubbled cheek.

  All he could think was that he should have shaved so he could feel her touch better.

  He stood there, unable to move, to blink, barely able to breathe, as she turned from him and walked away.

  He’d survived the last time she’d turned him down. Saying I love you and not having it said in return had been the worst thing that could ever happen to him.

  Or so he thought.

  But there’d been hope then. She at least remained in his life.

  He had a feeling after tonight, she wouldn’t be any longer.

  Chapter Fourteen

  The look in her brother’s eyes said it all.

  “You think I’m making a mistake.” Leah didn’t bother to frame it as a question; the disappointment on his face said it all.

  “Why are women so stubborn? I will never understand.” There was a tortured look on his face. “You say you want love, but when there’s a man in front of you with his heart in his hands, you walk away.”

  Was he talking about her and Wade or him and Casey?

  He must have read the confusion on her face because he grunted with annoyance before walking away.

  “Figures,” he muttered loud enough to be heard.

  “What do you mean by that?” She followed after him, not willing to let it go. If he was forcing his own issues onto her, that wasn’t fair. She knew he loved Casey and that it bothered him they weren’t together, but what happened between them wasn’t the same as what happened…

  Except it was, just in reverse.

  Dylan had told Casey he loved her. She said she wasn’t ready, that she wanted a bigger life than just the small-town one he could provide.

  Leah finally admitted her love to Wade and he turned her down, probably because she’d waited too long and he’d moved on.

  “He doesn’t love me anymore,” she said, talking to his back.

  “Did he say that?” Dylan confronted her, pain and anger in his gaze. “Did he come right out and say he wasn’t in love with you anymore—or are you projecting something you think you heard?”

  “Of course he…well, he said…” She searched her memory. Honestly, she couldn’t recall him saying that specifically. He’d just ignored what she had to say and hung up.

  “He didn’t, did he?” Dylan challenged her.

  Leah sat down on the nearest chair and rested her elbows on her knees.

  The weight of realization settled on her, like a warm blanket fresh from the dryer. She could feel it all over, inside and out, and that warmth spread like wildfire, blazing straight toward her heart.

  He hadn’t said he didn’t love her.

  He hadn’t said she’d waited too long.

  He hadn’t said that or anything else and yet…it was what she’d assumed.

  Assumed he didn’t love her. Assumed it was too late. Assumed so many things that possibly weren’t even true.

  For the first time since that dreaded phone call, she felt what it was like to hope. She’d felt the same moments before she had called him…excitement at what could happen, desire for what life could be like, and confidence that she was doing the right thing.

  “Why don’t you give him a chance?” Dylan set his hand on her shoulder and gave it a soft squeeze.

  She looked up and knew she was going to cry. “Do you think it’s too late?” There was still a sliver of fear that wanted to hold her back. What if Dylan was wrong?

  Her brother chuckled before placing a kiss on the top of her head.

  “Silly girl. Why don’t you go unpack while I
clean the kitchen, and then we can watch a movie together? Preferably nothing to do with love and everything to do with comic book heroes.” He held out his hand, pulling her up and giving her one of his awesome brotherly bear hugs.

  “Put the guy out of his misery while you’re at it, please. At the very least, tell him you’re staying.”

  While Dylan cleaned up the kitchen, Leah went upstairs, but not to unpack—considering she hadn’t started in the first place. Instead, she went to call Betsy. When she turned on her phone, there was a message from Wade instead.

  Don’t leave. What we had—what we have—is more than whatever is happening right now. I’ve never known you to run from something before—so why are you now?

  Why was she? Because she thought he didn’t love her and she couldn’t handle how much it hurt to be with him but not with him.

  But she wasn’t running. Not anymore.

  I’m not.

  She wanted to text more, but her phone rang. Betsy’s name came up on her screen.

  “Before you say anything, I really think you should say yes to my idea,” Betsy said the moment she answered the call. “I think that it’s exactly what you need. It could be really good for your town. You know your grandmother loves me, and I could bring some of her favorite chocolates and—”

  “Okay,” Leah interrupted her.

  “And I’d even bring some of the free gifts we have stashed in that closet, and hand them out to the ladies at Kindred Place and…” Betsy took a breath. “Okay? You said okay? Are you serious?”

  Leah laughed. “Yes, I’m serious. Come up and bring a crew, but I have a few conditions first.”

  If she was going to do this, it had to be on her terms.

  “Oh my God, yes! Name it and it’s yours.”

  Leah didn’t need to think too long on this. “You only get one day to film and it’s to be during the St. Paddy’s Day scavenger hunt. The focus will be on the town, not on me, and—”

  “Whoa, girl,” Betsy interrupted her. “It has to be on you. You and Wade. That’s why we’re coming—Lonely Leah Finds Love and all that. We can do it around your town to highlight the things you want noticed, but the focus has to be on you guys as a couple.”