The January Cove Series: Books 1-5
Page 60
“Up here!” the voice said.
Ronni.
Sitting in a tree.
Sitting in THEIR tree.
“Ronni?” he breathed out, both excited and relieved to see her and confused at her being in a tree. In January Cove. And not in California.
“Hey, Brad,” she said with a big grin on her face. “Wanna help me down from here?”
“Last time I tried that, you got hurt.”
“Well, in fairness, I did jump.”
He walked to the bottom of the tree and reached up as she gingerly slid down into his arms. His waiting, aching, lonely arms.
She felt perfect in his arms. She fit against him like she was made for him, and he didn’t even realize how much he missed her until he could feel her heart beating against his chest again.
For a moment, he just held her, smelling her hair and feeling the warmth of her against him. Realizing she was probably just there for the grand opening, he let her go and stepped back.
“How are you?” he said.
“Good. How are you?”
He wanted to say “good” but he didn’t want to lie.
“Horrible.”
“What’s wrong?” she asked, stepping forward to close the gap between them.
“Well, you see, there was this woman. This amazing, beautiful, smart, funny woman. She was totally perfect for me. We had an argument, but we made up. But then she chose a different life that didn’t have me in it. And I miss her. And I love her.”
There it was. The most vulnerable moment in his life.
“Wow. That’s a sad story. How does it end?”
“She left.”
“That’s not how I heard the ending of that story. I heard that she went home, figured out that it wasn’t her home anymore because he wasn’t there, packed her stuff, loaded up her dog and all of her worldly possessions and drove all the way to January Cove to her new rental apartment above a place called Jolt.”
Brad’s heart literally skipped a beat. His eyes met hers, and she was smiling. She looked happy and relaxed and at home.
“What?”
Ronni stepped forward, careful not to trip on the rocks and ruin the moment, and put her hands on his upper arms.
“Brad Parker, I love you. I tried to go back to my life, but it wasn’t my life anymore. I just had to make sure. So, I talked to my boss and he agreed to relocate me here. I’ll be running day-to-day operations of the Lamont and overseeing new tourist attractions along the coast.”
“Are you serious?” he said, struggling not to cry. He was a man’s man, after all.
“Totally serious. So, I’m here for good. I’d love to be your girlfriend… if you’ll have me,” she said softly.
“I’d have you right here if I didn’t know Clay was standing right over there!” he called out.
“Gross,” Clay called back. “I’ll come back later!”
“Way later,” Brad called before he turned his attention and his lips to the love of his life.
***
Ready to read the next book in the January Cove series? SECRETS AND SOULMATES is book 6, and you can start reading it right now! Want a little taste of it first? Here you go….
She stood in front of the house, her insides trembling. This was it. This was the moment she’d been waiting for. Everything about her life was about to change, and she was going to be with the man she loved more than anything.
They would finally be together after over a year of texting and occasionally talking on the phone. No more staring at his picture every night on her computer screen before she fell asleep, wishing and hoping he could be there holding her as she drifted off to sleep. No more wondering what it would be like to hold his hand or have him give her a great big bear hug after a long, hard day.
Everyone had made fun of her. Everyone had questioned her. But they were all wrong; they had to be. Never had she gambled so much in her life by taking everything she owned across the country to a tiny little beach town for one reason only – love.
She felt paralyzed in place, like her feet were stuck in two large blocks of cement instead of placed on the top of a non-sticky sidewalk. She couldn’t seem to get herself to move forward, to finally knock on the door and end all the suspense.
He had no idea she was coming. No idea that they were about to be together. He’d be so happy, so relieved that she was finally there in front of him. He’d said it so many times before, that he couldn’t wait to meet her, to see her, to touch her.
Yes, she was finally going to have the last laugh with her friends and family. They’d see they were all wrong, and that her romantic notions for this man who lived thousands of miles away were so much more than anyone could’ve imagined.
They’d have this amazing love story, something they could tell their kids and their grandkids. The kind of love that people write books about. It was just on the other side of that door, she thought, as she reached her hand toward the big brass knocker shaped like a seashell.
And it was just like every other amazing love story. Except for one thing - she’d never met him in real life. She had never seen him even on Skype or video chat. And right now, she prayed to God that he wasn’t just some figment of her imagination.
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THE END!
Copyright © 2015 by Rachel Hanna
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