Love's Second Chance (Second Chances Series)

by L. P. Dover

  “Korinne?”

  I snapped to attention at Rebecca’s voice calling my name. “Honey, you need to stop that daydreaming and get on the road or you’ll be late.” Looking swiftly down at my watch, I saw that I was closing in on my appointment time with a new client.

  “Damnit! I better get going then.” Rebecca giggled and went back to her desk while I hastily gathered my things. Thinking about Galen was going to interfere with my work if I didn’t watch it. If he was there that week in the office I probably wouldn’t have gotten anything done. Packing up my things, I headed out on my way. The traffic wasn’t too bad, so the drive to my client’s house took less time than I expected. At least I arrived ten minutes ahead of schedule. The gated neighborhood was really nice and set around a golf course. My parents would’ve loved it there, since golf was their favorite thing to do. I tried to learn how, but I never got the hang of it. I pulled into the driveway and exited the car. Sometimes I never knew what to expect with my clients, but I saw that I was in for a surprise when the door opened and …

  “Kori?”

  Shocked into silence, I stared at what used to be one of my best friends in high school. Melissa was one of the sweetest and down to earth friends I had back then. She was still as beautiful as ever and looked exactly the same. Her red, wavy hair hung past her shoulders and her eyes were still the greenest I’d ever seen. We used to have some fun times together, but then we slowly drifted apart when we went to separate colleges. It was amazing how things like that changed.

  “Well, what do we have here?” I squealed excitedly. It was wonderful seeing her again. She squealed right along with me and we tackled each other in hugs.

  “Korinne, I had no clue it was you coming! I heard Korinne Anders was the best, but I didn’t know they were talking about you. Come on in!” She laughed while motioning me inside. Her house was amazingly built, and it looked like she had just moved in from how vacant the main room was. There did happen to be some lawn chairs scattered about inside, which I found kind of odd. Glancing around the room, I thought I could hide my skeptical look, but I don’t think I succeeded. Melissa burst out laughing so I turned to look at her, curious to know what she found funny.

  “You used to have that same look back in the day when you were thinking about something too hard,” she stated humorously.

  I shrugged, still looking at all the surroundings. “Well, I’m just a little surprised that you have this huge house and not much in it except those lawn chairs over there,” I pointed out and laughed.

  “See, that’s the thing. I used to have a lot in here, but after my cheating husband and I got divorced he took most of the things from inside. The house was left to me, but I deserved it anyway after what he did to me. I wanted him to take all of his shit from inside here.”

  “Wow,” I said, flabbergasted. “We have a lot to catch up on don’t we?”

  She sighed. “Yes, we do.”

  “Tell me what you want and I’ll see what I can come up with,” I said to her while pointing around the vacant room. Melissa took me through the house and gave me her ideas on what she would like and what I could do for her. After everything was completed, I honestly believed that it was going to be one of my favorite projects. Her ideas mixed with mine were going to make for a gorgeous house. I looked forward to spending more time with her.

  “Now that business is taken care of, how about a glass of tea?” Melissa offered.

  “Yes, thank you. That would be great.”

  Melissa fetched us our tea and motioned for me to follow her. We sat at the patio table on the back porch of her house while we soaked in the sun. The cool, spring breeze was the perfect weather for a break outdoors. That day had been perfect in general. I’d been reunited with one of my childhood friends and I was going to see the man I loved within just a few short hours.

  “How long have you been divorced?” I asked her.

  She furrowed her brows in concentration. “About a month now, I believe. He had the gall to cheat on me with our neighbor. Can you believe that?”

  My eyes went wide in surprise. “Wow! That is … something. What a douche bag.”

  Melissa took a sip of her tea and nodded. “Tell me about it. Well, after I caught him in bed with her it was game on.”

  “Did you know he was cheating?” I asked curiously.

  “I had my speculations, so one day I decided to come home early from work just to see if I could catch him, and what do you know … I did. Talk about perfect timing.”

  Melissa was a firecracker in school, so I could only imagine what she did when she found out. I moved closer to her, eager to hear the rest of the story. “What did you do when you found them?”

  Her lips quirked at the corner and I knew very well what that quirk meant. It was her devilish smirk, the smirk that said ‘I don’t take shit from anyone and you’re going to pay’ kind of smirk. “Well, I went around the side of the house and grabbed the water hose. Our room was just off to the side of the first level so it was easy to reach the distance once I was inside. It made me sick to hear their grunts and moans, but I busted down the door and sprayed them with ice cold water.”

  I placed a hand over my mouth to stifle the laugh that tried to escape. Melissa was laughing, but I could see the hurt that still lingered in her eyes. “I’m so sorry, Melissa. I know it’s not funny, but I can just imagine how terrifying you must have been. You have a temper just like me.”

  She gave a small laugh. “And that is why no one messed with us in high school. Once I hosed them down, the whore ran straight out of the house bare-ass naked. It was funny watching her run around shrieking. Her husband wasn’t too happy to see her running to their house with no clothes on though.”

  “Did they get divorced also?”

  “Of course they did. Her husband went hysterical and threw all of her stuff out in their front lawn. Needless to say, it was the most excitement this neighborhood had seen in a long time. All right, so enough about me and my disorganized life. Tell me about you and what you’ve been up to. Are you married? Divorced?”

  I took a sip of my tea before answering. Melissa smiled and waited patiently for me to speak. “I was married, but he died several months ago,” I told her.

  Melissa gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. “Oh Korinne, I’m so sorry. You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”

  I waved her off and grinned. “It’s okay. I like talking about Carson. It used to hurt talking about him, but now I couldn’t imagine not talking about him. I miss him so much, but he’ll always be in my heart.”

  “If you don’t mind my asking, what happened?”

  “He died in a car accident. He had worked a load of extra hours at the hospital with no sleep. It was something he liked to do and never minded it. Being a doctor was his passion. On his way home he fell asleep at the wheel and ran off into a ditch. He died that same morning.”

  Tears welled up in Melissa’s eyes as she reached for my hand. “If I would’ve known I would have made sure to be there for you.”

  I smiled. “Oh I know you would have, but after he died I moved to Charleston for a while to stay with my parents. I just moved back here a couple of months ago. Not being able to handle the loss, I ran away, but at last I’m finally coming to terms with it.”

  “Well, you look like you’re doing great. You work for an amazing firm and you have a wonderful and creative gift.” Before she had the chance to continue my phone buzzed with an incoming text. I looked down at the screen and my heart thrummed a million times over when I saw Galen’s name pop up. He was finally home!

  Galen: Pack a bag. You’re staying with me for the rest of the week.

  “Ah, I would know that kind of smile from anywhere. Do tell my friend,” Melissa teased. I quickly texted Galen back.

  Me: I’m so glad you’re back. I’ve missed you. I’ll see you in just a bit.

  The goofy grin on my face had Melissa giggling and shaking her he
ad. I couldn’t help but smile when I thought about Galen. “His name is Galen. He’s the owner of M&M.”

  “Oh wow! Dating the boss man, huh? How did that happen?”

  “I knew him in college. We dated for a while, but then I transferred to another school. I loved him then and I love him now. After Carson died I thought I would be too afraid to love again, but Galen is just … Galen. I couldn’t help but fall back in love with him. It’s scary to feel this way but I couldn’t ignore what my heart was telling me. He’s my second chance at a new life.”

  “I’m happy for you, Korinne. Maybe one day I’ll have a second chance at love. It’ll be difficult to trust someone, but I guess I need to believe there is someone out there for me.”

  Squeezing her hand lightly, I looked into her bright green eyes with warmth and understanding. I could see it in her gaze that she was lonely, but Melissa was strong and she would make it through this. “There is someone out there that will love you with all their heart and that will earn that trust you seek. Everyone deserves a second chance, and your time will come. I never thought I would get one, but I did, and he’s the most amazing man I know.”

  Melissa stood and took our glasses. “Thank you. I truly hope you’re right.”

  “I’m always right,” I teased. “You should know that.” We both laughed and said our good-byes. Happy and excited, I left Melissa’s house and headed home to pack a bag. I had a lot of time to make up for with Galen and it was going to start that night.

  “Why don’t you just move in with me?” Galen whispered in my ear. His arms felt warm and protective, wrapped tightly around my waist, holding me close, as we lay in bed. I pretended to still be asleep, but I couldn’t stop myself from smiling. Ever since he came home from his business trip, I’d been there every night. The week he wanted me to stay there turned into two weeks, then three, and now the whole month. The only times I’d been to my condo had been to grab more of my things and leave.

  He nudged me playfully in the side, but I ignored him, trying desperately not to laugh. “I know you’re not asleep, Kori. Why don’t you answer me?”

  I snickered into the pillow and turned my body so I could face him. “Because I like making you sweat.” I giggled.

  He smiled, but then his expression changed. “I’m serious,” he said while staring deeply into my eyes. His fiery blue gaze conveyed all of his emotions in that one stare. Love, passion, determination. “I want you with me, always. You can easily break the lease on your condo.”

  “What would you say if I said no?” I asked curiously.

  Shrugging his shoulder, he let out a sigh. “I guess I would have to respect your decision. Why, are you saying no?”

  I ignored the question and continued on. “What would you say if I said yes?”

  He narrowed his eyes at me and grinned, knowing full well what game I was playing. “Then I would have to say that you were the luckiest woman on earth,” he taunted playfully. He stifled a laugh when I hit him in the arm. “So are you saying yes?” he asked, sounding hopeful.

  “Of course I’m saying yes, goofball. I would love to move in with you, but I do disagree with you about one thing.”

  “What would that be might I ask?” he added.

  “I think it would make you the luckiest man on earth if I moved in here,” I countered back.

  “I believe you may be right,” he acknowledged. Galen took my lips and caressed them with his own, all loving and possessive … claiming.

  “You’re mine,” he said with complete conviction. The husky tone of his voice and the possessive look in his eyes said that he’d never let me go, even without him saying the words. I didn’t want him to. “You will always be mine.”

  “Yes, I will,” I promised whole-heartedly. The rays from the morning sun began to peep through the blinds making me squint from the brightness. It was going to be another beautiful spring day, so I asked, “What do you want to do today?”

  He smiled wickedly at me and confessed, “Well … I know it’s a Saturday, but we have to do some work today.” I began to groan, but he put a finger to my lips. “You didn’t let me finish. Anyway, I thought we could make the experience a little more enjoyable and discuss things over a picnic.”

  “That would be great! It’ll be like old times,” I squealed happily.

  “Yes, I know,” he agreed. “I wanted to bring back all those fun memories we had together.”

  “Do you remember the time you locked the keys in Big Blue and it started to rain?” I asked softly. That moment in time had been branded in my mind. Galen let out a breath and ran a finger down the side of my cheek.

  His warm breath tickled my face when he spoke. “How could I forget, love? That fateful day in the rain was the first time I told you I loved you,” he kissed me tenderly before continuing with his thought, “and then we made love in that rain.”

  With a twinkle in his eye, he pulled back to smile at me, and I could see that the playful Galen was back. “Maybe it’ll rain today. Wouldn’t it be fun to make love in the rain again?” He wiggled his eyebrows and hopped out of bed.

  “Where are you going?” I pouted, pursing my lips.

  “I need to make the picnic while you get ready. It takes you a lot longer to get dressed than it takes me.” Throwing a pillow at him, he ducked successfully and dodged it. “It’s the truth! Now hurry so we can go.”

  “Fine!” I gave in. Even though we had to work, it would still be fun having our picnic. Thirty minutes later I was dressed and ready to leave. Walking outside, I could see that Galen had already packed and loaded everything up into Big Blue.

  “Come on slow poke!” Galen called out. Rolling my eyes at him, I casually strode over to the truck. He opened the door for me and kissed my cheek before I got in. It was the little things like that, that got my heart racing.

  “So exactly where are we going for this picnic?”

  Galen smiled mischievously at me and winked. “It’s a surprise, but I have to warn you, it’s about an hour and forty-five minutes away from here.”

  I jerked my head around to look at him incredulously. “Wow! You know we could have just had a picnic in your back yard. You have an amazing setup out there with a great view of the lake.”

  Galen shrugged and started up the old truck. “I know, but you’ll understand why when we get there. You’re just going to have to trust me.”

  I was intrigued and unfortunately I had no clue what Galen had up his sleeve. Once we got on the road, I could tell from the direction we were going that we were probably headed for the mountains. Galen knew that anywhere in the mountains was my slice of heaven. There was just something about them that called to me and brought me peace. “Do you know where we’re going yet?” Galen inquired.

  I shook my head. “Maybe not the exact location, but it looks like we’re headed to the mountains. Am I right?”

  “You are, babe. We’re not that far away now, only about thirty miles.” At that moment, his phone buzzed in the center console. “Do you mind getting that for me?”

  I reached inside the console and pulled out his phone. “Who is Jacob Harrington?” I asked.

  Galen’s eyes went wide and he grabbed the phone from me. “He’s with the Denver deal. I assumed when I never heard back from them that they didn’t like what I had to offer.”

  The phone kept ringing and I stared at him wide-eyed, waiting on him to answer it. “Answer it, Galen,” I said impatiently.

  He finally answered it and I sat there frozen, watching every single change in his expressions. So far so good, I thought. When he hung up the phone his face was blank, so I had no clue if they wanted to use our company or not. “Well?” I asked.

  He looked over at me and the huge grin that formed on his face said it all. “They accepted!”

  I squealed and clapped with excitement. “What happens now?” I asked cheerfully.

  He shook his head. “Nothing much just yet, but with us expanding our business to the wes
t—”

  “Will get us more known around the United States instead of just on the east coast,” I finished for him.

  “Exactly,” he said, grinning widely. “This will be great for the company, and for our future.”

  Galen grabbed my hand and we enjoyed the rest of the ride in silence. We were both excited about the call, and I knew Galen was floating on air about it. I knew he was going to be dying to tell everyone as soon as he could. It wasn’t long before the thirty miles quickly passed us by and we reached our destination. We were in the middle of nowhere with nothing and no one for miles and miles away. The view was absolutely stunning, and I had to commend Galen for picking what had to be the best picnic spot ever.

  “We’re here!” Galen shouted. He smiled and patted my leg before exiting the car. I followed suit, but I felt a little wary being on that land. What if it belonged to someone and we got arrested for trespassing.

  “We’re not trespassing, are we?” I cringed while speaking the words. “I don’t want to go to jail you know.”

  Galen huffed and rolled his eyes. “Korinne, stop worrying. We’ll be fine I promise. Are you hungry?”

  “Starving,” I replied, rubbing my stomach. Galen began to pull everything out from the truck.

  “If you give me a few minutes I’ll have everything set up. If you walk a little ways down that path, you’ll get a view of the waterfalls.”

  “Really?” I shrieked excitedly.

  He laughed. “Yes, really, so go look at them while I get our food out.”

  “If I didn’t know any better I would say you were trying to get rid of me for a while.” I narrowed my eyes at him, but he smiled his boyish smile, letting that cute little dimple win me over.

  He waved me off, so in return I rolled my eyes at him and stomped along the path toward the falls. Something wasn’t right with him. He was acting too strange. The smile on his face was one of excitement, but also the same smile he’d give when he knew something I didn’t. He could be such a sneaky bastard sometimes, but I loved that about him. Walking down the path, I was surprised that I could already hear the vibrant sound of the waterfalls up ahead. How did Galen know about this land? It couldn’t have been easy to find.