by C. A. Harms
“I’m not blind Anna, of course I find him attractive.” Throwing my hands up in the air in surrender I stared down my best friend. “Fine, since I’ve been back there hasn’t been anyone who has gained even a small fraction of my interest. I’ve found myself comparing every man to Wyatt, but it all goes back to the same place at the end of the day. What kind of idiot would I be to give in and settle for being his second choice?”
“I think that man realized one week into his first choice that she was the wrong choice.”
“Everyone keeps talking about that, but he stayed with her. For years, she was by his side, in his bed.”
“And about three other beds from what I’ve heard.”
I froze mid rant and waited for Anna to notice me staring at her. When she did, she shrugged. “It’s not my place to tell his story, I know this, but you’ve been going on and on about his character. Constantly going back to the girl he loved, the girl he’d spent years with but I think he stayed with her for all the wrong reasons. When he found her in bed with someone else, he booted her so fast I think everyone in town had their heads spinning. He was always holding back, he didn’t start really living until after she was gone.”
“How?”
“He bought land, planned out is house down to the last light fixture. He started helping people around town, volunteering wherever he could, interacting with everyone like they’d always been his family. It’s like Karlie had been holding him back and he was finally free.” Anna stood and walked around the bar getting right next to me. “Beau is his best friend and while you were gone, I can assure you I got to meet the real Wyatt. I got to know him, and the guy I know is kind and caring. He’d never leave a girl standing on her front porch waiting for him, that guy is gone. I can assure you he regrets what he did, more than he could ever express.”
It felt like a knot had formed in my chest.
“I love you Sadie, truly I do but you need to get over this. Don’t be the idiot that leaves him standing on his porch waiting for you. If you don’t grab onto him someone else is going to snatch him up and they are going to live the life you were meant to live. Then you’ll be the one with regrets.”
What was I doing?
This was a mistake!
I was just about to turn around and walk back to my house when I heard the rattle of the lock on the opposite side of the door.
Damn Anna and her lectures. Making me do things I wouldn’t normally do.
I stood outside Wyatt’s door, drumming my fingers nervously on a bowl of freshly made chili. I was offering some kind of a gesture in the form of food and already regretting my decision. He’d think I was a fool. I am a fool.
“There’s no way Gus did it this time, he’s been sleeping on his bed for the last hour.” Peeking through the small opening in the door, I see that he is using his leg to hold back the oversized dog.
“Haha, wise guy.” Being a smart ass was something Wyatt has definitely perfected.
That’s when he looked at my hands and saw the Rubbermaid container I was holding firmly. “I’ve never had a dog, or pet for that matter, and I may have overreacted a bit.” The words felt sour on my tongue, because I still believed his dog hated me. “This is my apology,” I said, and pushing the bowl out a little closer I waited for him to accept.
“Poisoned?”
“No but if you don’t stop hassling me you may be wearing it to bed.” He chuckled at my words and I internally lectured myself for managing to bite back so quickly. This man intrigued me and frustrated me more than any other person ever has before. I turn into a mess around him, unable to have any sense of control. “What I meant to say,” I took in a slow deep breath and released it equally slow, “was that I made a huge pot of chili. I took some over to my parents’ house so my father could eat good for the next few days. I also kept some for me, and you.”
Wyatt let go of the door, allowing Gus to sneak through and I found myself instantly holding my breath preparing to be trampled.
“You can exhale now.” I found him smirking at me, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning his shoulder to the wall at his side. “He’s not going to attack.”
Nope, he waits until you’re nowhere around before doing that.
This time I managed to keep my thoughts to myself.
“Have you eaten yet?” It took me a minute to realize he’d asked me a question. I was still so focused on the dog currently nudging my leg with his head that my attention span was slightly limited to only that.
“Oh, um, I have mine waiting for me at home, I just wanted to bring yours while it’s still hot.”
“Would you like to join me?” He’d yet to take the container. “Then I’ll know it’s safe to eat.”
“You honestly think I would poison you?”
“The way you’re looking at me right now doesn’t give me the warm and fuzzies.” I may have been offended had he not been wearing the charming grin of his. That grin alone had haunted my dreams lately. Mischievous, maybe a little devious too, but definitely charming and I felt it in every single fiber of my body every time he flashed it. “What do you say Sadie Rose Michaels?” I’m surprised when he said my middle name. “Would you like to come inside and have dinner with me?”
“How did you know my middle name?”
Moving out of the way, so he could open up the space even more for me to enter he ginned wider. But there was something in his eyes, something alluring that made my stomach grow tight and my throat feel dry. “I know more about you than you think.”
I wasn’t sure how I should feel about that.
“I promise Gus will be good.” Again he waited and I looked down at the bowl I was holding. I was a little hesitant but an even bigger part of me wanted to know more about this man. I wanted to know the now, the one standing in front of me looking all calm and collected. So that part won out and I stepped inside, my shoulder brushing against his chest as I passed.
Here’s to letting go of the past.
Chapter Fifteen
Wyatt
* * *
Sadie looked around the large open area as she stepped into the dining room, that connected to my kitchen. Vaulted ceilings, skylights above that allowed you to see the stars in the sky on a clear night. My home was exactly the way I’d always imagined it to be. Cooking in the kitchen, looking out and being able to see the entire living room, it was perfect. A massive island that separated the space between the two was its only break.
She scanned over the area, saying nothing but if the look in her eyes told me anything it was that she was impressed. I loved the idea of her liking my home.
“Here, let me take that.” I should have taken the food from her long ago, but I was too wrapped up in the banter we were exchanging. And now, seeing the aww in her eyes, that too was intriguing.
“Your house is beautiful.” I smiled though she wasn’t looking at me. She was still scanning over the entire area, her eyes shifting up and down in the process. I’m proud of my house, it may need a little touch of decor, a woman’s touch so to speak, but the structure and design was all me. It had been something I’d thought of for years prior to having the sketches draw up.
I’d taken all the things I loved about different homes and put them together. I knew I’d live here forever, there was nothing I didn’t have. Well, maybe there was one thing, but I hoped to change that.
“Thank you.” I sat the container down on the counter, grabbed a ladle and two bowls. Sadie eventually made her way to the table to join me just as I was placing a bag of shredded cheese and Fritos on the table.
“You put Fritos in your chili?” She seemed surprised.
“Oh yeah.” I’d ask if she did too, but I could tell by the way her face had lit up the answer was yes. “Chili Cheese Fritos to be exact.”
When her smile widened, I knew I’d scored points.
The conversation was a little short at first, and I could tell she was nervous. Hell, I was nervous but having her
here felt right.
“This is really good.” Offering her a compliment, I relished in the way her cheeks reddened.
“Thank you,” she said, seeming suddenly shy, the complete opposite of the sassy woman that stood outside my door the night it was pouring or even just a short time ago. Gus sat at her side, looking between both of us as if awaiting his own serving.
Finishing off my first bowl, I stood and grabbed a peanut butter bone from the pantry and tossed it toward Gus. Catching it in the air, he ran off straight for his bed and no longer cared about what we were having.
“Drink?”
Sadie lifted her gaze and I held up a beer or water. “A beer would be good.”
With one in each hand, I walked back to the table and joined her once more. “LA huh? What was that like?”
I followed her movements as she lifted the beer and took a drink. Her throat bobbing as she swallowed, before she lowered the bottle to the table and her eyes met mine.
“Complete opposite of here. It’s crowded, and the people so full of themselves they don’t have time to worry about what you’re doing.”
“Wow.” Small towns are full of busybodies.
“Exactly,” she said with a laugh and an exaggerated nod. “Who would have thought that was actually a thing, right? But I enjoyed the experience, it wasn’t all bad. I met a lot of interesting people, made some good friends.” She paused and looked around the space once more as if lost in thought. “But being home feels good too.”
The conversation flowed much better after that. We moved in the living room, getting more comfortable. With both of us sitting on the couch, our bodies turned facing once another. Laughing with her was a nice change, and the sound of her laughter made me want to do all I could to hear it, again and again.
“It’s late.” She looked down at her watch and then back up at me. “I should really be going.” Honestly, I was fine with her sitting her all night and talking to me. I think I could listen to her talk about anything and not get bored. Just the sound of her voice managed to soothe me in a way that I hadn’t felt before.
Sadie was always interesting, for different reasons between now and when we were in school. Her mind was intriguing, the way she looked at the world. She’d always been passionate about things other girls couldn’t care less about. It was how she and I first became friends, when she’d been assigned to tutor me. Yeah, I was the jock that thought that sports alone was all I needed to survive.
When she and I were together, I found her to be beyond interesting. She read so much, she was like a sponge that absorbed it all and could get so lost in conversations. Much like today, watching her become so invested in the stories she told, or the experiences she’d lived captured me. I didn’t want it to end, now that I had her here, I wasn’t ready for her to walk away. My fear was that tomorrow we’d be right back to square one and tonight would only be a fading memory.
But my hope was tonight was a new beginning for us. That we were paving a path that I know without a doubt good led to something amazing.
I walked through the doors of Pony Up, finally relaxing after a long day of manual labor. Finishing up another two jobs that have been lingering in the background felt good, my list was finally getting smaller.
I was ready to relax.
Beau held up his hand signaling he was near the bar and I moved across the room in his direction.
“Where have you been?” He passed a beer over his shoulder before reaching back to the bar to grab his own.
“Finishing up the Willis barn” That project had been a thorn in my side. I wasn’t sad to see it done. Mr. Willis was a stubborn man, when he should be tearing down the old barn and redoing it, he kept insisting on doing a little section at a time. I did all I could to save it, but I made sure to tell him my recommendations too. Those were dismissed fast and I drove away shaking my head.
Old timers, there was no reasoning with them.
“You should have called me, I would have helped ya wrap it up.” I’ll admit that I’m stubborn too, I like to work alone. It’s less of a chance that something fell through the cracks if I’m the one performing each task to ensure its done to my liking.
“Where’s everyone else?” I scanned over the area as I asked the question and immediately landed on Sadie.
Holy hell! My knees may have grown a little weak. Jeans, ass hugging jeans, tucked into a pair of boots, and that shirt. If I’d thought the one she wore the night she was locked out of her house showed off her form, it had nothing on the one she wore tonight. Red, snug and off the shoulder. Did I mention she looked hot?
“I heard you two shared a dinner the other night.”
I was invested on watching her move her hips as she danced next to Anna, Tate, Miley and a few others. Her back was to me, which gave me the perfect view of her ass and I’ll admit my own jeans were feeling a little tighter.
“Was it just dinner?”
“I’m sure Anna already filled you in.” The idea that Sadie told Anna at all meant she was talking about me, which I liked. “She brought me dinner, I invited her to join me. We ate, talked, and it was nice.”
“Nice,” he nodded his head and looked out toward the dance floor. “I heard it referred to as a night she didn’t want to end, but nice is good too.”
It was hard to know when Beau was attempting to get a rise out of me. I never knew when he was being honest. “She said that?”
“Apparently Anna and her had a heart to heart earlier and then she ended up on your doorstep. From what Anna said, Sadie was a little hesitant because she didn’t want to look like a fool if you ended up being the same guy you were back when.”
“So, she’s interested?”
“Would she have shown up on your door and took you up on the offer to stay if she wasn’t?”
We both stood rooted to the same place as his words rolled around in my mind. Then he clamp his hand on my shoulder gave it a little squeeze and nudged me forward. “What do you say we go out there on the dance floor and show our ladies how to move?”
Our ladies, I liked the sound of that.
Chapter Sixteen
Sadie
* * *
“What, I’m just saying that maybe you should have given him a little kiss goodbye.” Anna shrugged and wiggled her hips a little more to the music.
“You are seriously like a teenage boy going through puberty.”
“Nah, if I was I would have said, maybe you should have given him a hand job during dinner.” This time she wagged her eyebrows and spun in a circle. “Or maybe a little—”
“Okay, you’ve made your point.”
“Wyatt is a guy I would definitely give a little under the table action to if given the chance.” I gawked at Miley and she shrugged as if to say what. “I’m just saying, he is yummy.”
She swiveled around and joined Tate and the others only a few feet away.
Both Anna and I laugh. “Wow,” Anna whispered. Miley was always so quiet, but it would seem alcohol made her braver than a normal day. I was really starting to love that girl.
I’ll admit there was a time or two throughout my night at Wyatt’s that I’d found myself focusing a little too long on his lips. The way he’d formed his words, or that dimple in his left cheek when he’d smile at something I’d said. I’d been given a preview of the guy Anna had been telling me about and I liked the time we’d spent together.
He was a man, and in a way, he was still that same sweet boy I’d found so interesting back when, only a hundred times better. He’d lived, and learned.
“Don’t look now, but we are about to be invaded.”
I was just about to ask her what she was talking about when Beau slipped passed me and wrapped her in his arms. Immediately she melted into him and I’m left alone on the dance floor. That was until I felt the heat of someone pressing in behind me.
“I see you’ve found yourself a pair of jeans.” His breath tickled my neck and sent chills down my spine.
“And boots.”
I fought the urge to lean back toward him, unsure of how he’d react. The fact was since I left his house the other night, I’d been unable to get him out of my mind. It was a huge turn of events from the way I felt when I first ran into him. Or should I say when he ran into me.
“I went shopping,” shrugging I turned and look over my shoulder. He was close, his face hovering only a small fraction from mine. I noticed the way he looked toward my mouth, before meeting my eyes once more. Being so close gave me the perfect view of his eyes. They were brown, with little flecks of gold. “I figured it was time to fit in.”
“Sadie,” he did a little shake with his head and chuckled, “I don’t care what you do, how hard you try, you will always stand out in a crowd. It’s inevitable, you can’t change it, and you shouldn’t want to. It’s definitely not a bad thing, it’s not a bad thing at all.” My heart was racing and the two of us simply stared at one another.
I couldn’t remember a time in my life when I’d ever felt a rush like I did right then. Every nerve ending was alive. I was fully aware of every breath he and I took, the thump of the music around us. I felt everything.
“Do you mind if I join you?”
“You dance?” When he nodded his head, I began to swivel around to face him, and he stopped me by wrapping his arm around me from behind. Stepping up closer, with his chest pressed to my back he slowly began to move his hips.
And I was done.
A melted puddle of turned on female ready to attack him. There was nothing sexier than a man that knew how to move his hips.
“Is this okay?” Was he serious? I wanted to shout, hell fucking yes, it’s more than okay but I chose to nod instead. Chancing a look at Anna I found both her and Beau looking at us, but trying to be discreet. She flashed me a smile before moving on with her husband and I was thankful to have the time alone with Wyatt. Even though I knew without a doubt that most eyes were on us, I didn’t care. I wasn’t going to allow thing opportunity to pass me by.
