road. Thoughts of her
life on the road left her deflated. What to tell Ryan?
“California was definitely not as perfect as
I always thought it would be.” Her admittance brought Ian’s scowl
to the forefront of her mind. Yeah, spending four long months
living with an abusive asshole and then another six months getting
away from him had been about as far from her idea of perfect as she
could get.
But truthfully, even Cali without Ian just
wasn’t what she was looking for. She’d floated from a myriad of
waitressing jobs all over the country that inevitably landed her in
the kitchen. She was a great cook, but she had no credentials, and
therefore no one wanted to pay her a chef’s salary, and no one tips
a great cook. She’d been a barista for a few months back in Denver
and then again in Dallas. Now she could prepare just about any meal
and a freaking awesome latte, but nothing settled her soul. Nothing
until she’d finally forced herself to drive the long roads back to
Gypsy Beach.
“I’m really sorry, Sienna.” The sexy rumble
of his voice shook her from her distraction. The weight of his tone
and his words seemed to say he was sorry for California and
everything else.
“Yeah, but I’m here now, so I guess it all
worked out.”
She was astounding. Always so optimistic.
Ryan wanted so badly to believe that this would all work out, that
his life would somehow pan out to be something he actually wanted
to live, but he just wasn’t certain that he could.
“Well, what about you? I kind of always
imagined that you finished college.”
Her question chaffed at his resolve. He
didn’t want to tell her what a complete and utter failure he’d
become, but the thought that she’d at least thought about him,
imagined him, settled the chaos that continued a contentious
argument between his heart and his mind.
He sighed. Clearly, she’d hated college too.
Maybe she wouldn’t think him too big a loser. “Yeah, well, I went.
My parents didn’t give me any other option. I hated it.” His eyes
begged her to believe that she was the reason he’d collapsed. When
he’d given her up, his entire world had disintegrated into the
hellish abyss he was currently living. And something about staring
into those beautiful hazel eyes made him feel hope, as stupid as
that was.
“I dropped out my senior year.” He ended his
explanation there. No sense in rehashing every single failure of
his life in one meal’s time.
Her bottom lip slipped through her teeth, and
he almost groaned aloud. That beautiful heart shaped mouth of hers
always did him in. Able to beckon him with one quick, mischievous
smirk, and the taste, like the sweetest candy-coated sin he could
ever hope to have. He swallowed down another bite of the pasta and
sauce. It was delicious, but it wasn’t at all what he was
craving.
“Well, you seemed like you really liked
working on the porches today. It made you happy, so it’s good
you’re getting to do what you love. I think it’s a blessing to be
able to do something that makes you smile every day. Don’t
you?”
“I’ve been here like six hours, and you
already figured all of that out?” Astonished yet again, it appeared
that their years apart had done nothing to keep her from being able
to all but read his mind. How did she do that? And why did he long
for her abilities to cut through all of his animosity and anger to
access the very core of who he was almost as much as he longed to
hold her in his arms? Her ability to figure him out with ease
should have irked him. It should have driven him crazy, but the
acceptance in the information she read from his unspoken words
always stirred his soul.
A broad, beaming grin seemed to light the
entire table. The moonlight night was nothing compared to her
smiling at him like that. “Your vibes were happy when you were
working.” Her head tilted downward as if she shouldn’t have said
that. “Kind of like they are now.” The next statement was
life on the road left her deflated. What to tell Ryan?
“California was definitely not as perfect as
I always thought it would be.” Her admittance brought Ian’s scowl
to the forefront of her mind. Yeah, spending four long months
living with an abusive asshole and then another six months getting
away from him had been about as far from her idea of perfect as she
could get.
But truthfully, even Cali without Ian just
wasn’t what she was looking for. She’d floated from a myriad of
waitressing jobs all over the country that inevitably landed her in
the kitchen. She was a great cook, but she had no credentials, and
therefore no one wanted to pay her a chef’s salary, and no one tips
a great cook. She’d been a barista for a few months back in Denver
and then again in Dallas. Now she could prepare just about any meal
and a freaking awesome latte, but nothing settled her soul. Nothing
until she’d finally forced herself to drive the long roads back to
Gypsy Beach.
“I’m really sorry, Sienna.” The sexy rumble
of his voice shook her from her distraction. The weight of his tone
and his words seemed to say he was sorry for California and
everything else.
“Yeah, but I’m here now, so I guess it all
worked out.”
She was astounding. Always so optimistic.
Ryan wanted so badly to believe that this would all work out, that
his life would somehow pan out to be something he actually wanted
to live, but he just wasn’t certain that he could.
“Well, what about you? I kind of always
imagined that you finished college.”
Her question chaffed at his resolve. He
didn’t want to tell her what a complete and utter failure he’d
become, but the thought that she’d at least thought about him,
imagined him, settled the chaos that continued a contentious
argument between his heart and his mind.
He sighed. Clearly, she’d hated college too.
Maybe she wouldn’t think him too big a loser. “Yeah, well, I went.
My parents didn’t give me any other option. I hated it.” His eyes
begged her to believe that she was the reason he’d collapsed. When
he’d given her up, his entire world had disintegrated into the
hellish abyss he was currently living. And something about staring
into those beautiful hazel eyes made him feel hope, as stupid as
that was.
“I dropped out my senior year.” He ended his
explanation there. No sense in rehashing every single failure of
his life in one meal’s time.
Her bottom lip slipped through her teeth, and
he almost groaned aloud. That beautiful heart shaped mouth of hers
always did him in. Able to beckon him with one quick, mischievous
smirk, and the taste, like the sweetest candy-coated sin he could
ever hope to have. He swallowed down another bite of the pasta and
sauce. It was delicious, but it wasn’t at all what he was
craving.
“Well, you seemed like you really liked
working on the porches today. It made you happy, so it’s good
you’re getting to do what you love. I think it’s a blessing to be
able to do something that makes you smile every day. Don’t
you?”
“I’ve been here like six hours, and you
already figured all of that out?” Astonished yet again, it appeared
that their years apart had done nothing to keep her from being able
to all but read his mind. How did she do that? And why did he long
for her abilities to cut through all of his animosity and anger to
access the very core of who he was almost as much as he longed to
hold her in his arms? Her ability to figure him out with ease
should have irked him. It should have driven him crazy, but the
acceptance in the information she read from his unspoken words
always stirred his soul.
A broad, beaming grin seemed to light the
entire table. The moonlight night was nothing compared to her
smiling at him like that. “Your vibes were happy when you were
working.” Her head tilted downward as if she shouldn’t have said
that. “Kind of like they are now.” The next statement was
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