them.
Wade didn’t believe a word he told himself. The winding road led up a steep hill completely covered in trees. Gravel crunched beneath his tires and he began to wonder if he had misread the directions. Surely she wouldn’t be living this far from…
The trees suddenly opened up to reveal a large cabin-style house constructed of wooden beams and glass.
He didn’t have to wonder whether he had the right place because he recognized the gleaming black Ford Explorer parked in the semicircle drive.
The front of the house seemed to consist of little more than windows. And damn, what a view. It was practically perched on the face of the hillside, overlooking a deep valley that was bisected by a wide, lazy creek. Rolling waves of impossibly green grass surrounded him, marked here and there with the chaotic colors of wildflowers.
The glass shimmered under the sun, sparkling bright. The porch spanned the entire width of the house, a comfy swing at one end. The treated wood gleamed a soft, mellow golden brown. Birds sang and called from tall, graceful oaks. Toward the back, he caught a glimpse of sun reflecting off water. A pond.
No Longer Mine
This was very different from the cramped, dirty three-bedroom apartment she had grown up in. It was actually about as far away from it as she could get…and he figured that right there would explain why in the world she’d chosen to move here of all places.
She’d wanted to get away from that place, that trapped, confined little hellhole where rarely a night passed without hearing sirens wailing, where the walls were stained with water, mold and smoke, and where the only scenic view she’d ever been able to find had come from within the pages of the books she read, or the stories she’d created for herself.
“Looks like you managed to do just that, Nik,” he said softly, pride moving through him. Pride…and regret. He wished he could have been there with her as she made this walk.
Gravel crunched under his shoes as he headed for the front door. He mounted the steps slowly, studying the fine construction. This place must have cost a fortune. Intricately carved oak and beveled panes of glass made up the front door. That alone probably cost more than he made in a month.
Who would want to live alone in a house like this? Surely it was too big for just one person. If ever there had been a place built for raising a family, this was it. Married. She had to be married.
Five years had passed, certainly long enough for her to have found somebody and fallen in love.
No , Wade thought, his gut wrenching. Damn it, he didn’t know if he could stomach the idea of her belonging to somebody else, even though rightfully he had no hold over her. He’d lost that right years ago, shattered it straight to hell.
But what if some guy answered the door? Or worse, a child?
Gritting his teeth, he raised a clenched fist to pound on the door. Tucking his hands in his pockets, he half-turned away to wait. And pray it would be Nicole answering the door.
“Damn it, I’m not yelling!” Nikki yelled at the phone. “And don’t tell me to calm down.” Fortunately, it was on speaker and she was standing by the window.
So her editor and one of her best friends wouldn’t likely be nursing a busted ear drum.
Kris sighed and said, “Nikki, sweetheart, I know this pisses you off. Trust me, it makes me mad too.
But we can’t do anything more than what we’re doing.”
“Don’t give me that. It’s not fricking enough. Why in the hell do people have this sense that they are entitled to just take whatever they want? Shit, you got any idea how hard I had to work just to be able to buy a couple of books a month when I was in high school? And most of those were used . But damn it, I paid for them. I didn’t steal them.” She drove a hand through her hair, glaring at the computer. She should be working—she needed to be working, but she couldn’t damn well concentrate after seeing that
Wade didn’t believe a word he told himself. The winding road led up a steep hill completely covered in trees. Gravel crunched beneath his tires and he began to wonder if he had misread the directions. Surely she wouldn’t be living this far from…
The trees suddenly opened up to reveal a large cabin-style house constructed of wooden beams and glass.
He didn’t have to wonder whether he had the right place because he recognized the gleaming black Ford Explorer parked in the semicircle drive.
The front of the house seemed to consist of little more than windows. And damn, what a view. It was practically perched on the face of the hillside, overlooking a deep valley that was bisected by a wide, lazy creek. Rolling waves of impossibly green grass surrounded him, marked here and there with the chaotic colors of wildflowers.
The glass shimmered under the sun, sparkling bright. The porch spanned the entire width of the house, a comfy swing at one end. The treated wood gleamed a soft, mellow golden brown. Birds sang and called from tall, graceful oaks. Toward the back, he caught a glimpse of sun reflecting off water. A pond.
No Longer Mine
This was very different from the cramped, dirty three-bedroom apartment she had grown up in. It was actually about as far away from it as she could get…and he figured that right there would explain why in the world she’d chosen to move here of all places.
She’d wanted to get away from that place, that trapped, confined little hellhole where rarely a night passed without hearing sirens wailing, where the walls were stained with water, mold and smoke, and where the only scenic view she’d ever been able to find had come from within the pages of the books she read, or the stories she’d created for herself.
“Looks like you managed to do just that, Nik,” he said softly, pride moving through him. Pride…and regret. He wished he could have been there with her as she made this walk.
Gravel crunched under his shoes as he headed for the front door. He mounted the steps slowly, studying the fine construction. This place must have cost a fortune. Intricately carved oak and beveled panes of glass made up the front door. That alone probably cost more than he made in a month.
Who would want to live alone in a house like this? Surely it was too big for just one person. If ever there had been a place built for raising a family, this was it. Married. She had to be married.
Five years had passed, certainly long enough for her to have found somebody and fallen in love.
No , Wade thought, his gut wrenching. Damn it, he didn’t know if he could stomach the idea of her belonging to somebody else, even though rightfully he had no hold over her. He’d lost that right years ago, shattered it straight to hell.
But what if some guy answered the door? Or worse, a child?
Gritting his teeth, he raised a clenched fist to pound on the door. Tucking his hands in his pockets, he half-turned away to wait. And pray it would be Nicole answering the door.
“Damn it, I’m not yelling!” Nikki yelled at the phone. “And don’t tell me to calm down.” Fortunately, it was on speaker and she was standing by the window.
So her editor and one of her best friends wouldn’t likely be nursing a busted ear drum.
Kris sighed and said, “Nikki, sweetheart, I know this pisses you off. Trust me, it makes me mad too.
But we can’t do anything more than what we’re doing.”
“Don’t give me that. It’s not fricking enough. Why in the hell do people have this sense that they are entitled to just take whatever they want? Shit, you got any idea how hard I had to work just to be able to buy a couple of books a month when I was in high school? And most of those were used . But damn it, I paid for them. I didn’t steal them.” She drove a hand through her hair, glaring at the computer. She should be working—she needed to be working, but she couldn’t damn well concentrate after seeing that
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