Second Chances by Abbie Williams Page B

stop touching him either and snuggled into his side. He kissed my hair. I wanted to cry.
    â€œMom said you’d talked,” Blythe said, drawing me towards the open door of their room.
    â€œJo, Bly, I’m going to have a smoke,” Rich said as we made our way along the sidewalk. “I’ll be in after a few.”
    â€œK, Gramps,” Blythe said over his shoulder, then let me pass in front of him and carefully closed the door behind us. The moment we were alone I turned to face him, my heart thumping painfully, longing and tension racing through my blood with equal fervor. My cheeks were scalding as I looked up at the man I loved. He stared back into my eyes, his so intense that I could hardly breathe.
    He moved so suddenly I gasped. I was in his arms and against his huge chest, my legs around his waist, before I even knew he’d lifted me. I wrapped my arms around his shoulders, unable to get close enough to satisfy my hunger for him.
    â€œJoelle, oh God, Joelle,” he groaned against my mouth before claiming it again, one big hand cupping my head. He held me up hard against him with the other, effortlessly. I curled my fingers into his thick loose hair, pulling back just a fraction to meet his eyes before sliding my palms over his cheeks, tracing his bottom lip with my thumbs, then reclaiming his mouth. He tasted sweet and salty, as though my tears were caught in our kiss.
    After a moment, in which I felt as though I would never be able to stop kissing him, now that I’d started, he drew slightly away and pressed soft kisses along my jaw, my neck, then back up, coming to rest with his lips against my left temple. With a graceful movement he turned and seated us on the bed, keeping my legs woven around his waist. From six inches away I drank in the blueness of his beautiful eyes, his hands cradling me against him, mine resting on his wide shoulders.
    â€œI’m so glad you’re here, you have no idea,” he whispered then, moving his right hand up and smoothing hair from my cheek. He stroked his fingers all along the side of my face, tracing over my bottom lip as I just done to his. Shivers spiraled up my spine. He went on, his voice low and rough, “When you left the jail that night, I thought there was a chance I might never see you again.”
    â€œOh Blythe,” I said, hurting. I’d thought the same thing, lying in bed that night.
    â€œBut you’re here,” he said. “I’ve been pacing like a caged animal since we talked, you should have seen me. I still can’t believe you’re here.” He caressed my neck, his fingers trailing in my hair, which hung loose down my back. With gentle motions, he combed through it. “You’re so soft. God, I’ve missed seeing you, making love with you at night. All I could think about this week was the last time we’d been together back in Landon.”
    â€œI’ve missed you too, and I’m so glad you’re happy I’m here. I was afraid you would send me away,” I told him, tears in my eyes again. But he thumbed them away as they streaked over my face, and I went on, determined, “I got up in the middle of the night and just knew I had to come after you. I love you and I want you to come back to Landon with me.”
    He closed his eyes and breathed in through his nose. He whispered, “I wish I could, I so wish I could.”
    â€œYou can,” I insisted in a low voice, but at that moment we heard Rich approaching, the sound of his footfalls coming through the window that was propped open to the night air. I moved with reluctance to sit in a less intimate position beside Bly on the bed, a decent distance between us. He sent me a look that said our conversation was nowhere near done, and in the next second Rich was tapping lightly on the door before entering the room and surveying us with concern in his eyes.
    â€œJoelle, I’m glad you made it here safe,