Chapter 27
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
RACHEL
M y heart stutters in a thrilling, nerve-tingling way, even as my lips seem to be permanently etched in a smile. “I want to be your girlfriend.”
His eyes close in relief, and when he opens them again, he looks like I just gave him the world. His kiss is long and slow, and I get lost in the easy way his lips move over mine. There’s no particular destination in sight, and after a minute, I pull the covers over us, relaxing into the mattress.
When he finally pulls away, I snuggle into his side. “Have you dated anyone in town before?” I’m suddenly realizing I don’t know anything about his love life, other than him admitting he had a crush on me in high school.
His fingers draw lazy circles over my back. “Some non-serious dates. Only one that lasted a while.”
“Anyone I know?”
“Mandy Wilkerson.”
“Really?” I had no idea. I just talked to her not that long ago, too.
The smallest twinge of jealousy hits me. Mandy is beautiful, with shiny strawberry blonde hair and a killer body. Sure, she’s married with a kid now, but still…
“What happened?” I ask.
“She didn’t like my job. I hadn’t figured out then a good sleep schedule that works for me after my twenty-four-hour shifts, so I was tired all the time.”
“This was a while ago?”
“Yeah, we were nineteen, I think?”
That twinge in my gut eases some. That was eight years ago. “Do you ever still see her?”
He shrugs. “Occasionally. She brings her daughter to the story times at the library, so sometimes I see her there. We’re not friends but friendly, if that makes sense.” He pauses, his fingers stopping their circles on my back. “Why?”
“I’m just curious.”
I don’t think he believes me because he says, “You know I’m not interested in Mandy still, right?”
I nod, logically knowing that. God, I’m stupid. Why’d I even ask him about it?
“You had left Aurora,” he continues, as if he needs to explain himself. “I had no idea if you were coming back.”
“Nick.” I smooth a hand down his chest. “You don’t need to justify yourself. It’s perfectly fine you dated Mandy a long time ago. She’s a nice person.” I let go of any kind of comparison. God knows I have no leg to stand on with who my ex is.
“I haven’t dated anyone since you moved back.”
My breath catches, and I tread carefully. “Are you saying you happen to have not dated anyone in the last couple of years? Or you haven’t… because of me?”
He sighs, but doesn’t answer. I’m silent, too, waiting to see what he’ll say.
“I’m not sure if it was a conscious choice,” he finally says. “I thought you hated me.” He chuckles a little, though there’s not much humor in it.
I bring my hand to his neck, turning his head to face me. “I’ve never hated you.”
He nods. “But I still couldn’t shake the way I felt about you. Even if I knew I never stood a chance.”
What if we had run into each other when I’d first got back to town? I could have skipped all the bullshit with Kyle. I could have had this amazing man this whole time.
But maybe I wasn’t ready then. Wouldn’t have a comparison to know how incredible he is.
“I’m glad we have this now,” I tell him. “Even if it took us a while to get here.”
“Me, too,” he says, kissing me softly. “What about you?”
“Me, what?”
“Your dating history.”
“Oh. Well, you know about Kyle. Obviously.”
“The asshole.”
“The asshole,” I agree. “And I had a boyfriend in college. Chris. Things kind of fizzled out with him. There was no big blowup.”
“Kyle was the only guy you lived with?”
I nod. “That wasn’t really my choice, though. His apartment lease was up and he said he couldn’t afford the rent increase.”
“Ah. So he strong-armed you into it.”
“I guess. Looking back, a lot of dating him wasn’t my choice.
Or, rather, I didn’t make a big deal about going along with whatever he wanted.
I was too focused on getting the bakery back in good shape.
Which was stupid to let him do, now that I think about it.
But maybe it also means I didn’t care that much.
” I shrug. “And he sensed that. Then did what he did.”
“Don’t you for one second put any of the blame for his screwup on yourself.” He cups my cheek. “He never deserved you.”
I shouldn’t be surprised by the intensity in his voice. He hasn’t seemed to like Kyle since day one. And Kyle didn’t like him.
“Why don’t you like each other? Did something happen between you two?”
His lips purse for a moment before he sighs. “When I got back from juvie, he tried bullying me. Spouting shit about how I was an arsonist. How I wanted to kill you and your sisters.”
I suck in a breath. “You didn’t—”
“I know. But I felt terrible enough about it myself without him adding fuel to the fire.” He’s quiet, contemplating.
“In hindsight, he was insecure and trying to look cool by putting someone else down. Someone he thought wouldn’t do anything about it, because I wouldn’t have before.
” He shakes his head. “But he didn’t think it through.
I’d been locked up for months with a bunch of adrenaline filled teenage boys all looking to prove themselves, and I’d learned a few things. ”
“What’d you do?” I whisper. How come I’ve never heard this before?
“Nothing too bad. Just gave him a black eye. And told him if he bothered me again, I’d do the same to his other eye in front of the whole school.”
I press my hand to my mouth to cover the chuckle that escapes me. “You didn’t.”
He nods, the ghost of a smile lurking over his lips. “He’d still make these offhand remarks every once in a while. Stuff that would skirt the line without actually crossing it. I let it go, though. He wasn’t worth my time.”
“That’s mature of you.” I rub my hand over his shoulder and down his arm, tracing over his tattoo. I love that I have the freedom to do this now. “But he did cross the line at the pancake breakfast.”
“Hmm. Are you saying I should have made good on my threat from over a decade ago? At my place of work? In front of Ryder?”
I frown. “Who’s Ryder?”
“The Mickey Mouse pancake boy.”
I bite my lip, grinning. “Maybe not.”
Nick turns more serious. “I don’t care what he says about me. But if he ever said anything about you, all bets are off.”
There’s a steady force behind his words that makes a sudden lump rise to my throat. For so long, I’ve been holding myself together, staying strong. The one to handle things alone. And for Nick to offer his defense, his protection…
My heart thuds with gratitude, something blooming quietly under the cracks I’ve been so careful to keep sealed.
“Did he ever text you again?” he asks. “After the first time he saw me on the doorbell?”
And even knowing Nick would safeguard me, I don’t want to put him in that position. To worry him. To start drama. To ruin this perfect moment.
“No, he never texted me,” I murmur, which is the truth. “Now, enough about Kyle.” I lean forward and kiss him, and Nick quickly gets on board with the change, rolling over to cover me, his body pressing me deliciously into the mattress.
“Are you ready for round two?” he whispers seductively in my ear, snaking a hand between us to rub soft circles over me, preparing me again.
I’m ready. So ready for everything he has in store for me.
Afterward, as I lay in a puddle of bliss, he kisses me gently before grabbing his shirt to pull over his head.
“No,” I moan, reaching out to touch his abs one more time before they’re covered up.
He grins. “I can’t go home shirtless.”
It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell him he doesn’t have to go home at all. But he has nothing with him to spend the night, and I have to get up a hell of a lot earlier than him for the bakery.
I give him a mock pout. “You’re too responsible.”
The soft look he gives me has my stomach filling with butterflies. “How about we have a proper sleepover this weekend? Maybe after the cookoff?”
I nod, probably too eagerly, and he comes closer, murmuring in my ear, “I have condoms at my place. And I can be shirtless for you all night.” He leans back, looking at me seriously. “If you’re ready for that. No pressure.”
I play with the hem of his shirt, heat rising to my cheeks even after everything we just did. “I am.”
I dress and walk him out, giving him a lingering kiss goodnight, but he doesn’t make it past the porch steps before I call after him, “Wait, your cake.”
I quickly box it in one of my cake carriers and hand it to him. “We didn’t even eat any, did we?”
“Oh, I enjoyed my dessert tonight.”
I bite my lip but still can’t hide my grin as I play smack his arm. “Nick.”
He’s grinning, too. “I can’t wait until you sleep over Saturday,” he says, pulling me close for one last kiss.
I’m tempted to tell him I’ll follow him home right now. That we can make good use of those condoms tonight.
But he’s already exhausted me in the best possible way. And the anticipation is pretty hot, too.
“Saturday,” I promise.
He nods, looking me over again with a gleam in his eye before he jogs down the steps and to his truck. I watch him go, waving goodbye, and stay out for a moment longer after the red lights of his truck’s taillights disappear down the street.
The night is warm, the air thick with the scent of a nearby flowering honeysuckle. Crickets sing in a steady chorus from the hedges, their chirping a gentle rhythm that fades into the background.
The wooden boards feel familiar under my bare feet, the glow from the porch light casting golden shadows that make everything safe. There are no distant car honks or people shouting. Just the comfortable hum of summer settling in.
I have the sudden urge to thank my parents for being so awful managing the bakery that I came back here. Somewhere I don’t need a GPS, where I can stop for conversation at any store I go to. Where I can relax, a gentle breeze teasing my arms.
Where I have the chance to be close to my sisters. Where I can rediscover purpose in the family bakery.
And where I can reconnect with Nick. My chest squeezes tight with that knowledge most of all. If so many decisions had gone a different way, I might not be standing here at all, excited to see where this next path takes us.
I turn, catching sight of the doorbell, and only frown for a moment before I head inside and pull up the app on my phone. With only a few taps, Kyle is gone.
I’m immediately lighter, the tension and anxiety present when I think about him drifting away in the breeze. I’m with someone now who truly sees me. Values me. Cherishes me.
And as much as I can’t wait for Saturday, I’m even more excited for everything yet to come.
With Nick.