Chapter 7
7
RACHEL
I was just going through the motions.
I’d quickly slipped into my old routine once I arrived home after fleeing Seduction Summit. I told my boss I was back, and I jumped right back into work. I also headed to the gym after work and planned to eat my sad little salad every night for dinner. Alone. Staring blankly at the TV.
I didn’t even have my friend and roommate around anymore. I had other friends, though. I could’ve made it work—if I wanted to.
I didn’t want to.
I pulled onto my street, jam-packed with houses—tall, skinny, and made from inexpensive materials. The goal had no doubt been to pack as many homes as possible onto this in-demand section of land, but the result was that cramped feeling that city living was known for.
I pressed the button to open the garage. Nobody else parked in their driveways around here. Even though it was a relatively safe neighborhood, crime still happened just a few blocks away. So in this area, cars were broken into and sometimes stolen. Occasionally, a home was burglarized, so most of the homes had alarm systems and everyone locked their doors twenty-four hours a day.
It was the complete opposite of Seduction Summit. I’d been there just over one full day and had already fallen in love with the place. I’d also fallen in love with the man who was supposed to be just a fling.
Yes, that was the real problem. I felt it deep in my chest. A pain that seemed to have taken over.
I sat in the garage, my thumb held near the button to close the door. I was lost in thought—so lost, it took me a second to notice that something had shifted in my rearview mirror. A vehicle was pulling in behind me.
My first thought? Why is someone tailgating me?
My second? What the fuck? Why is a big truck pulling into my driveway?
My heart started to race. I scanned my car for a weapon. Best plan? Close the garage door and call the police. But something was nagging at me, buried deep in my subconscious. That truck was dark gray. From here, it looked like the one that had been parked next door to my rental in Seduction Summit.
I slammed on the brakes and stared in the rearview mirror. I could make out the shape of someone in the driver’s seat—big and likely male, but no details. What if a murderer had followed me home from the gym, and I was about to go greet him because I thought he was someone who lived six hours away?
Yeah, I definitely listened to too many true crime podcasts.
Taking a deep breath, I pulled the rest of the way into the garage and cut the engine. Grabbing my phone—just in case—I looked back. The driver’s side door opened. Maybe I should go ahead and punch in nine-one-one. That way I could start the call and shout details while I was being murdered.
But then I saw a work boot hitting the ground and my heart stopped, then tripped over itself as it started racing again. He’d driven all the way here from Seduction Summit.
Don’t get your hopes up, I told myself. He might just be here to demand an explanation. Maybe it was a pride thing. Maybe he wasn’t as heartbroken over our parting as I was.
Still clutching my phone, I opened my car door and stepped out, lightheaded from how fast my heart was pounding. But then I saw him—those broad shoulders, that tough guy stance, the eyes that gave away the softy underneath…
It hit me like a punch in the gut. In fact, I’d been kicking myself nonstop for the past three days. I’d told myself getting back into my routine would make it all okay, but now, looking at him, I knew I’d been lying to myself. I would never be okay without him in my life.
“You’re here,” I said, stopping at the edge of the garage.
Was that the best I could come up with? You’re here? I owed him an explanation for rushing out of town. And it needed to be a better explanation than the one I’d given Joely the first time she called.
“You just left,” he said. “I didn’t know what to think.”
“It wasn’t you,” I said quickly. “It was me.”
Oh God, had I really used that cliché? I wasn’t breaking up with him. I was realizing what a big mistake I’d made.
“I was scared,” I said. “I didn’t want to be that girl who gave up her whole life for a man. And I saw myself doing that in the seconds after we, you know…”
I trailed off. I couldn’t say the words. Had sex? Did the deed? Fucked? A lady might say “made love.” But that implied we were in love. Maybe I was, but it was too soon to say the L word. That would only scare him off.
“You think I’m not scared?” he asked. “I’m scared shitless. Especially after getting a taste of what it feels like to have you walk out on me.”
“I didn’t mean to?—”
“I know,” he said, cutting me off. “It’s complicated. You live here. I live there. But the past three days made me realize I’d rather leave Seduction Summit and be with you than stay there without you.”
That couldn’t have been easy for him to say. He loved that town. He hadn’t said it, but I knew he was falling in love with me too.
“I don’t want you to move here,” I said.
The hurt on his face gave me another gut punch. I didn’t ever want to see that expression from him again.
I rushed to explain. “This isn’t my home. I realized that the moment I got back. Chattanooga isn’t home either.” I took a shaky breath. “My home is with you. In Seduction Summit.”
A wave of relief passed over his features. “I felt the same after I moved there, but it didn’t really feel like home until I met you.” He let out a soft laugh and glanced up at the sky, then back down at me. “This is not like me at all.”
“You’re the guy who never planned to settle down,” I said. “Joely told me. We talked on the phone last night. She tried to beat some sense into me. She didn’t need to. I already beat myself up enough.”
“I’d never ask you to give up anything,” he said. “Not your job, your friends, your life here…”
“I have friends waiting for me in Seduction Summit. And I can make a career there. The most important thing is that you’re there.”
We were being ridiculously sappy, but I didn’t care. Not if he didn’t.
“I just have to get things straightened up here—quit my job, find someone to take over my lease…”
“You could stay next door,” he said. “At least for a couple of weeks.”
“I gave up the cabin…but my friend’s boss might be able to hook me up with something.”
I could do that. We could date and figure things out while I stayed for free at various rental cabins. Maybe I’d even prove myself as the perfect person to hire.
“Do you have plans for tonight?” he asked.
I glanced at my car. “Just grabbing my stuff, relaxing, and having a salad for dinner.”
“Cancel those plans. I’m taking you out to a nice restaurant.”
I looked around the quiet street. Houses were packed together, but not a soul was in sight.
“Or we could stay in and have food delivered to us,” I said.
A smile spread across his face. “I like the way you think.”
He stepped closer. Just a few steps. But it closed the space between us. I didn’t want any space between us.
I stepped forward, rose on tiptoe, and placed my hands on his shoulders. “Is it weird to say I missed you? We haven’t even known each other for a full day.”
He shook his head, settling his hands at the small of my back. “I feel the same. If it’s weird, then I guess we’ll be weird together.”
He dipped his head. I lifted mine. And when his lips met mine, all the stress of the past three days melted away.
I had finally come home.