AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Noelle had turned down his requests for dates at first, but he had broken down her defenses. He fought so hard to date her but not to admit he loved her.
He looked his mother square in the eyes. “The way she looked at me that night, with such pain and disappointment. My heart ached and I thought if we both cooled down our conversation would go smoother. I never expected to be gone for so long.” He sighed, picking at his food once again. “One drunk moment in the bar cost me everything. I loved Noelle, but I didn’t appreciate what we had. I had trouble thinking long term. I just thought about what I wanted, my career. I wanted Noelle waiting for me, but I never thought what all that waiting was doing to her.”
Polly looked at him. Understanding showed in her brown eyes. “I believe you, Chance. It is a hard life. It might be hard to get Noelle to forgive you, but nothing easy is ever worth it.”
“I never liked Carly Sanders,” Polly admitted with a loud sigh. “Carly’s mother Louisa is such a snob because she has the looks and married a city councilman. I suppose she taught her daughter to be the same way, vain. Carly’s smile was too perfect and too fake. She relished in all the gossip. The more it hurt Noelle, the happier she became.”
He had underestimated Carly it seemed. Never again would he make the same mistake twice. His appetite disappeared completely. He had been traveling for two days to get home.
He took his plate to the sink and yawned. “I think I am going to call it a night. I still feel like I haven’t caught up with my sleep. I have to be up early for my interview tomorrow.”
He kissed his mom’s cheek and headed for his old bedroom. After he showered and changed clothes, he sat on his bed. A picture of him and Noelle lying under the stars entered his head. They were both sweaty after their lovemaking. He remembered that night like it was yesterday. He had never felt so content. He didn’t want their time to end, and he pushed his fears away and just looked at her. Her smile had been happy and genuine. He never realized what he had until he lost it. His plan was to see her look that way again. No matter how long it took.
Chapter 3
Noelle turned off the lights to the store and shook the door handle to make sure she locked it properly. It had been another long day, and she was looking forward to having the weekend off. Quinn would handle the store alone on Saturday. Then the store was closed on Sundays. Noelle planned to sleep late and lounge around her
apartment. Maybe catch up on a few chores and work in the garden.
All day she had been feeling like she was being watched, but she kept it to herself. Maybe it was just knowing that Chance was back, and she wasn’t sure when she would run into him again. She was sure the possibility of Chance stopping by the store had caused a lot of her customers to stop by in hopes they would witness a scene. They had been disappointed. Four days and she had not seen one sign of him. She told herself she didn’t care, but she knew deep inside she did. She pictured him with Carly, and the jealousy was painful. What if he had slept with Carly? Men weren’t known for their faithfulness. She hated thinking so cynically, but she couldn’t help it.
After checking the lock, she turned around and found herself up against a hard chest.
“Ump,” she muttered, looking up into Chance’s warm, brown eyes. He looked her up and down as if he had missed seeing her. Her body came back alive just like that. What a traitor her body was. She flinched and turned her face away. She had a few days to prepare herself for seeing him again, yet she still felt unprepared. She wanted to ask him if he’d been to see Carly already, but she forced herself to stay away from those kinds of questions. In the past, they led to huge, ugly arguments. She was not going there again.
“Why do we keep running into each other? I know you’re not interested in buying women’s clothes.” Her face paled, and she felt dizzy. She blinked her eyes a few times and looked at his face, trying to read his agenda.
“I hope you are not here to buy Carly clothes. I’d refuse to sell you any.” She gasped with pain at the thought.
Chance cursed under his breath. He gripped her shoulders and squeezed. His brown eyes bore into her hazel ones. His eyes were filled with unbelief and a hint of anger. “Do you really think I am that low?”
“I never thought you would cheat on me either. I mistakenly thought you had honor.” She answered honestly, feeling the bitterness that was like a sickness to her soul. She didn’t want to feel it, but she didn’t know how to get rid of it. She was sure she wasn’t the only woman in the world to be in love with a man who didn’t love her back.
“I did not sleep with Carly that night or any other night. I can’t deny that kiss. I will regret it with my dying breath. I never wrote her or made promises to her,” he swore. “She is seriously demented to spread those kind of rumors.”
Noelle knew none of it mattered any longer. It was all in the past. Maybe she needed this closure to move on with her life. Maybe if she faced him it would give her some of her self-respect back. She hated to think of how low she had allowed herself to get over a man.
“Why are you here, Chance?” She made sure her voice stayed even and calm. Revisiting old wounds was not on her agenda for today or any other day. In the past, she had allowed the jealousy and insecurity she felt lead to a major argument. Now there was nothing to argue about. She had given up on finding love.
“I thought we could talk now. I needed time to rest and do some other things or I would have visited you sooner.” He gave her a friendly smile. Did he think they could be friends? She could never just be friends with Chance. She loved him too much to just be his friend.
“What can we possibly have to talk about? I took the relationship more seriously than you. I read more into it than there was. My mistake. Life goes on.” She tried to pull off the casual attitude, but she wasn’t sure she succeeded.
His blue T-shirt stretched across his muscled chest. His black tribal tattoo peeked out of his sleeve. He looked tan and healthy, and she probably looked washed out. Lord knows she felt like that all the time. She dressed well for her job, but most days she didn’t bother with makeup or fancy hairstyles.
“I want to talk about us,” he said firmly, letting her know he was not budging.
“There is no us,” she stated sadly, not caring if he heard the pain in her voice. “Besides, if we go anywhere in town rumors would start up, and I can’t deal with that again.”
“Fine. Let’s take a drive to the lake,” he suggested.
She gave in, hating that she was so weak when it came to Chance Brooks. If she had to talk to him, she would rather do it without an audience. She would rather avoid getting caught up in that mess again. It had taken weeks for the rumors to die down.
“We’ll go in my truck.” He looked over at her small red car. “That thing is way too small for a man my size, angel.”
She followed him to his black pickup truck feeling her stomach clench with nervousness. Once upon a time, she had felt excitement, joy in his company. They reached his truck, and he opened the door for her. Oh the memories the sight of his truck brought back to her. She had to blink back tears as she remembered the summer nights they had gone to the lake and made love in the back. She hopped in, clutching her purse as if it was a lifeline. Why hadn’t she picked out jeans this morning instead of the pink frilly skirt and a white tank top?
Chance drove silently to the lake a few miles away. He found an empty spot under a shady tree. The view of the lake was calming. The sun was setting, and the sky was turning beautiful colors that looked like cotton candy. He rolled his window down, and she felt the cool spring breeze on her skin. She wished the sky was dark, and she could see the stars. They had often done that. Watched the stars and made love under them.
