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Chapter One
No matter how many times Luke had imagined this, he hadn’t actually believed it would happen. He’d pictured thousands of ways he and Rose could be reunited, but with each text, email, and voicemail she’d ignored, he’d found a little more of his hope slipping away like sand through his fingers. He’d wanted her back in his life with every fiber of his being, but she’d seemed determined not to allow that to happen.
Yet here she stood, rain-drenched and trembling on his doorstep. He would’ve called it a miracle if he couldn’t see the pain in her beautiful blue eyes. Her long-sleeved white shirt clung to her slim body, and he refused to allow himself to look below her face for more than an instant. He wanted to take in all of her, to soak up her presence, but it wasn’t the time. The fall air would’ve been cold enough without the rain, and he could see her shivering.
“Come in,” he said quickly, reaching out to rest a hand on her arm and guide her inside before closing the door. Rainwater dripped from her clothing onto the polished hardwood floor of the foyer.
In the silence that filled the air between them, he simply looked at her. Rose Mercer, the woman he’d loved for longer than he could recall. The one he’d had and lost. Her long, wet strawberry-blond hair clung to her pale cheeks, and her wide eyes held a hint of panic, as though she thought he might send her out into the night again.
“I can’t do this anymore,” she said, her voice so quiet he was almost certain he’d imagined it.
“What do you mean?”
Rose opened her mouth, but no sound came out. Her eyes filled with tears.
I’m not going to push her, thought Luke, shaking his head. He laid his hand on her shoulder and guided her toward the lounge.
“Let’s get you warm,” he said, “and then we can discuss anything you want.”
Rose nodded and followed, and he led her down the hall and into the first door they reached. The right wall was dominated by a bar and the leather-upholstered stools that lined it, and in front of them was a fireplace nearly tall enough for someone to step into. A pair of green armchairs sat beside the fireplace, and Luke led Rose to the black leather couch to the left of them. He pulled a plush white blanket from its back, and when Rose sat, he draped the blanket around her shoulders.
At the sight of her there, sitting in the same spot where they had spent part of their last weekend together, Luke’s palms tingled, and a twinge of excitement shot through him.
***
Four Years Ago
He watched her over the rim of his glass. He took in the way the corners of her eyes wrinkled just slightly when she smiled and the plumpness of her lips, which were that perfect shade of crimson he’d come to love so much on her. His sister Lenore was staying with a friend and his parents were out of town, and he hadn’t wanted to waste a perfectly good spring break that he could spend with his fiancée. He’d invited her over for a few well-earned days alone together.
Luke leaned over to set his wineglass on the table in front of the couch, and then he laid his hand on Rose’s cheek, his thumb trailing lightly over her skin as he fixed his eyes on hers.
“As fascinated as I am to hear about how bad your classmates’ speeches were,” he breathed, shifting closer and sliding his free hand down her side to rest on her waist, “and I am, don’t get me wrong… why don’t we come back to it? I’d rather focus on you, right now.”
He leaned close to let his lips just barely brush against hers, and he felt her shiver in his arms.
“You have my complete attention,” Rose said softly. She kissed him, the gesture tender at first. Luke’s grip tightened on her waist. He tilted his head slightly to deepen the kiss as he began to allow himself to release more of the passion he’d been restraining since her arrival.
Slowly, as their kisses became more desperate, Luke shifted their positions, laying Rose down gently on the couch and positioning himself on top of her as he began to nip and tug at her lips.
“Should we—go—to your room?” asked Rose breathlessly, her hands twisting into Luke’s hair.
He pulled back just slightly to take in the sight of her face. Her pale cheeks were flushed, her desire unhidden in her eyes. Luke grinned.
“No,” he said, running his hands along her waist slowly and resting them on her hips. “For now, the house is ours. Let’s stay here.”
Rose smiled, and Luke leaned in to capture her lips once again.
***
Now
He swallowed. “I’ll be right back,” he said, mentally cursing himself when his voice came out strained. Before she could respond, he flipped the switch set into the wall beside the fireplace to ignite it and then turned away and went into the kitchen.
Over the past four years, Luke had worked to persuade himself that he was better off for having lost Rose Mercer. He’d loved her more than life itself, but she’d handed him back his engagement ring in the pouring rain outside his favorite bar and left him there to wonder what he could’ve done to deserve this. He’d tried for months to get her back, but she’d wanted nothing to do with him. Why was now any different? Why had she come to him in the middle of the night, drenched and shaking? Was he suddenly good enough for her?
As he microwaved a mug of water and dumped in a packet of hot cocoa mix, he allowed himself a cynical laugh at the thought. Luke LeBlanc had been raised to believe he was more than good enough—as the son of a prominent senator, he’d grown up wealthy and had never run into trouble when it came to getting people to like him. But when it came to relationships, things were different. He’d dated before Rose, but she was the only woman he had ever really loved.
And she’d broken him.
