Page 70 of No One But You

I heard the music and laughter coming from the backyard as soon as I climbed out of the truck. I smoothed my shirt and checked my hair in the side mirror.

This was crazy. I felt like a high school kid on the way to pick up a date instead of a grown man going to a barbecue at a friend’s house. Yes, Kora would be there, and God, I wanted to see her, but it had been a long week and I’d never reached out. What if I messed things up?

I lost count of the number of times this past week I texted her just to delete the message. I knew I needed to tell her everything about me. The good, the bad, and the really ugly.

Terry told me he accidentally let it slip about me being in prison. At least that skeleton was out of the closet. It was totally possible she wouldn’t want a relationship with me after she found out the details of why I spent three years behind bars. If she decided she couldn’t be with me because of that, I’d accept it and move on. But no matter what, I was making Orlinda Valley my home with Kora or without her.

My feelings thudded around in my body, and my pulse raced. I took a deep breath, threw my shoulders back, and headed for the house. “You got this.” I walked around the back and was wrapped in Tonya’s hug just as I stepped into the yard. “I’m so glad you’re here,” she cooed.

I laughed. How could I not? “Lord, Tonya. Were you watching for me?” I pulled away, and she draped her arm over my shoulder. “Honestly, I wasn’t going to come, but Bryson talked me into it.”

“Well, I’m glad he did. Come on and say hi to everyone.” She led me to the crowd. Her yard was large and bordered with trees and rose bushes. There were children running everywhere. I recognized James, Darlene and Bryson’s son, but there were a couple of little girls he was running with whom I didn’t know.

I glanced around the yard, and my heart thumped hard the second I saw Kora off in the back corner with Darlene and Summer. There was something different about her. Something in her expression.

“She’s confused.”

I turned away and gave Tonya my full attention. “Excuse me?”

“Kora. She’s confused. She doesn’t understand why you shut her out. And there’s something else bothering her, but she didn’t tell me what that was.”

Just then, Kaye and Charles joined us. We said hello, and I got a hug from Kaye and shook Charles’s hand. Diane joined us and introduced me to her husband, Tom. There were so many people and so many names, I doubted I’d be able to remember everyone. Just when I thought I would explode from information overload, Bryson and Jamison saved me.

“Glad you made it.” Bryson offered me a beer, but I opted for a Coke instead.

“Thanks. Trevor and Nico have Terry occupied for the night at the pub, and I figured, why should I deny myself a free meal?” I joked. Maybe if I tried to forget that Kora was there, I’d have more fun, but the fact that we weren’t together made a crater form inside my gut.

Lance joined us, and we moved away from the book club and took up residence at the back corner of the yard.

“So, all of you grew up together?” I asked. I wanted to understand what it was like with an extended family. Friends who were so close, like brothers.

“Yep,” Jamison answered. “Bryson, Rowan, Kora and I are actual cousins, but Lance, Lilly—Lance’s sister who lives with her husband in New York— and Rose, Ruth’s daughter, were all brought up like cousins. One big happy, unrelated family.”

I nodded and lifted my brow.

“With our moms being best friends, we’ve been together since birth,” Lance added. “We have great stories about Kora if you ever want some dirt on her.”

“Seriously, Lance. You’d throw me under the bus?”

My breath stuck in my chest. When the breeze blew, I could smell her strawberry and vanilla lotion. Our eyes met and my heart thudded harder. “Hey.”

“Hey.” Her voice was short, and her eyes were shrouded. The side of her cheek sucked in like she was chewing on it.

I struggled to contain the rush of emotions flooding my body—relief, longing, attraction, and a deep ache for reconciliation. I reached out, unable to suppress the overwhelming desire to pull her into my arms, then pulled back. “Can we talk?”

Kora held my gaze yet said nothing. Darlene elbowed her, and the look she shot at Darlene was all attitude—there’s the Kora I missed.

“Yeah, go,” Summer said. “You’ve been annoying the hell out of us. Go talk to him.”

“Summer,” Kora whispered, her eyes wide.

Summer shrugged and pulled Darlene away.

A smile ticked up the corners of my mouth. My dimple must have popped because Kora’s gaze fell to my cheek and became softer. “Please?” I asked again, and this time I held my hand out.

Kora shrugged and placed her hand in mine. A shock of electricity traveled from her touch, making my pulse race. That was all the proof I needed that there was something between us, and I needed to make things right. I could try to ignore my feelings and think she deserved better, but it wouldn’t work. I had to be honest with her and face whatever happened head-on.

I led her under a tree in the opposite corner of the yard, as far from listening ears as we could get. The sun reflected in her hair, and I didn’t know how it was possible, but she was even more beautiful than I remembered. “Kora. I’m sorry for how I’ve acted. I know I was rude, and you deserved more explanation than I gave.” I could feel eyes watching us. I turned my head and Tonya, Kaye, Ruth, and Diane were there, whispering and watching. “Is there somewhere more private we could go?”

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