Page 27 of Unravel You

Five minutes later, we were at the edge of the property, where a creek divided the land between the Coles and the Copenhavers. Back in the day, the two families had not been as friendly, so a fence had been added to make sure there were no confusions or trespassing.

I chuckled. “New cellar, new kitchen, custom marble floors, chandeliers, but you couldn’t spare a few bucks for a brand-new wooden picket fence?

Mom laughed too, and for a moment it was like old times, when we worked together. When she was mom and mentor all in one. “Ana asked me to let it be. I saw no harm in it. Consider it art from your childhood. Come see what she did.”

Mom swung open the small door, which creaked and moaned as both Mom and I walked over to the Copernhavers’ side of the property. When I gestured for Valentina to come with us, she shook her head and shuffled back.

“You go on. I’ll wait here.”

“Don’t be silly. You need to meet Ana.” I extended my arm toward her.

“Derek, you need to see this.” Mom reached for my arm, and Valentina let go of my fingers. “Is this not genius?”

I followed her line of sight to the white picket fence. Ana had drawn my brothers’ and my small-boy faces on the weathered wood. They were scenes of us playing baseball or having water-balloon fights.

“Is she for real?”

“She surprised me with it last week. I think it’s perfect. She gets us, you know?”

“She was there. She better.” I laughed.

Across the way, closer to the tree line, Valentina stood with an empty wine glass in her hand, deep furrows over her forehead, and a look on her face I knew well. She was ready to make a run for it. I unwrapped Mom’s arms from around my waist and picked my way over the rocks of the dry creek. “Come see this. You’ll love it. I promise.”

She nodded but didn’t move. She pointed behind me. When I turned around, a small body slammed against me, long blonde curls tickled my face while her legs squeezed around my hips.

“Oh my God, your mom finally got you here.”

“Little Ana?” I gripped her waist to get her off me and take a good look at her. “How long has it been?”

“Eight years. You’re really here. Your mom said everyone was coming over. I honestly didn’t believe her. It’s so good to see you.”

Little Ana was all grown up. It was weird to see her like this and not hiding in some corner, spying on her brother and us. She was so pretty and full of good energy.

“It’s good to see you too. Come on. You have to meet my fiancée.”

“What? I thought you’d already, you know, put a noose around your neck.”

I let out a breath. I was tired of having to explain my situation with Valentina. I wanted us to be married already so we could be here and be a family.

Chapter8

This Is More Than a Bump

Valentina

In Derek’s defense, I had agreed to be his buffer this month, which apparently meant being on the receiving end of his mom’s back-handed comments. Innocent and yet so hurtful. That required skill. If Em had told me exactly what I was walking into, I never would have come to Atlanta. I never would have agreed to stay here a whole thirty days.

Who was I kidding? I would have done anything Derek asked. I loved him that much, and he deserved to be here with his family. A month wasn’t that long of a time.

I stood by the creek’s edge. Shit. Cool water streamed over my shoes, and I stepped back as an incredibly gorgeous blonde wrapped her legs around Derek’s waist. I’d meant to go across to meet him but instead landed in the small current running through. Man, was I getting tired of Derek and all the beautiful women in his life? At least this one had clothes on. The last time I found myself in this same situation, Derek’s girl du jour was butt naked. Back then, I had no reason to be jealous because Derek and I were not together. But now...

No, I wasn’t jealous. I trusted Derek. He’d proven so many times that I was the one for him. I took a swig from my wine glass and swallowed nothing but air. On the other side of the white picket fence, just beyond the narrow creek, Derek gripped the woman’s waist and slid her down. Okay, I was jealous, but who was I to tell Derek what to do? I shuffled back onto the grassy area. My shoes were soaked, possibly ruined. This place wasn’t for me. Derek had a life here I didn’t fit into.

I took off my soggy wedges. Go home to Max. That was all I could think of. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I made the decision to leave because the second I was barefoot and able to move again, I found myself heading back toward the house, through the heavily wooded land between the Cole Estate and Little Ana’s mansion.

This was too much, too soon. Derek would have to understand. Maybe our wedding was also too much, too soon. Technically speaking, I’d only known Derek for two months. Yeah, we had coffee together pretty much every day for six months before that, but we never spoke. He was just the beautiful stranger who visited the same coffeehouse.

The humidity made it hard to breathe and keep up with a brisk pace, but I pushed on. If I hurried, I could book a flight and be gone tonight. Derek’s mom was right on that. I needed to be with my son. I mentally made a list of what I needed to do to get myself home. Step one: don’t cry. I wiped my hand across my cheek and surveyed the area.

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