Page 86 of If Tomorrow Never Comes

He laughed, kissed her hair, and then inhaled deeply. “Damn, you always smell so good. Let’s have our coffee, eat, and make out on the couch, and then I want to take you to my trees.”

“Your trees?”

“Yep. Every arborist has a favorite tree. It’s a rule. I have two and I want you to see them.”

Jamie drove her forty-five minutes south of Omaha to a small farm. After passing a yellow farmhouse, he turned onto a bumpy, single-lane dirt road and continued on for about ten minutes before pulling off into the grass.

“This was my grandparents’ place,” he explained as he opened the door. “But I know the people who bought it. They hardly ever come out to this part of the land. They don’t care if I visit every once in a while.”

Elliott was glad she wore jeans as Jamie helped her over the wooden, three-rail fence and took her hand as they crossed a field of tall grass. At the top of a small hill sat two massive trees casting shadows on a single park bench.

“They’re white oaks. Probably a hundred and fifty years old, at least. The leaves turn the most stunning red in the fall.”

The trees stood alone in the field, and the solidarity only added to their majesty. “They’re beautiful.”

“I used to come out here in the summers after a long day of working the farm with my grandpa. He got onto me a few times for disappearing before the work was done, but I didn’t want to miss all the daylight,”he said with a laugh. “He died a few years ago, and my grandmother followed him pretty quick. He was a great man. I have no idea how my dad turned out the way he did.”

“I wish I could have met him.”

“Me too.” He squeezed her hand and started forward again, settling onto the bench and pulling her against his side. “One year on my birthday, they had this bench put in for me. The best time to come is at dawn, when the sun has just come over the horizon and the mist is rising from the field.”

“We’ll have to come back, then.”

“I’d like that. I haven’t been out here in months.” He leaned his head back against the bench and closed his eyes, breathing deeply.

Elliott lay her head against his chest, content to feel the rise and fall of his body and listen to the rustle of the leaves in the breeze. Her heart was like a sponge in water, soaking up the joy of being with him in this perfect moment. She wished she’d brought her camera.

She was so comfortable and warm against him, she startled when he spoke.

“This is a good place to share secrets,” he said softly.

“Is it? Bring a lot of girls here?”

“You’re the first. But I told myself a lot of secrets under these trees. Sometimes I came out here and said them out loud to no one and let the wind carry them away. There are some secrets I’ve never told anyone, and some I’ve only told you.”

She shifted to gaze up at his face.

“I’ve never told anyone else how relieved I was when they released me from the team. I’m never admitting to anyone else that I didn’t know narwhals really existed. And you’re the only soul on earth who knows I’ve read a Lisa Kleypas novel.”

“Not only that you read it, but you read it inone sitting.”

“I’ve never laughed so hard, rooted so hard for a shy girl who doesn’t dance—”

“A wallflower.”

“Right, a wallflower—all while being sort of turned on half the time. It was a, uh ... unique experience.”

He grinned and shook his head as Elliott laughed. How she was lucky enough to be with this man, right here and in this moment, she’d never know.

His fingers drifted up and down her arm. “So. What do you have to add to this perfect spot for secret telling?”

She twisted her lips to the side while she thought. “I used to love chocolate. I would have given Yuka’s obsession a run for her money.”

“Really? What happened?”

“Chemo. It changes the way things taste. Sometimes they come back, sometimes they don’t. And while it’s sort of a blessing in disguise because I know it’s not healthy, I sort of miss having that experience. I see the look on people’s faces when they take that first bite of their favorite dessert, and I wonder if they know how lucky they are. To be able to enjoy that.”

“The look on your face the first time I saw you taste our soufflé gave me a semi, so I’d say you have that to fall back on when you want to enjoy something.”

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