Page 3 of Jenna's Joyride

“Stunning. You’ve always been so talented. I want to see all of them. Come on, I know you’ve got photos stored somewhere. Let me see all the crazy adventures you’ve taken, even though I didn’t get to be a part of them.”

She swallows hard and her mouth pulls to one side. “It’s just the coast really. I haven’t taken many adventures. I’d like to though, at some point.”

“That’s a damn shame.” And it is. The Jenna I knew would throw herself into the messy adventures of life and snap pictures along the way. I miss that girl, and I’m starting to wonder if she does too.

* * *

Hours passin an instant as Jenna and I catch up at her kitchen table. It’s like no time has passed. She rambles on about her almost-wedding and the badass way she escaped at the last minute. As she talks, I’m surprised to find that as much as I thought I preserved my memories of Jenna, they pale in comparison to the real thing.

“I’m sorry, I’m over here rambling about myself,” Jenna says.

“Please don’t stop. I was just thinking that it’s good to see you. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever get to be this close to you again.” I reach across the table and put a hand on her forearm. “I thought you’d be married and the rest would be history. I’m so glad that isn’t how our story ends.”

Her eyes dart to mine. “How does our story end?”

“It doesn’t. You’ll always be woven into the fabric of my life, it’s so obvious.”

Jenna bites back a smile and slides her chair back. “Let me grab us something to drink.”

As she gets glasses from the cupboard, I replay our past in my mind. The way I told her I was leaving for a ranching job. The way she told me that she couldn’t come with me further out into the country, she needed to give city life a try. She needed to find a responsible, financially stable husband so that she could continue to make sure she and Tessa would be okay after their parents died. Her words knocked the air out of my lungs. Even thinking about them now makes a sharp pang stab at me.

I knew I could be that man, but she’d have to be patient. I didn’t come from money. Everything I’d amass for our future would have to be on my own. I told her everything, but as it turns out, time was the one thing she didn’t have.

So I loved her while I had her and every day since. I never gave up hope until the day I heard a rumor she was getting married to a real piece of work in the city. But the dude had money and that’s what she thought she needed. So I made the decision to leave her alone and let her have the life she hoped for even though it broke my heart.

“Come on, let's move.” She holds up to drinks and gestures toward the living room.

I follow Jenna to the overstuffed emerald couch, I can’t take my eyes off of her. Jenna, the one who got away is standing right here in front of me. It’s like a dream.

“Why are you back in Findlay? I thought you left this place behind for good.” She settles into the wooden rocking chair across from me.

“You’re one to talk.” I raise an eyebrow at her, not ready to let her off the hook that easily. “I’m only here to see my parents for the holidays. I have three days.”

“So, I have three days to show you how sorry I am for the way things ended with us. I was young and I had just lost my parents. I thought I needed financial security at any cost, but I was so wrong. What I need is a man who sees me for exactly who I am and loves me anyway. You were right in front of me and I broke both of our hearts when I pushed you away. I’m sorry, Walker.” She curls her legs onto the couch and slips her toes under my thighs, just like old times.

“Hey, we were young. You can’t—”

“I should’ve gone with you. I should’ve taken a chance on you and on myself. If I had it to do over, I would’ve done things differently.” Her eyes go glassy and it breaks my heart all over again.

“Come here.” I hold out an arm to her and Jenna moves beside me. In an instant she’s in my arms and it’s like no time has passed. Jenna, the woman I’ve loved all my life, is here with me and nothing else matters. The permanent knot that settled over my chest the day I lost her loosens and for the first time in years, I can breathe.

As she relaxes into me, our bodies settle into an old familiar rhythm. Our hearts beat in time with one another, our breathing syncs, and electricity whips between us. Being with Jenna feels like coming home.

Instinctually, I plant a kiss on the top of her head. She climbs onto my lap. The weight of her body on top of mine does nothing to dull the ache of my throbbing cock.

She looks up at me. “Should we be doing this? I mean, you’re only here for three days. I don’t want to risk being heartbroken all over again.”

“I’d risk everything for a single night with you.”

4

Jenna

I lean forward, rocking on his body until my mouth presses against his. The kiss is electric and it sucks all the air out of my living room. He’s in it, eyes open, searching my face, manhood bulging beneath me.

That’s the thing about Walker, he wears his heart on his sleeve. He’s charming, but it goes so much deeper than that. I can trust everything that comes out of his mouth. I can fall into him and he’ll pick up all the pieces and hold me together. Just like that, I’m lost in Walker all over again.

He touches my body like he owns it. His hand settles onto my thigh and I lean forward, planting kisses on his lips. Walker being here might be the only thing in the world that could make this house feel even more like home.

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