Page 34 of Call It Love

“Well, he took me in anyway. And now I work for him.”

There was another pause. Then, “I’m sorry. What?”

I explained how it all came about.

Mallory let out a slow whistle. “So, let me get this straight. Your father is an asshole. You crash near your true love’s house, show up at his door, and instead of a loving reunion, you get a job? That’s a plot twist I didn’t see coming. Have to say, I’m a little disappointed.”

I was regretting that one highly rare drunken night when I’d told her about Chase.

“And now I’m getting ready to put a meal on the table for over a dozen guys who work here.”

“Hmm. Do you at least look amazing while you serve this food? Is he sneaking glances at you across the room?”

Despite my amusement at the ridiculousness of her comment, I glanced down at my flour-dusted apron and plucked a stray piece of dough stuck from my sleeve. “Um, not exactly.”

A dramatic sigh sounded across the line. “Girl, don’t waste this opportunity.”

I shook my head, even though she couldn’t see me. “It’s not like that. He probably feels sorry for me.”

Mallory’s voice softened. “You know what I think? I think you subconsciously ended up exactly where you’re supposed to be.”

I scoffed. “Ha! You mean to tell me I planned for a kamikaze deer to hurl itself in front of me just so I’d crash conveniently near Chase’s house?”

“No. But maybe deep down,he’sthe reason you came back to Sterling Mill. The universe just gave you a little nudge. Or, you know, a full-on shove.”

I opened my mouth to argue, but hesitated. Becausewasshe wrong? I hadn’t been looking forward to returning to life with my parents. Yet, I still thought of my youth with fondness and missed the people I’d once been close to. But even the universe couldn’t undo time.

“It doesn’t matter,” I murmured. “I can’t recreate the past and make things be the way they used to, no matter how much I want to. I had to let that idea go when I let Chase go years ago.”

And yet, I thought about the way I’d caught him looking at me,reallylooking at me, as something more than just a stray that had blown in with the storm.

But that was wishful thinking.

I’d made choices years ago, ones that hurt him. I’d known I didn’t love Mason the way I had Chase, but I’d convinced myself we could be happy. If Chase had the freedom to chase his dreams without me holding him back, I could live with my decision.

Unfortunately, it hadn’t worked out that way. Not for me.

But it didn’t seem to have happened for Chase the way I thought it would, either. With the unexpected death of his uncle, he’d returned to Silver Creek Farm. And while I’d never seen him with another woman, that didn’t mean he had lingering feelings for me.

Or did it?

But now Mallory’s words gave me pause.

Was it possible he’d never moved on either?

“Anna?” Mal’s voice pulled me back.

“Yeah?”

“Promise me you won’t waste an opportunity if it presents itself. Or if it doesn’t, create one. Today. Go clean up, put on some lipstick, and undo a button. Or two.”

I laughed. “You’re bad, Mal.” But as I turned my head toward the doorway, my breath hitched.

Chase was leaning against the frame, arms crossed, watching me. No, not just watching. He was studying me again in a way that made me feel he was searching for something.

I swallowed hard. “I should go,” I told Mallory quietly, my eyes still locked with his.

There was a beat of silence, then Mallory’s voice asked, “He’s there, isn’t he?” I could practically see her knowing smirk through the phone.

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