Page 47 of Give Me a Reason

Anne got to her feet. While tears still stained her cheeks, she stood taller, as though a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. He was glad for her. Even though he couldn’t take away her other burdens, he was grateful that listening to her had helped her breathe easier.

He rose from his seat, feeling lighter himself. He needed time to process everything she had told him, but the old hurt and bitterness buried inside him stung a little less already.

“I won’t apologize for barging into your home on Christmas.” She held her chin up high. “But thank you for not kicking me out, and for giving me a chance to tell you the whole truth.”

He shrugged, then stretched his arm toward the hallway. “I’m kicking you out now.”

“As you should.” She smiled a little at that, making his heart beat unevenly, and walked toward the front door.

“I’m glad you told me.” He spoke to her back, following her from behind. Her shoulders tensed, but she didn’t stop walking. She didn’t turn around. He wouldn’t have been able to continue if she had. “I’m glad you came.”

Frederick reached around her and opened the door for her, his chest brushing against her shoulder. A shiver racked his body, and it felt as though Anne leaned back against him. But before he could be sure, she stepped onto the front porch. Her shoulders rose and fell before she turned to him.

She didn’t speak for a long moment, her gaze tracing the lines of his face with aching tenderness. He gripped the door handle hard to stop himself from pulling her into his arms again, because he was afraid she would let him.

“Merry Christmas, Frederick.”

“Merry Christmas, Anne,” he said, his voice low and husky. Her eyelashes fluttered like butterfly wings as a blush stole into her cheeks. She looked so lovely that he gave his head a sharp shake. “What is it?”

“Nothing.” Her lips spread into a slow, toe-curling smile that crinkled the corners of her eyes.

“Are you sure?” He grinned back at her like a fool, not caring that he wasn’t in on the joke. He wouldn’t mind being the punch line if she kept smiling like that.

“No.” She looked up at him from beneath her lashes, her teeth tugging on her bottom lip. God, he hoped he didn’t groan out loud. With a shy laugh, she said, “It’s nothing. Good night, Frederick.”

“Good night.”

Frederick stared down the street, long after she’d driven away without revealing her secret. He frowned. What brought that radiant smile to her lips? After everything he learned tonight,thiswas what was going to keep him up.

Everything I learned tonight…It was too much to process right now. His heart felt as raw as an open wound, but Anne’s revelation—she’d left him believing it was the best way to love him—covered it in healing warmth. It didn’t change the fact that she was wrong to leave him. It was a senseless waste of the best thing that had ever happened to him… happened tothem.

But she never thought he didn’t deserve her. That was good enough for him… for now. He had time to unpack the rest, slowly and carefully. Especially his tangled feelings for Anne.

Then it finally hit him.

“Anne.” He savored her name as it vibrated in his throat, pushed off his tongue, and took flight past his parted lips.

For the first time since she’d left him ten years ago, he’d called her by her name. That was why she’d blushed and smiled like a flower blossoming beneath the sun. And it made no sense, but it felt as though he’d somehow made her more real by voicing her name.

That Christmas night, Frederick fell asleep with a smile on his lips, having reclaimed a part of Anne.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Bosque Verde was simply breathtaking. Anne wanted Joe and Coraline’s bachelor-slash-bachelorette weekend to be perfect, so she had spent countless hours searching for the perfect location, and she’d found it. Even as she blushed at the smug thought, she truly believed she’d outdone herself. Then she blushed harder because she had a selfish motive for choosing this particular location.

She’d lived in California for more than twenty years, but she’d never visited Bosque Verde despite wanting to for as long as she could remember. Well, shehadleft for Seoul soon after she turned twenty-one and had only returned less than six months ago. She shouldn’t feeltoobad about neglecting it until now. Even so, she couldn’t help feeling a little bad because she’d been missing out.

Anne intended to make up for not visiting this gem sooner by enjoying this trip to the fullest. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d taken a real vacation. Besides, her motives weren’tpurelyselfish.

Bosque Verde was drenched in romance. The bride and groom wouldn’t be able to help but fall even more in love with each other. With over two hundred wineries, the scenic wine country would also provide the perfect escape for their party ofhardworking professionals and students. They would have every opportunity to properlyunwinedduring their long weekend here.

“Let the Galentine’s-Valentine’s-Bachelor-Bachelorette-Presidents’-Day-Weekend party begin.” Bethany whooped, swinging her fist in the air.

“I prefer to call it the Let’s-Drink-a-Shit-Ton-of-Wine party,” Tessa groused from next to Anne in the back seat.

“Same difference,” Bethany said, undeterred, maneuvering up the winding dirt road to their B&B with one hand. “Besides, wine drinking is a given. We’re in the premier wine country of the Central Coast. I doubt they even have water here.”

“Either one works for me, as long as it doesn’t turn into a Soon-to-Be-Bride-Dies-in-a-Tragic-Car-Crash party.” Coraline grabbed her younger sister’s hand from the air and placed it firmly back on the steering wheel. It was probably a wise call. The narrow, unpaved road was very bumpy, and they were climbing a steep hill. “So please get us to the B&B in one piece.”

---