Page 31 of The Corner of Heartbreak and Forever
Reed stepped inside and made a beeline for Grace. “I think I’ll have my sugar without coffee this morning, thank you.” He pressed a kiss to Grace’s cheek, earning an approving smile from her mother. “Grace, can I borrow you for a minute? I want to show you something.”
He took her hand, leading her out the door and around to the far side of his truck, where he wrapped her in his arms and lowered his lips to hers, taking her in a kiss so hot it should have been preceded by a warning sign. She came away a little dizzy and alotturned on.
“I COULDN’T WAIT another second,” Reed said, and went for more. His hands moved down her hips as the force of their kisses drove her back against the truck. Her softness conformed to his hard frame. They’d always been insatiable, but everything felt amplified, stronger, more real. He wanted to lift her into his arms and take her right there against the truck. He reminded himself they were in her parents’ driveway and reluctantly drew back. But the fire in her eyes and her grip on his shoulders brought his mouth to hers again.
When they finally parted, he pressed his hands flat on the door, caging her in. It was safer than his hands on her body, which would have made him want to spend the entire day making up for lost years.
“I didn’t get a wink of sleep,” he admitted. “Every time I closed my eyes I saw you.”
Her lips were enticingly pink from the force of their kisses, and when they curved into a sexy smile, he touched his forehead to hers to keep from kissing her again. “What have you done to me, Gracie?”
“I think you mean what have we done to each other. Whatever it is, I don’t want to stop. And, Reed, I owe you an apology.”
He drew back so he could see her face more clearly. “For what?”
“Last night when you told me about what happened with your ex and having to sell your business, I was so wrapped up in my own head, I didn’t slow down enough to think about how it must have made you feel. The betrayal alone must have been horrible, but coupled with selling the business you worked so hard to build? I can’t imagine how devastated you were.”
“It’s over, Grace. Leave it in the past.”
“I thought we weren’t hiding from our pasts anymore. By the way, my mom knew about us. She just told me, but she said she never told my father, which is really…big.”
“How did she find out?”
Grace shrugged. “I don’t think it was Sable, and if any of my siblings knew they’d never have been able to keep it a secret. Mother’s intuition, I suppose. But can we circle back for a second? I need you to know you can talk to me about what happened in Michigan and I promise I won’t get upset this time.” She took his hand in hers and said, “I don’t want to skip the things that made you the man you are. I don’t want anything left unsaid.”
“Talking about Alina is the last thing I want to do.”
“Then don’t talk about her. Tell me aboutyou.”
“Gracie…”
“You don’t have to, but I know it had to hurt.”
She embraced him, and her comfort felt so good, the truth came without effort. “Oh, Grace. When you and I broke up, I didn’t really feelbetrayedbecause even though I gave my all to our relationship, we both always knew where you were heading after high school. We knew what was coming. But with her, I never gave my all to the relationship. So when she cheated, the betrayal was cutting, but I knew I’d dodged a bullet. The betrayal of my business partner was far worse than the betrayal of my ex. Thad and I had a bond I had given one hundred and ten percent to for years.” His fingers curled into fists. “That pissed me off to the point of no return. That’s why I sold him my stake in the business. I’d have come home either way to help my uncle, but I worked my butt off to build that business, and Thad’s actions negated everything. He broke my trust, and I knew I’d never want to work hard enough to repair it.”
“Do you miss the work you did there?” she asked.
“Sure, but there’s nothing I can’t do. I’ll rebuild here. I’ve got my eyes on a few projects.” He touched his lips to hers. “When I first moved back to town, I went into Morgyn’s shop to buy a gift for my aunt, and we got to talking. When she heard I’d just moved back to town, without knowing anything about the reasons, she said, ‘The universe has a plan for you, and once it shows itself, you’ll know you did the right thing.’”
Grace laughed. “That sounds like Morgyn. She’s all about leaving things in the hands of fate.”
He gazed into her eyes, his heart so full of her his past felt like a story he’d heard about someone else. “Don’t you see, Gracie? She was right.”
Chapter Ten
AS GRACE DROVE down the main drag of Meadowside toward Amber’s bookstore Monday afternoon, tingles of anticipation crawled up her limbs and chest. Meadowside was a quaint small town, much like Oak Falls, known for its rural setting and close-knit community. But to Grace it would always bethe place where Reed lived. As a kid, she’d get shivers of anticipation about the possibility of running into Reed when she was out with her friends or family. Just catching sight of him had been enough to hold her over for hours back then. But now, if this morning was any indication, catching sight of him would never be enough again.
Grace parked in the lot beside the drugstore and walked down the block to Story Time, Amber’s bookstore, which was located between the Catch Up Diner and Magnificent Gifts. Amber’s storefront window displayed a mix of recent releases, a select few of her customers’ favorite books, and a mix of bookish gifts and dried flowers. As much as Grace had always wanted to escape small-town life, most of her siblings never had. Amber embraced it and had dug her roots so deep in both Oak Falls and Meadowside, it was a wonder she hadn’t begun sprouting saplings. She had a knack for making everyone feel as though they were an integral part of her bookstore, holding contests for the front-window displays, sending birthday wishes, and taking every customer suggestion to heart. She put energy into the community in the same way Grace put energy into each of her productions.
A bell chimed above the door as Grace walked in, greeted by hints of cinnamon and the kick-off-your-shoes-and-read-for-a-while aura Amber had expertly created.
“Hey, Gracie,” Amber said from behind the counter, where she was ringing up a purchase for Haylie Hudson, Scotty’s mother. “I’ll be done in a sec. Make yourself at home.”
“Hi, Grace.” Haylie embraced her. “I heard you’re teaching a screenplay writing class. IwishI could take a fun class like that, but between the center and Scotty, I barely have time to breathe during the week. But Boyd’s fiancée, Janie, is excited to attend. Her first romance novel was a huge success. She’s so creative. She’s always trying to hone her craft.” Boyd was Haylie and Chet’s brother.
“I can’t wait to meet her,” Grace said. “It’s great to see you.”
Amber handed Haylie her bag of books and came around the counter wearing a cute pair of jeans and colorful leather boots. Reno pushed to his feet and ambled over.
