Unforgettable (Cloverleigh Farms #5)(82)

My throat had been tight ever since he’d started talking, and now it threatened to close completely. Which was fine because I didn’t know what to say anyway. Thank goodness I was holding onto my keys and bag, because if I hadn’t had something to clutch, I might have thrown my arms around him or let him kiss me—and I needed to take it easy this time.

“Did I say it wrong?” Tyler’s expression was concerned.

I smiled and shook my head, trying to swallow.

“What’s the matter? Why aren’t you talking?”

I fanned my face as my eyes teared up.

“Oh.” He looked relieved as he squeezed my upper arms. “I wish I could hug you.”

“A hug might be okay,” I whispered, desperately trying to avoid melting down in front of him. Or blowing up. Or giving in.

He wrapped me up in his warm, strong embrace, and I pressed my cheek against his chest, allowing myself a small moment of comfort. Maybe he meant it this time. Maybe it would be okay. Maybe he would stay.

But he’d have to work to win back my trust—and this time, we were taking it slow.

When I felt certain a breakdown of some sort was not forthcoming, I stepped back from him, pushing against his chest. “Okay. I need to say a few things. I’ve missed you too—so much I’ve cried more in the last ten days than I did in all of middle school, and I cried a lot in middle school.”

He pressed his lips together and braced himself, like he knew what was coming.

“I beat myself up every single night, wondering if I’d imagined the things you said, the plans we’d made, the way you looked at me. The things you said to me right before you left stuck—I thought maybe I made up this idealized version of you in my head. But I didn’t, Tyler.”

He shook his head. “You didn’t. Everything was real. It’s always been real between us.”

I felt the ground giving way beneath my feet and stood taller. “But I don’t trust you yet. If you’re serious about what you’re saying here tonight, you’re going to have to prove it to me.”

“Of course. Tell me what to do, and I’ll do it.”

I shook my head. “Nope. It can’t work like that. I’m no longer writing your essays, Tyler. You have to figure this out.”

Inhaling, he squared his shoulders. “Okay, I can do that. I think.”

“I think you can too.” I softened a little.

“Sadie flew out to see me over the weekend. Surprised the hell out of me.”

“Why’d she do that?”

“She claimed she was worried about me, because I hadn’t answered any of her calls or texts, but I think it was mostly to tell me I was being an idiot.”

“Sisters are good for that.”

“Well, she was right. I left here thinking it was the right decision for everyone, but I was more miserable and lonely each day. And I don’t want that to be the rest of my life—not when so much more is possible. Anyway, I went right to the hospital after I arrived, but something Virgil said made my brain explode, and I realized I needed to see you right away.”

“What did he say?”

“It was something simple, but it reminded me that the things I loved and respected most about my dad weren’t about baseball. They were about family.”

I smiled. “Virgil is wise.”

“Virgil is wise.”

We stood looking at each other for a moment, and I knew I’d better get inside—alone—before my resolve not to kiss him weakened. “I should go in.”

“Okay.” His expression was crestfallen, but he stepped aside and let me walk up the steps. “Can I see you tomorrow?”

Up on my porch, I turned to face him, wondering what was safe to agree to. Dinner seemed too much like a date, and a drink meant my decision-making abilities would suffer. I bit my lip. “I have to work, but I could meet you for lunch.”

“I’ll take it.” He grinned, making my heart flutter.

“What?” I asked.

“I love it when you bite your lip. I just found an old picture of us at my dad’s kitchen table, and you were chewing on it.”

I laughed self-consciously. “I’m surprised I haven’t chewed it right off.”

“Don’t do that. I love your lips. I’ve missed them.”

My face got hot, and I smiled. “Get out of here, Tyler Shaw, before I lose my mind and invite you in.”

He laughed. “God, I missed you. Goodnight, April.”

“Goodnight.” Then I unlocked the door, went inside, and leaned back against it, exhaling with relief.

I’d managed to resist him.

If that wasn’t proof that I was stronger than I thought, I wasn’t sure what was.





We agreed by text to meet for lunch at a restaurant downtown, and I arrived first. When I saw him walking toward me, my heart jumped around in my chest.

He sat down across from me in the booth. “Hey. How was your morning?”

“Good. Yours?”

“Excellent. Virgil is doing better, I accepted the school’s offer for a coaching position, and I have an appointment with a realtor this afternoon to look at some listings on the water.”

“Wow. You’ve been busy.”