Revel (Second Chance Romance #1)(22)

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They’d fallen asleep after that, a long afternoon nap that fell into night time. This time Charlotte woke up first and she stared at Declan as he slept. He was a back sleeper, and one of his forearms rested on his abs as he quietly snored next to her. She leaned down to softly kiss his lips.

“Thank you,” she whispered. “For making me happy. Even if it’s just today.”

She hadn’t expected him to hear her, so she was surprised when he replied.

“Why would it be just today?” he asked, his eyes flickering open. “You mean you used me for great sex?” He winked at her and she laughed.

“I thought you might…” she started. “I don’t know. I just thought maybe…”

He pulled her toward him, “I don’t want it to be just last night. Or today. Or tomorrow. I don’t want this to end anytime soon. Or at all.”

She brushed his hair back from his forehead, “Me either.”

“Good,” he said and they kissed for a few moments, the touch of their lips saying more than words ever could.





Chapter Ten


Charlotte looked down at her cell. She thought about calling Vanessa to ask her what she should do, but she knew even if Vanessa told her to talk to him, she wouldn’t. She couldn’t.

I keep saying that, she thought. Fuck. I’m supposed to be relaxing. Now I feel nauseated.

She stood up and walked over to the kitchen. The wine was still on the counter and she took a long swig from the bottle. She peeked through the blinds over the kitchen sink. He was sitting on the beach now, on her towel. Was he waiting for her? Did he really think she was coming back out there?

She looked around. Why hadn’t she gone to the store before showing up here? It meant she’d eventually have to leave the house today, unless she planned on not eating. Which didn’t matter at the moment, since she wasn’t the least bit hungry.

“I’ll just order food,” she said out loud, pacing the floor. “Then I don’t have to leave the house. And he’ll eventually have to go away. If he’s staying at his dad’s, then it’s a good 30 minutes from here.”

She took a couple of deep breaths. Her heart was still pounding.

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Declan had been sitting for a while. He was beginning to feel pretty warm and in dire need of some water. He glanced back over at Charlotte’s cottage. She hadn’t come back out, no one had. Was she in there talking to her husband? Was he about to get his ass kicked?

He sighed and stood up.

Might as well go in, he thought. Hopefully the liquor cabinet is stocked. I’m going to need it.

As he walked toward his mansion, he couldn’t help but wonder what he should do next. Was she only there this week? For the summer? Did she live there? He’d looked her up before, out of curiosity. She’d been an OB in Nashville, doing well for herself. Not married then, but everything could be different now. She’d seemed happy, which made him happy.

It had to be just for a vacation. She had her own practice, and after what happened between them, he knew she’d never want to come back here. Charleston was the death of them, the death of her mother. The death of his…

No. He couldn’t think about that. There wasn’t enough bourbon in the world for him to handle that kind of trip down memory lane.





Ten Years Ago…


They’d become inseparable after that night. When Charlotte wasn’t working, she was with Declan. And when Charlotte was working, Declan was in the carriage house, waiting for her to come home.

“What if,” he said one day, “You became my assistant and quit the Dixie Garden? I could pay you to ‘assist’ me with things.”

Charlotte rolled her eyes, “First of all, what do you need an assistant for? Second of all, that sounds a little too close to prostitution for my liking. And third? I like working. I like making my own money and not depending on anyone else.”

Declan wrapped his arm around her as they sat on the loveseat in her small living room, “My independent lady. I get it. I just miss you when you’re gone. I sound pretty clingy, huh?”

She laughed and kissed him, “If it were anyone else, yes. But I miss you, too. I think about you my whole shift.”

“Yeah?” he said. “I think about you your whole shift, too.”

They kissed, long and deep, like they couldn’t get close enough to the other.

He pulled away first, “As much as I want to keep going… and going. And going… I have to ask you something.”

“Sure,” Charlotte said, suddenly anxious. “What’s up?”

“Well,” he said slowly. “My parents have been bugging me about meeting you. I mean, they don’t know we’re together, but they’re curious about the girl that lives in the carriage house. And they’re not stupid, I’m sure they can figure out you’re not just some random College of Charleston chick shacking up for cheap rent. I think they sense something else is happening.”

“We’re together?” she teased. “Like, officially?”

Declan looked up at her, his eyes wide with surprise, “I mean… I assumed we were. Are. Right?”

She wrapped her slender arms around his neck, pulling him in for a long kiss, “Yes. Of course.”