Looking in the mirror, I cringe at the red blob on top of my head that is far more mess than bun at this point. I crack my neck from side to side as I round the front of my car.
The front door to the house next door swings open. A man pulling a ball cap down over his brown hair walks through the door. “Love you too,” he shouts over his shoulder.
That must be Grayson. I haven’t seen him in years, but that’s got to be him.
A weird shiver runs through my body. My steps falter.
He glances up. Our eyes connect, and we both freeze. No. There’s no way. It can’t be.
His eyes dart between my grandma’s house and back to me. The way his eyes widen isn’t just because I look like crap right now. The same realization is crashing into him.
We slept together, not having a clue who the other person was.
“Sienna?” he asks. His voice is barely loud enough for me to hear across the yard.
“Grayson,” I say with a heavy exhale.
He runs a hand over his trimmed beard, the very thing that probably kept me from recognizing him.
“Did you know?” I ask.
He steps onto the grass toward me. His eyebrows scrunch together, like what I said offended him. “Of course not. Why would I act like I didn’t know you if I did?”
I shrug because honestly, Idon’tknow. What I do know is that he left. He left without a word. No goodbye. Nothing.
He takes another step in my direction, an almost hopeful look on his face. I put my hand up in front of me to stop him.
I don’t have nearly enough energy to deal with all of this, so like the very mature twenty-three-year-old I am, I default to anger.
“Let’s just pretend it never happened, or at least that it never happened between us. We were different people that night.”
His face falls, dragging a piece of my heart with it.
“I’m not just visiting Aspen Springs anymore. This is my home,” I say.
His forehead creases in confusion.
“I’m taking over the shelter for my grandma,” I add.
He nods in understanding.
“So… let’s just not. Okay?” I finish, even though it’s the opposite of what I actually want to say to him.
He slides his hands into his pockets. “If that’s what you want,” he says, quieter than before.
I nod once. Without another word, I stomp up the stairs and into the house. As much as I want to turn around and look back at him, I can’t. If I saw that empty expression on his face for one more second, I was going to crumble.
Two years later and he’s still looking at me with the same sort of wonder that he did that day. If I’m not mistaken, there’s a level of heat twined in there, too.
I swallow heavily, trying to hold onto my resentment toward this man because holy shit he looks handsome tonight.
Normally, he’s either in jeans and a T-shirt or some version of his uniform for work. Tonight, his black suit fits perfectly on every muscular inch of him.
All the places I can’t seem to forget exist, even though I’ve tried continuously for the past couple of years.
Out of the corner of my eye, I can see Hadley darting her eyes between me and her brother. No doubt she’s picking up on the weird vibe hanging in the room now. More conversation is happening around me, but I can’t process it.
Grayson glances at Hadley, then back at me. “You both look beautiful.”
