“I can’t just let you go. I still love you too much.”
“Tucker, we’ve already talked to a lawyer, and we’ve already started filling out the paperwork for our divorce.”
“I don’t care. I have to know that there is absolutely nothing left between us to fight for.” He took her face in his hands, tenderly brushing his thumbs across her cheeks. “And I don’t. I know there’s still something.”
She closed her eyes to keep the tears locked inside. She wanted more than anything to give their love one more chance, but they’d given it dozens of chances, and every one had failed. This would be no different because what little remained wasn’t strong enough to overcome the rift that had opened between them. They’d proven that time and again.
“Just one kiss, Allie,” Tucker whispered. “One kiss to prove there’s nothing left. If there isn’t, I’ll let you go, but if there’s even a spark of what we used to have… please, let’s start over and find what we lost.”
“How can one kiss prove anything?”
“It can prove a lot.”
“This is insane.”
“Maybe it is, but I have to try. But I won’t without your permission.”
His blue eyes searched hers, begging her to comply. The hope inscribed in his lopsided smile reminded her of the boy she’d first fallen in love with in high school, and despite the months of fading romance, her heart melted. The part of her that was resigned to their divorce thought this was ridiculous, but the rest of her fervently hoped there was enough love left to give them a reason to try again, so she nodded.
With enchanting tenderness, he tilted her chin up and lowered his head. When he angled his body against hers, desire flashed through her, but it was nothing compared to the enveloping flood of emotion that rampaged through her when their lips met. She moaned and pressed her body more tightly against him, giving in to her instinctive need to be close to him. The tears streamed down her cheeks as she wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing herself up on her toes to kiss him more deeply.
It was far more powerful than a spark, and her heart soared as joy mingled with desire. That single kiss conveyed his enduring devotion, and for the first time in longer than she could recall, she felt cherished, adored, like she was the only woman he’d ever need or want.
“I love you,” she whispered against his lips. “I love you so much. But how do we fix this?”
“We start taking walks again, every night. We make time for us. Because I love you, and now I know you still love me.”
“I never stopped loving you. I just… forgot why I did.”
“Let me help you remember.”
Without warning, he picked her up, swung her around so she was straddling his waist like a horse, and took off up the dock at a trot. Laughter spilled out of her as the tears continued to flow, and relief coursed through her with sweet intensity. He was right. They had let the simple delight in each other slip away, and all those times they had tried to rediscover what had brought them together in the first place, they had overlooked it. Never again, Alicia vowed, resting her cheek against Tucker’s back. Closing her eyes, she smiled. Maybe there were no guarantees that they could make it work, but the relief and this spark of lost passion rekindled her hope that they would.
*
Suzie O’Connell is the author of the Northstar Angels series, contemporary romances set in scenic Montana. The first three books in the series, Mountain Angel, Summer Angel, and Twice Shy, are out, with the fourth book, Wild Angel, to be released in early 2014. When she isn’t writing, Suzie can be found with a camera in hand, playing in the mountains with her husband, daughter, and golden retriever. Visit her site at:
www.suzieoconnell.com
*
Strangers
Holli Spaulding
We all start as strangers. Whether we meet on a bus, a train, work, in line at Starbucks, or on a park bench, we all have to start somewhere. Most strangers come into our life for a brief moment, just passing through like leaves in the wind. But some strangers come into our lives when we need it most. Just when we think our lives might be over or when things can’t get much worse, a stranger might just walk by and change everything you thought you knew.
*
I’m sitting on a bench at what used to be my favorite park. My dad would take me here every day after school when I was a kid. Now I come here every year on the anniversary of his death, trying to remember a happier time in my life. It’s littered with trash, broken bottles and graffiti. The weeds have grown so tall that they brush my shoulders as I sit. Cuss words, penises, and gang signs are drawn all over the slide and tunnel. Kids these days are so unoriginal. If you’re going to leave your mark on something, make it memorable, passionate, or at least funny. It doesn’t look like it’s been used in years. The park has just withered away and died.
I sink back into the bench, close my eyes, and allow myself to remember my dad. I can almost feel the wind in my hair as he pushes me higher on the swing. As I pump my legs faster and faster, I swear they can reach the clouds. I used to think if I could swing just a little bit higher, pump my legs a little bit faster, I could jump out of my swing and land among the clouds.