“You have arrived at your destination,” my navigation system announced.
I slowed, looking at the questionable destination I’d been guided to. There was nothing from the road to signify I had arrived anywhere. I traveled another fifty yards until I finally came to a narrow drive on the left. Putting on the turn signal, even though it seemed I was the only one on the road—B too far behind to see in my rear view—I slowed to take the turn. Tarmac turned to dirt, loose stones flicking up the metal paneling of the rented silver Toyota. The car jostled around on the well-worn tracks bouncing in and out of potholes. I smiled knowing Lucas had created these tracks to build the lakefront cabin.
The journey over the dirt track was longer than expected, the edges of the woods seemed to inch closer narrowing the road ahead, branches scratching against the windows. I followed the twists and turns, the smell of pine wafting through the air vents. I was heading further and further away from civilization, the trees taller, thicker, creating a canopy that blocked the sun.
When I saw a clearing, I exhaled in relief. For a long while, I’d been fearful my suddenly quiet Navman had led me astray. No doubt B would be seriously questioning whether he’d been duped. Slowing to a crawl, I dialed his number and put him on speaker. There was a thirty-second silence until I heard the double beep signaling a failed connection. I was out of range, and that was not ideal. Slipping my cell back in my handbag, I sat forward in the driver’s seat wanting a better view of what I was entering.
There, in the middle of the clearing upon pine needle covered grass, was the luxurious cabin commissioned by the state’s congressman. Tools were neatly assembled at the front of a stack of tree logs. The cabin itself neared completion with just the porch requiring a roof.
Pulling to a stop, I climbed out and gently closed the door. The air was fresh, the sound of nature the only noise. Smoothing my top, I stopped walking when a man appeared from around the side of the cabin. He too stopped, caught by surprise when he saw me.
It wasn’t Lucas.
This man was darker skinned and shorter than what I expected Lucas to be. He threw me a look of curiosity before leaning back and talking to someone out of view. Inhaling deeply, and willing myself to be more courageous, I walked toward the man, my boots crunching the debris on the ground. As I approached, he gave a small smile and nodded.
“Afternoon, Miss,” he greeted warmly.
“Afternoon,” I returned the greeting.
“The boss will be right with you.”
My stomach churned with an anxious anticipation, palms sweaty as I fiddled with the car key. The man carried on about his business cutting into one of the tree logs with a hand saw.
Nervously continuing my journey, I stopped at the end of the porch and watched the figure move on the beams above. He had his back to me as he bent down to use his nail gun. Sensing he was being watched, the man turned, balancing his boots on the framework.
My heart stopped.
Our eyes met.
It was him.
The same strong jawline now covered in a five-day growth did things to me I’d never felt before. His shoulders had widened, muscles bulging from his well-fitted shirt.
Lucas frowned, a world of thoughts passing through his mind. For a few intense moments we just stared, taking in each other in, absorbing the enormity of the situation. Without saying a word, Lucas bent at the knees and swung from the beam, landing on the wooden deck with the prowling grace and strength of a lion.
My heart sprung to life. Lucas had always been a good-looking teenager, but in ten years he’d grown into a man, with carved Adonis muscles. His choice of work had shaped him nicely.
I froze, ecstatic and terrified.
Lucas made the first move. He closed the intolerable space between us, strong arms wrapping around my waist pulling me into an embrace. My cheek rested against his hard chest, and I could hear the pounding of his heart. We held each other tight, and I quietly sobbed.
This was what we missed the day he left.
This was ten years’ worth of goodbye in one embrace. Except this time, I wouldn’t be walking away.
He breathed me in, large hands cupping my face. “Gemma,” Lucas sounded my name possibly for the first time in a decade. He smelled of pine wood and cologne. His hands slid around my shoulders gently pushing me away to study my face. “It’s been so long, and now you’re standing right in front of me.” I listened to the sound of his voice, deep and gravelly unlike the Lucas I knew as a boy.
“I am,” I finally managed, relishing the intensity of his gaze. He cupped my cheeks, thumbs working gently to wipe the stray tears.
He frowned. “Why, after all this time?” The old hurt reappeared. The same heartache I saw when he was leaving.
“Lucas, I don’t blame you. You having to leave without saying goodbye wasn’t a choice of yours. I know that.”
Lucas stilled, lost to a dark thought. His hands grew firm on my shoulders before carefully pushing me aside. He looked away, suddenly agitated.
“You can’t be here, Gemma,” he practically pleaded. There was a glimpse of the teenage Lucas again. The one that carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. That, and fear. I knew the path this was heading down. The very reason why we were in this position in the first place.
“Mason has already found me.”
I watched, assessing his reaction. He swallowed heavily, his Adam’s apple bobbing. “Mason found you?”
I nodded. “According to him, every week for the last ten years.”
“Does he know you’re here?”
“I don’t know.”
Lucas rubbed his jaw, again lost in thought. I needed to ease his mind.
“I don’t understand the full hold Mason has had on you, but this can’t go on.”
“Gemma, that’s all well and good saying that, but Mason is—”
“Dangerous?” I almost scoffed. “Loose? I know this. I knew it ten years ago, and I’ve recently been reminded of it.”
A moment of confusion crossed his face. He wasn’t aware of everything Mason had put me through and now, after meeting for the first time in a decade wasn’t the time to bring it up.
“Lucas, it’s taken me this long to build up the courage to find you. I’m not leaving.”
The tension slowly faded, a small smile playing on his lips.
“Dominic,” he called, not breaking his gaze from me.
“Yes, boss?” I heard the voice of the man I’d seen earlier. To be honest, I’d forgotten he was still there.
“We’re done for the day.”
We waited until Dominic packed up and a car door opened and closed, the engine noise fading down the drive. Silently, Lucas held out his hand and I accepted, feeling the connection we’d always had. I let him steer me across the pine-covered grass down to the water’s edge and onto the small jetty that fronted the cabin. The wood creaked under our feet, the lake glistening around us. We sat side by side, our legs dangling over the edge. Lucas now held my hand in both of his, the sides of our bodies connected like glue.
We sat in silence in an attempt to gather our thoughts. I had a short time to mentally prepare for this but for Lucas, randomly appearing on his doorstep after so long, he was going to need some time.
“You look beautiful, Gem,” he said warmly, his thumb stroking my hand. “I often wondered what you would look like now. Whether you still had your long blonde hair, or if you finally cut it off like you kept threatening to do when you were fifteen.”
I knocked his shoulder with mine while laughing at his very accurate memory. “You always want what you’ve never had.”
“Ain’t that the truth?” A melancholy settled between us, the love we shared for each other having never lapsed or been explored.
“What brings you here?”
I wanted to tell him everything. But I was scared to tell him about the stalking, the threats, and harassment. I wanted to just enjoy the moment catching up on years that should never have been lost.
“There’s a few reasons. Most of them can wait until later.”
Lucas cocked an eyebrow, amused. “Later?”