Stay with Me (Brook Hollow 2) - Page 20

“Why can’t I make sure she locks up safely? It’s getting dark outside,” Abel grumbled. He didn’t want to admit to Jessy he missed Mia more than he ever thought he would. She was on his mind every single day. Jessy would give him a superior attitude of ‘I told you so.’

“Fine.” Jessy glared at him and poked him in the chest. “But you’d better be nice mister. She is just now feeling better. Stress was involved in her illness and we both know who was the cause of that stress.”

Abel felt ashamed. He rubbed his chest. “Does my brother know of your temper? Poor sap. Every word to Mia will be covered with sugar, I promise.”

He crossed his heart, making Jessy rolled her eyes. She shook her head and walked out of the coffee shop. Her car was parked right in front so Abel watched her get in safely and drive away.

“Oh, where is Jessy?” Abel turned toward Mia. She was wearing a red t-shirt and black leggings. She looked like she lost weight and he felt remorseful. She had dark circles under her eyes.

“She was meeting up with Lincoln. I wanted to make sure you locked up safely.” He hated feeling so awkward with Mia. He wanted to kiss her and hold her, but he no longer had the right. He wanted to fix things but he was at a loss as to how. She’d probably brush off any attempt of his to apologize. He was an ass and he knew it.

Mia looked uncomfortable with the idea and he couldn’t blame her. He had done a lot of soul-searching over the last two weeks and he didn’t like what he saw in himself. Lincoln had been right. He had not loved Lydia and he didn’t know the baby. It was the idea of fatherhood he liked. He owed Mia a huge apology even though he hated apologizing. Every time he opened his mouth the words got stuck in his throat. He couldn’t think of any fancy, suave lines to make this all better.

Mia put on her coat and he watched her lock the front door and check the knob twice. He had the same habit and it made him smile. Her car was across

the street so he walked her to it. Soon it would be snowing and he would be busy with blizzards and traffic accidents. He would gladly spend the winter locked with her in some mountain cabin until she forgave him.

“Thank you, Sheriff Ramirez.” She sounded so polite and he hated it. He still remembered how she sounded in the throes of passion and when she screamed his name out. He wanted her back but he didn’t know how to tell her. Would she even be open to giving him a second chance? The ugly words he said was still between them.

“Will you let me apologize for the awful things I said in my office, Mia?” he asked, looking into her pretty blue eyes and watching the wind pick up her curls, and bouncing them off of her shoulder. A pink scarf was wrapped around her neck. The evening was making the sky turn a dark gloomy gray, but just looking into her pretty eyes made him feel warm and mushy inside. Why had he let his fears rule him? Mia was not intentionally trying to deceive him. She had been afraid for her life, how could he blame her for fibbing when her life depended on it? She must have been scared to death with her crazy ex wanting to hurt her constantly.

“Not if you are doing it out of obligation. You meant what you said. Anyways, all we had was a meaningless fling.” She unlocked her car door and threw her purse in the passenger seat. She had a stern, unforgiving look on her face that was so unlike the sweet docile Mia he had come to know and love. He knew her hurt went deep. Her pain made him ache even more.

“I didn’t mean it. I was angry, shocked and confused,” he admitted. “I don’t think. I blurt utter nonsense out then I regret it. That’s the real me, Mia. I’m an ass. I’ll probably mess up a lot if you stick around.”

She got in the driver’s seat but didn’t close the car door on him. That had to be a good sign. She looked up at him, the sorrow clear in her eyes. Because of his issues with his past, he had hurt her deeply and made her sad. She was so sweet and loving.

“It doesn’t matter. We’re not in a relationship and we’re not friends. Just forget about it. I’ll be out of your hair soon.” Her voice had no emotions in it and he didn’t like it. He wanted to see her smile and hear her laugh.

“I want us to be friends and start over.” Maybe if he got that far he could talk her into forgiving him and giving it another try. He couldn’t forget about Mia no matter how hard he tried. He couldn’t even sleep without her. He drove by her house night after night but never stopped. Sometimes he parked across the street, gathering his courage to go knock on her door but he always ended up driving off.

“I’m leaving soon,” she reminded him without any emotion in her voice, as if it was a done deal. As if nothing would make her stay in Brook Hollow. He had to change her mind. He had to see her occasionally, even if it was from far away.

“Why leave? You have a good job with Becky.” He didn’t like the idea of never seeing her again. He wanted her near even if she hated him.

“I do love this town and Becky, too, but my home is in New York.” She sounded unsure and that gave him hope.

“Listen, I do have to talk to you about something, Abel.” She bit her bottom lip and looked frightened.

“Is your ex bothering you again? I thought he was going into rehab?” He would gladly pound some sense into the man. Lincoln found out that her ex had beat the crap out of her several times and stalked her ruthlessly before Gwen got her out of New York. Gwen might be a viper in his eyes, but he was glad Mia had such a strong ally in her life.

“He is. It has nothing to do with that.” She looked worried. “I’m exhausted right now, but how about we meet at my house tomorrow? I don’t have to be here until noon.”

“Okay.” She piqued his curiosity with her strange request. Maybe she wanted to work things out. “What time?”

“Ten,” she said, closing her car door. She rolled down her window. “See you tomorrow.”

It sounded like a question, so he nodded. “Tomorrow.”

He watched the red tail lights of her car disappear. Tomorrow he would work on getting her back into his life, and this time he would keep her, maybe even forever. The thought didn’t feel like a noose around his neck. It made him whistle all the way to his car.

Chapter Twelve

Mia felt like she could easily throw up any minute and not because of morning sickness. She had been lucky and her morning sickness was mild. What would Abel say? She could imagine his horrified expression and she almost burst into tears. She had felt an overabundance of nerves last night, so she had stayed up cleaning the small house. Now it was spotless and smelled fresh. She put on a pot of coffee just to have something to do. Abel might be so upset with her news that he might even storm out of her house. She had no idea what to expect from him, and that is what gave her such a stomach ache. She was determined to remain cool and collected, even if he got furious and shouted at her or called her names.

The doorbell rang and she smoothed her cream-colored sweater down with her hands. Her brown suede pants kept her feeling warm. She opened the door, ignoring how handsome he looked in his uniform. “Come in.”

Sorry I’m late. I had to stop by the station and got caught up in work.” He wiped his feet on her rug before coming in. He took off his coat and hung it up.

Tags: Lee Rose Erotic
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