Second Chances

It had been two days since she’d nearly been killed by a madman, and one day since the man she’d never stopped loving had confessed his love for her, and now, as Jessica recuperated in her aunt’s sunroom, she finally felt all was right in her world. Yes, this newly rekindled relationship with Kyle was still fresh and tender, but her hopes were extraordinarily high that they would be able to work through the challenges that they were sure to encounter.

The sound of Kyle descending the staircase filled her with anticipation, and when he entered the sunroom where she was reading, she set her book down and smiled at him.

He smiled in return, his sea green eyes showing his pleasure in seeing her. “I wanted to let you know that I’m going to run a couple of errands.” 

“Okay.”

His smile grew as he walked over to her and placed his hands on the arms of her chair, then leaned towards her.

She smiled up at him, eager to receive the kiss he offered. As his lips touched hers, her arms went around his neck, holding him close.

“This is going to take some getting used to,” he said as he pulled away a moment later.

“What?” she said, one eyebrow arched.

“Being able to kiss you whenever I want.”

Her smile grew. “I know I’ll be able to adjust.”

Laughing, he straightened, forcing her arms to release him. “That’s what I’m counting on.”

“Don’t be long,” she said.

“I won’t. But if I want to get your aunt’s bathroom finished before she comes home on Monday, I need to get a few last supplies.”

Her smile dimmed. “Do you think it will be done in time?” Her Aunt Ellen had been in a long-term care facility recovering from ankle surgery, and Jessica wanted her homecoming to be wonderful. If her master bathroom wasn’t functional yet, her homecoming would be less than spectacular.

“That’s what I’m working towards. I still have tomorrow and the rest of today, so I’m confident I’ll be able to get it done.”

“Thanks for working so hard, Kyle.”

He smiled. “It’s what I do.”

Jessica laughed, then watched her former fiancé and brand-new boyfriend walk toward the front door. Admiring the way his t-shirt accentuated his muscular build, she embraced the feeling of joy that suffused her. A feeling brought on by the fresh possibilities for a future with the man she’d never stopped loving, even after he’d broken their engagement five years ago.

The previous day, when she’d asked him why he’d left her five years before, he’d said, “As the time for our wedding got closer, I started having nightmares, flashbacks really, to when I was a teenager and my parents were going through a bitter divorce and . . . well, I started thinking that if I made a mistake in getting married that I would have to go through the same thing. The thought paralyzed me, and I panicked.” His voice had softened. “But Jess, I never stopped loving you.” Then he’d told her that the idea of committing to marriage didn’t scare him anymore. 

Now, as Jessica thought about his explanation, she felt a tentative hope that she had a future with him, but then she frowned as the emotions of the last few weeks washed over her. She’d come to stay with her aunt to help her out after she’d been sick with a bout of the flu, but that simple task had turned into a roller coaster of emotions when Kyle had turned up to do some remodeling work for her aunt. 

Pushing aside the sadness, jealousy, and anger she’d experienced so recently, Jessica focused on her newly acquired happiness—happiness she’d begun to think she would never have.

A soft meow next to her chair pulled her attention to the gray tabby looking up at her. She patted her lap. “You’ll have to jump up, Hudson. My back’s too sore for me to pick you up.” The furry bundle leapt to her lap and rubbed his head against her shoulder, the volume of his purring increasing. “I love you too, big guy,” Jessica murmured as she scratched his head.

He moved around on her lap, his paws pressing into her legs. “Ouch,” she said, cringing, as he stepped on the spot where her sweat pants covered the bandage on her thigh. “That’s where the bullet grazed my leg.” She gently moved him so that he was lying on her lap, and shivered as she thought about the terrifying encounter with Douglas Harrington two days before.

A knock at the door startled her out of her thoughts, and she flashed back to Douglas showing up at her door unexpectedly on the day he’d attacked her. Hudson froze at the sound, then jumped down and went behind a chair.

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