From the Moment We Met

by Adair, Marina

  Yet here he was, sitting on a barstool, waiting for her to come and tell him what he did wrong.

  “Forget kicking his ass,” Marc said with a laugh, and Tanner wanted to ask him what was so funny. “He looks even worse than anything we could ever inflict. Jesus, you look worse than Nate did when Frankie dropped on him they were having twins.”

  “You’re having twins?” Tanner asked, surprised when he found himself wondering what that would feel like, knowing Abby was carrying his baby. Not that that was even a possibility now. “Congratulations.”

  “I’ll relay your message to Mittens, since he’s having twins,” Nate said, referring to his wife’s pet alpaca. “Seems that horse corral over off Silverado Trail added a few alpacas to the mix. Mittens made a run for it and spent two days in paradise before we found him. Frankie’s already bought a box of cigars. So I guess this round’s on me.”

  Nate dropped a bill on the countertop when the waiter delivered their drinks. Silently, they all toasted and took a sip.

  Marc set his glass on the counter, then his forearms, and leaned in. “You want to tell me why my sister spent her day using that statue for target practice and why you look like you got caught in the crossfire?”

  “She shot up Richard?”

  “Or blew him up,” Trey said with a laugh. “Took Rodney and me over two hours to find all of his parts.”

  “What does that even mean?” Tanner asked, resting his forehead on his hands.

  “What do you want it to mean?” Nate asked quietly.

  “Hell, I don’t know,” he admitted, not sure he even wanted to get into this with the three people who had been against him and Abby from the start. But they had more experience with women than anyone else he knew, most particularly Abby.

  And yeah, he was that desperate.

  “Everything was going fine, better than fine, perfect, then I told her about Ferris offering us the job and that was it. She was done. Didn’t want to talk about how to make it work, just heard commute and out I went. But I didn’t know she was crying.” He looked up so the guys could see the truth in his eyes. “If I had heard her crying I never would have left.”

  The brothers exchanged a knowing look, then the bastards had the nerve to smile. “You know what?” Tanner stood. “Forget it.”

  “Slow down,” Marc said, resting a hand on Tanner’s shoulder. “I think I know what happened.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Yeah, so take a seat.” Tanner did. “In any part of your speech about the job—you guys, making the distance work—did you ever tell her you loved her?”

  “No,” Tanner said quickly, then stopped because his stomach started acting up, getting hot and pissed off—and this was why he never drank anything except beer. “We’ve only been seeing each other for a few weeks. Plus, she just got out of a divorce. The last thing she needs is some guy trying to push himself into her life.”

  And that was why he’d thought taking the job in Santa Barbara and seeing Abby on the weekends would work. Hell, it sounded like the perfect idea. They could explore where this was going and not rush into something that could hurt either one of them. But the more Tanner thought about it, the more he realized he was the one who had wanted distance, because he was afraid if he went all-in with Abby and lost her again, he wouldn’t recover.

  And he’d lost her anyway.

  Marc grinned and Tanner wanted to punch him. “So is that a no you don’t love her or no you didn’t tell her?”

  “What the hell difference does it make?” But suddenly it made all the difference in the world, because he did love her. Loved her with everything he was. Loved her more than Santa Barbara, more than Oakwood, more than his damn Super Bowl ring.

  Holy shit. Abby was his Super Bowl. He’d passed and fumbled so many times with her he wasn’t even sure what he was doing anymore. Except he didn’t want to play in any game unless she was on his team. And he wanted to be on her team so badly it hurt to breathe.

  “Yeah, that’s what I thought,” Marc said, picking up his scotch and draining it in one swallow.

  “Go in the men’s room and look yourself in the mirror and say, ‘I love you, Abby, and I screwed up. Tell me how to fix it.’ Then practice it a good hundred times before you see her,” Trey said, clapping him on the back.

  “You love Abby?”

  Tanner looked up to find Colin on the other side of the bar. Face serious, everything they had shared over the past twenty years right there between them. And Tanner knew the next few moments could cost him the best friend he’d ever had.

  Tanner nodded. “With everything I am, Col.” And damn that felt good to say.

  “I think I already knew that.” A long, tense silence followed, filling the space. Colin looked over at Ferris then back to Tanner. “What about Santa Barbara?”

  That was the question Tanner had been struggling with ever since Colin had brought it up earlier that week. And what Tanner kept coming back to was that Santa Barbara, while an opportunity of a lifetime, wasn’t his opportunity.

  Abby was his opportunity of a lifetime. An opportunity he had walked away from twice because figuring out how to mesh their worlds had seemed too hard. An opportunity he had one last shot at, and there was no way he was walking away this time.

  “I’m not going,” Tanner said.

  “But we’ve worked for a year solid on this,” Colin said. He didn’t sound angry or betrayed, just hurt. Confused.

  “You have worked toward this, Col. This is your thing, has been from the beginning, and I think you should go. I think we should set up a SoCal office, or if you want to start your own company, I would even be the first one to step up and invest.” Tanner looked his friend in the eye, wanting him to know he had absolute faith in his abilities and talent. “Either way, you’ve got this, Col. You are more than ready and I’m always in your corner.”

  “But I don’t get it. What will you do here you can’t accomplish down there?” Colin asked, sounding lost, and Tanner wondered if that’s what he’d looked like only moments ago.

  “Going after what makes me happy. And that is Abby.”

  “‘I love you, Abby, and I screwed up. Tell me how to fix it,’” Trey repeated from over his shoulder.

  Tanner shot him a look because he got it. “Then after I finish up these assholes’ cave, I’m going to start laying down the plans for Oakwood.”

  Colin started. “You’re still going to build out Oakwood? On your own?”

  “Yeah,” Tanner said, thinking about Abby’s designs. “I have a few ideas and the perfect designer in mind. I figure it will take about eighteen months to line up the permits, the investors, get all of the blueprints drawn up so that when you get back from your Super Bowl in Santa Barbara you can just roll in and we can start blowing shit up. That is, if you’re still interested.”

  “Still interested?” Colin laughed and all of the tension between them drained away. “I’ve been waiting my whole career to build that land with you.”

  Tanner held out his hand and Colin took it, only he pulled him in for a bro hug. And for the first time since Ferris had approached them with an offer a year ago, Tanner felt like he’d made the right decision. And that he finally had his partner back.

  “If you two are done hugging it out,” Trey said, “it looks like they’re about to announce the winner, so that gives you about thirty seconds to find a mirror, bro, because the designer just got here. And if you break her heart, I will kill you with my bare hands.”

  Tanner quickly scanned the room, his heart rolling over when he got to the big arch he’d helped Abby measure, because there she was. Abigail DeLuca. Standing at the head of the room, dressed in a slinky dress that hugged every single one of her luscious curves, complete with thigh-high slit.

  And Tanner knew, without a doubt, this was his woman.

  His fu
ture.

  His everything.

  Because not only was she the most important thing in his world—she was wearing Niners red.

  “The Historical Preservation Council of St. Helena is proud to say the Jackson Bottlery is not only architectural preservation at its highest level, but quite possibly the most stunning and innovative residence we have seen in years. So it is with great honor I announce this year’s Memory Lane Manor of the Year Award recipient, the Pungent Barrel, a bottlery turned cheese and wine destination that is sure to stun visitors and inspire restoration in generations to come.”

  Nora handed the gold nameplate to Babs, but Abby didn’t miss the way her neighbor looked at her through the entire speech.

  “It’s beautiful,” Babs said into the mic, running a weathered hand along the golden seal that would hang above the entryway, announcing to all who entered that this was an establishment of history and elegance. “Thank you to the council for this great honor, and to my late husband, Leroy, for being romantic enough to buy a whimsical old lady a piece of land because she heard a story that touched her heart.”

  Babs went on to list every person she’d ever met and every contractor who had ever heard of the project, but Abby wasn’t listening. She was too busy scanning the crowd for the one person she wanted to see. The only person she wanted to share this moment with.

  ChiChi and Lexi stood in the front row, wiggling their fingers in a wave. Gus was beaming with pride. She saw her brothers, their wives, her friends, her neighbors, but she couldn’t see Jack.

  She squinted harder, convincing herself she’d just missed him somehow in the swell of people, but then Babs was done and people were clapping, and Nora gave Abby a little shove forward and suddenly she was in front of the mic.

  “Your turn,” Nora whispered.

  The room went silent. The mic buzzed with feedback. And Abby looked out at the three hundred sets of eyes on her and felt a wave of panic wash over her because she couldn’t find the warm, gentle blue ones she loved in the crowd.

  “Thank you for coming,” she said, and despite the intense emotions swirling inside of her, she offered up a genuine smile. She’d grown up in this town, had known most of these people her entire life. And they were here to celebrate something she had been an important part of. “First, I need to thank Babette Hampton for falling in love with this beautiful piece of our town’s history, then entrusting its care to me. She gave me a chance when—”

  Abby stopped. Because there, in the back, near the bathroom door stood Jack Tanner, and everything she had rehearsed, the hours of practicing what she’d say if she won, died on her tongue. And all she could do was stare and watch him stare right back. And what she saw there had her chest aching.

  He looked as nervous and unsure as she felt. Then his lips quirked up in a small smile and she could have sworn he mouthed, Nice dress.

  “Thank you,” she said, then realized she was still talking to the crowd. “Thank you everyone.”

  She stepped back from the mic because even though this moment was important, there was something more important she had to do.

  “What are you doing?” Nora asked.

  “Knocking down the last wall,” she said over her shoulder as she threaded her way through the crowd.

  She passed lots of smiling faces but for the life of her couldn’t remember a one. She was too focused on Tanner, who was making his way toward her. They met in the middle of the room, next to the bar, and both of them spoke simultaneously.

  “Congratulations, you deserve it.”

  “I couldn’t find you.”

  She laughed and he gestured for her to go first.

  “I couldn’t have done any of this without you,” she said softly, and now that she was closer she could see what he was wearing, and too-damn-handsome-for-his-own-good was putting it mildly. The man was a god. In his contractor getup, he was delicious. That body wrapped in a sophisticated dark suit was devastating.

  “You look stunning.” He swallowed—hard. “Better than stunning. Actually, you take my breath away,” he said, looking her in the eyes. Which was fine with her because the deeper she fell into those baby blues, the more relaxed she became. The more she believed she was doing the right thing.

  “You look beyond handsome,” she said, and the tips of his ears went pink.

  “Congratulations.” He wiped his hand across his forehead. “I already said that, didn’t I?”

  Abby had never seen him so distraught. He was beyond nervous, like he was about to pass out.

  “Abby, I know I screwed up, and I want to fix this.”

  “Wait.” She placed a hand on his arm, because she didn’t want to talk about last night. Not yet. “Before we talk about that, I need to ask you about something important. But first I need a quarter.”

  He didn’t ask, didn’t even blink at the odd request. Just fished through his pocket, mumbled something about never listening to Trey again, and handed her two dimes and a nickel. “Does this work?”

  “Perfect.” She took the nickel and then leaned over the bar to grab an empty glass. She took the nickel by its edges, closed one eye, and took the first swing.

  Ping.

  Clink.

  “Why did you invest in Richard’s vineyard?” she asked, because unless she could make sense of why he kept running, she’d never get him to stand still. “You hated him.”

  Tanner took a big breath and sat down sideways on the chair so he was facing her. “I didn’t invest in a vineyard, Abby. I hate wine almost as much as I hated Richard.” He shrugged, making no apology. “I invested in you and your dream. I decided if I couldn’t be that guy standing next to you, maybe I could be the one who helped you find your happiness.”

  “Oh, Tanner.” Her chest tightened painfully. For the both of them. “If you wanted to be—”

  Ping.

  Clink.

  “My turn. Why did you marry Richard?”

  God, what a question, with a humiliating answer. “Because he was supposed to be the sure thing.”

  “Bullshit.”

  “Because you broke my heart, Jack,” she said with no hesitation, although her breath caught on his name. Just a little tremor of emotion, but enough to have him scooting closer. “You held me like I mattered and we talked about things I had never shared with another soul. And I fell in love with you, only this time it wasn’t some high school girl’s love, it was real. Then you pulled on your pants, kissed my cheek, told me you were going to Buffalo, and left.”

  And two months later she had met Richard. He’d been handsome and attentive and everything she’d needed to forget Tanner. Only she never forgot him. And now she was old enough to understand she never would.

  “Abs, I didn’t leave you. That’s how the draft works.” He moved even closer, their knees fighting to share the same space, craving the contact. “Knowing you were in California and I was going to be moving away killed me.” He looked so earnest. “And I knew you still had a year left of school, so I ran before it got complicated. I ran before you could run.”

  She searched his eyes. “I gave up running the second you kissed me on your lounger. I realized then that when I’m with you, I don’t feel lonely or smothered. I just feel . . . like everything is how it should be.” She held out the nickel and pressed it into his hand. “So ask me to come with you.”

  She could tell he was surprised by her statement, surprised she wasn’t asking him to give up Santa Barbara. Which she never would, because if that was part of his journey, she wanted him to follow it. All she hoped was that he loved her enough to want to share that part of his life with her, hoped he wanted her to be a real part of his life.

  Tanner quietly gazed at her with those eyes that could look right through her as his hand closed around the nickel, and what she saw in his expression made her chest swell. Without looking awa
y, he held the nickel over the tumbler and dropped it straight in with a clink that was final, so resolute it was as though the entire room heard it.

  “I’ll do you one better.” Tanner reached out and took her hand, studying how perfectly hers fit into his. At least that’s what she was doing. Then he looked her dead in the eye, his expression weary and hopeful and so full of love it made her breath catch. “I’m starting construction on this incredible hunting lodge that has a wraparound porch and a gorgeous view, but without you it will never be a home. Marry me, Abs, so I can finally come home.”

  “What about Santa Barbara?” she asked. “I thought that was your dream.”

  “You’re my dream,” he whispered, pulling her close. “I love you.”

  “I love you too, Jack Tanner,” Abby said, her eyes filling, but she didn’t care. “I love the way you hold me, the way you listen, the way you look at me when you want the last sip of beer but let me have it anyway. Every time you kiss me I fall more and more in love with you.”

  With a smile that spoke right to her heart, Tanner kissed her, soft and sweet, and he was right, it tasted like home.

  “Every. Time,” he whispered, and when he pulled back, Abby was sitting on his lap, her arms tight around his neck.

  “Every time,” she agreed.

  “So, is that a yes?”

  “Jack, it’s been a yes from the moment we met.”

  READ ON FOR A SNEAK PEEK OF MARINA ADAIR’S NEXT HEARTWARMING ROMANCE

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  Someone will come for me,” Shay Michaels said, eyeballing her newest client—who looked as convinced by her statement as Shay felt. Maybe it was that she’d said the exact same thing over an hour ago, or that she’d been saying the same thing her entire life without any success.

  But this time Shay had faith someone would come. Call it eternal optimism or romantic rebellion—one of these days karma would stop flipping her the bird and pay it forward.

  And that day was today.