by Marci Bolden
Carrie shook her head. “Do I look happy to you? I’ve lost everything, Will,” she said just above a whisper. “I feel completely broken and alone. I lost the only mother I’ve ever known. And you. I’ve lost you. You made me feel alive again and then walked away. It’s all gone. Everything we had—even if it wasn’t real—is gone.”
“It was real,” he said quietly. Closing the distance between them, he brushed his fingers over her cheek, and just like the first time, she felt his touch all the way to her soul. “Carrie, it is real. I took it for granted. I took you for granted. You have no idea how many times I wanted to come to you and tell you how sorry I was, but I didn’t want to make things worse for you. I didn’t want to hurt you any more than I already had. I got pulled back into that life, Carrie. I got pulled in and I couldn’t see anything but what was right in front of me. I jumped in, and I got lost. Like I always do. But in here”—he put his hand to his heart—“I never let you go. I got lost, but I didn’t let you go.”
“You did.” She exhaled slowly. “But I got lost in my life too. Mama…” Her voice choked off as emotion hit her like a sledgehammer to the chest. “She’s gone, Will.”
“I know,” he whispered.
His face sagged when she choked out a sob. Reaching out, he pulled her to him and she let him. As soon as he wrapped her in his arms, in that safe place that she’d missed so much, she crumbled.
“I’m so sorry,” he whispered as he stroked her hair.
He held her tightly as she finally let go of some of the anger that had been buried deep inside of her. She hadn’t even realized how deeply the pain ran until that moment. Something about Will had always made it okay for her to feel—to really feel. Now that she was, she couldn’t seem to control the sobs racking her body.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered when she finally managed to pull herself together.
He put his hands on her wet cheeks and shook his head. “No. No. I’m sorry. You shouldn’t have had to go through that alone. I would give anything to go back, just so I could be here.” Pulling her against him, he wrapped her up again and kissed her head. “You’re everything to me, do you know that? You are everything. I know I don’t deserve it, but I’m begging for your forgiveness. For one more chance.”
Leaning back, she sniffed and wiped her cheeks. “And your movie?”
“I sold the rights. It’s out of my hands. There is nothing there for me now.”
Her breath lodged in her throat. “Oh, Will. You wanted that so much.”
“I thought so. But then I realized everything I want is here.”
Shaking her head, Carrie stepped back. “What happens when you go back?”
He shook his head. “I’m not going back.”
“Oh, Will. The movie premiere, the interviews, all those things that took you from me this time—they aren’t going to go away. That’s your life.”
“I don’t want it, Carrie. I don’t. That life has cost me too much.”
“But that’s who you are. You can try to change that, but we both saw what happened last time. That life is in your bones. You can’t walk away from your life any more than I can walk away from mine.”
He put his fingertips to her chin and turned her face to his. “I let you down. I hurt you. Knowing that is like a knife in my heart, Carrie. I’ll never forget what that did to us. I’ll never let it happen again. I’m done with that. I’m not going back.”
She shook her head slightly. “Listen, I…I took an awful lot of frustration out on you because you weren’t here. Maybe…maybe some of that was jealousy. You were off fulfilling your dreams, and I was here watching Doreen die a little each day. I think I resented that a little. That wasn’t fair to you.”
“Nothing about what you were going through was fair, Carrie. Don’t kick yourself for this.”
“Why not? I’ve certainly been kicking you an awful lot. I’ve been unfair to you, Will. I’m sorry. You can’t walk away from your life for me. It wasn’t fair for me to expect that from you. Los Angeles is your home. It’s where you work. It’s part of you.”
“Carrie—”
“We can compromise. Don’t you think?” she asked. “We can make this work. We just have to try. With Mama gone, there’s no reason why we can’t split our time. Right? Maybe that isn’t ideal, but we can try. If you want.”
He smiled as he put his hands to her face. “I do. I want that more than anything.”
“Me too.” She looked around the foyer. “Thank you. For saving my home.”
“You’re welcome.”
She shrugged. “You know, if I’m going to open a restaurant in here, I’m going to need to remodel. I don’t want people traipsing through our living space. I’m going to need to put a wall up, expand the den. I’m going to need a bigger kitchen. That’s going to keep me pretty busy. But then again, I guess you’ll be busy doing your movie premiere stuff. So…we’ll have a lot of things to juggle.”
He grasped her hands and brought them to his lips to kiss them before looking in her eyes. “We can do it. I know we can do it.”
She smiled. “Yeah. We can do it.”
He held her gaze intently. “I do love you.”
“I love you, Will.”
He pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her so passionately, she had to pull away to catch her breath. It reminded her of the first time he’d kissed her. The sensation rolled through her, consuming her. Smiling, she ran her hands over his hair.
“I missed you like crazy,” she whispered.
“I missed you.” He kissed her gently one more time. “The first time I start acting like a self-centered movie star, you have my permission to hit me over the head with a frying pan.”
Carrie chuckled. “I’m going to need that in writing.” Her smile faded a bit. “Promise me one thing.”
“Anything.”
“You won’t forget me again.”
He kissed her lightly. “That never happened, Carolyn. And it never will. You are unforgettable.”
Also by Marci Bolden
Chammont Point Series:
The Restarting Point
The Selling Point
The Breaking Point
A Life Without Water Series:
A Life Without Water
A Life Without Flowers
A Life Without Regrets
Stonehill Series:
The Road Leads Back
Friends Without Benefits
The Forgotten Path
Jessica’s Wish
This Old Cafe
Forever Yours
The Women of Hearts Series:
Hidden Hearts
Burning Hearts
Stolen Hearts
Secret Hearts
Other Titles:
California Can Wait
Seducing Kate
The Rebound
Unforgettable You
About the Author
As a teen, Marci Bolden skipped over young adult books and jumped right into reading romance novels. She never left.
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Marci lives in the Midwest with her husband, kiddos, and numerous rescue pets. If she had an ounce of willpower, Marci would embrace healthy living, but until cupcakes and wine are no longer available at the local market, she will appease her guilt by reading self-help books and promising to join a gym “soon.”
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Visit her here:
www.marcibolden.com