His Ever After (Love Square) (2 page)

Emma’s words stopped making sense after I heard
her
name. My heart starts pounding, and I’m suddenly feeling anxious. Could it be the same girl? The one I let get away back when we were teenagers? It has to be. What are the chances that it is someone else?

God, I would do anything to see her again. Just a glimpse of her gorgeous smile would make the drive to Emma’s worth it.

“Hello? Jacob! Are you still there?” Emma calls out.

“Yeah, I’m still here. When and where is this book signing?” I ask, trying not to show that I’m freaking out. But in all actuality, it feels like I have a leprechaun dancing a jig in my stomach.

“It’s tomorrow at two o’clock at the Barnes & Noble in Scranton. Does this mean you’re going to help me?” Her voice is perkier now than it was. I feel bad for getting her hopes up, but she isn’t the one going tomorrow.

I am.

If this is the same girl who stole my heart, I need to be the one to see her. I just hope it isn’t too late to win her back.

***

This damn drive is taking forever. The thought that in just a few short hours I might see the girl of my dreams has me on edge. I drum my fingers on the steering wheel and try to release some of my pent up energy. I can’t seem to stop myself from fidgeting.

The only way Emma would agree to my plan was if I got her book signed for her and a promise that if things go well, she’ll get to meet Sam. And that was only after I told her that Sam was too damn important not to go see her myself. Telling Emma that juicy bit of information is causing her to salivate for more. She’s like a dog staring at a juicy bone. Limited information won’t be enough to keep her at bay. I know I’ll have to give her more and soon. I’m going to try to hold out as long as I can. I’m a grown man and the last thing I need is for my big sister to play matchmaker and meddle in my affairs.

I wish Emma had made the connection between the author Sam Monroe and my Sam Monroe sooner. For as much as I’d love to, I can’t really fault her since they never met when we were younger. Emma was away in college at the time and all she knew was the few stories I told her. As a teenager, I wasn’t gung-ho on telling my older sister how gone I was for a girl. My mom knew though. She recognized it the second she saw me with Sam before Sam’s Junior Prom. When she asked me about my feelings afterward, I didn’t even try to hide it. I knew that information would be safe with her.

I just pray that if this woman is my Sam, that she is still single. The thought of not being able to touch her or taste her again is almost unbearable. I’ve thought about her so many times over the years and wondered where she was or what she was doing. Now that I know I might get to see her again, I can’t get her out of my mind.

I will myself to calm down and stop getting ahead of myself. I just need to get there and see her. The rest will work itself out. Fate can’t be so cruel as to bring her back into my life if I can’t have her. It’s the only option.

I see the signs for Pittston, PA and breathe a sigh of relief. I’m that much closer now. I navigate through town and park in front of Emma and John’s, her husband, yellow craftsman style home. I fold out of the car and am instantly hit with the force of two little sumo wrestlers in the making.

I love my nieces with my whole heart. It’s amazing how much kids can brighten your world. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for these girls.

“Hey, rugrats! You been behaving or do I have to lock you up and throw away the key?” I wrap my arms around each of their shoulders and draw them to my side.

“We’ve been really good, Uncle Jacob,” Grace says sweetly as she bats her big eyes and tries to look innocent. She’s already a master manipulator at the ripe old age of six. With her black hair and green eyes, she’s quite the looker. I fear for both John and myself when she gets older. We’ll be scaring away many a horny boy, I’m sure. I’m not averse to showing them my gun if need be.

“Yeah, Uncle Jacob! You should give us a present for how good we’ve been,” Candace chimes in. As the older of the two, she is most certainly the ringleader and instigator of trouble. Candace looks more like John with her brown hair and brown eyes. She’s no less beautiful, but seems to be nearing that awkward stage kids go through while losing her childlike appearance.

“A present, huh? You sure you’ve been good?” I tease them as I dig in my coat pocket for the candy bars I have stashed there.

Both girls look at me with doe-eyed, innocent expressions on their faces. Their heads nod in unison. It takes a lot to hide the laugh I want to release, knowing they are probably driving Emma crazy and not being the angels they swear they are.

“Maybe I should just go and ask your mother.” I bend down and scoop each one up under an arm, eliciting little girl giggles while I walk towards the house, bouncing them around.

Stepping into the house, I’m met with coziness and the feeling of home. Emma really goes out of her way to make her house inviting. From the furniture, to the decorations, to the ever present smell of cookies. As I take it all in, I wonder if Sam would be the same way. My condo is empty and bland. I would like nothing more than to have her turn my house into a home. What would it be like to come home, after a long day at work, to food on the table and candles burning? Or maybe Sam would greet me at the door wearing nothing but a smile on her face…

And there I go, getting ahead of myself again.

I’m distracted from my thoughts when the girls start squirming to get down. I set them both on their feet, hand them their candy and go in search of my sister. I need to get this book from her and get the hell out of here. The sooner I get to Scranton, the sooner I can see Sam.

“Hey, little brother! Sit down and have some coffee before you go,” Emma greets me as I enter the kitchen. Her hair is back in a bun with strands escaping all over, and she has flour on her cheeks and forehead. The apron she is wearing says, “One by one the squirrels steal my sanity.” Certainly, a fitting slogan for the way she looks right now.

“No can do. I’m just here to grab your book like I promised. I need to get to Scranton,” I say after kissing her cheek.

“Wow. I can’t believe what I’m seeing. You’re prepared to be over an hour early to this thing. You really like this girl, don’t you?” She has a gleam in her eye at the thought. She’s been trying to get me to settle down for years now. Emma and John are done having children, so she says it’s my turn now.

I shrug and try to be evasive. “I told you, she’s special. Let’s just see what happens before you go picking out a bridesmaids dress, okay?” I kiss her cheek one last time, grab the book off the counter and head for the door.

“I’ll be back tonight. Don’t wait up!” I call out before shutting the door.

“If you think I won’t, you’re crazy! I’m going to want
all
the details!” Emma yells back.

Jogging down the sidewalk to my car, I find myself whistling. A smile forms as I think about how my life is about to change.

***

The line is ridiculously huge. I'm an hour early and there are still dozens of people ahead of me in line. Seems my sweet Sam has quite the following. I check my email and play Angry Birds on my phone to pass the time, continually looking up at the front of the crowd to try to catch a glimpse of her. If I weren’t so determined to see this through, I’d have left a long time ago. Way too many crazy women for my liking.

Two o’clock hits and the crowd begins to stir. I look up when a couple of girls start shrieking in that annoying way only women seem to do. When I do, I’m met with the sight of the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. She was pretty as a girl, but as a woman, she is drop dead gorgeous. My heart stops, my stomach clenches and my dick stirs.

Her brown hair hangs down her back in loose waves. Her brown dress was made to fit her, hugging every one of her God given curves. And her boots are so damn sexy. I want to see them wrapped around my waist with the heels digging into my ass. Her tits are a little bigger than I remember, but they’re high and perky and the perfect size to fill my hands.

Sam is a goddess in every sense of the word. I’d fall to my feet and worship her if I didn’t think everyone here would think I was crazy.

Sam walks over to the table they have set up for her, where she stops and faces forward. Her big, brown eyes shine with pride, and she bestows one of her gorgeous, shy smiles on us.
Jesus.
I can’t seem to look away. I don’t know what I ever did to deserve even the smallest of chances with someone as special as her.

The line moves slowly but surely. With each passing minute, I find myself getting more and more anxious to talk to her. It’s complete and utter torture to have to watch her with each person that was lucky enough to be in line ahead of me. It takes about an hour or so for me to finally make my way to the front of the line. There is a crazy, pink-haired girl and a redheaded girl standing at her table. They’re squealing and jumping around like they just saw Justin Bieber or some shit like that.

I sigh and look up at the ceiling. I really hope this wait works out like I hope it will. When I hear Sam’s magical laughter, my eyes dart over to where she sits.

She jumps out of her seat and rounds the table, grabbing the girls’ hands while dancing with them. I’m suddenly very jealous of these girls for getting to touch her. My fingers itch to feel her soft, silky skin gliding under my fingertips. And I’d kill to feel the seductive sway of her hips against mine.

Shit.
I need to stop thinking these thoughts, or I’m going to be giving all these women quite a show with my hard on. I need to think about something non-Sam related… Remembering the last case I investigated at work effectively shuts down the tightening in my jeans. Nothing like a little homicide to deflate your dick.

The girls walk away giggling, and Sam sits back down. I start to move forward, and our gazes lock. My steps falter when I lose myself in her eyes. What I wouldn’t give to wake up to those eyes every morning.

I force my feet to move and as I get closer, I notice she’s holding her breath. My smile widens at the promise of what that means. She’s just as affected by me as I am of her. Hope starts to bloom in my chest when she smiles back at me.

“I can’t believe it’s really you, sweet Sam Monroe. When my sister, Emma, told me about your book and that you’d be here today, I have to admit I was skeptical that it was really you.”

Way to go Jake! You sound like a rambling idiot!

“Well, it’s technically Sam Parker now. How have you been? It has to have been at least sixteen years, right?” A tinge of pink stains her cheeks as she looks up at me.

The words that leave her mouth are enough to douse any good vibes I was feeling in that moment.

“Oh wow! Parker, huh? Guess you’re married now. Of course you’re married now. You’re even more beautiful than you were back then.”
Which is why I was a dumbass to lose contact with you after high school.
I should have known she wouldn’t be single. Only an idiot would let Sam be on her own.

I’m not ready to let her walk away just yet. I need to know more about her. I need to know what she’s been doing for the last sixteen years. Even if I can’t be with her the way I want, I need to be with her somehow… even if it’s as a friend. The thought of being her friend has me cringing, but it’s the fact of the matter. It’s probably all I’ll ever get out of her, and it’s going to have to be enough.

“Listen, I don’t want to hold up the line too much, but are you going to be around for a while? I’d love to grab a drink and catch up.” I’m mentally crossing my fingers that she says yes.

I watch her while she signs Emma’s book. Her hand gracefully moves as she writes her name, while her other one gently holds the book down. I’m even entranced by her damn hands. I silently chastise myself for acting like a big, fucking girl.

Waiting for her answer is becoming agonizing. She chews her lip in a cute little way, obviously trying to think of an answer. When she looks up, I’m caught up in her beautiful, soulful eyes once again. My breath hitches at the feelings she is unknowingly stirring up in me.

“I’ll be finished around seven o’clock if you want to get together then. I’m staying in the hotel across the street tonight and they have a pub there,” she finally answers, breaking the spell she has me under.

I feel like letting out a loud whoop that she’s going to spend some time with me. That probably isn’t a good sign considering she’s married.

I agree to meet her at seven and give her one last smile before I head up front to buy her books. I have a few hours to kill, so I might as well support my girl.

My girl?
Hardly… I seriously need to stop thinking of her that way.

I find a seat in the corner of the store, tucked in between some shelves housing cookbooks, and lose myself in Sam’s fantasy land for a few hours. I’m not really surprised that her book is as good as it is. Sam was always a creative soul and loved to read when we were younger. I’m extremely proud of her and her success.

I realize that the store has quieted down and look at my watch to see its six o’clock. I grab my bag and stow it in my car before heading over to the pub where I’m meeting Sam.

Chapter Two

I scope out the pub as I walk in, choosing a booth towards the back for a little privacy. I sit facing the door, trying not to avidly watch it for her arrival. Looking around, I enjoy the atmosphere of the place. It’s low key with wooden tables, leather seats and a long bar running the length of the far side of the room. And it’s surprisingly busy for being so early.

A waitress comes to take my drink order, practically drooling on me when she does. She’s cute with shoulder length, blonde hair and a massive pair of tits. If I wasn’t waiting for Sam, I’d be tempted to take her for a ride. She leans over the table, showing a maximum amount of her fake breasts and her hair falls over her shoulder teasingly.