The One That Got Away Read Free

the
driver’s face.
    And
then the world tipped sideways. It was as if someone had picked him
up and dangled him from one leg. His words jammed in his throat, and
his mouth dropped open.
    Cammy
unfurled herself from the car. Her beautiful light-brown hair, once
so long, now cropped to her shoulders, shone as it always had in the
morning light. She looked up at him with wide eyes and a slack mouth.
    And
neither of them spoke for a good ten seconds.
    “ Cammy?”
Will breathed, almost forcing her name from his lips. He had fought
to never utter the word, hoping that to never speak it was to forget
it, but as he heard it again on his voice, he realized it felt right.
A deep ache started in his chest, immediately robbing him of breath.
    “ My
God…Will?” she whispered, her wide hazel eyes flicking
all over him as if desperate to see all of him at once. She had a
scarf wrapped around the bottom half of her face, almost covering her
mouth, but Will could clearly see her plump lips, her lush mouth, and
he suddenly hungered to taste it again. His fingers twitched to
touch, his heart pounded like a bass drum with the need to drag her
into his empty arms and hold her—to fill the cavity that was
his heart. For so long he had wondered what his reaction to her would
be, what it would feel like when he saw her again. He always thought
he would be happy, pleased to get to see her again.
    Never
once—not one fucking time—did he imagine the powerful
surge of lust that battered at his balls and filled his cock. His
hands clenched again as the need to touch her filled his veins. The
feelings were all-consuming and totally unexpected. Instantly he
craved—needed.
    But
he took a step back.
    The
sparkle dimmed from her eyes and her shoulders sagged. Will wanted so
desperately to run his hands through her hair and stroke her soft
skin. But what if she was married? What if—in the last ten
years—she had gotten on with her life?
    He
hadn’t moved on, but that didn’t mean she would not have
done. God, just to be this close to her was…breathtaking.
    “ I
can’t believe-I-” he stuttered like a fool, and…was
he grinning? “How are you?” he asked, while fisting his
hands to keep from grabbing her. She was no different. Apart from the
shorter hair, which was really cute, and the more mature way she
dressed, she looked the same; his Cammy.
    Cammy
didn’t mirror his smile; she just stared up at him, confusion
and hurt almost blinding him and robbing him of the rare smile that
was suddenly sliding from his face like melted wax.
    She
wasn’t happy?
    “ Will—I
don’t believe it,” she breathed.
    Will
swallowed when he saw her frown, and the agony in her stare almost
dropped him to his knees with disappointment. He was ecstatic to see
her, she looked…pissed off.
    She
didn’t give him a chance to answer her whispered words. She
spun and bent to her car, pulled out a cardboard box and slammed the
door with her foot. The loud bang shook through Will as her cold
treatment chilled him to the bone.
    “ What
are you doing here?” She bristled, while keeping her eyes
anywhere but on him. She hugged the box to her chest and Will could
see her fighting with her fury. He almost didn’t know how to
respond for a moment. His heart, which had begun beating madly when
he saw her, suddenly felt like a brick in his chest. What should he
say?
    Oh,
well, I ran away from my father that last night we were together—but
you know that since I came to you and asked you to come with me—and
you didn’t. And after that, I lived homeless until someone felt
pity for me and took me in. And now I am a chef.
    The
words rang around his mind, but he knew how bitter they sounded. So
he didn’t say anything. She waited, her eyes dimming with every
second, and Will would have given just about anything not to have to
see it.
    Please
Cammy…
    “ I
came back to close my father’s estate,” he said lamely.
He tucked his hands into his pockets and stepped