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"You loved a man and now you don't know where he is?" There's a suggestion of something beyond curiosity in his tone. I can't place it though. "What happened?"

I scratch my chin, needing the brief reprieve to pull all of my thoughts into one place in my mind. "I fell in love with him in high school and…"

"High school?" A smile tears across his lips. "You fell in love with him that long ago?"

"I did," I offer in a small voice. "He was my first love."

His head tilts slightly to the side. "You went back to Boston to be with your first love?"

It sounds romantic coming from his mouth. The words are innocent and sweet and speak of a love that is pure and never ending. That's what I thought I wanted with Parker. The loss of that love was what I was mourning when I boarded the plane for New York. I tried to chase away the pain of Parker's rejection by getting in bed with Ben that first night. I could never have anticipated how Parker's decision to dump me would alter the entire course of my life.

"Kayla?" He scoops my chin into his hand. "Is it too much to talk about this?"

Even if it was, I'd never admit it. I'm next to a man who poured out his heart two nights ago. I listened to him confess to making a mistake that cost him his mother. How can I compare that to losing someone I was never supposed to be with in the first place? "No, it's fine."

"You're sure?" He leans closer, grazing his full lips over mine.

"There's really not much to talk about," I say against his cheek before pulling back to look at him. "We've been on and off for years. I finally moved out here and he decided that he couldn't live without me so I moved back to Boston to be with him."

"You just dropped your entire life here to go back there?"

I hear the surprise in his voice. It's not unexpected. It's the way Alexa and Vivian had reacted to. My own family hadn't hidden the shock when I surprised them with the announcement that I was back with Parker's arm wrapped around me. "I wanted to be with him."

"What changed?" He shifts his entire body so he's leaning on one elbow. "Why did you move back here?"

"It ended," I offer sullenly. Details about who dumped who are trivial now. It seemed so important weeks ago when Ben sat down next to my on the flight. At that moment in time, when my heart was breaking open because Parker had left, I just wanted to forget everything. Now, at this moment, when I'm staring into the eyes of this incredible man, I just want to forget Parker ever existed.

"So, what you're saying…" his voice trails as he wraps his strong arms around. "What you are telling me, Kayla, is that I am your rebound?"

I throw my head back with careless laughter. "You're not my rebound."

"You fucked me that night to forget him."

I stare into his eyes, seeing a glint there that I haven't noticed before. "I fucked you that night because you were hot."

His brows perk. "You think I'm hot?"

I pull in a deep breath, lean forward, press my lips into his and say softly, "I think you're everything."

Chapter 8

Secrets have a way of pulling you apart from within. They fester until they have no place to go but out into the open. It hurt Noah when he saw me leaving Ben's apartment weeks ago. I don't want a repeat of that and I don't want to hide my

relationship with his brother any longer.

"Alexa is going to love this bracelet, Kayla." Noah holds the small gift bag in his hand. He'd texted me yesterday asking me to go with him to choose a wedding gift for her. I'd brought him to Whispers of Grace, a boutique jewelry store in Chelsea owned by a friend of Sadie's named Ivy Marlow. I knew we'd find something unique for her here.

"Do you want to grab lunch?" He gestures towards a busy bistro on the corner. "I have no where I need to be today."

"Lex's bridal shower is this afternoon." I glance at my smartphone. "I have time though."

"It's supposed to be a surprise, right?" He walks slowly along the busy sidewalk, his large tattooed frame grabbing glances from almost everyone we pass.

I laugh at the suggestion. "You know that hiding anything from Lex is almost impossible."

He chuckles in return. "She heard Sadie talking to me about it when she was visiting a few weeks ago."

I'm not surprised. Sadie travels to New York City at least a few times a month. Her husband, Hunter, owns Axel NY and she's often there helping him. Her friendship with Alexa is another draw that splits her time between here and Boston.


Tags: Deborah Bladon Ruin Romance