Will my parents see it that way if they know about Van?
I’d given that some thought as I’d packed. The conclusion I’d come to was that I’d broken off the engagement before setting out on my quest.
I believed that meeting Van helped me to see that there was a bigger, brighter world beyond Chicago, the Butlers, and even Wade Pharmaceutical. Without that knowledge, it would have been more difficult to send Skylar back to Beth or whoever he had in store for his future. My thoughts were on my own future.
Perhaps I was reluctant to face those people back in Chicago because I wasn’t remorseful about the canceled wedding. I felt bad for the money my parents had spent, but that was it. The brief conversation I’d had with my mother this afternoon before seeing Skylar reaffirmed my decision to stay away through the holidays.
Now I wondered if she knew Skylar was driving up here. After all, she’d pleaded with me to work things out with him. I held fast to my conviction when I spoke with her and with Skylar. Our wedding was canceled.
I didn’t mention to her that I’d received a new marriage proposal or any other details about the recent events that led me to accept a job offer. To say that Mom was as shocked as Skylar when I told her that I took a job in Ashland would be an understatement.
When she asked for more detail, I was vague.
If Donovan Sherman was as big of a name as he claimed—and he was because I did a quick internet search—then my father would recognize his name. I wasn’t ready to have that conversation. Therefore, I purposely left Van’s name out of our discussion.
For some reason, when Van and I met and were in the cabin, I hadn’t thought too much about his age. I simply saw him for the incredibly handsome man who saved me, showed me that there’s life beyond Chicago, and listened to my woes. Of course, with the intimate turn our night together took, I knew that he took care of himself. He also had stamina and experience and expertise in what women wanted.
While waiting to be sure Skylar was gone and doing a quick internet search of Donovan Sherman, I’d found a bio that listed Van as one ofForbeswealthiest men in the United States and at the same time gave very little personal information. I also learned the date he was born, letting me know that he was forty-one years old.
His financial status didn’t surprise me.
His age did.
I couldn’t decide if it bothered me.
If my age doesn’t bother him, why should his bother me?
As I crested the hill, the golden lights from Van’s home shone through the darkness, reminding me of a Thomas Kinkade painting. As the large structure came into view, a sense of peace settled over me combined with hopeful anticipation for what this reprieve from my real world would entail. The feelings were foreign, and I welcomed the thrill of the unexpected coursing through my circulation.
Red sin.
With my life’s road map torn to shreds and left wadded in a trash can—especially after the encounter with Skylar—Van was an adventure upon which I was excited to embark.
Even though Van had proposed marriage, I wasn’t certain that either of us wanted to go that far. I wasn’t looking for forever. I’d had that promised to me and that promise meant nothing. What I sought from Van was the way I felt when I was with him. I was already addicted to the adrenaline rush, giddiness, and fluttering heart that came with each encounter.
As I pulled the car onto the large driveway, the front door opened. Van was no longer in his custom suit from earlier but wearing clothes such as he’d worn the first time I met him. There was nothing about him that made me think of him as old.
Putting the car in park, I subconsciously scanned from his dark hair down his wide shoulders and trim waist. The flannel shirt he wore over the thermal twisted my core in a way that brought warmth to my cheeks. I wouldn’t need more clothes if Van had an ample supply of flannel shirts he’d be willing to share.
Then again, I’d agreed to the employee and employer titles. I didn’t suppose that included borrowing my employer’s shirts to wear as a nightgown.
His smile radiated warmth through the cool air as he came down the steps and opened my car door. “You returned.”
His green gaze was upon me, drinking me in and sending detonations to my nerve endings. With only his stare, he was doing things to me that I never knew were possible. Offering me his hand, I willingly placed my palm in his and stepped from the car. “Did you think I wouldn’t return?”
Our touch lingered, sending warmth through my body despite the way our breath came out in vapor clouds in the coldness.
Van looked down at our hands and back to me. “Let me help you with your things and then we can pull your car into the garage. The weather forecast has more snow and plummeting temperatures coming overnight.”
“Can they plummet more?” I asked, lifting my face to the falling snow, allowing the large flakes to land on my cheeks and eyelashes. The scene was so peaceful that I turned to Van. “I don’t mind the snow or cold as long as I’m not stranded on the side of the road.”
Am I concerned about Skylar’s drive back to Chicago?
Does it make me a bad person that I’m not?
I didn’t know the answer. I only knew I wanted to look forward and not backward.
Van laughed. “You took longer than I anticipated. I was beginning to get worried that I’d need to go searching for you.”