I furrowed my brow. “What brought you here?”
“I elected not to reenlist after twelve years in the Army,” he said.
I nearly groaned aloud. If my math was right, that made him only thirty or thirty-one years old. I could probably go to jail with the thoughts and images that had been flashing through my mind.
“I’ve always loved this area,” he continued, “and I have an Army buddy who lives here in Trinity Falls. We met at boot camp, and even though he only stayed in four years, we kept in touch.”
“I see.”
“So when my time was up, I thought why not check the area out. And even though I’ve only been here a week, I’m already in love with the town and the surrounding area.”
I knew how he felt. I grew up in Trinity Falls. And even though Travis didn’t, he still loved the town and insisted we come back as often as we could to visit my mom. When we graduated from college, there was never a doubt we would move here.
“So your son is at college,” he said. “And your husband?”
And there it was…the dreaded question. No matter how many years passed, I still hated it when someone asked about Travis.
“My husband died about five years ago.”
I saw the look of pity.
I despised pity.
“I’m so sorry,” he said.
“It’s okay,” I said, wiping my hands on my jeans. “It’s been five years. I’ve gotten used to it.”
No, you haven’t.
“Do you want to see the cottage?” I asked.
Jacob grinned. “Cottage? I like that even better than apartment.”
I laughed. “I’ll be honest. Since my husband died, there’ve been many sleepless nights for me. Then a couple years ago, when Brody left for college, I thought I’d go crazy. So I decided to remodel the old building that was out there. I’ve kinda feminized it a little.”
Jacob winked at me. “No worries. I’m secure in my masculinity.”
I felt my face flush again. I couldn’t help but feel a little sick to my stomach. Jacob was probably more my son’s age than mine. What the heck was I thinking inviting him into my house, much less letting him flirt with me?
Me…a curvy forty-two-year-old widow who hadn’t been on one date since her husband died. I was a month overdue for a touch-up on my hair, and I didn’t have a stitch of makeup on.
Feeling foolish, I grabbed my keys off the counter and walked out the French doors, down the cement patio, and around the in-ground heated pool.
“You’d have your own entrance through the side gate,” I said.
“Perfect.”
We stopped in front of the gray-colored cottage, complete with flower boxes under each of the two windows.
“Okay, so cottage may be a stretch,” I said as I inserted the key in the door. “It’s really just a small living room, bathroom, kitchen, and partitioned-off bedroom.”
“You have a very beautiful place here, Monica,” Jacob said, looking around my backyard. “I’m sure the inside will be just as amazing.”
I wasn’t ashamed to say I took a lot of pride in that statement. I’d worked myself to the bone trying to keep the place up and running after Travis died. It was nice for someone to notice.
Chapter 3
“Go ahead and take a look around,” I said. “I’ll just stay outside.”
