Home to You

Leaving me behind.

“Sebastian,” she says, gaping at me from across the small room.

I close my eyes for the briefest second, yet my mind fills with images of a time gone past. Haven wrapped in my arms, naked and beneath me. Her telling me she loved me more than anything, wanting to start our adult life together as soon as we graduated.

But then that letter came. The acceptance she didn’t think she’d receive.

The one that took her three-quarters of the country away from me, never to return to our small Idahoan town.

Until today.

Haven Decker is back, and more gorgeous than ever before.

I’m in so much trouble.

Chapter 2

Haven 2

Keep breathing. Keep breathing. Keep breathing. I keep repeating the words over and over in my head. I knew this would happen. When I agreed to step in for Mrs. Simone Baker, I knew there was a chance I would run into Sebastian. Hope is a small town, and I understood it was inevitable. I just didn’t realize it would be today, here at the dance studio with a bunch of horny dance moms drooling over him.

Speaking of drool, my hand rests against my chin as I check myself as discreetly as I possibly can. I’m good, but I’m still frozen in place. A dozen sets of little eyes watch me intently, and all I can do is stare at him.

What is he doing here?

“Chloe.”

Shit! Did I say that out loud?

He points to one of the littles in a pink tutu and white tights. The little girl gives me a wave and a shy smile, and those hazel eyes, the eyes so much like her daddy’s seem to shine like beacons. “She’s my daughter.”

He has a daughter. Of course he does. I knew this about him. Hope, Idaho, is a small town, and when I say small, I mean your-next-door-neighbor-knows-when-you-go-to-the-bathroom small. Everyone knows everybody, and bless their hearts, they like to stick their noses into your business. Case in point, the horny dance moms are hanging on our every word. Many of them have wedding rings that adorn their left hands, but that doesn’t stop them from giving me the evil eye or looking at Sebastian like they could eat him alive.

Not that I blame them.

Sebastian Hall is the epitome of tall, dark-haired, and handsome. His hazel eyes are mesmerizing, and the beard he’s sporting, well, let’s just say it’s not just the horny dance moms who have noticed. When I left, he was a boy, and now, Sebastian is all man.

“Haven?”

“Sorry.” I shake out of my thoughts. “Hi.” I wave awkwardly and turn my attention to the tiny dancers. “All right, ladies, are we ready to dance?” I ask them.

Cheers break out, and they run to the bar to start their stretches. At five, they’re just learning the basics. I thought tonight would be a breeze, my first classes as I fill in for Mrs. Baker. That’s what I get for thinking.

I don’t turn to look at Sebastian, and I don’t let my eyes wander to the moms I’m sure are still vying for his attention. I keep my laser focus on the class, on the little girls who are here to learn to be a ballerina—every little girl’s dream. It was my dream, and it came true. I’ve made sacrifices for my career, and looking back, there are some things I wish I would have fought harder for.

Some people.

One person.

Sebastian.

I wish I would have fought for us. We could have made it work. We were young and in love, and despite the odds of the distance stacked between us, I should have fought harder. My biggest regret in life is walking away from him. We had our future mapped out, and then I got the letter that changed the course we were on.

For thirty minutes, I feel eyes burning the back of my head, but I refuse to turn around. I’m not ready to face him, to face our past. “Ladies, you did an amazing job. Thank you for being such great students,” I praise them.

“Thank you, Miss Haven,” they singsong. My heart swells, and I give them a grin, letting them know that their thank-yous make me happy.

“Will you be our teacher next week too?” one of them, a little blonde girl, asks.

“Yes. I’ll be here until Mrs. Simone is feeling better.”

“We miss her, but you are really nice,” a little redhead informs me. She looks over at her mom and waves before turning back to me. “And you’re really pretty.”

“Thank you. Now, make sure you have all your things, and practice your balance by standing on one leg this week.”

The next few minutes are a flurry of activity as they swarm me for goodbye hugs and race off to their parents. I have to face them, have to face him. There is no getting out of it.