Finding You (Love Wanted in Texas 4)

“Don’t be jealous of my good taste, Grace. Be ready for me to rock your world, baby.”

Rolling her eyes, Grace pulled her knees up and rested her chin. “Let’s see what you got.”

The way Grace was looking at me had my heart racing with anticipation. I’d taken guitar lessons for years, but I’d never actually sung in front of anyone, and the only people who even knew I played the guitar were my mother and sister.

Knowing how much Grace loved Sam Hunt, I picked one of his songs to cover. Starting the first cords to “Take Your Time”, I watched as Grace’s face lit up and her eyes danced with excitement.

Clearing my throat, I started singing to the one and only girl I’d ever dreamed of spending the rest of my life with.

When the last cord was played, I smiled and watched as Grace slowly stood up.

“Oh, you’re good. You totally just secured yourself one hell of a night, Mr. Bennet.” Lifting her eyebrow, she said, “Smart thinking pulling the Sam Hunt card.”

Throwing my head back, I laughed as I drank in the moment.

Pulling her head back, her eyes widened with panic. “I’m so late for class!”

Laughing, I took her hand and led her to my car. “I’ll wait for you.”

Slipping into the front seat of my Nissan GT-R, Grace looked up at me and winked. “Sexy car.”

Feeling my heart drop, I attempted to play it cool. I’d never had someone affect me the way Grace has. “Ya think so?” I asked with a playful tone.

Grace’s mouth parted slightly and I imagined her lips on mine. Letting out a quick breath, I shut the door and jogged around to the driver’s side. Getting in, I turned and said, “Where to?”

Grace stared at me as her eyes looked deep into mine. For a quick moment I panicked. Would Grace get spooked again, or were we done with the push and pull game? What came out of her mouth caused me to totally get my hopes up that we were finished with the games. “I’ve never had sex in a car before . . . let alone a sports car.”

Swallowing hard, I whispered, “You won’t make it to class if you keep talking, Grace.”

Licking her lips, Grace smiled. “What class?”

Closing my eyes, I moaned as I adjusted my hardening dick. Snapping my eyes back open, I cranked the car on and pulled out of the driveway. “Damn it, Grace. It’s been too long since we’ve been together. Let’s get you to class then we’ll talk more.”

“Killjoy,” Grace whispered as she smiled and looked out the front window.

Sitting in my car, I waited for Grace to finish up her class. There was no way I was leaving from this spot after being away from her for so long. I had to stop going over and over in my head the fact that I didn’t come after her when I knew I should have. I let her walk away when I knew we both loved each other and belonged together.

Never again.

Picking up my phone, I sent my sister a text.

Me: How’s mom?

Emily: Okay. Sleeping. She kept asking where you were. Today’s treatment was bad. The doctor wants to talk about stopping the treatments. He said it’s not improving anything. He mentioned moving Mom to the Christopher House.

Letting out a sigh, I dropped my head back. Hospice. My mother had been fighting invasive epithelial ovarian cancer for the last year. We thought she had won the battle, but the cancer returned. This time with a vengeance.

Me: Tell her I’ll be back tonight.

Emily: No! I told her you would be back tomorrow night or the next morning. Noah, you need to talk to Grace. Please. You’ve been miserable since you left A&M. Stay and make things right.

Feeling the tears threaten my eyes, I closed them and did what I always did when I felt like breaking down. I counted to ten. Opening my eyes slowly, I inhaled a deep breath and slowly blew it out.

Me: I feel guilty being away from her.

Less than thirty seconds later, my phone rang.

“Hey,” I said weakly.