Won’t Fall Again Read online

  “But how did he win you back?” Cassie asked. “The last time we spoke, you said you couldn’t get past the hurt and he was trying to act like your being apart didn’t happen.”

  “He called me,” I said with a shrug. “With our having nothing but the phone between us, we were finally able to talk. For the past week we’ve talked every night for hours. Sometimes we even talk during the day too. We got everything out in the open where it belonged. Ends up it was all a big misunderstanding created by his lovely mother.”

  “Ha, no surprise there,” Cassie said. “All I ever hear about are these terrible mothers-in-law.”

  “I love mine,” Samantha said. “You see, Jackie, there’s another reason to marry Brent.”

  “Marry him? Are we back on that again?” Jackie said, throwing her hands up in the air.

  While Samantha began planning another dinner for Jackie and Brent to spend time together at, I gave my friends a small wave and left the restaurant. As I stepped outside, I saw Mason had moved further up the sidewalk and was deep in conversation. He was speaking with a handsome blond man with a strong jawline and a dimple in his chin. He was so striking I thought he looked like he had stepped out of a movie.

  “You should come by this afternoon,” Mason said. “Gideon will be there and he can discuss all the plans. I’m telling you, you’ll never see a more environmentally safe construction. We’re keeping as much of the land as intact as possible. And the materials we’re using are cutting edge. Most of the ranch will run completely on solar power.”

  I gently touched Mason’s back to let him know I was there. He turned around and put his arm around me before kissing my lips and smiling.

  “Tara Murphy, this is Brent Winslow. We just ran into each other. He owns the largest environmental protection firm in the nation.”

  “It’s nice to meet you,” I said.

  As Brent held his hand out for me to shake, his sleeve peeked out of his jacket. I couldn’t help but notice his cuff was unbuttoned. It reminded me of Jackie and her bed head and I laughed to myself.

  “Likewise, Miss Murphy,” Brent said. He pulled his hand away quickly and tugged on his sleeve until his cuff disappeared. “Mason, I’m definitely interested in seeing what you have going on there. I have a meeting downtown, but I’ll pass by a little later.”

  As Brent walked away, Mason turned to face me and pulled me closer to him.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked. “I thought you were still in North Carolina.”

  “I wanted to surprise you. Come with me. Let’s go for a ride.”

  With his arm around me, he led me to his car and opened the door. We had talked so much on the phone recently that I felt that closeness again. The years we had been apart didn’t mean anything anymore. I was ready to pick up where we left off.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Mason

  I planned on seeing Tara as soon as I arrived back in Canyon Cove, but due to my delayed flight, I went directly to the hotel. I paced my hotel room and looked at the time, annoyed it was so late. While I was disappointed, nothing was going to stop me from talking to her on the phone. In just a week, we had fixed the problems from the past and were moving forward. To say I was happy to have Tara back in my life was an understatement.

  I slipped my Bluetooth headset into my ear and sat on the couch. As her phone rang, I waited anxiously to hear her voice.

  “Well hello there, stranger,” she said.

  It always amazed me how much she still sounded like a Southerner even though she had been away for so many years.

  “Hey gorgeous,” I said. “I hope it’s not too late.”

  “I thought maybe you forgot about me.”

  “I could never forget about you. I just had some last-minute things to take care of. What are you doing tomorrow?”

  “Tomorrow is lunch at Mirabella’s with the girls.”

  “You can’t cancel?”

  “No, they’d string me up if I did. Besides, I love getting together with them. I’m looking forward to it. Why?”

  “Maybe I was thinking I’d take you out for lunch.”

  “Well, you’re a little far away.”

  For a moment I thought about telling her I was close and could be at her place in less than half an hour, but I stopped myself. She loved her time with her friends. I wasn’t going to make her choose between us.

  “I won’t be far for long,” I said.

  “I’m looking forward to that. I miss you.”

  “I miss you too. So, are you in bed already?”

  “I was just falling asleep when you called,” she said with a small yawn.

  “Oh? What are you wearing?”

  * * *

  As I drove the car out of the city and towards the canyon, I glanced over at Tara. For the first time since I had seen her again, she looked calm and relaxed, like the Tara I remembered.

  “You have something on your mind,” she said.

  “I do. But I’m not sure if I should say anything about it yet.”

  She nodded slowly then looked out the window. I had a feeling she knew what was on my mind. She knew where I was taking her and that I wanted her to move in.

  “Then maybe you should wait,” she said. “Wait for when the time is right.”

  “Time is fleeting. And waiting is what kept us apart.”

  “Then say it.”

  I didn’t. As I turned onto the property and saw how many construction vehicles and people there were, I knew it would have to wait. I wanted to do it when it was just us, Tara and I.

  In the week I had been gone, they broke ground on the main house and the horse facilities. Tricia visited daily and sent me photos of the progress while I was away, but the pictures didn’t convey how massive a project it was until I saw it in person.

  Tara and I walked up the hill towards the center of activity, where the house would one day stand. The foundation had already been poured and framing had begun. Tricia was talking to some of the workmen when she spotted us and came over.

  “You must be Tara,” she said with a big smile. “I’m Tricia, Mason’s assistant.”

  “My condolences,” Tara said with a laugh. “I would not want to work for him.”

  “He didn’t give me much of a choice,” Tricia said.

  “That’s enough,” I said. “I should have kept you two apart longer.”

  “Well, it’s nice to meet you, Tricia. Mason told me a lot about you,” Tara said.

  “That’s a relief. I was worried you wouldn’t like me.”

  “What’s to not like?”

  “You know how we met,” Tricia said. “I’m sure some women would have a problem with that.”

  Tara shook her head as she smiled. “Not with Mason. I know him too well.”

  I slipped my arm around Tara’s waist. I loved feeling her soft curves against me.

  “Come with me, I want to show you around the house,” I said.

  “You do realize there is no house?” she asked.

  “Use your imagination.”

  As I brought Tara to the framed section where the front door would be, Gideon Kohl, my architect, stopped us. He was in his mid-twenties, the age I started dating Tara. But he was much cockier than I ever was.

  “Now hold on,” he said. “You can’t go in there without a hard hat.”

  Gideon’s gaze dropped to Tara. He tilted his head to the side and grinned at her as he removed his hard hat and his sandy blond hair fell onto his forehead. I knew his look. Every man knew that look.

  “Well hello there,” he said to Tara. “I’m Gideon. If I knew there was going to be a beautiful woman here today, I would have dressed better.”

  He tugged on his fitted button-down shirt, then rolled up his sleeves a little more while flexing his biceps. I balled my hand into a fist, ready to pummel him. Tara put her hand on my chest to stop me.

  “I think your mommy dressed you just fine,” Tara said.

  Gideon burst with laughter
. “Woot! I love a feisty woman.” His phone started ringing and he turned from us to answer. “You’re back at work? No, I told you I was going to be on site today. How about dinner tonight?” He hung up, reached for two hard hats, and handed them to us.

  “Girlfriend or wife?” Tara asked.

  “Huh? What? Oh no, nothing like that. We’re just friends,” he said.

  “Sounded like a girlfriend to me,” Tara said with a knowing look.

  We put on the hard hats and I took her through the skeletal house towards the area we had our picnic at. She leaned towards me and whispered.

  “Becca was just talking about her friend Gideon at lunch,” she said. "You can't tell me there's more than one Gideon in Canyon Cove who's also an architect.”

  “There’s definitely more there than just friends,” I said. “You know we were friends first.”

  “No, we weren’t. You even said our first date happened on the day we met.”

  “I didn’t say we were friends for long,” I said, cocking my head to the side like Gideon did.

  “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about the past. I was young and dumb back then,” she said.

  “And what about now?”

  “Now, well I’d like to think I’m not dumb anymore, but lately I think I have been.”

  “No, I’m the dumb one. I expected you to go back to the way you were just because it was what I wanted. That wasn’t right.”

  “You did it because you were upset about the past. I get it now. I was too stubborn to before,” she said as she looked towards the ocean. “What’s going to be here?”

  “It’s a courtyard off the master suite. When I had Gideon design it, I told him it had to be here. I said I wanted an area where you could sip your hot chocolate and look at the ocean.”

  She tilted her head up towards me, her nose wrinkled like it did when she was confused. I knew she was expecting me to ask her to move in again, but I wasn’t going to. Not now and not here.

  “Remember our trip to find the Menorquín horse?” I asked.

  “How could I forget?”

  “Then what would you say if I told you I have a plane leaving tomorrow for Spain?”

  “But it’s late in the year. Isn’t it going to be chilly?”

  “Then I’ll keep you warm. I’ve done it before,” he said.

  “What am I doing thinking about the weather?” she muttered. “Ask me again.”

  “What would you say if I told you I have a plane leaving tomorrow for Spain?”

  “I’d ask what time you’re picking me up.”

  He kissed me and I knew that everything was going to be alright. Being with Mason was what I always wanted. It was the one constant in my life where I didn’t have any doubt.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Tara

  “Feels like just yesterday I was here in the cottage asking you about Mason,” Ashley said as she stirred another marshmallow into her hot chocolate. “And now he’s whisking you away.”

  “And he’s building a house for her,” Maya said as she joined us at the round dining table.

  “He is not building a house for me, he’s moving the main ranch to Canyon Cove,” I said.

  “Did he ask you to move in?”

  “Yes, but he chose to build it here. I had nothing to do with that.”

  “You’re crazy if you think that’s true,” Ashley said. “I think you’re playing dumb with us.”

  I shrugged. I wasn’t ready to tell them everything that happened. I hadn’t told anyone everything about the picnic or our late night talks, I wanted them to stay just mine for a little longer.

  “You can’t tell me he chose Canyon Cove out of the blue,” Maya said.

  “I think he chose it for the scenery,” I said.

  I had given up trying to sound convincing.

  “If you say so. I’m just wondering when I can move in here.” Maya looked around the room. “You won’t be needing any of this furniture, right?”

  “Oh, so that’s it, you just want the cottage. You’re kicking me out,” I said as Maya laughed.

  “No, it has nothing to do with you, I just like the scenery,” she said.

  “Are you packed yet?” Ashley asked.

  “Yes, but I have to admit I’m a little nervous. It’s been so long since...” I raised my eyebrows and gave a small shrug.

  “Since you did it? Trust me, I don’t think that’s changed,” Maya said.

  “Is that all you think about?” I asked.

  “Since I’ve been single, yes.”

  “Well, that’s not what I meant. I’m just nervous because I feel like so much is riding on this trip. The last time we were there, we became a couple. This time we’re going as a couple. I know I’m overthinking it.”

  “I don’t think you have any reason to be nervous,” Maya said. “He loooooves you.”

  Maya started making kissing noises and I rolled my eyes.

  “You are just like your mother,” I said laughing.

  “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

  “You two are something else,” Ashley said. “Did you say he’s taking you to Spain?”

  “Yup, to the Balearic Islands. He wants to make up for the time we went there.”

  “Balearic Islands?” Maya asked. “That’s like Ibiza, right? Joshua has been trying to convince me to go there with him. You’ve heard of House of Argenti, right? You know, the big fashion house.”

  “The big everything,” Ashley said. “I’ve heard Luca Argenti is always looking for more sophisticated and elegant ideas.”

  “Well, Joshua said House of Argenti is hosting this huge invitation-only weekend bash there. He has some ideas that he thinks would be perfect for House of Argenti. He’s just waiting to see if he would get the invite,” Maya said.

  “You should go if he does,” Ashley said. “Joshua is a great friend. The two of you could drool over eye candy together on the beach.”

  Maya shrugged and her face saddened.

  “I don’t know that I’m ready for that,” she said.

  “I think some time away from here would be a good thing, Maya,” I said. “Some fresh air might help you get him out of your mind.”

  “Speaking of Ibiza, Tara,” Ashley said, taking the pressure off Maya. “I thought you said you weren’t dating when you and Mason went there before.”

  “We weren’t. That trip was complicated, but that’s when we became a couple. He promised me then he’d take me back one day.”

  “Because you didn’t do the deed,” Maya said, snorting as she laughed.

  “You’re impossible,” I said.

  “I think Maya’s right,” Ashley said.

  “Well, there are worse ways to spend my time. If that’s all this trip ends up being, you won’t find me complaining,” I said with a grin.

  * * *

  Mason and I had been in Spain for four days and hadn’t left the yacht once. We sailed around Ibiza, Mallorca, and Menorca in the beautiful blue water. The days were sunny and warm, but the nights were cold.

  After so many days, we needed to restock the ship so we docked in Mallorca. The water was unlike anything I had ever seen. In some areas it was a dark blue, in others almost teal.

  We promised each other we wouldn’t bring any work clothes with us so Mason left his suits at home, instead opting for jeans. I left my jeans at home and chose comfortable cargo pants.

  We strolled from the port to the white sandy beaches. It was my favorite kind of beach day, cool enough that it was empty except for the diehard sun worshippers. Mason helped me climb a rocky hill that followed the coast line back to the port. Once we reached the top, Mason turned to me, his expression serious.

  He squinted in the sunlight as I waited for him to say something. He had something on his mind and after we had been so open with each other, I was wondering what he was keeping from me now.

  “What? Stop staring at me like that,” I said. “Did something happen? Do we have to go b
ack? Seriously, Mason, if you don’t speak right now I’m going to have a fit.”

  His eyes twinkled as he grinned.

  “Nice to see I still drive you crazy,” he said.

  “You’ve always driven me crazy.”

  “And I always will.”

  He reached behind him and pulled a long, thin box out of his back pocket. He looked at the box for a while and then back at me before he spoke.

  “We’ve been together a long time and even when we were apart, I thought about the day I could give you something that showed you how much you mean to me,” he said.

  He looked at the smooth box hesitantly as he balanced it between his fingers. I wanted to grab the box from him and open it to see what was inside. Mason had never looked so nervous before.

  “What is it? What’s in the box?” I asked. “I’m sure no matter what it is, I’ll love it.”

  My mind raced as I thought of the things that could be in the box. A small voice told me that it was most likely jewelry, and I groaned inwardly. Not that I didn’t love jewelry, but I wasn’t the kind of person who wore much. That fancy stuff wasn’t something I really cared about.

  “Tara, I had this idea to give you this, but Tricia and even Ashley told me it was a bad idea. Until this second I was confident in what my gift is, but now I’m not so sure.”

  He handed the box to me and I was surprised at how light it felt in my hands. I opened the hinged top slowly as I tried to peek inside, but all I saw was an envelope. I took the envelope and Mason removed the box from my hands.

  “Open it,” he said.

  The envelope was thick and as I broke the seal, I found the rounded edges of paper folded into thirds. I flattened the forms and read the cover page.

  This document conveys ownership of Lucky Lady Diva, Standardbred Mare of Abernathy Ranch, to Tara Murphy.

  My jaw dropped as I read the words over and over. Tears sprung to my eyes as I flipped the pages and read about her lineage and saw photos of my horse. My horse. Not someone else’s. I hadn’t felt this excited about a gift since my eighteenth birthday when my parents gave me Ladyfinger.