Loving Lauren by Jill Sanders Read Free Book Online Page B

seeing her for the first time in seven years, he realized how much he still wanted her. She'd done a lot of growing up since he'd last seen her; he supposed they'd both done some. He'd enjoyed exploring the new curves she’d developed since the last time he'd kissed her. Kissing her was like breathing again for the first time in seven years.
     
    Now he looked down at the flowers. He set the white ones down and picked up the yellow ones. These reminded him more of her, so he walked up and paid for them, not noticing the looks the cashier gave him. As he drove out to the ranch, he thought about their meeting two days earlier.
     
    His duffel bag and a small box full of his other effects were in his trunk. When he'd told his dad that he was moving out to her place, his father had just smiled.
     
    “’Bout time,” he'd said.
     
    “I'm moving into one of the ranch houses, not the main house.”
     
    “Give it time, son.” His father had laughed and slapped him on the back.
     
    He drove to the ranch and turned off from the main drive, heading towards the farthest house on the dirt road. The smaller brick place looked like it had seen better days, but was still in pretty good shape. He dropped his stuff off, using the key hidden under the last porch step. The inside of the place looked new. All the appliances were well maintained, and the hardwood floor gleamed in the light. The furniture was simple yet comfortable. The small one-bedroom, one-bathroom place was all his for as long as he wanted. He knew Lauren had been telling the truth, that she wouldn't argue or ask him to leave.
     
    After dropping off his stuff, he hopped back into his truck and looked down at the flowers next to him. He hadn't planned on courting Lauren when he'd returned, but seeing her in the diner and being with her had made him realize that he still wanted her. After being gone for seven years, he still had a thing for her and now that he knew he was sticking around, he could pursue his feelings further.
     
    When he drove up to her house, the first thing he looked at was the old roof. She'd mentioned that it leaked and he wondered why she hadn't had it replaced. He saw the spots where someone had tried to do some patchwork, but in his opinion, the whole thing needed to be replaced. The house itself could use a new coat of paint and some trim needed to be replaced. Then he noticed there were a few other trucks and cars parked over by the garage. Just how many vehicles did she have to run the ranch? He parked next to Lauren's truck, got out, and carried the flowers with him. Halfway to the back of the house, he heard her laughter coming from the barn and started walking in that direction instead.
     
    When he walked into the barn, he blinked a few times to let his eyes adjust. Then he saw Lauren towards the back in the arms of another man, their silhouette highlighted by the brightness of the fields behind the opened doorway.
     
    His fingers tightened around the flower stems and before he knew it, he was across the barn. He cleared his throat when he approached the couple.
     
    “Oh.” Lauren pulled back and looked over at him, and her smile fell away from her lips. “Hello, Chase.” Her eyes went to the flowers he was holding by his side upside down.
     
    The man dropped his hand off Lauren and took a step back. His face was shadowed by his Stetson hat, but when he moved, the light from the doorway hit his face. Chase stopped cold. “Grant? Is that you?”
     
    Grant took a step forward and held out his hand. “Well, if this don't beat all. I heard you were back in town.”
     
    Chase was shocked. Grant Holton was a few years younger than him and had left town shortly after he had. Grant had been accepted into Harvard, which had at that time entered his name on Fairplay's biggest celebrity list.
     
    The last time he'd seen Grant, he had been an overweight boy whose face was hidden behind large glasses. Now a tall, muscular man without