Take Me All the Way by Toni Blake Read Free Book Online

loud knock knock knock sounded on the side door. No one used Fletcher’s front door—everyone entered through the one on the porch that overlooked the ocean, the porch that had become a place to pass lazy afternoons with friends, commiserating their losses or celebrating their successes. He liked having that kind of a door, that kind of a house. It had been here, in Coral Cove, that Kim had so suddenly left him, and he’d sold their well-used motorhome to get the down payment for the cottage—so that he could wait for her here.
    As much as he missed his old life with Kim, there were certain aspects of living in Coral Cove he valued greatly now and would never have known otherwise. Life on the road had taught him to make fast friends with people but also not to get attached—and it was nice that now he could get attached, nice that everything wasn’t temporary. Everything happened for a reason, and the worth he’d found in building a new life here provided for him some of those reasons. And when Kim came home he’d understand the rest of it, why it had to happen this way.
    When the knock came again, he realized how lost in thought he’d gotten. “Fletch, you home?”
    It was his neighbor and good friend, Jack. “Yep,” he called. “Come on in.”
    As Jack stepped inside, his gaze dropped to the note Fletcher still held in his hand. “You, uh, reminiscing?”
    He’d shared the note with Jack early in their friendship, but it wasn’t like he sat around holding it in his hand all the time, and he felt as if he’d been caught at something.
    So he let out a chuckle, laughing it off. “Only for a minute.” Then he refolded the note on its well-worn creases and put it back in his wallet as he smiled into Jack’s eyes. “What’s up, my friend? Can I get you a beer?”
    â€œActually, I need your help with something. Christy has me building this elaborate arbor for the wedding. I just picked up the wood and was hoping you’d help me unload it and get started.”
    â€œHappy to,” Fletcher said. He was always pleased to help his friends. “Though”—he stopped, tilted his head—“I think most people just rent that kind of thing. You could probably save yourself a lot of trouble.”
    â€œI know,” Jack said, “but Christy wants to put it in the yard afterward, like a keepsake.”
    Ah, keepsakes again. Fletcher understood about those. So he began to nod. “That’s a nice idea.” He’d learned the value of putting down roots somewhere, of making a house a home. He only hoped Kim would like the home he’d made for them when she finally got here.
    Midday Florida sun beat down on the two men as they crossed Sea Shell Lane toward Jack and Christy’s bungalow. He supposed Jack might prefer to wait until a cooler hour to unload and start constructing his wedding arbor, but Fletcher’s friends had learned to work around his schedule, knowing he made his living performing at the Sunset Celebration every night.
    â€œYou okay?” Jack asked, slanting an inquisitive glance Fletcher’s way as they began carrying the thin strips of wood, tied in bundles, from the bed of Jack’s pickup to his backyard.
    â€œFine, as always,” Fletcher replied. And he meant it. Yeah, he had his moments when he wasn’t as fine as he generally portrayed himself to be, but they were few and far between. Jack had just happened to catch him in one, but it was past now.
    â€œBecause . . . the way you were holding that note before—”
    â€œEvery now and then I look at it. To remind myself everything will be okay. That’s all. And it will, so no worries.”
    They both lowered their armfuls of wood to the grass behind Jack’s house. Jack looked from the wood up to Fletcher and the hot air felt weighted with tension until he finally said, “Four years is a