He left the truck idling because of the heat. But his tinted windows kept him partially hidden from anyone who might be looking. After about thirty minutes with no movement, Jace lowered his windows a few inches and turned off the engine. This wasn’t the first time he’d been on a stakeout. He’d helped Danny and Ryan a few times when they needed extra eyes.
The sweltering Texas heat didn’t make things comfortable. Sweat ran down his back and his face. When he could stand it no more, he started the truck again. A loud sigh escaped him when a blast of cold air hit him in the face. He closed his eyes in enjoyment. When he opened them once more, he just made out the back of a woman with long, dark hair as she climbed into the Camry.
His heart rate quickened because he knew right then that it was Taryn. Just seeing her from the back confirmed it. It was the way she moved, how she held herself. In those brief seconds he’d seen her getting into the car, he knew without a doubt that it was her.
He didn’t take his eyes off her as she backed out of her spot and drove away. Jace saw her pull onto Oak and head toward the intersection with Main. He waited a few moments and then followed her. He was two cars behind when he pulled to a stop at the light. When it turned green, she made a right and drove for a quarter of a mile before she pulled into a restaurant parking lot.
By the time Jace drove in behind her, she was already inside. He parked several spaces from her and contemplated his next move. He could wait and see where she went after she ate. Or he could go in and confront her.
There was so much he wanted to say to her. How many times had he had imaginary conversations with her where he told her how hurt he was, how much he missed her, how furious he was that she hadn’t told him goodbye to his face? That he loved her still?
Jace fisted his hands, arguing with himself over what to do. There were pros and cons to both options. The more he sat and thought about Taryn being back in Clearview without talking to him, the angrier he became. And yet he was thinking of staying in his truck instead of talking to her?
“Fuck that.”
He shut off the engine and climbed out. Taryn owed him an explanation. And if by some chance it wasn’t her … well, then Jace would go straight to his therapist.
As he walked toward the entrance, he wasn’t sure if he wanted the woman inside to be her or not. If it was, then he might finally get some answers to the many questions that had formed over the years.
If it wasn’t her, then he would hire Cash and find her once and for all. He needed closure. Both mentally and emotionally. His therapist had told him exactly that, when Taryn had first left. But he hadn’t been ready to consider it. Now, he was. He wanted to move on with his life, and he couldn’t do that until he had the closure she hadn’t given him.
He pulled open the door to the restaurant and walked inside. Jace removed his sunglasses and paused beside the hostess as she greeted him, letting his eyes adjust to the dimness of the interior. He hung his sunglasses on the neck of his shirt and ignored the hostess as he scanned the occupants until his gaze landed on Taryn. She sat facing the door, her head lowered as she looked at the menu.
“Sir?”
He blinked and looked at the petite brunette staring at him expectedly. “I’m meeting someone,” he answered the hostess. Then he pointed to Taryn. “She’s right over there.”
Jace walked toward Taryn, his heart beating rapidly as all sorts of things ran through his head. Her thick hair was much longer now, the dark strands falling over to one side as she leaned her head into her hand and slid her fingers through the curls.
This was the first time he’d gotten a look at her face in years. The sight was like being kicked by a horse. He halted, unable to move. He had seen her so many times in his dreams, but looking at her now was like seeing her for the first time all over again. She had taken his breath away back then, and she was doing it again now.
Her oval face had delicate features, but her eyes were large and slanted slightly upward at the corners. Dark brows arched over her beautiful green orbs, the color the most unusual thing he had ever seen. There were no words to describe it. Her eyes had been the first thing he’d noticed about her all those years ago. The second was her lips. Wide, full, and utterly sensual. With just a smile, she could have him on his knees.
Even today.
But those were only a few of her assets. High cheekbones, an hourglass figure that made his mouth water, and a laugh that could make anyone smile completed the package. She was stunning. The kind of striking that caused people to stop and stare because they weren’t sure she was real.
The kind of beauty that generally went to someone’s head.
Not Taryn. She could’ve had any man she wanted. For a brief time, she had chosen him. Those two years had been the best of Jace’s life. They had made a great team. Or at least he’d thought they had. And the sex … it had been mind-blowing. He’d fallen head over heels for her in just a few days. Hell, he’d loved her at first sight. Jace had known almost immediately that he wanted her in his life forever.
Suddenly, Taryn looked up from the menu. The instant their eyes met, she stilled, surprise registering as if she hadn’t been prepared for this moment. She straightened slowly, her arm falling to the table as her lips parted in shock.
Jace watched disbelief and astonishment cross her features, one emotion at a time. She slowly lowered the menu, and her hair fell back into place as she licked her lips—a nervous gesture he’d picked up on early in their relationship. She glanced away and took a drink of the water that had been placed on the table. Then, she slid her gaze back to him.
“Jace.”
A shudder went through him at the sound of his name on her lips once again. He wasn’t sure approaching her was a good idea. He realized he wasn’t prepared for any of it, no matter what he had told himself. Not the sight of her, not her reaction to seeing him, and not the smooth sound of her voice.
Not the fierce, undeniable desire she still stirred within him.
He’d been raised to be a gentleman, but all of that went out the window as the hurt and pain of the last few years welled up within him. He wanted to shout at her, to release all the fury he’d held inside for so long. He wanted to shake her, to kiss her. To hold her against him and feel her soft curves as he tasted her sweet lips.
It surprised him how he could hold onto so much anger and passion for the same person. The two emotions swirled around each other, twining together until he couldn’t tell one from the other. But the one thing he knew for certain was that she still had the ability to make him crave her as no one else could.
He walked the rest of the way to her table and slid into the booth without asking if it was okay. He didn’t take his hat off or even offer a smile. The pain pushed past the desire then. “Where have you been?” he demanded.
Her eyes lowered to the table, showing him long lashes that used to tickle his cheek as she rested her head on his shoulder. “I know you’re angry—”
“You don’t know a damn thing,” he said over her. “You left. In the middle of the night. And you thought a quick text was enough?”
“I know.” She took a deep breath and looked up at him. “I’m sorry.”
He shook his head. “You don’t get to say that without an explanation.”