The Truth Never Spoken

I left Baker Oaks ten years ago and swore I’d never return. So, why on earth am I sitting in the front seat of Jake Clarke’s truck? The guy whose heart I broke all those years ago, the man I considered the love of my life.

After a decade of successfully avoiding everything Jake, running into him at the airport was never part of the plan. And staying at his place? Definitely not in the cards. But when my job sent me—Allie Zabana—on a six-month assignment near Baker Oaks, I had no choice but to go. I wasn’t planning on speaking to him ever again, let alone letting my eyes wander over his full beard, gazing into those intense eyes, or imagining how coaching football has calloused his hands in a way that could make my entire body shiver.

It wouldn’t be a problem if I hadn’t left without a word ten years ago, shattering both of our hearts in the process. Now, here we are, forced into each other’s orbit. All the old memories are coming back, along with a love I’ve tried to forget for so long—one that’s threatening to claw its way to the surface, dragging with it all the secrets I’ve locked away.

After a moment of weakness and his hands on me again, there’s no question about the chemistry we still share—it’s the kind of passion that could reignite like wildfire if we aren’t careful. But… he has no idea what really happened all those years ago, and I’m not sure he’d ever forgive me if he did.

Just when I think maybe the past will stay buried in the past, life hits me with a blitz I never saw coming.