Page 77 of Sawyer

“Holidays and a few trips each year.She has a lot of friends, keeps pretty busy.She’s busier than Sutton and me sometimes.”I huff a laugh, thinking about it.My mom and retirement go well together.

“That’s nice.I miss my mom.She used to make the best cornbread.”

I smile, knowing she doesn’t get to talk like this with anyone, and I like being the person she shares things with.

“You’re the best cook I know.”

“Hmm, no matter how hard I try, I just can’t get my cornbread the same as hers.”

I press a kiss into her hair, where she lays with her head on my chest, my hand caressing up and down her arm, keeping her close.

“I don’t even cook, so you’ve beaten me there.”

“Tell me your favorite food,” she says, and I’m surprised we haven’t talked about this before.

“Yours,” I say immediately.

“Sawyer!”she scolds me, laughing.“Really, tell me.”I feel her grinning against my skin.

“It’s the truth.I mean, the pasta at Mario’s in Manhattan is pretty good, but I’ve loved everything you’ve cooked for me so far.”

“Did none of your other girlfriends cook for you?”

We haven’t delved into our pasts too much, although I know more about hers than she does about mine.

“Haven’t really had many girlfriends.You’re the first one in a while.”

“Mm-hmm.Okay.Now I know you’re lying.”

“It’s the truth.I date, sure, but I haven’t committed myself to someone, been exclusive with someone for a long time.”

“Who was your last girlfriend?”

I take a deep breath.“My last serious girlfriend was actually my fiancée.”

“Oh?What happened?”She looks up at me, and I pull her tighter, not wanting her to feel any different about all this, but needing to share, especially since she’s been so open about her late husband.

“We were together for a few years, engaged for about one.”I clear my throat, and she remains silent, so I continue.“It was when I was young, late twenties, about your age.”At a decade older than her, I’m more her senior, but it’s an issue we don’t seem to have.

“What was her name?”

“Mandy.We met at college, and she was a nice girl.But I had to work long days and nights to prove myself at the law firm where I was working.They make all new graduates do grunt work, but I enjoyed it.I always had a vision of owning my own firm, you know.”

Her brow furrows, her eyes curious.“Why didn’t you get married?”

I lift my hand, running my fingers through her hair, pushing it from her face so I can see her clearly.

“I had an issue with work.Lost an important case.The client, he was a bad guy.Made our lives difficult, scared Mandy, the pressure of it all was too much.For both of us.So she walked away, and I let her.”

“Walked away?”

I nod, knowing that a woman like Annabelle wouldn’t walk away from anything, no matter how hard things got.It’s one of the reasons I’ve completely fallen for her.I know that if we continue what we’re doing, that she’ll always have my back and, I, hers.

Pursing her lips in thought, she asks, “How did he make your lives difficult?What happened?”

I blow out a breath.“He went to jail for murder.Still there, got twenty years.So he hated me, a young lawyer who lost his case and didn’t prevent him from serving jail time.”

“But he was the bad guy.He can't blame you.”