Read Rocky Point Reunion for Free Online

not much about the future. You wanted a cottage by the sea. To stay in Rocky Point.” He glanced away for a moment. “At first I thought I could be content working here, getting that house we talked about, settling down. Joe loved cars and I could have worked with him and done fine, I know.”
    â€œSure.” But he wouldn’t have been happy. She knew that. His wildness was what had made him so irresistible. He had been restless, seeking a wider world than she had.
    â€œThen, out of the blue, came a chance to drive on the race circuit. From Claude Moulet. I doubt you remember him, but he was someone my dad knew and had kept in touch after our folks died. Anyway, it was the chance of a lifetime. The only problem, I had to show up within two days to make the cut.”
    â€œSo, scratch the wedding, forget the girl who was planning to share your life and take off. I see.” As an explanation, it didn’t help. She felt a rush of pain, remembering the heartbreak that had hit her so unexpectedly. That was the worst part—the lack of warning. She turned her face so he couldn’t see the sadness she knew must be there. The remembered hurt was hard to hide.
    He didn’t reply for a moment. “I was eighteen. You were eighteen. We were kids. I got cold feet about getting married and was feeling stifled in Rocky Point. Our families have been here since the seventeen hundreds! I wanted to see something more than this spot of Maine. I was selfish and thoughtless and afraid I’d never get to see anything, do anything. And I knew I couldn’t ask you to leave.”
    â€œI guess I should have picked up on that,” she said slowly. Her heart hurt afresh with the thought of his getting cold feet, of regretting that he’d asked her to marry him. She had been so starry-eyed, thinking the world was perfect. Shame on her for not being more observant, more aware of his feelings. She blinked back tears. They had been kids, but as in love as she’d been, shouldn’t she have seen what he was going through? She glanced at him; he was looking into the distance, regret clearly showing.
    â€œI did all I could to squelch my fears. But they got bigger the closer to the wedding date we came. I didn’t have a long-range career plan—what if we couldn’t make it financially? What if there was nothing for me in Rocky Point, and you didn’t want to leave? I knew that. I wanted to want what you wanted—that house near the sea, a white picket fence. How could I afford a house? What if we had kids? I didn’t know anything about being a parent at eighteen. People were talking behind our backs about teenage marriages, the failure rate, the problems. The more I heard, the more I felt I couldn’t make it. So when the offer came, itopened up the entire world. If I could make the grade, I’d have money to afford that house, I’d have security to offer you. So I left before I could be talked out of it.” He drew in a deep breath and looked at her, shaking his head slowly. “I thought you could join me later. But by the time it was right, by the time I could afford it, I heard you’d bought the café and it sounded like you had things going your way. I knew you didn’t want to leave Rocky Point. Buying the café anchored you even more. I did it all wrong,” he said slowly. “I’m sorry, Marcie.”
    She stared at him for a long time, seeing the sincerity in his eyes. Her heart ached at the loss of the love they’d shared, at the dreams shattered. But life wasn’t always fair. It didn’t always go as she planned. Memories flitted through her mind—the church as it had been decorated with flowers and candles, the reception hall, the condolences of her bridesmaids, the beautiful white dress she’d never wear again. He’d gotten what he wanted and she’d grown happy enough over the years. She had her café and