Almost a week had passed, and Anna and Ethan had been talking on the phone almost every day. Anna was happy, but nervous at the same time because she was afraid her relationship with Ethan was just too good to be true.Kelly disagreed strongly, nearly squealing with delight when Anna had told her how the first date had gone."This is right for you, I know it. I feel it," Kelly had told Anna.It was Friday, and Anna had been excited all day about the second date. Ethan had chosen a restaurant in Bluewater, a larger city about an hour's drive away from Belleville.It was almost time for Ethan to pick her up, and Anna was putting some finishing touches on her makeup. Ethan had chosen a more formal restaurant in the city, so she had gone shopping with Kelly earlier in the week and bought a deep green dress that formed perfectly to her figure and matched the color of her emerald eyes. Green was always a perfect color for her, not only because of her eye color, but also because it accentuate
Anna slept soundly the night of the date, although she had expected to lay awake daydreaming with excitement. Maybe it was the alcohol. Or maybe it was contentment, that feeling she always hoped for that would tell her she no longer had to daydream about the perfect life.A few days passed, and Anna and Kelly paused for a few minutes in the parking lot after work to have a chat."I'm almost as excited about next weekend as you are," laughed Kelly."I'm thrilled, but I'm also a little uncertain," Anna told her friend."Uncertain? Girl, you need to stop letting those demons of your past mess with your future. Please, try to forget about that stupid Alan," Kelly begged."I'm trying. Believe me, I'm trying," Anna answered. "I'm headed for the grocery store. Need anything for dinner?""Okay fine, change the subject," Kelly teased. "I do, but I need to run home first to grab my shopping list, so I'll be right behind you.""Okay, I'll see you there," said Anna.Both women drove off for their
"Anna, hello. I was just thinking about you," said Ethan when he picked up his phone."Hi Ethan. I've been thinking about you, too," Anna answered in a shaky voice."What's wrong? I sense a 'but' coming next in that sentence," Ethan said, concerned."Well, it's not anything I want to talk about over the phone. Can you meet me for dinner tomorrow at Tony's? I think we need to talk.""Yes, of course," Ethan answered reluctantly. He sensed there was something very wrong in Anna's voice. "Will around seven work for you? Or I could pick you up earlier …""Seven will work, thanks. I'll just meet you there again, if that's okay," answered Anna."Yes, that's fine. I guess I'll see you then.""See you then. Take care, bye Ethan," Anna said, quickly hanging up the call. She winced and let out a deep breath, knowing she had worried him and most likely hurt his feelings. This was going to be hard. She'd have to stay strong.She looked down at Sammy, still sitting contently in her lap. "You're so l
A few days had passed, and Anna still felt uneasy about breaking it off with Ethan. She'd been distracted every day at work and felt like she wasn't giving her students her all because she just couldn't focus. Kelly had noticed a difference in her, but Anna had avoided talking to her friend so she wouldn't have to get a lecture about breaking up with Ethan.She got home that night and went through the motions of making dinner, cleaning up around the house, and trying to catch up on her reading. But later that night, she had read the same page twice and still couldn't get a handle on the story."Well, this is useless," she said aloud to herself, slamming her book closed. "Did I do the wrong thing? Or was it the right thing? How am I supposed to know the difference?'Memories flooded in as she compared the beginnings of her relationship with Alan with her recent dates with Ethan. Alan had been polite and nice, but when she really thought about it, he never truly seemed like he was listen
After work the next day, Anna pulled into her driveway and noticed something unusual on her front porch. She kept driving into her garage behind her house, closed up the garage, and walked around front to see what it was.As she turned the corner, she noticed flowers, a large arrangement of spring colors arranged in a basket display.She trembled.'Alan wouldn't leave me flowers, would he? They must be from Ethan, but he agreed to give me space. They'd better not be from Alan,' she thought, looking around nervously to see if anyone was nearby. The street was empty.She took a deep breath and went closer to see who they were from, noticing a small envelope at the top. Inside was a small card with a floral watermark that read, 'Join me for another date, Anna? I promise we'll take things slow. --Ethan.'She didn't know which emotion she felt more strongly, the relief that Alan wasn't stalking her or the thrill of Ethan asking her out for another date. She smiled and brought the flowers in
Early Friday evening, Ethan arrived and stepped out of his black SUV in front of Anna's house. He was dressed casually for the county fair, in jeans and a dark blue t-shirt that showed off his well-defined muscles. Anna met him at the door. Anna met him at the door wearing a floral sundress and strappy sandals. "You look incredible, Anna, as always," he said as he took her hand in his."Thanks, you too," she said, squeezing his hand. "We're still waiting on Kelly and John. They should be here soon.""Perfect," said Ethan."In the meantime, come on in and we'll have a cup of coffee or something," Anna said, motioning toward the door. Their hands slid away from one another's as they both stepped inside."And who is this?" Ethan asked, walking over to pet Sammy on the sofa. "Sammy, right?""Yes, that's right!" Anna exclaimed, amazed that he could remember such a detail from their first date."I never forget a pet's name," he explained as he scratched Sammy behind his ears.They laughed,
Anna was excited as she got ready to head over to Ethan's farmhouse the next morning. She had heard a lot of talk about the materials Ethan had purchased for the renovations from people in the town, but because it was out in the country on several acres and the house was in the back obscured by trees, most people hadn't seen the results of the upgrades.She dressed casually, in a green t-shirt and comfortable jeans, dressing up the look with some of her favorite gold earrings and a necklace that she'd bought on one of the many shopping trips with Kelly.She gave Sammy one last pet, locked up the house, and went to her garage. She pulled out her car and looked into her rearview mirror to be sure her garage door closed. As she looked back toward the street ahead, she noticed a car driving by slowly.Instantly she recognized the light blue sedan driven by Alan Shangle, and her hands started shaking. Their eyes met as he passed, and his facial expression was as cold as stone.Anna took a d
Both Ethan and Anna had showered and changed when she returned to the farm. The table was set with elegant placemats and a vase of lovely colorful wildflowers, and the smell of fresh bread was in the air."I hope you didn't go to a lot of trouble," said Anna."It was nothing," he said with a smile.It was already well into the afternoon. Being hungry, they both dug into the delicious meal and ate for a few minutes in silence."I was starving," Anna laughed. "I hope you don't think I eat like that every day. Everything was so delicious."He laughed. "I wouldn't mind if you did. It's good to have a healthy appetite.""That bread was amazing," she said. "You didn't have to go to the trouble.""Oh, it was no trouble at all. It's my mom's old recipe, adapted for a bread machine. They both laughed."Well, it was delicious all the same.""Thank you," said Ethan. "How about some coffee out on the patio?" he suggested."That sounds wonderful, thank you," answered Anna. Soon they were both outsi