Truly Mine

Devin's gray eyes lingered a little too long on the black dress Charlie had labeled tasteful. His gaze moved upward to settle in the hollow of her neck, right in the place he used to kiss. He sipped his wine, cleared his throat, and drank in his fill. Lifting his glass to toast, he broke the silence. "Why, little Charlie Canfield, you've grown into one stunning woman."

Charlie wanted to say, "And you've grown into the man I'd always known you would be: drop-dead gorgeous." Instead she smiled tightly and said, "Thanks that's nice of you to say that, but you were always a charmer."

"I've always meant every word. This isn't the first time I've told you you were beautiful." his wide smile made two dimples appear.

Since when had he become so smooth? Charlie's stomach knotted into a double loop. She couldn't say a word if she wanted to.

Devin's voice brought her back to earth. "So what you been up to?"
.
. . At a loss for words, Charlie stared into his soft gray eyes. What she saw in their depths forced her to look away. Had time also made Devin forget the reality of the situation? It hadn't been her choice to break up - he was the one who'd dumped her. That summer they'd gone their separate ways, she to a job in her home town, Mount Vernon, New York, and Devin to life-guarding in Cape Cod. Of course he'd promised to call and write, but that never happened. At the end of that summer, when her pregnancy had been confirmed, she'd been left with little choice but to marry Tarik Connors.