The One She Left Behind (Harlequin Super Romance) by Kristi Gold Page A

The private piece of land where the town’s youth went to park. A rite of passage, some would say. The place where kids had been “necking for nearly a century,” according to Sam’s dad, although she always thought that to be an embellishment.
    “We spent some pretty hot nights there,” he said when she didn’t bother to respond.
    Very true, and very unwise to discuss it in detail. Feigning ignorance would be her best course. “Summers are always hot in Mississippi.”
    “That’s not what I meant and you know it.”
    Oh, no, no, no…. She wasn’t going there. “It doesn’t matter what you meant. I’m not going to talk about it.”
    “Calm down. I was just seeing if you remembered.”
    Savannah didn’t buy his innocent act one bit. She also couldn’t forget the sins of her youth, though heaven knew she’d tried. “I really don’t see the point in remembering a time when we were both incredibly ignorant.”
    “Ignorant or not, we couldn’t get enough of each other.”
    And she couldn’t get out of the conversation fast enough. “Like I said, we were ignorant. Let’s just leave it at that.”
    Another brief span of silence passed, steeped in tension and turned-back time while they approached the well-worn path that had led to Savannah’s teenage downfall.
    “I wonder if the place still looks the same,” Sam said when the rusty rail fence surrounding the pond came into view.
    “I’m sure it’s exactly the same since not a lot changes around here.” That included Sam, who’d always been fond of teasing her without mercy. That seemed to be his goal tonight—doing his best to shake her up with the unwelcome nostalgia. Unfortunately, that ploy was beginning to work. She started to feel as if each breath she drew took great effort, exactly as it had been on those long-ago nights when she’d been high on anticipation and low on wisdom.
    He sent her a fast glance and a somewhat sinister—albeit sexy—smile. “If Manny could talk, he’d have more than a few stories to tell.”
    “Could you just keep your eyes on the road and your mind on the present?”
    And your foot on the accelerator, she wanted to say when he appeared to slow down. She’d be surprised if Manny was chugging along above ten miles per hour while her heart had to be going at least a hundred.
    One more minute and they would be at the gravel drive. One more minute and he could choose to make a turn that would lead them right down memory lane and straight into trouble. Just when Savannah prepared to protest loudly, Sam sped up and passed by the turnoff.
    Savannah mentally compiled a laundry list of insults directed at him as she released the breath she’d been holding and unclenched her fists. Obviously he’d been bent on taunting her just to get a reaction from her, and she hated that she’d played right into his hands. The best way to thwart his attempts would be to not react at all, and that’s precisely what she planned to do from this point forward.
    Yet by the time they reached the farm, her legs were so weak when she climbed out of the cab, she felt as if she’d run a marathon with forty-pound weights strapped to her ankles. Adding to her angst, when she closed the door and turned around, Sam was right there, maybe a foot away.
    “Thanks for the ride,” she muttered, determined to get in the house before he could sense her discomfort and celebrate his victory.
    Sam braced a palm above her head, halting her departure. “It’s still early.”
    If she wasn’t careful, it might be too late. “Why are you doing this?”
    “Doing what?”
    There went the old innocent act again. “Dredging up old times as if I’d be interested in taking up where we left off.”
    “Aren’t you curious?” he asked.
    “Curious about what?”
    “About how it would be between us now?”
    Unfortunately, yes. “No.”
    “Are you sure about that?” he asked, his unwavering gaze trained on hers.
    Savannah was only sure about one