Free Second Chance by Rachel Hanna Page A

t-shirt, I looked horrible. I missed Tanner.
     
    What are you thinking? You just met him , I thought to myself.
     
    After splashing some water on my face, I went downstairs to find Denise sitting at the kitchen table reading the newspaper.
     
    “Well, good morning, sleepy head,” she said smiling.
     
    “Sorry I slept so late. I didn’t mess up your day, did I?”
     
    “Nah… Dan is at work and I took the day off. So what are your plans for the day?” she asked with a knowing grin on her face.
     
    “Well, I am not quite sure. For one thing, I have no clothes. They are all back at the house… and probably destroyed or hanging in a tree somewhere. Do you think I could borrow an outfit or two?” I asked.
     
    “Sure, you know my closet is your closet… Let’s go find some stuff.”
     
    After shopping in Denise’s closet for an hour, I found 3 outfits that I would take back with me to the farm. I said my goodbyes and got into my car to make the long trek back to the farm in the hopes that Tanner would still let me stay there.
     
    I could have stayed with Denise, but she had her own life and I didn’t want to disrupt it. I also had unfinished business at that farm and its name was Tanner.
     
    As I drove the two hours back to the house, I ran through everything in my mind over and over. My marriage. John’s death. The job they asked Tanner to do. He could have continued lying to me. He didn’t owe me anything. He could have accepted the money and found his daughter.
     
    Oh. God. His daughter. Emmy.
     
    How could I help him get her back? I shifted into solution mode as I thought about how I could possibly get that file from Parker’s office. My mind raced as I considered all of the ways that I could sneak in without getting caught. If I could just get that file, maybe Tanner would have a chance at getting his daughter back.
     
    I drove up the gravel driveway slowly looking at the home that had been ravaged by the tornado. A blue tarp covered the roof and repair men were already there working on it. I parked and took my purse and extra clothes from the SUV, making my way down the walkway to the guest house.
     
    I could see Tanner’s truck still parked where it was the night before. Before I could knock, the door swung open. Tanner was standing there with no shirt. His muscular build was a thing to behold. Chiseled biceps, six pack abs and a luscious tan from working outdoors.
     
    “Shannon!” he yelled, immediately sweeping me into his arms and hugging me tightly. He buried his head into my neck and kissed me sweetly. I could feel his heartbeat quickening and his breath catching.
     
    “Are you okay?” he asked as he pulled back from me and put a hand on each of my cheeks. He was obviously concerned. “I am so sorry I pushed you too far. I got carried away,” he apologized.
     
    “No, no, no… You didn’t do anything wrong…” I started to say as he took my hand and pulled me inside the guest house, shutting the door behind us.
     
    We sat down on the sofa and I held one of his hands.
     
    “Tanner, I am so sorry if you were worried about me,” I said.
     
    “Worried about you? I was frantic. Do you realize I had no way to know where you went? If you made it there okay in the heavy rain? If you were ever coming back?” he asked.
     
    For a moment, I was awestruck. Here is a man who cared if I was driving safely in the rain. I had never experienced that before. I cocked my head and looked at him.
     
    “What? Why are you looking at me that way?” Tanner asked with a quirk of a smile.
     
    “Because no man has ever worried about my safety… my well being… It’s nice,” I whispered.
     
    “If you will let me, I will worry about you for the rest of…” he stopped himself. I wanted to hear the end of the sentence, but it was obvious he was trying to avoid scaring me all over again.
     
    “Can I ask a favor of you?” I changed the subject.
     
    “Sure, anything.”
     
    “Will