Chapter 1
Liz loved driving down Old River Road. The road was long and winding through the woods, and she appreciated its beauty. Mostly though, she just loved that there was nowhere for cops to sit and hide. Liz loved to drive, and she loved to drive fast. To a newcomer, this road might seem daunting, but Liz lived in Milton her whole life. She had been driving home from work on this road for the last ten years, and before that, it was the road she took to drive home from school. This was her home, and nothing here surprised her.
Well, nothing surprised her until she heard the sound of a siren and saw flashing blue lights behind her.
“Oh you have got to be kidding me!” she groaned as she pulled her car over to the side of the road. Where had the cop even come from? There really was nowhere to hide. She hadn’t even noticed passing the car. In her rearview mirror, she saw a tall man in a police uniform approaching. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself before rolling down her window.
“Could I have your license, registration, and proof of insurance, ma’am?” asked the cop. His voice was deep and somehow comforting to her. Instinctively, Liz felt safe.
“Is there a problem, officer?” she asked as pleasantly as she could manage, looking up at him sweetly. When their eyes met, she froze. She knew that face. The strong jaw, the deep green eyes – how could she forget the way they used to sparkle with mischief? Or the light-brown hair which was so soft that it was practically begging her to run her fingers through it once more?
“Lizzie?” He looked just as surprised at the sight of her. His muscles tensed. She couldn’t help but notice how under that police uniform, he was still built like an athlete. Liz could only hope she wasn’t blushing at the thought of that body.
“Ben – what the hell are you doing here?” Now that the shock had faded, Liz was starting to feel that old familiar anger the thought of Ben always awoke in her. In high school, he had always made her passionate, but for the last decade, the strongest emotion he evoked from her had been the rage.
“I came home,” he said simply. Where she was fire when angry – he was ice. He almost became a robot – calm, cool, and professional. “License, registration, and proof of insurance, please.”
“Are you serious?” she demanded angrily. “You are actually going to give me a ticket?” In the thousands of dreams she had had about meeting him again one day, she had never pictured it like this. Her dreams always had him heartbroken, begging to be forgiven for abandoning her. Now here they were, and he was as calm as ever, writing her a ticket. The nerve!
“Do you know how fast you were going?” he asked, seemingly unperturbed by her fury. She wanted to get out of the car and smack him. At least, that’s what she thought she wanted to do. Her body seemed to have other ideas. It had been a long time since a man had made her heart beat this fast.
Perhaps that was why he decided to set up a speed trap on Old River Road. He had told himself it was because he remembered how fast and wildly the teenagers used to drive on it, but perhaps it was because he hoped she still did.
She was just as he remembered her – full of fire, passion, and life. The past ten years had aged her a bit, but she was still his beautiful Lizzie. She was also still pissed at him for leaving. If he had had any doubt, the way she practically spat “You left” at him was proof enough. He knew he had hurt her by leaving, but couldn’t she see how she hurt him by refusing to come with him?
After graduating high school, Ben had had big dreams. He wanted to leave behind Milton and explore the world. He wanted to go to college. There was so much more out there for him to see and do, beyond the borders of this old-fashioned little town. He had asked Lizzie, the girl he thought was the love of his life