A Love Rekindled (The Game of Love #1) (3 page)

When
he saw Jessica at the party, he wanted to be mad at her. Every ounce
of him wanted to ignore her, but there was something in her eyes when
she looked at him. She looked so sad. When they talked, she seemed
like a different person. His heart broke for her. When she ran off,
he had no idea what was going through her mind.

Luke's
mind wandered to their conversation earlier that night. She had a
plan when they graduated high school. They were both going to
college. He wanted to play professional football and she wanted to
start her own business. It was very important to her. When he asked
her about college at the party, she told him that she never went. It
did not make any sense to him. He leaned back in his bed wondering.
What had prevented her from her going after her dreams? She worked
with Linda, so she never went on to open her own business. He tried
to figure out if it was because of her family. They were happy about
her going to college, so he did not think that was it.

He
closed his eyes and tried to go to sleep. No matter what he did, he
kept thinking about her. Was she married? Did she have a family? Did
someone sweep her off her feet? Was she with someone better than him?
Had she ever loved him? Luke let out a sigh as he closed his eyes
again.

When
Luke woke up, he felt exhausted. He knew he had only slept for a
couple of hours, before he heard his mom moving around and smelled
bacon. He threw on some clothes and made his way to the kitchen.

“
How
was your party?” she asked.

“
It
was okay,” he said. “Do you remember Jessica?”

“
Yes,
how could I forget her?” she asked. “She was a nice
girl.”

“
When
is the last time you saw her?” he asked.

“
I
have not seen her in years,” she answered. “I heard she
bought a house on same street as the high school, but I have never
run into her anywhere. I see her mom from time to time, but she never
mentions Jessica. She only talks about Renee.”

“
Is
she married?” he asked.

“
I
have no idea,” she said.

He
finished his breakfast in silence and then went back to his room.
Luke looked her up on the internet. He wanted to find her address. An
address came up under her maiden name. If she got married, she had
done it after she bought the house. It said she had lived there for
six years. That was strange. She must have bought her house not long
after he left. Why wouldn't she stay with her parents? She hadn't
planned to move out until after she graduated from college. What had
happened to her, he wondered?

Luke
got dressed and headed out the door. He told his mom he was going to
be looking at houses all day and that he would see her around dinner
time. Luke knew how important it was to his mom that he was home. He
tried to have breakfast and dinner with her each day. She would get
used to him being home and he wouldn't feel like he had to be around
as much. He was all she had. His father had taken off just after he
was born. It was important to Luke that his mom was happy. If having
him around made her happy, then he would make sure to be around as
much as he could.

He
got into his car and left. The address he found was on the same
street as the high school, so he headed in that direction. Luke was
nervous about what he was doing. He had no reason to go past her
house. She probably had a husband and kids. There was no reason for
what he was about to do. He knew he needed to move on. Maybe if he
saw her happy family, he would realize and let go. He started down
the street and looked down at the address on the paper. Slowly he
drove down the street until he found the number that matched the one
he had.

Luke
pulled up in front of the house next to it and parked his car. There
was only one car in her driveway. It was the same car he saw pull
away from the party as he raced out the door after her. It was a
house she used to hang out at after school. It belonged to one of her
friend's parents. They had both spent time together sitting on the
front porch steps at the end of the school day and after football
games. The house was cute and he could tell some work at been done to
fix it up, probably by her husband. The thought of her being with
another man made his stomach sick.

He
sat looking at the house, when he heard a laugh. A small child ran
into the front yard from around the side of the house. A moment
later, Jessica ran out from the side and tackled the child. They both
rolled onto their backs as they laughed. The two of them stayed still
for a moment and then made snow angles, before they got up. When the
child stood up, he noticed it was a little boy with dark brown hair.
Jessica stood up and brushed the snow from her jeans. Her long brown
hair sparkled from the snow as she brushed her hands through her hair
and laughed. Luke watched as the little boy started to roll snow for
a snowman. He sat there for a few minutes. The little one looked to
be around six or seven years old. Luke's chest tightened and he felt
like he could not breathe.

Jessica
seemed so happy. The two of them making a snowman was adorable. She
had never been very good at making snowballs or rolling a snowman. In
high school, he had always had to start the ball rolling for her.
Luke wondered about her husband and little boy's father. Was she
happy? What did the man have that he didn't? Luke knew he didn't have
money and couldn't give her huge gifts, when they were in high
school. He didn't think she minded. She seemed so happy with him,
until that day she broke his heart. The more he thought about her
being married, the more upset he got. He thought more about the
little boy. If he was six, then she would have had to have gotten
pregnant right after he left for college.

Had
she been with someone else while they were together, or had she
jumped right into bed with someone as soon as he left town? It sure
did not take her long to move on. Luke had never moved on. He was
devastated when he left. It had taken him months to even talk to a
woman. He was so hurt, while she was having a good time with someone
else.

Luke
had never let himself fall in love again. He had one-night stands
most of the time. A few times, he went out with the same woman for a
couple of weeks. He never let himself have feelings for any of the
women. It was all about sex for him. There was no way he was letting
anyone hurt him again.

The
more he thought about Jessica having a family, the more furious he
became. It was supposed to be him having a family with her. He was so
mad at her. If he had known, he could have moved on from her. He
never knew why she broke up with him and always wondered it they
would end up together. Not anymore. He wasted years thinking about
her, and for what, no reason at all. Luke had worried about her all
the time. He wondered if she was okay and if she had her own
business. If he had known years ago, what he had seen that day, he
would have saved himself a lot of time and worry. He shook his head
and let out a growl, as he started his car and drove away.

Jessica

Their
snowman was finished. He was perfect. They named him Sam. He had
eyes, a nose, and a mouth. They put a scarf on him so he would not
get cold. Jessica took her little man into the house to warm up.
Their snowman was in the yard, in front of their window, so he could
look out at it every day. He took off his coat and boots and sat on
the couch, looking out at his snowman. Jessica took off her coat and
boots and headed to the kitchen. She put on water for hot chocolate.

“
Do
you think daddy would like my snowman?” he asked. “Did he
like to play in the snow?”

“
He
would love it,” she answered. “Yes, he loved to play in
the snow.”

“
Do
you have marshmallows mama?” he yelled from the couch.

“
Yes,”
she answered.

“
Should
we give the snowman some hot chocolate?” he asked.

“
No,
he likes the cold,” she answered, as she laughed.

She
made their hot chocolate with lots of marshmallows and turned on a
cartoon. He sat snuggled on her lap, as he drank his warm drink and
watched his show. She hugged him tight, as she thought back to the
night before.

She
thought about the moment she looked up and saw those beautiful blue
eyes, as Luke walked through the door at the party. Her heart raced
just thinking about it. She was shocked when he asked her about
college. Jessica thought for sure he already knew she had not went.
She knew she had to get away from the party. He would have asked her
more questions, and she wasn't sure how she would have answered him.
When she saw Heather touch him, she thought she was going to pass
out. Why did he have to be in town? Why didn't he stay away? How many
times would she have to run into him? How was she going to make sure
to avoid him? She felt tears run down her cheeks. Jessica did not
want her son to see her cry. She scooted him onto the couch and told
him she had to go get something from her room and would be right
back.

She
went to her bedroom and fell onto her bed in a pile of tears. Jessica
reached under her bed and pulled out a box. Her hands shook as she
took off the lid. Slowly she sifted through the contents as tears
rushed faster down her face. Pull it together, she told herself. If
he is going to stay, you have to figure out how to move on. It was
easier when she could just watch his games on television. Everything
was much different seeing him in person.

***

Her
mind went back to that day he left for college. She sat with him,
wrapped in his arms. Jessica knew she was about to do the hardest
thing she would ever do. She knew if he was going to play football
for college, he would never be home. There would always be somewhere
to go with the team. He would be so busy with studying, practicing,
games, and traveling. His ultimate dream was to play professional. He
needed to keep his head completely on football. She was going to
school close to home, so she could save her parents money. There was
no way they could afford to send her to University of Michigan. She
knew Luke would not be able to come home and she would not be able to
visit. There only communication would be by phone or internet. She
loved him more than anything in the world. He was her love, her
everything. She also knew that for his dreams to come true, she
needed to let him go.

She
wanted him to have an amazing life. His father had left when he was
young. It was always him and his mom. At college, he would be able to
live for himself. She wanted that for him. He did not need to think
about her while he was gone or wonder what she was doing. She wanted
him to be free and live. He would have so much to get used to and so
much to do. She wanted every decision he made to be for him. Jessica
did not want to hold him back.

Jessica
remembered the look on his face as she told him she did not want to
be with him anymore. He was devastated. She had no good excuse, only
that it would be too hard with him so far away. No matter what he
said to tell her they would make it, she shook her head. She told him
she wanted to stay in touch while he was away, but he was not sure he
could do that. She could still remember the look on his face as she
got into her car and drove away.

When
Jessica got home, she cried for hours. There was a hole in her heart
and she was devastated. She knew she made the right decision for
Luke's future. Her sister sat with her every day for weeks. Renee
tried to tell her it would get easier, but she really had no idea.

Luke
called her a few times a week. They would talk about football or what
she had been doing. After about a month, he quit calling. She
couldn't believe it. What happened? Each time her phone would ring,
she would get excited, but it was never him. She could not figure out
what happened that he quit calling so suddenly. If he had slowed down
his calls, she would have figured he was moving on. He had called her
twice the previous week, and everything seemed the same as the week
before. The last day she talked to him, she was not feeling well and
it felt so good to hear his voice. The next week, she was excited and
waiting for his call. She had something she wanted to tell him. His
call never came.

Maybe
he found someone else. She was sure he had found someone else. That
was when she made another huge decision. She decided not to interrupt
his life and to let him have his dream.