Begin Again - Jennifer Probst Page 0,41
offered samples of beer and wine tastings. Dogs walked happily along on leashes, and the pet bakery sold dozens of specialty treats for happy canines.
Ophelia, Kyle, Harper, and Aidan had stayed back to watch Evie, insisting that Mia and Ethan get some time to themselves. They all drove together, while Owen blasted his favorite playlist of alternative music, to both Chloe’s and Ethan’s delight. Mia just groaned and talked about the terrible names such as Cold War Kids, Cage the Elephant, and Portugal the Man, but she was drowned out by all the singing.
After they parked and made their way to the entrance, Chloe asked to see his playlists. “You had all the best songs,” she said. “I’m terrible at organizing stuff on my phone, can I take a look?”
“Sure, the code is 1212.”
Chloe chuckled and opened up the app. “Maybe you should think of getting a smarter password,” she teased.
“You’re probably right. But there’s so damn many of them, I want it easy. The one I always replay is at the top—oh, crap, wait! Umm, can I have my phone back really quick?”
“Sure, but it’s right here, under…” She trailed off, staring at the screen. “Songs for Chloe?”
She glanced up. His normally ruddy cheeks were red stained, and pure embarrassment flickered from his pale blue eyes. It took her a few moments for the realization to hit, and then she confirmed by quickly ticking off all the songs listed.
Songs she loved. Songs they’d listened to over and over. Songs they’d fallen in love with together. A playlist for her.
The last song was Etta James, At Last.
He cleared his throat and snatched the phone back. “Umm, yeah. I kind of made up a list of my favorites, and they happen to be yours, too.”
A wave of heat washed over her, having nothing to do with the sun. “Owen, you made me a mix tape.”
He stared at her in a bit of confusion. “I just made a place to go when I missed you.”
Her legs got weak just like the trope, and for one crazy moment, she almost jumped into his arms and kissed him.
“Ready, guys?” Mia asked, turning to see where they were.
Owen shoved the phone in his pocket and fumbled out money for the tickets. Delight and joy unfurled inside her at the evidence. He hadn’t forgotten her, after all. In a way, he’d taken her with him.
Chloe laughed as Ethan wrapped his wife tight and smacked a noisy kiss on her lips. “This was our first date, princess.”
“I remember,” Chloe interrupted. “You dragged me with you to play chaperone, pretending to hate each other, but I knew it was backed-up sexual tension.”
“What do you think, horse man?” Mia teased, tilting her head up toward her husband. “Should we go eat cupcakes?”
“Absolutely. We’ll revisit the first time you fell in love with me years ago.”
Mia sputtered. “Excuse me? If you recall, I thought you were an overbearing jerk when you forced me to accompany you to the festival.”
Ethan puffed up with male pride. “Until I found your perfect cupcake and fed it to you. You were all sweetness and sugar after that. You fell hard. Oww.”
He rubbed his arm where she’d punched him. Chloe let out a laugh and they agreed to meet back in an hour so they could explore. Mia was already darting toward the specialty cupcakes, looking like a kid spotting a new bike on Christmas morning.
“Ready to eat, babe?”
His voice was a low whisper near her ear, the endearment making her tummy dip. She turned slightly and found his pale blue gaze pinned to her mouth. Her tongue flicked out to wet her lower lips, and a mischievous grin tugged the edge of his lip. Now she was the one with hot cheeks while shivers bumped down her spine. He was so damn sexy with that goatee and boy next door face, but especially because the world seemed to fall away when they were together. His razor-sharp focus was all for her.
On pure impulse, she raised up on tiptoes and pressed her mouth against his firm, warm lips.
“Let’s do it.”
They held hands and enjoyed the festival. He remembered her love for Cookie Monster and bought her a bright blue cupcake, feeding it to her in tiny bites as they strolled. They sipped local sample of ciders and beer, bought a pot of honey for Ophelia’s kitchen, and snatched up a homemade rum cake for them to eat later in the weekend. Children screamed from the