Two months later...
“Are you finished with your letter?” she asked Ajay as they sat at the kitchen table of his home. After Winter and Taheim’s wedding, the pair had decided that moving into Ajay’s home was the best option and they would lease out Autumn’s town house.
Although it had been only a couple of months, living with Ajay had been nothing short of amazing. Within weeks, they’d fallen into a comfortable pattern and every day they were discovering something new they had in common.
“Almost,” he replied with a deep sigh. One month ago, Ajay had kept his promise and had spoken at the women’s-aid program for women who were released from prison and were trying to get their lives back on track. She’d gone with him that day, and even though she knew his story, hearing him rehash the details to the audience had been an emotional experience. After his speech, several members of different families had gone up to Ajay and expressed their gratitude for having him share his story. The entire time they were at the program meeting, Mrs. Reed had looked at her son as if she were the proudest mom in the world.
After that day, Autumn had heard about a new organization in Chicago called Born Again that held monthly inspirational meetings to teach people how to overcome obstacles and circumstances they may have been faced with. She’d asked Ajay to attend a meeting with her, and both of them were truly impressed by the organization. After speaking with the director, they learned that the members were people from all different walks of life who had gone through a tragic or trying period in their lives and ultimately wanted to start over. There were so many circumstances that caused people to join the organization, and the support that they were given was priceless.
Autumn and Ajay were slotted to speak at the next meeting and share their stories in hopes that it would help others who may have had to overcome similar obstacles. To prepare for the meeting, Autumn had suggested that Ajay write a letter to his birth mom about everything he would have said to her had she not passed away. At first, he wasn’t receptive to the idea, since it was a letter she would never get the chance to read. So Autumn had decided that even though she wouldn’t send her letter, either, she would write one to her ex in response to the letter he wrote her all those years ago. In her letter, she would mention all the reasons why she would no longer let that time in her life define her future.
Glancing over at Ajay, she knew he was the reason why she no longer carried around that burden. There were so many remarkable things about him, it was impossible to choose only a few things she loved. When he finished his letter, she took both of them and sealed them in an envelope together.
“What do we do next?” he asked when she placed the envelope in a small box.
“When the time is right, we will find a place to bury the letters. What we’ve gone through in our pasts isn’t something we’ll ever forget, and we shouldn’t because it made us who we are today...and we connect on a certain level because of it. But we don’t need to harbor burdens such as these, so by burying this box, we are saying that we are healing and moving on with our lives. No looking back. Only moving forward.”
Ajay stood from the table and pulled her into his arms. “When did you get so smart?”
“You didn’t know?” she said playfully. “Well, someone should have told you before you fell in love with me.”
His eyes glinted with amusement. “Something tells me I would have fallen in love with you regardless. You’re pretty damn incredible.”
Her gaze bounced between his eyes and his lips. “And you’re absolutely amazing.” Just then, the newest addition to the household squeezed her way in between them and started barking.
“I think Genevieve agrees,” she said as she glanced at the eight-month-old puppy holding her red leash in her mouth. When they’d found her at a nearby animal shelter, both Ajay and Autumn had immediately fallen in love with the dark brown Labrador.
“I better take her for a walk,” Ajay said before placing a sweet kiss on Autumn’s lips that she felt deep in her soul.
“Okay, I have to meet the girls for yoga, so I will probably be gone by the time you get back.”
As Ajay placed the leash on Genevieve, Autumn went to the front closet to grab her gym bag and put on her shoes. Ajay was almost out the door when he glanced back to Autumn, who was still at the closet.
“Is that new?” he asked as he pointed to one of the items she had in her hand, but she wasn’t sure what he was pointing to.
“Is what new?”
“The yoga mat.”
“Oh, yeah,” she said, using the attached strap to sling it over her shoulder. “I saw it in the store the other day and fell in love with the motivating words written on it.”
“Hmm... It’s nice, but I like your purple-and-black one more. You look so sexy when you work out on it.”
Autumn froze. She hadn’t used that mat in front of Ajay yet. When she did yoga at home, she used her simple black mat that never left the house.
“When did you see me use my purple-and-black mat?” His sly smile told her all she needed to know. “Did you see me working out that day on the beach?”
“If you’re referring to the time when you were spying on me in Bora Bora, then yes, I saw you working out that day.”
“Then, clearly you had been spying on me first.” She placed one hand on her hip.
“I was running and spotted you doing yoga,” he admitted. “When I noticed you were wrapping up, I decided to leave before you noticed.”
“So you pretended that you were still running by the time I saw you?”
“Pretty much,” he said with a laugh. “I was hoping you followed me.”
“So that you could strip in front of me? Why didn’t you say anything? I was crouched down in the plants like a stalker.”
“At first, I thought about saying something. But it was way too funny watching you try to spy on me. By the way, you’re no Sherlock Holmes. I heard every branch you stepped on, and if that wasn’t loud enough, I heard your moans of appreciation, too.”
“I did not moan!”
“Oh, yes, you did. I liked it, though. Gave me an opportunity to see how far you would go when you thought I wasn’t paying attention.”
She smiled as she began shaking her head in disbelief. “I can’t believe I thought you couldn’t see me that day. That’s so humiliating.”
“No, it isn’t,” he said, pulling her to him while still holding the leash in his hand. “You were adorable that day. I tried to prolong removing my clothes as much as possible just so that you wouldn’t leave.”
She squinted her eyes. “You know I’m getting you back, right? And you shouldn’t bother preparing yourself because it will be when you least expect it.”
His eyes went from playful to serious in a matter of seconds. “With you, I’m learning that I should always expect the unexpected. And if I’m not mistaken, you’re learning the same thing.” A cunning smile slowly spread across his face. She knew that look. She’d fallen in love with that look. Ajay Reed had something planned, and she had a feeling that she knew what it was. She didn’t know when. She didn’t know how. But she knew in her heart that they would be taking another step in their relationship very soon...and she couldn’t wait to see what happened after that.
* * * * *
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