First Choice Second Chance Read online

  Contents

  Title Page

  Author's Note

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Epilogue

  The Choice

  by Fallon Brown

  Copyright © 2015 Fallon Brown

  All rights reserved.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and events are the product of the author's imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, places, or events is coincidental.

  To Amanda

  I don't know where I'd be today without your friendship

  Thank you for always being there.

  When I first got the idea for First Choice, Second Chance, I wasn't exactly sure where it would be set. But, as the idea formed more firmly in my head, I just knew. There really wasn't anywhere else to set it.

  I grew up in a small town in Northwestern PA and wasn't all that surprised when the characters informed me that's where this story took place. I wanted to use that town, but at the same time, I didn't want to shackled to the exact layout and details of it. Thus, Kurztown was born.

  If you're from the same area, I'm sure you'll be able to spot some of the similarities. I hope you'll enjoy it.

  Fallon Brown

  Chapter 1

  Mason Akeley stepped out of the barn and saw his father standing beside the large red tractor. He had one hand on the handle of his cane, while the other tried to turn a wrench. A curse barely slipped past his lips before he hurried forward. "Dad, what are you doing? You're going to hurt yourself."

  "I've been working on tractors longer than you've been alive, boy. Leave me to it."

  He ignored the words and the pain behind them and put his hand over his father's. "Dad, please give me the wrench."

  His father didn't even bother to bite back the curse. "If I can't even be helpful around here, I don't know why I bother. The damn doctors should have let me die."

  The words had something slithering inside him and squeezing around his chest. "No, Dad, don't say that. You're still useful. You don't have to do this. That's why you have me around, remember?"

  The storm seemed to pass right through his eyes. His shoulders slumped, and he relaxed his grip on the wrench, letting Mason take it. "Can you go in and get my toolbox?" Mason asked. "I planned on getting to this when I finished the other chores, anyway."

  "Right," his father muttered.

  Mason waited until he'd limped into the barn before he turned back to the tractor. He closed his eyes, trying to gain his composure back. His father stayed upbeat most of the time. When he got like this, he was in serious pain. Nothing seemed to take that completely away. He smacked the wrench in his hand against the tractor. "Damn it."

  His father had always been the strongest man he knew. Now, he seemed to get weaker and weaker. This damn tractor was a reminder of why. He wished he didn't have to see it and be reminded every day. Really wished he didn't have to try to fix it all the time. It wasn't the tractor's fault his father was nearly crippled.

  It was his.

  Mason ran a hand over his face and into the blond hair that was starting to curl in the heat. Then, he let it drop again. He didn't know what was wrong with the machine this time, but he'd start by checking the usual culprits. He had loosened a single bolt when his father returned, dropping the toolbox beside him.

  "I guess I'll head up to the house since I can't be of any help down here."

  His chest squeezed again. "Dad, stay. You can help me." The roles should be reversed. His father should be the one under here, and he should be helping him, handing him the tools. That wasn't possible anymore.

  They worked in silence, Mason only speaking to ask for a different tool. When he didn't find any problem there, he fit the cover back in place and reached for a bolt. Tires crunched over gravel on the road, and his hand stilled. He turned his head and saw the cloud of dust before the car causing it came into sight. Something twisted in his stomach, but he ignored it. Lots of cars came down that road. It meant nothing. He turned back to the tractor, only pausing long enough to wipe sweat from his forehead. "Can you hand me that wrench again, Dad?"

  "Did you see the car?" his father asked as he handed the tool down to him.

  "Yeah." He didn't say any more. He had other things to worry about than some stranger coming to town. He barely went into town if he didn't have to.

  "You don't even care she's back?"

  He jerked and bounced his head off the bottom of the tractor. "It's not her," he said, wincing and resisting the urge to rub his head. "She's not coming back. She has nothing here."

  "That's not true, and you know it. Her parents moved back here a couple years ago. Her marriage ended a couple months ago."

  "You read a lot in those tabloids. It doesn't mean any of it is true. Do you believe the tales of alien abductions too?"

  "Don't be ridiculous, Mason. Anyway, your mom heard it from Lila's mother. You know she barely glances at those trashy things."

  He did know it, and it didn't make his stomach feel any better. "She made her choice seven years ago, Dad. It wasn't me. Now, can we fix this thing?"

  His father went silent. They both knew the reason it was Mason under the tractor. They didn't talk about it, didn't even like to think too much about it. Like he tried not to think about the day Lila had left. Had it really been seven years? Some days it felt like at least twice that.

  It couldn't be her. She'd made it clear she wouldn't be coming back. Her father had made that clear the day he'd returned. Mason focused on the rusted bolt he needed to tighten again and tried to push Lila Corelli out of his head.

  #

  Lila pulled the rental car into the short driveway. Then, she just sat there. How had everything come to this? A couple years ago, she had everything made. A husband, a career she loved even when it wore her down, the nice house in Nashville, her family back here in Pennsylvania. Not that she ever came back up here, but they did come down to see her. Then, suddenly, all of that was gone. Her husband was cheating on her. He'd been feeding stories, lies, to the tabloids about her. Venues started canceling her appearances. She lost the house and her car. Kyle had managed her money and managed her right into bankruptcy. How had she been so stupid?

  She glanced back down the road the way she had come. She'd passed the Akeley farm on the way here and thought she'd seen Mason standing next to the tractor. She'd kept her eyes focused on the road, even if the sun had glinted off his back, as if he'd had no shirt on. No, she shouldn't have even been able to see that from the road. She'd been driving for too long, and her mind had started to play tricks on her.

  She couldn't think about that. She'd made her choice and couldn't change it now. That had led to all of this; her failure. Why had she thrown everything away for what seemed to be safer?

  Lila shook her head, dark curls falling into her face. She needed to stop letting her thoughts drift in that direction. Needed to move forward, which started with going in
to the house. She could see her mother standing at the window. So, they knew she was here. So would everyone else in town within the next hour or so. It's the way this town worked. It might be the one thing she'd truly miss about Nashville. At least she could keep her secrets there.

  Lila stepped out of the car and went around to the trunk to grab the two suitcases she'd brought with her. Her gaze dropped to the guitar case lying beside them. She wanted to pick it up, wanted to pluck at the strings and feel the way the music moved through her. Her heart twisted at that thought. Still, she left one of the suitcases and lifted the guitar case from the trunk. Her clothes could stand to be left out here more than the instrument.

  Her father opened the door before she had even reached it. He took the larger suitcase from her and set it aside. Then, he dragged her inside. Maybe he would wrap her in his arms like he had done when she was younger, but he didn't. He held her away from him and looked her up and down, like he looked for any flaws. Like one of her flaws had caused this whole mess.

  Maybe it had.

  Then, he released her, and one of the cracks in her heart widened. "I'll take your stuff back into your room," her mother said, stepping forward.

  "Thanks, Mom."

  She turned to look at her father, but he'd already turned away. She itched to go to him, to put her arms around him. Then, maybe he'd turn and return the gesture. She wanted something to tell her she could be whole again. She stayed right where she was, too afraid he would never embrace her again. She was too much of a disappointment for that. Tears welled into her brown eyes, so much like his, but she blinked them back. She'd caused them enough heartache in the last year. She wasn't going to burden them with her tears as well.

  "Dinner will be ready in a little while," her mother said when she returned. "You have time if you want to take a shower and get cleaned up. I know you spent most of the day on the road."

  She was about to thank her mom again, but the words wouldn't come. Instead, tears flooded her eyes. "Oh, baby," her mother whispered and stepped forward to offer the hug she'd wanted from her father. It didn't take away the pain, though. Neither did her father's next words.

  "You never should have let him do this to you. You were smarter than this."

  The words slammed into her, like punches right to her soul. "I'm sorry, Daddy."

  "You are sorry?" The words came out as a roar, and thick with the accent that most of the times nearly disappeared from his voice. Then, he shook his head and stepped back. "I cannot do this."

  Lila watched him leave the room then turned back to her mother, tears gathering in her eyes. "I never meant to hurt him. I didn't mean to hurt anyone."

  Her mother didn't say anything. She stepped forward and slipped her arms around her daughter. "You did nothing. He blames himself."

  Lila shook her head then laid it on her mother's shoulder. "He did nothing."

  "He feels he pushed you at Kyle and away from Mason. If he hadn't, you wouldn't be here now."

  "That doesn't make any sense. He didn't want me to stay here with Mason. If he hadn't done it, I'd still be here, and maybe not quite so miserable. But, I made the choice. I went to Kyle. It's all on me, Mom, not him."

  "No." Her voice was softer than her husband's, but just as fierce. "What's happened is Kyle's fault, not yours. He's deceived you from the beginning. I wish one of us had seen it sooner."

  Lila sighed. "It's not your fault, Mom. I should have seen it. Anyway, it's been a long day. I'm going to head in."

  "Your room's still the same. We haven't changed it."

  She didn't know why, but even that brought tears to her eyes. "Thanks, Mom." When she got to her room, she didn't even look at her suitcases or anything. She lay on the bed and nearly melted into the mattress. It hadn't only been a long day, but a long week, a long month. Hell, the last year had been the longest of her life.

  She wasn't so sure it was over yet.

  Chapter 2

  Mason wiped his arm across his forehead after sliding out from under the tractor. Again. He was ready to tell his father the time had come to buy a new one. They couldn't do that right now. The farm barely supported itself. He had to figure out how to fix this old monster and make sure it at least made it through this season.

  He tossed the wrench back into his tool box. He needed a cold drink, and not the lemonade his mother would have in the refrigerator. Something a lot stronger was required. He wouldn't find it in the house, which meant he'd have to venture into town. Too bad Brian didn't have his parties anymore. He hadn't gone to many in high school, but after that summer, having them to go to had been his way to forget.

  He figured drunken parties weren't the thing a husband, a young father, did.

  Thinking about that actually brought a smile to his face. Even five years ago, he never thought he'd use those words to describe Brian. Until Ashley finally roped him into marriage. They'd been together since high school, but it was hard to tell from day to day whether they would be at that time. They'd be together for a while then break things off. They always came back together, and Ashley was pregnant by the time they got married. Mason couldn't remember Brian being happier. With his father gone, going to law school, and the new marriage and baby, the parties had taken a backseat and faded away completely.

  Maybe after dinner he'd drive into town, go to the bar. He'd avoided going in, except for a necessary trip to the hardware store the day before. He knew what he'd hear when he went in. It was all his mother, and all her friends, talked about right now.

  Lila was back.

  He'd heard some of the rumors about why she had returned, seen the looks people had cast his way and ignored them. He had still heard the whispers, though.

  Kyle had left her. She was on drugs. Her career had tanked.

  The first he could believe. The others not so much. He'd seen the tabloids whispering about drug use, affairs, so many scandals. He wouldn't believe it. No matter what he thought of her, he would never believe those things. He put his tool box back in the shed before locking it and heading down to the next property. Technically, it was still his parents' property. They'd had it divided five years ago, after his father's accident. Mason's throat went dry at the thought of it. He wished it was age causing his father's aches and pains. One more reason he wished they could get rid of the old beast. If it wasn't for that, his father would be as spry as he had ever been.

  Mason pushed into his house, refusing to think about it. He'd shower quickly before heading back to his parents' for dinner, one of the benefits of only having half a field between them. He never had to cook for himself if he didn't want to, a rare thing for him to want. He stepped back out of the shower ten minutes later and wrapped a towel around his waist as he headed toward the bedroom. He brushed away the water dripping from his hair. It annoyed him, but it would dry soon enough. It was nearly time to get it trimmed. He usually forgot all about it. When it curled around his ears, he couldn't stand it. He'd have to see if his mom could do it. It wasn't worth paying to have someone else do it.

  He could remember Lila running her fingers through those curls. Desire surged through him at the memory. "Damn it," he muttered and rubbed his hand over his face. Hadn't he gotten past this? Maybe he would never get her completely out of his system.

  He grabbed a clean pair of jeans and a t-shirt and threw them on before heading back across the field to his parents' house. When he stepped into the kitchen, though, he almost wished he'd stayed home and warmed something up. A tense silence he didn't understand filled the room. His mother always greeted him, usually with at least a hug and even a kiss on the cheek or top of his head. She didn't move from the sink. He glanced over at his father and watched as he swallowed one of the pain pills he took at least daily. That ache in his throat returned. His father had been so strong once. Now, he couldn't make it through the day without that medicine. Even with it, the pain didn't go away. It only made it more manageable. The doctors had said his father was lucky he lived, let
alone still walked. Sometimes it didn't seem like something to be grateful for.

  He didn't think that's what caused the tension here. They'd been living with it for the last five years. Another reason he hadn't moved far. "What's going on?" he asked when neither of them had looked at him yet.

  "It's nothing," his father said, his voice sharp even though his gaze went to Mary instead of Mason. "Nothing is going on."

  "Your father doesn't think I should say anything about Lila being back in town."

  The words slammed into him, and yet they also brought a certain sense of relief. It wasn't about his father's health. "I already know. It would be hard not to around here."

  His father's eyes softened. He wasn't sure if it was getting older, getting hurt, or some side effect of the medication, but his father had been more sensitive, more open than he used to be. "Are you okay with it?"

  He shrugged one shoulder but turned away from his father. "Not really anything I can do about it. I don't own the town or anything. She's allowed to be here."

  "Mason," his mother started to say, putting her hand on his shoulder.

  He shrugged it off. "I don't want to talk about it, Mom. I don't want to talk about her." He had to take a deep breath. "Is dinner ready yet?"

  "A couple more minutes." She looked like she would say something else, then pursed her lips together and turned to the stove.

  Mason walked over to the table and sat next to his father. He would definitely need to go for that drink tonight.

  #

  Mason walked into Johnny's, and the pounding of music instantly enveloped him. Someone had apparently gotten the jukebox working again. You never knew what would welcome you when you came in here. Either way, the drinks were good. As the only bar in town, you took what you could get. Mason nodded to a couple of the men playing pool as he headed up to the bar. "Haven't seen you here in a while, Mason," the bartender said with a smile for him.