**Many thanks to Aries77 for a great editing job!**
Shelly Landford said goodbye to her best friend, Lisa, and set the phone into its wall-mounted base. Shoving her hands into the back pockets of her jeans, she stepped over to her back door and peered through the small square window. She shook her head. Lisa is crazy for going on a night like this." Shelly grimaced with her thoughts. Bar hopping just isn't worth the risk. That is exactly what she'd explained to Lisa when her friend had tried to talk her into going.
Large fluffy white flakes poured down from the lead-gray sky, landing on her wood deck. And they were piling up really quickly. "That's not a good sign," she muttered aloud. The forecast was calling for three to five inches of snow and from the looks of things; they weren't going to be wrong this time.
"Oh, well, at least I'm ready." She thought of her fireplace in the living room and the wood stacked at least a foot high on each side. And she thanked the good Lord that she'd made a recent grocery run so her fridge, freezer and pantry were all well stocked. Her ever-scurrying thoughts shifted to the elementary school. If the snow kept coming down, she wouldn't have to worry about the party her third grade class is scheduled to have. The kids will be so disappointed
With a heavy sigh on their behalf, she turned from the dreary weather to the even more depressing sight of the kitchen sink where dirty dishes awaited her. Since she lived alone, washing them wasn't a chore she did everyday, which left her with the task of doing three days worth tonight. "Hell of a way to spend an evening!" she thought to herself unhappily. "Especially the night before Valentine's day!"
She had no social life to speak of. And it was partly by her choice she had to admit. But, sad as it may be, she couldn't see going out when the men she knew held no interest to her beyond friendship.
Sighing again and flipping the faucet on, none too gently, she got to work. Also because she lived alone, the task didn't take long and she was slipping her last frying pan into the sudsy water when the doorbell chimed some ten minutes later. Pulling a terry cloth towel from a belt loop of her jeans, she dried her hands as she meandered down the tiny hallway that led to the living room and front door.
Her Ohio hometown was small--the kind where everyone knew each other well. Because of this, Shelly never even considered checking to see who was on the other side before opening the door. She did, however, wonder who would be out in the snow at almost dark.
When she looked out, and up, at her guest, running into a pair of jade-green eyes that she'd not seen in ten years, she cursed herself for the lapse in judgment.
~~~~~~~~~~
Jacob Timmens had to take three deep breaths before he could raise his finger to the lit-up button beside the scarred oak door. After pressing it, he immediately buried his hands into the pockets of the bomber jacket he wore. The wind was blowing something fierce and the snow was now coming down thick. He still wasn't entirely sure why he was even here at the ranch-style home on Ivy Street. When he had pulled into town, he hadn't consciously planned to drive by. Nor did he remember making the decision to stop and see if anyone was home. Yet here he stood.
He hadn't seen Shelly Landford since he'd moved to Texas with his family. That had been the summer before their senior year of high school. And they had not parted on the best of terms.
He recalled clearly the night before he left. His pals had thrown him a kick-ass farewell party and he'd been having a great time. Until he'd taken Shelly by the hand and stole off to the other side of the lake so that they could spend some time alone.
Jake closed his eyes and could still see Shelly's sad and tear-streaked face, made that more unforgettable by the moonlight, as she'd begged him to stay in Ohio with her. He had turned eighteen several months before and his parents had told him that if he wanted to stay and finish school with the people he had known all of his life, they would help him accomplish that. Shelly had implored him to take them up on the offer.
But, Jake's dad had become gravely ill, eaten up with bone cancer, and unable to work. The move was to take the Timmens family closer to his mom's relatives, who would be helping the financially struggling family. Jake just couldn't desert his parents. If nothing else, they would need his help with his younger brothers and sister. Not to mention any income he could contribute.
When he'd tried to explain things to Shelly, an argument had ensued. She'd accused him of not loving her enough to stay with her. He had thrown in her face that if she really loved him, she would understand his reasons for leaving. After some time had passed, of course, he'd realized that she only said those things because she'd been hurting. The same was true for him. But by the time he'd had the insight, it had seemed too late to do anything about it.
Jake opened his eyes and was pulled back from the memories as the door in front of him creaked open. His heart began to thump wildly in his chest and his pocketed hands grew clammy as he came face to face with his past.
~~~~~~~
Jake
Shelly wasn't aware she whispered his name. She wasn't even aware of her own name at that moment. There was a roaring in her ears as her blood flowed hot throughout her body. Her heart had stalled briefly when she first opened the door but it quickly began again, picking up pace in triple time.
Emotions slammed into her as she took in the sight of him. His straight dark brown hair was neatly trimmed close to his head. The six-foot thin and lanky frame of his youth was now a wall of muscle, if what she could see underneath the partially zipped jacket was any indication. Even through the leather, the bulge of rock solid biceps was unmistakable. The straight line of his nose now had a distinctive bump in it--he'd had his nose broken since she'd last laid eyes on him. His full and always luscious lips, however, were still the same and his deep green eyes were as intense as ever. The narrowing of those eyes had her shaking away her astonishment at seeing her high school love again and pulling herself together.
"Hello Jake," she said with a casual air that she didn't really feel. "What brings you around?"
~~~~~~~~
She cut her hair. For some insane reason, that was Jake's first thought as he looked down at the girl he had once loved. When he last saw Shelly, she'd had a mane of rich golden hair that hung to her waist. As he took in the stylishly mussed cap of hair that now ended at the nape of her neck, he mourned the loss of the silken tresses he used to love to run his fingers through.
He had a sudden flash of memory of sitting on the bench seat in his old Ford pickup truck with Shelly in his arms. Parked beside the lake, with nothing but silvery moonlight all around them, their lips meet in a kiss filled with youthful passion. He gathers all of her golden hair in his fist and uses the hold to bring her closer to him. Plain as day, he can still hear her moan and, as it did then, his body hardened.
