Texas Haven Read Online Free Page B

around her office she sighed in exhaustion. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Burke with his regretful eyes, telling her that she wasn’t good enough to be his wife. Well, to be honest, he never really said she wasn’t good enough, but that was how she felt nonetheless. Dozens of times in the last few weeks she relived their kiss. He had made her feel things she’d never imagined feeling with any man. The knowledge that she wouldn’t see him again brought a constant sadness to her eyes. She’d made a fool of herself once again.
    Desperately searching for a new path in her life, she decided that she wouldn’t feel sorry for herself any longer. Annie rubbed her tired eyes and tried to think of her next move.
    She was so sick of committees and fundraisers. Even volunteering at the animal shelter hadn’t given her the boost it usually did. She had thought about moving but rejected that idea. The only place she’d want to move to would be Weltworth, but she knew that was impossible. Seeing Burke and his new wife would be torture. No, a new job was the answer and a cat, definitely a cat with a girly name.
    Feeling better for having made a decision, Annie packed up her things and went home. No sooner did she have her shoes off then the doorbell rang. A delivery of flowers surprised her.
    The man holding the tell-tale box looked down at his clipboard. “Ms. Douglas?”
    “That’s me.”
    Without another word, the man handed over the flowers. After tipping the driver, she closed the door and walked over to her coffee table, setting the box down and carefully opening it. Her heart began to beat out of her chest. She hoped that they were from Burke. To her delight, the dozen, long stemmed, red roses were indeed from Burke. Included was a note, “Will you marry me?”
    She cried out in shock and delight. This couldn’t be happening. Fairytales didn’t happen to the ugly stepsister, only to Cinderella, and Cinderella she wasn’t. Annie sank quickly into her favorite chair, reeling, not knowing what to think. She was afraid to believe that it was real. The pain of finding her ex-fiancé Jeffery in bed with her best friend Lisa continued to devastate her to this day. The awful things he’d said to her still made her want to curl up and die. He had called her a cold frigid bitch, because she insisted on saving herself for her wedding night. He laughed at her and taunted her with the fact that he and Lisa had been lovers all along. He said he never really planned to marry her. It was all a cruel joke. Could this be another joke?
    What little self-esteem she possessed had taken a beating that day. She stroked the soft petals of the red roses wanting to believe in this proposal. She wanted to believe in Burke, but her past held her back. She should have been jumping for joy. Instead, doubts tore her apart. It wasn’t fair. Annie nearly jumped out of her skin when her phone rang. Numbly, she looked at it, not wanting to answer. She was half-afraid that someone at the other end would be laughing at her, but she told herself to buck up as she reached for the phone. It shrilled one last time, then it went silent, and the caller didn’t leave a message.
    Annie slumped in her chair, berating herself for being such a coward. Why hadn’t she picked it up? Stoking the soft, red petal of one of the roses, she wished that she wasn’t such a coward. She wanted to talk to Burke; she missed him so much.
    Annie got up and walked to the windows in her stark apartment. Leaning her head against the glass pane, she felt a knot growing in her stomach. He didn’t love her, but she couldn’t miss this chance at happiness. Her feelings for him were so confusing, she barely knew him, but she felt such a connection to him, such a longing for him. She would have liked to say she loved him, but she wasn’t sure what love was. Living her life under her mother’s thumb, then her stepfather’s and now her stepbrother’s hadn’t given her any