Someday a small town sec.., p.1
Someday: A Small Town Second-Chance Romance (Landmark Mountain Book 2), page 1
SOMEDAY
LANDMARK MOUNTAIN
BOOK 2
WILLOW ASTER
CONTENTS
Note to Reader
Content Warnings
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
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Epilogue
Find out what’s next
Acknowledgments
Also by Willow Aster
Follow Me
Copyright © 2023 by Willow Aster
ISBN-13: 979-8-9861179-8-0
Cover by Emily Wittig Designs
Proofreading: Christine Estevez
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
NOTE TO READER
*A list of content warnings are on the next page, so skip that page if you’d rather not see them.*
CONTENT WARNINGS
The content warnings for Someday are consensual underage sex, child abuse, verbally and physically abusive marriage, death of a parent, and murder.
CHAPTER ONE
REUNION
SOFIE
I’m so sorry to ask for your help, but it’s one of my horses. Can you please come to my stables?
I regret the text as soon as I’ve sent it.
I don’t know what I was thinking, reaching out to Theo, but I didn’t hesitate when I saw Chief lying on his side, his breathing shallow…I just reacted.
I dip my knees into the hay and try to check for any obvious reasons for his distress.
“Hang in there, Chief,” I whisper, tears running down my cheeks.
He didn’t have an appetite this morning, but I didn’t think much of it since his appetite has decreased since our move to Landmark. I was worried the move might be stressful for him but thought he was handling it okay. Now I’m second-guessing everything.
“You can’t leave me,” I whisper.
Lady neighs in the stall next to us.
“Hear that? Lady says you can’t do this. Okay?”
I sit as close as I can to Chief, praying he’ll be okay, and wait.
“Sofie?” Theo calls about ten minutes later.
My heart thunders in my chest as I sit up and wipe the tears from my face.
“Back here,” I call. “Last stall on the right.”
My voice is shaky, and I try to wipe the wayward tears that are still falling. It’s been eight years since I’ve seen Theo Landmark and before my father died a couple of months ago, I’d thought I’d never see him again. I can’t believe this is happening, that these are the first words we’re saying to one another, like there aren’t a million other things we could say right now, but it’s probably best that it’s this way.
Well, it’s just the way it is, whether it’s the best way or not.
He pauses outside the stall, our eyes meeting for long, weighty seconds, and I’m glad I’m already sitting on the ground because I don’t know if my shaky limbs could handle it otherwise.
Time has only improved my childhood best friend and high school sweetheart. Theo Landmark has always had my heart—as a snaggle-toothed little boy I’d run wild with, as a cute little chatty boy who made me laugh throughout elementary school, as a middle schooler who went through a hair-flipping stage but made it look cool, and as a hot guy in high school whose body was more muscled and mature than his friends.
That boy was gangly compared to the man in front of me now.
And my heart is still all tripped up over him.
He jerks into action, taking in Chief lying next to me. “How long has he been breathing like this?“
“It started right before I texted you. He hasn’t had much of an appetite, but then he staggered a little bit before he laid down, and I panicked. This is just not like him at all. He’s never done this. Lady, in the next stall over—she’s my drama queen, not this guy…Chief.”
My eyes well up with tears again, but I try to keep it together. Chief and I have taken care of each other for a long time now.
“Hey, Chief,” Theo says, studying him.
He goes through the steps of taking his temp, checking his gums, his heart rate and respiratory rate, while I keep my hand on Chief’s back and study Theo. If he’s affected by seeing me again, he’s not showing it. Cool, calm, and collected, he’s a complete professional, while I feel like my chest cavity is being wrung inside out just from seeing him again.
“I’d like to give him a steroid and see if that helps him breathe better. Does he have any allergies that you know of?”
“No, he hasn’t for as long as I’ve had him.”
“And how long is that?”
“Almost eight years.”
Theo’s eyes flick to mine, and I don’t miss the way his jaw clenches as he looks back down at Chief. The silence between us stretches and it’s not a comfortable quiet.
“It’s possible that there’s more to it, but his vitals look only slightly elevated. I’m thinking it could be an allergy to the hay, especially if it’s different than what he’s used to.”
I nod when he lifts the syringe, and he administers it without Chief flinching at all.
“How old is he?”
“Twelve.”
“So, he’s got a lot of good years ahead of him hopefully,” he says.
“Theo, I’m not ready to lose him,” I say, my voice cracking.
I watch him for a long time. The way he handles Chief is efficient and skilled.
“You’re doing what you always wanted to do.” I can’t help my wistful tone.
He glances at me again, his hand on Chief’s mane, the sun casting a glow over Theo’s dark hair and eyes, his cheeks and full lips red from the crisp spring day.
“Yep.” His voice is tight, and his eyes are cold. “Living this boring life in Landmark as a livestock vet, just like I said I would.”
I shiver and pet Chief to steady my nerves.
“How long are you sticking around?” he asks.
I swallow hard before responding. “I plan to stay.”
His eyes widen with his surprise and then his brows shift into a frown.
“I’m so sorry about your dad, Sof,” he says, gentler than before. “I should’ve reached out to tell you that when I heard you’d come back. The funeral was nice. The whole town came out for it.”
I’m touched that he would even consider reaching out to me and surprised he doesn’t ask why I wasn’t at the funeral, but I don’t offer the information, simply nodding.
“Thank you. I was so sad to hear about Granddad,” I say. “Such a loss. Is Grinny doing all right?”
“You should see for yourself. She’d love to see you. She’s sad about Granddad but still going as strong as ever.”
I smile, thinking about his grandparents. Theo’s parents died when we were in kindergarten and his grandparents raised him along with his three brothers and sister. Grinny and Granddad were the grandparents I’d always wanted. Mine didn’t live close to Landmark and my parents weren’t close to their parents, so the visits were few and far between and stilted at best. Grinny and Granddad welcomed me in, made me wish I could live with them too. Half the time, I practically did live over there.
“I didn’t think you’d ever be back,” he says.
And then it’s like he regrets saying it out loud because he’s on to the next thing.
“His breathing is stabilizing. Have you tried soaking the hay or putting a hay steamer in here?” He looks around and I shake my head. “I happen to have one I can bring over. You could try it and see if it makes a difference. And if he’s not standing up and acting more like himself in a few hours, I can run some tests on him, but he seems to be perking up considerably.”
I want to sob, but instead I just keep nodding.
“I should’ve thought of that, but I panicked,” I say, my voice cracking. “Thank you.”
A frown flits over his face again, but he nods. “Of course.” He stands up and points over his shoulder. “I’ll run get that steamer—if that’s what’s going on here, it’d be good to get it started. And I’ll bring back another dose of m
“Thank you. Really, Theo. I—”
“No problem. Just doing my job,” he cuts in, reminding me that we’re strangers now.
He takes off, and I lean my head back on the stall, my breathing steadying as Chief’s does.
My thoughts are consumed by Theo and worry about Chief. They were before I came back to Landmark, but being here where the memories have a steady pulse, they’ve taken over.
I didn’t think I’d ever stop crying when I left the note in his car that night, scared and shaking and feeling more alone than I’d ever felt.
I shiver and crouch down, my arm going around Chief as I get more comfortable next to him. I haven’t slept well since I came back, and long before that too. The only times I truly slept well were when I was with Theo. Overnights with him didn’t happen often. If his grandparents were out of town and his oldest brother Sutton was in charge of the house, I’d pretend I was with my friend Bree and stay at Theo’s, and there were the group trips we went on with our friends during the summer between junior and senior year and the following Spring Break.
I close my eyes and can still see the long stretch of sand as we walked down the beach, hand in hand.
“I can’t wait until we’re at Colorado State in the fall.” He brought my hand to his lips to kiss my knuckles and grinned at me. “I can wake up and see your face first thing every morning and before I go to sleep every night. This week with you just makes me want that more than ever.” He turned to face me, his hands shifting to my hips as he bent down and kissed me.
As always, my legs went weak when we kissed and I wrapped my arms around his neck, holding on.
“I love you, Sof,” he whispered against my lips.
“I love you.” I kissed him hard, and when we broke apart, we were both breathless. “Fall can’t come soon enough. I’m counting down the days.”
“Me too, Firefly,” he said, kissing me again.
I pulled back, laughing as he groaned, but then I saw that look as he came up with his next idea and was already shaking my head to deny him. His eyes have always told me the truth and right then, they were full of mischief and lust.
“We can’t,” I whispered, trying to hold back my laugh. “Not out here anyway.”
“Race you back to the condo. Let’s go take advantage of an empty place while everyone is out here swimming.”
I took off running and he chased me, both of us laughing and out of breath.
As soon as the bedroom door closed behind us, he untied my bikini top and turned me around to face him, his hands immediately on my breasts.
“Someday, we can do this whenever we want,” he said, looking up at me as he bent down and drew my nipple into his mouth.
I pushed down his swimming trunks and wrapped my fist around him—
“Sofie?” he says softly.
I jump and sit up, my hand flying to my hair. “Wha—hey. You’re back?”
A hint of a smile crosses his lips and then vanishes as he clears his throat. “You must’ve been tired. I wasn’t gone long.”
My face flushes and I look over at Chief, relieved to see his breathing almost completely normal.
“I started the steamer already. It’s right over there.” He motions behind him. “And once the rest of the snow clears all the way, he’ll be able to graze more. That should help.”
I nod, still disoriented from falling asleep and seeing Theo so clearly in my mind the way he looked then compared to the muscular man with perfectly messy hair in front of me now.
He grips the bars of the half-open stall and I stand up, dusting myself off and feeling more self-conscious about the way I look than I ever have. But it wouldn’t matter anyway because Theo is looking right through me—there’s no question that he’s moved on. He’s just too decent to not come when he hears an animal needs help.
Since being back in Landmark, I’ve wondered if I should tell him the truth, but why would I turn his life upside down again now, after all this time?
I’m not sure why I’m still hanging on to so many secrets, but a lifetime of conditioning to hide the truth will do that, I suppose. He has no idea what a liar I am.
I still love him as much as I did all those years ago. That’s the truth. Seeing him only reiterates that fact. But I lost all chance of being with him the day I left.
I made sure of that.
CHAPTER TWO
SHIELD
THEO
Her red hair is even longer than it was in high school.
I’d been obsessed with her hair from the moment I saw her running across the snow just across the fence dividing our land. I’d been on the edge of the property with my older brothers that day and I don’t know why she was out there all alone, looking like a tiny force of nature, but she’d waved, and I’d waved, and the rest had been history.
We became inseparable.
I’d haul my legs over the ranch fence dividing our land and we’d meet at the huge oak tree that was on the edge of her family’s property. In the coldest months, my playmate wasn’t out there as much, but as soon as the temps were bearable, I’d play near the fence all day, every day, in hopes that I’d see that red hair running toward me in the distance.
It was easier to see her when she showed up at school. I think it was then that I started telling everyone that I’d marry Sofie Copewell one day and I said it up until the day she left me eight years ago.
I swallow down the unease that’s been in my throat since I first saw her today and clear my throat. I look at everything but her because her sleepy pale blue eyes and long red waves and that dusting of freckles have always done me in. And now, with her slightly curvier body and the way her beauty has only magnified, it’s like an alarm going off in my body, telling me to GET OUT NOW.
How could I still feel this way about someone who ripped my heart to shreds the summer after we graduated high school? I was just a kid, but I knew I wanted to be with Sofie Copewell for the rest of my life. I’d thought she wanted the same thing just as much as I did, but it was all a lie.
I memorized the note she left in my car and can see her pretty handwriting now as I stare blindly around the stables that she owns now that her father has passed away.
Theo,
I hope one day you’ll forgive me.
I have to go. If I stay here, I know I’ll never leave Landmark, and I just don’t think it’s the right place for me anymore.
I love you. So much. I always will.
But I think I have to see what else is out there. There’s a big world that I’ve never seen, and I know if I don’t go now, I never will.
Don’t look for me. Don’t wait for me.
Just please be happy. You’re the best person I know, and I will never forget you.
Love,
Sofie
And then she disappeared, and I haven’t seen her until today. I looked for her. God, did I look.
For years, I thought I saw her. I’d see a girl with red hair and think it was her and flashback to how Sofie looked at twelve and fifteen and eighteen…every age I’d known her, but it’d be a tourist coming through. Someone who really looked nothing like her at all. And then I wondered if I’d even know her if I saw her again—would she look so different that I wouldn’t recognize her? Every redhead made me stop and wonder if it was her.
