Read Online Forgiving You: A Bluebell Valley Novel by Ginnie Carmichael - Free Book Online

come closer to him. “I need a hand.” He watched her hesitate for a second before she stood up and put his jacket down on the log. All those small victories, the steps they were taking in right direction, made him happier than ever. He realized that the closer Sam was getting to him, the faster his heart was beating.
    “What do you want me to do?” she asked as she leaned over the pump too. She was so close to him, their arms brushing against each other. Austin knew he was attracted to his old best friend, but he was always surprised at how much of an effect she had on him. It almost made him forget why he’d asked her to come next to him.
    “Right,” he said, trying to get his mind back together. “Could you hold this pipe in place while I tighten this?”
    Whenever he had built or repaired something in the past, he had always loved to have Sam around to help. When she had clear orders, she knew exactly what to do and turned out to be very useful. It had also been an excuse to have her over as often as possible. Austin was doing the same thing today; repairing the pump with Sam was simply an excuse to make her stay longer.
    “How have you been?” he asked her. Now that they were both working on the pump, their faces were only inches from each other and the temptation to kiss her was too strong for him. He needed a distraction. “You haven’t told me much about what happened in your life since I left…”
    “It’s… there’s not much to say,” Sam admitted. Austin could see that she kept her eyes on the pipe she was holding, avoiding his eyes.
    “I’m sorry about your father. I never got a chance to tell you.”
    “Thanks.”
    Austin knew how important Sam’s father had been to her. She had inherited most of her features from him, and she had the same caring heart he had.
    And Austin hadn’t been there for her… There were so many things he had missed because he was too busy building his empire. He had been running after things that were not important for so long.
    “You still work at the bakery?”
    “Mmhm,” Sam said as she nodded. Of all the things he had thought Sam would do when she graduated, he never believed for a second that she would take over her parents’ bakery. Yes, it was a family business, but she had so many dreams. She wanted to see the world, become a psychologist and help as many people as possible. She wasn’t meant to stay in Bluebell Valley and bake bread all day long. She had so much potential. It seemed wasted to Austin, but then he remembered what happened with his own potential and realized that sometimes, wasted potential wasn’t such a bad thing if it meant you kept the people you loved close to you.
    “I studied in Seattle for two years. I was halfway through my Bachelor’s when I heard that my dad had passed away. I couldn’t find an opportunity to leave after that. Now it’s too late.”
    “It’s never too late,” Austin replied, knowing better than anybody how true this was. For so long, he thought his relationship with Sam was over and now they were here, talking casually.
    “How I am supposed to leave my mother here and go back to college? Even if I could, I’m not sure that’s what I want anymore.”
    “What do you want?” Austin asked. Sam had never been able to stop talking about her dream of becoming a psychologist when they were still in high school. If she’d given up on that, what else could she possibly have?
    “I want to go… Never mind, it’s silly.”
    “Come on, Sam. I’m not here to judge, and you know that.”
    “I… I want to go to Italy. It’s my grandmother’s birth country.”
    “You’ll love it there. It’s such a beautiful country.”
    “You’ve been in Italy?” Sam asked in disbelief. “That makes my life even more depressing.”
    “You know what? I’ll take you. Whenever you want to go.”
    “Don’t do that…”
    “Do what? If I can make you happy, I’d love to do it. Money doesn’t make me happy