Wishful Kisses: A Fountain of Love Novella Read Online Free PDF Page A

your trip then," I said, squeezing his hand.
    "Me too. I had lunch with him when we got here, so that was good."
    "I think he was right about you," I said quietly to myself, watching as Tony straightened up the garage before closing it. "You are a good man."

Chapter 6
    Present Day
    ––––––––
    I t had rained the night before, so the world smelled clean and fresh. Small puddles were disappearing into the warmth of the day, but water lingered in the shadows where the sun couldn't reach yet. It was a beautiful, perfect California day, but even the weather couldn't relieve me of my funk.
    The line was mercifully short at the coffee shop, and I took my mocha latte with extra whip outside so I could sit in the sunshine. At least the chocolatey coffee combo was starting to lift my mood. I sipped gently and closed my eyes, letting the sunshine and memories flood through me.
    Tony's smile. His easy laugh. The way the light caught his eyes and made them shine.
    I finished off the whip cream on my coffee and moved out of the sun and into the shade. Despite living in California for almost twenty years, I still burned like paper in a furnace.
    I opened my eyes and took another sip of my coffee. A ladybug had landed on the lid of my coffee. I smiled and coaxed the small red and black insect onto a leaf and away from my coffee. Ladybugs were lucky. Tony used to call me ladybug. A man in a leather jacket bumped into me, murmuring an apology before disappearing around the corner. He had jet black hair and brown eyes... and looked just like Tony.
    My mouth reacted before I had time to think logically. "Tony!" I hurried after him, almost running to catch up with him. I turned the corner to see the back of his head disappear around another building.
    "Frontera!" I yelled out, hoping that he would respond. I flew around the building, jostling several people out of my way in order to get to him. Out of breath, I rounded the corner and came into a small courtyard with a marble fountain in the center. Other than the fountain and myself, there was no one there.
    I leaned against the wall. There was no where else the man could have gone. I must have been imagining things. It couldn't have been Tony. Tony was dead, not walking around the streets in a leather jacket and not looking a day over thirty.
    I tossed what was left of my coffee in a trashcan. Most of it was now spilled across my arm anyway. I thought about just going home, but the fountain emanated a quiet peacefulness that I craved.
    I went and sat on the grass at the base of the fountain. The gentle sound of falling water was soothing to my soul. I leaned my head back against the cool marble, letting my thoughts drift again.
    Tony and I stood in the corner, our foreheads pressed together, pretending we were in our own little world and that we could stay there forever. We didn't speak; we didn't need to. He was leaving. He was only here on vacation and now had to return to duty. All he could tell me was that he was going to the Middle East. It was dangerous, but he promised me he would come back.
    "You know I'm going to write you every day, right?" he whispered. I gave a tiny nod, not wanting to break away. I was desperately trying to keep my tears at bay.
    "You better."
    He reached up and caressed my cheek, lifting his head so that he could kiss the tip of my nose. I could hear Dean and Rachel enter the room, and I silently cursed them. If they were downstairs, it meant it was time for us to leave for the airport. Despite my fervent wishes, time was marching onward and Tony needed to get on a plane.
    I held Tony's hand, afraid to let him go. I had fallen hard for him in just the space of a couple of days. My heart told me that he was the one. He was the one I was supposed to be with. Fate had pushed us together and I wanted to slap her for making us part.
    "It's only going to be for a little while, I promise," Tony said quietly, as if reading my thoughts. "I love you."
    I met