Chapter 74

Drake crossed his arms and waited for Zoe to answer the bell. Anxiety and excitement churned his gut, and they couldn't get to Portland fast enough for him. After years of numb autopilot, she'd awoken something in him, and scary as it seemed at times, he'd missed...living. The almost euphoric bubble of hope and happiness and possibility.

She swung the door wide and turned, jogging toward the kitchen. "I'm putting coffee in to-go cups now. Just give me a sec. My bag is right there if you want to take it to the car."

"There's no rush." He stepped inside and shut the door. Reaching for her bag, he glanced at her and froze.

She'd dyed her hair back to normal. Light brown with caramel highlights, it flowed in soft waves to her shoulders. His lungs went into hyper drive trying to keep up. Damn, she'd been beautiful before. Turn her natural and she was gorgeous. He had nothing against the ridiculous colors the past few years, but this was the real Zoe. The one he very much preferred.