Chapter 9: That Love: Chapter 8

I wake up to more texts from Troy. I know I should block his number and forget about him, but I can’t pretend like he doesn’t exist.

I get up and get myself ready. I want to look amazing for my day with Danny but still casual. I end up with a cute graphic tee, skinny jeans tucked into boots, and a blazer.

I set my phone to vibrate and then go downstairs to wait for Danny.

“Hey, Angel,” I say as she kisses my hand in greeting and wags her tail. “How’s my new best friend today? Let’s go sit in our spot, shall we?”

I grab a cup of coffee, see a note from Jadyn that she’ll be at school parties most of the day, and head to the study. Angel follows me, choosing to lie in front of the windows in the sunshine.

I close my eyes and try to decide what to do. I’m going back to LA tomorrow. I probably need to find myself somewhere to live. The question is, do I see Troy or not? Should I help him get to rehab? Make promises I have no intention of keeping for his own good? Or would that just be setting him up for failure?

I close my eyes, trying to shut out the world.

A short time later, the front door opens, and Danny hobbles in.

“Are you okay?” I ask.

“Yeah, this is what the day after a game looks like.” He pulls his shirt up and shows me a massive bruise over his ribs.

“Danny! That looks horrible.” I leap out of my chair and kneel in front of him, gently touching the contusion. “Are your ribs broken?”

“No, just bruised. Hurts like a bitch, but it will be fine in time for the next game.”

He stares down at me. I look up and realize, well, that I’m kneeling in front of him. In perfect position to unzip his jeans and give him a big sideline blow—or whatever that term was that made me laugh. I start to rise, but then a tattoo catches my eye. As I stand, I pull his shirt up a little further. Down his side are letters spelling out his last name, the font including a diamond shape. I allow my finger to trace over each and every letter.

“What else do you have?” I purr.

He starts to take off his shirt but then groans. “You’re going to have to help me. I should have worn a button-up today. Easier to get in and out of.”

I raise my hand. “If you need a volunteer, I’m happy to help you get undressed. You know, since you are injured and all.”

He laughs as I gently tug his shirt up over his head. I don’t see any on his front, so I shuffle behind him, trailing my finger across the top of his jeans along the way. On his shoulder is a bold red .

I read the words inside it.

“That’s the end of the prayer the Nebraska players say before each game.” He recites the entire poem in his normal voice, but when he gets to the part that is tattooed, he starts speaking louder, chanting it out, “Can’t be beat! Won’t be beat!”

“I like it,” I say, taking the time to admire his back in all its chiseled glory. “Any more?”

He holds out his left arm, so I continue to circle him, thinking of a show I used to watch where witches would circle a man in order to cast an effective spell on him, usually one that involved his love and passionate desires. I sigh, wishing I had such talents.

His left bicep is tattooed with the word in script as well as the Roman numerals of the year of his first win and the Lombardi Trophy encased in swirls. Toward the bottom is another banner indicating his second win.

“Do you have plans for more?”

He flips his wrist, showing me that my marker-written name is nearly gone. “Maybe I should make it permanent.”

My heart flutters at the thought of seeing my name tattooed on him. I go into the kitchen, grab a permanent marker from a drawer, and proceed to re-sign his arm.

“I love it,” he says, although the way he says it makes me feel like he just told me he was in love with me. “I suppose we’d better get going if we want to have lunch before our appointment.”

He takes me to a busy restaurant outside of an upscale mall. We sit at the bar, order a drink and some food, and chat.

“I come here a lot,” he says. “They have the best crab cakes. When I sit at the bar, with my back toward the restaurant, usually, no one really notices me.”

“What happened last night? Did you call your wife?”

“No way. I got Dani calmed down and collapsed in bed. It was late; I wasn’t going to deal with Lori. She can tell me whatever was so important tomorrow when we sign the papers. Besides, I’m pretty sure she texted me everything she wanted to say.”

“Was she mad?”

“Of course, and the party was clearly all my fault,” he says with a laugh.

When our drinks are served, he toasts to orange roses, Halloween, and me.

I really don’t remember much of the rest of lunch other than the intensity in which he looked at me. The rest didn’t really matter.

After lunch, we drive a short distance to a kitchen design center.

While we’re waiting for our salesperson, I say, “Do you have to change your backsplash?”

“I guess not. Why?”

“I don’t know. It reminds me of the ocean, and I think it’s pretty.”

“Do you think I should leave the kitchen as is?” he asks.

“Well, I’d definitely get rid of the electric-blue color and all the peacock-ness.”

“Jadyn told me to look around and see if I fall in love with anything.” He stops in his tracks and gazes into my eyes. “I think I just found it,” he says, the corners of his mouth pulling into a little smirk. “Can I install you in my kitchen?”

“That sounds so old-fashioned,” I tease. “You want me barefoot and pregnant, too?”

The smirk turns to a full-on grin. “Not a bad idea.” He stops again and shakes his head. “This is all so backward.”

“What is?” I ask.

“Us,” he says.

The designer’s eyes get big when she sees me. “Um, Jennifer Edwards,” she says with a stutter, “I wasn’t expecting you.”

“I’m in town, visiting Jadyn, and since she couldn’t come with Danny today, Halloween parties and all, she sent me.”

“Oh, I see. Um, have you seen anything that you like?”

“I saw one thing that I really liked,” Danny says. The second she turns her back, he flicks my hand, indicating that he meant me. Then he smiles.

The kind of adorable smile that makes me melt.

Most of the guys I dated, it was because we became fast friends, had fun hanging out, and hooked up. Danny is the only guy who makes me feel all the things I’ve acted out in so many movies. The butterflies in my stomach, the goose bumps, heart beating faster, stars in my eyes, strung out on love, and feeling like I might literally die if I can’t be with him. The kind of stuff fairy tales are made of—the one true love, kiss her to wake her up, live happily ever after.

The girl leads us into a smaller room where she has a computer model of Danny’s kitchen now along with three different material design boards.

“Okay,” she says, her professionalism returning, “in this one, Jadyn suggested a medium-gray paint on the walls, leaving your cabinets and trim white. The wood floors would be darkened, as I think you are planning to do throughout the house.” She holds up a sample tile. “The backsplash has been changed to a soft gray marble to coordinate with a new gray marble countertop. Notice that the island has been painted a deep shade of gray. Industrial barstools and simple pendant lightning complete the look. What do you think?”

“I think we should see all the options before we decide,” he says.

She moves us down the table to another set of samples and switches her computer rendering. “For option two, the island is stained a shade darker than the floor, the white cabinets have been given a glaze to make them look more rustic, and reclaimed wood is added to the hood area to give it more of a Tuscan farmhouse feel.”

She doesn’t bother asking for his opinion this time, but right now, I’m sort of loving the farmhouse look.

“In the third option, the island has been painted what I’m told is the same blue-green as your study.” She holds up a sample tile. In this version, the backsplash has been replaced with the most gorgeous tiles I think I’ve ever seen in my life, causing me to gasp.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” she says. “Ribbons of mother of pearl are swirled into a pure white marble. In this mock-up, it runs all the way to the ceiling behind the hood, which has been replaced with an industrial wood and metal version.”

The result is glamorous, casual, and cozy.

“Which one do you like best?” I ask Danny, trying not to influence him.

But I know this; I will be begging Jadyn to help me design wherever I end up living. My heart skips a beat at the thought of this kitchen being our kitchen, of raising a family with him, and of giving up the lifestyle I have had. Part of me worries about giving something up for a man. Regardless of if I end up with Danny, someone else, or by myself, I’m ready to slow down. I’m ready to start a family.

Danny goes back to study each mock-up. Finally, he points to the last one and says, “I like certain elements of each design, but I love this one. Love that the tile is a little flashy but is toned down by the rustic industrial elements. And that island color is my favorite.” He turns to me. “What do you think?”

“Well, considering I gasped over that tile, you could probably tell which one I loved. Upon closer inspection, I also like how she used the same basic color palette for everything already redone on that floor—your study and the master suite. I feel like this will continue to tie it all together.”

“I guess we’ll take it,” Danny says.

The designer looks from me to Danny and says, “

? Are you two, like, together?”

“What?” I scoff, recovering more quickly than Danny. “I think he’s referring to him and Jadyn.”

“Oh,” the girl says, turning a shade of red. “Of course. I just … I’ll stop talking now. We have all the measurements, so we’ll get it ordered. Jadyn wanted it rushed, so I’ll do that straightaway.”

“Awesome. Thank you,” Danny says, signing the work order that she holds out to him before she slinks away.

“Let’s go,” I tell him, leading him out the door.

“Is it bad that I did mean we, as in you and me?” he says once we’re in his car.

I melt. “Not at all.”

“It just seems so strange. You’ve been here for less than a week, and I’m picturing you in my life, living in my house. I feel like that’s how my life should have been. But it’s not,” he says.

He looks sad, so I decide to change the subject.

“So, it’s Halloween. I know the kids have parties at school today, but what will go on tonight?”

Danny starts the car and turns to me with a sparkle in his eyes.

“Remember I told you, Halloween was always my favorite holiday as a kid? Dressing up wasn’t the only reason.” He’s got a naughty grin on his face.

“Sounds like trouble,” I say with a laugh. “Did you smash pumpkins and stuff?”

“Oh no, that would be disrespectful. But we might have TPed a few homes. Possibly forked their yards and might have Fruity Pebbled a few sidewalks.”

“TPed? You mean, like toilet-papered houses? I’ve never done that before.”

“Never?” he asks, shocked.

“Nope.”

“Oh, boy. You’re going to have fun tonight.” He glances at the clock. “Hmm. It’s getting late. I was thinking it would be fun to make homemade pizzas with the kids before they go trick-or-treating. When I was young, we used to make them in pumpkin shapes and decorate them to look like jack-o’-lanterns. But I need to go to the store to get supplies for tonight.”

“Why don’t I start the pizzas with the kids, and you go to the store? By the time you get back, we can eat.”

He reaches over, takes my hand in his, and gives it a little squeeze. “That sounds like an awesome idea.”

We get back to Danny’s house as the kids are getting home from school.

“How was school?” Danny asks them as we all meet up in the kitchen.

“A couple of my teachers brought treats in for Halloween, but it sucks, not having parties like we did in grade school.” Damon pouts.

“I’m over all that,” Dani says with a roll of her eyes.

“Well, how would you feel about us making homemade pizzas tonight?” I ask them.

“I’m all for pizza, all the time,” Damon says, his pout quickly replaced with a grin much like his father’s.

Danny pulls his phone out and shows us all a photo. “I had your grandma send me this today,” he says. “When I was a kid, we used to make pizzas for Halloween and decorate them like jack-o’-lanterns.”

“That’s kinda lame,” Dani says, but she’s smiling, too.

“But tasty,” Danny counters. “Jennifer is going to help you make the dough. I have to run an errand but will be back shortly. I say we have a contest for the best-looking pizza.”

“And who’s going to judge that?” Damon asks.

“Grandma,” Devaney answers. “She loves me.”

“I will agree to sending Grandma pictures and letting her judge, but we are not allowed to tell her whose is whose. Deal?”

“What do we win?” Damon wonders.

“If I win, I’m not grounded, and I get to go trick-or-treating with Chase. He’s taking Madden and Ryder.”

“Devaney, you can go with Chase to do that regardless of if you win,” Danny says sweetly. “Wanting to help the little kids is nice of you.”

“Does that mean, after we’ve worn them out, I can go over to—”

“Don’t push it,” Danny says firmly.

She rolls her eyes again but doesn’t argue further.

I shoo Danny out of the kitchen. Once he leaves for the store, the kids and I mix up the dough. While it’s rising in the warming drawer, I chop up veggies and show Devaney how to sauté them. Damon is in charge of cooking the ground sausage.

“We need some music,” Devaney says. She eyes me seriously. “Do you listen to Dad’s kind of music?”

“What does your dad listen to?” I ask, realizing I don’t know.

“Rock mostly,” she says.

“Do you not like that kind of music?” I ask.

“Well, I might if the music he listened to in college wasn’t, like, a million years ago.”

“I like a lot of music,” I tell her as I sprinkle flour all over one side of the island and set up all the toppings on the other side. “Pick whatever you like.” What she likes is dance music, which is awesome because it’s my favorite, too.

I get the dough out of the warming drawer, roll it into individual balls, and set them in the flour. The kids are rolling it out when the front door bursts open.

I look up, expecting Danny, but see his wife instead. She doesn’t appear to notice us, just marches up the stairs, seemingly on a mission.

The kids’ eyes are as big as saucers, but neither one of them seems surprised when a loud scream breaks the silence that fell over the kitchen when she walked in.

“Oh, boy,” Devaney says. “Mom doesn’t sound happy.”

And she’s right.

Lori flies down the stairs and finally notices the three of us in the kitchen. Her face is red when she marches to the island and glares at me. “What are you doing here? Where is my husband?” she demands.

“He is running a quick errand—”

“Well, aren’t you all cozy? Here in my house, with my children. Making a mess of kitchen.”

“Um, we’re just making pizzas. Would you like to join us?”

She gets an amused look on her face. “Join you? In house? Yes, I think I would. This is actually a little surreal, I will admit. Another woman cooking in my kitchen.”

“Did you cook a lot?” I ask, knowing full well that she didn’t, based on the stove.

“What? No. A chef prepared our meals for us. It’s all too messy.”

I purposely splash a little sauce on the counter. “Yeah, it is. Kinda like life.”

“Mom,” Damon says, “we’re having a contest to make the best jack-o’-lantern pizza. Grandma Diamond is going to judge which one wins. Daddy used to do it when he and Uncle Phillip and Auntie Jay were young. How come we never did this before?”

Lori does a long blink, seemingly trying to keep her anger in check. “I don’t know, honey. We’ll have to ask your father that.” She turns to her daughter. “I’m also here to talk to your father about what went on Friday night at the party. I’ve heard more of the story since I arrived home from Bermuda. Why didn’t you tell me what happened? That you were at a party where police were present?”

“I had already left,” Devaney says.

“Oh, yes. I heard how your stupid friendship with Chase caused the quarterback on the team you are supposed to be supporting to break his hand.”

“It wasn’t Chase’s fault,” she starts to say, but her mother doesn’t let her finish.

“You are not allowed to see him anymore.”

“What?” Devaney says, the hurt in her eyes apparent.

“I’m thinking maybe you didn’t hear the whole story,” I say, standing up for Chase. “He went there—”

Lori aims her finger and venom at me. “Don’t you even think about telling me anything about my daughter. As a matter of fact, why don’t you get your husband-stealing whore ass out of my house?”

“Lori!” Danny says, his voice booming through the commotion.

I didn’t even hear him come in.

She marches straight up to him. “Don’t even start with me, Danny Diamond,” she says, her voice dripping with disgust. “You left our children with a complete stranger.”

“She’s not a stranger.”

“And what did you do to my house? I came over to pick up some clothes. Where is my stuff?”

“I moved the bedrooms around,” Danny says calmly in what seems to be a well-practiced tone. “The personal items you left here were boxed up and put into a storage unit.”

“You put all my clothing into a storage unit? If they get ruined, you’re replacing them!”

“The storage unit is high-end and very suitable for your needs. Your items are also insured, should there be any damage.” He opens a drawer in the kitchen and pulls out an envelope. “The address and key to the unit are in here.”

“Why are you still here?” she asks me.

“I’m still here because Danny invited me, and I’m not leaving his house until he asks me to.”

Lori turns to me. “You don’t think it’s a coincidence that I go out of town, you bring this whore into my house, and our daughter goes to a party and is drinking? It’s your fault. Were you even caring for our children while I was gone? Or were you too busy whoring around?”

What she says hits home, and I immediately feel guilty. I was making out with Jennifer and almost ignored Phillip’s call.

“Are you saying that you wouldn’t have let Devaney go to the cheer sleepover?” I ask Lori.

“That has nothing to do with it,” she says.

“Yeah, it does. Maybe you didn’t get the whole story. Maybe, instead of listening to cheer-mom gossip from women whose girls weren’t even at the party, you should have asked me or your daughter about it. It’s not as simple as you make it sound.”

She crosses her arms in front of her chest. “Enlighten me.”

Devaney, who surprisingly hasn’t left the room and is standing close to Jennifer, like she’s her backup, tells her side of things. She leaves out quite a bit, but I get it.

Once she finishes, I tell Lori the rest.

“You’re telling me that, rather than call her own father, she called Chase? And Phillip didn’t call you to go get our daughter because he knew you were with your whore.”

“I’m not a whore,” Jennifer says adamantly. “Stop saying that.”

“Why don’t you go home, Jennifer?” I suggest, wanting to protect her from the drama with Lori.

The second I see Lori’s smirk, I realize I played right into her hand.

“Yeah, why don’t you leave?” Lori repeats.

Jennifer drops a towel on the counter and looks me dead in the eyes. “You know what? I’m sorry your wife barged in while you were gone, and I invited her to join us. Enjoy your pizzas.”

My heart feels like it’s breaking all over again when she walks out. I want to run and stop her from leaving, hold her in my arms and apologize for the things my wife said, but Lori starts in on me again.

“How could you leave our children alone with a stranger?” she asks.

“Let’s go outside and talk,” I suggest. “The kids don’t need to hear all this.”

“No! The kids are practically grown. They need to understand what’s going on here.”

“What’s going on here is, I invited a friend to come over to my house. You aren’t living here anymore. That was your decision, not mine.” I take her arm and lead her to the front door. “It’s time for you to leave.”

Surprisingly, she complies. When I get her outside, I see why. Richard is waiting for her. I didn’t even notice his car sitting in the street when I got home, my mind on all things Jennifer.

He gets out of the car and waves her over.

“I have to go now,” Lori says, “but we are not through with this conversation.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow at the attorney’s office. We can talk all you want there, but I refuse to do it in front of the children.”

“Fine,” she says.

The second she is gone, I rush over to Jennifer’s room. When I knock on the door, she doesn’t answer. I let myself into Jadyn’s office and then go knock on the bedroom door. Still, no answer. I turn the knob and peek in.

She’s not there, so I go downstairs through the garage and into the Mackenzies’ house. I expect to find a house filled with chaos, but it’s quiet. I vaguely remember Jadyn telling me earlier that they were going out for dinner tonight before trick-or-treating.

I go to the study, knowing it’s Jennifer’s favorite spot, and find her sitting, curled up.

“Hey,” I say. “Sorry about all that.”

When she turns to me, I can see that she’s been crying.

“Do you think I’m a husband-stealing whore?”

I move toward her. “What do you think?”

“No. But it rattled me. And struck a chord. Do you know how badly I did want to steal you back then?”

“How badly?” I ask as I wiggle my way into the chair with her.

“With every inch of my being,” she says.

“Would you come back and finish making pizzas with us?”

“Only if she’s gone,” she replies.

“She’s history,” I say, placing my lips on hers.

We walk hand in hand back to my house, make pizzas with the kids, and have a great time. It doesn’t hurt that my mother chooses Jennifer’s pizza as the grand-prize winner. Once dinner is over, the kids are quick to head to the Mackenzies’ house.

“We’d better get out there.” I hand Jennifer a bowl of candy and lead her to the front porch. I tell her to take a seat and then run into the garage to get the cooler.

“What’s that for?” she asks when I return with it.

“Candy for the kids. Beer for the parents.” I open the cooler, grab a bottle, wrap a koozie around it, and give it to her.

We hand out candy and beers for quite a while.

“It’s really amazing, all the children in your neighborhood,” she says as we get a break in the action. “And that they are all with their parents.”

“It’s a great place for kids to grow up,” I agree.

She lets out a little sigh.

“What?”

“I have been thinking about your tattoos,” she says.

“Because you haven’t gotten to see them all yet?”

“I thought I had seen them all,” she counters.

I shake my head, pull up the hem of my jeans, and show her my ankle. “Phillip and I have this tattoo in the same spot. Jadyn has it on her hip. It’s the wing design that is on her parents’ gravestones.”

“That must have been really hard for all of you,” she says.

I lower my head. “It was, but it made us even closer.”

She leans in and gives me a sweet kiss. The smile on her face as she pulls away takes me back to that night on the beach. But I need to forget about the past and live in the present. And the present includes my wife, who said something horrible about Jennifer today. Something completely uncalled for. It’s not like I’m sleeping with her.

Yet.

“Is their relationship as perfect as it seems?” Jennifer asks, interrupting my dirty thoughts.

“They get in little tiffs like anyone, but even those you can see right through. For the most part, they make their marriage a priority. They’re best friends and such good partners.”

“True love?” she asks.

“Definitely.” I want to say something about us being true love because I believe that’s what she is. My true love. But it feels awkward. And part of me still can’t believe she’s here. “You said you were thinking about my tattoos.”

“Oh, yeah. I think you should do it. Have more kids. Fill up the empty space.”

And I’m thinking that would be the most wonderful thing ever—if she’d be the one to help me do so.

The trick-or-treaters are long gone, the kids are asleep, and Jennifer and I are on our fifth house of the night. I stop spraying water onto the sidewalk and sprinkle on Fruity Pebbles while I watch her. She’s running back and forth across the yard, toilet paper trailing behind her as she layers it across Joey’s hedges, having the time of her life.

Even though this week has been sort of a disaster with all things Jennifer, it’s been the most fun I’ve had in a long time. Something about her makes me feel young again. Young, happy, and more like myself. I love that I get to just be me when I’m around her. That I can say silly stuff to make her giggle instead of getting chastised. I love that we can joke around. And don’t even get me started on the way kissing her feels. If things weren’t so complicated, I would have done way more than that by now, and I know without a doubt that we’d have equally as much fun in bed.

I’m pulled from my thoughts when a bright light comes on.

, I think, getting ready to run.

But then I see a cop has Jennifer cornered by a tree on the edge of the property.

“Whoa,” he says, shining his flashlight in her face. “Are you Jennifer Edwards?”

“Yep,” she says.

“Is this some kind of celebrity prank?” the cop asks. “Am I on camera?”

“Nope,” I say, sneaking up behind him. “Just a couple of kids having fun.”

He quickly turns in my direction, the flashlight blinding me.

“And Danny Diamond? Now, I know something’s up.”

“What’s up,” I say, “is that I was telling Jennifer about all the stuff we used to do to our friends’ houses on Halloween when we were kids. And she told me that she’d never TPed a house in her life. I felt that needed to be remedied.”

He shines the light back in her direction. “Is that true?”

“Your light is really bright,” Jennifer says, holding her hand up. “It hurts my eyes.”

“Plus, we’re kind of trying to be incognito here,” I add.

“Oh, well, shoot, you’re right,” he says, quickly turning off the torch.

“It’s true,” Jennifer tells him.

“I can’t believe you’ve never done that,” he says. “Hell, back in my day, I mean—”

Jennifer hands him a roll of toilet paper from the sack she has tied to her belt loop. “We’ve done four of his friends’ houses so far. Want to know my favorite part? It’s when you throw the roll as high as you can and then a branch catches it and it rolls back down so fast and it’s so pretty and you catch it and then you throw it up in the air again.”

The cop peers around in every direction. “Do you swear, I’m not on camera?”

“We swear,” I say.

He takes the toilet paper and heaves it into the air. “Gosh, that’s fun. I’ll be honest, I was a bit of a hellion when I was young. Those who knew me are shocked I’m a cop. I was always having run-ins with the locals in my small town.”

“Things were different back then though,” I say. “The cops knew everyone. They didn’t have to threaten with arrest. They just told us they were calling our parents.”

“I know, right?” he says with a grin as he catches the TP and throws it back in the air. “And they’d confiscate our beer. Or make us pour it out.” He grins at Jennifer as I hand him a few forks to place in the yard. “You ever get caught parking by the lake?”

“Hell,” Jennifer says with a laugh, “where I grew up, all we had was a pond.”

“We didn’t even have that,” I add. “We just pulled into a cornfield.”

“I can’t believe I’m reminiscing about the good ole days and committing trespassing, littering, and criminal mischief with Jennifer Edwards and Danny Diamond. Best night ever.”

“Well, the good news is, it’s easy to clean up,” Jennifer says.

“And we’re doing my house,” I say, “so my friends won’t know who to blame.”

“Now, that there is sheer brilliance,” the officer says, shaking my hand before he gets back into his car and takes off.

Jennifer and I run to the corner where we parked.

“Ohmigosh, that was such a rush,” she says, pushing me against the side of my truck. “I was so imagining myself in an orange jumpsuit and a mug shot in all the papers.”

“Another nice thing about living in a small town,” I say, holding her eyes and enjoying the feel of her body against mine.

“Kansas City isn’t small,” she counters as she pats down my chest and pulls the flask out of my pocket. She takes a slug and then offers it to me.

I take a shot and then say, “No, but our neighborhood feels like a small town. That’s why I was originally drawn to it.”

“And how did Phillip and Jadyn end up living next door to you?” she asks as she runs her hand across the nape of my neck, causing me to instantly harden.

“It’s kind of crazy now that I think back. I got drafted and bought the house. Lori wasn’t thrilled with it even though it was bigger than I ever imagined. It needed remodeling, which I knew was quite an undertaking. But it was the exact location I wanted, had a panoramic lake view, and the back faced west, so we could watch the sunset. You know that Phillip and Jadyn grew up door next to each other, and when I was in sixth grade, my family moved into the neighborhood. I was a cocky little shit and wanted to play catch with Phillip. Said something about girls not being able to play football. Jadyn ran into her house in tears and then came back out, demanding to play. When I balked at the idea, she slugged me.”

Jennifer covers her mouth, trying to control her giggles. “Oh, that’s awesome. And let me guess; you’ve been best friends ever since?”

“Yep. I told you about how I took the gang to Vegas for Jadyn’s and Phillip’s bachelorette and bachelor parties?”

“No, you didn’t. You just told me that you bought the car in Vegas.”

“Phillip and Jadyn have never liked to be apart. He didn’t know the girls were even there the first night. We did the typical routine with the drunk limo and strip club while the girls did a spa day and drank a lot of wine. Anyway, that was the night I bought the Ferrari, and Lori was pissed I hadn’t consulted her. I know we were married and all, but I used a small portion of my sign-on bonus, which I felt was mine to spend since I’d gotten it before we were married.”

“How did Phillip find out Jadyn was there?”

“Oh, that’s classic. The next afternoon, I hired these masked strippers to come into our penthouse suite and made Jadyn dress like them and dance on Phillip.”

“Oh my gosh. She danced and stripped in front of you all?”

“She didn’t really get to the stripping part. Phillip knew it was her right away because he saw her tattoo. But Jadyn didn’t think he recognized her, and she was getting mad that he was being so handsy, but he played it perfectly. I was dying. Let’s just say, Jadyn would starve before she ever earned money as a stripper.”

“I had a stripper fail once, too! I was in Vegas with Riley Johnson and Knox Daniels. I was so drunk, and I totally fell. Made a fool of myself.” She hoots.

“I saw the video. I thought you were damn sexy, and that was before we met. Even though I’m sure it was embarrassing, it looked like a fun night.”

“It was,” she says with a smile. “I used to have a lot of fun. And I had fun tonight. Thank you for taking me.”

“I haven’t had this much fun in a long time. Although watching you in the bounce house in that little skimpy costume, jumping around, is high on the list.”

She smacks my arm and then leans in to kiss me.

All of a sudden, the lights come on in Joey’s house.

She says, “We’re busted,” against my mouth as we instinctively duck.

We watch Joey move from window to window, turning on lights, until he’s in the kitchen, drinking milk from the carton.

“I don’t think he knows we’re out here. Good thing we parked on the corner.”

As soon as the lights all turn off, we hightail it back home and decorate both my house and the Mackenzies’.

It’s late when we sneak up to my room.

Danny is barely inside the door when I say, “Is it weird that I’m here?”

“A little. It’s like I’m living out a fantasy, a dream.”

“Have you thought about me since we stopped talking?” I ask, leaning back a little and nervously biting my lip.

“I’ve seen every one of your movies. I have dreams about you,” he says as his fingers move across my shoulder.

“What kind of dreams?”

“We are on the beach that night. I relive it. It was one of the best nights of my life,” he says sincerely.

“Hmm, I’ve dreamed about that night, too,” I tell him. “But it had a much better ending.”

“Can I kiss you again?” he asks.

“You’d freaking better. You don’t know what I went through to get here.”

He shuts me up by pressing his lips hard against mine. I let out a little moan and part my lips as he shoves his tongue into my mouth. I run my hand wildly through his hair and then find myself grabbing the hem of his shirt and pulling it off. It’s then, while our lips are apart and he’s stripping my shirt off, I see the same hunger I saw in his eyes that night on the beach. The same emotion.

But he wouldn’t succumb even though I totally threw myself at him.

Repeatedly.

After what I’ve just been through, I can really appreciate a faithful man.

“You’re even more beautiful than I remember,” I tell him, my hands gliding from his broad shoulders, down his hard pecs, thick abs, and to a really impressive V-line. Troy might have been a hot rock star who left girls swooning in his wake, but I can tell you, he does not look anything like this.

Danny effortlessly picks me up and carries me to the bed. I grab his waistband and quickly unbutton his jeans, dying to see what’s below. I used to stare at his underwear ads and think it would have been better marketing had he been naked, and the undies were lying on the floor.

Or maybe not. Heck, no one would have noticed the brand.

As I start to reach inside the boxer briefs that have girls chanting his name on more than game days, he stops me.

He shoves his hands through his hair. “It’s all backward.”

“You want me backward?” I start to turn around. I’m fine with doing anything he wants.

“No, I mean, all backward.” He sits on the bed next to me, looking distressed. “I want you, Jennifer. God, I want you. Like, you have no idea how much I do. But I don’t just want sex from you.”

“What do you want?”

“I want you. In my life. For the rest of my life. You’re supposed to ease into a relationship. You date, you get to know each other, you sleep together, and you get more serious. But things are different from when I was young. I have two kids. We have lives, careers, friends. We live in two different cities. The guy you were with for years cheated a little over a week ago. I was a wreck after Lori left me. I don’t know what I would have done without Phillip and Jadyn.”

“I don’t know what I would have done without them either,” I admit. “I don’t have that many friends left, Danny.”

“Do you get what I’m saying?” he asks. “Do you understand?”

“Yes, and no. The logical side of me understands what you’re saying, but my heart feels like it did when you told me we couldn’t talk anymore. It aches.”

His hand moves to my chest, to the spot directly above my heart. “The last thing I want to do is cause you pain.”

When his lips land on mine again, it feels like all his emotions and desire are funneled into the kiss.

“Wow,” I say, taking a breath. “That might have been our best kiss so far.”

“I don’t want you to leave,” he says, standing up and apparently needing to talk. “Are you just looking for a fling? Troy broke your heart, so you need to sleep with someone else to feel better? Because, if that’s all you’re looking for, I’m not that guy.”

“Why not?” I ask. “You know we’re going to have fun.”

“Because I never wanted just a fling with you. I wanted your heart and soul and love.”

“Do you still want that?” I ask, holding my breath in anticipation of his answer. Although my body is telling me all that matters is that we hook up, my heart has other ideas.

He sighs and runs his hand through his hair, like he doesn’t know what to say.

“It’s a simple question, Danny. Yes or no?” I stand up, ready to kick him out of here the second he says no. Because my heart can’t take it.

His blue eyes settle on mine. He’s breathing heavily and all worked up.

And I get it.

He’s not divorced. I’m fresh out of a relationship. We do probably need time to heal. Things all backward. We shouldn’t have to think this hard about whether or not to take this next step. It’s what we’ve both wanted. Based on the look on his face, I know that I am not going to like his answer.

But then his expression changes—his jaw set and his eyes squinted in bold determination.

“The answer is yes,” he says, his muscular body launching toward me, fluidly picking me up as his lips slam against mine, and my back is pushed against the door.

The rest of the night is a flurry of emotions combined with the most incredible, fulfilling sex I’ve ever experienced. It’s like all the love we feel, all the love we missed out on in the past, is wrapped into one highly combustible package and lit tonight, incinerating every other experience before it.