BILLIONAIRE BOSS

MY FATHER’S BEST FRIEND #2

ALI PARKER
BRIXBAXTER PUBLISHING
 CONTENTS

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Description
Introduction
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
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 FIND ALI PARKER

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 Description

It’s finally my turn to be in love, but love is never easy.

Of all people in the world for Andrew to be best friends with, it had to be my
dad.

To top it all off, he’s pulling back because of his daughter, as if he can’t possibly
love us both.

But maybe it’s about more than loving. Loving after losing someone you thought
you’d spend your life with forever has to be hard. I need to give him room, but
all I want to do is crowd in tighter.

A quick turn of events, and he decides to sweep me away for a weekend

getaway, but our plans are foiled by an accident.

One that has the power to change everything—again.

 Introduction

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1
 LANIE

I opened my mouth, searching for air, but finding none. I’d been reduced to a
frantically gulping fish. All I could do was stare at Andrew as the world
around us turned apocalyptic.
Andrew stared back, his face pale and his features tight.
“How have you never met before?” my mother asked from next to me, her
voice sounding miles away.
I kept my eyes on Andrew, too aware of the pounding in my ears. Did we say
something? As in the truth?
I gulped, squeezing the sides of my chair. What would my parents say once
they found out the man I was seeing was none other than my dad’s long-time
friend?
Andrew cleared his throat, his eyes quickly jumping to my mother. “I
honestly don’t know. It’s crazy.” Again, his gaze slid over to me, the tension in
his shoulders unmistakable. “You don’t go by Elizabeth.”
He made it sound like an accusation.
“No,” my numb tongue responded. “Helena is my middle name, so, you
know, Lanie.”
Andrew’s chest rose sharply with an inhale. “Right. It’s very nice.”
So we’re not going to say anything? I internally screamed. Are we just going
to act like we don’t know each other?
Was that for the best? Or was Andrew staying mum because revealing our
relationship would be too shameful?
“Andrew was kind enough to cohost tonight,” Dad said. His hand was on
Andrew’s shoulder again, in the same spot that I’d come to love resting my own
fingers. “Are you ready for the speech, Andrew? It’s in five minutes.” Dad
laughed like he’d made some kind of joke.
 Andrew’s throat worked up and down. “I should be fine.”
“Dad?” a familiar voice asked.
The hair on the back of my neck stood up as Raven approached, arms folded
across her chest. That’s right. I’d completely forgotten Andrew was bringing
Raven in my place to his event tonight, the event, it turned out, that was also my
father’s.
My head spun, and I took a hasty drink of water.
Raven’s eyes went wide at the sight of me. “Miss Jacobs?”
My parents and Andrew all looked my way.
“You know each other?” Mom asked.
Over Raven’s shoulder, I quickly caught Andrew’s gaze. He still looked like
a statue, his face flat, the only sign of life the desperation in his eyes.
Tell me about it, I wanted to say.
“She’s my school counselor,” Raven said, frowning, probably offended no
one had thought to share this information yet.
“Right,” I smiled. “I know Raven from school.”
I looked Andrew’s way again, silently trying to ask him what we should do.
My mom knew I was seeing an older guy, but until this moment, neither one of
us knew that older guy was, in fact, my dad’s friend. And Dad himself? As Mom
liked to put it, if he found I was so much as hanging out with a man in his
forties, he would “freak out.”
But if Andrew was willing to bite the bullet and spill the news, then so was I.
I’d been terrified of telling my father I was seeing an older guy, and this new
revelation that Dad hung out with said older guy brought the stakes up a whole
new level. There was no telling how my parents would react now.
But with Andrew standing by my side, it couldn’t be that bad. No matter
what my parents said, at least I’d have him for comfort.
I lifted my chin, hoping my gaze somehow emoted all of this.
Without warning, Andrew turned away, putting his back to me. My heart
dropped into my stomach and through the very floorboards, continuing until it
left the planet.
“We should get up there,” he told Dad. “Raven, honey, take a seat.”
Without so much as a glance my way, Andrew left, Dad right behind him.
Heat I’d never known filled my face, and I looked down at my wine glass. Had
Andrew just snubbed me?
“Is it okay if I sit here?” Raven asked. “It’s a bunch of old people at my
table.”
“Of course, honey,” Mom cheerfully responded, no doubt thrilled not to be
considered an old person.
 A chair scraped, and Raven took the seat right next to me. “This place is so
big.”
I kept my eyes downcast, unable to lift them.
“Old too,” Mom answered. “It was built around the turn of the century.”
“Excuse me,” I blabbered, jumping up from my seat. “I need to use the
powder room, the, uh, the restroom.”
“Powder room?” Raven laughed.
I didn’t answer. My butt was gone, my feet weaving a path across the floor
and to the hallway running along the back of the ballroom.
I pushed the swinging door open and collapsed onto the sofa pressed
alongside the wall. Closing my eyes, I leaned back against the cushions and tried
to gather my thoughts. It was no use. They ran all over the place, little gremlins
set free to enact destruction.
At the sound of the door opening, I looked over.
“Huh,” Raven said, hand on hip as she surveyed the little room connecting
the door to the bathroom area. “I guess this does have a powder room. Fancy.”
I straightened up, afraid my freak-out showed on my face. “I like your
dress.”
She glanced down at the pink, knee-length dress. “Thanks. It’s okay. Dad
wanted me to wear it. Are you—?”
“I’m fine,” I responded, before realizing I probably answered too quickly.
“You don’t look it.” She plopped down on the couch next to me. “God, this
place is so boring. Dad was all like, ‘There’s going to be puffed shrimp,’ like
that’s all it takes to get me to go somewhere.”
My laugh hurt. I came into the bathroom to escape thoughts of Andrew.
Raven’s eyes narrowed. “He’s acting weird too,” she suspiciously said.
“He’s probably nervous.” I stood up and went to the mirror on the wall,
getting away from her under the ruse of touching up my makeup, but then
realized I’d left my purse at the table.
“Your dad knows him? Why are they hosting together?”
I stayed at the mirror, looking down at the counter. “Um, I guess they’ve
known each other for years or something.”
“Huh. That’s weird.”
“Yeah.” Using the last bit of my energy to smile, I turned back to Raven.
“You’re going to miss the speech. Don’t you want to get back out there?”
She didn’t budge. “Do your parents know about you and my dad?”
“Um.”
“Is that why you’re both acting all freaked out?”
Sighing, I threw in the towel. Trying to keep anything from Raven would be
pointless. I already knew she’d dig and dig until she uncovered the truth. “My
parents don’t know your dad and I know each other. They wouldn’t take it well.”
Her nose wrinkled. “Why?”
“Because.” I hesitated. Should I really be having this conversation with a
seventeen-year-old?
“You’re too young for him,” she finished for me.
My shoulders fell. “Is that what you think?”
“No,” she quickly responded. “Jeez. But is that what your parents think?”
I twisted my golden bracelet around and around. I’d been so excited getting
dressed for Andrew, thinking this night would only be one of fun and passion.
“Yes. They would. They believe I should only be spending my time with people
my age.”
“Well, that’s stupid.” Raven tossed her hair and crossed her legs, getting
comfortable. Muffled applause crept under the bathroom door. It looked like we
were missing the speech after all.
“I know,” I agreed. “But that’s their opinion.”
“So what?” she laughed. Catching sight of my face, her smile fell. “Oh my
god. Do you seriously care what they think?”
I couldn’t help but bristle at that. Raven was smart and strong, but I had
eleven years on her. I was her counselor. She was a teen struggling with her own
issues. The advice-giving should have been a one-way street.
“It’s complicated,” I answered, harsher than I meant to.
She made a face. “Really, Lanie? Is it?”
The use of my first name irked me, probably because there might not have
been a reason for us to get that close anymore. After the way Andrew ignored
me, things weren’t looking good. There was a chance I might never see him or
Raven outside of school again.
“My parents are very particular people,” I defended.
“Who cares? It’s your life. Your relationship.” Her eyebrows angrily pushed
together. “And what about my dad? He’s a part of this too.”
“We haven’t had a chance to talk about it.”
“You should be honest. Isn’t that the advice that a counselor is always
giving?”
Damn, she knew how to hit home. For an instant, I was given an insight into
how bad her fights with Andrew must have been for him.
“Honesty is good in theory, Raven,” I slowly said. “But there’s a time and a
—”
She was gone before I finished, letting the door bang shut behind her.
I closed my eyes, my fingers digging into my palms. As much as I wanted to
direct my anger at Raven, I knew this wasn’t about her. I was frustrated over the
whole situation. Confused. Hurt by Andrew’s reaction.
Truthfully, I could have misread that last part. Maybe he was feeling as
worried as I was and needed some time to talk it over with me before making the
next move.
Remembering that he asked me to come over later that night, I threw my
shoulders back and headed into the ballroom. Things might have been crazy
right then, but Andrew and I would figure it all out. Together.
Most of the guests still milled around, the dinner not fully underway yet. I
searched the room for Andrew as I made my way back to the table, not exactly
sure what I would say if our paths did cross.
Halfway across the room, I nearly walked right into him.
“Oh!” I shrieked.
His full lips parted. “Hi,” he breathed.
I swallowed hard. “Hi.”
Andrew blinked fast. “Listen ...”
“Dad.” Like she had a talent for doing, Raven appeared out of nowhere. This
time she sidled right up to Andrew’s elbow. “I’m not feeling good. I threw up in
the bathroom.”
My jaw dropped. I stared at Raven, unable to believe the lie—one which was
undoubtedly not only meant to get her home early but meant to hurt me as well.
She completely ignored me, acting like I wasn’t there and putting all her
attention on her father.
Andrew took the bait, though. “You did?”
“Yeah.” She pressed her hand to her stomach and made a pathetic face.
Andrew’s gaze jumped between her and me. “Sorry,” he told me. “It looks
like we have to go.”
“You finished your hosting duties?” I croaked.
“Yeah,” he slowly answered. Our gazes lingered on each other, and there
was so much going on in his eyes, I wanted to cry.
“Dad,” Raven moaned. “I think I’m going to throw up again.”
“Okay.” He touched her shoulder. “Let’s go.” Another apologetic look got
tossed my way, making me feel like a dog begging for the scraps that were
Andrew’s attention.
“I’m sorry,” he told me again as he walked off.
I jerked my head in agreement, and they were gone, leaving me surrounded
by strangers.
With heavy limbs, I took my seat next to Mom.
“Where did you go?” she pleasantly asked.
 “I was talking to people.”
Her diamond bracelet caught the light as she took a drink of champagne.
“That’s nice.”
The appearance of some woman who kissed Mom on the cheek and started a
conversation right away saved me from having to explain any further. Reunited
with my clutch, I pulled my phone out and discreetly typed a text under the
table.
That was crazy. I’m sorry. I’m going to try to get out of here within the hour.
Is that a good time for me to come over?
I sent the text to Andrew, relieved that we’d be alone soon. All I needed was
his touch, the feel of his firm chest, and I’d be all right. We’d figure this out
together.
The woman left, and Mom turned back to me. “Did you see your father’s
speech? He was so regal up there.”
“He always is,” I pleasantly answered, dodging the question.
“And Raven seems like a nice girl. That’s so funny that she goes to your
school. It’s such a small world.”
“Mm-hmm.”
Just keep nodding and smiling, I reminded myself.
“You know, Lanie, it’s wonderful you came tonight. And what’s more, you
put your father before a date. I’m very proud of you. Of course, if the
relationship with this man was truly going somewhere, that would be a different
matter.”I tuned out as she prattled on. I’d heard this speech before. There wasn’t
going to be anything new in it.
When she became engaged in a conversation with the waiter, I snuck another
peek at my phone. The sight of a text from Andrew made my heart jump. Pulse
pounding away, I quickly unlocked the phone.
Raven is still not feeling well, so tonight is not good. I’m sorry. Let’s talk
tomorrow.
Nausea rose in my chest—real nausea, not the fake kind like Raven had.
“She’s lying!” I wanted to write back. “She hates me for not saying
anything!”
Fingers shaking, I put the phone away. Andrew was not the only one to
blame here. We were both silent on the matter.
But, just as I’d tried to explain to Raven, didn’t we have a right to be that?
Feeling more awful than I had all night, I stayed planted in my seat, lost in
my private, sad world while all the joy I couldn’t feel continued on around me.
2
 ANDREW

F ingers laced behind my head, I stared at the ceiling above my bed,

thoughts running a thousand miles per hour.
What were the chances of Bob being Lanie’s father? How come he
never corrected me and told me she went by a nickname and not by Elizabeth?
Was this moral? Was this a train wreck waiting to happen?
Bob had been my closest friend for years. I couldn’t go behind his back and
date his daughter. Right?
Sighing, I turned to look at the pillow next to me. Every morning I woke up,
the bed seemed larger, too spacious for one person. I’d thought Lanie would be
sharing the mattress with me the night before, warming not only a bed but a spot
in my life that had been vacant for far too long.
Still, my body ached for her. It didn’t understand why my damn head hadn’t
allowed her to come over.
It’s too complicated, I reminded myself as I hauled my ass up. With what
happened at the fundraiser and Raven not feeling well, there was too much going
on. As badly as I needed Lanie in my arms, I also needed to take a step back and
process things.
Despite spending half the night awake tossing and turning, I still hadn’t
figured shit out. As it turns out, thinking can be highly overrated.
Being as quiet as I could, I crept down the hallway toward Raven’s room.
There were a few more hours to go before Karen arrived for work, Sunday being
her half day, and I wanted to make sure Raven had everything she needed.
“Raven?” I quietly asked with a knock on her door.
No answer. Slowly turning the knob, I peeked in. She lay on her side, asleep
and breathing evenly. On the bed next to her were her headphones and a book.
So she’d fallen asleep reading and listening to music—something she’d liked
to do since I first allowed her to listen to music in bed.
In addition to the teenage paraphernalia littering the sheets, Raven looked
calm and at peace. Stepping into the room, I felt her forehead and noted the
perfect temperature.
It seemed Raven was not sick at all. Not anymore, that was.
Had she been lying to me the night before? I’d had to get on the stage too
soon. If she and Lanie had a conversation, I didn’t have a guess as to what they’d
talked about. She’d been silent the whole way home, leaning with her face
pressed against the window. I’d chalked that up to her not feeling well, but
maybe I was wrong.
It could be Raven knew more than she was revealing.
Discomfort formed a tight ball in my chest. Raven had been doing so well,
not acting out at all.
Feigning sickness was an old trick, one she used to employ when she wanted
to get out of something.
Checking my sigh, I slipped back out of the room and retrieved my phone
from the charger next to my bed. I wanted to find a text from Lanie but wasn’t
surprised it didn’t exist. I’d blown her off the night before. There were excuses,
but none of them good enough.
Cradling the phone in the palm of my hand, I stared at its screen. It was still
early yet, but there was a chance Lanie would be up. My muscles yearned to get
into the pool and swim, and my fingers itched to get into the office and work, but
my heart ached to hear Lanie’s silky voice.
Taking the phone downstairs, I sequestered myself off in the kitchen, the
furthest room from Raven’s, before taking a seat and making the call.
“Hey,” Lanie answered, sounding surprised.
“Hi.” Just hearing her speak had me instantly relaxing. I leaned back into the
kitchen chair and took the first clean breath of the morning. “This isn’t too early,
is it?”
“No. I, uh, I’ve been awake for a while now. I didn’t sleep too well.”
“Same here.” I rubbed my tired eyes, feeling exhausted just talking about it.
“So.” Uncertainty dripped from the one little word.
“That was wild last night,” I said.
Lanie sighed. “How could we not know that you know my dad?”
“I more than know him,” I quietly answered. “We’ve been pretty close
friends for years.”
A long silence followed.
“He doesn’t make a lot of time to let me in on his life,” Lanie quietly said.
The comment was a puzzling one, and I wasn’t sure how to respond.
 “So I guess I shouldn’t be surprised about you and him,” she continued.
“Hell, you might know him better than I do.”
There was a bitterness in her voice I’d never heard before. Like a bolt of
lightning, it all suddenly made sense. This was why Lanie understood mine and
Raven’s dilemma so well. I knew I was a workaholic, but Bob was just as bad.
Maybe worse.
No doubt Lanie had spent a lot of her life feeling the same way Raven
recently had. Ignored. Neglected.
“Lanie,” I gasped. “I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
I struggled to find the right words. I didn’t want to pry into their relationship,
but I was willing to bet money that Bob and Lanie didn’t see each other on a
regular basis.
“I could have connected the dots,” I settled for saying instead.
“No, you couldn’t have. Dad still calls me Elizabeth sometimes, so it makes
sense he’d let other people do the same.”
I nodded, though she couldn’t see me, and I also knew it was still not a
proper excuse.
“Does he,” I cleared my throat. “Does he know about us?”
“No. I haven’t told my parents anything.”
“Okay.” Relief rushed through me, quickly followed by guilt. I shouldn’t
have been worried about what Bob would say, but I was.
And it was more than that. This whole relationship, one that previously
belonged to just me and Lanie, had suddenly become about everyone else as
well. Bob. Raven.
“I’m not so sure Raven is sick,” I found myself saying.
“I know she didn’t throw up.”
“Really?” That made me sit up straighter. “How?”
“Because I was in the bathroom with her the whole time she was in there. I
think she’s mad at me for not just telling my dad about us.”
“Why would she be mad?” I asked, even though I could probably answer that
myself.
“I guess it seems to her like we’re sneaking around. Or maybe like I don’t
respect you because I haven’t said anything.”
“I know you respect me. Raven doesn’t get it. She’s seventeen.”
“Yep. But I didn’t point that out.”
“Good. You might have gotten your head bitten off.” I chuckled, but it didn’t
feel good like laughter was supposed to.
Lanie’s pitiful sigh made my heart hurt. “What now? What are we going to
do? Do we tell him?”
I bit the inside of my cheek, wishing I had the answers we both needed. “I
get why Raven would be upset to think we’re sneaking around. I don’t want to
feel like it’s that way.”
“We weren’t,” she said in a small voice.
“Yes, but if we continue to see each other without telling your parents, it will
be sneaking around.”
More silence filled the conversation, and I wished I could take back the “but”
in my statement. It made the whole situation sound too precarious, like I had no
faith in the two of us at all.
“You don’t want to tell them, do you?”
“My dad will be so angry,” she instantly said. “You must know that. You’re,
like, his best friend, right?”
It was supposed to be a joke, but it didn’t land its mark.
“I can’t lie to him, Lanie,” I insisted.
“What is he going to say when you tell him? Do you honestly think it’ll go
well?”
I chewed that over. Bob was a strong-willed man. An opinionated one. A
pretty traditional one, as well. And protective. Even if he didn’t spend enough
time with his family, I knew from the way he’d spoken in the past that he cared
deeply for them.
I wouldn’t put it past him to lay a punch on anyone who threatened anything
of his. No matter who the recipient of the hit might be.
“I need some time, Andrew. To think this over.”
I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose and squeezing my eyes shut. My
head was aching from a need for sleep, caffeine, and Lanie’s touch.
It was time to get serious about this situation, though.
“I’m a little worried about Raven,” I admitted. “If there’s too much discord
...”
“She might revert to old patterns.”
“Yeah. Maybe.” I opened my eyes and stared at the barren kitchen wall.
“Maybe we should take a step back. Cool things for a bit. Just a week or so until
you—until we—figure things out.”
“Oh.”
I chomped down on my lip, hating myself for the disappointment in her
voice. “Just for a while. We only started things anyway.”
Shut up, shut up, Andrew.
I was saying the wrong things, but I couldn’t help it. Whenever I opened my
mouth, something dumb tumbled out.
 “Okay,” Lanie said, a new tightness in her voice.
I straightened up in the chair, simultaneously needing the conversation to end
right away and wishing it would never have to.
“Good. I think that’s for the best. I’ll talk to you soon?”
“Yeah. Bye.”
“Bye.”
She hung up first, clearly eager to get off the phone.
“Shit,” I spat, putting the phone down on the breakfast table and leaning over
my knees.
The creaking of the floorboards made me look up. Raven entered the kitchen,
her hair still tousled from sleep. “Who were you talking to?”
“I didn’t realize you were up.”
She ignored me, going straight to the fridge and getting out the orange juice.
“Who were you talking to?” she repeated.
“Lanie.”
Christ, even the name was delicious sin now.
There was no reaction on Raven’s face. She heavily set a glass down on the
counter so that it made a loud clinking noise and filled it to the brim with juice.
Judging by her actions, she was trying to get on my nerves.
“What did she want?”
“Just to talk.”
Raven peered at me over the top of her glass.
“Are you feeling better?”
She blinked fast and set her glass down. Maybe she’d already forgotten she
was supposed to be sick. “A little. It must have been those puffed shrimp.”
I smirked. We both know she didn’t eat anything at the event other than
cheese and crackers. Everything else was “gross, snobby food.”
“So you know Lanie’s dad?” Raven studied me intently, maybe waiting to
see if I’d try to lie.
“Yeah. We’ve been good friends for years.”
“I’ve never met him.”
Because we’re both workaholics who ignore our families until it’s too late, I
thought.
“You met him once,” I said instead. “Years ago, when you were little.”
She swirled around what was left of her juice, leaning against the counter
and watching me like I was on trial. “Okay,” she finally said.
With that, she put her glass in the sink and walked away.
“Where are you going?” I called after her.
“Bed,” she shouted over her shoulder while crossing the living room. “I still
don’t feel good.”
Right.
With Raven back upstairs, I hauled my ass up to get changed for the
morning’s laps in the pool. I already knew there would be no falling back to
sleep for me. I might as well get shit done.
As I changed into my swimming trunks, the conversation with Lanie ran on
repeat in my head. I couldn’t shake her disappointment. Or my own.
The fact that she didn’t want to tell her dad about us meant something,
though. And I got it. I did. I wasn’t about to waltz into Bob’s office and fill him
in on the sexual escapades I’d been having with his daughter, a woman
seventeen years my junior.
It was more than being worried about his reaction, though. I didn’t want to
hurt Lanie’s relationship with her dad. She’d done so much when it came to
helping out Raven and me. The time had come for me to repay the favor.
No matter what happened next, I couldn’t let the people I cared about burn
bridges with each other.
As I dove into the indoor pool, I reminded myself that I’d done the right
thing. The cold water rushed along my skin, and I put all my energy into the first
breaststroke.
Yes, I’d done the right thing.
But then why did I still feel so shitty?
3
 LANIE

T he tiny gong in the yoga room sounded, signaling the start of the
meditation period. Sucking in a long breath, I straightened my back and
focused on the sensation of my palms on my knees.
I can do this. I can meditate for five minutes without thinking about Andrew
at all. Wait. Damn. I’m thinking about him. Is he disappointed in me? Should I
just tell my parents and get it over with?
“Crap,” I whispered.
Hopping up, I snatched up my yoga mat and bag and hurried past everyone
else sitting cross-legged, eyes closed, and out of the room. In the bathroom, I ran
the water as cold as I could take it and splashed it on my face.
A knock on the door made me turn, face dripping water droplets on my tank
top. “Just a second.”
“It’s me,” Erica said through the door. “Are you okay?”
Drying my cheeks with a paper towel, I opened the door. “I’m fine.”
She arched a brow. “You cursed and then ran out during meditation.”
“Meditation is hard.” Taking my bag, which I had since stuffed my mat into,
I shouldered past her. She followed me into the street, where the wind cut right
through my clothes.
“Wow, it’s cold,” Erica gasped, buttoning up her jacket. I followed suit and
zipped up the windbreaker that I should have worn a sweater under.
“Let’s go get a drink.”
I started walking so fast my bag bounced against my hip. Erica had to trot to
keep up. “Something is definitely wrong.”
“I’ll tell you once we get to the bar.”
At the corner, though, something in me changed. Once I saw the familiar
tapas bar we visited every Sunday evening after yoga, I couldn’t stand the
thought of going in there.
“Let’s try somewhere else.”
I could feel my best friend’s gaze drilling into the side of my head. “Okay.
Like where?”
“How about there?” I nodded at the sports bar with neon signs that we’d
never once patronized.
“Sure. Why not? Maybe we’ll find a new coke hookup.”
I snorted, and Erica smiled. “There’s a little happiness,” she said, pinching
my cheek as we walked to the new spot.
Settling into a tiny, worn table near the front window, we looked around the
dark bar. The same sports channel played on two different screens, and everyone
looked at least twenty years older than Erica and me.
“Let’s have beer,” she announced, taking off her jacket.
“Yes,” I agreed, even though I’d never liked beer. I was a wine drinker—had
been since my very first stolen sip of it at my cousin’s wedding twenty years
before, but this night was different. I was tired of old Lanie. I didn’t want to be
her anymore.
After ordering our drinks, Erica interlaced her fingers on the table and leaned
into them. “Let me have it.”
“Andrew is friends with my dad. They have been for years.”
Her eyebrows completely disappeared under her bangs. “Shut the–”
“Yeah. I know.”
“How? Wh-what?” She tried to go on, but only more sputters came out.
“It turns out he was cohosting my dad’s event last night. With my dad.”
Erica burst into laughter that was so loud, everyone else in the bar looked
over. “Oh my god, Lanie! This is absolutely golden. So what did your dad say
when you told him you and Andrew are seeing each other?”
“He hasn’t found out, and I don’t know if he will.”
“Uh-oh.” Erica frowned. “You’re playing with fire, girl.”
“He’ll freak.”
“Yeah, duh. Oh, peanuts.” She pulled the little dish of nuts closer to her and
cracked one open. “What does Andrew want to do about it?”
“He says he doesn’t want to sneak around. He also says that we should take a
break while we figure things out.”
Her hands paused mid-crack. “What? I’m sorry.”
I waved my hand. “It’s fine.”
“It’s fucking not,” Erica replied, really getting heated. “You’ve waited a long
time to find a good guy, and now this?” She shook her head. “You know what?
Maybe he’s not as good as we thought he was. If he’s going to freak out just
because—”
“He is a good guy,” I insisted.
The bartender deposited two frothy pints of pale ale in front of us, and Erica
took a careful sip. I stared at mine, suddenly not feeling like drinking. All I
wanted was to go home and curl up in bed.
“Why exactly does Andrew want to take a break?”
“Well, I told him that I need to, you know, think all this through. And he said
that was a good idea, and we should maybe chill for a week.”
“Oh.” Erica’s posture became straighter. “Well, that’s different.”
“Different from what?”
“If he told you he wants to take a general break, that’s one thing. That means
he wants to break up. But if he put a time limit on it and has a reason that makes
sense, that’s another.”
I didn’t believe the time frame was as set in stone as Erica thought it was, but
I chose to remain quiet and run my finger through the condensation on my pint
glass.
“How do you feel about it?” she inquired.
“It feels weird. Andrew’s my dad’s friend, but I really like him. A lot.” I
nibbled on my bottom lip. “So much, Erica.”
“Then it’s worth it.”
“But my dad.”
She sighed. “He would get over it eventually.”
“It could destroy his relationship with Andrew.”
“If that’s the case, then it wasn’t that strong in the first place.” Crack went
another peanut shell, and she popped the contents into her mouth. “Let’s come
back here next weekend.”
I pulled my bag from my phone and checked it, unable to stop myself. No
messages. No missed calls. Andrew and I weren’t supposed to be talking, but I
couldn’t stop getting my hopes up and thinking he’d throw caution to the wind
and get in touch anyway.
“It makes me feel odd,” I said, dropping my voice. “Having sex with my
dad’s friend. Wouldn’t that be weird for you?”
“No,” she flatly said. “Say you dated someone your dad had never met, then
ended up getting married, and then he and your dad started watching football
games or whatever guys do together. That happens all the time. It’s called
becoming family. My brother in law Damon, and his wife, Bethany were
basically family first. Remember? His father married her mother after everyone
was grown and shit.” Crack went another peanut. “Andrew is just a little ahead
of the game. Stop making it weird.” She offered a saucy smile.
 Her point made sense. I took my first sip of my beer, swishing its sour taste
around as I thought some more about things.
“You’re right.” I let out a long sigh. Bethany and Damon’s situation trumped
mine any and all days of the week. How they were doing so damn good was
beyond me. Maybe they were just meant to be together. “Maybe I’m just
traditional.” I shrugged.
Erica forgot the peanuts for a moment so she could rest her arms back on the
table and look me in the eye. “You know I’ve always said you’re an old soul.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“It was inevitable that you would end up with an older guy.”
“Yeah, but this older guy in particular?”
“I thought you believed in soul mates.”
“I-I do,” I fumbled.
“Could Andrew be yours?”
That threw me for a loop. Grabbing at the roots of my hair, I groaned in
frustration. “I don’t know. It’s too early to tell, I think.”
“Have you ever felt this way about anyone else?” Erica gave me a pointed
look. She already knew the answer.
“No,” I grumbled.
“Exactly.” Back to the peanuts, she went. “And you want something long-
term. I know you do, even if you sometimes act like you don’t need it.”
“Yeah.”
“You’re still making excuses. Why are you doing this?”
“Because I’m afraid,” I blurted out.
Erica gave me a sympathetic look. “Falling for someone is scary.”
“It’s everything else I’m afraid of. If we tell my parents about us, what’s
going to happen? And what about Raven? She’s already pissed at me for not
coming clean right away.”
Erica rolled her eyes. “You’re too easy on some of these kids.”
“Raven is fragile.” I whispered the last part, too nervous to admit how much
I saw myself in Raven. I couldn’t ruin things between her and Andrew. No
matter what, I wouldn’t take away their chances of repairing their relationship.
“You’re taking on too much, Lanie,” Erica sing-sang. “Don’t do this again.
It’s good that you’re worried about Raven, but she can’t be your main focus.
Don’t pass up a chance to be with a great guy just because he has a daughter.”
I still felt like she was over-simplifying things, but I had become too tired to
protest anymore.
“I have to go,” Erica announced, checking the time on her phone. “I have
that meeting in the morning.”
 “That’s right,” I answered, realizing with a tinge of guilt that we’d spent the
whole evening talking about myself. “Good luck with that. I’m sorry I hogged
the night.”
“Don’t be sorry for that. Where else am I going to get the juicy, single-life
drama from?”I forced a laugh, just for her sake. Throwing some cash down on
the table, we passed the guy with a hunchback at the bar and the neon-haired
grandma slamming shots and emerged into another beautiful Seattle night.
As I took in the twinkling lights of downtown, a painful ache formed in my
heart. What was Andrew doing at that very moment? Was he thinking about me?
Probably not, I decided. He was the one who’d been quick to suggest a real
break.
Clamping my jaw shut, I blinked back the tears before they could even
threaten to fall.
“Everything will be fine,” Erica said, reading me in only the way she could.
With our arms slung over each other’s shoulders, we slowly walked down the
sidewalk.
“You know,” she said after a minute, “I think if things are meant to be
between you and Andrew, it will work out.”
I studied what bit of her face I could see in the street lighting. “Is that how
you feel about Matt? Like it was meant to be?”
Erica looked down at the ground as she walked, a smile twisting the very
edge of her lips. “Yeah,” she finally said after a moment. “It is.”
“I think that might be how I feel about Andrew,” I fearfully said. “But I
don’t know.”
She squeezed my shoulder. “Life has a way of kind of figuring itself out.
Sometimes it takes a shit-ton of time, but it happens sooner or later.”
“Yeah,” I agreed, feeling deep down that she was right.
At the block where we’d parked our cars on the street, we parted. “Don’t
sweat it!” Erica called as she climbed into her car. “Remember, things will work
out!”
I gave her a wave and dropped into my own vehicle. This time, I didn’t
bother taking out my phone.
4
 ANDREW

T hree days and twelve hours. That’s how long it had been since I’d last
heard Lanie’s voice.
But who was counting?
Shutting down the computer in my downtown office, I groaned and leaned
back in my chair. It had been days since I last stayed so long at work, but I
hadn’t been able to stomach the prospect of going home to an empty house.
Being eight o’clock, Karen would have left for the day. Raven was having some
big dinner with the rest of the German club, something I had insisted she go to.
Just her joining the club had been a big deal.
So, left all alone, I’d opted to stay at the office.
But now everyone else was gone, and I had run out of things to do.
Shrugging into my coat, I picked up my briefcase, snatched up my keys, and
left the quiet room. The main area of the floor was equally as silent, everyone
else long gone.
As I rounded the corner, Jacob, a young intern, jumped and dropped the
papers he held.
“What are you still doing here?” I asked.
“Um, just, I was just leaving, Mr. Marx,” he pathetically gasped.
Realizing I’d barked at him, I shook my head and sighed. “Let me help you
with those.”
As I bent down to help him collect the papers, he watched me with wary
eyes.
“I’m not going to bite,” I told him, handing the last paper over.
He gave me a weak smile, not convinced.
“Here.” I hit the button to call for the elevator. “Let’s get the fuck out of
here.”
 Jacob’s eyes went wide at the cuss word, but he said nothing. We shuffled
into the elevator, standing at opposite ends and waiting for the ride to be over.
“Do you hate me?” I asked.
Again, Jacob’s eyes became perfectly circular. He reminded me of a scared
bunny rabbit, always looking for the next bush to dart under. “N-no, Mr. Marx.”
“But you think I’m mean. Is that it?”
I’d heard the whispers, seen the way everyone quieted down when I came
into the room. For years, I’d thought it meant I had the upper hand.
Until Lanie came into my life. With her around, my attitude had changed. I’d
become more laid back, nicer to everyone at work. In return, productivity had
grown. My employees laughed and smiled more. I’d realized that being a
hardass all the time didn’t equate to getting things done.
This week had been different. Not talking to Lanie, it felt like bugs crawled
under my skin all day long. I’d been more irritable, quicker to yell at people. I
knew it.
I wished there was something to be done about it, but at that point, I felt so
fucked up, I didn’t know where to begin.
“Have a good night.” I smiled at Jacob as the elevator doors opened. “See
you tomorrow.”
He nodded, still looking spooked, and scurried out of the elevator. I gave him
some space as he crossed the lobby, waving goodbye to the night guard, and
walking to my car.
I needed a drink. Real bad.
The country club was aglow with lights, sparkling white strands of them
dripping from the bushes and the eves. Handing my keys to the valet, I inspected
the scene with a smirk. They weren’t quite holiday decorations, but they were
close. Thanksgiving was on its way, and the second that ended, everything red
and green would be up, the giant tree the club put up every year on full display.
At the bar, I slid onto one of the familiar seats. “Whiskey,” I merely said.
The bartender had worked at the club for years and knew which bottle I
preferred.
As I adjusted my coat so I wasn’t sitting on it, my fingers brushed against my
cell phone. Unable to stop myself, I pulled it out.
One little text message. Just to see how Lanie was getting on. Surely that
couldn’t hurt?
Hope you’re doing well, I wrote.
My fingers twitched with a need to say more, but anything else would be
pushing the envelope. Sending the text, I took a drink of whiskey, savoring the
way it burned on its way down.
 From where I’d set it on the bar, my phone lit up with a text.
I’m good. How are you?
My inhale stung even more than the whiskey had. Awful, I wanted to say.
But I couldn’t. I’d decided to cool things and with good reason. I might not have
had the most glowing personality, but I stuck to my guns. That I could always
say.
Fine, I typed back.
As soon as I sent the message, I hated myself. If I was going to make basic,
one-word small talk, I shouldn’t have gotten in touch at all.
“I’ll have another one,” I told the bartender and then slammed the rest of my
drink.
I eyed my phone as he filled me up, waiting to see if Lanie would write back,
and knowing she probably wouldn’t. Not until I had something more substantial
to say myself.
I rubbed my closed eyes, hoping I’d suddenly wake up and find this had all
been a dream. I’d wake up in my bed with Lanie by my side. She wouldn’t be
my close friend’s daughter. She’d be the woman I planned on making my first
girlfriend in years, the woman I wanted to spend the holidays with, the woman
I’d take on vacation next summer.
But reality doesn’t budge that easily. Lanie was still Bob’s daughter, and I
still lived a lie.
Every day I went without telling Bob the truth, I became a more despicable
person. Us not seeing each other in person that much anymore didn’t matter. I
had his number in my phone, just as I had Lanie’s. I could call him up and spill
the news any moment I found the guts to.
And yet I hadn’t. Because I was a coward.
I understood why Lanie was so resistant to telling him about our relationship,
but I couldn’t stop holding our silence against both of us. Mainly me. If I
couldn’t step up and take responsibility, how could I be the kind of man Lanie or
Raven—or anyone else for that matter—needed?
Someone took the seat next to me, pulling me out of my thoughts.
“What are you doing here?” Saxton asked with a laugh.
I snorted, the depressive cloud broken by his appearance. “Just having a
couple of drinks.”
He accepted my handshake with a skeptical look. “I never see you here
during the week. Not unless you’re having a meeting.”
“And I never see you here without a woman.”
Saxton caught the bartender’s attention. “I’ll have what my good buddy is
having.”
 I chuckled, either because of the whiskey I’d pounded or out of pleasure
from seeing Saxton. “So what about it? Why are you here all by yourself?”
He turned to face me straight on. His hair was different again, the highlights
he’d had the other week replaced by darker tones. “I figured it might be best to
give that a breather. Just around here, you know. If I keep showing up with girls
at the country club, how am I going to pick up girls at the country club? They’ll
all think I’m—”
“Exactly what you are?”
Saxton winked and put a finger to his lips. “Shh.”
“My lips are sealed.”
“I know they are.” He swirled his drink around. “You don’t even talk about
your own life.”
I shrugged and looked down at the bar. My phone’s screen was still dark.
Lanie was probably hating me for bothering her.
“Come on,” Saxton urged. “I’m waiting.”
I eyed him. “You just accused me of not talking.”
“And that was supposed to open you up.” He rolled his hand through the air,
telling me to get on with it. “So let’s go. Why are you here all by yourself on
Wednesday night? No business meeting. No daughter. No lady friend. Last we
talked, you were seeing someone on the regular. What happened with that?”
“Nothing.” I couldn’t keep the bitterness out of my answer.
“Then why do you sound so pissed?”
I pushed my fingers through my hair. “It’s not going that well.”
“Well, you know what I think about that.”
I gave him a hard look. “Not because we’re not getting along. We’re
amazing together.”
The memory of Lanie’s mouth pressed to mine hit fast and hard, but I shoved
it away. Nostalgia was for the weak.
“We’re not working out due to things beyond our control,” I explained.
“Sorry to hear that.”
I scrutinized Saxton’s face, eventually deciding he meant it.
“You know this isn’t worth it, right?” he seriously asked. “Getting all fucked
up over one woman?”
I just blinked, annoyed but knowing there was no point in arguing. Some
people were set in their ways, and Saxton was one of them.
“You need to be having fun, Andrew.”
“That’s what you always say.”
“Yeah, because I’m right.” He leaned back in his seat, his suit’s jacket falling
open.
 “This may be a surprise to you, but a serious relationship comes with its own
brand of fun.”
“What?” he guffawed. “Sitting at home and arguing over where to go for
dinner or whose friends to see?”
Saxton didn’t get it. He’d never been married. He had no idea what it was
like to have someone you could count on every day, how it felt to wake up next
to your best friend. Combine those experiences with a little bit of chemistry, and
you didn’t need anything else.
“You did your duty, Andrew,” he quietly said. “You have a kid, you’ve
added to the world’s population or whatever. It’s time to have fun.” Saxton took
a drink, eyeing me over his tumbler’s rim.
Just as I figured. Saxton would never understand.
For some reason, I couldn’t retreat. “What we were having wasn’t only fun.
It was more than that.”
“And now it’s making you sad.”
“For now,” I forcefully answered. “But that’s because there’s some shit
going on. And look.” I turned in my seat to face him straight on, just as he was
with me. “I get your philosophy. Most people cause drama, and that’s not worth
it.”
“Amen.” Saxton raised his half-empty glass.
“But sometimes it is worthwhile.” I quickly went on. “Some women are
worth the hard days because the good days are a thousand times better.”
“So you’re not breaking up with her?”
My ears grew hot. “I don’t want to.”
“Look, I get that you’re a romantic, but how much good has that done you?
Take me. You never see me moping around, crying in my drink while alone at
the bar.”
Nearby, the bartender chuckled.
“He gets it,” Saxton smiled, pointing the man’s way.
“I’m not crying,” I growled.
“It was a metaphor for whatever it is you’re doing.”
“Right.” I stared into my drink, the desire to take another sip gone. “I’m
gonna go. Let’s do lunch soon.”
Saxton gave me a nod and pulled out his phone, probably preparing to text
whatever girl was on the menu for the night. Popping my jacket’s collar up, I
crossed through the lobby and out into the front area.
The country club was on the edge of a residential neighborhood, surrounded
by trees and with downtown in the distance. I stuffed my hands into my pockets
and stared at the skyscrapers’ lights. The past few days, I’d tried every trick in
the book to get Lanie off my mind. Work. Exercise. Sleeping aids. Hell, I’d even
tried porn, which didn’t work at all, since seeing other girls only made me miss
my own woman more.
The truth couldn’t be run from. I needed Lanie. I wasn’t entirely sure how
we would sort out the mess we’d found ourselves in, but I was tired of it keeping
space between us.
Taking out my phone, I sent the best text that I had all week.
I need to see you.
5
 LANIE

L atte clutched in hand, I stepped around a group of chatting girls and

beelined for the table by the window. Judging by the quick stakeout I’d
performed upon entering the cafe, it was the best spot. With a round
table surrounded by cozy, plush chairs, it also provided a good view of the street.
Which meant I’d see Andrew before he saw me.
Just thinking about him had my stomach twisting into knots a sailor would
have been proud of. The only contact we’d had all week was the sparse text
messages on Wednesday night. Even though Andrew had said he wanted to see
me, he hadn’t been able to meet until tonight, Friday. Apparently, just like me,
he’d been filling up the calendar.
I only hoped this meant Raven wasn’t being pushed to the side again. If, after
all the work Andrew put into repairing their relationship, life reverted back to its
old way, I would feel awful. Like I had something to do with it all.
I suppose I did.
Taking a careful sip of my latte, I set it down on the table. I didn’t usually
drink coffee in the evenings, but I’d ordered it so my hands would have
something to do. Plus, I had a late night ahead of me anyway. Though I
desperately wanted Andrew to breeze in, kiss me like there was no one
watching, and invite me home with him, I hadn’t gotten the sense that would be
happening.
No. He’d invited me to a public place, not to his home. And not to a
romantic dinner, either—just to a standard cafe across from a park.
“Hey.”
I looked up, expecting to see Andrew, but finding a blond guy in a flannel
shirt instead. He was smiling, showing off deep-set dimples.
“Hi,” I tentatively said.
 He shoved his hands in his pockets, looking kind of uncomfortable. “I hope
this isn’t weird, but I saw you from across the room, and I wanted to come over
and introduce myself. I’m Joe.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Lanie.” I stood, and we shook hands, his hazel eyes
on me the whole time. He was undeniably handsome, and I couldn’t understand
why he’d come over to talk to me.
“I was studying with my friends.” He jerked his thumb over his shoulder,
toward a large table of college-aged students talking and peering at books and
laptops.
“Oh. Nice. Let me guess. UW?”
“Yeah.” His smile lit his whole face. “Where do you go?”
“Oh.” I laughed. “No, I’m not in school.”
“Cool. Much respect. Everyone needs to pave their own path.”
I stifled a second laugh. “I did go, but I graduated some time ago. I’m
twenty-eight.”
Joe’s jaw dropped. “No, you’re not.”
“Yep.” I surreptitiously peeked at the door. Andrew still hadn’t arrived.
“But you can’t be any older than twenty-two.”
“Twenty-eight,” I repeated.
I waited for his comments about how lucky I was to look young, and how I
would age well, and blah blah blah. I’d heard it all before. None of it made me
feel better about having to constantly wear a baby face to my big girl job.
“I’m sorry,” Joe earnestly said. “It must be annoying to be mistaken for
being younger.”
I tilted my head, studying him. “Yeah,” I slowly answered. “It is.”
Usually, people didn’t understand that. That Joe should was kind of
shocking.
He cleared his throat. “Anyway, I saw you were sitting over here all by
yourself, and I was wondering if you wanted to join me.”
I bit down on a smile. “Don’t you have studying to do?”
His gaze was unwavering. “That can wait.”
My eyes darted to the closed door again. “Thank you for the offer, but I’m
waiting for someone.”
“A date?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh.” Joe frowned. “Well, thanks for talking to me.”
“Yeah. Good luck with studying.”
His bright smile was already back. “I’m sure it won’t be as much fun as
hanging out with you would be. Oh, well. Good luck with the lucky guy. I guess
you can’t blame me for trying.”
I opened my mouth to tell him we were good, but someone else spoke
instead.
“No, you can’t,” a deep voice said from right behind me.
I spun on my heel to see Andrew, tie loosened and briefcase in hand. His
eyes flicked down to me, bringing with them a shiver that shot from the top of
my head to the tips of my toes.
“Have a good night,” Joe said, already retreating. He was gone in an instant,
leaving me with Andrew’s still intense gaze.
“Wh-when did you come in?” I sputtered.
A corner of his mouth twitched, and I couldn’t tell if he fought a frown or a
smile. “Just a moment ago. You were busy.”
“Ah.”
If he was looking for an apology for my talking to a guy, it wasn’t coming.
Andrew wasn’t my boyfriend, no matter how much I wanted something like that
from him. He’d pushed me away, and I owed him nothing.
“Would you like anything?” he asked, loosening his tie further, though that
didn’t seem necessary.
“No, thanks. I have something.” I picked up my drink as I took a seat.
Anxiety was already flooding me, and I knew I wouldn’t be able to take another
drink of the coffee, but it felt good to have my palms wrapped around its
warmth.
Andrew sat across from me, face guarded. “Do you know that guy?”
“No. We were just talking.” I evenly looked back at him, waiting for
whatever came next.
Andrew cleared his throat, shifting his weight around like he couldn’t quite
get comfortable. “Thank you for meeting with me.”
Of course, lingered on my tongue, but that was too rude of a response.
“You’re welcome,” I answered instead.
“How have you been doing?”
“Okay. You?”
“Fine.” He tersely nodded, and revolt filled me. This was like a conversation
between two strangers.
Without warning, Andrew sighed and dropped forward, his arms coming to
rest on his spread legs. His head hung down, and for a long moment, he stared at
the floor. “I’m sorry about this.”
I bit back a strangled cry. Despite the frustrations I’d been harboring, seeing
him looking so broken had me coming undone. “Me, too,” I whispered.
Andrew looked up at me with sad eyes. “I haven’t spoken with your father.”
 “Neither have I.”
His inhale sucked up all the air in the vicinity. “I’ve been trying to work this
out, to figure out what we should do.” He paused. “What do you think?”
I slowly licked my lips. “It’s complicated.”
“Uh-huh.”
“I know I’m a coward.” My voice cracked on the last word, and I shut up,
afraid that if I said any more, I’d break down.
Andrew stiffed. “No, Lanie, don’t say that. It’s not true.”
“It’s silly, but I still have this fear of disappointing my parents, you know?
Like I’m ten or something.”
“A lot of adults feel that way.”
“I know.” I nodded thoroughly. “I’ve taken classes on the subject, for god’s
sake. But that doesn’t make things any different for me, oddly enough.”
He smirked. “If it’s any comfort, I’m here right alongside you.”
I watched him warily, not sure what he was getting at. “You are?”
“Yes,” he softly replied.
His answer made warmth spread through me. I put the coffee cup down and
laced my fingers together, leaning forward just as he was. “It’s been weird not
talking to you.”
“It’s been driving me crazy.”
Awful as it was, hearing that brought me some pleasure. I’d spent the week
half-believing Andrew never wanted to see me again. Being proven wrong
almost made the pain of the last few days’ worth it.
Andrew worked his jaw around. “I don’t know what we have, Lanie. I know
it’s a little soon to call it, but I like whatever it is. I want to keep exploring it, to
see where we can go.”
My eyes stung as I worked to stop myself from smiling too wide. “I feel the
same way.”
“Good.” Andrew’s smile lit up his face, allowing me to finally break into a
full-out grin. “But if we’re going to keep seeing each other, we need to be honest
with your parents.”
“I know,” I immediately answered.
He planted his hands on his thighs and sat up straighter. “I’ll talk to Bob.”
“No. I should do it.”
Andrew skeptically paused. “Are you sure? You don’t have to do this on
your own, Lanie.”
“He’s my dad. It’s important.”
“Maybe I should be there with you.”
“I think that would be a little too shocking.”
 I could tell he agreed but was offering his accompaniment because he knew
it was the right thing to do.
“You’re his friend, but I’m his daughter. Let me talk to him first.”
He slowly nodded. “Okay. When will you tell him?”
“He’s out of town until tomorrow morning, so I’ll do it then.”
Andrew nodded again. I could already feel the nerves collecting deep in my
stomach. Sleep would not be coming easy that night. Maybe if I wrote down
what I needed to say and rehearsed it, I’d at least have a chance of not fainting
from fear.
Andrew cleared his throat, looking uncharacteristically nervous. “What are
you doing now?”
I felt my eyes widen in surprise. I’d previously figured our meeting would
end here. “My mom and I are going to some play.”
“Ah. That sounds nice.”
There was real disappointment in his voice, and for a second, I desperately
wished that I could blow off my mother to spend the evening with Andrew. I
couldn’t do that to her, though. She’d been so excited when I suggested we do
something that night. With Erica busy, and my relationship with Andrew up in
the air, I’d been doing everything I could to fill my schedule up.
“How is Raven?” I asked, genuinely interested.
Andrew’s lips pursed. “She’s been hanging out with friends. I haven’t seen
her that much.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. It’s good.”
“Very.”
I looked down at my hands, noticing they were twisting nonstop. There was
still the issue of Raven’s beef with me, but we’d cross that bridge when we came
to it. And, who knew? It could be that once I told my dad the truth, Raven would
get over her animosity.
“Go out with me tomorrow night.”
The demand made me smile. “Okay,” I whispered.
“Good,” Andrew murmured back, cheeks flushed and dark eyes sparkling.
My phone erupted in song, my calendar reminding me it was time to get to
the theater.
“Sorry.” I swiped the dismiss button on the phone. “I need to go.”
Andrew stood. “It’s okay. I’m glad we were able to meet tonight.”
“Yeah.” I stood as well, tilting my chin up to look him in the eye. “Me too.”
The table blocked us from each other, but we were still just a couple of feet
apart. My lips tingled, and my heart raced. I’d almost lost Andrew, but now here
he was, suddenly back in my life. I ached to fall into his arms and never leave.
“Can I walk you to your car?” he asked.
“I’m right there.” I pointed at my car, which we could see from the window,
and wished I hadn’t scored such a good spot.
Andrew’s throat bobbed as he swallowed. Taking my hand, he brought it up
and kissed the top of it. The unexpected act wasn’t cheesy, though. Every bit of
it was genuine. A shiver danced its way down my arm, making me melt.
“See you tomorrow,” Andrew softly said, eyes on mine.
“Tomorrow,” I croaked.
His gaze stayed connected with mine as he stepped away from the table.
With a wave, he turned, leaving the coffee shop. I closed my eyes, tingling with
excitement.
My phone’s alarm sounded again, a second reminder about the play.
“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered, unlocking the screen and pulling up my texting
thread with Erica.
I knew I had somewhere to be, but first, I had a best friend to share good
news with.
6
 ANDREW

T he kitchen sang with life as Karen flipped, stirred, and blended. With the
morning sun’s rays coming through the windows, the day rang with a
familiarity I hadn’t felt in a long time. Or maybe that I hadn’t noticed.
“Here you are, Mr. Marx.” My housekeeper set the green smoothie down in
front of me with a flourish. I inspected it warily. “Yes, I know it’s a new recipe.
But don’t worry. You won’t even taste the greens.”
“All right.” I shrugged and took a sip, nothing but pineapple and banana on
my tongue.
“Now if we can get Raven to drink one of these,” Karen muttered, going
back to the counter.
“Did you see her last night?” I asked.
“No.” She turned the dishwasher on, frowning. “She wasn’t back when I left
around six.”
“Oh.” I looked away. It seemed Raven had taken my encouragement that she
spend more time with her peers to heart. I’d barely seen her since the fundraiser
the weekend before.
Or maybe she was avoiding me.
“Karen, has Raven talked to you at all?”
Drying her hands on a dishtowel, she turned to face me. “About what?”
I ran my palm along my freshly-shaved jaw. “About anything. Life. Me.”
I had to stop there. I’d always been very private. Even my housekeeper who
had been with me for years knew very little about my personal life.
“No, she’s just been doing her thing. I tried to talk to her the other day about
school, but she wouldn’t say much.”
“Ah. Thanks.”
Karen smiled, and there was a hint of sympathy there. “I suppose I’ll go get
that grocery shopping done.”
“Thanks.” I pulled my phone out and lowered my face to it, too embarrassed
to look her in the eye. Within a few minutes, I was alone in the kitchen, the
ticking of the wall clock acting as a calming metronome while I answered the
morning’s emails.
With work taken care of for at least the next few hours, I clicked on Lanie’s
name and sent her a message. Hope it goes well today. Can’t wait to see you
later.
Grinning to myself, I set the phone face-down on the table. Tonight was the
night I would finally get Lanie all to myself. It had been too long, each moment
we’d been apart stricken by the prospect of never seeing each other again.
But all the aching would soon be over. I’d made Lanie mine before, but
tonight I’d claim her in a way no man ever had. She’d be shaking with ecstasy
by the time I finished with her.
A thump sounded above my head, and I looked up at the ceiling. Raven was
up, and in a bad mood, judging by the loud stomping around.
I took a long inhale, bracing myself for whatever attitude she would bring
downstairs with her. A few minutes later, she entered the kitchen, still dressed in
her pajamas and hair spilling out of a messy bun.
“Where’s Karen?” she immediately asked, rubbing her eyes.
“She went to the grocery store. I think she left you some smoothie in the
blender.”
Raven peered into the blender and made a face before pulling a box of
waffles from the freezer. I watched her from the corner of my eye, wondering
how best to broach the topic I needed to.
Dropping two waffles into the toaster, she turned, leaned her back against the
counter, and stifled a yawn. As she caught me watching her, her eyes narrowed.
“What?”
“I want to talk to you about Lanie.”
Raven gave me a long, expressionless look. “Uh-huh?” she slowly slurred.
“I think you know about everything that’s been going on, about her father
being my good friend.”
Raven kept staring at me, and I fought the need to squirm in my seat. I might
have been tough and unforgiving at work, but when it came to my home life, one
teenager could make me sweat bullets with nothing more than a look.
Behind Raven, her waffles popped up, but she ignored them.
“And I suppose you’ve noticed I haven’t been seeing her this last week,” I
continued. “Well, we’ve talked, and we’re going to be spending time together
again.”
 Raven’s lips parted, and her stiff shoulders loosened. “You are?”
“Yes. How do you feel about that?”
“That’s good.” She turned around, busying herself with grabbing a plate.
I sat frozen, her response too good to be true. “Are you sure?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” She poured syrup over her waffles.
“Watch the syrup,” I instructed.
Raven scowled.
“Karen thinks you’ve been eating too much sugar. She’s most likely right.”
With an eye roll, she sat down across from me. “Fine.”
Raven directed her attention to her breakfast. On and on she cut her waffles,
tearing them into little pieces without putting any in her mouth.
“Are you sure you’re all right with this?” I asked.
Her hands froze. “I like her.”
“Good.”
She peeked up at me, briefly making eye contact before looking away again.
“Are you going to marry her?”
The question was a punch knocking all the air out of my lungs. “It’s too early
to think about that.”
“Okay.” She nodded.
I approached the next question carefully, knowing I could be putting my foot
in my mouth. “Do you want me to remarry?”
Raven shrugged. “I don’t know.”
Before I could tell her it was perfectly fine not to know, she spoke again.
“Maybe. I mean, I like her. It’s just ...”
“What?”
“I don’t know, Dad,” she mumbled, looking at the floor. “Maybe I’m not
meant to have a mother figure.”
“Raven,” I gasped. “Don’t say that.”
“Why not?” she countered with a steely look. “It’s how I feel.”
“Okay,” I nodded, wanting to diffuse the situation before it escalated into a
fight. “That’s understandable. I don’t think anyone is ‘not meant’ to have
something that’s supposed to be good, though. We’re not cursed or anything.”
The dubious look on her face said otherwise.
“Really,” I pushed. “What happened to Mom was an accident. Nothing more.
She didn’t deserve it, and we didn’t deserve it.”
My heart tightened, and I looked down at my lap. We didn’t speak about
Danica much. Raven had some therapy after her passing a decade before, but as
for me, maybe I’d moved on too fast. I hadn’t predicted the ways Danica’s
absence would affect Raven in the years to come. I’d focused on what the little
girl Raven had lost, not what the teenager and young woman Raven would need.
“Yeah,” she said. “I know it wasn’t our fault.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Don’t worry, Dad.” Raven smiled. “I’m just being gloomy.”
“Okay.”
She finally started eating her waffles, but I couldn’t help but run everything
we’d just said through my head for analysis. Did Raven believe life was hell-
bent on taking things from her?
If that was the case, I wanted nothing more than to prove otherwise. Life
could be really good, extraordinary even. I needed my smart, talented, spirited
daughter to see that.
“You can talk to me anytime you need to, Raven. All right?”
She nodded, pulling her phone out.
“No phones at the table.”
“Seriously? Yours is right there.”
I quickly set my phone on the chair next to me. “Now it’s not.”
Raven guffawed but put her phone down as well.
“How is your bedroom going? Did you finish all the flowers yet?”
She shrugged. “It’s okay. I have to mix a couple of the pinks to get some
shading for the roses.”
“Do you want any help?”
Her eyes lit up. “Really? You have time?”
“Certainly.”
“Yeah, sure.” She twirled her fork around her plate, stealing a look at her
phone.
“I saw that.”
“Whatever.” She grinned. “Like you’re not addicted to yours. You were
probably sending Miss Jacobs heart emojis before I came in here.”
“I’m offended you would even think I’d ever use a heart emoji.”
Raven laughed, and with that beautiful sound, my spirits finally lifted. “Have
you been thinking any more about college?”
“Some,” she cautiously answered. “But I don’t know.”
“Where to go?”
She nibbled on her lip. “What to study.”
“I thought you’d already decided on art.”
She shrugged. “Yeah, but is that what you want me to study?”
I felt my jaw drop. “Raven, it’s not about me. You need to pick whatever
major is right for you.”
“Yeah, but art is so, like, the opposite of what you do.”
 “So?”
“So you wouldn’t be, you know, disappointed in me if I did that?”
“No. Raven, no.” I didn’t know what else to say other than that. I’d never
known that what I thought mattered so much to her. For years, the attitude she’d
presented said otherwise.
“What about business? Don’t you want me to go into that?”
“No.” I laughed out of shock.
“Okay.” She relaxed back in her chair.
“I just want you to be happy. I can’t say that enough.”
“What about making money? What if I can’t make it as an artist?”
“Lots of people do.”
“And lots don’t.”
I folded my arms. “Isn’t this supposed to be the other way around? Aren’t
you the one who is supposed to be arguing that you need to follow your heart?”
“Maybe.” She grinned.
“Look, does it seem like we need any more money? I’ve worked for years to
get here. Half of the point of being rich is that your kids get to do whatever they
want.”
Luckily, the joke hit, making Raven laugh and shake her head.
“Whatever,” she muttered, setting her plate in the sink. “I’m going to take a
shower.”
I listened to her footsteps retreat, staying where I sat and looking out the
window. The last, brown leaves rattled on the trees in the backyard. Fall was
almost over. Winter would be gone before I knew it as well.
Raven’s words on having a mother in her life had shaken me. I’d never
realized she craved a female figure so much. Apparently, I’d erroneously
believed that Karen had filled that place.
Though she was nearing adulthood, perhaps the time to start thinking about
settling down again was more important than ever. Raven was finally getting
serious about her life, pulling her grades up in school and planning a future. I
would be there for her as much as I could, but there were some areas in which a
father fell short.
A mom. A wife.
For the first time in ten years, the idea didn’t bring any negative feelings
along with it. In fact, all it brought me was hope.
I imagined having a stepmother at home to greet Raven on her breaks from
school. Someone to have girl talks with. Someone she could rely on.
Someone I could rely on. Someone I could take care of and love.
My phone buzzed in the chair next to me, and I snatched it up in the blink of
an eye.
Thanks, Lanie had written. I can’t wait to see you either.
The innocent response heated my blood, and an animalistic growl rumbled in
my throat. I’d be counting down the hours until Lanie was in my arms.
My thumbs hovered over the keys, and I shot a quick glance over my
shoulder to make sure I was still alone.
The rows of emojis taunted me, insisting they needed to be used. Despite
what I’d told Raven, the draw was strong, too powerful to be ignored.
“Screw it,” I muttered, selecting a heart emoji and hitting send.
7
 LANIE

T he cold crept into my car as I sat in my parents’ driveway and stared at

their house. I used to think the place was too big, but that was before I
had seen Andrew’s home. Now Mom and Dad’s two-story looked
modest in comparison.
I pushed my hands between my thighs to keep them warm as I continued to
look at the house. The automatic lights in the front had come on, sensing that
nighttime was no more than an hour away.
I’d spent half the day trying to forget what I was about to do and the other
half walking around the park and talking about it with Erica. Still, the answer
remained the same. Honesty was the best policy.
I could just leave. All I have to do is turn my car on and back out of the
parking lot. Consequences be screwed.
I knew that was silly, though. Plus, the house’s front door was opening. My
mom popped her head out and, seeing me, waved me in.
Plastering a smile on my face, I climbed from the car.
“What are you doing out here?” Mom asked, arms wrapped around herself
for warmth.
“I was talking on the phone,” I lied.
Her gaze fell to my oversized sweatshirt. “That’s far too big for you.”
“It’s the style now,” I explained. “It’s supposed to be a little big.”
“Hm,” she sniffed. “Well, come on in. Your father should be back any
minute.”
She ushered me inside and to the kitchen, the place that had always been her
retreat. Whether she was cooking, baking, or just cleaning and organizing, my
mother could often be found in the kitchen. As a kid, I’d spent countless hours
sitting at the kitchen table, doing my homework or drawing while she flitted
around, and we talked about our days.
This conversation would have none of the warmth and easiness those other
ones had. Keeping my purse slung over my shoulder, I took a chair by the
window.
“Where is Dad?” I asked.
“He had to run out and meet a client really quick.” She turned the oven on
and looked at me. “You’re staying for dinner?”
“No, I have plans.”
“With Erica?” she hopefully asked.
“No, it’s a date.”
“With the older man.” The frown was immediate.
“Yes.”
“Oh, Lanie, Lanie.” Mom shook her head as she pulled peppers from the
fridge and lined them up on the big, wooden cutting board.
I straightened my back. I’d come ready for this. “Mom, what’s the worst that
could happen?”
“You could get taken advantage of.”
“How?”
“Twenty years is a big difference, Lanie.”
“It’s seventeen,” I corrected.
“That’s almost twenty.”
Okay. No use in arguing there. “I still don’t understand what you’re talking
about. In what way could I be taken advantage of?”
Mom gripped the edges of the counter, her shoulders rising in annoyance.
“An older man knows more about the ways of life. He’ll use his experience to
get what he wants out of someone younger, and then, once he’s had his fill, he’ll
leave.”
“I know you’re concerned, Mom, and I appreciate that, but you’re still pretty
vague. This guy isn’t taking anything from me. It’s a mutual relationship. We
both benefit from it.”
Her lips drew tight, and she was probably preparing her next argument, but
the front door opened. “That’s your father.”
There was a warning tone in the statement, but I couldn’t heed it. I’d come to
the house with an exclusive purpose in mind. It had taken ten minutes to get out
of the car. I wasn’t backing down now.
“Both my girls are here!” Dad boomed as he strode into the kitchen. Taking
his jacket off, he draped it over one of the island’s stools and pulled a water
bottle from the fridge. Mom used the opportunity to shoot me another look.
“Are you here for dinner, Lanie?” Dad asked.
 “Uh, no. I’m just stopping by for a little bit.” I twisted my sweater’s sleeves.
“I wanted to talk to you both about something.”
Dad’s eyebrows pinched together. I didn’t look to see what was happening
with Mom, but I swear I could hear the steam whistling out of her ears.
“Is everything all right?” Dad asked in concern, joining me at the table.
“Yes,” I quickly answered. “I want to share, um, something. As Mom knows,
I’ve been dating someone.”
Now I spared a glance at my mother, whose lips were still pursed in
disapproval.
“The older man?” Dad asked.
My eyes darted back to Mom, and she threw her hands up in exasperation. “I
had to tell him,” she insisted.
“Yes,” I slowly said. “But he’s not that much older than me.”
“How old is he?” Dad demanded. He didn’t look unhappy, but he didn’t
seem happy either.
I gulped. “Forty-five.”
“See?” Mom quickly said.
Dad rubbed the back of his neck. “What’s that? A seventeen-year
difference?”
“It’s too much,” Mom answered for me.
“It’s not that much,” Dad said.
Silence filled the kitchen as Mom and I both stared at him.
“It’s almost twenty years, Bob.” Mom’s words were laced with venom,
suggesting that if he didn’t agree with her, there would be problems.
Dad shrugged. “If she were twenty, then it would matter. But she’s not.
She’s almost thirty.” Dad looked at me. “You like this guy?”
“A-a lot,” I stuttered, unable to believe how well things were going so far.
“He’s a good guy?”
“One of the best I’ve ever met.” My chest swelled with pride as I realized the
words were true.
Mom shook her head, going back to work in the kitchen, although not
without an aggressive amount of banging of cupboards and drawers being
involved.
Dad lifted his face and inspected me. “I guess you two are getting pretty hot
and heavy.”
I choked on an inhale. “Hot and heavy?”
“Yeah, like serious.”
“I don’t think that’s what hot and heavy means.” I laughed.
He waved his hand. “Aw, you know what I’m getting at. Are you bringing
this guy over here anytime soon?”
“Um.” I bit down on my bottom lip, accidentally tearing a layer of skin.
“There’s something else you need to know. You already know this guy.”
Mom’s noise-making abruptly stopped, and she turned to look at me.
Dad cocked his head. “What do you mean?” he barked. “We met him
already?”
Just say it, I told myself. The sooner you let it out, the sooner it will be over
with.
“He’s Andrew Marx,” I spilled, talking faster than usual. “I met him because
his daughter, Raven, goes to my school. Weeks ago. We met weeks ago.”
The tension in the room was unprecedented, my breathing all I could hear at
first. Dad’s eyes were wide, his jowls rapidly turning red.
“Andrew Marx?” he repeated.
“Yes,” I peeped, feeling like I was shrinking inside my sweater.
Dad licked his lips. Looked away. Ran his palm over his mouth. “How?
When? Damn it, Lanie.”
I flinched at his harsh tone. My father had only cussed at me a few times
before, and only when I did something really, really bad—like sneak out of the
house in the middle of the night or clog the toilet with all of Mom’s lipsticks
after we fought.
The disappointment and anger in his voice had me shaking. “We met weeks
ago.”
“You said that,” Mom snapped.
I resisted sending her an angry look. Any aggression on my part would only
make things worse.
Dad gruffly cleared his throat. “He hasn’t said anything about this to me.”
I eagerly leaned forward. “That’s because we didn’t know you two were
friends until last weekend at the fundraiser. And I wouldn’t let him tell you. I
wanted to let you know myself.”
Dad’s eyes squinted. “So you two paraded around that ballroom, making me
look like a fool?”
“What?” I shook my head, not understanding. “No, Dad. It has nothing to do
with you.”
“Right, I can see that.” He pushed his chair away from the table with more
force than necessary. “I’ll be back later.” Grabbing his coat, he left, the front
door slamming behind him.
“Dad,” I gasped, though he was no longer there to hear it.
“I hope you’re happy.” Mom’s eyes flashed with anger.
I couldn’t take it any longer. I’d done the right thing, only to have the people
I depended on most in the world act like I’d committed a crime. Standing up, I
stared her down.
“I was honest. What else can I do?”
Surprisingly, her expression softened. “Oh, Lanie,” she sighed. “I already
told you why I don’t like this. But Andrew Marx? Your father’s friend?”
“We didn’t know.”
She nodded tiredly. “I see that.”
I hugged myself, feeling completely off-balance. “I’ve never seen Dad that
angry.”
“Andrew is one of his closest friends.”
“How was I supposed to know that, Mom? He’s never home. He never talks
about his life.”
A pained look crossed her face, reminding me that I wasn’t the only one who
suffered the effects of my dad’s busy lifestyle.
“It just feels like you were lying to us.”
“You get that I wasn’t though, right?”
She inspected my face. “Yes,” she finally answered. “I believe you.” With a
sigh, she folded and refolded a kitchen towel. “Your father and I are going to
need some time. This is a lot to take in. We’ll have to talk about this soon, you
know.”
“Yeah,” I numbly agreed, pushing my chair in.
“Where are you going?”
“I have plans. Remember?”
“Oh. Right.” She quickly looked away, leaving me feeling even more alone.
Shouldering my purse, I left the house, taking note of the empty spot where
Dad’s car should have been.
I kept it together until I got to the car, but once the door was closed, I
dropped my face into my hands. A dry sob wracked my body, but the tears
wouldn’t come. The situation was too unjust for that. As much as my parents’
reactions hurt, I knew I hadn’t done anything wrong.
I was their only child. They were the only mom and dad I had. How could
they let such a small issue come between us?
Taking another shuddering breath, I pulled out my phone.
“Hey.” Andrew’s warm voice brought immediate ease.
“Hi,” I whispered.
“How did it go?”
“Not that good.” I covered my mouth with my palm so I wouldn’t cry out.
Andrew inhaled sharply. “Fuck.”
“I’m sorry.” I looked mournfully back at the house, wishing things were
different.
“Don’t apologize. None of this is your fault. Where are you?”
“I’m still at my parents’. My dad stormed out, and my mom is still inside.
What are you doing?”
I held my breath. Right then, I needed him almost as much as I needed
oxygen. We had loose plans for the evening, but if he wasn’t ready to see me
yet, I would break. I’d reached my quota for disappointments for the day. Two
hot tears rolled down my cheeks. They’d been a long time coming, and they
burned like fire.
“I’m at home,” Andrew smoothly answered. “Waiting for you to come over.”
“Yeah?” I smiled through the pain.
“Yeah. Now get your butt over here.”
8
 ANDREW

I darted around the living room, fluffing pillows and putting stray books
back on the shelves. Lanie had been over to the house before, but
something was different about tonight. There was no Karen. No Raven. Just
me and the woman I craved.
She was upset, and she was coming to me. Which meant it was my duty to
make her feel better.
The doorbell rang, making me spring around and bolt across the room and
into the foyer. Lanie stood under the porch light, her eyes puffy.
“Hi.” She sadly smiled.
My heart cracked in two. “Oh, Lanie.”
She shook her head and stepped inside. “It’s not that bad.”
“Really?” I closed the door and turned to face her.
Lanie’s lips pressed hard together, and her chin quivered. “No,” she gasped.
Out of nowhere, tears flowed. Without thinking, I crossed the foyer and
pulled her into my arms, pressing her head against my chest with one hand and
wrapping my other arm around her waist. Her chest heaved with a couple of
thick sobs, but then she pulled away.
“I’m sorry.” She frantically wiped her face. “I didn’t mean to break down.”
I grabbed her hand. “Don’t apologize. I already told you that.”
“Yeah, but Raven might come down and see.”
“She’s spending the night at a friend’s house.”
Lanie sniffled. “Oh.”
“Come here. Sit down.”
Leading her into the living room, I set her on the couch before grabbing
some tissues and putting the tea kettle on.
“What kind of tea do you want?” I yelled from the kitchen.
 “I don’t need any. Thanks, though.”
“I’m making you some anyway!”
Rifling through the tea cupboard—a place I hardly ever ventured—I found
something called Calming Elixir.
“Seems about right,” I shrugged, dropping a bag into a mug and pouring
steaming water to the brim.
By the time I brought the tea into the living room, Lanie’s face was dry, but
she still clutched a tissue, as if she were afraid of suddenly breaking down again.
“Here.” I set the mug on a coaster on the coffee table.
“Thanks,” she murmured.
“It was that bad, huh?”
Her wet lashes fluttered as she looked my way. “I don’t think we’ve been
lying to them.”
I leaned into the couch and put my arm around her waist, noting how natural
the move felt. “I don’t think so, either.”
“That’s what they said. They think I’ve been keeping this from them, even
though I was clear that we didn’t know Dad knew you until a week ago.”
“I should have been there,” I spat, angry with myself.
“That wouldn’t have helped, Andrew.”
“Yeah, well, you doing it on your own didn’t go so well.” Realizing the
statement could be misconstrued, I rubbed her back and sat up straighter. “Not
because you did things wrong. I didn’t mean it that way.”
“It’s okay.” Lanie smiled sadly. “I know what you meant. And I wanted to
do it on my own.”
“What did Bob say?” My throat grew dry over the question. Bob had always
had my back, and it stung like hell to realize I was, however inadvertently,
hurting him.
She grimaced. “Not much. He stormed out.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah,” she nodded, looking at the tea but making no move to drink it.
“I’ll talk to Bob myself.”
Lanie uncomfortably wiggled against my arm.
“I have to,” I told her.
“I know. I don’t want him to freak out on you like he did with me.”
“Don’t worry.” I ran my thumb down her jawline, savoring her soft skin. “I
can handle it.”
She didn’t look convinced. “I don’t get why they’re mad, Andrew. I’ve never
made any major mistakes. Everything I’ve done, they should be happy with. And
it’s not like I’m eighteen. I’m twenty-eight. I can make my own damn
decisions.”
“I know.” I squeezed her arm, getting that she probably wasn’t looking for
answers so much as she was looking to rant.
Sometimes, women needed to talk and not be given advice. That was
probably one of the most important things I’d figured out about them.
“Do you want to tell me about your mom?” I asked.
Her eyes rolled. “I can hardly ever do anything right in her eyes. So what can
I say? I pretty much expected her to be disappointed in me.”
I could feel anger rising like steam in my chest. “Your father knows me. He
should understand I would never do anything to hurt you.” I pressed my lips
together, stopping myself. Ranting wouldn’t help the situation.
“I know,” Lanie whispered. “Exactly.”
Her hand fell on my knee as she looked earnestly into my eyes. She seemed
unaware that she was touching me, but the shivers of pleasure running through
my leg took up all of my attention.
I licked my lips and got my brain working again. “Maybe you should take
that kid from the coffee shop home. They’d probably like him.”
“Oh my god,” she groaned. “Was that a joke?”
“Maybe.” I made a pained face. “Humor was never my forte.”
A chuckle slipped from her. “It was decent. For someone who doesn’t know
what they’re doing.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“Sorry,” she said, laughing.
“I’m just glad to see you not crying,” I softly said, trailing my fingers down
her cheek.
Lanie sharply inhaled, and the sound made goosebumps rise on my arms.
“Are we doing the right thing?” she delicately asked.
I had to swallow before answering. Her hand was still on my leg, and my
arm around her waist. In that moment, the “right thing” was happening. We were
together, and it seemed nothing else mattered.
“What do you think?”
Her gaze jumped around my face. “It feels right.”
I slowly nodded. “Agreed.”
Lanie sighed, and her body shook against me.
“You’re brave,” I told her. “It’s hard for anyone to stand up to their parents.”
“What would yours think? You know, about us?”
I turned that thought over. “They’d be happy,” I finally decided.
“Really?” her incredulous voice asked.
“They’re fairly laid-back.”
 She nodded. “Lucky.”
“Hey.” I squeezed her waist a little tighter. “Your parents are good people.
Your dad has been there for me when no one else was.”
Lanie blinked. “When you say that, it makes me feel like you’re talking
about a stranger.” She gulped. “I don’t think I know that man.”
I stumbled in my search for the right words. “He loves you, Lanie.”
“I know.” She squirmed against me again. As I was quickly learning, when
Lanie felt put on the spot, she found it hard to sit still. “We don’t have to talk
about them anymore.”
“I would hate to spend the whole night doing that,” I agreed, tucking a wisp
of hair behind her ear. She sighed in pleasure at the touch, making heat rush into
my core.
“This feels nice,” Lanie cooed.
“It’s been so long.”
“Not that long.” She smiled.
“Yes.” I solemnly nodded. “It’s been very long.”
Our eyes held each other’s attention, and I felt myself slipping away into
some kind of trance. With Lanie in my arms, the rest of the world melted away.
“I don’t care about the age difference,” I said. “Let’s just be clear about that
one more time.”
“Same here,” she breathed.
“From the first day I saw you, I haven’t been able to get you out of my
head.”
Lanie blushed and ducked her face, looking up at me from under her lashes.
“This is right for me,” I finished up. “And I hope it’s the same for you.”
“Yeah,” she rasped, the answer full of heat and desire.
Need rolled through me, and I lowered my face to hers. Her lips parted
against my mouth’s pressure, giving themselves over to me right away. Putting
both arms around her waist, I pulled her closer and slipped my tongue between
her teeth. The concept of taking it slow no longer existed. I’d almost lost Lanie
for good. Now that she was here with me again, I intended on taking what was
mine.
Sliding one arm lower, I hoisted her into my lap. Her legs pressed on the
outsides of mine, and her pelvis pushed against my groin. My hands took on a
mind of their own, running over Lanie’s back then under her sweatshirt.
She moaned slightly, rocking her hips forward and grazing against my
hardening bulge. Pleasure popped through me like a light bulb going out, making
stars flash behind my closed eyelids.
My tongue went deeper. My hands held tighter. I wanted to seal the woman
in my lap to me, to brand her with my mark and let everyone know she wasn’t
going anywhere.
Between my arms, Lanie shivered.
“Is that a good shudder or a bad one?” I asked, pulling my sore lips away
from hers.
She smiled. “The former.”
I twisted the end of her sweatshirt. “I want you, Lanie.”
Her pupils grew wide. “Yeah?” came her breathy response.
Eyes on her, I slowly nodded. “Come to my bedroom.”
“What’s up there?” she teasingly asked.
In response, I ran my palm across the crotch of her jeans. Her mouth fell
open, and she curved her back, driving her tight little body harder down onto
mine.
“Well?” Slowly unbuttoning her pants, I cocked an eyebrow.
Lanie pretended to think about it. “I guess I could check it out. You know, if
there’s something up there you want me to see.”
In a heartbeat, I was up, tossing her over my shoulder like a caveman.
Lanie shrieked. “What are you doing?”
“Wait and see.” Laying a playful spank on her ass, I carted her across the
living room.
9
 LANIE

“L
legs.
et me down!” I cried, unable to stop the laughter bubbling from
my throat.
“Not a chance,” Andrew answered, his strong arms around my

Up the stairs and down the hallway we went, passing closed doors. A door
opened with a bang, and we were in a bedroom. Andrew’s bedroom.
A small lamp on a side table softly lit the room, but that’s all I got to notice
before I was gently dropped onto the bed. Andrew’s weight pressed down onto
me, his hands twisting in my short hair and his nose brushing against mine.
I wrapped my arms around his neck, studying his eyes. This close, they were
dark pools sucking me in.
Slowly twisting a strand of my hair, Andrew dropped a quick kiss on my lips
before taking his mouth higher. My forehead. My cheeks. My chin. His lips
didn’t miss any part of my face.
I closed my eyes, relaxing my weight into the soft comforter as his mouth
meandered down to my neck. Somehow, Andrew knew just where the most
sensitive spot was. Sucking gently on my throat, he swam his fingers down the
side of my body, not stopping till they were at my waist.
The sucking on my throat increased, as well as his hold on my waist. I
pushed my body against him, bending my neck in offering.
Without warning, unbearable heat rushed through my body, making me
break out into a sweat. Clawing at Andrew’s shirt, I tugged it up, fumbling in an
attempt to get it over his head.
Leaving my neck, he sat up, peeling the shirt off for me. I watched
breathlessly, my temperature only continuing to rise.
With his shirt gone, Andrew pulled on my sweatshirt. The shirt underneath
came off with it, leaving nothing but a bra on my torso.
Andrew emitted a hungry growl, dropping down once more and taking my
mouth with his as his palms closed over my breasts. We kissed fiercely, tongues
and teeth twisting and knocking together till I didn’t know what belonged to
who.
My nipples grew tauter under his touch, pressing against the bra cups. I ran
my hands across his back, searching for every muscle. I wanted to touch each
inch of him, to burn his perfect form into my memory forever.
With one swift movement, Andrew reached under me and unhooked my bra.
Not content to stop there, he kissed his way down my chest and belly, working
on the button of my jeans as he went.
I helped him, happily kicking the rest of my clothes off.
“What about you?” I playfully asked.
Andrew just grinned, already standing up and removing his own pants and
boxers. His thick length emerged, making saliva fill my mouth. My palms
tingled to get a feel of it, but before I could reach forward, Andrew was back on
top of me, pinning my wrists above my head.
This time, the kiss was tender, languid, and flavorful. I wrapped my legs
around Andrew’s naked waist, pulling him closer to me. A throbbing began
between my thighs, so persistent it bordered on painful.
I grasped hold of the comforter above my head, clutching it as the room
spun. Andrew left my mouth and hands, shimmying lower and spreading my
thighs. Slowly, he licked me there, taking his time like I was a treat he intended
to enjoy. My entire body shuddered with pleasure, each sweep of his tongue
taking me higher.
The ecstasy and heat grew, and I clung to the comforter. If I let go, I was
sure I’d fly away.
Andrew flicked his tongue against me fast, sending me over the edge. I
bucked my hips against his face, moaning as the euphoria came to a head.
Gasping for air, I clutched eagerly at his shoulders, drawing him up toward
me. Having his mouth on me had only made me hungrier for him, and I couldn’t
wait to get my fill.
As I pulled him up to me, though, he surprised me by taking my wrists once
more. This time he lay next to me, turning me around so that he was behind me.
A gentle bite stung the back of my neck, and I sealed my eyes shut, grinding my
thigh against his length.
Wiggling one hand free, I found his soft shaft and squeezed it lightly. Having
it cradled in my palm felt familiar. Right.
Andrew allowed me a moment to do as I wanted, with him running his broad
hands up and down the length of my body. I stroked him lethargically,
goosebumps rising along every inch of my skin as he touched the same spots
over and over again.
Rolling away from me, he opened the side drawer and pulled out a condom. I
took the moment to lie flat on my back, my arms splayed at my sides.
Standing next to the bed, wearing the most perfect side grin ever, Andrew
gazed down at me as he rolled the condom over himself.
The bed creaked as he slowly got back on it and nestled himself between my
legs. One arm slipped under my waist to hold me securely while the other found
my hand. Our fingers intertwined next to my head, and Andrew dropped his face
to mine as he unhurriedly pushed into me.
My muscles rippled against his girth. Deep relaxation combined with
breathtaking pleasure swept through me, and I kissed him with an unquenchable
thirst. Slowly, we rocked against each other, the movements like second nature.
Tension collected in my lower abdomen, building steadily. With a bang that
made me gasp, I burst, twisting my fingers in his hair and calling his name the
whole time.
My release seemed to spur Andrew on. He quickened the pace, burying
himself fully inside of me. I nestled my face into his neck, thrusting myself up
against him. I wanted to give him all of me, to let him know that whatever it was
he wanted, I had it.
With a groan, he froze, hand clenching mine.
Shifting slightly away from me, Andrew brought himself back to my mouth.
Our satisfied kiss was full of sweat, sweetness, perfection.
I closed my eyes, wishing we could stay in that moment forever.
Gently climbing off me, Andrew pulled me against him and tossed a blanket
over the both of us. Nestled in the crook of his arm, I sighed happily.
“This is …” He paused. “Good,” he simply finished.
I laughed. “Yeah, it is.”
“I was worried we would never have this again.”
Emotion clogged my throat. I was happy he couldn’t see my face because I
was afraid of what could be showing there.
“I’m sorry about all this,” I whispered.
Andrew squeezed my shoulder and pressed his face into the side of my head.
“Lanie, don’t do that. None of this is your fault.”
“I just wish you didn’t have to go through this.”
“I’m more worried about you.” He lightly stroked the arm I’d tossed across
his shoulder.
“What do you mean?”
 Andrew sighed. “I can’t ruin your relationship with your parents.”
“Don’t worry about that. I’ll figure it out.”
“I’m going to talk to Bob.”
In the blink of an eye, I was sitting up and looking at him.
Andrew put a finger up. “Don’t protest.”
“I—”
“Uh-uh.”
I tried to stop the smile, but it twisted my lips anyway. “I’m surprised he
hasn’t called you yet. He usually likes to take care of things right away.”
Apprehension showed on Andrew’s face. “Damn. Yeah, you’re right. Huh.”
He frowned. “I suppose that means he’s preparing to really give it to me.”
“Oh, god.” I dropped my face into my hands.
“Lanie.” Andrew gently tugged on my wrists until I dropped them. “Relax.
I’m a big boy. I can handle it. All right?”
The look on his face was so earnest I couldn’t do anything but agree.
“Okay,” I whispered.
“You look beautiful tonight.”
The compliment made me smile. “Thanks.”
Andrew’s hand found mine. “I want to make you dinner.”
“You can cook?”
“Hey, now.”
“My bad.” I laughed. “Sorry.”
“Yeah, I can cook. I make a mean boxed mac n’ cheese.” He pulled me back
against his chest. “Kidding.”
“I think you might be shocked at how much I love macaroni and cheese.”
“Mm. Tell me more.” Andrew nuzzled his face against my neck.
“Well, it’s cheesy.”
“Uh-huh,” he huskily murmured, circling his palms over my back.
“And then there’s the pasta part. I can’t forget about that.”
“Oh, baby,” he groaned, hands squeezing my butt cheeks. “You know, I
think you just made me ready for round two.”
I fell into a fit of giggles, not stopping until Andrew kissed me hard.
Breaking his lips from mine, he pulled me from the bed and into the adjoining
master bathroom. With the two shower heads on full blast, he covered a loofah
with body wash and cleaned me up, giving each inch of skin its own special
moment.
Downstairs, he set me at the kitchen table with a glass of wine. As light
chopping and stirring noises filled the air and the radio played faintly in the
background, I watched Andrew carefully. Each of his movements was sure,
focused. He seemed to be in a trance while cooking, although once in a while,
he’d shoot me a grin. Each time that happened, I melted.
This man had done something to me I couldn’t explain. I loved my parents to
death, but I wasn’t going to give Andrew up for anything. I’d spent years
searching for someone I really clicked with, and who knew if I’d find that kind
of connection again?
“If this isn’t edible, I apologize,” Andrew said, setting two plates of
enchiladas on the table. “And do know that we have an entire drawer of takeout
menus. It’s how we survive on Karen’s days off.”
“I don’t think that will be necessary,” I answered honestly. “This looks
amazing.”
As we ate, we shared the little updates from our lives. I talked about the
happenings at school, and Andrew offered a little bit about work. It still seemed
he didn’t like talking about it that much, which was fine. Numbers and investing,
say those two words, and I was already falling asleep.
With dinner finished, Andrew pulled my chair closer to his. His arm looped
around my shoulders, and his palm rested on my knee. I sighed, not a trace of
tension left anywhere in my body or heart.
How could being with him be wrong when it felt so absolutely perfect?
Andrew’s thumb rubbed the side of my knee. “What are you thinking?”
“That there’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”
His eyes softened. “I know how that feels.”
The stove clock over his shoulder drew my eye. “Oh, wow. How did it get so
late?”
Andrew turned to look at it. “Mm. Yeah.”
I tried not to sigh.
“I want to take you back upstairs,” he said.
The prospect made me tremble with excitement. It was almost eleven,
though, and I felt more exhausted than I usually did at that hour. It must have
been the fight with my parents or the wild time Andrew and I had already had.
Maybe both.
I blinked at Andrew, my eyelids growing heavy.
“If I go upstairs,” I slowly said, “I’m going to fall asleep. I guarantee it.
Sorry.”
Andrew squeezed my thigh. “That’s fine.”
“When is Raven back?”
He rolled his head around, stretching out his neck. “Early. Seven. Her friend
has some kind of horse vaulting competition she has to go to tomorrow.”
“That’s early.” I played with the hem of the T-shirt he’d put on after the
shower.
“Yeah,” he agreed sadly.
I thought about what it would be like to fall asleep in Andrew’s arms and to
wake up next to him. The thought was too tempting.
“I really wish I could stay, but I don’t want to risk Raven seeing me here.
Even though she knows we’re seeing each other.” I struggled with the right
words. “I’m still her guidance counselor.”
Andrew nodded, his eyes now looking as tired as mine felt. “I’ll call you a
car so you don’t have to drive home.”
I smiled, relieved at how accepting he was. “I can drive,” I assured him.
“Are you sure?” he skeptically asked.
“Really sure.” Resting my palms against his chest, I gave him a slow kiss.
At the door, Andrew kissed me goodbye one more time. Though my muscles
and heart ached to stay with him, I pushed myself across the porch and to my
car. We were saying goodbye, but nothing about it felt sad.
I’d almost lost him, but deep in my soul, a tiny voice whispered that I’d
never feel that way again.
10
 ANDREW

T he familiar beep of a text message entered my dreams, drawing me away

from reliving Lanie’s soft embrace. Rubbing my eyes, I rolled across the
bed, heart thumping and blood rushing between my legs.
Expecting to see a good morning text from Lanie, I grabbed the phone from
the nightstand and swiped the screen open.
Bob Jacobs:
We need to talk. Today.
And boner gone.
I started to cuss but bit down on my lip instead. I’d accepted this situation,
and talking to Bob was what I’d been planning to do. Sending him a text back
asking him to meet at the country club, I put my phone back on the stand and
jumped into the shower.
Just like my bed, the shower contained an air of sadness. With no Lanie, it
almost seemed there was no point in waking up, getting cleaned, doing anything
I used to.
If only she could have stayed.
I didn’t have to imagine what waking up next to her would be like. We’d had
that one time in the hotel, but that didn’t compare to what nights and mornings in
my bed—our bed—would be like.
As far as Raven went, isn’t that what she’d wanted? A woman to be around
full-time? Someone other than me and Karen to count on?
Stepping out of the shower, I heard the bang of the front door. Drying fast, I
dressed and slipped my phone into my back pocket before hurrying downstairs.
Raven was in the kitchen, pouring coffee beans into the grinder.
“When did you start taking stimulants?” I joked.
Raven scowled.
 I opened my mouth to warn her about getting hooked on the bean early but
changed my mind. “How was your sleepover?”
“It was okay,” she grumbled.
I opened the fridge and pulled out an apple. In my pocket, my phone buzzed
with a text. Swallowing my nerves, I directed my thoughts away from the phone
and toward Raven instead.
“Just okay?”
She shrugged. “Yeah. How was your night?” Her eyes trailed to the dishes
on the table.
Shit.
After saying goodbye to Lanie the night before, I’d completely forgotten to
go back to the kitchen and clean up.
Raven smirked. “Did Miss Jacobs just sneak out the back door?”
“Very funny,” I dryly answered, heat filling my face.
“You’re blushing, Dad.” She laughed.
Hard as I tried, all I could do was blush more.
“It’s okay.” Her back to me, she filled the coffee maker with water. “I know
how it is. I’m seventeen.”
“Oh. Do you? Uh.”
“Dad.” Raven looked over her shoulder, eyebrows raised. “I don’t have a
boyfriend. That’s not happening with me.”
I breathed in slow, amazed by Raven’s ability to know what I was about to
say before I even did. She must have gotten the talent from her mother. The only
thing I seemed able to do in our conversations was either make her laugh or put
my foot in my mouth.
Taking my phone out, I checked the messages. Bob had agreed to meet at the
country club, explicitly saying—not asking—I should be there in an hour.
“I have to go somewhere,” I said, putting my phone away. “But I’ll be back
before lunch. Karen will be here soon. Will you be all right? How about we go to
the movies later? Or there’s a ballet this evening. I have those season tickets I
never use.”
Her eyes lit up. “The movies sound good.”
“Great. I’ll be back soon.” Striding across the kitchen, I planted a kiss on her
forehead. It was something I hadn’t done in years, and I wasn’t sure how she’d
respond.
“Bye,” she said, turning away, her own blush filling her face.
“See you in a bit, kiddo.”
In the car, all the anxiety about meeting Bob came rushing back. As I drove,
I ran over possible things to say to him, testing a few of them out by saying them
out loud.
I wanted to call Lanie and tell her about the meeting, but once I arrived at the
club, I was crunched for time. Bob would be there any minute. I’d never been
late meeting him before, and this would be the worst day to break that streak.
Unbuttoning my coat, I entered the bar and found Bob right away. He sat at a
round table in the corner, eyes on me. The rest of the room was close to empty,
with the spot having just opened up.
Gulping, I passed the only table with other people at it—a group of women
drinking bloody Mary’s—and took the chair across from Bob. His gaze was a
jagged knife, making me feel like I was looking at a man I’d never met, not my
closest and most dependable friend.
My head spun. Where was I supposed to begin?
But Bob beat me to the punch. “How could you, Andrew? Haven’t I been a
good friend to you?”
The remark stung like hell, raw salt on my gaping wound. It was what I
needed to get my thoughts together, though.
“I respect you, Bob, but you have to understand my relationship with Lanie
has never been about you.”
He recoiled at that, his brows bunching together. Before he could retort, I
went on, all of my previous anxiety suddenly gone.
“I didn’t know who she was when we met,” I said. “Fuck, I didn’t know she
was your daughter until the fundraiser, and she didn’t know about our
connection, either.”
“How long have you been seeing her?” Bob growled.
“A few weeks,” I slowly said while quickly raking my mind for the exact
number.
“So it’s not too early to call it off.”
Damn, he was relentless. “I don’t want to call it off. I haven’t met a woman
as special as Lanie since Danica.”
The confession was hard to make, on account of it being so true, but if I
wanted to win this argument, I needed to pull out all the stops.
“I know you, Andrew.” Bob spread his hands. “And you don’t get out much.
You’re not exactly pursuing dates on the regular. The only reason you found
Lanie was because of convenience. She works at the school your daughter goes
to. Let me guess. You went into a function or a parent-teacher conference, and
that’s how you met.”
My skin turned hot and itchy. “Just because we met at school doesn’t mean
she’s any less special than someone I would meet at a speed dating event.”
I could have taken it further, demanding to know if Bob thought Lanie
wasn’t special, but that would be a low blow and not even practical. I knew Bob
thought the world of his family, and I hadn’t come to the club to fight. It was
time to make amends.
“I don’t have to tell you how amazing Lanie is,” I softly said, clasping my
hands and giving Bob an earnest look.
He swallowed hard and briefly looked away. “Course you don’t,” he gruffly
answered. “But you do see the situation you’re putting me in, don’t you
Andrew? She’s twenty-eight years old.”
“I know, and I had my own misgivings about the age difference in the
beginning. I never imagined myself pursuing someone younger than me, but it’s
what’s happened.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Bob demanded, the hurt in his voice taking me by
surprise. “The day you found out? You could have told me at the fundraiser. Or
after it.”
“I was in shock,” I admitted. “And I didn’t know what Lanie wanted to do,
either. We had to take some time to think about it.”
He nodded, looking at the floor. Did he know Lanie had been at my house
the night before?
Bob’s firm gaze connected with mine. “Put yourself in my shoes for a
minute. How would you feel if someone your age suddenly started dating
Raven?”
I tried not to laugh at the ridiculousness of the imaginary situation. “Raven is
seventeen. Who knows what’s best for them at that age? That’s not Lanie. She’s
independent. She knows who she is and what she wants.” My voice rose as I
went on, inspired by thoughts of how great Lanie was.
“She’s focused on her career, her family. She has goals. She takes her
relationships seriously. I know how hard it is to admit that a daughter is getting
older. I’m dealing with the same thing with Raven. But Lanie’s there. She’s
amazing. She’s an adult, fully autonomous like you and me. She can make her
own decisions, and that needs to be respected. I said this already, but it’s worth
saying again. Lanie is a special woman, and I can’t just walk away from that
because her parents aren’t being understanding. I don’t want to lose my
friendship with you. It’s one of the most important things in my life, but I’m also
not going to throw things with Lanie down the drain. So surely that shows you
how serious I am about her?”
Bob fell into a silence following my speech, his jaw tight and his eyes staring
out the window behind me. A few more people had entered the bar, and soft
chatter and the clinking of glasses surrounded us. After what seemed like
forever, he turned back to me.
 “You’re serious about her?”
Drums pounded in my ears. “I haven’t told her that yet, but yes, as serious as
I can be at this stage.”
Bob scratched his jowl. “You’d be an idiot not to be.”
I snorted. “I know.” Was I finally getting to him?
“Maybe.” He cleared his throat. “Maybe you’re right.”
“Really?” My stomach flipped in excitement.
Bob nodded. “I reacted too quickly. When I got the news, it pushed a
button.”
“Understandably,” I agreed.
“I suppose you’re not asking for my blessing since you’re clearly going to do
whatever you see fit.”
“I would still appreciate it,” I choked out, feeling much more emotional than
I’d expected to.
“You have it.”
The words rang in my head, each echo making them sound better. I couldn’t
have predicted how good they’d make me feel.
“Thank you,” I whispered. My throat was still thick with emotion, and I
roughly cleared it.
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s all right,” I earnestly answered. “I’m sorry I wasn’t able to tell you
about this sooner. One of the last things I want to do is disrespect your family.”
“I know.” Bob’s eyes caught mine, and I saw real honesty there. All the
tension and fear I’d walked into the club with were gone. Not only had the
conversation resolved this one issue, I also got the sense Bob and I were going to
be even closer from then on.
Catching my hand in his, Bob gave it a hearty shake. “How about some
golf?”
“Uh.” I checked my wristwatch. “That sounds great, but I’ll have to take a
rain check. I promised Raven we’d do something together today.”
“She’s not into golf yet?” Bob made a face like he couldn’t comprehend such
an idea.
“Afraid not,” I chuckled. “I’ve tried, but she likes to say the only game more
pretentious than golf is polo.”
“She’s still yanking your chain, huh?”
“It’s been better lately. Thanks to Lanie.”
Bob studied me.
“Because of her counseling advice,” I explained.
Bob nodded, a smile playing on his mouth. “What does Raven think of the
two of you?”
“I think she wants me to settle down again.”
“Huh.” Bob stood. “That wouldn’t be bad for her.”
“That’s what I’ve been thinking.”
The unsaid part, which I think we both were thinking, hovered around us.
Could the person I settled down with be Lanie?
On that day, there was no answer. Instead, a feeling of satisfaction existed.
I’d done what I needed to. Things were great for both me and Bob and me and
Lanie.
For the time being, nothing else needed to be known.
We shook hands once more, and I left the club, striding out into the chilly,
sunny day, ready to embrace the rest of my life.
11
 LANIE

M y phone rang as I scanned the street for parking.

“Hold on, hold on,” I murmured, resisting the urge to pull it out
and see who was calling.
Finding a spot across the street from the yoga studio, I tugged the phone
from my purse as the second call started.
Dad. Double gulp.
But better now than later.
“Hi, Dad,” I answered, bracing myself. We hadn’t spoken since he stormed
out of the house, and Mom hadn’t been in touch either.
“Lanie, I’m sorry about yesterday.”
My jaw must have fallen halfway to my lap. I struggled to answer but didn’t
know what to say. My father hardly ever apologized. He was always so positive
the things he did were right.
“I talked to Andrew and figured some things out,” Dad continued. “I know
you weren’t lying to me. You’re a grown woman, and you get to do what you
want. That’s, uh, it’s hard sometimes for a father to realize that. To remember
their kid is all grown up.”
“Yeah,” I slurred. “I understand.”
“Anyway, that’s all I needed to say.”
“I really appreciate it.” Tears formed in my eyes, and I struggled to keep the
emotion out of my voice. “What about Mom?”
Dad made a gruff noise. “She’s still not crazy about this whole thing. You
know she just wants you to be happy, Lanie.”
“Andrew makes me happy, Dad.”
He hesitated. “I see that now. But your mom, she’s going to need time.”
“That’s what she said about you.” I laughed.
 “Did she?” He guffawed. “I bet she did.”
“I don’t want to disappoint her.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll talk to her tonight. Lanie?”
“Yeah?”
“How serious are you about Andrew?”
The question took me by surprise. I’d hardly allowed myself that answer. “I
like him. A lot.”
“All right.”
He seemed satisfied with the basic answer, already moving on to the next
question.
“When are you coming back over to the house?”
“I don’t know.”
“Your mom would like to see you sometime this week.”
“I’ll make time,” I promised.
“Good.”
He paused, and I took the moment to gather my courage. “Dad, um, will you
be there some evening this week? I’d really like to see you too.”
“Really?” He sounded surprised but not unhappy.
“Yeah. It was nice going to the fundraiser with you, and I’d really like to
spend more time together.”
The words were hard to say. Though I told my students over and over that
expressing their wants and needs was important, that advice was easier said than
done.
“Let’s make a plan,” Dad said. “I’ll talk to your mother. Maybe I can come
home early one night, and we can all have dinner together.”
“That would be awesome,” I smiled, knowing Mom would also love that.
“Bye, Dad.”
We hung up, the grin still plastered on my face.
What had Andrew said to make my father change his mind? I’d offered
every argument I could think of the day before, and yet Andrew must have seen
some angle I hadn’t.
Pulling up his name, I sent a text.
You’re a miracle worker.
The dots on the screen bounced as he typed back.
Mmm. Tell me more.
Laughing, I quickly typed a response.
My dad just called and apologized. He seems pretty happy. Whatever you
said, it was the right thing. Have to run, but I can’t wait to see you again.
I’d already caught sight of Erica across the street, standing in the spot we
always met at before yoga class. Putting my phone away, I grabbed my things
and took advantage of a lull in traffic to run across the street.
“Like my new scarf?” Erica asked by way of greeting. She dramatically
flipped the end of a scarf that was made out of enough fabric for a whole
wardrobe.
“Fancy.” I laughed. “You could get lost in there.”
“That’s the idea.” She wound it around her face so that only her eyes peeked
out. “Winter will never find me in here.”
“Are you going to wear that to yoga?” I opened the studio’s door for her.
“It doubles as a tool for ham stretches. So what’s up with you? Are your
parents still upset?”
With ten more minutes to go before class started, we settled in the waiting
area. Erica put her scarf into her bag and got busy tying up her hair.
“Believe it or not, no,” I answered.
“What happened?”
“My dad and Andrew talked.”
“And?” She looked at me with wide orbs for eyes.
“I don’t know.” I shrugged. “My dad called me while I was in the car and
said he was sorry.”
Erica’s laugh was a sputtering one. “No. Bob Jacobs doesn’t apologize.”
“I know, right?”
“So you don’t know what Andrew said?”
“No, but I can’t wait to find out.”
“Damn, girl. Andrew is for real.”
“What do you mean?”
Erica took off her jacket and replaced it with a loose sweatshirt from her bag.
“Most guys would go running after something like this, but Andrew not only
talked to your dad, he stood up to his friend.” She eyed me. “That’s a big deal.”
My insides turned soft. “Yeah,” I quietly agreed. “It is.”
The door opened, and Erica briefly looked over before snapping her head
back in my direction. “He’s back,” she hissed.
I didn’t have to ask. “Dirty Pirate Guy?”
“Mm-hmm.” She nodded, face glowing with excitement.
“Did he bring his pirate sword, or is he just happy to see you?”
“Shh,” she said with a giggle. “He’s coming over.”
I pressed my fingertips against my lips so I wouldn’t laugh.
“Hey,” a male voice said.
Erica sat up straighter. “Hi.”
“I’m Troy.”
 “Erica. This is Lanie.”
I gave him a wave, noting that he had his dreadlocks tied up in exactly the
same way Erica had fastened her hair.
“You ladies ready for class?” Troy asked.
“Absolutely,” Erica answered, batting her lashes. I resisted the urge to roll
my eyes.
“Hey, what are you doing after class?” he questioned, gaze completely on
Erica now. In fact, his back had turned to me. I might as well not have been
there. “Want to get a kava?”
“A kava?” Erica frowned in confusion.
“Yeah, it’s a root from the Pacific islands. Way better than alcohol. That
pollutes the system, you know?”
From where Troy couldn’t see me, I pulled a face. Erica was too focused on
him to notice, though.
“There’s a new kava bar downtown,” Troy explained. “I’d love to buy you a
drink, experience your first kava ride with you.”
I had to grind my teeth together to stop the laughter.
Erica smiled ruefully. “That sounds nice, Troy, but Lanie and I always go out
after yoga.” She paused. “For alcohol, not kava.”
“Cool, cool.” He started to go on, but Erica cut in.
“I’m taken.”
An uncomfortable pause followed.
“Ah,” Troy said. “Right. Well, that’s cool. See you on the mat.”
“See you in Nirvana,” Erica answered.
I waited until Troy vanished down the hallway to speak. “Dude.”
She grimaced. “I felt bad letting him down.”
“Yeah, right.” I laughed. Seeing the serious look on her face, I fell quiet.
“Oh. You’re being serious.”
Erica nodded. “Yeah.”
“But you loved flirting with him.”
“Flirting,” she stressed. “But once he asked me out,” Erica fell into the kind
of reflective, quiet moment I never saw her in, “I realized how silly I was being.”
“Oh.” I stared at her, still not quite sure what to say.
“Matt is all I’ll ever need.” She shook her head.
My eyes burned. “Aw, Erica.”
“I know, right?” She dabbed at the tears collecting in her own eyes. “It’s so
sappy.”
“No.” I smiled. “It’s perfect.”
“You’re going to have that, too, you know.”
 I bit down on my lip. “Yeah, one day.”
“No. With Andrew,” she earnestly said.
“What are you, a fortune teller?”
She rolled her eyes. “No, I just have working eyesight.”
I ran my thumbnail across my lip, thinking about it all. Erica was voicing the
very thing I wanted. It was too soon, though, and I was too chicken to admit
some things.
“I told you before, Lanie. It’s inevitable that you and Andrew will end up
together.”
“You never said that.”
She waved her hand. “Whatever. The thing is, I said things close to it.
Andrew is the kind of guy you’ve always needed.”
I looked down at my lap, fingers twisting and heart swelling. Though I’d
tried to be casual about Andrew from the beginning and not get my hopes up, the
time had come to admit the truth. I wanted something deep and long-lasting, and
I wanted Andrew to be the one to give it to me.
Maybe my dad coming around was a good sign, a hint at better days to come.
The world was getting behind me and Andrew.
My best friend had found her happy ending. Perhaps, just maybe, my turn
came next.
12
 ANDREW

C ranking the stereo’s volume, I cruised into my neighborhood. The street

lights were coming on, taking the day into the first minutes of dusk.
After talking to Bob the morning before, every minute following had
been nothing less than perfect.
Seeing Lanie again—and this time with Bob’s approval—meant that I’d been
in a good mood all day long. Work had flown by, and the only time I’d felt any
sense of irritation was when I looked at my phone and found no texts from
Lanie.
Call me spoiled, but I wanted to hear from her each and every hour.
As the garage door opened, my phone rang as if on cue.
“I was just thinking about you,” I answered.
“Good things?” Lanie asked with a laugh.
“Bad things,” I growled. “Really, really bad things.”
“Oh. That’s, uh.” She cleared her throat, and I laughed.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Just making some dinner. Is it okay that I called? I wanted to, you know,
say hi.”
“Stop. Hearing your voice is the perfect ending to my day.”
“That’s sweet,” she cooed. “So, hey, can I ask what you specifically said to
my dad? I know I shouldn’t intrude, but I can’t stop wondering. Feel free to tell
me if I’m overstepping any boundaries here.”
“Leave it to a therapist to mention boundaries.” I glanced at the door leading
from the garage into the house. Raven was in there, and Karen would be leaving
any minute. I was praying neither one of them came out and interrupted our
conversation.
“Are you making fun of me?”
 “Only in the best way.”
“Hm. Okay. I’m not sure what that means, but I’ll let you off the hook.”
“To answer your question, usually I would keep what happens between me
and Bob secret, but this involves you as well.”
“Uh-huh?” Lanie encouraged.
“I told him the truth. I said you and I have something special, and though he
is also important to me, I’m not going to give you up just because it makes him
unhappy.”
“Wow,” she breathed. “You really stood up to him.”
“He took it better than you might think.” I shot another glance at the door.
“So what are you doing this week?”
“Well, it’s only a half week of school.”
“Huh?”
“It’s Thanksgiving week.”
I bit back a curse. Damn. Somehow, I’d forgotten all about Thanksgiving.
That meant Raven only had three days of school as did Lanie.
“That’s right,” I affirmed. “What are you doing for it?”
“Well, we usually go to my aunt and uncle’s house, but they’re going on
vacation this year. They’re gonna spend the weekend at some cabin by a lake. I
forget which one.”
“Sounds nice.” I was already thinking about what it would be like to take
Lanie to a place like that.
“Yeah. So it’s going to be a small thing this year. I’m sure my mom will
make up for it by going totally crazy on Christmas.”
An idea was forming in my head, its corresponding question sitting on the tip
of my tongue. Before I even mentioned it, though, I would need to speak to
Raven.
“Does that mean I’ll get to see you at some point?” I asked.
“God, I hope so.”
“You sound … what’s the word for it now?”
“I believe the kids at school say thirsty.”
I grimaced. “They shouldn’t be talking like that.”
“Tell me about it.” Lanie giggled.
The door opened, and Karen came out, a bag of trash in hand. Spotting me,
she waved.
“I need to go,” I told Lanie. “Let’s talk soon and make some plans.”
“Okay. Good night.”
“Good night, Lanie,” I answered, savoring the feel of her name on my
tongue. Hanging up, I imagined her in her little kitchen, probably wearing jeans
or those tight leggings I’d seen her in once. She’d float across the floor, maybe
put on some music and shimmy around as she chopped and stirred.
Just thinking about it had all my blood rushing to one very special spot.
A knock on the car window made me jump. Karen stood next to the door,
peering at me in question.
Grabbing my car keys and phone, I climbed out of the car.
“Dinner is in the oven on warm,” Karen explained. “And Raven is upstairs
doing homework. Do you need anything else?”
“No, Karen,” I smiled, praying to God she wouldn’t look down and notice
my boner. “Thank you.”
“Have a good night,” she called, going for the side door.
“You too.”
With my housekeeper gone, I let myself into the kitchen, where a delicious,
savory smell filled the air. I’d initially hired Karen to be a housekeeper, but her
skills in the kitchen had since then proved invaluable. Cracking the oven’s door,
I peeked in on a casserole. A salad waited on the counter, a little dish of croutons
next to it.
Thinking about food brought my mind back to Thanksgiving and back to the
proposition I had for Raven.
Leaving the kitchen, I climbed the stairs, following the heavy bass thumping
down the hall.
“Hey!” I pushed the half-closed door open all the way.
Raven looked at me from where she lay on her stomach on her bed. Right
away, I noticed the bags under her eyes.
Taking a few steps into the room, I turned the music off. Raven opened her
mouth in protest.
“Are we supposed to mime to each other?” I countered before she had a
chance to even say anything.
“You’d be bad at that.”
“Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind. Did you get enough sleep?”
“Yeah,” she grumbled, flipping a page of the textbook in front of her.
“Okay.” I crossed my arms, suddenly uncomfortable. I’d come upstairs in a
good mood, expecting Raven to be in the same.
But I guess I was wrong.
“How was school?”
She shrugged and flipped another page.
“Are you a speed reader now?” I asked.
Raven glowered my way. “What’s up, Dad?”
“Dinner’s ready.”
 “Yeah, I know. It’s been ready for thirty minutes. I had to wait for your
butt.”
I checked my smirk, knowing she’d been about to say ass.
“I got home as soon as I could, honey. This is actually a pretty regular hour.
It’s when most parents get home.”
Did I need to point out to her that I no longer worked until eight or ten each
night? That I made time every weekend for us to do something together?
“Is something wrong?” I asked. “If you still feel like we’re not spending
enough time together, you can tell me.”
“No,” she sighed, looking away.
“Is everything okay at school?”
My heartbeat picked up. Everything had been so good recently. I never heard
from the school’s office, and Lanie hadn’t reported any upsets.
Raven hesitated. “Yeah, school is fine. I’m just kind of in a funk. Sorry.”
“It’s okay. Do you want to talk about it?”
She shook her head. I almost asked if this funk had anything to do with PMS,
but I checked myself just in time. No better way to get punched than to suggest a
woman’s period ruled her.
“Dinner?” I asked.
She nodded and hauled herself off the bed. Together, we silently went
downstairs. Karen had put everything in order, setting the table and leaving out
my favorite bottle of bourbon. I carefully pulled the casserole out and served us
both while Raven dumped salad on our plates.
“So,” I started once we were both seated, “I’ve been thinking about
Thanksgiving.”
Raven gave me an uninterested look. “Okay. Aren’t we going to order in like
always? Or go to the club?”
The country club did serve a Thanksgiving dinner. Not many people went to
it, but Raven and I had been known to grace it on a number of occasions.
“I thought we might do something different this year. Perhaps have some
people over.”
Raven paused in the middle of cutting her food. “We’ve never done that.”
“Which is why it might be nice. What do you think of inviting Lanie and her
parents here?”
An unreadable expression crossed her face.
“Raven?”
“It’s already Monday. They probably already have plans.”
“Not set in stone ones. I already talked to Lanie.”
“Oh. You invited her?”
 “No, I only asked about her Thanksgiving.” I watched Raven carefully, but
she still offered no sure reaction. “Are you okay? I thought you liked that Lanie
and I are seeing each other again.”
Raven ran her bottom lip under her teeth. “No, yeah. I do. It’s just why do
we have to have all these people over?”
“We don’t.”
For a second, I was hurt, but then I remembered everything I’d learned about
Raven in the last month. It could be she needed some special one-on-one time
with me but didn’t want to explicitly ask for it.
“You want it to be just us?” I gently asked. “Like it always is?”
“Lanie can come, too. I don’t want to be around all these new people.” She
shrugged.
“It would just be her parents.” I quickly spoke again, knowing there was no
reason for pointing that out. If Raven wanted an intimate Thanksgiving, I would
give that to her. “You know, I see what you’re saying. And I like our small
Thanksgivings too.”
“But with Lanie this year,” she pressed.
“Okay,” I agreed. “Again, I haven’t asked her yet. So, if she can make it.”
“I don’t want to go to the club.”
“We’ll use that catering company.”
Raven pursed her lips, looking uncomfortable. I stopped myself from sighing
in frustration just in time. Jeez, I was trying here. Getting Raven to admit to what
she wanted could be like pulling teeth sometimes, though.
“What’s wrong?” I asked. “You don’t like that one? There’s another
company we could use. Or I can probably book a chef to come in and cook here.
It’s a little late, but I’m sure I can find someone.” I pulled my phone out, ready
to open the search engine.
“You said no phones at the table.”
I peered at her serious face over my phone. “If we want to find a chef, I need
to do it tonight.”
“Why don’t we cook ourselves?”
I guffawed. “You mean a turkey?” I could hardly say it without laughing
again. “You know I can’t cook, right?”
“I saw you made Lanie something the other night.”
“Yeah, that was simple. But a full Thanksgiving meal—” I stopped at the
disappointment on her face, realizing how thickheaded I was being. “You know
what? That sounds like a great idea.”
Raven’s face lit up. “Really?”
“Absolutely. Except I can’t make any promises that I won’t burn
everything.”
She shook her head. “We’ll be doing it together. And we’ll have recipes.”
“I’ve never cooked a turkey,” I warned.
“How hard can it be? Loads of people do it all the time.”
“Okay.” I chuckled. “I’ll give you that.”
Raven picked up her fork and knife, cutting her casserole up into little pieces
as she talked a mile a minute. “We’ll have to make a list. Can we go shopping
tomorrow? We have to go soon or else all the best turkeys will be gone. What
should we make? I guess all the usual stuff, right? Except cranberry sauce is
gross. But I guess Lanie might want it—”
“Hold it right there,” I interrupted. “You don’t like cranberry sauce?”
“No. It’s disgusting.”
“All right, this confirms it. There must have been a mix-up in the hospital
because you are definitely not my daughter.”
Raven rolled her eyes. “Keep trying, Dad. Maybe one day you’ll come up
with a joke that’s funny.”
“People at work like my jokes.” I grinned.
“You pay the people at work.”
“Lanie likes my jokes.”
“Yeah, I’m not going there.” She put a big forkful of food in her mouth and
chewed away.
As we ate, we planned the upcoming meal in greater detail. With each dish
added, my excitement grew. I couldn’t wait to ask Lanie over. As long as her
joining us didn’t cause any discord with her parents, it was all I wanted.
A Thanksgiving at home, a real one, full of time spent together. It would be
the opposite of the wham bam, catered holiday meals Raven and I were used to.
With Lanie there, everything would be perfect. A man couldn’t ask for more.
13
 LANIE

“I don’t know what he expects me to do at that lodge,” Mom continued

on, her voice blaring from the speakers of my desk phone. “He’s only
going there because that man, what’s his name, is going there too.
The one whose company your father wants to buy. He’s hoping to do some
business over Christmas vacation.”
“Have you told him this?” I sifted through some papers on my desk, looking
for the parent survey forms the school collected the day before.
Mom was silent. I could picture her well, probably pursing her lips as she
pressed the phone to her face and looked out at the bird feeder in the backyard. It
was her greatest hobby, that bird feeder. Somehow, she recognized a lot of the
birds that came to it. If a regular visitor stopped coming by, she’d worry they’d
been eaten by a cat or flown into a window.
“No,” Mom finally said. “You know how your father is.”
“Yeah.”
“He told me he met with Andrew.”
Segue much, Mom?
“Uh-huh,” I carefully answered, “and things are good between them now.
Dad’s happy for me and Andrew.”
Happy might have been a stretch.
“Well,” Mom tartly responded. “Andrew and your father have been friends
for years.”
I didn’t know where she was going with that, but the sour tone was enough
to turn me off. Maybe I imagined it, but it seemed like she was suggesting
Andrew and Dad’s relationship would withstand everything else, including me.
“I have to go, Mom. I have a lot of work to do.”
Also, I needed to end the conversation before paranoia completely took over.
 “Okay, sweetie. You know, that cardinal with the hurt leg hasn’t been at the
feeder the last couple days. I hope he’s all right.”
Yep. Bird feeder. Knew it.
“Maybe he flew south for the winter.”
“Oh, cardinals don’t migrate, Lanie.”
Right. Silly me.
“Maybe he’s at a neighbor’s feeder instead. I’ll talk to you later, Mom. Bye.”
I hung up before she could protest and got busy organizing the survey
papers. I’d hoped that Mom might mention Andrew somewhere in our
conversation, but things hadn’t gone as desired. For all her talk about Dad being
the one most likely to flip his lid over my dating life, when it came down to it,
Mom was the least-accepting one.
Whatever. I couldn’t spend all day long worrying about my parents. It was a
three-day week of school, and that meant I had extra work to get done before the
last day.
Surveys in hand, I carted them down the hallway and dropped them in the
office with Joyce. As I left, the bell for first lunch rang. Kids catapulted from
their classrooms, their shouts echoing off the walls.
Keeping close to the lockers, I wound my way through the crowd, mentally
counting the number of students I could name as I went. I suspected I knew
about fifty of them so far, which didn’t feel like a lot. I wanted to know each and
every one of them, including the ones I’d probably never see in my office. An
important part of my job was making my presence known so the kids felt they
could always come to me if they needed.
Halfway to my office, I caught sight of Raven. She stood with her back to
me, but I recognized her bright pink backpack right away. She talked to a dark-
haired boy who leaned against a locker, arms crossed. Judging by the scowl on
his face, the conversation wasn’t a happy one.
The crowd was already thinning, kids either going to the cafeteria or their
next class. I edged closer to Raven and the boy, who still hadn’t noticed me.
“No one likes a liar,” Raven was saying, her voice rising with each syllable.
He shook his head. “I wasn’t lying. Don’t get your panties in a bunch.”
With the speed of a professional boxer, Raven’s hand flew out. The slap
resounded in the hall, and the boy put his hand to his cheek.
“What the hell?” he yelled.
Oh, brother.
Moving fast, I checked to see if anyone else had caught sight of what
happened. The hallway was empty now, though, just the three of us in it.
Rushing forward, I stepped up next to the two teens.
 “Raven.”
Her eyes went wide.
“Come with me,” I quietly told her.
Raven’s blond brows pushed together. They were more defined than usual.
In fact, she wore more makeup than I remembered her ever having on. Mascara.
Lipstick. Eyeliner. The whole shebang.
“He—”
“Just come with me,” I interrupted before turning to the boy. “What do you
have now?”
He dropped his arms to his sides, looking guilty. “American Government.”
“Get to it.”
He hesitated. “Can I have a note so I don’t get a tardy?”
My jaw dropped, and I searched for the words but couldn’t find any. Was
this kid insane?
“Never mind,” he mumbled, rushing off down the hall.
“Let’s go to my office,” I told Raven.
Arms folded protectively across her chest, she followed me there.
“Have a seat,” I said, closing the door.
“I’m missing English.”
“That’s all right.” I sat on the edge of my desk. “I’ll write you a note. Sorry I
couldn’t do the same for your friend.”
Raven snorted, and I almost smiled back, but the seriousness of the situation
kept me grounded.
“What’s going on?” I asked. “You’ve been doing so well.”
Raven took off her backpack and dropped into one of the chairs with a huff.
“It’s not my fault. It’s Jason. He’s a total tool.”
“That guy was Jason, I assume.”
Raven glumly nodded.
“Why did you slap him?”
“I told you. He’s an asshole.”
“Raven. I want to help you.”
She slowly lifted her eyes to mine. “As my guidance counselor or as my
dad’s girlfriend?”
The question took me by surprise. Andrew had never called me his
girlfriend, so I wasn’t about to go there. Luckily, the best answer was indirect.
“I’m speaking to you as someone who cares about you.” Leaving the desk, I
settled in the chair next to her.
Raven studied me, the resistance in her face melting away. “Have you heard
about Jason?”
 I shook my head. “Should I have?”
She shrugged. “He’s just, like, really popular here.”
“Okay,” I encouraged with a nod. “What do you think of him?”
“I like him.” She twisted the end of her sweatshirt. “I mean, I did, until he
had to go and be a total idiot.”
“Tell me the whole story.”
She eyed me. “Are you going to tell anyone?”
“I have to report the slap but nothing else.”
“Fine. So, here’s the thing… I liked Jason. You know, kind of a lot. And I
thought he liked me too.”
“Has anything happened between you guys?”
“Yeah, last week we hung out after school, like, three days. Just me and him.
No one else. As more than friends.” She gave me a meaningful look. “And
everything was great. He told me he liked me, and he wanted to take me out on a
date.”
“And then?”
She twirled some hair around, her eyes growing wet. “And then he made out
with some girl at a party. Over the weekend. Mandy Watkins. What kind of a
name is Mandy? Is this, like, the nineties?”
I wasn’t sure what to make of that comment.
“How did you find out about the girl? Did Jason tell you himself?”
“Hell, no. I heard it from, like, everyone who was at the party. He didn’t
even try to hide it.” Her chin trembled with emotion. “And then I asked him just
now, and he admitted to it.”
My chest tightened to see her so upset. “Raven, I’m sorry.”
She shrugged like it didn’t matter, though the tears pooling in her eyes said
another story.
“It sucks when someone doesn’t like us back.”
She sat up straighter. “But that’s the thing! He said he liked me!”
“I know,” I softly answered. “Did you guys talk about being exclusive?”
“No. Course not. But he could have told me he planned on tonguing some
other chick. Wouldn’t you be pissed if my dad was messing around behind your
back?”
Heck yes, I would.
“Let’s keep this about Jason. We can talk about your dad when we’re not at
school. Look, Raven, high school is a good place to casually date, to get to know
people and learn how to socialize.”
“I don’t want to do that. I want … I just want him.”
My heart nearly broke in two. Boy, could I relate to that feeling.
 “Okay.” I spread my hands. “I know you’re upset, but let’s look at this
objectively. Could Jason be, you know, a player? Because if he says he likes you
and then goes and kisses another girl, that sounds like a bad sign. Even if you
guys haven’t talked about being in a relationship yet.”
“I don’t know,” she mumbled. “But just because he’s been one way with
other girls doesn’t mean he’ll be that way with me.”
One day, I would have to talk to Raven about the dangers of thinking a man
would change for her. In that moment, though, it was best to keep the
conversation minimal.
“Here’s the thing that’s important, Raven. People are going to do what
they’re going to do. We can’t control them. If we want to keep sane, we can’t let
guys influence our emotions.”
Raven dryly laughed. “You never get upset over something a man does?”
“Well, yeah, sure I do.”
“So then how can you expect me not to when grown women can’t even do
it?”
I thought about that. She’d talked me into a wall, it seemed.
“Good point,” I conceded. “Okay, so it’s more about tamping our reactions
so we don’t do something we’ll regret. What’s the first thing you want to do
when you get angry?”
“Hit someone,” she said like it was obvious.
“And then you end up making things worse for yourself.”
“Yeah,” she mumbled.
“Try counting to ten next time. If that doesn’t work, then walk away. Go and
scream in the bathroom. I do that sometimes.”
“Really?” She lifted her face.
“Yeah.” I shrugged. “It works. It’s okay to feel awful, but if we let emotions
take us over, we’re only making life worse for ourselves.”
“Okay.” She fiddled with a strap on her backpack. “Have you ever felt this
way? Like a guy betrayed you?”
“Too many times,” I sighed.
“With my dad?”
I looked her square in the eye. “No. Your dad is a good guy.”
“’Kay.” She nodded.
“Next time you’re feeling this way, come and talk to me. My door is always
open. Even if it’s not during school hours.”
Her body visibly relaxed. “Thanks.”
“Again, since this was a physical incident, I’ll have to talk to Principal
Stafford about it, and I’ll have to tell your dad.”
 “I know.”
“Let’s get you to class.” Getting up, I tore a sheet of paper from the notebook
on my desk and scrawled a note to her English teacher.
“Did my dad tell you about Thanksgiving?”
I turned around, not sure what she meant. “What’s happening?”
“We’re going to cook it ourselves this year,” she proudly explained. “And
you’re invited.”
I couldn’t stop my smile. “No, he didn’t tell me about this.”
“We just decided last night.”
“Oh. Very nice.”
“So can you come?”
“Um, I don’t know. I’ll have to talk to my parents about it.”
“It’ll be a lot of fun.”
Our spat in the bathroom at the fundraiser came back to me. Raven had been
so pissed at me for not coming clean about my relationship with Andrew. I’d
thought she might never want to talk to me again. Was the invitation to
Thanksgiving her way of making amends?
“Actually,” I said, “I think my mom and dad will understand. Yeah, I can
come.”
“Cool.” She smiled. “Do you like cranberry sauce? I wasn’t going to make it
unless you like it.”
“Yeah, I love it.” I signed the note and handed it over to her.
“Cool.” Taking the note, she put her backpack on.
“Raven.”
Hand on the doorknob, she turned around.
“Remember, you can come and talk to me. I know you like Jason, but guys
can be real idiots sometimes. It’s up to you to be the better person.”
“Okay.”
“And thanks for the invitation to Thanksgiving.”
“Yeah, it’s whatever.”
She left before I could get another word out. Leaning back against my desk, I
smiled to myself. Had it been Raven or Andrew’s idea to invite me to
Thanksgiving?
Come to think of it, it didn’t really matter. With each day that went by, they
both meant more to me. I hadn’t expected an invitation to spend a day typically
meant for families with them.
With the holiday looming, though, I couldn’t think of anywhere else I
wanted to be.
14
 ANDREW

M y phone buzzed in my pocket, and I surreptitiously peeked under my

desk to get a look at it. As I always hoped, it was Lanie calling.
Loudly clearing my throat, I looked back up at the four
employees seated across from me. “We’ll deal with this account tomorrow. You
can go back to your desks now.”
They all exchanged confused looks.
“Right. Back to work,” I reiterated, adding a smile to show them I was still
working on being nicer.
Still looking dazed, they collected their papers and left. The second the door
closed behind the last one of them, I dialed Lanie.
“Hi,” she answered.
“Please tell me this is a midday phone sex call.”
She laughed. “I wish. You do know I’m at work, right?”
“So am I.” I put my feet up on my desk, getting more comfortable in my
chair. Not until Lanie did I really learn the meaning of relaxing.
“Unfortunately,” she slowly said, “This isn’t a personal call.”
“Uh-oh.” Without my thinking about it, my feet were back on the floor. I
leaned forward in my seat, clutching the phone hard. “Is Raven okay?”
“She’s fine. There was an incident at school about an hour ago. She slapped
a boy.”
“A boy?” My stomach recoiled.
“It’s gonna be okay. Take a deep breath.”
“Which boy?”
“Some kid named Jason. Do you know him?”
“No, and she’s never mentioned him before.” My heart unexpectedly raced.
Raven and I had talked about boys before—about the basics of safety and
respect for self and others—but she’d never given a hint that she had anything to
do with the other sex. Far as I knew, all her friends were girls.
“Why wouldn’t she have mentioned him?” I asked, half to myself.
“You’re her dad, Andrew.”
“Right.” I ground my teeth together, hating that I cared about her more than
anyone else in the whole damn world, and yet I was still often the last to know
things about her life. “Why didn’t she just tell me? I knew something was up.
She’s been acting weird again. God. She could have ...” I ran out of gas, the
words no longer coming.
“Don’t blame her, Andrew.”
I painfully inhaled. “All right. You’re right. I won’t.”
“If anything, it might be our fault.”
I struggled to get my head around that. “What do you mean?”
“Raven was really upset that night at the fundraiser. She didn’t like that I
wasn’t being honest with my parents. I told her the situation was complicated,
but, well, I’m saying we might be sending her mixed messages.”
“Okay,” I said slowly.
“Do you agree?”
I sighed and ran my palm over my face. “Yeah, I do. I can see how it looks.”
“She mentioned you a little bit today, but I let her know the school’s not the
best place to talk about private relationships.”
“What did she say?”
“She wanted to know if you ever get under my skin.”
“No,” I said sarcastically. “Never.”
Lanie’s beautiful laugh calmed my nerves.
“It’s my fault,” I said. “I must still not be paying her enough attention.”
“No, Andrew. Don’t say that. You’ve been spending a lot more time with
her.”
“Yeah, but obviously, it’s not enough.” I raked my fingers through my hair
in frustration. “I have over ten years to make up for, Lanie. That’s most of her
childhood. I’ve been a shitty parent since the day her mom died.”
My chest burned as I thought about all the recitals and school plays I could
have made it to if I only decided to. All the nights I could have stayed in and had
dinner with my daughter instead of hunkering down in my office closing another
deal, making another dollar. I’d always told myself all the work was for Raven.
With all the money we had, she could have and be whatever she wanted. Plus, I
was teaching her the value of hard work.
Now I saw what a bunch of bullshit those excuses were. I had billions in the
bank. Who the fuck needed that? And what was hard work compared to time
spent with the only family you had?
No denying it, I was a god-awful parent.
“You’re blaming yourself again,” Lanie chastised.
“Yeah, I know. I’m meaning to.”
“Don’t,” she snapped with a surprising ferocity. “You’ve done the best you
can in any situation. We all have.”
“Yeah, but—”
“You’re a single parent. You run a giant corporation, a job that I still don’t
quite get, but that’s beside the point.”
I chuckled, about to answer, but Lanie kept going.
“You’ve done a lot for Raven. No one can do it all. No parent is going to be
available all the time. There are only so many hours in the day. Stop beating
yourself up. Okay?”
“Okay,” I agreed. “I’ve never heard you get this bossy before.”
“Oh,” she said like she’d just realized what she’d done. “Sorry.”
“No, I like it. It’s kind of sexy.”
“Um, well.” Her suddenly fast breathing came across the line. “That’s, um.
We’re at work, Andrew.”
“Yeah, I know,” I teased.
“You’re going to get me in trouble.” The way she said it, though, she didn’t
sound at all upset. In fact, real excitement dripped from her words.
“I’ll stop,” I seriously said. “For now, I mean.”
“Good,” she lustily whispered.
Tension coiled in my boxers, and I had to adjust myself in my seat. Much as
I wanted to leave work early, pick Lanie up from school, and take her to a hotel
where I could bang the hell out of her, some fantasies would have to wait.
“Thank you for calling me,” I told her in a serious tone, hoping just talking
that way would get rid of my hard-on.
“Of course. So, I—” A knock on the door interrupted her. “Oh, shoot. Hey, I
have to go. I’m meeting with a parent, and they just arrived. Talk to you later.”
“Yes. Have a good afternoon.” I almost hung up, but then remembered about
Thanksgiving. “Wait. Would you like—?”
There was only silence. Lanie had already hung up.
Ending the call myself, I checked the time. Raven would be out of school
soon. The rest of the day’s work, I could take care of in my home office.
Getting what I needed for the rest of the day together, I left the building as
quickly as I could. Raven had declined my offer to pick her up from school
anytime that week, saying instead that she wanted to ride the bus.
At the house, the whir of the vacuum cleaner greeted me. Leaving Karen to
her cleaning, I went right to my office in the back. With my computer powered
on, I kept the screen showing the front security cam open as I responded to
emails. That way, I’d known Raven was home the minute the school bus
dropped her off.
Before long, movement in the corner of the screen caught my eye. Jumping
up, I raced down the hall and to the front door, opening it as she stepped onto the
porch.
Raven’s eyes went wide at the sight of me.
“Welcome home,” I said.
The round eyes narrowed. “Right.”
“What?”
She pushed past me, her backpack knocking against my chest. “You talked to
the school already, huh? Who called, the office or Lanie?”
I folded my arms, following her. “I’m not mad, Raven.”
She halted in the hallway, slowly swiveling on her heel to face me. “You’re
not?”
“No. I just want to hear about what happened. It sounds like someone really
upset you.”
“That can’t be all.”
“Okay,” I nodded. “It’s not. I have some tips I can give you for the next time
you feel like you want to slap someone.”
“Lanie already talked to me about that.” She turned back around, hustling for
the kitchen.
The vacuum cleaner had stopped, and Karen stood in the middle of the living
room coiling the cord. “Afternoon,” she sang out. “There’s fresh pumpkin bread
in the kitchen.”
“Hi, Karen,” I waved, barely looking at her as I hurried after Raven.
In the kitchen, Raven dropped her backpack in a chair and peered at the
pumpkin bread on the counter. “Why is it pumpkin everything in the fall?”
I stopped in the doorway. “Let’s talk about this.”
“Okay,” she huffed. “Fine.”
“If you were having troubles with someone, you could have told me.”
She looked at me like I was crazy. “No, I couldn’t. Don’t you get how weird
that is?”
“Yeah,” I admitted. “But I don’t want you to suffer through things on your
own.”
“I’m not. I already talked with Lanie.” She leaned against the counter and
played with the strings of her jacket.
Competing emotions filled me. On one hand, I wanted Raven to come to me
for anything she needed. On the other, I was glad she had Lanie as a resource.
And wasn’t a strong female figure the thing she’d been missing?
“Okay,” I said. “I’m glad you did. So, this guy?”
Raven groaned. “He’s just some kid who is a compulsive liar. He said he
wanted to go out with me, and then he made out with another girl.”
“That little prick,” I spat without thinking.
Raven’s eyebrows shot up. “Dad!” she laughed.
“You’re too good for him, Raven.”
“Right, well it’s not like my school is crawling with mature guys.”
“Wait until college. You’ll find more people there.”
“You’re the one who told me I should be dating.”
I took a seat at the table. “That was before I heard about some guy being a
douche to you.”
“Dad. Wow. You’re cussing a lot.”
“Sorry, not sorry.”
Raven laughed again, life coming back into her eyes.
“By the way, about the slapping ...”
“I won’t do it again. I mean, I’ll try.” She looked down at the floor. “I don’t
want to lose my temper. It just happens sometimes.”
“I know,” I whispered. “But if you’re working on it—”
“I am.” She earnestly looked back at me.
“Okay. Good. Speaking of that, if you ever need a guy beaten up for
breaking your heart, you should come to your dad.”
“Oh my god.” She laughed.
“I’m serious. You think I’m kidding.”
“You can’t just beat up a high school kid and get away with it.” She took a
seat at the table across from me and started pulling out notebooks.
“With my kind of money, you can. A few million can make anything go
away.”
“Dad.” She giggled. “That’s messed up. Stop.”
“Okay.” I grinned. “I’m all done.”
Raven took out a textbook and cracked it open while I checked my phone.
Lanie still hadn’t responded to my text.
“I hope Lanie can come on Thursday,” I murmured.
“She is.”
I snapped my head up. Raven was bent over her notebook, pen in hand, hair
falling around her face.
“How do you know?”
She spared me a brief glance. “We talked about it.”
 “I didn’t invite her yet.”
“No, I did. And she said she’ll come.” Raven dropped her face, going back to
her homework.
Too stunned to move, I just sat there. How long had Raven and Lanie spoken
for that day? And what other things had they talked about?
They were forming a relationship without me, I realized. Though it was
probably good, the turn of events still made me feel strange. Not jealous, just …
shocked.
I eyed Raven, the scratching of her pen the only noise in the room. Is this
how it would be should Lanie enter our lives in a more serious way?
I licked my lips, not willing to get my hopes too high. Yet it was hard. For
the time being, everything was good. Raven was trying to do better, and so was
I. Where we failed, Lanie propped us up. The situation felt incredibly right.
Me. Raven. Lanie.
What would it be like for the three of us to be together—truly together? In
the same home? Every day?
I couldn’t say, but I had to find out.
15
 LANIE

T he light turned yellow, and I slowed the car down, not in any rush to get
to my parents’ house.
“When are you leaving?” I asked Erica.
“First thing tomorrow morning,” she answered, her voice coming through the
car’s speakers. “Traffic is going to be a bitch.”
“You’re not complaining about the romantic weekend your boyfriend is
taking you on already, are you?”
“Never.”
I smiled to myself. Each time we’d talked since the interaction with Dirty
Pirate Guy, aka Troy, Erica had gushed about Matt in one way or another. It
seemed that having another guy ask her out was all it took for her to remember
she was, as she put it, one of the luckiest people in the world.
“And when are you back?”
“Sunday night. It’s the full, extended weekend, baby.”
“Sounds nice.” The light changed to green, and I sighed as I hit the gas. “I’m
four blocks away.”
“Don’t be afraid. You’ve already told them you’re sleeping with Andrew.
Telling your parents about Thanksgiving will be a piece of cake.”
“Just to clarify, I never specifically said I’m sleeping with him.”
“Right. I’m sure your mom and dad think you’re a virgin.”
“Maybe.”
“With my influence rubbing off on you for the last twenty-three years? I
don’t think so.”
“True.” I took a turn onto my parents’ street. Three more blocks to go.
“By the way, Andrew’s inviting you to dinner only confirms what I already
thought. He wants you. In more than one way.”
 My tummy grew warm at that, but I was used to not getting my hopes up and
so couldn’t readily agree with her. “It might have been Raven’s idea.”
“Really? That’s so sweet.”
“Yeah,” I smiled. “It is. She’s a great girl.”
“Are you two going to braid each other’s hair while you’re there tomorrow?”
“Do you have to turn everything into a joke?” I countered.
“Sorry. I’m trying to distract you from what you’re about to do.”
“Ugh.” I grimaced. “One more block to go.”
“Ten. Nine. Eight.”
“Can I put you on speaker and bring the phone in with me? That way,
there’ll be a witness if my parents murder me.”
“Gruesome.”
Slowly, I pulled up the driveway. With staying later at school and then
driving nearly all the way across town, the sun had set half an hour ago. The fake
candles my mom had placed in the front windows glowed, a misleading
welcome.
“I should get this over with. Have fun this weekend.”
“You too!” Erica squealed. “I’ll send pics.”
We hung up, and I hurried across the cold driveway, noting that my dad’s car
wasn’t around.
“Hello,” I called, letting myself in through the open door.
“In the den!”
Unwinding my scarf, I followed Mom’s voice into the main room and found
her sitting in the middle of the floor, boxes of ornaments and Christmas
decorations surrounding her.
“I can’t find Grandma’s angel,” she cried in despair.
Settling on the floor next to her, I looked all around. “Which boxes have you
looked in?”
“All of them.”
“Hm. Okay. Well, it has to be somewhere. The boxes have been in the attic
all year long. I doubt a squirrel went up there and stole it.”
“Their paws are too little to open these lids.”
I tried not to laugh at my mother’s agony. “Don’t worry. We’ll find it.”
Happy to have a task to distract myself with, I pulled a big red box to me and
began to carefully pull everything out of it. Tissue paper, shiny orbs, popsicle
ornaments I’d made in grade school, and more tissue paper. No antique angel.
“You’re coming to put the tree up on Friday?” Mom asked.
“Yeah.” I paused. This was the segue I needed. If I could only gather the
necessary bravery.
 “And tomorrow. What time are you coming over?” She looked at me
expectantly, sparkly tissue paper in both hands.
“Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that.” I swallowed. “Since
Thanksgiving is pretty small this year, I was thinking you and Dad wouldn’t
mind if I spend it somewhere else.” I bit my lip. “Not here.”
As if that needed clarification.
Mom tilted her head in confusion. “With Erica and Matt?”
“No, they’re going away for the weekend. Andrew and, um, his daughter
Raven invited me to their place.”
“That’s nice.” She put the tissue paper down and started on the next box
while I stared at her.
That’s nice?
“I’m going to go,” I said. “But I’ll be back over here on Friday—”
“You should go,” Mom encouraged.
The room literally started to tilt. “Um.”
“Lanie, I know I gave you an earful about this before,” she matter-of-factly
explained, “But I’ve had some time to think about it. If your father is all right
with you and Andrew dating, then so am I.”
“Really?”
“Mm-hmm. Look in that little silver box.” She pointed to my right. “It might
be in there.”
I obediently opened the box and discovered the angel resting on some cotton.
“Goodness me, I must be losing my mind,” Mom exclaimed. “I swear I
already opened that up.”
I handed her the box. “You’re not mad about me not being here for
Thanksgiving?”
She moved her head in some kind of tilt, shake combo. “It’s just
Thanksgiving. You know it’s Christmas that really matters.”
So said my mother’s living room full of Christmas decorations.
“Okay. I just wanted to make sure this was all right with you.”
Mom straightened the dress on the angel. “The way I see it now, Lanie, your
father knows Andrew much better than I do. If he trusts the man, that’s good
enough for me.”
I nodded, liking where the conversation was going more and more.
“Also,” she continued, “His ex-wife is dead, so that’s good.”
“Mom,” I gasped.
She pursed her lips. “Oh, stop. You know what I’m saying. Her death was a
horrible thing, especially with Raven being so young. But at least you won’t
have some ex meddling in your affairs, trying to interfere with Raven all the
time like if Andrew was divorced.”
“Right,” I nodded, looking at my reflection in a red ornament.
“What are you making to bring?”
“Um.”
“Lanie!” Mom’s eyes were wild. “I thought I raised you better than that.”
“You did. I haven’t decided what I’m taking yet, that’s all.”
Mom gently set the angel on a bed of tissue paper. “I assume you want things
to work out between you and Andrew.”
“Um, yes?”
“Yes with a question mark or with a period?”
I bit on the inside of my cheek with frustration. How come it felt like
everyone was grilling me on the seriousness of our relationship? The only people
not obsessed with our future seemed to be me and him.
“I like him,” was all I said.
“What you mean is it’s not just a fling?”
“Right,” I answered, hoping that was good enough.
“Then you need to help make the meal. Just bringing a dish won’t be good
enough. Offer to get there early in the morning to get everything started. If you
want Andrew to see you in a long-term way, you need to show him all the
aspects of your womanhood. I didn’t send you to those etiquette and culinary
classes for nothing.”
And … Janice Jacobs, ladies and gentlemen.
“I’ll see if they want my help,” I said. “But I don’t want to intrude on their
father-daughter time.”
Mom clicked her tongue. “Nonsense. They invited you to dinner. They want
you there. You can’t sit around in your apartment all morning.”
“I’m pretty good at that.”
She gave me a sour look.
“When are you getting the tree this year?” I asked, eager to change the
subject.
“Friday morning. Remember? I’ll pick one up for you as well. Do you think
Andrew and Raven would like to come with? We could all go. The five of us.”
I thought about that, me and my parents and Andrew and Raven all together.
Seeing Dad and Andrew in the same room once had been enough of a shock. I
wasn’t sure I was ready to make a big excursion out of their knowing each other.
“I’ll see,” I noncommittally answered.
“They celebrate Christmas, right?”
“I think so. We’ve never talked about it.”
Mom went on, going through the ornaments while talking about all the plans
she had for the holidays. The coat drive at church. Taking a night trip to see the
big light display at the farm outside of the city.
As I sorted through the glitter and glass, I zoned out, enjoying the peaceful
state her chatter put me in. My mother could talk to a wall. It might have been
annoying for some people, but I’d learned long ago how to make the best of it.
When we finished picking out the ornaments for that year and put the rest
away, I waved away Mom’s insistence that I stay for dinner and went out to the
car. It had only been a three-day week, but it wore me out, and I was ready to
curl up on the couch.
First, though, I had to make a call.
Sitting in the driveway with the engine idling, I dialed Andrew’s number and
put him on speaker.
“Hello,” that perfectly deep and silky voice answered.
“Hi.” Though I was sitting, my legs still shook. Every time I heard Andrew
speak, I remembered the things he did to me in bed. Basically, one word from
him and I melted.
“What’s going on?”
“I just talked to my parents, and it looks like I’m coming to your house
tomorrow.”
“I thought that was settled.”
“Kind of.” I looked back at the dark house, wondering if Mom watched me
from between the curtains. “I had to check and make sure they were okay with
me skipping out on them.”
Andrew’s tone changed to a deadly serious one. “I don’t want to do anything
that will upset them.”
“Surprisingly, Mom was understanding. She, uh, encouraged me to go to
your house.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
I’d save the subject of my mother’s need to see me married for another
conversation.
“But, hey, I would like to come and help you guys cook tomorrow. If you
want me to. It’s such a big job, and I’d hate to leave you hanging.”
“Yeah?” he pleasantly asked. “Hold on a sec.”
The phone went to mute, but I could make an educated guess and say
Andrew was asking Raven if my helping would be all right.
“Can you come around ten?” he asked a minute later.
“Yeah. Ten works for me.”
“Great.”
 “Cool.” I smiled, feeling giddy thinking about it. I really wanted to spend
time with both of them, but perhaps Andrew and I would get a chance to sneak
off for a few minutes.
We said goodbye, and I cruised out of the parking lot, the cloud I floated on
carrying me the whole way home.
16
 ANDREW

I stared at the multiple grocery bags on the kitchen table, my head spinning.
“Okay. How many recipes are we following again?”
Raven inspected the laptop on the counter. “There’s the stuffing, the
turkey, the green bean casserole, the cranberry sauce. That’s for Lanie. Um,
sweet potatoes, salad. Course, any idiot can make that.”
I sucked in a long breath, wondering if I was having my first anxiety attack.
“Salad. Okay. We can do that. Where’s the lettuce?”
Raven made a face. “That’s the last thing we have to make. We need to get
the oven ready for the turkey. Did you thaw it?”
“Uh.”
“Dad!” Raven loudly clapped her hands. “Keep it together. Did you thaw the
turkey?”
“Y-yes,” I stuttered. “I think so.”
“What?” She looked disgusted.
I opened the fridge and cautiously poked the turkey. “I think it’s thawed.
How do I tell?”
“Drop it on the floor,” she sarcastically snapped. “If it breaks a board, it’s
still frozen.”
“Don’t start an attitude with me, Raven. Not right now.”
As I spun around to stare her down, the front doorbell rang.
“Good.” Raven left the laptop and crossed the floor. “Maybe Lanie knows
how to do this.”
“I could do it too,” I grumbled, but if she heard me, she pretended she
hadn’t.
Staying in the kitchen, I pulled the turkey from the fridge and set it on the
counter. It looked sad. All pale and soft.
 We should have gone to the damn country club. They had a pianist there.
Servers. Raven and I could have made dessert at home afterward instead.
“I’m sure we’ll figure it out,” Lanie said from behind me.
I turned around in time to see her and Raven enter the kitchen. She held a
covered pie in one hand and unwound a red scarf with the other, and her eyes
shone as they caught mine.
“Hi,” she breathed, setting the pie down on the table.
“Hi,” I repeated, unable to look away. God, did she get more beautiful each
day?
“I’ll hang up your stuff,” Raven said, taking Lanie’s coat and scarf in the
direction of the hall closet.
Lanie smoothed down the front of what looked like a cross between a
sweater and a dress. Noting that the hem fell just a few inches above her knees,
my fingers trembled. That would be very easy to take off.
As I continued to stare at her, she tucked one of her longer strands of hair
behind her ear and looked past me at the turkey on the counter. “So what are we
dealing with here?”
“I love it when you do that.”
“Huh?” She blinked in confusion. Moving fast, I stepped across the kitchen
and pressed my mouth to hers. She inhaled sharply, her back arching and her tits
pressing against my chest. I sent my tongue between her lips, and red-hot desire
spun in my veins.
Knowing I had to stop before I took it too far, I quickly stepped back. Lanie
licked her lips, a blush crawling across her cheeks.
“Oh,” she whispered.
I nodded, trying to convey with my eyes how fucking sexy she looked.
Raven’s footsteps were already coming back, and I’d run out of time to say or do
anything else.
“So, Dad might have screwed up Thanksgiving,” Raven announced, poking
the turkey with a butter knife.
Lanie sputtered, coughed, and laughed all in the space of two seconds.
“What?”
My face heated. “Way to throw the only father you’ll ever have under the
bus. Need I remind you I’ve been a little busy building a company my whole
life. Excuse me if I haven’t had time to learn how to cook.”
“It can’t be that bad.” Lanie squeezed my hand the slightest bit as she walked
past me. My eyes drifted down to her swaying hips before I got a hold of myself
and forced them to lift.
“Weren’t we supposed to put this in the oven hours ago?” Raven mournfully
asked.
Lanie inspected the bird. “Well, no. Only if you want to eat right at noon.
Judging by the size, it should take about four or so hours to cook.”
“Hallelujah.” Raven’s eyes lit up, and she smiled at me over Lanie’s
shoulder.
Lanie rolled up her sleeves. “I’ve been helping my mom cook for years.
Don’t worry. I could make a Thanksgiving meal with my eyes closed.”
“What can I do?” Raven asked.
“Let’s see.” Lanie popped her lips. “What are we making?”
“Here’s the list.” Raven showed her the laptop.
“Okay. Great. How about you get started on the green bean casserole? You
can pare the beans, and then after that peel the sweet potatoes. If we have
everything prepped and ready to go, the actual cooking and baking will be a
breeze.”
“What about me?” I asked.
“Dad can set the table,” Raven cut in before Lanie had the chance to say
anything.
“Hey!” I cried. “Come on, now.”
Raven rolled her eyes at Lanie. “He can’t even make toast. It’s sad, really.
He’s always burning it.”
Lanie giggled. “He made dinner for me once.”
“He probably had it delivered and then threw away the boxes so you’d think
he made it.”
“If that’s true, that’s impressive in and of itself.”
“All right, all right.” I waved my hands around. “Have you two had enough
laughs yet? Raven, hand me that bag of sweet potatoes. I think I can at least
handle those.”
“We’ll see.” She rolled her eyes again.
“Your eyes are going to get stuck that way.”
“Oh my god, no one even says that anymore. What are you, forty-five?”
Lanie’s shoulders shook with laughter as she cut the net off the turkey.
“Nice, Raven,” I sarcastically answered. “You should go into comedy.
Stating the obvious always goes over well.”
Raven stuck her tongue out at me, but I could tell she wasn’t really mad. In
fact, she was the opposite. As Lanie gave out instructions and checked the
progress of our individual dishes, Raven watched the woman with a look that
could only be described as admiration.
It appeared I wasn’t the only one constantly impressed with Lanie.
“This says to use small marshmallows,” I read from the recipe, once the time
to bake the sweet potatoes arrived. “We got the wrong kind. I only have the big
ones.”
Grinning, Lanie sauntered over, took a big marshmallow from the open bag,
ripped it in half, put one in my hand, and stuck the other part in her mouth.
“Now they’re small.” She grinned.
My temperature rose several degrees.
Raven made a big scene reaching between the two of us to grab a cutting
board. “Is that really kitchen talk?”
Lanie bit down on her smile and turned away, quickly getting busy with the
cranberry sauce. “It’s cool that you decided to make this from scratch,” she said.
“Yeah.” Raven shrugged. “We don’t really like it. It’s for you.”
Lanie’s eyebrows flew up. “You don’t like cranberry sauce? Are you out of
your mind?”
“It’s so sour.”
“Have you ever had it with orange juice in it?”
“Um, no? I don’t think so.”
“Ah, so you’ve never had it made the right way.” Lanie pointed at the fruit
bowl in the corner. “If you hand me one of those oranges, I’ll show you my
aunt’s trick. Oh, and do you have a grater? If we put some of the peel in it, it’ll
be even better.”
Smiling to myself, I stepped back so the two of them could have the run of
the kitchen. “Just tell me when I need to set the table.”
Lanie winked over her shoulder. “Okay.”
By the time the meal was finished, my kitchen was unrecognizable. Not even
when Karen went on a cooking frenzy, as she sometimes did when stressed and
made enough casseroles for a week, did the counters look like this.
“You have carving tools?” Lanie asked me as she took the turkey out of the
oven.
“Sure do.”
“And never been used,” Raven added.
We moved with a rhythm, taking the dishes into the dining room, a place I
only ventured into if a client was over for dinner.
“Can we light those?” Lanie asked, pointing at the tall, untouched white
candles in the center of the table.
“Of course.” Grabbing the lighter from the fireplace’s mantle, I handed it
over—making sure my fingers grazed Lanie’s an undue amount in the process.
She lit the candles, adjusted the angle of the turkey, and straightened the
cloth napkins.
“I think you missed your calling,” I said. “Maybe you should have gone into
home décor or the culinary arts.”
Lanie wrinkled her nose. “Nah. I like my life the way it is.”
Her eyes stayed on mine a moment after she finished talking, and a thrill
went through me. I knew what she was getting at. Life lately had been pretty
fucking great.
“Shall we?” Lanie gestured at the table, and the three of us took our seats.
Right away, I picked up the carving knife.
“Wait!” Raven cried. “We have to say what we’re thankful for. Right?” She
looked to Lanie for backup.
Lanie’s gaze slid to mine. “Sure. Andrew?”
I smiled at them both. “Of course. Raven, do you want to go first?”
Raven laid her intertwined hands on the table. “I’m grateful for today exactly
as it is.I’m glad that Miss Jacobs—Lanie—could come over.”
Lanie dropped her face in that way she always did when she was both happy
and embarrassed. “Thank you, Raven. I’m grateful for ...” She trailed off, eyes
searching the air. “You know what? I’m grateful for the exact same thing.
Today. I can’t think of a way it could be more perfect.”
“Hear! Hear!” I raised my water glass. “I’m going to have to join in on that.
Today is pretty amazing.”
We clinked glasses, the echo filling the room and striking a chord in my
heart. I’d hoped that today would be great, but with it here, I found it better than
I could have imagined. Though I’d suspected for a while that Lanie and Raven
were forming their own special relationship, it wasn’t until that morning that I
got to observe it.
What I saw, I liked. A lot.
As we dug in, and Raven and Lanie both shared news from school, the good
feeling rising in me grew stronger. Was this what it would be like if Lanie lived
with us? Not the feast that took several hours to prepare, but a meal together
every day, just the three of us? Time away from all the craziness of work and
school to enjoy each other?
We’d had those special evenings with Lanie’s mom, and I’d cursed the world
more times than I could count for taking Danica away. A few times, I’d thought
about what it might mean to find another woman to join our family, but I’d never
let myself take the musings very far. Daydreaming would only get my hopes up,
and I’d never met a woman I could see living with me and Raven.
Not until Lanie.
“Do you want to go swimming?” Raven asked as we finished off the
pumpkin pie Lanie had brought.
“Do you have a death wish?” I leaned back in my chair, resisting the urge to
unbutton my pants. If I did that, Raven would never let me hear the end of it.
“I meant in a little while.” She turned back to Lanie. “If you’re not going
anywhere after this, I mean.”
Lanie licked whipped cream off the tip of her fork, and it took every ounce
of will I had to not lunge across the table and take her lips with mine.
“I don’t have anywhere to be.” Lanie shrugged. “It’s Thanksgiving, after all.
Except I didn’t bring a bathing suit.”
An image of Lanie gliding through the water completely naked entered my
mind. Clearing my throat, I adjusted myself in my seat. God, I was hopeless.
“You can borrow one of mine,” Raven offered.
“Okay.” Lanie’s smile lit up the room. “But your dad is right. We should
probably wait a little while before swimming. Just to be safe.”
“Well, I’ll go get the bathing suits.” Raven stood and stacked our three
plates.
“I’ll get these,” I announced, taking the dishes from her hands. “You girls
can go get changed.”
The second I had the plates in the dishwasher—just the ones we’d eaten off
of, as the others could wait till later—I ran upstairs, in the direction Lanie and
Raven had gone.
“Raven?” I called, stopping at the landing. “Lanie?”
Music came from under Raven’s closed door. Just as I turned to go back
downstairs and wait for them, the hall bathroom opened and Lanie stepped out.
“Hey,” she smiled.
I gulped, too busy staring at her black bikini-clad form to speak.
“Andrew,” she playfully chastised.
“I can’t help it.”
“You’ve seen me naked before.” She crossed her arms, which only made her
breasts ampler.
“It must be something about having all the best parts covered up.” I reached
for her, wrapping my arm around her waist and pulling her into me. “That is a
very sexy … wait.” I frowned. “That suit is too sexy for Raven to have. She
needs to get rid of it.”
Lanie swatted my shoulder. “What’s she going to wear to pool parties then?”
“A full-piece wetsuit.”
“God.” She laughed. “I don’t want to be around when you tell her that.”
“Here.” I gently took her hand. “I want to show you something.”
“What?”
In response, I pulled her into the library and closed the door behind us. Lanie
started to look around herself, but I pressed my fingers against her jaw, stopping
her. Her eyes snapped back to me, and I gently guided her face to mine.
Lowering my head, I swept my lips across hers, taking my time and making
the kiss butterfly light.
Lanie sighed in pleasure, her exhale a trembling one. I landed another kiss,
this one a bit more forceful. Dropping my hands, I trailed them over her naked
shoulders. The bathing suit straps taunted me. They looked so fragile like they
would come untied if I only flicked them.
“It’s definitely too sexy,” I affirmed.
Lanie laughed and opened her mouth, probably to protest, but I pressed my
finger to her lips.
“Raven should not be wearing it,” I said. In a slower, more meaningful way I
added, “And neither should you, but for another reason completely.”
Pressing my arms against the door on either side of Lanie, I lethargically
licked a line from the base of her neck to her ear. Lanie trembled between me
and the door, her breasts heaving against my chest. I could feel her nipples
getting tight, straining against the bikini’s fabric.
Her hands found my shoulders, nails digging in before moving up and
twisting through the back of my hair. I took her bottom lip between my teeth,
tugging the slightest amount before releasing it and running my tongue across
her front teeth.
Lanie’s hands pressed harder into the back of my head, and her hips drove
forward. I ran my palms down her bare sides, swiveling them over her hips and
across her ass. She was so perfect in my arms, soft and delicate.
“Lanie!” Raven shouted from down the hall.
With a pained inhale, I pulled my lips away from hers.
Lanie’s eyes went wide in fear. “Oh, no,” she whispered. “I don’t want
Raven to think we were—”
I chuckled. “If she asks, I’ll tell her I was showing you my encyclopedia
collection.”
“Is that what they’re calling it now?”
“Get out of here.” I laughed, landing a playful spank on her rear as she
turned to open the door.
Lanie paused with her hand on the knob. “Are you coming?”
“In a minute. I need to go get changed.”
And wait for my hard-on to go down.
“Okay,” she whispered, slipping out as Raven called her name again.
The door closed with a soft click, and I ran my hands through my hair as I
sighed in contentment. Pulling Lanie into the library and having my way with
her had been a ballsy move considering Raven was in the house, but it had been
well worth it.
As much as I wanted—no, needed—to get Lanie into my bed, I now knew I
could wait. There was a moment and a place for everything, and I had a very
good feeling my time together with Lanie had only begun.
17
 LANIE

T he beeping coming from the computer made me jump in my seat.

Turning around in my chair, I stared at the screen in confusion for a
second before realizing someone was calling me on video chat.
A smile pulling at my lips, and I hit the green answer button. Andrew’s face
popped up, his large office windows behind him.
“Well, hello,” I answered, glancing at my office door to make sure it was
closed all the way. Taking personal calls at work wasn’t forbidden, but I still felt
weird about it and didn’t want to spend too much time chatting people up when I
could have been bettering tomorrow’s minds and all that jazz.
“Hello, Miss Jacobs,” Andrew purred. “Have I caught you at a bad time?”
Heat traveled through me, and I crossed my legs, trying to get rid of that
familiar ache Andrew’s voice always caused. “I can chat for a bit. How are you?
How is work?”
Andrew scrunched his nose slightly. “Can’t complain. I’ve been distracted
by thoughts of you all day, though.”
“I know the feeling,” I sighed, propping my chin on my hand.
“Your day is almost over, no?” He looked at his wristwatch. God, I loved
that he wore one. When everyone else relied on their smartphones for
everything, Andrew Marx still wore a watch. It was so classic and, therefore,
sexy.
“Yeah,” I answered. “Almost over. The bell rang, but I have a few things I
need to finish up before I go home.”
Almost a week had gone by since Thanksgiving, and Andrew and I had
gotten to see each other twice, which actually didn’t feel like much at all.
Something had happened to me after my parents accepted him in my life and I’d
hung out at home with him and Raven. It was like a “Go” flag had been waved.
Just like that, we were off, free to go crazy and spend as much time with each
other as we wanted.
Before, I’d thought about him a lot. Craved him a lot. But now it was at a
deeper level. The giddy feelings Andrew gave me were still there, but there was
a sense of familiarity as well. I’d never had it with another guy, and I was trying
not to dissect the feeling, but even I couldn’t believe my good luck.
“Don’t you have, like, a million employees to be bossing around?” I teased.
“Maybe, but there’s no crime in calling my girlfriend midday and seeing
how she’s doing.”
His words electrified my heart. Girlfriend. Andrew had never called me that
before.
But, wow, did I like how it sounded.
“I’m doing great now that I’ve talked to you,” I admitted, not even caring
how corny the whole conversation sounded.
Andrew ran his front teeth across his bottom lip, and his gaze lowered as he
checked me out through the screen. “You look amazing today.”
“So do you,” I murmured. “I like your hair like that.”
He grabbed at the roots of his tousled hair. “It’s because I’ve been yanking at
it in frustration trying to get work done before the weekend.”
“What’s happening this weekend?”
“I was hoping to take you out Friday night.”
“Oh.” I smiled in pleasure. “Whatever happened to the workaholic I first
met?”
“What, you want him back?”
“No! Definitely not. I think Raven and I would both have to kill you if that
happened.”
“I always knew beautiful women would be the death of me.” Andrew leaned
back in his chair, putting his laced fingers behind his head. “So, what about
Friday night?”
“Um.”
“No. Don’t tell me you have plans with some other guy.”
I grinned. “What other guy, Andrew? What else could I need?”
He smiled wider, and my heart felt like it was about to explode from
happiness. Was this “the conversation?” Had we just declared we were
exclusive, sealed the deal, and such?
“Raven has plans,” Andrew said. “So we have the whole night to ourselves.
Think about what you want to do.”
“Okay.” Just as I said it, a familiar voice came from the other side of my
door. Was that Raven?
 “I should go,” I explained. “Talk later?”
Andrew winked. “Have a good afternoon.”
“You too,” I sighed, dangerously close to swooning.
Andrew’s sexy face disappeared from my screen, and I closed the chat
window before getting up and cracking my office door. I’d been right. Raven
was in the hallway.
She leaned against the wall across from my office, down a few feet, allowing
me the perfect view of her face. And what a face it currently was. Raven glowed
like she was made out of sunlight. She was talking to a guy who stood with his
back to me, but I could take an easy guess as to who it was.
Sure enough, Jason turned slightly to the side as he said something in a low
voice. Raven laughed, and a pack of kids passed by, obscuring my vision. When
the view cleared again, Raven had tilted her head to the side. Despite the fact
that they were just across the hall, I couldn’t make out anything they said.
Realizing I was creeping, I shut my office door. Jason and Raven had made
up, it seemed.
I wasn’t sure how I felt about that.
After the day Raven had slapped him, I did a little poking around and
confirmed what she’d basically already told me. Jason was that guy at our
school. As in, the boys all wanted to be him, and the girls all wanted to get with
him. I wondered how many girls Jason had been with. I doubted he was a virgin.
And what about Raven? I’d never brought that conversation up with Andrew.
I didn’t want to pry, but I also didn’t want Raven getting hurt. I’d lost my
virginity when I wasn’t much older than her, and I’d always wished that I’d
waited. Maybe if someone had encouraged me to be careful, had filled me in on
how quickly things change when you’re a teen and young adult.
The intercom above my head crackled, and Principal Stafford’s voice came
over the line. As the afternoon’s closing announcements droned on, I opened the
door again. Raven and Jason were waving goodbye.
“Raven.”
She looked over, eyes going wide with surprise as if she’d forgotten she was
flirting right across from my office.
“Hi,” I said.
She straightened up, adjusting her backpack strap. “Hey.”
I stayed where I was, leaning in the doorway. “Looks like you and Jason
have made up.”
Her lips twisted as she tried not to smile. “Yeah. He apologized for what
happened at the party.”
“That’s good.”
 Raven’s face fell. “You don’t look like it is.”
My heart twisted. She looked so disappointed.
“Do you want to come in?” I pushed my door open further. “Or do you have
to catch the bus?”
“I have German club in, like, fifteen minutes. Karen is picking me up
afterward.” Pushing herself off the wall, she entered my office.
“Video chatting?” she asked, dropping into a chair and settling into a cross-
legged position.
“Huh?”
She nodded at the computer screen. Although I’d closed out the conversation
box with Andrew, I’d neglected to shut down the entire video chat program.
“Uh, yeah.” I hastily clicked the program closed.
“Anyone interesting?”
The cheeky look on her face said she suspected I’d been talking to her dad.
Embarrassment flooded me, and I looked for a way to dodge the question but
then realized there was no point. I wanted to connect with Raven, to find out
what was happening with her and Jason, but our relationship had gone beyond
that of counselor-student. It was even beyond that of Dad’s New Girlfriend. If I
wanted transparency from Raven, I needed to offer it myself.
“Just some hot guy,” I said.
Raven made a disgusted face. “Ew.”
“Sorry.” I laughed. “It’s true.”
“You can stop right there. I don’t need to hear any more.”
I leaned forward in my seat, resting my arms on my desk. “I had a really
good time at your house last week. Thanks again for inviting me.”
“Yeah, no problem. It was cool.” She shook her hair out and tied it into a
fresh ponytail. “Have you and my dad been hanging out?”
The question seemed a little weird considering she’d wanted to stop talking
about him, but I kind of got it. No sexy talk about Andrew, but everything else
was fine.
“Yeah,” I slowly said. “We’ve seen each other a couple times.”
She pouted slightly. “He hasn’t told me.”
“Maybe he thinks you don’t want to hear about us.”
Raven’s eyebrows rose. “You came over for Thanksgiving. I know you two
are dating. What else is there to hide?”
I thought about that. “Nothing, I guess. But I think he wants to be careful. He
doesn’t want too much going on in your life all at once.”
It was the most honest I’d ever been with Raven, and I couldn’t really say
why I was going the route of full disclosure. My intuition told me it was time.
Being around Raven had shown me she could handle a lot more than her elders,
Andrew included, probably gave her credit for.
“I’ve been fine.” Raven stared me down. “Right? Don’t you think I have?”
“It seems that way.” I leaned back in my seat, scooting down some. I’d been
working at my desk most of the day, and my hips were sore from all the sitting.
“You know if he’s being secretive, it’s out of love, right?”
“Yes.”
Her answer surprised me, and for a moment, I didn’t know what to say.
“Cool,” I finally managed. “Glad we have that squared away.” I gave her a
smile to show her I wasn’t being serious. “So what’s the deal with you and Jason
now that he’s apologized? Are you guys going out?”
“Going out in what way?”
“Any way.” I laughed.
Raven looked down at her lap. “I don’t know. I guess. I mean, he said I’m
the only girl he wants, and, you know, he’s sorry about what happened, and he
wants to be a better man for me.”
I tried not to laugh over a seventeen-year-old claiming he wanted to be a
better man.
“That’s good,” I said instead.
“Yeah.” She peeked up at me from under her eyelashes. “I’ve never had
one.” Raven swallowed, clearly embarrassed. “I’ve never had a boyfriend
before.”
“I didn’t have my first boyfriend till I was seventeen.”
“Yeah, it’s whatever. I know it’s normal and all.”
“Totally.”
Raven dropped her face again. Was she trying to take the conversation
somewhere else?
I thought fast, desperately looking for the right words. “And it wasn’t much
longer after that that I lost my virginity.”
That got her attention. “How much longer after that?”
“Like a year later. It was a different guy, not my first boyfriend. And I-I kind
of regret it.”
Raven groaned. “Lanie. Is this a celibacy talk?”
“No!” I sat up straighter.
“Okay. Good. Let me point out that things are different now than they were
when you were in high school ten years ago.”
“I didn’t go to school in the fifties, Raven.”
“That’s not what I mean.” She laughed.
“Oh, really? You weren’t trying to suggest that all the kids hung out at the
movie drive-in, and French kissing was obscene?”
“I’m pretty sure they were having sex back then.”
“Yeah.” I shrugged. “They probably were.”
“So now you’re going to ask me if I am?”
I stopped my jaw from dropping just in time. “We can talk about that if you
want.”
“Dad and I have.” She picked up a handful of paper clips from the holder on
my desk and started linking them together. “And I’ve never done it. Not that Dad
knows anything about that. I don’t think I’d tell him if I had.”
Raven quickly looked back at me.
“I don’t have to tell him anything about this,” I quietly affirmed.
Raven nodded. It suddenly occurred to me that we could one day soon be
crossing the boundaries of what was appropriate for a student and counselor to
discuss.
But we were so much more than student and counselor. I was her dad’s
girlfriend. New girlfriend, yeah, but one who had come to really care for the
both of them, like, a lot.
I loved them both. It was too early to say that, but it was the truth. I couldn’t
stand the thought of seeing Andrew or Raven be hurt. Especially not by some
polo-wearing dude with too much body spray on.
“Do you want Jason to be your first?” I asked.
Raven studied the carpet. “Maybe? I don’t know. I really like him, but if he
is my first, just not yet. You know?”
She looked back to me, and I nodded. “Definitely.”
There was more I needed to say, but I had to be careful how I broached the
next part. “One more thing. Guys like Jason, I mean, boys Jason’s age can be ...”
I waited for the right word to come to me before realizing there wasn’t one.
“Horndogs,” I finished. “They can be super horny.”
Raven laughed. “Girls can, too.”
I smiled. “Yeah, I know.”
“They’re just better at controlling themselves in high school.”
“I can’t argue with you there.”
“I think I know what you’re going to say,” she earnestly went on. “And I can
handle myself around guys like Jason. I took care of him last week, didn’t I?”
“Um, I don’t think I’d be doing my profession justice if I said slapping a
person equated with properly dealing with them.”
Grabbing her backpack, Raven stood. “But I’m not going to let anything I’m
not ready for happen.”
I stood as well, studying her, wishing I’d been that confident at seventeen.
 “Okay,” I answered. “I’m really happy to hear that. I’m here to talk if you
ever need to, and your dad is as well.”
“I know. Thanks. Hey, I have to get to German club.”
“Okay. Have a good time. See you later.”
“You too.” Raven gave me a grateful smile, but whether it was due to our
conversation happening or due to it ending, I couldn’t tell. I hoped the former.
She left the door hanging open behind her, and I leaned against my desk,
arms crossed. It seemed Raven had more decisive of a mind when it came to
boys than I’d expected. At her age, I was too susceptible to others wants and
needs. More than once, I let myself get caught up in doing things I didn’t really
want to and not just with boyfriends.
So at least she had her own mind. That was good.
Yet still, I couldn’t help but worry.
“Just don’t get your heart broken, Raven,” I whispered into the quiet room.
“There’s no good in that.”
18
 ANDREW

R aven ran down the stairs like a monster was after her.
“What’s up?” I asked, going to the living room doorway. “You
okay?”
“What?” She wrinkled her nose and ran her fingers through her hair. “Yeah.
Everything is fine. I’m going out.”
I took in a long breath, calming my racing heart. When I’d first heard her
steps coming down the stairs, fast as they were, I’d freaked out for a second.
Now I noticed she wore a jacket and beanie.
“On Sunday night?” I questioned. “You didn’t ask me.”
“It’s only six o’clock, and I’m just going to Taylor’s house.”
“Taylor?”
Each time I checked, Raven had a new friend. It’s what I’d wished for a
month ago, but now I was left feeling weird about her burgeoning popularity.
Who were these kids she was hanging out with?
“Taylor?” I asked once more, letting it hang there.
“Chuck.”
“Is that supposed to be funny?”
Raven stepped forward and planted a hand on my shoulder. “I’ll be back at
eight.”
I arched an eyebrow. “Text me if anything—no, call me if you need me.
Promise?”
“Yep.” Spinning on her heel, she waggled her fingertips at me and
disappeared through the front door.
And I was left alone, just me and the quiet house.
It had happened before, but in prior days, I filled silent hours with busy
work. Some nights, after Karen went home and Raven shut herself in her
bedroom after refusing to talk to me yet again, I would go into my office and sift
through account information that I’d already been over a dozen times. It was my
way of escape.
But it didn’t work anymore. I didn’t need to go and sit in the office all by
myself to know that.
I pulled my phone from my back pocket and longingly looked at my texts
from Lanie. I would have invited her over in a heartbeat if it wasn’t Sunday
night. Without exception, she always spent that evening with her best friend.
Weird as it was, I was forty-five and feeling everyone but me was out having
a great time. Leaving the thread with Lanie, I pulled up another one.
Drink? I texted Saxton.
Thirty minutes later, I rolled into the country club, finding the place
bedecked in its usual over-the-top Christmas glory. The lobby practically glowed
red, green, and silver, thanks not only to the ceiling-scraping tree but to the
garlands and reindeer display in the corner as well.
Passing my coat and scarf over to the coat check, I entered the bar and swept
my gaze across the walls. Saxton wasn’t there yet.
But Bob was.
He saw me right as I saw him. Surprise flashed in his eyes, and he stood,
motioning for me to come over.
My heart leaped into my throat. Bob and I hadn’t seen each other since our
conversation about Lanie. It wasn’t unusual for us to go much longer than that
without talking, but things were different now. I was dating his daughter. It was
probably up to me to check in with him every once in a while, give him a little
feedback on how things were going. Yet I’d done none of that.
Hoping the shame didn’t show on my face, I reached for his hand. “Bob.
How are you doing?”
He accepted my shake with a smile. “Swell. Just had dinner with my
accountant. What are you doing here on a Sunday night?”
“I’m meeting Saxton for a drink.”
“Ah.” Bob’s eyebrows rose a slight bit. He’d never hidden his mixed feelings
for Saxton.
“Join us.”
He pursed his lips, considering it. “You know, I will. Thank you. Have a seat
here.” He clapped me on the back and gestured to the chair across from his.
“I’m sorry I haven’t been in touch,” I said right away.
Bob frowned as he raised his glass tumbler, gesturing for the waiter to bring
us a fresh round of drinks. “Why’s that?”
“Well,” I cleared my throat. Damn. Was he really planning on making me
say it? “I feel I should have let you know how things are going with me and
Lanie.”
His laser-focused attention was back on me. “And how are they going?”
I looked him straight in the eye. “Great. Also, we had a wonderful
Thanksgiving. I hope it’s all right that she—”
Bob waved his hand. “It’s just fine. Janice wanted her to join you. She
thought it would be good.” He paused. “And so did I.”
The waiter arrived, and Bob turned all his attention to him. “We’ll need three
glasses of–” He looked my way. “Saxton still drink bourbon?”
“As far as I know.”
Bob nodded. “Bourbon it is, then.”
“Did I hear my name?”
Saxton appeared out of nowhere and took a seat between me and Bob. “Good
to see you, Bob.”
Bob nodded his way, his eyes narrowing only the slightest bit. He and
Saxton had had their good times together, but those times more often than not
ended up with Bob calling Saxton immature or idiotic. This usually happened
behind Saxton’s back, although Bob had called him out to his face once or twice
before.
“What are we talking about?” Saxton asked.
“Lanie,” Bob answered before I’d decided whether or not I even wanted to
divulge the topic.
Saxton’s eyes cut to me. “That the girl you’ve been banging?”
Bob’s jaw ticked.
“That’s Bob’s daughter,” I slowly answered, feeling caught somewhere
between wanting to laugh and wanting to die from shame. “And, um, she is also
who I am seeing. Yes.”
Realization swept across Saxton’s face. “Oh. That’s right.” If he felt sorry at
all for the crass comment, it didn’t show.
The waiter arrived with our drinks, and I took a grateful sip, letting the sting
of alcohol burn away what discomfort it could.
“It’s a shame you’ve settled down again,” Saxton said without any warning.
I cringed and placed my glass down harder than I meant to. Across the table,
Bob scowled.
“Nothing against Lanie,” Saxton quickly said to Bob.
“You’ve never met Lanie,” I pointed out. Saxton was digging himself a
grave here, and I wasn’t in the mood to help him climb out of it.
“Yeah, well, from what I’ve heard, she’s a nice girl.” He shrugged.
“What’s wrong with Andrew having a girlfriend?” Bob demanded.
 Saxton bit back his grin. “It’s fine at a certain point, sure. You’ve been
married for years, Bob, but don’t you ever wish you hadn’t been so quick to tie
yourself to one woman? Men need to play the field while they can. Have fun.
Guys get to do that for a lot longer than women, so why shouldn’t they?”
“What do you mean men get to do it for longer?” I asked, noting the rising
tension at the table.
“Men are considered hot for a lot longer than women.”
I stared at Saxton. “That’s what our society tells us, but that doesn’t mean
it’s true.”
Saxton turned to me, languidly tossing his arm over the back of his chair. “If
a guy can still get up with a twenty-five-year-old when he’s fifty, shouldn’t he?
Andrew, man, you should understand this better than anyone else.”
I felt my lips draw tight against my teeth. “Mine and Lanie’s age difference
has nothing to do with us getting along. She’s the first woman younger than me
that I’ve ever been interested in.”
“Let’s just move on,” Bob cut in, sending an irritated look Saxton’s way.
“Fine.” Saxton tested out his bourbon and smacked his lips. “We’ll agree to
disagree.”
Bob’s eyes briefly connected with mine, and I felt compelled to mouth
“sorry” but kept my face flat instead.
“Saxton, I’d ask you how that girl Matilda is,” Bob started, “but I assume—”
“Right. She’s old news. That was, what? Months and months ago.”
Bob took a long drink.
I raked my fingers through my hair, resisting the urge to sigh. This wasn’t
turning out to be the casual and fun night I’d hoped for. Thankfully, Bob was on
the ball.
“What are your holiday plans?” he asked Saxton.
Saxton lit up at that. “Hawaii. The whole week.”
“Who’s the lucky lady?”
“I haven’t met her yet. She’s waiting somewhere for me in Honolulu. Her
and her friend, I’m hoping.”
I snorted into my drink, and Bob grinned. As grating as Saxton could be, he
always kept the mood light. It was nice to have someone like that around.
My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I discreetly checked it under the table.
Instead of it being Raven or Lanie, it was my cell phone provider sending me an
ad for an upgrade.
Damn.
I’d known this for a while now, but I no longer cared to hear from anyone
but Lanie and Raven. They’d become the only two people who mattered in my
life.
“What are you smiling about over there?” Saxton asked, a mischievous grin
on his own face.
I snorted and put my phone away. “Nothing. Hey, I want to ask you both
something—some advice.” I shot Saxton a warning glance, silently begging him
to keep it chill.
“What’s that?” Bob asked.
“I’ve been kicking this idea around for the last few days. I’d like to take
Lanie on a weekend getaway. Do you think she’d be into that?”
Bob knew Lanie better than I did, of course, and even though Saxton and I
had some serious disagreements when it came to women, the truth couldn’t be
denied. He was good with them.
Bob smiled. “I’m sure she’d love that. It’s been a while since she’s gone
anywhere.”
“Yeah?” His answer had given me a fresh excitement.
“Hell, yeah, man,” Saxton inserted. “Every woman likes a weekend getaway.
It’s what they’re all secretly dying for. It shows them they’re special.”
“With you, it shows them they’re special for that one weekend,” Bob said,
laughing.
Saxton grinned devilishly. “Hey, special is special. It doesn’t matter how
long it lasts.”
“Where are you thinking about taking her?” Bob asked, getting serious.
Suddenly, the conversation felt like an interrogation.
“Uh, the San Juan Islands?”
Bob nodded in approval. “Janice and I went there a few years ago for our
anniversary. We went to Lopez.”
“Forget Lopez,” Saxton said. “There’s a sweet resort on Orcas. It has heart-
shaped hot tubs. That sounds cheesy as shit, but trust me, they do it well.”
Bob and I both laughed at that. Thankfully, Saxton didn’t go any further and
make suggestions as to what I should do with Lanie once we got in the
aforementioned heart-shaped tub.
“I have to go,” Bob said, looking at the time on his phone. “It was good to
see you both. Andrew, I’ll make sure not to say anything to Lanie, but trust me,
she’ll love the surprise.”
Winking, he got up. Saxton turned in his chair, watching Bob until he left the
restaurant. The second he was gone, Saxton turned back toward me.
“So he’s okay with you fucking his daughter?”
“We didn’t discuss it in those exact words, but yes, he’s fine with me and
Lanie dating.”
 “Wow.” Saxton thoughtfully tapped his fingers against his lips. “Nice.”
“Do you know of any resorts other than the heart-tub one? I want to get a
good idea of what the area has.”
“Oh, shit yeah. Here.” Pulling a pen from his pocket, he grabbed a napkin
and started making a list. “There’s The Cove. That’s the one all the old people
go to. It’s fancy, though. Some chicks dig it. There’s a whale watching boat tour
they do every day. And then, there’s this other place, here. It’s farther in on the
island. If a chick likes hiking and that kind of stuff, I always take her there.”
Saxton went on, pumping me with the knowledge of an official San Juan
Islands guide. As he listed the pros and cons of each island and resort, my mind
drifted.
Up till then, finding time alone with Lanie had always been difficult. We’d
had that one night in the hotel, but even that hadn’t been perfect. I’d had to jump
up and sneak home early in the morning before Raven woke.
If I could get two whole days for just me and Lanie, the thought was almost
too good to handle. No work. No obligations. No one else demanding our
attention.
The only thing that remained was running the whole thing by Raven. I
wasn’t sure how she’d feel spending the weekend without me. I’d already
discussed it with Karen, and she’d offered to sleep at the house while I was gone
as she sometimes did when I went on business trips. Because of that, I didn’t
have any anxiety over the issue.
Two days and two nights.
I could already think of a hundred different ways to fill all those hours.
19
 LANIE

T he doorbell sang, and I immediately got to work smoothing down my

hair and patting under my eyes, checking for any eyeshadow that had
fallen there. It didn’t matter that Andrew had seen me in all kinds of
rumpled states. I still got butterflies when I thought of seeing him, and I wanted
to look good for dinner at his house.
The door flew open, and Karen smiled wide. “Lanie,” she cooed, pulling me
in for a hug.
We’d only met once before, but Karen had one of those personalities. She
could make friends with anyone.
“How are you doing?” I asked, face still pressed against her shoulder.
“Good, good. Come in out of that cold.” She quickly shut the door behind
me. “I was just headed home. Raven and Andrew are somewhere downstairs,
and dinner is in the oven.”
As she talked, she worked fast, taking and hanging my coat in the hall closet
and winding her scarf around her neck. “There’s a cake in the fridge. You’re not
allergic to coconut, are you?”
“Nope. I love it.”
“Oh, good! It’s coconut with layers of strawberries.”
“Wow. You really didn’t have to go all out. It’s only Monday night.”
“Stop. It’s my job.” Karen buttoned her coat with flying fingers. “You have a
good night, sweetie.”
“You too.” Before I could say bye, she was gone, the door closing behind
her.
Tentatively, I peeked into the quiet living room. There hadn’t been a peep
yet from Raven or Andrew, and I briefly wondered if the giant house had even
more rooms than I had initially thought.
 “Hello?” I called.
No answer.
Still feeling self-conscious about walking around the house all by myself, I
slowly took a few steps down the hallway. “Andrew? Raven?”
Without warning, a door behind me opened and an arm looped around my
waist. I yelped as Andrew spun me around and pressed his mouth to mine.
“Mm,” I murmured, laying another quick kiss on his lips. “That’s a nice
hello.”
His fingers pressed into my lower back, sending forbidden tingles all through
me. “Sorry I didn’t hear you come in. I was on a work call.”
“That’s okay.” I lightly grasped his arms, enjoying the tautness of the
muscles beneath his shirt. “Where’s Raven?”
“Last I saw her, she said she was going to do some homework. Hey. Thanks
for coming over last minute.”
I cocked my head and scoffed. “You really think there’s someplace else I’d
rather be on Monday night?”
“I hope not.” Andrew ran his thumb down my lower lip before taking my
hand. “Hungry?”
“Extremely.”
Hands clasped, he walked me in the direction of the kitchen. At the stairs, he
paused. “Raven!”
Footsteps sounded above our heads, and a beat later Raven appeared at the
top of the stairs, earbuds hanging around her neck. “Huh?”
“Dinner.”
“I’ll be there in a little bit. I have to finish this essay.”
I opened my mouth to say hi, but she was already gone. Andrew squeezed
my hand, giving me a smile.
“How is she doing?” I asked on our way into the kitchen.
Andrew pulled a chair at the table out for me. “Good. Wine?”
“Sure. Thanks.”
With smooth movements, he popped a bottle of red and filled two glasses.
“Has she been talking about school any?” I asked, accepting the glass
Andrew handed me.
His back turned to me, he pulled dishes and silverware out of the cupboards.
“No. She’s been kind of mum lately. But I think it’s the regular teenager kind of
mum.” He turned around with a grin. “She has all these friends all of a sudden.”
Any of them Jason? I almost asked. Mine and Raven’s last conversation
about Jason had been between student and counselor, though. The topic wasn’t
something I needed to share with Andrew, and Raven would probably be
mortified if I did.
“It’s amazing, really.” Andrew set a good-smelling lentil dish on the table.
“You’re a miracle worker.”
“What?” I scoffed. “Are you not going to give yourself any credit at all?”
Andrew took my hand in his and gave it a quick kiss before spreading his
napkin on his lap. He didn’t even look at me as he did it, which made the whole
act more endearing. Touching me was becoming a habit for him, something he
didn’t even need to think about doing.
“Why me?” he asked.
“Hm?” I lazily blinked, unable to take my eyes off his profile.
Andrew laughed and turned to me. “Lanie?”
“What were we talking about?”
“Are you serious?”
I slowly nodded. “Yeah. You’re just that handsome.”
He growled in pleasure and scooted his chair closer to mine. “Come here.”
Andrew’s lips graced mine, sending my head and heart both spinning. Before
I could get too lost in the kiss, I pulled back. “Seriously. What were we were
talking about?”
“How much better Raven is doing,” he murmured, squeezing my thigh.
His answer snapped me out of my lust-filled reverie. “Right. You can’t give
me all the credit. What she needed was more attention from you, and you’ve
provided that.”
“I’d like to give you my attention right now.” He ran his nose against my
neck.
“Andrew!” I laughed, glancing at the still-empty doorway.
“Okay. You’re right.” Clearing his throat, he raised his hands in defeat. “I’m
done. For now, anyway. And, as far as Raven, let’s agree that we both helped
out. It’s something we did together.”
His eyes settled on mine, and there was something so deep and purposeful
about that last sentence. A pleasurable shiver went through me, but I couldn’t
say why. It was like Andrew was hinting at something that I didn’t quite
understand yet but that I knew was inherently good.
“I want to ask you something,” Andrew said, still looking into my eyes.
“Uh-huh?” My pulse started racing. I couldn’t take a single guess as to what
he was about to say, but I knew it would be good.
Taking my hand, he turned it over on top of the table and ran his fingertips
down my palm. “Do you have plans this weekend?”
“No,” I exhaled, finding it hard to think of anything other than the way he
was touching me.
 “Good.” A smile danced at the corner of his mouth. “Come away with me for
the weekend. We’ll go to San Juan. There’s a resort there I think you’d really
like.”
“Really?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“That’s … Wow. When? Friday? What about Raven? When will we be
back?”
I knew I was asking too many questions, but Andrew’s proposition had made
me get excited, and sometimes when that happened, I talked too much.
“I was thinking we leave after school on Friday and then come back Sunday
afternoon. Or early evening. I talked to Raven about it, and she’s fine. Karen will
be around, so she won’t be alone. What do you say? Can you miss one weekend
of yoga for me?”
Andrew raised my hand and kissed the inside of my wrist, and I laughed with
joy. “I think I’ll get over yoga.”
“Erica won’t be mad?”
“Definitely not. She’s always talking about how you and I are meant to be.”
“Oh, yeah?” Andrew tilted his head, looking at me with increased interest.
Embarrassment hit like a ton of bricks. Shit. Had I really said that out loud?
“Should I go check on Raven?” I asked, desperately needing to change the
subject.
“I’m right here,” her voice answered.
She took a seat at the table, and I guiltily pulled my hand from Andrew’s.
“Hi,” I smiled at her. “Did you finish your essay?”
She tore a piece of bread from the loaf near her. “Yeah. It was boring as hell,
but I finished it.”
“Raven,” Andrew chastised. “Hey. Let’s not curse at the table.”
Her gaze jumped from him to me. “What were you guys talking about?”
“Um.” I bit my lip, looking to Andrew.
“This weekend,” he explained. “Lanie said she can go.”
“Cool,” she said around a mouthful of bread. “San Juan is pretty neat.”
“You’re sure you won’t be bored being by yourself all weekend?” I asked.
“Nope,” she quickly answered.
Our eyes found each other. There was a question glimmering in her irises,
one I didn’t understand. Was she wondering whether or not I’d mentioned Jason
to Andrew?
“You can have a friend over,” Andrew was saying as he busily cut his food.
“But make sure you tell Karen first.”
Raven didn’t answer. She stared at the salt and pepper shakers, a zoned-out
look on her face.
“Raven?”
“Oh. Yeah.” She snapped to and smiled at Andrew. “Got it.”
I couldn’t stop watching Raven. Did “a friend” in her mind include Jason?
Would Karen even agree to having a boy over? Even judging from my two small
interactions with Karen, I got the sense she was pretty conservative. If Raven
had a guy come around, Karen would probably make the two of them sit at the
kitchen table, hands in their laps, while she baked them chocolate chip cookies.
“What are you going to do at this resort?” Raven asked. “Can I have some
wine?”
Andrew snorted. “Sure. A little bit.”
Taking her glass, he poured her an ounce of red.
“Oh, come on, Dad. You know, statistically speaking, I’m much less likely
to go crazy drinking at parties if my parent lets me drink at home.”
Andrew rolled his eyes but poured another ounce. “To answer your other
question, we’re just going to relax. Maybe go on a boat tour or a hike. It depends
on what Lanie wants to do.” He gave me a smile, and I melted into my seat.
“When are you back?”
“Sunday.”
“What time?”
Andrew shrugged. “Late afternoon. I’m not sure.”
Again, my gaze caught Raven’s. This time, though, she quickly looked away.
I glanced at Andrew, wondering if he also suspected something was up. Why
was Raven so interested in what time he’d be home?
Andrew seemed oblivious, though, moving on and telling us about how he
ran into my dad the night before. As he talked, all my worry about Raven faded
away. She was a smart girl. It seemed unlikely she’d take chances with her
safety and knowingly put herself in a bad situation. And, yeah, teens didn’t have
the best judgment skills, but Karen would be around to keep an eye on things.
I was probably being paranoid, the last month of counseling kids nonstop
taking its toll on me. It seemed I needed a serious break and hadn’t even known
it.
For not the first time, Andrew had swooped in and given me exactly what I
craved.
20
 ANDREW

T he wind and rain pummeled the windows, the water beyond the resort’s
deck churning. Zeus was real, and he was very, very angry.
Sighing, I pressed my fist against my mouth.
“Andrew.” A soft touch on my shoulder pulled me away from the window.
“What’s wrong?” Lanie asked.
It took me a few seconds to pry open my clamped jaw. “The weather isn’t
looking good. I checked, and it looks like it’s rain all weekend. I’m sorry. The
forecast was all sunny when I booked the other day.”
Lanie wrinkled her nose. “Who cares about the weather?”
“Me. This is supposed to be the perfect trip.”
Her hand trailed down my arm. “There’s no such thing.”
I opened my mouth to disagree, but the hostess approached. “Mr. Marx, your
table is ready.”
With my hand lightly pressed against Lanie’s lower back, we followed the
hostess away from the floor-to-ceiling windows, past the roaring fireplace, and
to the cozy table at the back of the resort’s restaurant. As we passed other diners,
I noted several men checking Lanie out before quickly averting their gazes.
That’s right, I thought, trying to keep the smug smile off my face. She’s all
mine.
At the table, I held Lanie’s chair out for her, closely watching her slinky
dress rustle as she adjusted herself on the cushion. The outfit she wore somehow
managed to be casual yet sexy as hell. I shouldn’t have been surprised, really.
That description basically summed up the way I always saw her.
Settling across from her, I couldn’t stop myself from glancing at the
windows again.
“Andrew.”
 “Mm?”
Lanie smiled at me over her menu. “I don’t care if the weather ruins our
chances of doing anything outside. I mean, I do, but if we end up stuck inside,
I’m sure we’ll find other ways to fill our time.”
Her suggestive look nearly set me off. Leaning forward, I touched her knee
under the table, enjoying the way her eyes went wide and her breathing
quickened.
“That’s a good suggestion,” I answered. “In fact, I wouldn’t mind skipping
dinner and heading upstairs right now.”
Lanie stifled a giggle. “Um, that’s … Okay, you have to stop.”
“Do I?” I rubbed her knee.
“Andrew,” she hissed, but her voice was all breathy, the lust not easily hid.
“Good evening!” a new voice chirped. “How are you doing tonight?”
Her face guilt-stricken, Lanie straightened up, and I pulled my hand away.
“Just fine,” I answered the waiter with a smile. “Thank you.”
We managed to keep our faces straight as we ordered drinks and an
appetizer, but the second the waiter walked away, we both burst into laughter.
“You’re bad,” she accused.
“Only for you.” I let my eyes rest on hers. As I hoped, she smiled. “The
room has a hot tub, by the way. Out on its porch. Even if we don’t get to go on
the boat tour tomorrow, we can soak in that.”
Lanie’s bracelet slid down her arm as she tucked hair behind her ear. “Okay.
I’m down with whatever.”
“Tell me what you want to do,” I said, taking her hand in mine.
“I just want to spend time with you,” she quietly answered, the intensity in
her eyes taking my breath away.
Without warning, my chest swelled with emotion. How had I gotten so damn
lucky? Years of having my nose buried in work, of thinking I had zero chances
of finding another woman who was right for me, and then, suddenly, Lanie
appears out of nowhere. Was it meant to be? A part of our predetermined lives?
My answer in that moment would have been an absolute yes.
“The wine here better be good,” she suddenly said, winking.
I laughed. “A run-down place like this? I’m sure it’s awful.”
We paused in conversation again as the drinks arrived. With each course, the
conversation turned to a new topic. Raven. Lanie’s parents. Work—my own job
being something I didn’t even want to think about, though I was more than
happy to hear Lanie go over every detail regarding hers. Asking Lanie if she’d
take a trip with me and Raven over the summer was on the tip of my tongue, but
I held back. Though we hadn’t even been dating a full season yet, I already knew
I wanted to spend winter, spring, summer, and next fall with Lanie.
I just didn’t want to scare her away with such a grand announcement. As
normal as her role in my life had quickly become, things still felt delicate.
So I kept those thoughts to myself as we talked, laughed, and ate. For the
time being, everything was perfect. The light dimmed as dessert came and
passed. Half the other diners left the restaurant, and the candles flickered as
mostly piles of melted wax.
“Ready to see the room?” I offered Lanie my hand, and her face lit up with
excitement.
We’d had our bags sent to the room upon arriving and hadn’t seen the spot
yet. Though I’d briefly looked at pictures online, I mostly went with Saxton’s
suggestion and asked for the nicest room they had available.
Top floor. Full suite. A view of the harbor. Hot tub on the porch. I hoped
Lanie would love it.
Judging by the gasp she emitted, she did.
“This place is amazing,” she cooed, going to the windows and looking out at
the sparkling lights. The rain had stopped, leaving glass-streaked window panes
in its wake. The effect made the view through the windows look like an abstract
painting.
Wrapping my arms around Lanie’s waist from the back, I nuzzled my face
into the top of her head. “I’m glad you think so.”
“Hot tub?” Her hands gripped mine in excitement.
“I wasn’t planning on staring at the thing all night.” I chuckled. “Go get your
bathing suit on so I can fulfill my fantasy of taking it off you.”
Giving me a saucy look, Lanie skipped for the bedroom. I followed, eyes on
her ass the whole time. We both opened our bags, but instead of changing in
front of me, Lanie hurried to the bathroom.
Dropping my clothes on the bed, I pulled on my swimming trunks. “Do you
need any help in there?” I called. “I’ll be happy to give you a hand. Or two.”
In response, the door opened. Lanie leaned against the frame, one arm above
her head, her body seductively stretched out. I’d thought the black bikini she
wore on Thanksgiving was revealing, but that was nothing compared to what she
had on now. The tiny, red two-piece wasn’t much more than two thin strips of
fabric, one going across her tits and one going between her thighs.
“Holy shit,” I breathed.
Lanie laughed. “You like it?”
I swallowed hard. “Forget the hot tub. Lay down on this bed and let me lick
whipped cream off you.”
Smirking, she walked right past me. “I want to test out the hot tub. Just for a
while. Wait.” She stopped, and I nearly bumped into her. “Is there whipped
cream?”
I ran my knuckles over her shoulders. “I can order some. Go get in the hot
tub.”
She kept walking and, once again, my eyes fell on her butt. My gaze seemed
to be permanently glued there.
After ordering champagne and whipped cream—just in case—I grabbed two
towels and joined Lanie on the porch. The soft lights made her face glow, the
steam creating a hazy screen between the two of us.
“It’s hot,” she warned, “but amazing.”
I ceremoniously popped the bottle of champagne, the cork flying over the
railing.
“Oh, gosh!” Lanie laughed into her palms. “You might have hit someone!”
“Hello!” I called over the balcony. “Anyone alive down there?” Frowning, I
looked back to Lanie. “Sorry, babe. I don’t think they made it. Oh, well. We
might as well enjoy our own lives.”
Lanie kept laughing, the gorgeous sound tickling my ears and filling my
heart. Taking the two champagne flutes, I filled them to the brim, not minding
the froth that bubbled over and spilled onto the patio’s boards.
Climbing carefully into the hot tub, I handed Lanie her champagne.
“What are we toasting to?” she seriously asked.
“Whatever you want.” I claimed the rest of the broad seat she sat on.
She sighed in pleasure. “I honestly can’t pick one thing. Everything is so
perfect right now. I have a great job. Friends. Family. You.” Her eyes softened.
Deep appreciation rose in my chest and spilled into my mouth, where it
yearned to give rise to words. Except there weren’t any. How could I properly
convey to Lanie how much she’d changed me? I’d turned into a completely
different person in the last month—and not because she’d forced me to. All
Lanie had done was open the door and suggest I walk through it.
And thank god, I had. Now I couldn’t imagine going back to the way things
were. Working all the time. Only seeing Raven for quick meals here and there.
Shutting down my own desires for companionship or romance.
A long time ago, I’d known that life was good and that all it took for it to be
that way were people to love. Losing my wife had shaken my belief in all that.
Nothing felt secure after Danica passed. I fell asleep and didn’t even want to
think about waking up.
Yet now here I was. Awake once more. Life was beyond amazing. I didn’t
want to so much as blink. Not a half second was worth missing.
“What about you?” Lanie asked as if reading my thoughts.
 A slow grin pulled at my lips. “I’d have to say that life is pretty damn
amazing. So how about we toast to all of it?”
“Good for me.” She raised her champagne flute, and I tapped mine against it.
I kept my eyes on Lanie’s glass, watching as it met her lips and then went to
the shelf next to the hot tub. With her hands free, I scooted forward and kissed
her long and deep.
“Hi,” she whispered as I pulled back.
I found her leg in the water and rested my hand on it. “Are you having a
good time?”
“I’m having an amazing time.” She sighed in pleasure and sank further into
the water. “Can we move here?”
“To the resort?” I chuckled.
“I was being more specific than that. I meant into this hot tub.”
I sipped my champagne, watching her the whole time. “Let me make some
calls. I’ll see what I can do.”
Without warning, her face became more serious. “Do you think Raven is all
right?”
“Why wouldn’t she be? You think she’s lonely?”
“I-I don’t know.” She looked over at the harbor’s lights.
“It’s sweet that you’re worried about her.”
“I can’t help it.”
“She needs that.”
I pressed my lips together, wondering if I’d said too much. Lanie and I had
never discussed exactly what we were looking for in a relationship. I didn’t
know what her long-term desires were. I only knew I wanted them all to include
me.
Slowly, I trailed my fingers up Lanie’s thigh and to her hip. Her lashes
danced across her cheekbones.
“How is it that you get sexier each day?” I asked.
Lanie’s laugh was a sputtering one. “That’s quite the line.”
“It’s not a line,” I seriously said, lowering my face to hers. “It’s the truth.”
Lanie exhaled long, her breath grazing my lips. Shivers ran up my back and
across my shoulders. This woman.
Hooking my thumb under her chin, I tilted Lanie’s face up and claimed her
lips. They parted right away, sweet and ready for me. Those lips belonged to me,
and they knew it.
I took my time, savoring each second Lanie allowed me to kiss her. With
each pass of my lips against hers, she opened up more, her whole mouth
loosening. I explored every inch I could get to. Teeth. Tongue. Lips. No part was
ignored.
Underwater, my hands moved as well, one of them wrapping around Lanie’s
waist while the other stroked up and down her leg. The familiar fire burned deep
in my core, the ache a wild, painful one.
Breaking my mouth from hers, I exhaled heavily. “Is it just me, or is it hot in
this tub?”
Lanie burst into laughter. “Wow.”
“At least you laughed.”
“That was pretty bad.”
“Mm. You like it.” I nipped her earlobe, and she squirmed against me.
“Andrew?”
“Uh-huh?”
“Take me inside. Please.”
A deep, animalistic growl flew from my lips. I didn’t need to be told twice.
Climbing from the hot tub, I reached over and helped Lanie out before sweeping
her up in my arms.
“Wait!” she shrieked. “The champagne!”
I paused, letting her grab the whole bottle before I carried her inside and
straight to the bedroom.
21
 LANIE

“W
bottle.
here to, ma’am?” Andrew asked, kicking the door to the porch
closed behind him.
“That way!” I pointed at the bedroom with the champagne

Nipping at my neck, Andrew carried me across the living room and into the
suite’s bedroom, where he set me on the edge of the bed before standing back
and looking down at me. Water ran in little rivulets down his neck and chest,
making the already delicious muscles that much more lickable.
“Anything else your heart currently desires?” he asked.
“Hm. Let me think.” I dramatically leaned back against my elbows, taking
my time appraising his nearly-naked form. “How about you dance for me?”
Andrew’s jaw fell. “Dance?”
“Yep.” Setting the champagne bottle on the floor, I made a big scene of
crawling across the bed, shaking my rear as I went. Andrew growled, but I
ignored him, grabbing my phone from the bed stand and putting on the first
upbeat pop song I came to.
“Dance,” I repeated, settling against the pillows. I knew I was dripping water
onto the comforter, but I was having way too much fun to care.
Andrew bit down on his lip, a look of disbelief painting his features. “I …”
“Dance,” I said again, more sternly this time. “If you want me, you’ll do
what I say.”
Eyes on Andrew, I crossed my legs and ran my fingers across the top of my
bathing suit. It was the most ballsy I’d probably ever been with him, sexually
speaking, and it had the intended effect.
Andrew swallowed hard, nodding slowly, looking like he was in a trance.
Lifting his arms, he slowly began to dance, shaking back in forth in the most
awkward way imaginable.
“You call that dancing?” I laughed.
“Yeah.” He turned around, shaking his rear. “You like it?”
“I … love … it,” I sputtered in between giggles.
“It’s all for you, baby.” His previous resistance gone, Andrew propped his
leg on the end of the bed and began thrusting into the air.
“Okay, you can stop.” I clutched at my side, the extreme laughter becoming
painful.
“Nope. I’m just getting started.” Lacing his fingers together, he pressed his
hands into the back of his head and switched from hip thrusts to hip rotations.
“You’re really getting a workout there.”
“Just getting warmed up for you.”
“Stop!” I screeched. “I can’t laugh anymore!”
Choking on my own laughter, I rolled over and buried my face in a pillow.
The bed bounced as Andrew landed next to me.
“Okay. I stopped.” His warm palm pressed against my back. “Maybe next
time, you’ll think your demands through a little more first.”
“Definitely.” I rolled over to face him, noticing the big damp spot our
presence had created. “Wow, we’ve made this bed really wet.”
Andrew’s eyebrows rose. “I love it when you talk dirty.”
“That’s not what I was talking about.”
“No?”
Before I could answer, his hand was between my thighs, fingers gently
grazing the bathing suit fabric. I sucked in a breath, my whole body curling
against the sudden and intense pleasure.
As he continued to tease me, Andrew buried his face in my neck. Gentle
sucks sent electricity through my veins, and I wiggled sideways, eager to get my
hands on his smooth chest.
Our lips found each other, and as we slowly kissed, Andrew pushed my
bathing suit to the side. His gentle touch graced my throbbing spots, his thumb
running up the length of my folds before settling on my swollen nub. Lethargic
strokes made me jerk, and I kissed Andrew deeper.
His jaw loosened, his tongue drawing me further in. Heat burned my palms,
and I ran them lower. Fingers trembling, I pushed at Andrew’s bathing suit.
He did the same with mine, helping me tug off my bikini bottom. While we
continued to kiss, he found the strings on my bikini top and fluidly pulled them
loose. Cold air pricked at my damp breasts, making my already aroused nipples
that much harder.
Andrew broke off the kiss, his gaze falling to my naked chest. With a little
murmur of pleasure, he took both breasts in his hands. They were small, filling
up his broad palms, but he made me feel like they were the most perfect set in
the whole world. Lovingly, he kneaded them, taking his time and slowly licking
first one nipple and then the other.
I worked my hands through his thick hair as he kissed and sucked. The
attention made my toes curl, my stomach flutter. No one had ever touched me
like Andrew did. Each time his hands fell on me—or his eyes, for that matter—
the rest of the world disappeared.
Andrew continued sucking and massaging, taking me to an ecstatic level I’d
never been before. It was more than the physical sensations. There was
something new rushing through me. I felt wild. Free. At peace.
My eyes drifted closed, and I gave myself over to him completely, riding the
waves and needing nothing more than exactly what was happening. Andrew’s
lips trailed lower, giving attention to my belly before settling between my thighs.
Softly, tenderly, he licked me. My hands went to his hair again, my hips
bucking of their own accord. I was gasping, shaking, not having any say over
what my body was doing.
“Andrew,” I gasped, nails piercing his scalp. “I need you.”
The licks stopped, and Andrew looked at me over my stomach. “You have
me,” he rumbled.
The words, the promise, only increased my desire.
“Now,” I cried, tugging on his shoulders.
“No.” He smiled, lowering his face once more. A finger wiggled its way
between my folds, doubling the sensations Andrew’s licks were creating.
The pleasure increased, and I burst with a loud cry. Andrew held my thighs
open, continuing to lick through my release. Even after I finished, he kept going,
gently laying a kiss on my mound before sitting up.
“You still want me?” he asked.
I pierced his gaze with mine. “More than ever.”
Andrew’s lips parted, and his breathing quickened. We continued to stare at
each other, lust and admiration filling the air till it seemed as if the room would
explode from the force of it all.
“Wait here,” Andrew huskily said.
“I wasn’t planning on going anywhere.”
Jumping from the bed, he rummaged through his bag and pulled out a
condom. I watched him hungrily, my fingertips itching to get a hold of him.
Andrew came toward the bed, but before he got the chance to put the condom
on, I shimmied over and kissed the tip of his length.
“Lanie,” Andrew murmured.
 How did he do that—turn my name into music? I wanted to hear it again and
again. Lightly stroking the base of his dick, I swiveled my tongue over the tip. A
bit of pre-come leaked out, and I swallowed it down. I wanted to taste everything
he had to offer me. Nothing could go to waste.
Opening my mouth wide, I swallowed him down, not stopping until his tip
hit the back of my throat. Slowly, I bobbed my head, using my hands to increase
the pressure.
Andrew lightly massaged my shoulders, fingertips kissing the sides of my
neck.
“Lanie,” he moaned, making the muscles between my legs tightly clench.
With a pop, he pulled away from me. His eyes were hooded, lips swollen and
parted. “I just can’t stop looking at you. I can’t tell you how much ...” Andrew
swallowed.
I blinked up at him. What had he been about to say?
“Show me,” I whispered, taking his hand.
Andrew nodded and rolled on the condom. Scooting back, I pulled him with
me. We landed on the dry side of the bed, Andrew nestled between my arms and
legs. His lips brushed against my chin, and I closed my eyes with a sigh.
Kisses peppered my face. Lips. Eyelids. Nose. Forehead. Andrew didn’t miss
a spot.
I tilted my face up, silently asking for his lips against my mouth. He
complied, laying his lips on mine as his arms snaked under my back.
Opening my eyes, I looked back at him as he gently entered me. My whole
body pulsed, ready and begging for the one man who made it come alive.
Lips sweeping against each other, Andrew plunged all the way into me. We
groaned at the same time, losing all our inhibitions together.
Kissing desperately, I wrapped my arms and legs around his back. I needed
him closer, needed his body to meld into mine, to become a part of who I was.
“Lanie,” he whispered into my ear.
“Yes,” I gasped.
Andrew said my name again—and again, each stroke being accompanied by
a lust-filled murmur. I arched my back, driving my hips into his.
The heat spun through me, collecting in my core. I exploded for the second
time, my tongue thrashing against Andrew’s. He held me tighter, keeping me
safe, making me feel loved. Deeper into me he went, making me his over and
over again.
But I’d been that all along, hadn’t I? From the moment I first saw Andrew, I
knew something was going to be different. We belonged together. It didn’t
matter what the world threw at us. As we’d already proven, Andrew and I could
persevere.
“Baby,” he whispered, so much sweetness in the one word.
I pressed my fingers against the back of his head, burrowing my face into his
neck. I could feel his own release coming as if it were my own. It gathered
speed, ripping through his cells, and Andrew burst as we kissed for all we were
worth.
With a huff, he dropped his face against the side of my neck. I closed my
eyes again, listening to his heavy breathing and the pounding in my ears. My
whole body tingled, and my heart swelled. Outside, the rain picked up again,
making little pings against the windows.
Andrew kissed the side of my neck, and I smiled. Our arms were still
wrapped around each other, and I felt no desire at all to move. Not for a hundred
years.
“I could lie like this forever,” Andrew murmured, making the skin on my
neck tingle.
“You read my mind.”
“Actually.” He gently slipped away from me and climbed out of bed.
“Where are you going?” I asked, stifling a yawn.
“One second,” Andrew’s voice came from the bathroom.
I blinked and rubbed my eyes. The heavy dinner combined with hot tub time
and the way Andrew had just rocked my world must have been making me
sleepy. Without much warning, I felt like I could drift off within a minute.
The bathroom door creaked, and Andrew appeared wearing a fluffy
bathrobe, another one in his hands. “We can’t let these go to waste.”
I laughed and sat up. “We can’t?”
“Not according to Saxton. This is weird, maybe, but the bathrobes were one
of the things he raved about the most when he told me about this place.”
“That is weird. Does he have some kind of robe fetish?”
“Saxton?” Andrew sat on the edge of the bed and wrinkled his nose. “You
know, with him, there’s very little that would surprise me.”
“That settles it. I need to get to know him.”
“I’m sure you will. Be careful what you wish for, though. He’s a handful.
Get your fine butt over here.”
I crawled over to the edge of the bed, where Andrew wrapped the other
fluffy robe around me.
“Mm.” I snuggled my nose into the collar. “It is nice.”
“Yeah, I’ll have to send him a fruit basket or something.”
“Do people still do that?”
“Ooh.” Andrew grabbed his chest like he was in pain. “Way to make me feel
old.”
“You know that’s not what I was doing!” I cried.
“I know.” He grinned. “Let’s lie back down.”
I was on my back in a flash, cradled against Andrew’s chest, his arm around
me. The sleepiness I felt before came back, washing over me warmer than the
hot tub.
“Mm,” I sighed, snuggling closer against Andrew’s robe. His familiar smell
combined with the robe’s filled my nose, calming me further.
Andrew squeezed my shoulder and kissed the top of my head. Meanwhile,
the rain continued to kiss the windowpanes. With each rise of Andrew’s chest
under my cheek, I slipped a little closer toward unconsciousness. Everything
slowed down: the sounds of the rain outside, Andrew’s breathing pattern. Time
seemed to unroll itself, each second becoming twice as long as I’d previously
thought they were.
At the moment, nothing else was needed. Beyond a doubt, I knew I was right
where I needed to be. There was no more trying, no frantic striving. I’d arrived.
“I’m in love with you,” I sighed.
“What was that?” Andrew asked.
Should I have been embarrassed? I couldn’t remember. Everything was soft
and warm, thoughts becoming harder to come by.
“Never mind,” I murmured.
If he answered, I didn’t hear him. Sleep had already taken me.
22
 ANDREW

I stretched on the bed, my feet meeting a crisp spot in the sheets. My eyes
were still heavy, sealed tight after what felt like a decade-long sleep.
Rubbing my face, I forced my eyes open. Sunlight was coming through
the open curtains, but I must have been really tired because it hadn’t woken me
up. Instead, I’d slowly come back to consciousness, embracing the morning only
when I finally felt like it.
On the left side of the bed, Lanie stirred. She lay on her stomach, hands
curled under her chin. Reaching over, I ran my palm down the length of her
back. She looked so pristine and angelic sleeping there. For as long as we’d been
dating, it was a shame this was only our second time waking up together.
I wanted her by my side every morning. In my bed. My kitchen. My office. I
wanted her filling up every corner of my life.
Feeling my touch, she licked her lips and sleepily blinked her eyes open. I
stayed where I was, head propped in my hand and watching her.
“Hi,” she whispered.
“Hey there.”
She squinted against the light. “Were you watching me sleep?”
“Just for a minute. That’s short enough for it to not be creepy, right?”
Lanie giggled and bit down on her bottom lip in that oh-so-delicious way. “If
you’re doing it, it’s never creepy.”
I ran my hand up her arm. “Were you dreaming?”
Her face scrunched up as she thought about it. “I don’t think so. Maybe
because my dreams couldn’t get any better than reality right now.”
My first instinct was to laugh and call her out on the cheesy statement, but
after everything we’d said and done the night before, I knew she told the truth.
“You’re right about that,” I softly answered, lowering myself down so our
faces were even.
“I don’t even remember falling asleep last night.”
“You were out pretty quickly. You were talking as you fell asleep, but I
couldn’t understand anything you said.”
Lanie’s eyes went wide.
“What?” I asked.
The shock on her face vanished as quickly as it had appeared. “Nothing,” she
smiled. “I just hope I wasn’t also talking in my sleep. I do that sometimes.”
“Ooh. I’m sorry to say I’ve never been witness to that.”
“Ugh.” She rolled her eyes. “I hope you never have to be.”
“Hey.” I took her hand in mine. “What would you like to do today?”
She shrugged. “Anything.”
“Don’t say that. I want you to have a great time.”
“Isn’t whatever we do kind of weather dependent?”
I looked over my shoulder. Bright sunlight still filtered through the window.
“It’s looking pretty nice out there. The boat tour might be on after all.”
Lanie’s face lit up. “That’ll be fun. Do you think we might see whales?”
“I imagine. That’s what Orcas Island is named after.”
“I should take a shower.” She sat up, the robe slipping down her shoulders
and revealing creamy skin.
“Can I watch?”
Lanie grinned at me. “Seriously?”
“Hold on. That’s probably creepy, right?”
“How about you join me in it?”
“Now that sounds even better.”
In the bathroom, I had Lanie wait while I turned on the shower and stripped
us both of our robes. Making sure the water’s temperature was perfect, I
navigated her under the spray. As I slowly washed her hair, she leaned her head
back and sighed in pleasure.
“I think we left the champagne glasses outside,” she sleepily said.
I worked some conditioner into her hair. “If we did, the squirrels have
probably taken them by now.”
Lanie scoffed. “Okay.”
“There’s a new breed out here. It’s smarter and stronger than the brown,
gray, and red squirrels combined.”
“And what’s this new breed called?” she demanded.
Done with rinsing her hair, I got to work soaping up her shoulders and back.
“Uh, I think they’re calling it the hustler squirrel. They’re good at snatching and
then reselling things for extra cash on Craigslist.”
 Lanie wiped water droplets from her eyes and turned to face me. “You’re
playful this weekend. I don’t think I’ve ever heard you make so many jokes.”
“They’re bad, huh?”
She smiled wider. “I like you like this.”
Wrapping my arms around her, I brought our naked bodies closer. “You
didn’t answer my question.”
“Should I?” she whispered.
I ran my palms over her lower back, taking them down to her ass. The
shower’s spray still hit my back with a powerful force, but the heat was
diminishing.
“Christ,” I groaned, rolling my head back and biting my lip.
“What?”
“I really want to stay in this shower, but if we’re going to catch that boat, we
need to get going.”
“I hear ya’.”
Lanie stepped from the shower, and I had to bite down on my lip even
harder. Focus, Andrew. Focus. Whales. Think about whales.
In the bedroom, I quickly dressed, piling on the layers. “It’s going to be
pretty windy out there,” I said over my shoulder. “Dress warm.”
Lanie didn’t answer.
Turning around, I found her stretched out across the bed, her robe wide open.
Pert, pink nipples pointed my way, and the skin on her stomach and hips glowed
from the shower.
I audibly gulped. “Um.”
“A boat ride sounds fun,” Lanie slowly said, “but if you wanted to stay in
this room all day instead,” she said, running a fingertip across her lips.
“Uh-huh?” I encouraged.
“I’d be fine with that as well.”
It only took me half a second to decide. “Screw the whales.”
Tossing down the windbreaker I’d been about to pull on, I flew to the bed.
Before Lanie even had the chance to smile, my mouth was against hers. Pushing
my hand under her robe, I opened it the rest of the way. She was still warm from
the shower, and as I licked a line from her lips to her jaw I caught all the little
water drops the towel had missed.
“Andrew,” she gasped, fingers twisting in my hair.
I found her pulse in her neck and gently sucked. Our hands went everywhere,
moving with lightning speed across each other’s curves and lines. Though I’d
had Lanie the night before, I craved her like I’d been waiting all my life for this
moment.
 And maybe I had been.
As I brought my mouth back up to hers, my phone erupted, its shrieking
ringtone clashing with the moment.
“Let me just kill that,” I murmured, pecking Lanie’s lips before reaching
over to the bedside table.
I went to hit the silence button, but the name on the screen made me freeze.
“It’s Karen,” I announced, still staring at the phone.
“Oh.”
I licked my dry lips. “I should answer it. She probably needs something if
she’s calling.”
“Yeah.”
Quickly, before the call went to voice mail, I swiped the answer button.
“Hello?”
“Andrew!” Karen sobbed heavily. “Are you there? Oh my god.”
My stomach plummeted. In a heartbeat, I was sitting up, my feet flat on the
floor. “Karen? What’s wrong?”
The bed creaked behind me as Lanie moved closer.
“It’s …” Karen sobbed again, her cry so loud, it stung my eardrums.
I took in a long breath. Inhale means in. Exhale means out. It didn’t help. I
could hear my own heartbeat, and Karen was crying. Not just crying—wailing
uncontrollably.
Raven.
Suddenly, I flashed back to that day ten years before, when I’d gotten the call
that changed everything. No. This couldn’t be happening again. Everything was
fine. Lanie and I were on vacation. Raven was sleeping in. Karen was supposed
to be making breakfast, doing laundry.
The world couldn’t be turning upside down after it had only just become
perfect.
“Karen, take a deep breath,” I instructed. “And then tell me what happened.”
She noisily sucked in some air. “It’s Raven,” she choked out. “There was a
car accident last night, and she’s in the hospital. She’s in a coma.”Every drop of
blood in my body turned into ice. Karen needed to repeat herself. Surely, I had
heard wrong? Raven couldn’t. No. It didn’t make sense.
“Andrew?” Lanie touched my shoulder. I stayed still, having forgotten how
to move.
“She was out with friends,” Karen cried. “And she didn’t come home. And
then I-I got a call.” Desperate cries filled the line again.
It was true. My greatest fear had come to pass. The world, which only a
minute before seemed so wondrous, had betrayed me yet again.
To be continued…
 Want More?

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Everyone seems to be in love but me. Why is that?

Relationship after relationship and nothing.

I’m always the bridesmaid, but never the bride.
It’s getting old. Fast.
And just at the moment I start to give up, he walks into my life.
Sexy, strong, older. One of my students' father.
It’s against the rules to feel the way I do about him, but I can’t help myself.
A single father with a sexy demeanor and deep pockets.
But that’s not what gets me about him.
It’s the way he looks at me. As if he already owns me.
The relationship can be our little secret.

Or can it?
 Insider Group

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 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ali Parker is a full-time contemporary and new adult romance writer with more than a hundred and twenty
books behind her. She loves coffee, watching a great movie and hanging out with her hubs. By hanging out,
she means making out. The man is hot. Hello.
She’s a creative at heart and loves coming up with more ideas than any one person should be allowed to
access. She lives in Tennessee with her hubs, teenage son, two grown daughters and first grand baby (yes!).
Telling a good story that revives hope, reminds us of love and gives a vacation from life is all she’s up to.
Questions, comments or concerns? You can always email her at [email protected].

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The Parker’s Playground

 Billionaire Boss
My Father’s Best Friend #2

Copyright © 2018 by Ali Parker

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or
used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the
publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

The novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and plot are all either
products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to
actual events, locales, or persons – living or dead – is purely coincidental.

Second Edition.

Designer: Kellie Dennis, Book Cover By Design

Editor: Eric Martinez