Three days. Three miserable days passed without me hearing from or seeing Lucy. Maxi asked for her nonstop, and I thought about her constantly. That night at her place was stuck on replay in my head. How could I kiss her, touch her like that? I was never supposed to give in to the attraction I felt for her. Ever. She was off limits. Eric would kill me if he knew I crossed the line with Lucy. And I would be picking him up from the airport that day. I wondered if I could face him. I knew all I was going to think about was Lucy moaning in my ear as she came apart, her soft body pressed against mine, how tight her—

“Uncle Ryan, are you sick?”

I blinked, glancing at Maxi. Inquisitive brown eyes were trained on me. I looked at Becky, whose face was plastered with crushed vegetables. Even she looked at me in askance. “Uh, no. Why?”

“You’ve been making funny noises all day. Does your tummy hurt?”

My mouth twitched. Every time I thought about Lucy, a groan would escape. “Don’t worry Maxi; I’m not sick. I’ve just been thinking too much.” Way too much.

“Do you need a vacation from work?”

I chuckled. “Maybe I do. Would you like that if I took one soon?”

She nodded and smiled, then went back to eating her sandwich. After a few chews, she broke the silence again. “How come Lucy hasn’t come over? I miss her. And her pancakes.”

“Ucy!” Becky squealed, unable to pronounce the L, and clapped her tiny hands.

My heart sank. Because I screwed up, kid. “Lucy has been busy with work.”

“Do you think if we help her with work, she’ll have time to come over to play? We should go and help her cook, uncle Ryan.”

The innocence of children. “It’s not that easy, sweetheart.”

“When you see her can you tell her we miss her?”

“I sure will, Maxi.” That was if I could face her.

* * *

“How’s life as a stay at home mom?”

“Screw you, Eric.” I grinned.

He let out a roar. “Sorry, I couldn’t help myself. How are the girls?”

“They’re fine; alive. I just hope they survive me taking care of them. The babysitter has them for a few hours today.”

“I’m sure you’re doing great.”

“That’s what Lucy said.”

Eric glanced at me. “You two talk often?”

I shifted uncomfortably, and my hands tightened on the steering wheel. “Well, she’s been helping out. She stopped by last week to finalize the catering plans for the wedding, not knowing it was called off.”

Eric winced. “Shit, I forgot to mention it to her. That must’ve been awkward. Sorry, bud.”

I shrugged. “Doesn’t matter now. Anyway, she saw my need for help and started coming over to cook and help me with the girls.”

“That’s Lucy for you. She’s a sweetheart.”

“Yeah. And the girls love her too.” I hoped we would get off the subject of Lucy.

“How have you been, man?”

“Okay.”

“I mean with everything that happened with Julie, your sister...”

“I’m handling everything, one day at a time. I haven’t thought of Julie much to be honest.” Maybe because I was busy thinking about Lucy.

“Because you didn’t really love her.”

I took my eyes off the road for a second to throw him a glare. “What? Of course, I did! I asked her to marry me!”

Eric shook his head. “N-uh. You loved the idea of Julie. You met her in the big city, had a whirlwind romance. She’s hot as hell, has legs for days—”

“Down boy. “

Eric chuckled. “Anyway, even I could tell there was no deep emotional connection between you two. You asked her to marry you because you thought that was what she wanted, that it was the next step, you know? It was what she wanted, to sink her hooks into a wealthy man. And after Beth died, you rushed things, even more, seeking comfort.”

I scowled. “Why didn’t you share your observation sooner, Doctor Phil?”

“I tried, but you were so lost in grief, you didn’t hear me. Then you got the girls, and I thought maybe you needed Julie to help, and things would work out. I honestly, thought all of you would be one big happy family.”

I snorted. “Too bad Julie turned out to hate kids.”

Eric shrugged. “Cheer up; you dodged a bullet with that one. I don’t think she really loved you either.”

I couldn’t refute that now that I thought about it properly.

“So, how are your parents?” I asked, changing the subject.

“Great. Living it up in the sunshine. Mom’s been complaining about not seeing you and Lucy. You know how much she adores you. You and Lucy had better get your asses to Florida soon, take a trip together or something, with Maxi and Becky. Mom would love that.”

I cocked a brow, wondering if Eric, or his parents for that matter, would be so keen on the idea of Lucy and me traveling or doing anything together if they knew I’ve been lusting after her since she’d turned eighteen. I cleared my throat.

“Maybe… We’ll see.”

We fell into easy chatter about topics other than Lucy and my failed relationship, thank God. Thirty minutes later we reached Eric’s condo. “Thanks for the lift, man.”

“No problem, see you later?”

“I’ll stop by your place tomorrow and come see the girls. Lucy and I are having dinner tonight to catch up.”

The mere mention of her name made my heart beat a little faster. It had to be guilt.

“Cool. Enjoy.”

I had a few hours to spare after collecting Eric from the airport them running some errands. For some reason, after I’d dropped him off, I found myself on Lucy’s block.

I was surprised to see her outside in the freezing cold. She was peering under the hood of her delivery van. It was comical, the way she gazed with confusion and then scratched her head. I quietly got out of the car and went to surprise her.

“You’re a chef and a mechanic? I had no idea.”

She yelped and banged her head on the raised bonnet as she spun around. A string of expletives that shocked me spewed from her lips. It was so out of character for her my mouth fell open.

“I’m having a bad day,” she explained with a blush. “What are you doing here, Ryan?” Her voice turned icy.

I had no idea and shrugged. “I haven’t seen you in a few days.”

“Well, duh,” she muttered.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

She threw her hands up. “What did you expect after... what we did and your look of horror afterward. I mean, was I that bad? You ran out of my house as if the hounds of hell were on your ass. I know, things only went that far because you’re still trying to get over Julie and felt stressed and everything, but I was hurt, Ryan. I didn’t think you wanted to see me and I sure didn’t want to see you.”

I was speechless. All I could say was, “Luce, I’m sorry.”

She huffed, obviously not believing me.

“Julie was nowhere in my thoughts when I kissed you, trust me. I just felt it was inappropriate for us to go any further. I came to my senses… We’re friends.”

Crystal blue eyes still filled with hurt settled on me. “Came to your senses? I see… Friends. Of course. Whatever. Apology accepted. Now, if you don’t mind I’d like to get back to,” she said and waved her hand over the engine compartment, “all of this very confusing stuff.”

Clearly, I was dismissed, but I couldn't make my feet move to leave. I sighed. “What are you doing?”

“You still here?” She rolled her eyes then let out of breath when she realized I wasn’t going anywhere. “The oil light has been flashing, I Googled DIY oil change, and I’m trying to locate the oil thingy.”

I swallowed my smile. “The oil filter?”

“Yes, that.”

“That’s why mechanics exist, Lucy. Go to one.”

“I can’t— I mean, I don’t have time. I have a delivery to make this afternoon. Eric is probably jet lagged. I don’t want to bother him.” She sighed. “I’m sure I can do it if I just follow the instructions.”

“Go inside. You don’t even have a coat on.”

“Don’t come here and order me around.”

“Just go inside, you’re teeth are chattering. I’ll do it.”

“You will?”

I nodded.

Relief relaxed her features, and she blew into her hands. “Thanks,” she muttered.

“No problem.” If only she knew I would do anything for her since we were kids and up to that day. I watched her walk toward the house as I took off my coat and rolled up sleeves.

“Hey, Luce.” She looked back. “Maxi and Becky miss you.” And I do too. “We’d all like it if you visited.”

She smiled. “Maybe I will.”