No strings attached. Cara scrubbed at a particularly stubborn grease spot and frowned.

Was it possible, at all possible, that Perry had meant what he said? When she woke up the next morning, Perry was gone and there was fresh coffee. ‘Bagels in the fridge’ said a note on the counter, and Cara had stared at it, reflecting wryly that the only way Perry could show himself to be a more perfect man would be to have flowers and bring her breakfast in bed. He was playing the gentleman, and he’d been doing so long after any reasonable man would have given up the chase.

She did not understand it.

“Time for your break,” Mack said, sticking his head into the kitchen.

“Not for another thirty minutes.”

“Nah, you can take mine. Someone’s here to see you.”

Perry? Her heart fluttered, and she tried to calm herself. He was just like all the others, she said silently to herself. She just hadn’t figured out his angle yet. She should not be this glad to see him.

Her face fell when she came out of the kitchen, and her stomach did an uncomfortable sideways leap.

“Craig.”

Why, in the name of all that was holy, did he have to be so hot? His T-shirt clung to his torso, arm muscles peeking out perfectly, and the amount of stubble on his chin made him the perfect mix of clean-cut and bad boy. Even the stockbrokers, hurrying to and fro with their air of importance, were sneaking admiring glances his way.

“So what’s this?” He leaned against one of the pillars, arms crossed, smirking.

“What’s what?” She knew him well enough to see the trap coming; she just didn’t know from where.

“Should I play back the message for you? I had to play it about five times before I could stop laughing long enough to listen.”

The message. She swallowed, hard, and felt her face go red. She could still remember it: on the steps outside the apartment so that Darren wouldn’t hear, tears streaming down her face and her voice choking over the words. I need your help.

“That was five weeks ago,” Cara told him bluntly. She knew she had to be careful, that she could not afford to piss him off—not today, not when she needed to see his parents later. But it was so difficult. You never knew what you might say to make Craig angry. There was nothing he wanted more in the world than to have people need him—and nothing he despised more, either.

“And what, since then you’ve figured everything out?”

She didn’t have an answer to that, and he smiled. It was not; she reflected, a nice smile. Maybe she could consider this a warm-up for tonight.

“So you didn’t get thrown out of your apartment?” Craig asked her.

“How did you know that? How did you find me?”

“I have to keep tabs on you somehow, don’t I? You’re taking care of my son. I need to make sure he’s okay.”

“Taking care of?” Cara asked him incredulously. “He’s my son, too, Craig. And you know where to find him. You have for all his life. I always made sure you knew where I was.” She swallowed. “And I never let him know you were too lazy to come see him.”

His eyes flashed, and she tried to feel remorseful—but damn, it felt good to tell him off. It felt good to say to his face all of the things she said to the mirror while she brushed her teeth, or to the phone she hadn’t dialed.

“Lazy?” He asked her dangerously. “Which one of us is lazy, Cara?”

You. But she knew what was coming.

“You’re the one who dropped out of college,” he told her cruelly.

“You told me to. You told me to take a semester.”

“Because you were useless that year.”

“My family had died!” Cara stared at him, chest heaving. “I lost everything. Of course I was sad, Craig. I thought you understood.”

“And you thought you’d get pregnant and take my money, too?”

“It was an accident,” Cara said through gritted teeth. She had said this a thousand times, and he never believed her. But she was determined that someday, he would. Someday, he would see she was not a gold digger.

“Sure. Which is why you’re doing so well for yourself, huh? Working your dream job, finished up your degree, living in a posh apartment.”

Cara could feel eyes on them. In the corner of her vision, Mack was hovering awkwardly, and the line of people waiting for coffee was gawping as if this was some kind of street theater. Go away, she wanted to yell. Leave me alone.

You deserve this, her mind told her quietly. It was funny, how much she sounded like Craig sometimes.

“I’m here,” Cara said, “to provide for my son, because his father won’t give a cent to see him clothed. I’m here because school doesn’t pay.”

“Oh, sure, that’s why. Like you ever planned on finishing that degree. What was it you kept telling me you’d do someday?”

“Stop it, Craig.” Her heart was beating wildly.

“Something with robots? Cyborgs? You were going to build… what was it…”

Stop it.

“Satellites. Like you could ever do that.”

“I said, stop it.” Was that her voice? It came out like a command, and even Craig fell silent. If everyone hadn’t been looking before, they were now. Cara clenched her hands and raised her chin. “I’ve worked for everything I have in this life. I love your son more than life itself, and I would do anything—anything—to keep him safe. If you don’t care that your son is growing up to be an amazing man; that he’s smarter than I ever was, that he’s going to change the world someday, well, you’ll have to make your peace with that. I know I’ve had to. But if you’re going to leave us to fend for ourselves, Craig, then you leave and you never come back. I’m done hoping. And don’t you make fun of me for having dreams. At least I have dreams. And you know what? I’m going to go back to school. I’m going to finish. I’m going to do everything I planned on doing. And you’re going to look back on your life and see you never did anything at all. You’re not even going to remember most of it.”

She pushed her way past him out of the cafe, fighting not to break into a run. She could not think, not even for a moment, or she would break down right there on the lobby floor and scream. She had been waiting; she realized. All these years, telling herself she was alone—but really, she had thought he would come through. How stupid could she be?

“Cara, wait!”

“Turn around,” Cara hissed over her shoulder, “and walk away. I don’t want to see you ever again.”

“Cara, you can’t take what I said seriously.”

“Why not?” She rounded on him. “You’ve said it enough, haven’t you?”

“I didn’t mean it, I just… seeing you like that. I was wrong about you, Cara.” He stepped close.

Cara stepped back, unsteadily. He should not look like a romance novel hero. It wasn’t fair. She wanted to believe he was telling the truth.

“I’ve spent seven years trying to get over you,” he said softly, his eyes fixed on hers. “Come on, Cara, give me a second chance. I’ve missed that fire.”

A second chance. How many times had he walked out on her?

But she wanted, so badly, so very badly, for him to be telling the truth. Her mind was telling her not to be a fool—like it always had, with him. What were a few mean jokes, a few nasty words, when he had the body of a God and a fortune to match? She’d be safe forever… and she’d learned what it was to be hungry.

She was wavering, and he saw it.

“Cara, I’ve been terrible. I thought I wanted a party girl, but you were always the one for me.”

He’s lying, don’t believe him. But she took one unsteady step toward him.

“I haven’t been able to forget you. Do you know how many times I’ve almost called you?”

Another step.

“I was ashamed of how I behaved after Darren was born.” His brown eyes were very warm on hers. He held out his hands. “That’s why I didn’t call. I knew you’d say all the things you said in there. I deserved that.” He gave that too-perfect smile of his, white teeth flashing in a tanned face.

Another step.

“Come on, Cara. We’ll give it a second try. I was always a better person when I was with you.”

She was shaking as she reached him. She wanted to believe, and even when she knew it was a mistake, she couldn’t stop herself from standing on tip toe for him to kiss her. The picture was too pretty, too safe, too secure. She could put up with it, she lied to herself. A few mean jokes, a few mistresses. He’d try to be a good husband, wouldn’t he? Wouldn’t he?

His hands stroked up her arms and his tongue probed into her mouth, and all of a sudden Cara wanted to cry. This was all too familiar. The pretty picture only came with a sick rush of dread now. She knew how this ended.

It took all she had, but she pushed herself away. And as she turned her face away so she wouldn’t have to meet Craig’s incredulous gaze, she saw dark eyes watching her. Perry. He pushed himself off the pillar he’d been leaning on and walked away, and without another word to Craig, Cara took off.