Chapter 4

Mike was already waiting for Taylor by her SUV when she came out. Within minutes, she had her equipment and Mike was taking her by the hand and leading her to the barn.

“We have several horses who live in here,” Mike said easily. “There’s been talk of expanding the barn and boarding horses, but it’s never panned out. So, for now there are four of them and they’re great for getting around on the property.” Then an idea hit. “How about it, Taylor? Would you be willing to tour the property on horseback?”

A moment of pure panic hit her. Horseback? What was he, crazy? She was a city girl. She rode a bike, in cabs, on the subway—not horses. “Um…maybe not on my first day,” she said and flushed with embarrassment.

“That’s fine,” he said with a chuckle, sensing her uneasiness. “I’ve got a truck to take us around, but I want you to promise me you’ll try it at least once while you’re here. You don’t have to go all around the property, but at least try a short ride.”

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Okay. But only a short one.”

“Deal.” He showed her the stalls, the tack room, and the ring behind the barn where they exercised the horses, and even introduced her to some of the farmhands.

“How many other people work on the property?” she asked.

Mike thought for a second. “All in all, including in the house, I’d say there’s about a dozen people.”

“Including you?”

He nodded. “We’ve got a great staff here, and it’s a real group effort to keep the grounds looking like they do.”

“It’s amazing,” she agreed. “You can’t even see it from the road. It’s such a pleasant surprise when you finally get through the trees and see all of this.”

“And this is just the beginning,” he said with a broad grin and reached for her hand again. “C’mon. Let’s head back over to the garage and I’ll take you on the real tour.”

Excitement bubbled up inside her as they walked quickly across the massive yard. A cool breeze was blowing and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, and Taylor had to remind herself that she was working. So far, she had spent the day catching up with a friend and eating delicious food. Now she was going to drive around without a care in the world.

Opening the garage door, Mike motioned toward the Jeep that was parked inside. It was topless and a lot newer than Taylor’s, and she could only stop and stare at the beauty of it. Mike caught her expression and worried for a minute. “The Jeep makes it easier to get around on the property. Most of the paths are pretty rough and none of them are paved. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Mind? Are you kidding? I’m having total Jeep-envy right now!” She laughed as she climbed in and buckled her seat belt. She looked over at him excitedly. “I have a super-old Jeep back home, and although I hardly ever have the opportunity—or the need—to drive it, I just can’t seem to let it go.”

“I can understand that. I pretty much kill a lot of the trucks we have because the paths are so rough, but at the same time, I kind of like driving them. So far the Jeep has held up the best.”

She smiled and held on as he backed out of the garage. He noticed where her hands were and laughed. “You’ll have a white-knuckled grip before too long,” he teased. When they were fully out of the garage, he looked at her one last time. “You’re sure you’re okay with this? We don’t have to do this today if you don’t want to.”

Taylor gave him a look. “I’m a lot tougher than you think. I can handle a little bit of four-wheeling,” she said and straightened in her seat. “Bring it.”

Mike threw the truck in gear and they took off. With the roof off it was difficult to talk much over the sound of the engine and the wind blowing, so Mike did his best to slow down or stop when they hit a point of interest. He hadn’t lied when he said it would be a bumpy ride. The paths were clearly defined but definitely rugged, and some of the entrances weren’t so clearly marked. More than once Taylor felt her heart thumping in her chest. Mike knew exactly what she was thinking and was having fun playing with her like this.

Over the course of the ride, he pointed out where the large vegetable garden was and talked of what they grew there and how some of what they had eaten for lunch had come from it. Next came the fishing pond—man-made and stocked because Wade loved to fish. As they came around a bend, Taylor noticed animals off in the distance.

“What kind of livestock does he have here?” she asked curiously.

“There are about a dozen head of cattle, maybe a half-dozen sheep, plus the horses.”

Taylor was impressed. There wasn’t much else to see that was so out of the ordinary, but the picturesque nature of the property as a whole kept her mesmerized. Mike continued to drive around—pointing out different types of birds and trees—making sure Taylor was able to get her photos and experience it all.

When they arrived back at the garage, Taylor was surprised that three hours had gone by. “Wow,” she said as she climbed down. “That was the fastest three hours I’ve ever spent.”

He had to agree. It had been a long time since he had taken the time to go through the property so thoroughly—even though he knew the importance of it. But it was also the chance to see it through someone else’s eyes—Taylor’s eyes—that had him feeling as if he was seeing it all for the first time. While he knew the place like the back of his hand, he had forgotten the simple joy in spotting a scarlet tanager or a red-winged blackbird. As he watched Taylor’s response to seeing them, he remembered a time when it had been thrilling for him, too.

When had that stopped?

They were heading back toward the house when Taylor paused. “I’m sure you have stuff to do that doesn’t include entertaining me. If it’s all right with you, I’m going to go up to my room and start making some notes for the article—you know, talking about the things we saw today and whatnot—and then some questions for you for later. If you don’t mind.”

“I don’t mind at all. That’s what I’m here for.”

She smiled at his words and didn’t doubt his sincerity. “Still,” she began, “I don’t want to keep you from anything important.”

“I’ll let you know if that ever becomes a problem, okay?” He loved watching the play of emotions on her face as she relaxed. “What do you say we meet up for dinner in about two hours? Will that give you enough time to start your notes?” Taylor nodded and walked into the house while Mike stood and watched the door close.

As much as Mike was enjoying their time together, he definitely needed a little time alone to get his head on straight. He’d known seeing Taylor again was going to cause a little inner turmoil—she was the one he had wanted, but she’d belonged to his best friend. Now, all these years later, it was as if no time had passed at all. One look at her and he was ten years younger and they were connecting just as they had back then.

While getting caught up today had been great, Mike knew it was just a matter of time before the past came up in conversation. He had to brace himself for it, because it wasn’t pretty. He had a feeling that even though he was ashamed of the things he had done, Taylor might not be so shocked. He was well aware of what people thought of him back then—and Taylor knew most of it—but he never wanted the ugly part of his life to touch her.

It was why he stayed away.

But she was here now. Granted, she was here to do a job and interview Jonathan Wade, but for this week, she was with him and only him. He intended to honor the terms of the contract and let her ask all the questions she wanted about the great author, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to make the most of their time together. There were so many things he wanted to show her, share with her, that he was itching to get started.

A week wasn’t going to be enough. He knew when his time was up and he had to hand her over to the subject of her assignment, he would be all but forgotten.

* * *

Two hours later, Taylor found Mike in the kitchen. She adjusted her glasses and looked around the room. Normally she didn’t wear her glasses around anyone, but she just didn’t have the energy to deal with her contacts right now. She was ready to relax.

The aroma from whatever was cooking made her mouth water. She stood in the doorway and watched as he set the table and arranged a bouquet of fresh wildflowers in a vase, and couldn’t help but smile. She had yet to see who the mystery chef was, because this was twice in one day that she had arrived and the food was already waiting for her. A girl could get used to this sort of thing.

As if sensing her presence, Mike turned and caught Taylor’s eye. “Hey,” he said as he straightened. “I was just going to come and get you. Everything’s ready. I hope you’re hungry.”

“Clearly you don’t know me all that well,” she said with a chuckle. “I’m pretty much always hungry.” She stepped up to the stove and lifted a lid, moaning with delight. “And all that stuff they say about the mountain air increasing your appetite? It’s true.”

Leaning against the counter, Mike considered her. “There’s only one problem with that theory.”

“What’s that?”

“We’re not in the mountains.” He waited for that to register and then almost burst out laughing at her crestfallen expression.

“Oh.”

“Not to worry,” he said as he approached her. He leaned in close. “They say the same thing about country air.”

“Oh—you!” She swatted at him playfully. They worked together to put dinner on the table—pork chops, mashed potatoes, sautéed green beans, and a salad. They sat down, and Taylor felt Mike’s eyes on her. “What?”

“I don’t remember you ever wearing glasses,” he said simply, his chin resting on his hand as he looked at her face.

“Oh, well…I avoid wearing them in front of other people because I feel like they make me look like a dork, but after flying today and the drive around with the top down and then all the time on the computer, my contacts were killing me. It was either peel them out now or scratch the hell out of my eyes later.” She heard him chuckle. “What’s so funny about that?”

“You are like no other woman I’ve ever known, Taylor,” he said honestly as he helped himself to a spoonful of mashed potatoes. Then he stopped and thought for a moment. “Then again, you’ve never been overly concerned about your appearance.”

“Well, thanks a lot!” she snapped defensively and grabbed the bowl of potatoes from him.

“No, no!” he said quickly. “I didn’t mean that in a bad way. It’s good. More women should be like you.” His voice softened. “I’ve always thought it was cool that you weren’t the type of girl who was more concerned about what she looked like than anything else.”

She blushed, at a loss for what to say.

“Of course, it does help that you were always beautiful, so you didn’t need to worry about anything.”

Her blush deepened and she stood up quickly. “Um…I’m going to grab some iced tea. Would you like some?” Mike shook his head and held up his glass of water, watching her walk across the room as he kicked himself. He had made her uncomfortable. That was the last thing he wanted to do. He rested his head in his hands and tried to come up with something witty to say to change the subject when he heard a crash and Taylor cried out.

Jumping up from his seat, he saw the broken glass on the floor and blood gushing from Taylor’s finger. “Oh my God, Taylor! Are you all right?” He crouched down beside her and inspected her hand. Carefully, he helped her step over to the sink to get cleaned off. He kept his touch gentle as he ran her hand under cool water and then raised her fingers to inspect the damage. He was holding her from behind and it didn’t take long for him to realize this position was so not helping him.

Taylor looked over her shoulder with wide eyes. “I…I don’t think any glass got in. It’s just a cut. I grabbed at the glass to try to clean it up and it just slipped.” She looked over at the mess. “I can’t believe I’m such a klutz. I’m so sorry!”

They were standing so close together that Taylor was having trouble focusing. Mike’s thumb was running rhythmic circles over her wrist as the cool water washed over her hand. He checked one more time to make sure there weren’t any pieces of glass in her skin before stepping back. “I’ll get that cleaned up.” He motioned to the broken glass. “There’s a first aid kit in the pantry.” His voice was a little gruff and he made quick work of moving away from her and getting the broken glass up off of the floor and wiping the area clean.

Once they were seated back at the table, Mike poured her another glass of tea and placed it in front of her. “I’m sorry about that,” she said as heat crept up her cheeks again.

“Don’t worry about it, Taylor. It was an accident and it isn’t a big deal. C’mon, relax and let’s enjoy our dinner.”

She nodded, and found that “enjoy” would be an understatement. Just as lunch had been, dinner was absolutely delicious. She placed her fork and knife down and took a sip of her drink. “So, I’m curious,” she began. “Food appears and yet I don’t see anyone here. The staff must be super discreet.”

He laughed and took a drink of his own beverage. “No, they’re not.”

“Sure they are. This is my second meal here and I haven’t seen anyone. How is that possible if they’re not being discreet?”

He put his elbows on the table and gave her his full attention—because he didn’t want to miss her reaction. “You’ve seen the cook,” he said easily.

“No, really, I—” And then it hit her. “You? You’re the cook?”

His smile broadened. “Yes, ma’am.”

“But…how? Why?” She slumped a little in her seat. “I don’t get it.”

He shrugged. “I enjoy cooking. And basically, there’s only two people at the most here to cook for, so it was pointless to hire a cook to keep on staff. We need people to help with the property and the animals and to come in and clean the house, but cooking is something I don’t mind doing. Actually, I give the housekeeper a shopping list and she gets everything I need and then I can cook.”

She mimicked his pose and placed her cheek in her hand as she studied him. “Boy, you are just full of surprises today. If this is what our first day is like, I can’t imagine what you’ve got in store for me tomorrow.”

Again, he knew she was fishing and he figured talking about what he had planned for her was a fairly safe topic. “Well, besides being available to answer all the questions you come up with, I plan on showing you around town and some of the local hot spots.”

“Are these places Wade frequents?” she asked as she cut into her dinner.

Mike nodded. “Can I ask a favor?”

“Anything,” she said with a smile and then let out a little “mmm,” at how good the food tasted.

“Would it be all right if we didn’t talk about work tonight? I mean, I know that’s why you’re here, but I’d like to kick back and relax and just get reacquainted.” He watched for her reaction and when she just stared at him—without blinking—he thought that once again he had put his foot in his mouth.

“So…you just want to talk about…life, and whatnot.” It wasn’t a question.

“If it’s all right with you,” he rushed to say. “We have an entire week to talk business and…well, I just thought it would be nice to hear what’s been going on with you other than the basics we talked about earlier.”

She considered his words for a minute before nodding. “Okay, but just know I’m going to want to know about you, too. And not just about your job. I’m probably going to ask what brought you here. I promise not to turn it in the direction of Wade and your work for him, okay?”

“Sounds fair to me.” They continued to eat for a few minutes, then Mike broke the silence. “So, do you keep in touch with any of your old friends?”

Taylor shook her head, her long blond hair moving behind her. “Not really. Most of them have gotten married and moved away. Plus, after I moved to the city, it was hard to find the time—and the money—to go to the Island to hang out.”

“I can imagine. It’s still a shame, though. I know you had a lot of good friends who you were always with.”

“Well, I did, but that summer was our last one together. Besides, with everyone getting ready to head off to college, once things went south with Eddie, I sort of stopped hanging out.” Mike nodded at her words, but she dreaded the topic of his former best friend. “Do you still keep in touch with him?” There was only a slight tremor in her voice and she cursed it. Eddie was ancient history, but he had definitely done his share of damage to her ego.

Mike looked down at his plate and then pushed it away before folding his hands on the table, his smile sad. “We did for a while. He got married the summer after I met you. Did you know that?” Taylor nodded. “Anyway, he moved to Maryland and had a couple of kids in just as many years and then he split.”

Feeling a little uncomfortable, Mike rose and walked over to the refrigerator and grabbed a beer before rejoining Taylor at the table.

“He moved up north for a while and moved in with his mom. We hung out a bit, and then he met wife number two, got married, and moved away.”

“Where to?” Taylor couldn’t help but ask.

“Back to Maryland. He said he wanted to be near his kids.” He sighed. “Next time I heard from him, another year had passed. He’d had another kid and was living alone. His wife threw him out after finding him in bed with their babysitter.”

“Some things never change.” Taylor chuckled humorlessly. Eddie had been, she thought, the great love of her life. At eighteen, Taylor was in love with him and they had started planning their future together, only it wasn’t meant to be. She had gone out of town with her mother for a long weekend toward the end of the summer. It was supposed to be a time for them to have a girls’ weekend before Taylor left for college. She came home early to surprise him.

It was Taylor, however, who had been surprised.

She found Eddie in bed with one of her friends. Foolishly, she’d shown up at his house on a Saturday afternoon. They had been dating for so long that she was comfortable entering without knocking or ringing the bell. His parents weren’t home and she had simply walked in and gone looking for him.

Big mistake.

Or maybe pure luck.

Either way, it had taken a long time to recover from that. If she were being honest with herself, she would say she still hadn’t completely recovered from his betrayal. Maybe that was a reason she felt okay not being in a relationship: there was less chance of getting hurt that way.

It had been years after that incident before she let herself get involved with anyone. She had always been cautious where the male population was concerned. After being abandoned by her father, her mother had instilled in Taylor a fear of how easily her heart could be broken. Eddie was the first and last man she’d allowed herself to get close to.

Mike cleared his throat to regain Taylor’s attention. “You okay?”

Embarrassed and feeling the heated blush flood her body—again!—she nodded. “Where’s he at now?” Curiosity got the best of her.

Mike looked away, clearly uncomfortable with what he was going to say. “Ed was killed in a car accident about a year ago.” His words were deep and low and full of emotion. Taylor reached out and put a hand over his for comfort.

“I’m so sorry, Mike. I know you guys were close.”

“The thing is, Taylor, for a long time I thought we were. But now, I look back on all the years we knew each other, Ed and I, and realize that I never knew him at all.”

“What do you mean?”

“For starters, there’s you.”

“Me?” she squeaked.

He nodded. “Eddie was crazy about you. He’d talk about you so damn much that the rest of us guys wanted to clobber him. It was always ‘Taylor this’ or ‘Taylor that.’” Mike turned Taylor’s hand in his. “I used to envy him for what he’d found with you. He was so confident of the future the two of you were planning. He wouldn’t even introduce any of us to you until you had been dating for about six months. I guess he was afraid we’d hit on you or something,” he said with a wink and was relieved when Taylor smiled.

“I didn’t realize that,” she said. “I mean, that he had waited to introduce us.”

“I thought surely he was exaggerating where you were concerned, but after meeting you, I knew he hadn’t even begun to do you justice.”

Taylor looked away again, feeling her heart beating too fast.

“Toward the end of that summer, we were all at that party at the Robert Moses beach. Do you remember?” His voice softened and Taylor had trouble meeting his gaze. She knew where this memory was going. “I saw Ed off talking to some girl and you were sitting all alone by the fire. You looked so sad.” Mike released Taylor’s hand and took another drink of his beer. “I came over to sit by you and we talked for a long time.”

She nodded. “You were very nice to me, Mike,” she said, studying his face.

“The thing is, Taylor, you were nice to me.”

Confusion covered her face. “I don’t understand.”

“Everyone knew I had a pretty wild past and not many people wanted me around. I had been arrested a couple of times, done time in juvie—hell, I was a mess. I used to hear people refer to me as ‘the criminal.’ You never did that.” His eyes bored into hers. “That meant a lot to me.”

“The way I saw it, there was no reason to bring it up. You were trying to get your life back on track and you weren’t hurting anyone. And besides, everyone deserves a second chance.” It was true. Taylor hated the way her friends had treated Mike back then. It had shamed her even to associate with some of them. They seemed to tolerate him for Eddie’s sake, but the truth was that none of them wanted Mike around. She had argued with them over it more than once. Taylor had always tried to look for the best in people, and in her opinion, at the time Mike started coming around, he was a totally nice guy—he was funny and genuine, and he owned his mistakes. Unfortunately, she was in the minority with her feelings. The memory made her angry, but another came to mind that made her chuckle.

“What’s so funny?” he asked, thoroughly confused considering the topic they had just been discussing.

Trying to maintain her composure, Taylor looked at him. “Do you know, to this day I still think about one of the most offensive lines you ever said to me?”

“Offensive? What did I say to offend you?” He was unaware of ever doing that and he racked his brain for what he could have said.

“When we were sitting by the fire, I noticed a tattoo of a cross on your arm and said it looked nice.” She looked at him a little closer to see if he remembered, but clearly he didn’t. “You looked me right in the eye and said, ‘Got it in prison. Still think it’s nice?’”

“I did not say that!”

She nodded. “Oh, yes you did,” she said with a smile. “Believe me. There is no way I could possibly make up something like that.”

And then he did remember and instantly sobered. “I was trying to scare you off.”

“Why?”

“Ed was my best friend, and yet the more I got to know you, the more I wanted to get to know you. It wasn’t right. I felt guilty.”

“And right after you said that you leaned over and—”

“I kissed you.” His voice was thick and deep and sexy.

“Yes, you did,” she admitted shyly.

“I would have kissed you more, but there was a crowd.”

For just a moment, Taylor allowed herself to get lost in his eyes and the memory of what the kiss had been like. “Well.” She cleared her throat. “It was a long time ago.”

Mike saw the hint of promise in her eyes, but it was gone in an instant. “What I was getting to was, well, I never did understand how Eddie was crazy enough to let you go. He had it all and he blew it for a quickie with someone he had no interest in. It just never made any sense to me.”

A bit of the anger Taylor normally felt when she thought about that time in her life was right there. “I never understood it either,” she said tersely. “I guess I just wasn’t enough for him.” She gave a mirthless laugh. “That’s what I got for trying to be rebellious and dating the guy everyone warned me about. Guess I should have listened.” She played around with her silverware, her drink, her plate…anything to keep from having to look at Mike and see the pity in his eyes. She had seen it enough in everyone else’s over the years.

“I hated him for doing that to you,” he said to break the silence.

“Me too.” Her voice was small and she still couldn’t look at him. It wasn’t easy sitting here talking about the biggest failure in her life.

“That night at the beach, after he drove you home, he came to my house and we talked.” Now she did look up. “We were shooting the breeze, nothing major, but he kept bringing you up in conversation. Things like, ‘Did you know Taylor likes this?’ or, ‘Taylor and I are planning that.’” Mike took a deep breath. “I think he saw me kiss you and he was reminding me who you belonged to. Then he went on to talk about my screwed-up life.” His gaze was fixed on hers. “It was his way of telling me to back off because I wasn’t good enough for someone like you. I didn’t get invited around much after that.”

“I wondered what had happened to you.”

“After the two of you broke up, he made sure I was with him at all times,” he said with a hint of sadness. “I saw him more in those first few months after your breakup than I had in years. He practically lived with me. I think he felt that if I wasn’t hanging out with him, I’d be out looking for you.”

Taylor went still at his words, afraid to breathe, afraid to blink. What was he saying? That he had been interested in her back then and Eddie had prevented it from happening? Mike saw the questioning in her eyes and answered it. “I would have,” he said softly.

“I never knew,” she said, her voice barely audible.

“How could you? You were in love with Ed, and then when the two of you broke up,” he said with a shrug, “I figured I was the last guy you wanted to see. Besides him.”

“I…I don’t know what to say, Mike.”

He gave her a sad smile. “I didn’t think you knew or anything, but…there it is.” He finished his beer. “I found out about your writing purely by chance. I’m addicted to the news and current events. Weird, right?” Taylor smiled and nodded. “I saw one of your articles in Newslink on the closing of some of the area’s libraries and—first, I was impressed with your writing, but then I realized how long it had been since I’d seen you.”

“You obviously knew where I worked. Why didn’t you reach out?” It wasn’t an accusation; she just wanted to know why he waited so long to get in touch with her.

He shrugged again. “I had no idea what else was going on in your life. I didn’t want to disrupt it and bring back memories I was sure you’d rather forget.”

While she understood his reasoning, she wished he had opted to be less reasonable. “I would have loved to hear from you. All things considered, I still thought you and I were friends. I missed seeing you. Even after things happened the way they did with Ed, I still thought about you and missed talking to you.”

“I never knew,” he said, repeating her earlier words. There didn’t seem much more to say.

“I’m sad to think he’s gone, that he’s got children who are never going to see their father again, but I can’t say I’m surprised. He always seemed to live on the edge a little too much for my liking.”

He chuckled. “I used to wonder how such a sweet girl like you ended up with someone like him.”

“Unfortunately, I’m your typical cliché. There’s something about bad boys that makes girls want to change them.” She sighed. “I truly thought it was going to happen.”

“If it counts for anything, I think Ed always regretted messing up with you.”

“Thanks,” she said, her voice distant and quiet. To distract herself, she stood up and began to clear the table.

“Didn’t we already go over this?” he asked as he stood to join her. “You’re a guest here and you don’t have to help with things like this.”

She waved him off. “It makes me feel good to help. You’ve done nothing but listen to me talk all day and show me around and I get to stay in this beautiful house—it doesn’t feel like work. Trust me when I tell you that I’m normally not a fan of housework of any kind, but helping around here makes me feel good. I feel…useful.” She avoided his gaze as she gathered their dishes from the table and took them to the sink.

For a moment, Mike could only stare. Did she have any idea how incredible she was, how amazing? But he could still see the scars Ed had put on her and he hated it. Over the years, Mike had remembered Taylor as the girl with the big smile and bright eyes who was full of laughter and confidence. The woman in the kitchen now had a bit of an edge to her—and a defensive wall around her that hadn’t been there before. It wasn’t right to curse the dead, but in that moment, he did.

Glancing at the clock, Mike realized that he wasn’t ready to part with Taylor for the evening. “I know we just finished eating, but I’m hoping you’ll want to have dessert.” He walked over to the refrigerator and pulled out a covered dish. “It’s an Oreo pie.”

Taylor’s eyes went wide with delight. “Shut up!” she said even as she laughed. “Tell me you did not make that yourself!”

He had the good sense to look bashful. “Hey, when you’re a bachelor, you learn to do these things for yourself, otherwise you’d go broke eating out and getting takeout all the time. It’s not a big deal—it’s a mix. Really, it’s nothing.”

Taylor thought he was possibly the most adorable man alive. No, that wasn’t true—adorable was too mild a term. He was handsome and smart and sexy. And the fact that he could cook and make an Oreo pie tipped the scales.

“I know I shouldn’t, but you’ve found my weak spot. I can’t say no to an Oreo pie.” She threw down the dishtowel she had been holding, suddenly feeling ashamed at her admission, when she remembered something. “Wait a minute. Did you…?” She shook her head in disbelief.

“Did I remember that Oreos were one of your favorite snacks?” he asked with a lopsided grin. “Absolutely.”

A million questions ran through Taylor’s mind. Too many coincidences, too many revelations. And if it weren’t for the Oreo pie sitting there looking too delicious for words, she would excuse herself and go up to her room to think about everything she had learned that night. “Well, that was pretty darn sweet of you,” she said instead. In one smooth move, Taylor turned and opened the cabinet to get two plates. It wasn’t until she placed them on the table that she noticed the odd expression on Mike’s face and realized what she’d done. She had never seen Mike set the table or where anything was in the kitchen, but it was like she somehow…knew where to find them.

What could she say? There was no explanation for how at home she felt—so she brought their attention back to the pie. “Can we eat it out on the porch?” she asked, her eyes bright, her expression hopeful.

“Uh…it’s kind of chilly out, Taylor. It’s a lot colder up here than it is in New York.”

“Then I’ll grab a sweater,” she said. “Please? From the minute I drove through the trees today I’ve thought about sitting on that porch. Of course, I had pictured watching the sunset or sunrise, but being out there in the quiet would be a perfect way to end the day. Can we?”

He couldn’t say no to her. Even though he had thought to take their dessert into the den and light a fire in the large hearth, he supposed there was something to be said for sitting outside in the cold.

At night.

While trying not to freeze.

* * *

Within ten minutes, Taylor realized Mike was right. It was freezing. And pitch black. Oh, and freezing. Doing her best to keep her teeth from chattering, she had nearly inhaled her slice of pie and noticed Mike doing the same. When they both finished, Mike took their plates and set them down next to the porch swing. As much as she wanted to swing, the thought of propelling back and forth—even slowly—in the cool night air was too much for her.

“Okay,” she said. “Lesson learned. You definitely know more about how cold it gets than I do and I’m ready to admit defeat.”

Beside her, he chuckled. “It’s not so bad,” he said as he moved closer and put an arm around her, pulling her nearer. “I’ve almost forgotten what it’s like to have feeling in my fingers.” Together they laughed and Taylor playfully elbowed him in the ribs. “Ouch!”

“I should have listened, but all I could think about was getting to sit out here.” She looked at him. “Any chance of the weather warming up this week?”

He shook his head. “Some, but not by much. But there’s a great fire pit out back. Maybe tomorrow night we’ll sit by the fire.”

“That would be nice,” she said as she settled against him. And then she realized that this right here was also nice. Mike’s body was shielding hers from some of the wind and he was very warm—despite what he had said. She rested her head on his shoulder, feeling at peace.

As if reading her mind, Mike said, “This is nice.” Startled by how in sync they were becoming, Taylor lifted her head and looked at him. Though it was dark all around them, she could see his face across from hers. “What’s the matter?” he asked.

Everything. Nothing. Past and present were swirling together in her brain and the only thing that stood out was how she wanted to experience that one moment in time with him again. That one moment when he had kissed her more thoroughly than any man ever had before—or since. She wanted to know what it would feel like to have him kiss her when nobody was watching.

Taylor wasn’t sure she should initiate a kiss. What if everything he had said was how he felt years ago but not anymore? Would she be able to handle the rejection and continue to work with him all week? Indecision warred within her until she felt Mike’s hand gently cup the back of her head.

“Let me help you make that decision,” he said in a deep, husky voice.

And then he kissed her.