Wow. This wasn’t at all embarrassing. How did I keep doing this to myself?

A shit-eating grin spread over Sam’s face—his scruffy, handsome, wonderful face. Damn the man. I had no choice but to lower my window.

“Whatcha doin’?” He asked, knowing full well what I was doing.

I gave him the side eye while I tried to formulate an explanation that wouldn’t humiliate me further.

Nope, nothing.

“I was in the neighborhood.” Good one, Jenna. Aces, all the way.

“That’s not what Sofia said.”

Dammit! I knew the terrorist thing was too good to be true. What was it with meddlesome sisters?

I scowled and looked him over a bit more thoroughly. All signs pointed to a very recent shower. Of course Sofia had warned him I was coming. Jill would have done the exact same thing.

“Fine. I came to see you.”

“That part is pretty clear. Were you ever going to get out of the car, or were you doing some more stretching?”

Bastard! My lips firmed and I had half a mind to pull right back out of his driveway. But that option became unavailable a second later when he opened my door and stepped back to let me out. I made sure to give him a well-deserved glare as I turned the ignition off and got out. How was it that he’d managed to gain the upper hand so quickly? Totally unfair!

He looked even more pleased at my glare, if that were possible. Then I was being pulled by my hand up his walkway and onto his front porch. His house was one of those Craftsman revivals with a huge front porch, tapered pillars, and a combination of brick and shingles completing the exterior. It was beautiful. Not that he let me admire it for very long before dragging me inside.

“Your house is—” My comment was cut off by his lips on mine. Oh well, talking was overrated. Without another thought, I wound my arms around his neck and kissed him back, reveling in the feel of his soft lips against mine. He gathered me to him and kissed me so slowly and sweetly, I thought I might be happy just staying right there for the rest of the day. Or week. This wasn’t a hurried clinch. It felt more like a contented sigh.

After a minute, Sam placed one more gentle kiss on the side of my mouth and pulled back. He didn’t release me. “Sorry. I had to do that.”

“No apology necessary,” I croaked out, my voice sounding like I hadn’t used it in days.

I wanted to burrow back into him and breathe in his scent. I’d missed that lovely combination of cedar and spice, combined with the warmth and firmness of his body. I almost whimpered. How could I miss him so much when we hadn’t ever been together in any real sense?

His hand came up to tuck a loose wave of hair behind my ear, and it lingered there, his thumb stroking the side of my neck and making my pulse skyrocket.

This man had the power to render me stupid.

“I’m glad you came over.” There was that low, melty tone.

I didn’t trust my voice to speak again, so I just smiled.

He grinned in return and then took me by the hand again, leading me more slowly this time. We passed a sitting room and walked into his kitchen. It was charming as well, with painted cabinets and a speckled granite countertop.

“At the risk of earning another glare, you look like you might want something cold to drink.” He opened the fridge and pulled out two bottles of water.

He had caught me in turbo air conditioning mode, after all, so I accepted the water with a small thank you and no glare.

“You look beautiful, Jenna.” His eyes burned over me, taking me in from my strappy sandals to my dark hair, which was surely out of control after both the air conditioning and our embrace.

A blush crept up my neck. “Thank you.”

I had no clue how to proceed. I’d come here with no real plan, just an overwhelming need to take action. Now that I was here—and after that kiss—my mind was drawing a blank.

Thankfully, Sam seemed to have something in mind. “Come on.” He took my hand again, as if unable to leave us unconnected, and took me to a cozy den off the kitchen. We sat on a plush loveseat where he kept our hands clasped on his muscular thigh. He was wearing gym shorts and an army-green t-shirt, and neither did a thing to disguise his firm body. I swallowed thickly, remembering what that body looked like naked and aroused. Did he have air conditioning in this house? If so, his thermostat needed some adjusting.

“So, am I right in assuming you came here to talk?”

I suddenly found my voice. “Well, I’m not selling Girl Scout cookies.”

He laughed, causing his smile to spread and the skin around his eyes to crinkle. Damn, he was handsome.

“I really do like your spunk, Jenna Watson.”

I bit my lip, unsure if I should let him know how cringeworthy Jill found that comment. I decided to leave it for later. I considered telling him I liked his too, but that crossed some line only Jill could traverse. What was wrong with me? Oh, right, Sam and his good looks, kisses, and warmth had turned me into an idiot.

“Good to hear,” was what I finally settled on.

When I didn’t expand on that, Sam took over again. “Where are Kate and Eileen today?”

“They’re at a friend’s house. It turns out a month is way too long to be away from their best friend. They didn’t even say goodbye when I dropped them off.”

“Well, time stretches on forever at that age.”

I nodded vaguely in agreement, too distracted by his thumb making circles on the back of my hand.

“Can I ask you a question?” Sam’s body turned more fully toward mine.

My head snapped up, his voice bringing me out of my trance. I raised my eyebrows. “Sure.”

“Why did you and Mike get divorced?”

I didn’t know what I’d expected him to ask, but it most certainly wasn’t that. Sam saw the surprise on my face.

“I just thought it might help to get things out in the open. I mean, we never really talked about past relationships until yesterday.”

He was right, of course. I squeezed his hand to let him know he hadn’t overstepped.

“He wasn’t in love with me anymore,” I confessed, unable to look at Sam for fear I’d see pity there. I wouldn’t be able to handle that. “And he didn’t see the point in trying to fix things.”

When Sam didn’t respond, I finally chanced a glance at him. His mouth was tight, and he was definitely holding himself back from saying something—what, I couldn’t imagine.

Finally, his jaw loosened. “Were you still in love with him? Are you still in love with him?”

I shook my head fiercely. “No! I mean, I’m definitely not in love with him now.” The remaining tension drained from Sam’s face, and I continued, “It’s like I said yesterday. Maybe there are different kinds of love. I was in love with Mike when we got married—at least I think I was. But it was all so easy. We dated, got married, had kids, bought a house. I never really thought about it. Mike was never the demonstrative type, so when we started growing apart, I just assumed we were on the same page. Our focus was on the girls, and we’d switch back to us when we weren’t so busy and tired.”

I paused and took a sip from my water bottle. “Turns out, that strategy doesn’t work so well. And by the time I realized that, Mike had given up. It wasn’t until later that I understood my feelings had changed as well. How much of that was due to his behavior during the divorce is unclear. But, no, I’m not in love with him. I could never have … with you if I were.” Feeling awkward, I gulped down some more water.

“Wow. Once again, that was probably more than you wanted to know.” I let out a self-deprecating laugh. “Now it’s your turn.”

He shifted so he was leaning back in the loveseat, one hand still holding mine. “What do you want to know?”

“How long were you with Emberly?”

“Seven years.” His answer was immediate.

My jaw unhinged itself. “Seven years?!”

“Yup.”

“And you never thought of getting married?”

Sam shrugged. “Sure, I thought about it. It just never felt like the right time. That, right there, was a sign I shouldn’t have ignored.”

I pulled a knee up onto the cushion and faced him. “I don’t think I know a single woman who would be okay dating for seven years without at least a ring. Did you live together?”

He nodded. “For the last year we did. I think that was what eventually undid us.”

My brows drew together. “I thought you being a cop was what undid you.”

“I think that was a convenient excuse. We realized we weren’t compatible living under the same roof. Things you don’t consider before cohabitating crop up, and it just wasn’t working.”

“But she broke up with you?”

He finally released my hand so he could open his bottle of water while gathering his thoughts. “Maybe I was like you—figuring we’d work it out when we took the time. Then one of the other reporters got engaged to a pro athlete and Emberly unraveled. Like I said, she thrives on drama.”

“Do you think she’s still in love with you?” I eyed him carefully.

“No. I think she’s lonely. Either that or she figures she needs a husband to get the anchor job—even if he’s a lowly patrol officer.” His tone held no self-pity or even disdain. It was almost as if he found the whole thing laughable.

“How did you meet?”

“We actually met back in college. She was a freshman when I was a senior. She and her friends were always showing up at our house parties, drinking our booze and flirting.”

“So you were … with her back then?” Why had I brought this up?

“No way. She was just a kid. Or at least, that’s how I saw her. Besides, my dad would have kicked my ass if I’d taken up with an eighteen-year-old when I was twenty-two.”

“I think I like your dad.”

“I think my dad would like you.” He reached for my hand again and I let him take it, squeezing back.

I smiled like an idiot. Then I remembered I still didn’t have the whole story. “So, how did you start dating?”

“About eight years ago, I was at the scene of an armed robbery. The store owner was one of those local favorites, so the news crews all showed up. Emberly was the reporter for Channel 6. She stuck around after things wound down and we caught up. Then we just started dating, I guess.” He shrugged.

“Hmm.” I wasn’t so sure I wanted any more details. I had enough to go on.

“And nobody else serious besides Emberly?”

“Nah. A few short-term relationships that didn’t work out. My schedule can be brutal at times, especially when I first started out. There wasn’t a lot of time for dating.”

“I can understand that. Part of the reason I think Mike and I grew apart was that he worked all the time. I know his new wife is learning that the hard way.”

“Sounded like it from what you said yesterday. Weren’t the girls hurt that he didn’t take time off?”

I shook my head in wonder. “I’m not sure, but it sounded like they didn’t give it much thought. I wish they’d told me sooner, though. I would have ripped Mike a new one.”

“Now that, I’d like to see.” He winked at me. “What does Mike do for a living that’s so all-consuming?”

I coughed out a laugh. “He works in IT.”

“What, for the Pentagon or something?”

“Even more high profile than that. He works for Litmar,” I whispered as though sharing a valuable secret.

“The plastics company?” Sam’s face screwed up.

I nodded slowly. “The very same.”

“Wow. That’s …” Unable to come up with anything, Sam took a sip from his bottle as his eyes narrowed.

“There really are no words. Believe me, I’ve tried to find them.”

Sam shook his head. “Can I just reiterate something I’ve said before?”

I nodded, a bit wary.

“Your ex is a giant fucking idiot.”

I chuckled. “No arguments here.” Then I gave Sam’s hand another squeeze. “Are we done with the past relationships part of the conversation?”

“Absolutely. I don’t think I can handle any more reminiscing.” He gave a fake shudder.

“Good. But I do have something I need to tell you.”

“Shoot.” Sam’s eyes were laser focused on my face.

I readjusted my position before confessing, “I know I’m the one who showed up on your doorstep, but you have to know from the get-go that I have trust issues.”

“I’d be shocked if you didn’t.” He tilted his head to the side.

My voice got quiet. “I don’t even know if I can trust myself, Sam. And I certainly can’t make any promises.”

His hold on my hand tightened. “We’ll just take it slow then. How does that sound?”

“Sounds perfect.” I let out a relieved sigh and watched our joined hands.

“Jenna,” Sam said. I looked up and saw nothing but earnestness in his eyes. “Even if you can’t see it yet, you can trust me.” His voice was quiet yet firm. “And I trust you. That’s a pretty good base to start with, don’t you think?”

Instead of responding, I leaned in and placed my lips on his.