Jesse waited on the front lawn. He sucked in a gasp when Mary Clare finally opened the front door. She paused in the entryway and he hoped she wasn’t having second thoughts. Her feminine figure was outlined by the foyer awash in bright light. She pulled the door closed behind her then jogged down the steps, her long, wet hair slicked back into a ponytail.

“Hey there.” He brushed his hand down her arm. “Where do you want to go?”

She lifted her face, the streetlight glinting in her blue eyes. She grabbed his hand and led him toward his truck. “You invited me to go for a drive. It’s all up to you.”

He startled out of his trance. “Okay.” He opened the door for her and lifted his hand in a sweeping gesture. “Madam.”

She laughed. She seemed relaxed tonight. Happy. More than usual. He hoped maybe he had something to do with that. Smiling, he ran around his side and got in. While buckling in, he snuck a peek at her tight pink T-shirt that stopped right at the waistband of her low-slung jeans. He had never seen her dressed this casually and he liked it. He pulled his door shut and jammed the key in the ignition. The vehicle fired to life.

Mary Clare rolled her eyes at the loud engine. “Are we supposed to be sneaking out of here? Your truck’s going to wake the neighborhood.” She wrapped her thin fingers around the edge of the seat. “This bench feels like one of those beds you put a quarter into and it vibrates.”

Jesse laughed and put the truck into Drive. “What would you know about that?”

It was Mary Clare’s turn to laugh. She dragged her hand down her long ponytail and twisted it around her hand. “Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Now take me for a drive.”

“All righty, then.” Jesse didn’t care where they went, he just wanted an excuse to be with her. “Not sure what’s still open this late.”

Mary Clare leaned back in her seat. “I can’t believe you dragged me out on a school night.”

“A school night, huh? I thought you were on your summer vacation?”

“What about you? Don’t you have to get to work tomorrow after taking a few days off at the track?” She stared straight ahead, and the lights from an approaching car swept across her face.

He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. “My dad and I will open the shop a little late. We’re pretty flexible.” He unrolled the windows a crack to allow the fresh evening air to waft into the vehicle. He had gotten good at perfecting the carefree bad boy attitude. His dad’s shop was under control. People scheduled their vehicles ahead of time, more and more realizing that his son was now running things. Jesse imagined there’d be a point in time very soon when they’d have to consider closing up the shop. But that would mean facing the inevitable. “We don’t have a lot of business nowadays.”

“I’m sorry. I should have been more—”

Jesse leaned over and squeezed her knee. “You don’t need to watch what you say around me. Okay?”

She nodded. “I imagine it’s getting more important that you tend to your motocross business.”

“Yeah. It’s what’s going to pay the bills, especially if my dad needs long-term care. It really sucks. I hate that my dad has Alzheimer’s.”

It was Mary Clare’s turn to reach across and touch his knee. “I’m sorry, too.” After a beat, she added, “Where are we heading?” She tucked one leg under her and shifted toward him on the bench seat. With her pinky finger, she swiped at the hair caught in the corner of her mouth.

“How about the lake?” He slowed at the stop sign and turned on his directional. “Is that okay with you?”

She smiled, her white teeth glistening in the darkened cab. A few minutes later, he pulled into the gravel parking lot adjacent to the lake. He stretched his arm over the back of the seat and backed into a parking spot, the truck bed facing the lake. Her soft hair brushed against his arm, ramping up his awareness of her. He put the car into Park. He brushed his knuckle across the soft skin of her cheek. Then he cleared his throat and craned his neck to look up through the windshield. “The stars are really out tonight.” He pulled on the door handle and the dome light popped on. He gestured toward the door with his head. “Let’s get some fresh air.”

She reached for her handle.

“Hold up.” He slid out of the truck and jogged around to open her door. He offered his hand to her.

She slipped her slender hand into his. “You surprise me, Mr. Thorpe.”

“Why is that?”

“You have impeccable manners.”

Holding a hand to her lower back, he walked to the back of the truck and undid the gate latch. He planted his hands on either side of her waist and lifted her onto the open gate. He lingered for a minute, her knee brushing his thigh. He hopped up on the opened gate and let his feet dangle over the edge.

“You’re considerate. All the time. You’re a gentleman.” She leaned toward him and bumped shoulders with him.

Jesse shrugged. “With me, what you see is what you get. That’s why it’s rough around the edges sometimes.”

Mary Clare traced the outside seam of his jeans on the side of his thigh. “Nothing wrong with a few rough edges. I’d rather have someone honest than a fake. My soon-to-be ex was a selfish jerk. He’d come home, plop down and demand dinner. He never spent any time with Henry. The poor kid has been starving for male attention.” She turned her face away from him and lowered her voice. “My ex wasn’t always like that. I felt like it was a situation of bait and switch.”

He held out his hand, palm up, and she threaded her fingers through his.

“I never thought I’d get divorced, but I couldn’t take it anymore. I couldn’t imagine that was all there was left to life. I was going crazy.” She drew in a shaky breath. “That’s why I left him.”

Jesse stared at her profile until she finally turned to meet his gaze. He frowned in confusion. “I guess I just assumed he left you.”

Mary Clare shook her head. “I was more alone in the marriage than I feel now. I mean, not now, now, but in general.” She squeezed his hand. “Does that surprise you?”

“A little.” Jesse struggled to keep the emotion out of his voice.

Mary Clare pulled her hand away and hopped off the tailgate. “Should I have stayed even though I was miserable?” He hadn’t meant to touch a nerve, but he obviously had.

Jesse scooted off the tailgate and stood next to her and lightly touched her forearm. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean…it’s just my mom bailed without a backward glance.”

Mary Clare sucked in a breath and shock raced across her face. “I would never leave Henry. Never.”

“I know you wouldn’t.”

Mary Clare bowed her head. “Leaving Chip was the most difficult thing I’ve ever done.” She raked her fingers through her ponytail. “And it hasn’t gotten easier. I’m still not settled.” She scratched her forehead, staring toward the lake with tears glistening in her eyes.

“Hey, I didn’t mean to… Hey, we were supposed to escape. Get our minds off our troubles.”

She laughed. “We’ve been out exactly—what?—thirty minutes and we’ve already talked about your dad and my failed marriage. Go us.”

“We can’t help ourselves, I suppose. We need to work on living in the moment.” Jesse cupped her cheek and stepped closer, leaving only a fraction of space between their bodies. He dipped his head and covered her mouth with his. She stiffened at first, then softened under his touch. After a moment, he pulled away and looked into her eyes. “Did that help?”

Mary Clare brushed her fingers over her swollen lips. A twinkle lit her eyes. “A little.”

Jesse wrapped his hands around her waist and hoisted her back up onto the tailgate. He kept his hands on her waist. “How come we never got together when we were in school?”

“Are you kidding me?” Mary Clare’s eyes grew wide. “You and my brother were best friends, despite my parents’ very real concern that you were going to corrupt him.”

Jesse brushed a long strand of wavy hair over her shoulder. He leaned in close and whispered across her cheek. “Did you worry I’d corrupt you?”

“You knew me in high school. My idea of fun was studying on a Saturday night.”

Jesse laughed. “I envied your family.”

“I never knew that.” Mary Clare’s eyes seemed to search his soul. “I guess I didn’t always appreciate what I had. I wish I hadn’t cared as much as I did about school to the point that I worried myself to sleep. Back then, I thought my biggest problem was not getting an A on a test.” She blew out a long breath. “If only I’d known.”

Jesse turned and hopped back up on the tailgate, sitting next to her. “Brainiac.”

She bumped shoulders. “I hated when you called me that.”

“I know.” He threaded his fingers through hers and drew in closer. “I loved hanging out at your house. Your family was like the Seavers, you know from that old sitcom Growing Pains. I couldn’t believe you guys actually ate dinner together. That your father and mother both lived in the same house…and actually seemed to like each other. My dad did the best he could, but he lived at the garage.” He ran his thumb across the back of her hand. “I’m grateful your parents didn’t chase me away because I was a bad example.”

“You were the guy who took my brother to his first drinking party when he was fifteen.”

Pulling back, he glanced at her. “How did you know that?”

“I heard my parents arguing about it. They almost banned you from the house. My dad intervened. He had a soft spot for you.”

“I take it I shouldn’t expect your mom to roll out the red carpet for me?” He narrowed his gaze.

She turned to stare out over the lake, a smile tipping the corners of her mouth. “No, definitely not. But my mother’s tough on everyone.”

He muttered something not meant for her to hear.

She playfully punched his arm. “I’m just being honest.”

“I appreciate that. I guess.”

Jesse leaned in and covered her lips with his. This time, the kiss grew deeper. She made a soft moaning sound that stoked the fire. Releasing one of her hands, he palmed the back of her head, then slowly twisted and laid her back on the bed of the truck.

After a moment, he lifted his head. “This isn’t very comfortable, is it?”

“No.” She giggled, pushing up on an elbow and groaning. “My bony hips and the back of this truck are no match.”

Jesse hopped off the truck bed, the gravel crunching under his feet. He pushed her knees apart and stood in front of her. He dragged his hand down the back of her head, her back, stopping at the swell of her bottom. He leaned over and whispered in her ear, “This is better.”

She met his fiery gaze and returned it with one of her own, topped with a dangerous grin. “Much.”

* * *

Mary Clare’s body was on fire. A warmth coiled low and deep. Jesse’s hand hovering just below her waistline was sending her over the edge. She was ready to show him she wasn’t a good girl. Not anymore. His lips were warm on hers. He tasted minty. Every ounce of her skin was aware of his touch. A soft groan escaped his lips and he pulled back from her and tucked a strand of hair that had escaped her ponytail behind her ear.

“I feel like I’m in high school again.” His voice was husky, full of desire.

“Why?” she whispered, not trusting her own voice.

“I want to go somewhere…alone with you.”

Her breath hitched in her throat.

“I’m living with my dad in the trailer and you’re living in your childhood bedroom.” His suggestion to go somewhere with her sent her pulse spiking through her ears.

“We can’t exactly go back to my house.”

“Mrs. O’Connor would really love me then,” he said, his lips on her neck and his deep voice rumbling over her.

“Mmm, hmmm.” After a few more passionate kisses, she slid away from him and hopped off the truck. She tilted her head back, letting the evening air cool her skin. She rested her hip on the open gate of the truck bed. “I do believe I was wrong when I called you a gentleman.”

He put his hands on her shoulders from behind and squeezed. “I promise I’d be nothing but a gentleman.” He leaned in closer and his breath whispered across the back of her neck. “And you’d enjoy every minute of it.”

She swallowed hard. Warmth soared up her neck and heated her cheeks. Lord help her, she wanted to go somewhere with him, too. She wanted to be with him. Her mind raced. She hadn’t been with anyone since she and Chip had split. Heck, she had been such a good girl, she had only ever been with Chip in her entire life. She dragged the pad of her finger across her swollen lips.

Could she really play this cool and casual? A summer fling?

Still sitting on the bed of the truck while she stood, Jesse placed his hands on her hips and pulled her closer to him, her back to his front. “What are you thinking about?” He left a trail of kisses along her cheek, her ear, down her neck. His breath whispered across her flesh. She leaned her head back against his chest, her entire body coming alive.

Opening her eyes, she stared at the millions of stars glittering over the lake. “I can’t think…”

He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her even closer. “That’s the idea.”

His touch made her brave. She turned around slowly, still in his arms. She let her fingers move along the hem of his shirt. His warm skin was smooth under her touch. She moved her hand in slow circles along his back. A low groan escaped his lips. “I have a blanket in the back of the truck.”

“We can’t…”

Can I?

Jesse broke the embrace and ran his hands down her arms until he was holding her hands. Breathing hard, a smile pulled at the corners of his mouth. “No, we can’t. I meant it when I said I was a gentleman. I’m not going to screw you in the back of my truck like we’re teenagers.” He let go of one hand and trailed his finger along her jaw, making her shiver. “When I make love to you, I want it to be something special. Not a one-night stand.”

She smiled, but this time she felt a little sad. His kind words had inadvertently thrown a cold bucket of water over her. She didn’t plan on being around Mills Crossing for more than the summer. Why start something this serious now? It was stupid. Reckless. Crazy.

She didn’t do any of those things.

Jesse lifted her chin with a hooked finger and kissed her lips, so gently, softly that it took her breath away. “Stop thinking,” he whispered. “We’re going to do this right.” Holding her hand, he walked her around to her side of the truck. “Promise me you’re not going to overthink this.”

She shivered. She missed the warmth of his body. “I can’t promise anything.”

He trapped her between his arms and the truck. Angling his head, he pressed his lips against her throat, sending heat and awareness coursing through her body. “Promise.” His warm breath washed across her skin. “Promise?”

She nodded, her mouth growing dry.

He stepped away from her, as nonchalant as could be. “Okay, then.” He yanked open her door and helped her in. Stretching across her, he clicked the seatbelt. “Remember, you promised not to overthink this. I’m going to call you again. We’ll go out on a nice romantic evening. Enjoy ourselves. Nothing to overthink.”

They drove the few minutes to her house. She couldn’t deny she felt sixteen again, but a more confident, cool, been-there-done-that sixteen-year-old, not the study-every-Saturday-night teenager she had actually been at that age. He pulled up in front of her house, but he didn’t cut the engine. Disappointment pulsed through her. Had she thought he was going to come in? She shook away the thought. What would she do? Bring him to her childhood bedroom? Silly girl. He had turned her brain to mush.

“Well.” She glanced toward the house. “I guess this is my stop.”

“It is.” He kept both hands on the steering wheel.

She pushed open the door. The dome light popped on. A muscle worked in his jaw. He seemed stressed. Tense. Embarrassment heated her cheeks. “Did I do something wrong?” She fingered the collar of her T-shirt. She had forgotten how to date.

“Absolutely not.” His voice sounded husky. “If I take my hands off this steering wheel, I’m not going to be able to stop myself from touching you.” He gave her a dangerously wicked grin.

Swallowing hard, she backed up and slammed the door. She gave him a quick wave and jogged up to the house, very aware of his gaze locked on her. She opened the front door and slipped into the darkened foyer. She tiptoed to the kitchen and nearly had a heart attack when she saw the digital numbers on the microwave. Three fifteen! Where had the time gone?

Her mother’s chair in the family room was empty. Mary Clare pivoted and crept up the stairs. She felt a giggle growing in her chest. It actually felt kind of great sneaking into her mother’s home after a date, even if she was an adult.