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  He entered the bar, feeling decidedly out of place in his expensive suit. Most of the other men wore faded jeans, scuffed cowboy boots, and baseball caps. Evan spotted his brother-in-law behind the bar and made his way over.

  “Hey,” J.T. said, looking up at him. “What’re you doin’ here? I thought you were out of town.”

  “I managed to wrap things up sooner than I thought. I heard Erika was plannin’ on comin’ here tonight. You seen her around?” Evan could tell by J.T.’s hesitation he wouldn’t be pleased with his response.

  “She’s, uh, dancin’, I think.”

  Evan scanned the dance floor before his eyes fell on Erika. She was locked down with… “Son of a bitch,” he muttered.

  “Take it easy,” J.T. said, grabbing his shoulder before he could walk away. “She didn’t come here with him. The girls have a table over there,” he said, pointing to their empty booth. “They must be in the restroom or somethin’.”

  Evan didn’t care whether Erika had come with him or not. The fact remained she was with him now and looking way too close for Evan’s comfort. “Don’t worry, I’ll handle it.”

  “I don’t want any trouble!” J.T. shouted.

  Evan raised his hand to let his brother-in-law know that he heard him, but all of his attention was fixed on the couple in the middle of the dance floor. Evan’s blood started to boil when he saw Jeff’s hand dip lower… to the swell of her bottom.

  “Get lost,” he growled in Jeff’s ear as he moved in on them.

  Erika jumped back, a gasp escaping her lips. “What are you doing here? I thought you were away on business.”

  “Obviously, I’m back.” He glared at Jeff. “And not a moment too soon.”

  Jeff smirked. “Still as insecure as ever, I see. Man, when are you gonna accept the fact that Erika’s too damn good to waste her time waitin’ on you to come to your senses?”

  Erika placed her hand on Jeff’s chest and it took everything in Evan not to send him to his knees. He’d never wanted to pulverize someone as much as he did that man. “If you’re as smart as you claim, you’d realize you’re not gonna walk out of here, you’ll be leavin’ on a stretcher, if you don’t get the hell out of my face right now.” Clenching his hands at his sides, Evan counted to ten, assuming that was enough time for the stupidest of men to make the right decision when his physical well-being hung in the balance.

  “Please,” Erika said quietly. “Just go, Jeff. I don’t want to cause a scene.”

  “Fine, I’ll go. For your sake.” He leaned in to kiss Erika on the cheek when Evan grabbed his shoulder from behind.

  “This is your last goddamn warnin’. Get the hell out of here right now or you’ll be chokin’ on your teeth in about thirty seconds.” Evan waited for his nemesis to heed his warning before he pulled Erika into his arms.

  “Was that really necessary?” she asked, looking upset by Evan’s aggression.

  “I come in here and find you locked down with the loser who got between us the first time. Yeah, I’d say it was necessary.” He was trying to control his temper. The last thing he wanted was to argue with her again, but from now on, he intended to protect their relationship at all costs.

  She ran a hand over his jaw, prompting him to look at her. “I’m really glad you’re here.”

  He pulled her closer, relishing the feel of her soft curves. “I missed you, baby. I’m sorry about this afternoon.”

  “It was my fault,” she said, resting her head on his chest. “Why did you leave without telling me you were going? Were you that angry with me?”

  “No,” he said, running his hand up and down her back. “I just wanted to give you a little time to cool off, that’s all.”

  “It worked,” she said, tipping her head back. “Right now, I’m…” She licked her lips, her eyes heavy with lust and an unmistakable invitation. “Hotter than hell.”

  He grinned as his body responded to her offer. “Let’s go back to my place and see what we can do about that.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  The following morning, Erika tiptoed downstairs while Evan was in the shower, intent on making him breakfast before he went to work.

  She loved cooking and often tried to surprise him with his favorite meal when they lived together, but he usually got home too late for dinner and couldn’t take time in the morning to indulge in a leisurely breakfast. She didn’t want to admit it, even to herself, but she knew she was testing his claim that he had in fact changed.

  Erika was setting the ham and cheese omelets on the table when Evan rounded the corner into the kitchen.

  His face lit up when he saw the spread on the table. “What’s all this?” He glanced at his watch. “Don’t you have to be at the clinic soon?”

  “I called in,” she said, pouring two mugs of strong black coffee. “Elise said she could handle my first few appointments.” She smiled when he looked at her intently. “What?”

  He bent to kiss her cheek before sliding into the chair at the head of the table. “Nothin’, it’s nice to see you so relaxed.” He set the napkin on his lap and winked at her. “I’d like to think I had something to do with that.”

  She blushed when she thought about the night they’d shared. Evan was insatiable, proving to her time and again that her satisfaction was his first priority. “If I were any more relaxed, I wouldn’t have been able to haul my butt out of that bed this morning.”

  He laughed. “Then I wouldn’t have been able to enjoy this amazing breakfast.” He gestured to the toast, fruit, and juice she’d set out. “Thanks for this, by the way. You didn’t have to go to so much trouble. I usually just grab a bagel on my way out the door.”

  Biting her lip, she started to question whether she’d overstepped. “Um, I hope I’m not keeping you from an important meeting or anything. If you have to go, I’ll understand.”

  “Are you kiddin’?” he asked, smiling. “And miss out on all this? Not a chance.” He dug in to his breakfast. They were both nearly finished by the time he said, “I’m sorry I didn’t appreciate all the little things you used to do for me.”

  Surprised by the comment, she looked up to see him watching her. Wiping her mouth with the paper napkin, she took a sip of juice to clear the lump in her throat. All she’d ever wanted when they were together was for him to acknowledge her. “You were busy. I get that.”

  “That’s no excuse,” he said, reaching for her hand. “You used to do stuff like this for me all the time and I didn’t appreciate it until you were gone.” He sighed, withdrawing his hand as he shifted to face her. “That’s when I realized how hard you’d been tryin’ to get my attention.”

  Erika didn’t want to re-visit that time. She wasn’t proud of the lengths she’d gone to just to make him notice her. “We both made mistakes.”

  “I don’t want to repeat those mistakes,” he said, reaching for her hand. “We have a chance to start over, to get things right this time. I want to make sure nothin’ and no one gets in the way of that, baby.”

  “I feel like we’re stronger now,” she said, smiling as she squeezed his hand. “We’re different people than we were a year ago, and I think we’ve changed for the right reasons. We didn’t do it just to save a failing relationship or to make each other happy…” She couldn’t read his reaction when he lowered his head, refusing to meet her eyes. “Hey, what’s wrong?” she asked. “Did I say something to upset you?”

  “No, it’s just that I don’t wanna screw this up.”

  “How could you? As long as we’re honest with each other and we vow to make each other a priority, I think we’ll be fine.” When he didn’t respond right away, she began to get nervous. “Don’t you? You’re not having second thoughts about this… about us… are you?”

  He grabbed her wrist, pulling her forward until she was settled on his lap. “I can’t promise I’ll never make another mistake,” he said, burying his face in her hair. “But I can promise you that I’ll always put you first.”
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br />   She sensed he wanted to say more, but he was afraid. Framing his face with her hands, she forced him to look her in the eye. “You know you can tell me anything, right? This can’t work if we’re not honest with each other, Ev. We need to be able to communicate, to share our fears…”

  “You wanna know what I’m afraid of?” he asked, turning his mouth into her palm. “Losin’ you all over again. I don’t think I could handle that.”

  It was humbling to see her man, who was always in control, admit he was as vulnerable as she was when it came to the fragile bonds reconnecting them. Sensing that he needed her reassurance now, she leaned in to wrap her arms around his neck. “I love you. That’s never gonna change.”

  “I pray to God you’re right about that,” he said, holding her tight.

  ***

  Evan thought about his conversation with Erika all the way in to work that morning. It was the perfect opportunity to come clean with her. He should have told her she was the reason he’d turned his life upside down, because he wanted another chance with her, but the words got stuck in his throat when she started to talk about honesty and their motivation for making changes.

  He was so afraid that if he told her the truth, that he’d done this for her, she would consider it a temporary change and she would refuse to take another chance on him. He couldn’t risk that, so he’d said nothing. Now his conscience pressed him about starting over with a clean state. He wanted a relationship built on trust and honesty, not lies and deception. Erika deserved that.

  “There he is,” Dom said, poking his head in the door. “You got a minute, big shot?”

  “Hey,” Evan said, getting up to come around the desk. “They’ll let anybody in here, won’t they?” He shook his best friend’s hand, pulling him in to a back slapping hug.

  “I waited until your gatekeeper went to the restroom, then I snuck in.”

  Evan laughed as he gestured to the guest chair across from his desk. “Take a load off. Tell me how married life’s treatin’ ya.”

  “Couldn’t be better,” Dom said, grinning. He sat down across from Evan, scrutinizing him carefully. “Why do I get the feelin’ you can’t say the same?”

  “Just got a lot goin’ on, man.” The last thing Evan wanted was to bring his friend down. “Busy with work, the benefit…”

  “Yeah, I heard about that. You guys are supportin’ Erika’s charity. How’d that happen?”

  Evan shifted in his seat. He’d never been able to lie to Dominic. The man always saw right through him. “It’s a good cause. Isn’t that reason enough?”

  “Yeah…” He narrowed his eyes when Evan didn’t supply more information. “But your brother told me you made the change at the last minute. He said you even made a huge out of pocket donation to the other charity to compensate for the donations they’d be missin’ out on at the benefit.”

  “My brother has a big mouth,” Evan muttered. A sick feeling of dread came over him. “You didn’t mention any of this to Lena, did you?”

  “No, I was just talkin’ to Ryan about it a few minutes ago. I ran into him in the hall and he invited me into his office for a coffee.”

  “Whatever you do, don’t say anything to Lena about the benefit, man.”

  “What the hell are you up to?” Dom asked, crossing his arms. “And why do I get the feelin’ I’m not gonna like it?”

  Evan covered his face with his hands and tipped his head back. Continuing the charade with his best friend was pointless, so he said, “I told Erika we made this switch last minute because the director was embellizin’ money and I couldn’t trust the organization anymore.”

  “That wasn’t true?” Dom asked, bracing his hands on his knees as he leaned forward.

  “Yes and no,” Evan said, feeling like a kid caught cheating on a math test. “The guy did embezzle money, but they fired him, so he was no longer a threat.” He winced when Dom shook his head in disgust.

  “There’s more to the story, isn’t there?”

  “I trusted the organization enough to donate a quarter of a mil of my own money to make up for pullin’ the plug on the benefit.”

  Dominic appeared stunned. “Are you tellin’ me you dropped that kind of coin just to get closer to Erika?”

  “Man, can you blame me? You know I’ve been goin’ through hell without her this past year.”

  Dom laughed. “I don’t know about that. I thought things were heatin’ up between you and that sexy little party planner. What’s her name again?” he asked, snapping his fingers.

  Evan shot a scathing look in his direction, hoping he would see it as a warning. “Courtney. And you know nothin’ was goin’ on between us.”

  “You were sleepin’ with her, weren’t you?”

  “Yeah, but…”

  “I’d say that’s somethin’.”

  “Shut the hell up,” Evan said, tossing a pencil at him. “I didn’t ask for your opinion. I just wanna know that you’re gonna keep all this shit to yourself. I can’t afford to have Erika start doubtin’ me now, not when we’re finally startin’ to reconnect.”

  Dom looked at him a long time. “Is this really how you want it to go down, Ev?”

  Evan reached for his take-out cup of coffee, taking a sip as he considered his response. “I’m doin’ what I have to do.”

  “Man, you can’t rebuild a solid relationship on lies. It’s like tryin’ to construct a building on a crumbling foundation. It just doesn’t work.”

  Evan rolled his eyes. Leave it to his friend, the structural engineer, to compare his love life to a pile of bricks and mortar. “What would you suggest I do?”

  “Tell her the truth. About everything.” He pointed at Evan. “And don’t think you’re foolin’ anyone with this whole backwoods thing you’ve got goin’ on.”

  Evan couldn’t help but smile at that. “What the hell are you talkin’ about now?”

  “You’re city, Erika’s country. Ryan showed me the listing for that house you bought. That’s Erika’s dream home, not yours.” Dom laughed at him. “Man, you even went so far as to adopt a dog. Aren’t you layin’ it on a little thick?”

  Evan scowled when Dom continued laughing. “It so happens I like livin’ there and I like the damn dog.”

  “You’re tellin’ me you didn’t do all that to impress Erika?”

  Evan lifted a shoulder. “It may have had somethin’ to do with her, but…”

  “But nothin’,” Dom said, getting to his feet. “It was all about her and we both know it.” He pointed a thumb at his chest. “This is me you’re talkin’ to, Ev. You can lie to yourself, but you can’t lie to me.”

  “I’m not-”

  “Yeah, you are,” Dom said, suddenly looking serious. “And that’s what worries me. Lena and I watched you and Erika put each other through hell for too long. You were both miserable, man. I don’t wanna see either one of you go down that road again.”

  “We’re not,” Evan said, trying to ignore the twinge in his gut. “We’re in a better place now.”

  “Really?” Dom asked, raising an eyebrow. “From what I can tell, you’re worse off than ever. At least before you were bein’ honest with her and yourself. Now you’re just tryin’ to turn yourself inside out to be the guy you think she needs you to be. Problem is, when she finds out you’re not that guy, she’s gonna hate you.”

  Evan sat there, speechless, as he watched his friend close the door behind him. Was Dom right? Was he at risk of losing Erika’s love and respect?

  ***

  Erika stepped in to one of the exam rooms later that day, pleasantly surprised to find Brianna and Coco waiting to see her. “Hey, I didn’t know you guys were coming in today,” she said, bending to scratch under the cat’s chin.

  “It’s just a check-up. I was going to mention it to you last night, but you and Evan took off in such a hurry.” Brianna smiled. “You wanna tell me what that was about? As if I didn’t know.”

  Trying to keep her attention fixed on
the purring cat, Erika said, “We, uh, had some things to discuss.”

  “I’ll just bet you did,” Brianna said, grinning.

  Erika stepped back, propping her hip against the exam table. “Enough about me. What about you and Ryan? Have you two set a date yet, or what?”

  “No, we’re already living together, so I see no reason to rush it.”

  “I bet your fiancé would disagree. That man is crazy about you,” Erika said, sticking her hand into the pocket of her white lab coat.

  “I’m not the only one who has a gorgeous man head over heels in love.” Brianna giggled. “When Evan walked in and saw you dancing with Jeff, I thought he was gonna start tearing the place up.”

  “He does have a possessive streak, that’s for sure,” Erika said, trying to keep a straight face.

  “So does Ryan.” Brianna wrinkled her nose. “It should piss us off.”

  “Definitely,” Erika said, nodding in agreement.

  “So why doesn’t it?”

  The two women shared a meaningful look and started laughing.

  “Yeah, it is kind of hot when that dominant streak carries over into the bedroom, isn’t it?” Brianna asked through her laughter.

  “Enough!” Erika said, fanning her face as she tried to slip her professional mask firmly back in place. “We can talk sex later. Right now, I need to see how this little guy is doing.” She patted the stainless steel table. “Up here, Coco.”

  Brianna set the cat down and watched Erika perform the routine examination. “You and Evan are in a good place now though, right?”

  She couldn’t blame her friend for being concerned. Erika had been a wreck when she’d finally moved out of Evan’s apartment, and from what she’d heard from Lena and Dom, not to mention Evan himself, their break-up had been as hard on him. Naturally their friends wouldn’t want to see them make the same mistakes.

  “I think so,” she said hesitantly. “We’re still just trying to figure things out. I mean, we’ve been spending a lot of time together and it feels good, but I don’t know if that’s just because it’s new again.”