Pull it together. She straightened her spine and pressed her lips together. “You? A klutz? Hard to believe.”
He pointed at his face. “This?” he deadpanned. “I did this to myself. Tripped over a shoe. True story.”
She burst into laughter and relaxed. He’d always been able to do that—defuse tense situations with humor. Any time Tommy would upset her, she’d escape to her favorite spot by the pool. Jeremy would always find her, make her laugh…and help her plot revenge against her brother. He’d been more than her crush. He’d been her best friend.
And that was all they could be, she reminded herself. “So a shoe blacked your eye?”
“Most of that is shoe polish.” He grinned, then grimaced and touched his lip. “Ow. No more making me smile.”
“I’ll do my best to be dull and boring.” She scrunched up her nose. “Shouldn’t be too hard. I am a lawyer. It’s my job to bore everyone to death. They plead guilty just to shut me up.”
His lips twitched and his eyes narrowed. “Not helping.”
She smiled and busied herself unloading the dishwasher. Anything to keep her hands occupied, and not aching to touch him. He leaned his hip against the counter, sipped his water, and watched her, his eyes dark with curiosity.
“So what have you been up to, besides work?”
She hesitated. “Honestly? Not much.” She chose her words carefully. “Got engaged. Broke up. Finished school. Got a job. Bought this house, and that’s pretty much it. I work seventy hours a week on a good week. Doesn’t leave much time for anything else.”
He studied her face, his eyes far too intense. She squirmed, ducked her head, and yanked a cup out of the dishwasher so hard she almost dropped it.
“Nothing else?” he asked. “Like…relationships? A life?”
“No. Not really.” She closed the dishwasher and banged it just a little too hard. Damn it. “What about you? Got a girlfriend in every town, pining for your return?”
He snorted. “Yeah, right. I can’t even take care of one, let alone a dozen.”
So he was probably single. She swore mentally, in every language she could remember and a few she made up just for the occasion. She didn’t need to know that. Didn’t want the hope that twisted in her gut, or the nervous, fluttering daydreams she’d buried years ago.
She wiped her hands on her skirt. “So…no girlfriend, then?”
“No, I’m single.” His eyes drifted over her, lingering. “Are you hitting on me?”
“No!”
He burst into laughter, then hissed and clapped a hand over his lip. Good. Served him right for teasing her like that. She planted her hands on her hips.
“You jerk. I should’ve known you were giving me a hard time. Some things never change, do they?”
He stilled. The laughter vanished from his eyes, leaving them dark. “No. I guess not. Maybe some things can’t change.” He set his empty bottle on the counter and smoothed a hand over his damp hair. “I should go. Don’t want to intrude. Thanks again for the rescue.”
Erica swallowed heavily and glanced out the window. Almost sunset. She fidgeted with the hem of her skirt and cleared her throat. “Um. You can stay, if you want. It’s getting late anyway. It might be nice to catch up. You can stay in the guest room. Unless you have plans, I mean.”
Say yes, she thought. If he left now, she’d probably never see him again. The last time had been seven years ago. That had been her fault. She wouldn’t let it be her fault if he left too soon, now. Even if she could only have his company, she’d take that much. Seven years was too long without his smile, his laughter.
Seven years was too long not to clear up everything that had gone wrong.
He rubbed his jaw and studied her, his brows knitting. “Are you sure you want me hanging around? It’s been years. For all you know, I’m an escaped convict playing Marine.”
“Please.” She rolled her eyes. “We grew up together. I just saw you naked. I think we’re past the ‘stranger danger’ conversation.”
He spluttered, then trailed into choking laughter. She grinned. It wasn’t often that she’d gotten to make him laugh in return.
“Well, when you put it that way…” he murmured. His eyes met hers. Something indefinable flickered through them, leaving them hot enough to send a bolt of longing straight through her, kick-starting her heart and singing through her blood. “How can I refuse?”
She took a calming breath and forced a smile. She felt lightheaded. “Good,” she said, and hoped Erica Jones, Attorney at Law, could keep up the act tonight. Because girl-next-door Erica, right now, wanted Jeremy so much she could taste him, and she could never let him know.
“Good?” he said, brows lifting.
“What more do you want, a party? Come on. Let’s order pizza. I’ll even get you one with those disgusting mushrooms.”
He chuckled. “You know me too well.”
Not nearly as well as I’d like, she thought, and escaped into the living room before he could see her blush.
***
Jeremy lounged against the couch cushions and fidgeted. Erica was in the kitchen; she’d run away after mumbling something about drinks, after he’d made another ridiculously stupid, flirty joke. He’d been tripping over himself all night, walking on eggshells. Eggshells strewn across an ice-covered lake in the middle of a warm snap.
One would think, after seven years apart, he’d have learned to keep his cool in front of her. One would be entirely wrong, and might just deserve a fist to the jaw. Jeremy couldn’t even manage one conversation without wanting to pull her into his arms. He couldn’t watch her chase strings of cheese from her slice to her plate, her lips glistening from the dart of her tongue, without wanting to do far more than that. When he’d caught her in his grip in the kitchen, it had taken all his willpower to just…let go.
Let go, and not kiss her until those dark, lovely eyes finally showed him something. Desire. Longing. Anything. Anything, so long as he knew how she felt about him.
No. He already knew how she felt about him, and he needed to leave before he made a fool of himself.
Again.
He stood. He’d make his excuses and get the hell out. He stalked around the corner to the kitchen—and collided full force with Erica. Erica, and two full glasses of water. She squeaked and fell right onto her butt. The water splashed into her face and cascaded down her face, throat, and br**sts. Her mouth curved into a perfectly darling, startled O.