Susan Mallery - Her Last First Date

“So maybe now you’ll stop underestimating what girls can do.”

“I guess.”

He looked stunned. Josh had to admit he was right there with him. He’d known that Crissy owned a couple of gyms and it made sense that she worked out, but he’d never guessed she could play like this. What would she be able to do in athletic shoes?

He told himself he could never go jogging with her. She would leave him gasping in the dust.

The two teams lined up again. This time Pete’s team had the ball. They used a running play. Crissy was right there with Pete as he raced up field with the ball.

She was soon level with him, then she calmly reached over and plucked the ball from his grasp. He was so shocked by her action that he actually let go. Seconds later, she was running back the way she’d come. It was over in an instant. She crossed the goal line again.

Brandon yelled and ran over. They high-fived each other.

“Girls rule,” she said.

“I guess,” Brandon muttered.

Abbey settled in the seat next to Josh’s. “I feel vindicated,” she said. “We need more Crissys in the world.”

“I’m thinking one is all we can handle.”

“You know she’d kick your butt out there.”

“I do, but you don’t have to be so happy about it.”

“Female solidarity.” She leaned back in the chair. “It’s going well.”

He nodded. “Maybe it’s going to work out. You all deserve that.”

“Does the ‘you all’ include Crissy?”

“I’m not sure.”

“You need to trust her. Pete and I do.”

She and Pete had always been dreamers, believing the best in everyone. Josh had offered to act as go-between in this situation mostly to get to know Crissy so he could step in and prevent any trouble. Someone had to watch out for his brother and sister-in-law. But so far, he liked what he saw. Crissy hadn’t tried to push her way into anything. She’d held back and observed. Maybe things would work out.

“She’s not married,” Abbey said.

He groaned. “Get off of me.”

“Why? She’s lovely. You can’t tell me you can look at her and not notice that? She’s so physical and smart. It’s an irresistible combination.”

He grunted because what was there to say? Yes, he’d noticed Crissy. She was all his sister-in-law said, plus sexy enough to make even his dormant body notice. But noticing was a long way from acting.

“You can’t live like a monk forever.”

“I won’t,” he said, even though he had no plans to change his current status.

“She’s right there. Ripe for the taking.”

He turned to Abbey and raised his eyebrows. “Are you serious? Ripe for the taking? Who talks like that?”

“I do. You need a woman.”

This was a conversation he did not want to be having. “So you’re suggesting I use Brandon’s birth mother for sex?”

“You have to start somewhere and she’s family.”

“All the more reason to avoid her. Sleeping with Crissy isn’t a complication any of us need.”

“Fine. Sleep with someone else, I don’t care. But you have to do something. Have you even been with anyone since Stacey died?”

There was no point in answering the question—they both knew the truth.

Josh didn’t know how to explain that he wasn’t interested in being with anyone. He hadn’t been avoiding intimacy—he hadn’t been tempted enough to bother. He had a feeling that part of him had died with his wife.

“I’m not asking you to risk your heart,” Abbey said. “Just give the equipment a test drive. You might like it. You used to like it.”

“I will not discuss my sex life with you.”

“You don’t have a sex life, or any life. That’s my point.” She turned to face him. “Josh, please. It’s been long enough. You can’t stay emotionally buried forever.”

But that’s exactly what he wanted. A life without emotion, without feeling. Because falling in love and then losing Stacey had nearly killed him. He wasn’t willing to risk that again. Not for anyone.

Chapter Three

Crissy made it a point to leave with the first rush of guests. She didn’t want to linger and create a potentially awkward situation. So far the visit had been easy and fun, which was a definite plus. Why mess with that?

She collected her jacket and her purse, then found Abbey in the kitchen. “Do you go into the other rooms of the house?” Crissy asked, her voice teasing. “Or is it just this one?”

“Only the kitchen,” Abbey told her with a smile. “I sleep in the broom closet.”

Pete strolled into the room. “Are you leaving? Thanks for coming. Things went well.”

“I agree. You’ve both been great.”

“We’re happy to have you hang around,” Abbey said. “What do you want the next step to be?”

Crissy didn’t have a clue. “Can I get back to you on that?” she asked.

“Sure. Call me and we’ll talk.”

Crissy nodded and headed for the front door. She paused when someone touched her arm.

“Leaving?” Josh asked.

“Yes. But I wanted to thank you for all your help.”

“Come on. I’ll walk you out.”

They moved into the night and headed for her car.

“Nice wheels,” he said, nodding at her BMW 330i.

“An indulgence,” she admitted. “I paid off two of my business bank loans and celebrated with some serious shopping.”

“A car, not shoes?”

“I’m not your typical female.”

“So I noticed. You play football.”

She laughed. “I can hold my own. I’m fast. Tackling would be more of a problem. I lack the body mass to do any damage.”

His gaze never left her face, but she had the oddest sense that he was checking her out. Which was crazy. Josh was acting as a mediator, nothing more. Besides, she wasn’t looking to get involved with Brandon’s uncle.

“Today went well,” he said.

They stood in the dark, Crissy leaning against her car, Josh standing in front of her, his hands in his jeans pockets.

“It did.” She’d been holding emotions at bay for hours and refused to give in to them now. “I was terrified, but it was okay. Brandon’s amazing. Pete and Abbey have done a great job with him. With all the kids. They’re an inspiration.”

“Maybe they started with a good gene pool.”

She shook her head. “I’m not taking any credit for that boy’s personality. I don’t deserve it.”

“Still beating yourself up?”

“Regularly. I do it for exercise.”

“You shouldn’t.”

“Easy to say,” she told him. “Harder to do. I don’t know what to think when I look at him. Is there connection? Should there be? Am I messing with his world? I’m so far out of my comfort zone, I don’t know where to begin.”

“You talked to him,” Josh said. “How did it go?”

“Good. We talked sports mostly. I like him. I never thought about liking or not liking, but I do.”

“Did you want to tell him who you were?”

If the car hadn’t been right behind her, she would have taken a step back. “No. I don’t know that I ever will. It’s too soon. The situation is…complicated.”

Whatever everyone else might say, she still wasn’t sure she deserved to get to know Brandon. Adding to the mix was her desire to not hurt him or his family. The easiest thing would have been to stay away, but for some reason, she’d been unable to do that. Which left her an emotional mess.

Feelings welled up inside of her. She tried to ignore them, but when she had the unexpected and overwhelming urge to throw herself at Josh and ask him to make it all better, she knew it was time to leave. She didn’t have breakdowns and if she was about to start, she would prefer they be in private.