Page 14 of Dancing in the Rain

Then she’d opened the door to see this big, gorgeous man standing on the veranda, and her stomach had swooped. Tall and broad with beard stubble and amazing hazel eyes, dark hair falling across his forehead, he was an intense physical presence, radiating energy. And when he spoke, his voice was deep, with an unusual husky quality that made her tingle.

This was extremely unsettling, since hersisterhad slept with this guy.

She drew a deep breath as she waited for the second beverage to brew, hands gripping the edge of the counter.

Okay, never mind that he was extremely attractive. They had much more important things to worry about, like whether he would treat Chloe right. They didn’t even know how much of a relationship he wanted with her, only that he was agreeable to meeting her. And he was here.

The coffee finished brewing with a final hiss, and she carried the mugs into the living room.

“My sister’s staying with me right now,” Sara was saying to Drew.

“She’s not from here?”

“No, she lives in New York. I hate disrupting her life like this.” Sara sighed.

Peyton paused then forged onward.

Sara looked up at her as she handed her a mug. “Thanks, sis.”

Peyton smiled and handed Drew his black coffee. “I’ll let you two talk.”

“You can stay, Peyton,” Sara said.

Peyton hesitated. Did she want to be part of this conversation? It really was bizarre, since Sara and Drew didn’t even know each other, and yet they’d created a child together. “I’ll just get myself some tea.”

“I’m sorry to hear you’re not feeling well,” Drew said to Sara as Peyton left.

Peyton hated coffee, but the Keurig brewed tea, too, so she made herself a cup and then rejoined Sara and Drew.

“You’re not married?” Drew asked Sara.

“Oh. No.” She shook her head. “Wow, we really don’t know anything about each other, do we?”

“Nope.” He gave her a wry smile.

“I uh, know about your divorce,” Sara said.

They knew Drew wasn’t married and that there were no wife and kids who’d be freaked out about his newfound daughter. His divorce from his gorgeous, sexy, blond wife had been big news on various sports blogs.

“My wife was cheating on me with one of my teammates.”

Peyton’s stomach tightened with sympathy.

“I’m sorry,” Sara said.

“It sucked, but was probably for the best. After I retired, it was pretty obvious Christy didn’t want me around. Things weren’t great. A lot of it was my fault.” He made a face.

An attractive, self-deprecating face.

A guy who looked like he did should think he was the shit. And maybe he did, but he also had an attractive humble quality about him. Damn him.

“Tell me what’s happened to you since college,” Drew said.

“Well, I finished my degree, thanks to my parents and Peyton.” She shot Peyton a glance and Peyton smiled. “It was hard, being a single mom, but I had a lot of support from family and friends. I got my law degree and practiced for a year at a law firm. The long hours got to me, though, so I moved to a job at First Insurance. It was better for work–life balance. They had great benefits, in-house daycare, flexible hours. My parents still helped, and Peyton did, too, until she got a big promotion that took her to New York.”

“That’s awesome,” Drew said quietly. He sipped his coffee. “I’m glad you had that much support.”

Sara nodded. “I couldn’t have done it without them.” She paused. “I don’t blame you, Drew. Not at all. You had no idea.”

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