Page 86 of Playboy

“Such a romantic,” I tease him, even though I’m swooning internally. It’s pathetic, really.

Daniel slides his hand down my body and links his fingers with mine. “So you were aGrey’s Anatomyfan?”

“Oh god, who wasn’t? I binge watched every episode of the first ten seasons after my divorce, and I’ve been hooked since.”

He side-eyes me, though he doesn’t turn his head.

I huff and take another lick of ice cream. “You want me to tell you about the marriage?”

All I get is a simple shrug. “Only if you want to, and only because I want to know you.”

I lean my head against his chest, making sure to hold my cone out so neither of us wears it. “There’s not a lot to tell. It’s a simple story about a girl who’d been told all her life thatif her mother just found the right man, she’d be happy. My mother’s happiness was dependent on one man or another for years. You’d think that would have made me run in the opposite direction of love”—I glance up at him—“And it did eventually, but back then, I went to college intent on finding a man and falling in love, certain that if I did that, then life would be perfect.”

“I’m guessing it didn’t work out like that?”

I take another swipe at my ice cream. “Not at all. I married my professor. Very cliché. He was older, obviously. I thought it was this grand love affair.” I shake my head. God, I was so naïve. “He wanted me to drop out of school so we could start a family right away. It’s funny, because I went to school not really caring about the actual education, but once I was there, I fell in love with it. My dreams were bigger than just being his wife, and well…” I shrug. “We fought a lot, but I figured that was normal for people who were just settling into marriage. I didn’t expect to end up divorced so quickly. But when my mom called me about her fourth divorce, I planned ahave a daytrip with her. I booked a couple of nights at a hotel, and Mom planned to come to town. Rafe, apparently, took that as hisget out of jail free card.”

He growls, his whole body going rigid.

All I can do is shrug. “My mother was supposed to meet me at the hotel, but she texted a couple of hours after she planned to arrive to tell me she’d met someone at a bar and that I was off the hook for the night. I went back to my house and—” I squeeze my eyes shut; this part is hard to admit. “I don’t want you to hate my mother, because even I don’t hate her.”

Daniel winces. “Fuck, please tell me she wasn’t at your house.”

“I wish I could.” With a deep inhale, I force myself to get the rest of it out. “She’d never met my husband or been to my house.I’d gotten married on a whim that semester. It was this big, fun, secret love affair, and it was all mine.” I let out a sarcastic laugh. “Until it wasn’t. She still doesn’t know she slept with her daughter’s husband. The second I saw them in bed, I turned around and walked out of the house. I never said a word.”

“That asshole.” Daniel holds me tighter, his eyes burning with anger. “Please tell me he had a heart attack and died. Or that you stabbed him. Yes, that. Tell me you stabbed him and he’s rotting in the basement of your old house.”

I bow my head and bite back a grin. This man. “No. I told him I knew he’d slept with another woman—I didn’t tell him she was my mother, because once again, how fucking embarrassing is that? He tried to gaslight me, telling me it was my fault for gallivanting around town with my mother when I should have been at home working on our marriage. Whatever. He’s a dick, and no, I have no idea whether he’s alive or dead. I signed the divorce papers and never looked back.”

Daniel sighs, probably realizing just how uphill his battle is if he really wants to keep pursuing me. I can’t blame him. I don’t trust easily. Though I do trust him. He’s proven time and again that I can, and it’s not in my nature to hold the sins of another person over his head. I give people the opportunity to show me who they are. But that doesn’t mean I’m not still tending to emotional scars. I’m wary, yeah, but I can give this a chance. I’ll let Daniel decide whether this is something he can truly handle.

“I’m sorry that happened to you.” He pulls me to a stop in front of a small restaurant.

A handful of small tables are scattered around the patio out front. The ambient lighting and the music from the solo guitarist make for the perfect low-key spot.

“I’m not,” I say, chin lifted. “Because if he hadn’t screwed up all those years ago, I wouldn’t be standing here with you. And Daniel?”

He presses his hand to my cheek, his eyes warm with adoration. “Yes?”

I one-up him and cup both his cheeks. “I’m really happy I’m here with you. And I’m really happy we’re having this baby.” I swallow down the emotion bubbling up inside me. “What you said last night about this being the best thing to happen to you? Well,same. I can’t say I ever would have written this into my own story, but I know now that I’d have been missing out. So thank you for giving me the time to get here. And thank you for this.” I peer around us. “This place, these past few days, they’ve meant everything to me.”

He leans down and kisses me gently.

When he pulls back, I smile up at him. “Seriously, how did you find such a perfect spot?”

Hands at my hips, he turns me so I’m facing the restaurant. “You can actually thank your brothers for this one.”

That’s when I realize I recognize two faces on the patio. Riggs and Ash are sitting across from one another, grinning at me.

With a squeal, I charge toward them excited to spend the evening laughing and talking with two of my favorite people. All thanks to the man who is climbing the ranks and not so slowly unseating everyone else for that title.

“I still can’t believeyou’re both sitting here with me,” I say to my brothers, still in shock.

Ash gives me that knowing smirk that he’s so famous for. He’s cocky in a way most people simply cannot be, because his cockiness is backed up by years of experience as a Navy SEAL.The man has seen and done things that I know have left him both scarred and a bit weary of the world, but somehow, he never manages to let it affect the people around him. He’s aware of the darkness in the world, not grumpy. And I’m a hell of a lot happier that he’s now on this side of the globe, even if I still rarely see him because of his demanding job. “We couldn’t leave it up to Noah to let your boy know he better behave.”

I roll my eyes, even as Daniel chuckles easily. For as much as he shouldn’t be comfortable around my brothers—two men who are trained to kill in more ways than I’d like to imagine—he is completely at ease. “Like I told you on the phone, I’d cut off my own hand if I hurt her.” He lifts our hands, which are joined on his lap and brings it to his lips, his eyes never leaving mine. “She’s safe with me.”

“We’ll be the ones to decide that,” Riggs says, dragging an annoyed sigh from me.

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