Page 20 of Henley

“Yeah, we were friends. I guess in a weird sort of way, we still are, but we used to compete in everything—sports, grades, even boyfriends.”

“You competed in boyfriends?” I laughed. “How did you do that?”

“Well, anytime I liked someone, she would swoop in on them before I got the chance. She didn’t have a problem sleeping with them to get her way, even if it was just to get one over on me. If they slept with her, I was no longer interested in them. I didn’t want sloppy seconds.”

“Did she do that to all the guys you liked?”

“Almost all of them.” She grew quiet for a moment. “There was one guy in high school that wouldn’t even look at her. We dated for a few months, even went to prom together.”

“And what happened to him after that? Did you guys break up?”

She pursed her lips for a second and then wiped her mouth. “He actually admitted to me at prom that he was gay and wasn’t ready for anyone else to know. He figured I was safe to date in high school since I didn’t sleep around.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah, wow is right. I really did like him, and we have stayed close friends. I appreciated his honesty, but for a while, I felt used. Then I realized it had worked out for both of us in an odd kind of way.”

“Did he ever come out?”

“He did, and he has a very nice boyfriend now. I met him last month.”

“Well, then it worked out for him. Have you had any other serious relationships?”

“No, not really. I have dated a few guys, but—yeah, they just haven’t been what I’ve wanted. What about you?”

“Not really. I guess at one point I was in a serious relationship, but it turned out not to be. I’ve had my share of dates, but nothing that lasted longer than six months or so.”

“Really? Why not? You seem like a great catch to me.”

I found myself staring at her for a long time before I answered. “I guess I have been waiting for the right woman to come into my life.”

It was strange to think about all my previous relationships now, but they quickly flipped through my mind. I had dated quite a few women, thought I was in love once, but none of them had the appeal to me that Roxanne did. What was it about her that garnered my attention? I couldn’t even remember the last time I had cooked for a woman, but when the first opportunity had come up, I’d wanted nothing more than to do that for Roxy.

She smiled at me softly and went back to eating. She finished nearly all of the food on her plate and sat back, looking sleepy and content. “That was an incredible meal, Lee. You really are a great cook. I’m glad I have sweatpants on, or I would have had to unbutton my pants.”

Even her chuckle was sleepy, and I found myself suddenly wanting to know what she looked like while she slept. “Well, thank you.”

I stood to collect the dishes, and she put her hand on my arm. “I wish I could do the dishes for you, but—”

“Don’t say another word. You shouldn’t be on your leg right now. I want you to be feeling better as quickly as you can. Why don’t you go back to the couch, and I’ll get the kitchen cleaned? It’s my mess anyway.”

She got to her feet carefully and yawned, wincing as she tenderly touched her nose. “Normally, I would fight you on that, but all this good food really has made me tired, and both my leg and nose are starting to hurt again.”

Unable to stop myself, I cupped her cheek. “Then go lie down, I got this, Roxy.”

“You really are a sweet guy,” she replied, and her gaze shifted over my face. The insane urge to kiss her rushed through me, and it took everything I had in me not to pull her into my arms.

“I’m glad you think so. Come on, let’s get you over to the couch.”

I helped her over, and once she was lying down, I covered her with a blanket. She was already starting to fade a bit. She graced me with another tender smile before closing her eyes.

I watched her for a moment and then returned to the kitchen. It took me a few minutes to find her storage containers and divide up the food into meal-sized portions that would be easy for her. I paused as I heard a noise from the far room and listened carefully; she was snoring softly, and damn if that sound didn’t make my chest ache.

After putting all the food away, I cleaned her kitchen and put all the items back where I had found them. Even with the amount of noise that I was making, she didn’t stir. In fact, her snoring got a bit louder, but I found myself smiling every so often as I listened to the rhythmic cadence of it.

Before I left, I wrote a note to tell her thank you for a great evening and told her to let me know about the coming weekend. I had a pretty good feeling about it. I set the note and a fresh glass of water on the table near her and then stood over her, watching her sleep.

Her blond hair was mussed around her face, and the bruises on her skin were violent and dark, but it didn’t detract from her beauty. I knew that she was a beautiful woman, not just on the outside, but inside as well. I leaned down and kissed her brow tenderly before I collected the few things I’d brought with me to take home, turned off some of the lights, and went to the front door to let myself out.

---