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Keith turned, tasted Tina s tempting lips. Good for him. His mom was beautiful all
right, but I don t know if those delicate features of hers would look too good on a boy.
He liked the way Tina laughed, a soft, tinkling sound that tickled the spot on his
neck where she d buried her face. He hugged her, thinking he d like staying here
forever, enjoying the sense of them being a family him, her and the baby.
But they needed to talk. Somewhere he wasn t bombarded by the emotions he
needed to explain. Abruptly he stood, setting Tina on her feet and striding across the
room.
She looked confused when he picked up the baby monitor and put it in his pocket.
Let s go down to the game room. I started a fire and nuked us a pot of hot cocoa.
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Forward Pass
Is this about last night? she asked as they went downstairs. If it is, you don t
need to worry. What happened, happened. There s no need for us to talk about it.
Yes, there is. Unless you d like to pretend last night never happened. He took a
seat at the game table and motioned for her to join him. I hope you don t feel that
way.
No. Of course I don t. When she looked across the table at him, he thought he
saw love in her eyes. Hoped he wasn t seeing emotion that wasn t there.
Then I think you need to know a bit more about what you ll be getting yourself
into with me. He motioned toward the insulated pot in the middle of the table.
Would you mind pouring us some cocoa? It makes me cold, just looking at the
weather outside. He figured his extreme reaction toward the unusual winter chill was
a holdover from having been practically frozen during that playoff game a few weeks
earlier. I don t think my body s gotten completely thawed out since Pittsburgh. You
and Jack were lucky, all cozied up in that heated suite.
She smiled. That was nice of you, making sure we stayed warm.
Keith noticed her hand was steady when she handed him his cocoa. He was glad.
He never wanted her to be nervous around him. When she poured a mug for herself
and took a tentative sip, her expression was blissful. I wish I knew how Mrs. Gardner
makes this. It s delicious, and just right for such a gloomy day. As though she didn t
know exactly what to say, she licked her lips and looked over at him, her expression
expectant as though waiting for him to respond.
I ll ask her before I send her on her way. At Tina s odd look, Keith explained that
the housekeeper s days were numbered and why. I think it s reasonable for me to
expect that she not be a pipeline to my former in-laws about everything that goes on in
this house.
Oh. I m not surprised, but still I m sorry you re going to have to let her go. She
shouldn t have been gossiping, and she certainly ought not to have spied on you. Tina
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Ann Jacobs
paused then continued. But maybe she felt justified. Your wife was the one who hired
her. She probably feels a sense of loyalty to her, even though she s not here anymore.
Tina was too kind, although Keith found he loved her for it. It doesn t matter. I
value my privacy. Our privacy. What he wanted was to pull Tina onto his lap, warm
her with his own body heat. But they needed to talk first. He needed to tell her where
he was coming from, make sure she saw the pitfalls as well as the potential benefits of
being Mrs. Keith Connors.
He took her hand, massaged her palm with his thumb. I grew up in Hedgecock
like you did, but I left fourteen years ago. Since then I ve lived a lot differently from the
way I was brought up. The only tie I have to Hedgecock now is the invitation I got from
Bobby s mom to come back this spring for a reunion. He paused, considering how
much Tina might have wanted to escape from her own painful memories there. And
my sister Diane. She still lives there, and I ve been trying lately to rebuild some kind of
relationship. Her son will be starting high school next fall. I m not proud of myself, but I
pretty much turned my back on my roots when I went to college and got married my
sophomore year.
You see, my mom remarried right after I finished high school and moved to
Denver. She likes it there and has never wanted to go back to a town where she was
never happy. If Tina never wanted to go back there after what her stepfather had done,
he d understand, and he could rebuild his burned bridges with Diane and his nephew
Dylan via long-distance.
Tina cocked her head, studying him with those beautiful blue eyes. I wondered. It
was like you were there and then you were gone. Everybody in town talked after
Diane s husband left her, about whether or when she d pick up and go stay with you or
your mom, but it never happened.
The local folks had probably thought he was a class A jerk when he never came to
Diane s rescue after she finally came to her senses and threw her husband out. Come to
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