“As much as I rank on his name, he seems like a nice guy.”

“I’ve never told him about you. Yes, he is a wonderful person. He and I have a lot of common interests. He encourages me to follow my passion. He’s the reason I started getting involved in the animal shelter.”

“That’s a good thing.”

“He wasn’t the first person to inspire me that way. That was the one thing you did for me, Chance. You taught me so much in a short amount of time about how to live life. Even though you broke my heart, I never regretted meeting you. I still wouldn’t go back and change it. That was the thing that always seemed so fucked up to me. A lot of who I am now is because of you.”

“Do you love him?”

Without hesitation, she said, “Yes.” Her answer felt like a gunshot to the chest at point blank range.

Swallowing, I said, “Okay…”

“I’ve been very confused. As much as I care about Richard, I’m not going to lie. Your showing up has turned my world upside down. I could have never guessed the real reason that you were gone. Everything I believed to be true…isn’t. I assumed you abandoned me for other reasons.”

“I thought I was doing you a favor.”

“Why didn’t you want me to wait for you?” Sounding pained, she added, “I would have waited every single one of those days.”

I caressed her hair. I couldn’t help it. “I never doubted that. But I thought you’d grow to resent me. I didn’t know what being in jail would do to me and didn’t want you waiting for a man who I wasn’t sure would be worth it. In reality, the experience made me a stronger person, but I had no way of knowing that back then. More than anything, you didn’t deserve to have to put your life on hold just when you were trying for a fresh start.”

“Even though I now understand things more clearly, the way you left was still traumatizing. Even if things were different with Richard, I don’t know that I could ever fully trust you not to leave again.”

Hearing that made me uneasy. I stopped beating around the bush.

“Just answer me this. Am I really too late?”

My heart was pounding. She hesitated, and something in her eyes gave me a glimmer of hope. This moment felt like my last opportunity, and I wasn’t too proud to beg.

She was still sitting on the bed when I fell to my knees below her, resting my head on her stomach. “Just tell me what to do, Aubrey.” I repeated, “Just tell me what I need to do to get you to give me another chance.”

I hadn’t been touched by a woman in over two years, so when she raked her fingers through my hair, it seemed to feel better than anything I’d ever experienced in my life. My breath hitched. Her breathing was ragged. Each sound that escaped her went straight to my cock. Being so close like this made me desperate for a taste of her. I wasn’t beyond taking advantage of her sexual attraction to me.

If I had to play dirty, I would. Speaking slowly over her stomach, I said, “Let me make it up to you. I swear you’ll forget all the pain. You won’t even remember your own name.”

“No,” she breathed.

I lowered my mouth and spoke over the skin just below her belly button. “Does he pleasure you? Does he give you what you really need?”

Her legs were quivering. “Chance, stop.”

Her body’s reaction was enough of an answer for me.

I was back in the game.

“Princess, look over there. My suitcase is packed. I’m ready to leave in the morning. Do I have any reason to stay? You tell me.”

A look of torment washed over her pretty face. “I can’t promise anything.”

“I didn’t ask for a promise. I asked for a chance. I’d like to start by just being your friend again…the way we began.”

She got up and started to pace. “I’m still with Richard. I won’t cheat on him.”

“I didn’t ask you to.” I walked toward her slowly, trying not to seem like a lion on the prowl despite my predatory feelings. “So, let me ask you again. Do you want me to stay?”

She looked up into my eyes and whispered, “Yes.”

“Then, I’m here.”

She backed away. “I have to go. I told him I was going out to get ice cream and put gas in my car.”

“You’d better actually go get some then. Be careful. It’s late. When will I see you again?”

“Richard has an early meeting. Meet me tomorrow for breakfast at Starbucks at nine.”

“Us? Together? At Starbucks?”

“Yes. Just don’t order the same thing as me. It’s creepy.”

I grinned.

When the door closed behind her, my previously subtle smile transformed into a huge beaming one.

I walked over to the trash can, dug up my ring and placed it back on my finger.

Slow and steady wins the race.

Chapter Twenty-Two

I stayed up half the night trying to come up with some grand scheme of making Aubrey trust me again. It had been two long years, and I wanted back in so badly—both figuratively and literally—I felt like I could explode. But in the end, I knew there was no grand scheme. It needed to happen the way we happened. Just us being us, a little at a time.

Now, that didn’t mean I wasn’t going to try to use every available advantage I could come up with. It just meant that I’d have to sprinkle those advantages around lightly over time.

In the shower, I thought back to the things that made Aubrey’s eyes sparkle. The first time I saw her eyes glaze over, we were in a diner, and I’d fed her from my plate. The greasy eggs and sausage were dripping with Sriracha, and all I could think about was how I could never enjoy a meal again alone after watching her eat from my hands. I was also quite certain she had an affinity for my accent. With these two small things in my mind, my shower might have taken a bit longer than I anticipated. But I was ready for my breakfast date. And damn was I hungry for Aubrey.

I stopped by a local deli and picked up some things, prepping for my Australian breakfast. Before I left my place, I’d swiped some of my favorites from my sister’s food stash. I headed over to Starbucks early with a large brown bag, wanting to clear my bringing breakfast in with Melanie before Aubrey arrived.

“You’re late this morning.” Melanie pulled out a cup and began to write on it with a marker for the barista behind her.

“Could you make it two of those? I’m meeting someone for breakfast.” My cocky smile was enough to tell Melanie who that someone was.

Melanie’s eyes widened. She truly looked excited for me. “You mean you’ll be sharing coffee with her this morning, instead of just picking up the tab?”

“I will.”

She clapped her hands together. “I knew it! Richard’s a nice guy and all. But it’s not the same. You’ve brought out a side of Aubrey we’ve never seen.”

I hoped that side was the real Aubrey, and she’d still kept it hidden for me. I wondered if good ‘ole Dick knew my girl liked to fight and had a dirty streak in her. I was banking on the fact that he was fucking clueless. “Listen, Melanie. Do you mind if I bring in some breakfast this morning? I picked up some things to share with Aubrey.”

“Of course not. By all means. Do whatever is necessary.”