“What are you doing today?” I asked.

  “Well, now, I don't know.”

  I felt her shift, rising up on an elbow. My fingers slid through her hair as she moved. “I have no idea.”

  “Really?”

  She rested her palm on my chest and her chin upon that. “Are you working?”

  “I'll probably go in just to check on things, but we’re closed except for emergency service for the two weeks around the holidays.”

  She seemed surprised by this, her brows hitching up. “Oh, we stay busy. The admin offices are open, and the emergency appointments keep the garage busy. My dad always did that.”

  “I don't remember that.”

  “There was no reason for you to know. You gonna go see your brother and Jane today?”

  Thea took a breath, letting it out in a soft sigh. “I'll go at Christmas, like we planned. But no sooner.”

  “How come?”

  “I just don't want to get into all of it.”

  “Tell me what happened,” I pressed.

  She was quiet for a moment, and then her stomach rumbled. I let out a hearty laugh.

  “How about we have some coffee and breakfast? I even have a waffle maker.”

  Thea’s giggle tightened that lasso around my heart. “Yeah, let's do that.”

  Chapter Seven

  Thea

  Joe insisted we shower first. Once we were in there, he started kissing me while the water ran down around us. It was a blur of warmth and need and lingering touches as we explored each other. Lifting me against the wall, he thrust into me, and I trembled all over, the pleasure nearly undoing me.

  Jesus, there was Joe in high school, and then there was this Joe—all man, all hot and sexy and magic for my body. This man knew how to make my body sing. He played me like his own personal instrument. I came in a noisy rush, and his forehead fell to mine as he shuddered against me, filling me with the heat of his release.

  My knees were wobbly as he eased me down. “Easy there, now,” he murmured, one hand firmly steadying me by the hip and the other at my shoulders.

  “Joe,” I managed in a breathy reply.

  Once I had my balance, he caught my lips in a lingering kiss as he drew away, murmuring, “I could get used to this.”

  That was the problem. I could get used to it too.

  “How can I help?” I asked a short while later as we stood in the kitchen.

  Joe was wearing a pair of jeans and a blinding white T-shirt, which only set off his muscled chest and the olive bronze tinge of his skin.

  “You want to make coffee? I promise the waffles are good, but I use a box mix.”

  I felt my lips tugging into a wide smile. Breakfast with my high school sweetheart after last night was about the best thing ever.

  “Okay. I'll do the coffee.”

  Joe pointed me to where the coffee beans were. I ground the coffee and started a pot. A few minutes later, I watched him as he prepped the waffles in a bright blue waffle maker.

  “That's cute,” I commented.

  He shrugged. “My mom got it for me. Joey loves waffles, so when he's here on the weekends, that's what we have for breakfast.”

  “Tell me about him.”

  Joe pointed at a photo I’d already noticed. Crossing the kitchen to where it sat on the windowsill, I felt my heart clench as I studied it. It was Joe with his son, a little boy who looked just like him. We'd gone to school together, starting in kindergarten. I knew what he’d looked like as a little boy.

  “Oh, wow. He looks so much like you did.”

  He came to stand behind me, his palm landing between my shoulder blades. My body was attenuated to his touch, a shiver chasing over my skin and my heart kicking hard against my ribs.

  “You're not the first to say that,” he offered dryly.

  “What's he like?”

  “Full of energy. He’s mostly good, but he also has, well, a contrary streak.”

  “No way,” I teased. “You were never like that.”

  Joe rolled his eyes, and my heart thumped when I turned and peered up at him. He’d definitely had a stubborn streak when he was little and had gotten in trouble at school on occasion.

  “Is it hard?” I asked.

  He knew what I was asking even though I didn't clarify—having a kid and not being with his mom. “Yes and no. Yes, because it's never what I would have chosen. No, because it was a one-night stand, literally. We are not cut out to be in a relationship. We manage the co-parenting thing okay. It takes a lot of grace and a lot of biting my tongue, but we do all right.”

  “How often do you have him?”

  “She has him mostly during the weeks unless something comes up, and I have him most weekends. We worked out a schedule, and we stick to it, for the most part.”

  “I bet you're a good dad,” I said, meaning it and ignoring the achy thump of my heart.

  The coffeemaker beeped, and we turned together. I needed the distraction. Crossing the kitchen, I poured coffee for both of us. Joe finished getting the waffles ready. After that, the conversation turned to lighter topics.

  I was absorbing the morning and what it felt like to see Joe after all these years. To have last night with him was startling. This morning, my heart felt as if it were flailing. I was set adrift on emotional waters I didn't know how to navigate.

  Joe reached across the table, catching my hand in his as I felt his knee press against mine. His somber gaze met mine, earnest and intense. “Here's the thing, Thea. I know last night might feel like a fluke, but I don't want it to be.”

  I thought my heart might crack my ribs as it felt caught in the wind and yanked upward with hope sending flares into the sky. “What?” I whispered.

  “I loved you before. And it's been a long time, but it just feels right with you,” he continued, oblivious to the cacophony in my body.

  Oh. My. God. That was the thing. It did feel right with Joe. I'd loved him before too. It was youthful and almost saccharine sweet, the way only young love could be. I'd been so crushed when my father forbade me from dating him.

  Despite the joy rushing through me and my heart going wild, doubts and uncertainty were the name of the game when it came to my brain and romance. “But, Joe, I don't live here.” I heard myself saying.

  Joe was undeterred. “We'll figure it out. What's the harm in trying? Boston’s only a few hours away. I know that you know that this thing that we have doesn't come along very often. In fact, I've only felt it with you.” His eyes searched mine. “And don't lie to me about that, please.”

  Tears rushed to my eyes, and my throat felt tight. I couldn’t lie, not to Joe. “I won't lie.”

  His steady, intent gaze held mine, and I took a quick breath.

  “I know it's not something that comes along very often.”

  “So?” he prompted.

  Hope sent up a few more flares, and I felt my lips curling into a slow smile. “Okay, we can try.”

  “We have one pretty big thing working in our favor.”

  “We do?” While I was feeling wildly, ridiculously hopeful, and wistful, it all seemed too good, like it couldn’t really work out for us. I’d let Joe go in my mind years ago. I’d felt like I had no choice.

  “This.” He gestured back and forth between us.

  I suddenly felt like my teenage self, that young girl who loved a boy so, so very much. A boy who made her feel safe and loved. That boy was now a man. His presence that had once felt protective and youthful was sharpened and honed. I thought maybe this was crazy, but maybe we did have a chance.

  “Okay,” I managed after a deep breath.

  “I think you should just stay here.”

  “What?” I squeaked.

  “Where are you going to go? You're being all weird about going to your family's place so stay with me. Joey has Christmas with his mom this year. It's just me.”

  “What about your parents?”

  “I'll go see them on Christmas Day. I'm assuming you'll go see your family.”

  I nodded. “I don't want us to be a secret.” I surprised myself with that.

  Joe's eyes flew wide. “Ah, well, now that kind of surprises me.”

  I shrugged. “My dad’s in jail, and my mom's gone. I don't care what anyone thinks.”

  He smiled, dipping his chin in a quick nod. “I do need to take it slow with Joey.”

  “Oh, I understand that part, but we'll figure it out. That'll be the upside to me living in Boston.”

  His eyes warmed as he cocked his head to the side, considering me. “Good point.”

  A moment later, when he leaned across the table to kiss me, it all felt so right.

  Chapter Eight

  Joe

  The following days leading up to Christmas were some of the best I'd had in years. It was strange and incredible to have Thea with me. Even though we were at my house and I was covering the emergency call service, which meant I got called out several times a day, it somehow felt like we were in a bubble.

  It was familiar, but not. Thea was back in Haven’s Bay with me. Since she was hiding out from her brother and trying not to blow up his spot with Jane, it was kind of funny to sneak around town. We’d agreed we weren’t going to keep us a secret, but we’d wait to break the news to family until after the holidays.

  We stocked up on groceries, and I learned Thea had gone from being a pretty good cook in high school to a kick-ass cook now. Every time I had to leave to deal with a car emergency, she made sure I had food when I got back. Dexter loved it because he was never alone. I got to discover her all over again.

  We drove through town one day because Thea insisted I get a tree. I usually took my son to my parents’ for Christmas, so I hadn’t decorated. She held my hand as I drove through town. It was all very picturesque, and it felt like I was seeing it through fresh eyes even though I’d spent every Christmas of my life in this town. Thea’s joy at being home was contagious.

  “How much time have you spent here since you moved away?”

  “The last few years I’ve come up during the holidays and in the summer. We've all been taking turns getting the house back up to speed. Ian’s been doing a lot of work, so I'm curious to see it tomorrow.”

  I slowed to turn into the Christmas tree lot. Lights were strung around the edges of the area. “You know there aren't many trees left,” I commented as we walked through a few minutes later.

  She shrugged. “We'll get a straggler and make it beautiful. They even sell lights here.”

  I let her pick out the tree, which was lopsided but plenty green. That night, she happily strung lights on it.

  “Merry Christmas,” she called.

  Turning, I saw she’d hung a sprig of mistletoe in the entrance into the kitchen. Dexter's tail thumped on the floor when I dipped my head for a kiss.

  Chapter Nine

  Thea

  A month later

  * * *

  I was nervous, way more nervous than I should have been. Joe was coming to Boston for the first time to see me, and I didn't know what to think.

  Walking around my small apartment, I kept checking on things. I fluffed the pillows on the couch for probably the tenth time. I jumped when the doorbell rang and smoothed my hands on my jeans before practically sprinting to the front door. With my hand clasped around the doorknob, I took a deep breath.

  I must have waited for a few beats too long because Joe's voice came through the door. “I can hear you breathing, Thea.”

  I could hear the smile in his voice, and I laughed softly as I opened the door. The second my eyes landed on him, my pulse lunged. He stepped through the doorway, dropped his bag to the floor, and pulled me into his strong embrace. I felt startlingly alive as if I'd been electrified. At the same time, the tension coiled inside me eased, and I started to relax.

  Joe had this weird opposite effect on me, where it was just so amazing to see him, so good that my hormones were always super excited about it, yet it also felt right and easy. I could relax and be myself with him in a way that I wasn't with anyone.

  He held me, just long enough for me to absorb the imprint of him, then stepped back. His eyes skated over my face. “Hey, sweetheart. You look nervous.”

  I cast him a sheepish smile. “I was, but now it's okay because you're here.”

  Closing the door behind him, I swung my arm in an arc. “This is my apartment.”

  Joe stepped past me, his alert gaze arcing about the small space. “I like it.” His eyes made their way back to mine.

  “It's small, but rentals cost a fortune in Boston,” I commented.

  I lived in a walk-up on the second floor of a cute little brownstone right near the Charles River. Like most walk-up apartments, it was created from reconfigured space in the original home. This floor had a small efficiency kitchen with a living room and a bedroom with the bathroom off to the side. The high ceilings created a sense of spaciousness.

  “How was your drive?”

  “It's a pretty drive from Maine down here, so it was easy.”

  I glanced at the clock in the kitchen. “Do you want to eat here or go out? It's your call since you're the one who had to drive.”

  Joe's eyes lingered on my face. “Sweetheart, I just want to be with you, so whatever is easier for you. Although, you know I like to eat.”

  Heat bloomed through me while my heart thumped in reaction to his comment. “I do. I thought maybe we could go to an Italian place. You always tell me that's the one thing we don't have enough of in Haven’s Bay. There are tons of Italian restaurants in Boston.”

  “Let's do it. Then we can come back here and just hang out.”

  Joe caught my hand and reeled me to him when I started to turn away.

  “What?” I asked breathlessly.

  “It's just good to see you.”

  Then he was kissing me, and I forgot to be nervous about anything. Kisses with Joe were like diving into flames. Everything he did ignited the fire higher and higher.

  Moments later after he’d fetched his bag from the floor and put it in my bedroom, we walked outside.

  “Where did you park?” I asked as we descended the stairs together.

  He gestured at his SUV in front of the building. “I scored a good spot.”

  “I actually have driveway parking, so you can pull into the spot behind me.”

  “You have two spots?”

  “Yup, serious luxury,” I teased.

  I waited while he parked behind me, smiling at his Maine license plate. A minute later, his hand was curled around mine, and we were walking down the sidewalk together. That feeling that still was fresh but familiar stole through me. Being with Joe simply felt good.

  In the months since Christmas, I’d gone up to Haven’s Bay every other weekend. Joe had offered to come down here, but I preferred going up there. It was a respite from the hustle and bustle of the city, and I enjoyed being in my hometown in a way I hadn't anticipated.

  One major bonus was I didn't have to worry about where to stay because I always stayed with Joe.

  Joe leaned back in his chair, his half-grin sending my belly into a series of somersaults.

  “That was damn good,” he said, patting his belly, which was a drum-tight wall of muscle.

  I laughed. “I thought you'd like it.”

  “Do you come here often?” he asked, glancing around.

  I’d brought him to a small Italian restaurant on a corner near my apartment. It wasn’t the fanciest, but the food was fresh and delicious.

  “I don't eat out too much because Boston is filled with amazing restaurants, and I could go broke quickly.”

  “Maybe I should come see you more often,” he teased.

  His gaze sobered as he leaned his elbows on the table and reached for one of my hands. I totally had a thing for Joe's hands. Gah! They were like all of him, lean and muscled. He definitely had working hands, and by some miracle, they were rarely dirty. He told me he occasionally still did mechanic work but didn't have much time for it. He also claimed to have the best soap ever to keep his hands clean from the mechanic filth, as he put it.

  The calloused surface of his thumb brushing on my wrist sent fire sparks skittering over my skin and heat spiraling in its wake. I tried to focus.

  “I like coming to Haven’s Bay,” I answered honestly. I really did.

  “I know, but I don't want you to feel like you have to come to me all the time,” he pressed.

  “I don't feel like I have to,” I insisted.

  “Okay, let me rephrase. It's important for me to be putting as much effort into us as you are. Plus, good food is a bonus. I've probably eaten at every restaurant in the area surrounding Haven’s Bay a few hundred times.”

  “I know Joe but—”

  He squeezed my hand. “Thea, you're starting to fret, aren't you?”

  Joe knew me so well. Even now. He'd known me better than anyone in high school and that knowledge carried into the present. He tuned in to me easily.

  I had been fretting about how we were going to do this. We hadn't said the words, but I knew I loved Joe. I had already fallen for him. All over again. It wasn't exactly a hardship. In fact, it was very easy to love Joe. He was the kind of man just about anyone would want—attentive, caring, and smoking hot in bed.

  But his life was in Haven's Bay, and I was here in Boston. I didn’t want to be yoked to my job, but I'd never considered my career path taking me back to Haven's Bay. I needed to figure it out. I didn't want to move just because of Joe, but then, I fretted maybe that was the very best reason to move.

  “Thea?” he prompted again, his thumb brushing over the back of my hand.

  I brought my focus to him. “How do you know I was fretting?”

  “Sweetheart, the gears in your brain are practically loud enough for me to hear.”