“I don’t know.” He downshifted, relishing the growl of the engine. This car was a work of art. It was sleek and sexy and everything luxurious.

  But Michelle wouldn’t care about a car like this. She just wanted a good guy. Someone to love her. A man that she could share her life with.

  “This would look good in the collection,” Daniel said.

  “Yeah, but…” Blake finally shook his head. “I don’t need it right now. It’ll just collect dust.”

  His friends didn’t say anything but Blake could feel the quiet surprise rippling through the car. But it was fine. Because now they knew the same truth that he did.

  Blake was no longer the guy who filled his life with meaningless toys. Now, he wanted something with substance. Something that would last. He would never be the same…and not nearly as complete if Michelle wasn’t in his life.

  18

  A week and a half after Michelle discovered the truth about Blake, the dust still hadn’t settled.

  It didn’t help that she was once again the new girl. Her new job—working with high-performance athletes at a specialty physical therapy center in the Mission District—was fine enough, with plenty of potential to turn into a decent career.

  But she couldn’t deny how much she’d loved working with the Seagulls. Each day, she wished she could go back there to visit with her favorite baseball players. She remembered being nervous when she’d first started there, but everyone had soon made her feel at home. Now, she was back to square one. She was tired of having to start over.

  “Mommy! You’re home!” Mollie raced to the door as soon as Michelle set foot inside the townhouse, her quick steps fluttering down the hallway. Michelle grinned, welcoming her daughter’s eager hug. Jenna, the babysitter, stepped into view, and after a quick rundown of how Mollie’s post-kindergarten day had gone, she tousled Mollie’s hair and left the house.

  “I wanna show you this picture I drawed today,” Mollie said, rummaging in her My Little Pony backpack. “We made it with Ms. Thomas, and I loved it and I said I was gonna hang it up in my bedroom, and I want to put it right above my bed.”

  Michelle set her purse down and settled on the couch as Mollie carefully removed the drawing from her backpack. Then she came over and plopped dramatically next to Michelle. Heaving a sigh, she brushed some hair out of her face before she displayed the picture.

  “See right here, Mommy? It’s us!”

  Michelle’s gaze washed over the crayon-scrawled drawing. Mollie had drawn, in vibrant red and orange, three stick figures in front of a tall, curved house. The scene was drawn under a big yellow sun with a one-toothed smile—Mollie’s trademark. Michelle tried to hold her smile as she absorbed the artwork.

  “There’s three people in here,” she said carefully.

  “I know! It’s you, me, and Mr. Blake.”

  Tears immediately sprang to her eyes and she clapped her hands together, forcing a bright smile. “You should hang it in your bedroom. You did a great job.” She stood then, swiping away a tear before Mollie could see. Even though Michelle had explained several times that Mr. Blake wasn’t going to be showing up in their lives again, Mollie wasn’t ready to let go of him. Which was the worst sort of prolonged grieving. For both of them. “Now let’s go see about some snacks. What do you think of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich?”

  Michelle’s heart throbbed in her chest as she tried to busy herself in making the sandwich for Mollie. This wasn’t the first time Mollie had mentioned Blake since that embarrassing evening at his club. And each time, Michelle didn’t know what to say. He’d humiliated her. Deceived her. Used her. And then dared to act like he deserved a chance to explain himself.

  These were things she needed to remind herself of, a bit more often than she liked. Because if the sting of embarrassment stayed the focus, then she wouldn’t have to deal with the fact that she was completely heartbroken as well.

  But of course, her little minion was a persistent one. Mollie appeared in the kitchen a moment later. “Mommy, when are we gonna see Mr. Blake again?”

  “I already told you, honey.” She set out two slices of whole grain bread. “He’s not going to be coming around again.”

  “I really want to show him this picture.”

  Michelle rolled her lips inward, trying not to let the sadness overwhelm her again. Yeah—she wanted Blake to see that picture too. She wanted him to really value having that position in Mollie’s life. She wanted him to value what he’d built with Michelle. But the outrage was too great to allow her to consider anything other than shutting him out.

  “I’ll let him know,” Michelle finally said, because what else could she say? It was the only safe answer for now. There was no way she could explain to Mollie just how badly Blake had hurt her…or why she never answered his texts…or why there so many small, thoughtful bouquets of flowers around the house. Or why more than one chocolate cake had arrived on her doorstep with a card that simply said, “I’m sorry, babe.”

  A thumping on the door startled Michelle so badly that she got jelly on her thumb. She drew a fortifying breath, unnerved that her mind had immediately jumped to Blake. Hoping it might be him on the other side of that door.

  “Let me go answer that,” Michelle said, tugging gently on Mollie’s earlobe as she walked by. Her heart thudded in her chest as she approached the door. Please be Blake. Please be Blake. At this point, she was just desperate to glimpse him. Get one more look at those tousled, chestnut tresses and his impossibly handsome grin.

  Michelle tugged open the door to find two women she’d never have expected to see again in a million years.

  Mila and Jackie.

  “Heeeey, Michelle,” Mila said cautiously, as if maybe she wondered how the visit would be received.

  “Mila? Jackie?” Michelle laughed softly. “What are you two doing here?”

  Jackie nibbled on her bottom lip, her eyes searing Michelle with intensity. “We wanted to talk to you.”

  Michelle nodded, gesturing for the two ladies to step inside. Mollie’s head poked around the end of the hallway then.

  “Ohhh, look at you,” Mila cooed.

  “You two should meet my daughter, Mollie.” Michelle led them toward the kitchen, and Mollie immediately hugged her mother’s waist. “Mollie, say hi. This is Mila and Jackie.”

  The women introduced themselves, and Michelle finished making the sandwich before handing it over and encouraging Mollie to go play in the other room. Once it was the three of them, Michelle led them toward the dining room table.

  “So what’s going on, ladies? Is everything okay?” Michelle’s heart had started racing again, awaiting whatever news they brought. Part of her worried that maybe Blake was in trouble—sick or injured, maybe. Whatever might prompt an in-person visit didn’t bode well.

  Jackie reached across the table to grab Michelle’s wrist. “We want you to reconsider.”

  Michelle swallowed a knot in her throat. “Reconsider what?”

  “Blake.” Mila’s face shone with concern. “We know what happened. We joined the guys right after you left his club, and they told us about that stupid bet.”

  “And that’s why we had to come,” Jackie added. “Daniel and Grayson have told us how miserable Blake’s been ever since that night. And after what happened last weekend…”

  Fear cinched her chest. “What happened last weekend?”

  Jackie shook her head. “Nothing serious. They just are getting more concerned about him.” She paused, doubt masking her face for a moment. “He’s really heartbroken.”

  Michelle tried not to let the words affect her, but God, what a relief to know it. Deep inside her, this was the best news she could have received. But she still didn’t know what to do with it. She loved Blake, and a big part of her wanted to know he genuinely cared for her, too. But how could she trust him again after what had happened?

  “It’s his fault,” Michelle finally said. “He wasn’t honest with me.”

  “Well, you’re right. He never admitted to the bet. But according to their terms, the bet had ended weeks prior.” Mila offered a small smile. “I don’t know if it helps. But I just wanted you to know. My husband and his friends—they are ridiculous with their betting. And sometimes it bleeds over into territories where it shouldn’t. But I just wouldn’t feel right if I didn’t come over here and make that be known on Blake’s behalf.”

  “I feel the same. Blake told us that he’s been trying to get ahold of you with no luck,” Jackie said. “Which, honestly, I get. But I want you to know that Daniel and I first got together because of a bet too.”

  Michelle couldn’t stop her brow from arching into the stratosphere. “What?”

  “Blake and Grayson thought that Daniel was such a workaholic that they bet him that he couldn’t keep his current girlfriend through the end of Mila and Grayson’s wedding celebrations. Well, he didn’t have a girlfriend—they just thought I was his girlfriend because I was house sitting for him at the time.” Jackie smirked, her eyes sparkling. “But little did we know, that bet would lead us to true love.”

  “I told you,” Mila said, clasping Michelle’s hand in hers, “these guys are awful with the betting. But the bets aren’t mean. They’re just three competitive friends who can’t stop trying to beat each other.”

  Jackie and Mila shared a warm smile, which for a moment made everything feel okay. Michelle was tempted to get swept away in their rose-colored world where that type of deception was simply good fun. But the wounded part of her wasn’t done raging.

  “I don’t know,” Michelle said, sniffing. “It just feels like it spoils everything that we shared.”

  Both Jackie and Mila looked sad, but they stood and came around to give her a hug.

  “I understand if you can’t move past it,” Mila whispered. “But I think I speak for both of us when I say we really like you, and we don’t want you to miss out on a worthwhile relationship because of something so silly as this. We can vouch for Blake’s goodness. And honestly, you’re the only woman we’ve ever seen him bring around.”

  Michelle almost cried while in the embrace of the two women. It was hard not to appreciate their radiating love and support. And really, this was the type of thing she wanted here. The type of thing she needed. Not just a solid partner, but a loving circle of people she could trust and count on.

  “Did he ask you to come here?” Michelle asked.

  “Nope. We did this on our own,” Mila said.

  “Obviously we love Blake,” Jackie said, squeezing her arms around Michelle and Mila a little tighter, “but we liked you from the second we met you.”

  “I felt the same way too,” Michelle admitted.

  “No pressure. You have to do what’s right for you,” Mila said, coming to standing. “But let us know if you need anything in the meantime.”

  “And please, let’s be friends even if you don’t end up with Blake,” Jackie added.

  Jackie and Mila left their numbers with Michelle before waving goodbye to Mollie and heading out the door. Michelle stood in the front hallway, wondering how she could possibly process what Jackie and Mila had told her and still stay angry at Blake, when the sound of glass shattering tore through the room.

  Michelle darted toward the source of the noise, finding Mollie looking wide-eyed at a broken picture frame at her feet.

  “What happened?” Michelle asked, kneeling in front of Mollie.

  “The dolly flew out of my hand and hit the picture,” Mollie explained, her bottom lip trembling as she looked between Michelle and the broken glass. “I’m sorry, Mommy, I—”

  “Honey, it’s fine. I promise you. You’re not hurt, and that’s what matters most.” Michelle guided Mollie away from the danger, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “Just stay over here while I get this cleaned up, okay?”

  Mollie nodded and Michelle hurried to get a dustpan and broom. Back in the living room, she picked up the broken frame. A photo of her and Mollie hung askew, revealing a different photo behind.

  Michelle plucked out the photo, finding an old picture of her and her ex stuck behind it. She blinked a few times, staring at the image. It was odd to see—almost like looking at a photo from a different century. She couldn’t even relate to the brunette with the innocent smile—not anymore. Even though Mollie had been just a sparkle in her eye at that time, this photo wasn’t taken that long ago. Not even a decade had passed.

  Which meant that in not a lot of time…just about everything in her world had changed.

  “Mommy, watch out for the glass.”

  Mollie’s soft voice jostled her back to the present. She hurried to scoop up the glass shards, her mind churning over the forgotten picture she’d tucked away.

  Why had she kept it? She couldn’t even remember. But one thing was for certain—seeing the visual reminder of her ex didn’t hurt like she’d expected. In fact, it barely registered.

  Her ex would always be a part of the tapestry of her history…but he didn’t have to rule it for the rest of her life.

  Michelle picked up the old pictures and walked out to the kitchen with the dustpan, feeling oddly determined. No, that part of her life could stay in the past. She was tired of it dictating what she did, and how she related to people.

  She popped open the waste bin and dumped all the glass inside, and watched as the old photo fluttered down to join it.

  19

  Two weeks post-breaking up and Blake thought he might physically dissolve from wanting Michelle.

  But he had to press forward and hang onto hope. Hope that he would eventually stop hurting; hope that he might eventually stop thinking about her. Hope that she might eventually want to hear him out, maybe give him another chance.

  Pressing forward meant going with the motions for now. And tonight, Saturday night, was a big baseball charity event that he’d previously been looking forward to for weeks, and now couldn’t care less about.

  Even DJ Fiesta, who had graciously agreed to be the feature DJ for the event, couldn’t get him excited about the night ahead of him. Because he only wanted Michelle at his side.

  He’d picked out his sleekest black suit, one that never failed to pick up his spirits, but when he looked in the mirror, he only wished that he was in his sweat pants on Michelle’s couch.

  How did you fall so hard?

  The question had been haunting him for weeks. Once he had his tie in place, his phone vibrated. Every inch of him wanted it to be Michelle. But it was his alarm—leave for event.

  He pocketed his phone and gave himself a once-over in the foyer before heading for the elevator. It was time to rally. Get his game face on—the happy one that was so hard to muster anymore—and get ready for a night of socializing and picture-taking and meeting his favorite DJ for the first time. Two months ago, this would have been the perfect evening plan.

  But not anymore.

  Blake’s engine hummed to life once he was inside the SUV. Out on the streets of San Francisco, golden late-evening light bathed the world. At least he could enjoy this beauty. And wasn’t that just the sort of thing that Michelle had taught him? The best parts of life couldn’t be bought.

  About halfway through his trip, his phone beeped with an incoming text message.

  It was from Michelle.

  She’d written a simple, “Hi.”

  Blake’s limbs lit up with prickles. He swerved suddenly as he noticed himself drifting out of his lane. Shit. He couldn’t believe it. Was he dreaming? He swiped at his phone, looking between the road and his screen, and there it was. Still.

  The olive branch.

  His heart hammered as he wondered what to do. With her reaching out like this, there was no way in hell he could do anything else tonight other than go after her. She wanted to talk. She was ready.

  And he’d make sure he was there.

  So it was a no-brainer. Blake sailed right past the exit for the event without even a backward glance, got off the highway at the next exit, and gunned it for Michelle’s townhouse. He barely breathed for the rest of the drive, each thump of his heart echoing his newly fanned hopes that this would be their second chance to make this work.

  Blake pulled into her driveway, suddenly regretful that he hadn’t thought of stopping to get flowers or something for Mollie on the way. But also, he knew anything he could buy wouldn’t matter for Michelle. If she wanted anything from him, it would only be his presence.

  He hurried up to the door, trying his best to control his nervousness. Maybe he shouldn’t have come. Maybe she’d just texted to tell him to truly forget about her. Maybe this was all for nothing.

  But if Blake had learned anything, it was that he needed to give it his best shot.

  Mollie opened the door, her eyes going wide, a big smile overtaking her face. “Mr. Blake!”

  And then suddenly she was in his arms, shrieking with excitement. Laughter rolled out of him, emotions cinching his throat. He hadn’t expected this. Not by a long shot.

  “Mommy, Mr. Blake is here,” Mollie called as Blake stepped into the house with her in his arms.

  And then Michelle appeared at the end of the hallway. Her arms were crossed over her chest, and there was something so vulnerable and raw written across her face that it nearly brought Blake to his knees.

  “Hey, Michelle,” he said softly, slowly lowering Mollie to the ground. He shut the door behind him. Michelle didn’t move. “I hope it’s okay that I’m here.”

  Michelle sniffed, her gaze fastened to the ground. Finally she said, “Mollie, can you go upstairs to your bedroom for a minute? I want to talk to Mr. Blake alone.”

  Mollie sighed, clearly displeased with the suggestion. “But Mommy…”

  “He’ll be up soon to see the picture,” Michelle said, which piqued his interest. “Just go up there, and we’ll be up in a few minutes.”