Page 39 of Her Rock Star's Dark Secret

“I had to. Penny was coming. She deserved a mom to give her all to her.”

“But you can’t be the best mom if you never take time for yourself. You’ll burn out.” He didn’t know much about motherhood, but he knew he couldn’t work as efficiently if he didn’t take time out to do things he enjoyed. He figured the same concept applied to Lauren in her situation as well.

“I have heard that before,” Lauren admitted. “I’m just not very good at actually taking the advice.”

“Let’s change that tonight.”

“Okay. Deal.”

The light turned green, and he stepped on the gas. Dixie’s Tavern appeared down the street, and he turned into the parking lot.

“Ready for this?” he asked her.

She smiled back at him, and once again, he was taken with how beautiful she was. He got out and rounded the car to her side. He opened her door and offered her his hand.

Chapter 13

Lauren took Chase’s hand, and it was warm and rough in hers. He smelled good as he leaned down to help her up from the car. She appreciated the help because it was hard to climb from the Camaro in her short, tight dress.

Choosing that dress tonight had been a bold move. It was an old dress from her party days with Brandon. She hadn’t worn it in years. She found it in the back of her closet and put it on before she could second guess herself. She was delighted to find that not only did it still fit, but it actually looked better on her now than it did before. She’d gotten pretty aggressive about staying in shape since she’d put on a lot of baby weight with Penny and had wanted to lose it all. She’d gotten used to a regular workout regimen, and now it was one of the only things she still did for herself.

Tonight, it was paying off big time. She couldn’t believe the way Chase looked at her when he’d opened Alexis’s door and saw her in that little green dress. And again, when she got in his Camaro.

He shut her car door behind her and kept a hold of her hand as he led her into the building.

Other than the rare girls’ night with Alexis, Lauren hadn’t been to Dixie’s in years. It used to be her main hangout place with Brandon. She’d missed it. It was full of old memories, but tonight she was ready to make new ones. To bring new meaning to an old place. Let her heart heal and let go of past hurt. She looked around the room and saw familiar faces smiling at her. Josie Sparks was sitting at the bar, flirting with half of the Maple Creek Fire Department. She looked over to Chase and Lauren and waved them over.

“Noah, you remember Chase, right?” Josie gave him a teasing smile.

“You’re hilarious, Josie,” Noah said. “I’m a huge fan, Chase.” Noah shook his hand.

“It’s been a minute, Noah. Are you coming to the class reunion?”

“I was planning on it. I took off work for it.”

“What are you doing for work?” Chase asked.

“I’m a firefighter.” Was it just Lauren’s imagination, or did Noah puff out his chest a little bit when he said that?

“That’s awesome. How do you like it?” Chase looked so attractive standing there talking to their old classmates. Lauren wondered at her luck. How had she ended up on a date with Chase Remington? This kind of thing never happened to her. She was the girl who attracted the losers.

“Honestly? I love it.”

“That’s awesome,” Chase said. “It’s always great when you’re doing what you love.”

“Are you two dating?” Josie turned to Lauren in a quiet voice.

Way to be blunt, Josie. “We’re on a date.” Lauren wanted to keep it vague because she wasn’t sure where Chase stood on the subject.

“I’ve just seen you two together a lot lately. It seems like something’s going on.”

“We’re just working on the memorial together.”

Josie leaned forward dramatically. “Yeah, but why is he all interested in helping? That’s the real question.” She was just as bad as Mrs. Wheaton.

“I’ve been asking myself the same question.”

“It’s not like he was friends with Maisy. If anything, I’d say the opposite was true.”

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