Page 10 of Red, White, and You

“And you thought I’d never make anything of myself.” I say it half-jokingly, but when her face falls, I instantly regret the words.

“It’s not…” Brie pauses, shaking her head. “I never thought that. We just wanted different things.”

I nod, but even now, I’m not so sure I agree. Did wetrulywant different things? All I ever wanted was her.

Licking my lips, I run my hand through my hair, then down to grip the back of my neck. “Breezy, you look…”

Words fail me. I shake my head as I take my time dragging my gaze down her body. She’s dressed for the office, not the forest, in a tight black pencil skirt, white silk blouse, and sky-high heels, but the outfit suits her. It doesn’t matter what she wears or where she stands, she continues to be the most beautiful thing I’ve ever laid eyes on. When I finally meet her gaze again, the lust in her eyes makes my breath catch.

“Jesus, Brie, you’re even better than I remember.”

She pulls in a ragged breath. “So are you.”

“Married?”

She shakes her head.

“Single?” I ask.

She nods. “Quite. You?”

“Never met anyone who could measure up to my wife.” I step forward until only a foot separates us.

“Ex-wife,” Brie corrects.

Semantics.I smirk. “How’s the law firm?”

“Amazing.”

“Successful?”

“Very.” She licks her lips and my eyes drop to follow the movement.

“So, you did it?” I ask, my attention still zeroed in on her mouth. “You made your dreams come true?”

She nods, but now there’s something else in her expression, something I can’t place. My chest tightens in response to the emotion glistening in her hazel eyes. The desire to pull her into my arms burns like an inferno, so much so that my fingers twitch and I have to clench them into fists again.

She starts to raise her hand, then drops it back down to her side.

The desire to touch is mutual, and that’s all I needed to know.

Closing the remaining distance between us, I take her chin in my hand and hold her gaze as I trail my thumb over her plump bottom lip. “How does it feel, Breezy, to have everything you ever wanted?”

Brie

My chest is tight, a vise around my lungs that makes it difficult to breathe, because when this man asks me how it feels to have everything I’ve ever wanted, the answer is a resounding, loud andpainfulone.

I don’t have everything I’ve ever wanted.

Because I don’t havehim.

He waits for me quietly, letting me sort through my thoughts like the patient man that he is. But the way his eyes search mine makes my chest ache with longing.

Bradyseesme; he knows my response before I even say it aloud.

He was always so relaxed, so… opposite me. I had plans and ambition; he had sleeping in, working odd jobsonlyto pay the bills, and weekly games of pool or poker with his friends. I’ve always been of the ‘if you’re not first, you’re last’ mindset, while my ex has always been about ‘stop and smell the roses’. The tortoise and the hare.

Somehow, we managed to make our differences work, even if only briefly.

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