Why Not Tonight?

something special with an ocean between you. And I’m not about to sit around for three months while he’s off discovering European women.”

“He’ll be back.”

“And then he’ll be gone again. Or moving to Hawaii, or somewhere else.”

“Surely after three months in Europe he’ll be all traveled out. Maybe you could persuade him not to go away again.”

That brought her up short. And had her heart lurching. Persuade him not to go away again? “I…I don’t know. I haven’t had enough time to sit down and really think it through.”

“Well, you need to. If he’s ‘The One Who Got Away,’ you don’t want him to get away again. Chances are he found last night as amazing as you did. Which means that you’ll be on his mind. Which means that when he gets home and sees you again, he might not be so anxious to go jetting off somewhere else or moving thousands of miles away. You said he wants to leave Manhattan-he didn’t say he wanted to leave New York. Give the man a reason to want to stay. As for his trip, don’t forget-absence makes the heart grow fonder.”

“Don’t forget-out of sight, out of mind.”

“From what you told me, which was pretty stingy on the sexy details by the way, you will not be out of his mind.”

“Three months is a long time.”

“But it’s not forever.”

Mallory huffed out a laugh. “You have an answer for everything.”

“Yes, I do. It’s part of my charm.” She batted her eyes. “Mark particularly liked it. He thought I was smart and savvy.”

“You are.”

“So are you.”

Mallory managed a limp smile. “Thanks.” But she didn’t feel smart or savvy. Darn it, she felt like a deflated balloon, which was precisely what she didn’t want to feel like. And it was all Adam’s fault. Blowing back into her life with his sexy grin and blue eyes and everything that made him so irresistible, reigniting all the feelings she thought she’d buried, then breezing out again, leaving her reeling as if her emotions had been battered in a windstorm.

Well, he was gone and there was nothing she could do about that.

Or was there?

ADAM PACED AROUND Nick’s kitchen, feeling like a large animal penned in a too-small cage.

“Dude, you’ve been here for ten minutes and done nothing but pace,” Nick said. “Watching you is giving me a crick in my neck. Something’s obviously bothering you, so why don’t you just spit it out-preferably before I need a chiropractor.”

Adam halted and a sheepish smile pulled at him. “Sorry.”

Nick waved away his apology with his longneck beer bottle. “No problem. But my sleep deprivation is making my attention span about three minutes, so if you wanna talk-which I’m assuming you do since you’re still here-you’d better get started.”

Adam pulled in a deep breath then slowly exhaled. “I don’t really know what to say because I’m not sure what’s wrong.”

“It’s simple. If you know something’s wrong, but you can’t put your finger on what it is-”

“Exactly.”

“Then it’s a woman.” Nick looked him up and down, his brows raising slightly when they hit the grass stains on the knees of his jeans. “Doesn’t look like you got much sleep last night-something I can relate to, although I bet your lack of z’s had nothing to do with a crying baby.”

“I spent the night with Mallory.”

“Ah. Can’t say I’m surprised. From the looks of you, it either went amazingly good or amazingly bad.”

“There was nothing bad about it.” Except that it had ended. And the way his damn insides had been knotted since he’d left her.

“For a guy who had an amazingly good night, you don’t look too happy.”

“I guess the problem is that I’d kinda like to have another amazingly good night.” Kinda? He barely refrained from looking at the ceiling at that whopper of an understatement.

“I’m sure you’ll find some gorgeous European women who’ll be happy to oblige you.”

“I meant with Mallory.”

“Oh.” Nick shrugged and took a pull on his beer. “So give her a call. You’re not leaving till tomorrow.”

“I thought about it, but…” He dragged his hands through his hair. Damn, he’d thought of little else.

“But you’re needing some space.”

“Yeah. I need to think-”

“And you can’t think around her.”

Adam stared at his bleary-eyed friend. “When the hell did you become clairvoyant?”

“I’m not. But I know the symptoms. I do have some experience with women-having married one and all. Besides, you’re just easy to read.”

“Really? Well, good. Tell me what I’m thinking because I have no freakin’ idea and it’s driving me nuts.”

“Okay. This chick has you all fired up and you’re bummed because you’re hot for her, but the timing sucks because you’re going away tomorrow.”

“All true. But it’s a little more complicated than that.”

“Look, put it in perspective, man. You’re going to Europe-another word for ‘place where hot women dwell.’ So enjoy yourself and call Mallory when you get back.”

“She might not be around three months from now.”

“She’s falling off the face of the earth?”

“She might meet someone else while I’m gone.”

“You might meet someone else while you’re gone. As for Mallory, keep in touch with her while you’re away to keep those home fires stoked. Phone her from Italy. E-mail her from France. Listen, chances are by the time you make it through those two countries you won’t even remember Mallory’s name.”

Adam shook his head. “I don’t think there’s much chance of that.”

“Oh. Well, then you’re screwed.”

“Meaning what?”

Nick held his hand to his ear. “What’s that sound I hear? Oh, yeah. The death knell tolling for your bachelor days. Believe me, I know. I heard that same sound. Annie and I were married six months later.”

Adam frowned. “I’m trying to be serious here.”

“So am I. And you know what? That sound was the best thing that ever happened to me.”

“But I’m not ready for that. I’m supposed to be resting. Relaxing. Living it up as a bachelor. Dating a slew of gorgeous women. Figuring out what I want to do with my life and where I want to do it.”

“Good for you. Nobody’s stopping you.”

Adam nodded. “That’s right.”

“Your head’s just messed up from a combination of too little sleep and too much sex.”

“That’s right.”

“Totally feeling your pain on the too-little-sleep thing. No sympathy whatsoever on the too-much-sex thing.”

“Understandable.” Adam let out a long, slow breath. “Mallory would never move from Long Island.”

“So the tiki bar in Hawaii would be out?”

“’Fraid so.”

“Maybe Long Island needs a tiki bar.”

“Maybe.” He studied his friend for several long seconds. “How’d you know Annie was the one?”

Nick made a helpless gesture with his beer bottle. “I just…knew. I was happy when she was around and miserable when she wasn’t. Every other woman just sort of faded away and I had no interest in being with anyone else. She was my best friend and I wanted to have sex with her-a great combination that I can only describe as the best of both worlds.” He clapped his hand on Adam’s shoulder. “It’s what I’d wish for you.