“I get that,” he replied.
“And I’ll have to figure out how to be Melanie Banks again.”
“Is she different now?” Logan asked.
“Melanie Banks is a completely different person than she used to be,” Melanie replied with a short laugh. “I’ve been married. I’ve been a stepmom. I’ve felt what it was like to be wealthy, and what it was like to lose it all. I’m not Adam’s wife anymore, and the world won’t see me in the same way. Life is easier with a wealthy husband, I can tell you that, but it’s also cramped.”
“I could see that,” he replied.
“What about you?” she asked. “Are you different now that you’re widowed?”
If he was going to ask her personal questions, he supposed he should answer a few of hers. He took a moment to consider, then he lifted his shoulders. “Yeah. I am.”
“But you’ll be okay,” she said.
“I’ve survived,” he said with a nod.
“I suppose I will, too.”
Logan eyed her for a moment. “If you’re planning on selling the lake house, would you move to Denver?”
“I’m not sure,” she said.
“It would be a great place to start up a home-decor business,” he said. “I could use someone to stage some houses in new subdivisions.”
“I’m sure you already have someone to do that,” she countered.
“Yeah. I’m not that attached to him, though,” he replied with a grin.
“I’m not letting you fire someone to make work for me,” she said with a laugh. “Besides, I’m not sure I want Denver again. I’m not sure I want Colorado, even. If I’m starting over, maybe I want something more exotic.”
She hadn’t actually thought about it until just now, but if she was already starting fresh, it was a great time to make all the changes at once. And while she’d been a Colorado girl her whole life, that didn’t mean she had to stay one.
“How exotic are we talking?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” she admitted. “I’m only thinking of it now. Hawaii? New York? Maybe somewhere in Maine?”
“Wow. That would be far.” His eyes saddened.
“Why, would you miss me?” she asked.
“Yeah.”
His answer was gut-wrenchingly honest, and she paused, her breath in her throat.
“I mean, you don’t owe me anything,” he said quickly. “We’ve only just reconnected. It’s not like I even expect you to talk to me again after this trip is over.”
Like he’d done to her? Did he think she’d just sweep his memory aside that easily?
“Why wouldn’t I talk to you?” she asked.
“I’m just saying, sometimes people run into each other again, and it’s great to catch up, but that’s all it is.” His gaze met hers. “But for me, I hadn’t realized how much I missed you until I saw you again. So if you fade off into the distance and have some great exotic life, I’m going to miss you. It’s just the truth.”
“Oh...” She smiled at that. “So...do you want to stay in touch?”
What would that look like? But the thought of Logan in her life...even somewhat distantly...was comforting.
“Yeah. I really do.”
Melanie felt the smile come to her lips. “Me, too.”
“So... I have permission to give you a call? Chat? That kind of thing?” His voice deepened, and he met her gaze with a look that made her breath catch. Why did looking at him like this always make her think about going further than just a few phone calls? He’d kissed her out on the deck, and suddenly, the memory of his lips on hers came back in a rush.
She nodded. “Yes. I’d like that, too.”
“Okay, then,” he said. He leaned back in his chair and shot her a warm smile. “And I will call.”
She felt her arms tingle with goose bumps at the promise in his voice. He was very easy to fall for, this man. But she wouldn’t upend her life for a man again. Whatever they’d be to each other, it wouldn’t be romantic.
The waiter came by again, and Melanie looked in the direction Tilly had gone, then shrugged. “I think we’ll order. My daughter—” She winced. It was hard to stop referring to her that way. “She’ll be back in a while. But I think I’ll order her the cheese burger and fries. She always likes that. I’ll have the same.”
Logan placed his order, too, chicken fettuccini, and the waiter left again.
“Just do me a favor,” Logan said once they were alone again.
“Sure.”
“Keep Denver on the table,” he said. “If you came back, I promise I’d give you something new to associate the city with.”
“Would you, now?” she said with a low laugh. “Like what?”
“I don’t know. Dinners out. Long walks. Someone to talk to. I’d pass your business card around to everyone in the business.”
“In exchange for what?” she asked.
“For nothing at all,” he replied. “For being there, in Denver, breathing the same air. That’s it. I’d love to have you closer.”
And suddenly, despite her resolve, Denver sounded a lot more tempting.
“I have to be honest,” Melanie said firmly, “I’m not thinking of Denver.”
His smile slipped, then he nodded. “Sure. I mean, of course. I’m sorry to put you in a weird position there.”
Tilly came back into the dining room then, saving Melanie from having to answer. Tilly slid into her chair and dropped her phone on the tabletop next to her.
“I ordered for you,” Melanie said.
“What did you get me?” Tilly sounded like the old Tilly again—out for a meal with her stepmom.
“A burger and fries.”
“That sounds good.”
No argument. That was something.
“So how is your dad?” Melanie asked.
“He’s fine. He wanted to check in with me,” Tilly said. “He says to say hi.”
And in so many ways, this could have been a lunch out two years ago—Tilly bored but accommodating, Adam sending her a message through his daughter... She’d thought she was happy back then. Now, she knew she’d settled. She’d accepted what she could get.
“And I told him I’m pregnant,” Tilly added. “So you
