Ean studied his friend, seeing him with fresh eyes. This wasn’t the same guy who’d lined up against much bigger opponents and run through them. “You’re a coward, Q.”
Quincy’s features tightened even as he shrugged. “If it makes you feel better to think so.”
“It doesn’t. You used to be fearless. You went after whatever you wanted, whether it was a football championship, a college scholarship or a doctorate. When did you lose your nerve?”
“I haven’t.”
Ean saw the heat of anger in his best friend’s eyes. Good. “Or maybe Ramona isn’t that important to you. I can understand. I don’t know what I saw in her, either.”
“Don’t blame her for your failures.” Quincy’s response was swift and vicious.
“Don’t blame me for yours.” Ean turned to leave. If their friendship was over, he’d accept it. There wasn’t anything more to say.
Quincy’s voice stopped Ean in his tracks. “Don’t insult her just because she dumped you.”
Finally, someone believed that Ramona had dumped him—although why that should make him happy...
Ean looked over his shoulder. “If you want her, fight for her.”
He had enough on his plate without adding Responsible for Quincy’s Love Life to it.
Ean walked out of Quincy’s townhome, pulling the door closed behind him. That made two confrontations down—Ramona and Quincy. One to go. But before he dealt with the third confrontation, he needed more information, and he knew just the person to approach for it.
“Can I buy you lunch?” Ean stood on the top step outside of Megan’s front door. He held a bag of fast food aloft. The scents emanating from the bag reminded him he’d eaten breakfast almost five hours before, and it hadn’t been much of a meal.
Megan’s skeptical gaze swung from Ean to the bag. She stepped aside to let him enter her home. “Why don’t I make lunch for us?”
A rush of relief eased the tension in Ean’s shoulders. He accepted Megan’s welcome and crossed into her home. “I thought you liked fast food.”
Megan’s full pink lips struggled with a smile. Her gaze dipped to the bag. “I draw the line when there’s more grease than meat on the sandwich.”
Ean looked at the stained bag. “I guess you have a point.”
“You guess?” Her chocolate eyes shone with laughter. “I think I’m getting to you just in time to save your arteries.”
He followed her across the sunny foyer, past the causal living room, through the formal dining room and into the cozy kitchen. Megan’s home woke half-forgotten memories for Ean: meeting Ramona’s grandparents and nervously seeking their approval; picking up Ramona for a Saturday night movie.
Megan had changed the rooms a bit, with new furnishings and flooring, but they retained the same warmth and charm. It was a sharp contrast with Ramona’s coolly modern condo.
Ean’s gaze toured the kitchen’s counters and cabinets, comparing his memories to the images around him. The color scheme had remained the same—blond wood cabinets, white-marble counters and pale green walls. But the appliances had been upgraded with a sleek, energy-efficient chrome refrigerator, oven and dishwasher. It was still a familiar, comfortable room—a harmonious blend of the past and present.
He wandered farther into the room and put the fast-food bag into the trash. “The cookie jar is gone.”
A quick grin flashed across Megan’s lush lips. “Blame that on your mother’s baking. Store-bought cookies aren’t appealing after tasting your mother’s pastries.”
The kitchen was crowded with the scents of vegetables and seasonings. Across the room, Megan stirred the fragrant contents of a pot on the stove. The long, neat lines of her slender figure seemed calm and comfortable. She conveyed a serenity that invited him to relax after his contentious meeting with Quincy. “What are you making?”
“Chicken stew.”
His mouth watered. If the meal tasted as good as it smelled, he was in for a treat. “What can I do to help?”
Megan inclined her head toward the cupboards beside him. “You can set the table.”
Grateful for something to do to keep his mind occupied with thoughts other than Megan’s firm curves and long limbs, Ean collected the dishes and silverware for the table settings. He gave Megan two soup bowls before crossing to the refrigerator. He poured two glasses of iced tea and added them to the settings. He also set out a plate of crackers to accompany the stew.
Megan joined him at the table. She offered him one of the bowls of stew before setting hers on the table and taking her seat.
Ean sampled the dish. “Delicious.”