Red Hot Reunion

As if he could read her mind, he said, “What are your plans for the rest of the day?”

She bit her lip, finally admitting, “Actually, I don’t have any. This was a spur-of-the-moment trip.”

“Wow.” He whistled. “Now I know something is up. You don’t need to take your medication or anything do you?”

Emma was standing close enough to Jason to smack him with her purse. “I’m not on any medication, thanks,” she said, forcing herself to turn his comment into a joke, rather than something more hurtful than that.

He held his hands up. “Can’t blame a guy for checking. I don’t know what’s gone on during the past ten years. You could be having a breakdown for all I know.”

She shook her head and a gave him a look that saidDon’t be crazy, but all the while she was thinking,Is it that obvious? Clearly, she needed to work at losing it more smoothly.

The thing was, if having a mental breakdown was synonymous with climaxing in Jason’s arms once a day, she was all for it.

And then he said the most unexpected, wonderful thing. “I’ve got to get to work, but if you’ve got some time off and need a place to stay, you can hang with me for a few days.”

Emma couldn’t hide her surprise and delight at his offer, even if his mood seemed to be growing progressively colder with every passing sentence. Still, her extremely polite upbringing made her say,

“Are you certain I won’t be in your way?” even though she knew it was stupid to give him an out.

“Sure,” he said, almost as if he didn’t care either way, whether she stayed or whether she went back to Palo Alto.

“Great,” she said, just as nonchalantly, even though her heart was racing at the thought of finally getting to see Jason’s house. His private world.

His bedroom.

“1040 Second Street. White house. Black trim. Oversized Akita in the backyard. Door’s unlocked.”

He was pulling up the blinds as he spoke and Emma smoothed her hands over her skirt and top to make sure everything was where it should be. “I really don’t need a key?”

“People are pretty honest out here in the country,” was his reply and it seemed to Emma that he put extra emphasis on the word “honest.” But the expression on his face didn’t hint at hidden meanings, didn’t give away anything beyond wanting to get back to work, so she tried to hurry up and gather her things while taking his words at face value.

“I’ll be back around oneA .M. And hey, if you wouldn’t mind taking Marvin for a walk, that’d be great,”

he added as if she was nothing more than his new dog walker, rather than an old flame that he’d just pounded into sensual oblivion in the middle of his restaurant.

Emma stood in the middle of the restaurant and watched Jason disappear behind the swinging kitchen door. Forcing away her incredibly negative thoughts—after all, what did she possibly have to feel bad about given Jason’s spectacular loving and his wonderful invitation to stay with him?—she still could hardly believe she’d actually come here. Actually left her suffocating life behind on a whim and knocked on Jason’s door.

Had she really been the wicked woman half-naked on a bar stool being impaled by his huge penis?

She shivered with satisfaction. No one would ever believe it—Jason obviously barely did and he’d done it all with her—but ever since last night, Emma felt like a changed woman. And she was bound and

determined to stick to her plan.

Playboy Bunnies had fun. Classy ladies hated their lives.

Her choice couldn’t be clearer. It was Playboy Bunny all the way.

Eight

Napa Valley?”

Emma held the phone away from her ear. Kate’s voice was getting higher pitched with every passing moment. “That’s right,” she said, feeling extremely satisfied with her life for the first time in a long time as she swung on the white swing on Jason’s front porch, with his enormous but friendly dog drooling at her feet. “I came to see Jason.”

“Jason?” Kate screamed.

“Ow.”

“You know damn well why I’m screeching,” Kate said. “I can’t believe you didn’t call me this morning with all the details from last night. I only left you, what, twenty messages?”

“I wasn’t ready to talk about it yet,” Emma replied primly. Even though her recent behavior had been anything but prim.

“I’m your best friend. You don’t need to be ready to talk to me.”

Emma smiled. “You’re right,” she said, but she still didn’t want to share any of the erotic details with Kate.

Jason wasn’t just some guy she’d picked up in bar. Not that she’d do that in a million years, of course. He was special. And she didn’t want to cheapen their lovemaking by gossiping about it. So instead of dishing about sex, she said, “Jason invited me to stay with him for a few days.”

“Are you kidding me?”

“Isn’t it amazing? I apologized to him for everything and he’s not even mad at me.”

Kate was silent for a long moment. “Honey, I know I’m the one who encouraged you to leave the party with him last night. But maybe you should be careful. Take things slow.”

“You don’t understand,” Emma said, angry with her best friend for trying to bring her down from the high she was on, especially since the same thoughts had been floating around her head ever since Jason had told her that, yes, they could be friends again. Just like that.

Working to not only convince Kate that everything was fine, that she was only imagining dark clouds of danger, but herself as well, Emma said, “Being with Jason again is the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

But she could tell that her best friend wasn’t convinced. And neither, to be perfectly honest, was Emma.

“You know I just want you to be happy. And I’m not trying to be a big downer, I swear. You’ve never once told me to stop sleeping around and settle down with one guy, even though I’ve given you plenty of reason.” Kate paused for a beat, then added, “A lot can happen in ten years. You and Jason are different people now. That’s great if he’s really forgiven you. But try to keep your eyes open to what else could be going on. At least think about what I’m saying, okay?”

Emma couldn’t stay mad at Kate for more than five seconds, even if the subtext of her words was that there was no way Jason could have forgiven Emma so quickly. And that he must have an ulterior motive to be acting so nice so suddenly.