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“You go wherever you’re comfortable, Sandy, honey. But remember, Jason was married, he knows women have their time, no need to be embarrassed.”

Embarassed?
I almost laughed at my mother’s words, thinking about the night before. Jason and I had no secrets, especially now.

When Jason
came home, Joplin remained at my side on the couch, her chin resting on my lap. Jason pushed his sunglasses up, dropped his laptop to the floor by the door, and tossed his keys into the bowl as he watched me turn.

“Strawberry ice cream…
Friends
re-runs… my sweatpants… aw, poor baby,” he crooned, pressing a kiss to the side of my neck.

O
h, God, his greeting was more intimate than me being naked and blindfolded in his arms.

I forced a smile as he dropped to the couch next to me. “Sorry
,” I murmured, apologizing for no reason, and he scoffed.

“Sorry you’re a girl? San, that’s my favorite part about you,” he teased, patting his lap. When Joplin didn’t move, he made a face at her. “Traitor,” he accused. The dog whined, and I grinned.

“She’s been with me all afternoon. It’s like she knows how much cramps suck.”

“My girls stick together,” he murmured, reaching for the remote. “I’ll trade you
a foot rub for
The Walking Dead.
”

“Deal,” I agreed immediately.

Shifting on the couch, I dropped my feet into his lap.

His hands worked over my fuzzy pink socks, and I drifted in and out of sleep during the show.
When his thumbs pressed against my arches, I moaned softly. He froze, turning my way.

“Noises like that will get you in trouble,” he warned playfully, resuming his talented massage. I grinned, leaving my eyes closed.

“Sorry. It just feels amazing, Brew. How was your day?”

“The highlight was the morning. After that, it was pretty much downhill.”

I flushed, turning into the couch. “I can’t believe we did that.”

He only pushed harder on my foot, and I bit my lip to stifle another pleasured cry.

“How was your day?”

“Hard.” I left it at that, and as though he could read my mind, he took a moment to run his hands over my ankles and calves.

“I know, baby.”

I drifted off to sleep, vaguely aware that he told me he was going for a run and would be back to make us dinner in a little while.

The doorbell roused me sometime later, and I sat up, confused.
He must have locked himself out,
I realized, moving quickly to the front door. Joplin barked, following at my side.

I had the
door open before I realized who was standing on the front porch.

“Alexandra, wait-
”

“Jack,” I breathed, trying to close the front door. His wide palm slapped against the wood, and I jumped.
Joplin went crazy, barking and growling, and I tried to nudge her away with my knee.

“Wait, honey.
Let me talk to you,” he begged.

He was so fucking handsome, standing there in his suit, obviously just having left work. His face was black and blue, and there was noticeable swelling in his nose. “I can’t talk to you anymore. I filed a
restraining order today.
Please
.”

I broke into unavoidable tears, watching his face fall.

“God, look at your eye. I can’t believe I did that to you. Alexandra, please let me hold you, let me tell you how sorry I am,” he pleaded. Joplin whined and growled behind me, desperately trying to get past my legs and dart out the front door.

“
You have to go,” I sobbed, backing out of his reach as he moved toward me.

“
Can we please try to work this out? I want to marry you, I do, and if that’s what it’ll take to get you to come home, then-”

“This is my home, right now,” I snapped, pointing at his Audi. “Leave. Jason will be out here any minute.”
Jason, please come home, please,
I willed with all of my strength.

“
Brewer.” He spat Jason’s last name with disdain. “Don’t you think maybe you share a little of the blame for what’s happened? How would you feel if I had some girl sneaking in and out of our bedroom window while you were out of town?”

“
Blame? For what’s
happened?
” I screamed, rage pouring through my veins like acid. As my tone changed, Joplin went absolutely crazy, clawing at the door. “No I don’t deserve to be
blamed
for what you did to me!”

“Alexandra, that’s not what I meant,” he hissed, and then glared down at my feet. “Shut up you fucking dog!”

“Don’t yell at her!”

His hand shot out too fast. I didn’t expect his grip on my upper arm to be so cruel, so angry, and I winced. “Get in the car
right now.
”

I reared back and kicked the door open, and Joplin attacked before I could scream.

Her teeth sunk into his leg, and he roared, rearing back to punch her.

“Don’t you fucking
dare
.”

Jason’s voice startled me from behind.
He must have come in through the back door.

He held a gun in his hand, and aimed it at Jack.

“Just call her off and I’ll leave!” he shouted, trying to put his hands in the air.

“
Joplin
,” Jason called firmly. The shepherd released Jack, moving to Jason’s side. “Come in, motherfucker. Please, trespass in my fucking home.”

Jason’s cool tone was laced with
malice. He wore a tight, gray t-shirt and black track pants, and the sweat trickling down his neck from his run gleamed in the late evening sun. He was broad-shouldered, muscled, and intimidating as hell as he towered over Jack.

Jack exhaled slowly, hands still in the air. “
This doesn’t involve you, Brewer.”

“I think it does. Sandy live
s here, and this is our house. She’s sleeping in my bed now, not yours.”

“Really.”
Jack’s angry glare flashed to my face. “You fucking slut.”

Jason chambered a round in the gun, and Joplin began barking again.

“Get in your goddamn car and don’t ever come back here,” Jason ordered evenly.

“I’ll have you both fired,” he
raged, pointing first at me, and then Jason. “You’re her boss. How will that look for your career?”

Jason shrugged. “I don’t care about my career nearly as much as I care about Sandy. And
she’s liking that for a change.”

Jack’s face turned purple with fury. “
He hasn’t wanted you in all these years, Alexandra, why the fuck do you think he’d want you now? He pities you. Pure fucking pity. The sooner you realize that, the better.”

It felt like a piano had been dropped on my chest. I didn’t have time to process his words; Jason was already stepping forward.

“Okay, you little prick, either get the fuck in here so I can
shoot
you or get off my
fucking
porch,” Jason ordered.

Jack
gave me one more pointed, disgusted look before turning toward his car. Jason stood in front of me the entire time it took for him to peel out of the driveway and take off down the road.

“Joplin,” Jason’s commanding voice brought the dog to his side, and he petted her gently. “Good girl.
” He focused on my face. “
San?
”

I
was shaking. My hands trembled as he unchambered the round in his gun and set it on the table next to the door, pointing the barrel away from me.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered, my voice breaking on every syllable.

“
Just breathe,
” he whispered, carefully gathering me into his arms. “In, out. I’ve got you.”

“Can we leave? Can we go to your mom and dad’s tonight?” I begged, recognizing the borderline hysteria in my voice.

“Of course we can. I’ll call them now. Mom texted me earlier and told me that she was making stuffed peppers. I know you love her stuffed peppers,” he added calmly.

“I d
o. They’re so good,” I murmured into his shirt. “With mashed potatoes.”

“She made a vat of mashed potatoes.
With lumps. For you.”

I exhaled a laugh before breaking down.

He held me while I cried.

After a little while, he kissed my forehead. “Hold still.”

Confused, I watched him as he reached for his cell phone. He drafted a quick text, to his mom, I assumed, and then dropped his phone into the iPhone speaker dock on the end table.

“Your
t-shirt last night. Reminded me of that summer at the beach. And this song. I’ve been listening to it all day.”

The
Foo Fighter’s “Walking After You” began, filling the living room with music.

He took me in his arms and slowly, deliberately, danced with me.

I imagined how we looked, with me and my black eye, standing in his sweatpants and fuzzy pink socks… and him, sweaty and disheveled from his run. I didn’t think twice about burying my face in his chest, and his hands worked over my lower back.

“
I’m tangled up in you, Sandy,
” he whispered, his breath warm on my ear. “I have been for as long as I can remember.”

Oh, G
od, my heart.

I moved even closer
to him. The music swelled, and he took my hand, his finger tracing over the scar from our oath.

CHAPTER
TEN

Jason

“Jason.”

“Mom.”

We stood side by side at the sink, working through the dinner dishes. I heard Sandy laugh from the living room, and one of Scott’s girls, either Carrie or Carlie, squealed with delight.

“You have loved that girl for twenty-six years. Don’t mess this up.”

I sighed, accepting the frying pan from her hands and patting it down with the towel. “Mom?”

“Hmm
?”

I lowered my voice, leaning closer to her. “Why now?”

Catherine Brewer gave me one of her epic sighs, leaning one hip against the counter and crossing her arms over her chest. “Honey, why
not?
”

I shrugged, setting the pan on the counter. “Why did it take us this long? Why did we waste so much time?”

“It’s not a waste of time, living your life, becoming the person that you are,” she corrected.

“I’m afraid to rush her.”

“Rush her?” She snorted, leaning back to gaze into the living room. Sandy kneeled over Carlie, giggling and blowing raspberries on her belly. Carrie attacked, and within minutes she had them both in fits of laughter. “That girl has wanted babies since she was old enough to know where they came from.”

I leaned against the counter, watching Sandy play with my nieces. Scott and my dad were cleaning up the checker board that one of
the twins had turned over, and Emily was trying to gather their belongings to head home.

“I’m not talking about babies, Mom,” I said with a
frown. Now Sandy was on
her
back, and the twins were attacking.

“
You know what she wants. You know what she needs. Now be the man who I raised and give that to her, Jason. You are in love with each other. That much is clear.”

She touched my cheek gently, sighing before moving into the living room.

“Sandy,” Emily called, still packing up the stray boxes of wipes and random toys around the room, “I’m going to need you to come over. Every day. You’re good with that, right?”

Sandy grinned my way as I jo
ined her on the floor. Carrie, the louder of the twins, came barreling my way. “Unca Jason!”

“Why are you so
stinkin’ cute?” I demanded, catching her and lifting her in the air. She immediately spread her arms, giggling and pretending to fly.

“I cute!”
Carlie demanded, and Sandy pulled the other twin in for a giant hug.

“You’re both cute. Like your Uncle Jason,” she added,
and I smirked, bobbing my eyebrows in her direction.

“
Unca Jason is fuzzy,” Carrie protested, scratching at my chin with her little fingers.

“I like fuzzy Jason,” Sandy defended, leaning in to press a kiss to my stubbly cheek.

I turned and caught her mouth, softly pressing my lips to hers. When I pulled away, Scott raised his eyebrows at me while my mom beamed at the two of us.

On the drive home, Sandy reclined
in the passenger seat of my pickup, turning my way. “I had fun tonight. Thank you.”

I turned the music down to a soft hum, reaching to stroke her hair. “You don’t have to thank me. My parent’s home has been
home to you since we were kids. They love you as much as I do, Sandy.”