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  She looked out at the rain.

  “You’re probably confusing me with someone else from your past.”

  “I know it’s long and sordid,” Kevin admitted dryly, “but there’s no confusion. You’re like a breath of fresh air. To be honest, I’m a little glad we never crossed paths when I was young and stupid.”

  Chloe looked up into his face. “Who said we never crossed paths?”

  Kevin, suddenly uncertain, frowned. “Did we?”

  “It’s not important anymore. This is like starting over, isn’t it? For me, too.”

  He dared to pull her a little closer. She didn’t resist. “That’s good.” He took a deep breath, took another chance. “I got a hold of a copy of our yearbook recently.”

  A small smile curved her mouth. “It’s been years since I’ve looked at mine.”

  “Well, I had a specific reason,” Kevin said. Chloe tilted her face up to him, waiting for an explanation. “I was looking to find out more about you,” he said honestly.

  “Why would you do that?” she asked, looking down at the ground.

  There was no denying that she sounded suspicious.

  “Because I’m interested. And to be honest, at first I felt like a fool for not remembering you.”

  “Don’t feel that way, Kevin. I deliberately stayed in the shadows. I felt so different from everyone else that I didn’t want people to know about me.”

  “What’s so different about you? Are you an alien life-form? A voodoo goddess? Were you raised by wolves in the wild?”

  Chloe shook her head, but he was glad when she laughed at his outrageous suggestions.

  “I’ve had challenges to overcome. Let’s just leave it at that.”

  “Okay,” he conceded, recognizing the wisdom of not pushing her.

  “So, what did you find out?” she asked quietly.

  Kevin inhaled. Suddenly he could smell exactly what she’d tried to describe to him. He inhaled again. He let his hand slip down to her waist. She put up no resistance.

  “Damned little. There’s not a single decent photograph of you in the whole book!”

  “I worked at it,” she said flippantly.

  “One of these days you’ll have to tell me why. As a matter of fact the one good picture wasn’t all that good. It was graduation day, and you were giving a speech.” He glanced at her face, and she met his gaze. “You were valedictorian. In the picture there’s a shadow right across your face because of that cap thing.”

  Suddenly, Kevin conjured up a real memory from that day. It was behind the liberal arts building on the field where concerts had been performed, and craft fairs had been displayed, and rallies had been held and they had graduated, ten years earlier. He was startled by how clearly one detail in particular was now coming back to him.

  “Then I looked up your name on the page of achievements and awards. You volunteered at a shelter in Atlanta.”

  She didn’t respond.

  “And I read that you had, like, this private tutoring service for other students that you operated out of the student lounge.”

  She said nothing.

  “How’d you get away with that? I’m surprised President Morrow never asked for a cut of your earnings.”

  He won a small shy smile from her.

  “And I know you were on full scholarship, and given some money by some women’s group or other.” Kevin stopped suddenly and turned her to face him. “Chloe, you are amazing.”

  “Doesn’t mean a thing to anyone but me. I did it for me. I wanted to make sure I could have a different kind of life than…than just being a foster kid. That’s what I wanted, Kevin. The key to my own life.”

  “If RSVP is any example to go by, you’ve succeeded. And I remember your foster parents. Seemed like really nice people.”

  “Yes,” she whispered. “They were very good to me. I was lucky.”

  “How are they?”

  “Mr. Fields passed away about four years ago. I’m still in touch with Mrs. Fields, now and then. She moved to Memphis to be near her grandchildren.”

  Kevin studied her expression. A thousand questions were forming in his head. There were some serious omissions and holes in her story. Did she have any birth family, any siblings? Was there or had there ever been a significant other? What did she remember about him from when they were students? That question evoked in Kevin a string of uncomfortable memories that he preferred she not know about. More to the point right now, what did she think of him?

  “Chloe…” Kevin began.

  Then he couldn’t seem to find the right words. He raised his other hand, wanting to touch her face, stroke her cheek. There was the uncomfortable realization that she had been far more focused and disciplined than he’d been. She’d had to be.

  “Chloe, we’re more alike than you know.”

  “Did you make me run in the rain and get wet just to tell me that?”

  It was a real question, but he didn’t detect any rancor or annoyance.

  “The truth? Yes. But there’s more. What I know absolutely right now is that I find you incredibly attractive. I like what I see, a lot,” Kevin confessed, his voice deep, quiet and sincere.

  “Do you? You know what’s really strange about coming back to Hollington and getting involved with the homecoming and our reunion? I wasn’t a friend of yours or Kyra’s or Terrence’s or Beverly’s back then. Now, I’m getting to know all of you. You were all the ‘in’ crowd.”

  “Does that mean you wish things were like they used to be, or you’re happy that everything has changed?”

  She seemed to be staring out into space. The rain was finally letting up. He noticed an almost imperceptible change in her body, her shoulder resting against him. Kevin repositioned his hand on her waist.

  “Chloe?” he prompted.

  She nodded. “I’m glad. It’s all been…very good.”

  He took a deep breath. “There is one thing I do remember from that day we graduated. I was on the band shell field, looking for someone when I saw this tall, slender coed standing in front of me in her cap and gown. I snuck up and grabbed her from behind because, at the time, I thought she was someone else. I caught her off guard. I didn’t say anything, didn’t even identify myself, but I kissed her. Like this.”

  With that Kevin lowered his head and pressed his lips to Chloe’s. There was a slight stiffening in her body, but she made no attempt to evade his embrace. Kevin sensed it was almost as if Chloe didn’t believe that he’d actually do it.

  But he had been remembering just this, in detail, for the past several days. And once he’d pieced together the moment in that afternoon, so many years ago, Kevin knew he wanted a repeat. Not at all because of what he recalled of Chloe back then, which was nothing at all, but because of what he’d come to know of her in the past month. The yearbook memory, and her own admissions, had only confirmed his instinctive response to her. He’d had an “aha” moment.

  He began to move his mouth, manipulating her lips gently, until Chloe responded to him. He detected a slight tremor in her breathing. He blindly felt for her handbag, pulled it from her grasp and dropped it at their feet. His arms went around her, loosely holding her against him. Not too close, because he feared that she was still skittish enough to push him away. A part of him was surprised and pleased by Chloe’s surrender to the moment, to the two of them together, if only because he also read in their innocent foreplay her lack of experience.

  Kevin began to kiss her in a way meant to incite excitement, passion and desire. He wanted her to take him, and his kiss, seriously. He let his tongue breach the warm cavern of her mouth, applying more pressure so that his tongue could tease and play with hers. And he was slow and gentle. He thought he heard a soft moan. He thought he felt her fingertips touch his jaw and chin. Kevin released her mouth but only long enough to turn his head in the other direction and find his place again against her lips. He made a point of not letting Chloe feel the evidence of his sudden erection that had
taken even him by surprise. Kevin would have enjoyed pulling her hips tighter to him and rocking himself against her so she understood he was hard because of her.

  Too soon.

  One thing at a time.

  He forced himself to ease up, to slowly stop. He laid his cheek against the side of her head, her face pressed into his throat. He could feel the warmth of her hurried breath against his skin. Even that was exciting. He held her still and felt Chloe’s body relax into him. He stroked her back.

  “I knew I’d made a mistake that day,” Kevin murmured. “I said I was sorry after I kissed you, but I’m not sure I was. I thought you’d haul off and slug me good. But you didn’t.” He turned his head so that he could see her eyes. “I’m still not sorry, but here’s your chance again to punch me out.”

  He waited as she seemed to give her options serious thought. The fact that Chloe did nothing right away gave Kevin hope. Watching the interplay of emotions across her expressive face said everything else. Unconsciously he brushed the back of his hand down Chloe’s cheek. She leaned into the caress.

  “I knew there was a mistake, too, Kevin. But it never entered my mind to be mad at you.”

  Chapter 4

  Every fiber in her body had anticipated that he’d try to kiss her.

  Chloe had waited because it was exactly what she wanted Kevin to do. If was as if she sensed this was the only time, the golden opportunity, she would ever know Kevin as she’d always dreamed of. It was worth every moment of that wait just for the euphoria of that moment in which she felt cherished and desired.

  They stood in each other’s arms, with Kevin looking every bit as bemused and surprised as she was by what had just happened between them. Thankfully, he did not say anything smart or funny or suggestive. He kept quiet, as she had, and just let the moment sink in.

  After a moment he put his hand out from beneath their covering.

  “It’s stopped raining,” he murmured.

  “Yes.”

  “Why don’t we go somewhere?”

  Her stomach roiled. “What…do you have in mind?”

  He’d looked at her long and considering, as if weighing his options. Then he grinned. “How do you feel about pizza?”

  Simple. Safe. It was so right for the moment.

  “Yes, that sounds great.”

  “Good. Let’s head over toward the stadium. I know a place.”

  Kevin placed his hand on the back of her waist and steered them toward their destination. Fortunately, by using one or two shortcuts between buildings and across a grassy lawn, they arrived quickly at a campus hangout.

  “Wait,” Chloe said as they were about to enter. Bending over she untied and removed her soaked espadrilles.

  “Okay. I’ll go along.”

  Kevin also removed his soaked leather loafers. The minute they walked into the place Kevin was hailed and greeted by the middle-aged manager. Chloe observed that the pizza parlor was half-filled with students at least ten years younger than themselves.

  She took a booth Kevin directed her to and watched the exuberant hello between the men. A conversation took place, during which Kevin handed over their shoes in exchange for a small stack of paper towels. Soon he was walking back to her. He surprised her by bending on one knee and spreading towels on the floor under their table. Then he took a few more and, lifting her feet one at a time, dried them off and wiped them dry and free of pebbles and dirt.

  “That’s Caesar. Great guy. Can’t believe he’s still here.”

  She was too speechless by Kevin’s gentlemanly act to say anything but was secretly delighted at the extra attention. Finally she murmured a thank-you.

  “We’ll probably be okay. But if you hear that I came down with tetanus because I cut my feet on something deadly, it’s going to be on your head.”

  She chuckled.

  By the time they’d both cleaned up and settled into the booth Caesar had arrived carrying a big tray with a piping hot cheese pizza, a beer for Kevin and a paper cup with cappuccino for Chloe. It was frothy and rich.

  Kevin regaled her with tales of the nights spent at a table there, trying to study or finish a paper. Despite his very rich social life, he had no intentions of flunking out of school. He learned to force isolation on himself to make sure he didn’t.

  “Nana Mame told me, ‘Boy, don’t even think about coming back home if you don’t get your degree.’ Since I didn’t have an ounce of self-discipline when I got here—” she laughed at that “—I had to figure out a plan to get my butt in gear and do the work. I can’t tell you how much pepperoni pizza I ate in four years.”

  “I’m surprised you haven’t gotten as big as Terrence Franklin.”

  “Jogging,” Kevin said. “Saved my life. Got a lot of thinking done by myself. Kept my stress under wraps. Solved problems, made decisions…”

  “Stayed fit,” she added without thinking.

  Kevin smiled at her. “Thanks for the compliment.”

  For a few moments they just ate in quiet enjoyment, finally dry, warm and content. At least that’s how Chloe felt. And with that comfort came bold curiosity.

  “I have to ask you something. What did you mean when you said we’re alike?” she asked him.

  Kevin chewed thoughtfully, sipped from his beer and looked at her for a long moment. “You grew up in foster care, yet you ended up valedictorian, went on to form your own business and have made a life for yourself.”

  Chloe wasn’t sure what she expected Kevin was going to say, but she was surprised by his astute observations. And he was very much on point. Rather than feel exposed, she was relieved that he was sensitive enough to understand what made her run.

  He finally pushed his paper plate aside and leaned toward her, his arms crossed on the table. “You had a plan to overcome the past. Well, that’s how I felt. I have a mother and father, but he’s not a do-right kind of man. I don’t want to be like him. I saw what he did to my sisters, to my mom and me. I also wasn’t going to be like some of the guys I grew up with, having kids with different girls and just walking away from the responsibility. My Nana Mame and my mama weren’t having it. ‘Don’t bring me no more kids to raise.”

  Chloe couldn’t help it and laughed hysterically at Kevin’s imitation of a Black woman’s high and sassy, don’t-make-me-hurt-you tone.

  “Nana Mame used to tell me I was a special baby. She said they got it wrong with my father but they’re making up for it with me. There was no way I was going to disappoint my family—or myself.”

  Chloe had watched Kevin as he spoke and was moved by how open and honest he was being with her. It made her feel good that he trusted her with his personal history. It made her feel like maybe he did understand what her abandonment had done to her.

  “Did your grandmother see you graduate?”

  “She sure did. That was a big thing for me, that she could watch me get my degree. She died last spring.”

  “I’m so sorry.”

  He shrugged. “I was lucky. She was there for some important times of my life.”

  When they’d finished Caesar cleared away the table and returned their shoes, miraculously dried if a little stiff. He’d placed them next to the oven.

  It was dark when they left, the air clear and dry after the quick storm. It was a lovely night, and Chloe had the warm sensation that all was right in her world. At least, in that moment. She’d just spent some of the most fun few hours of her life in the company of Kevin Stayton, the man of her dreams.

  They began heading back to the parking lot where she’d left her car earlier in the afternoon.

  Suddenly, Kevin stopped and turned to stare at her.

  “Wait a minute.”

  She frowned. “What?”

  “Now I remember,” Kevin said in a voice of astonishment.

  He stared at her with deep concentration, either looking for something, or recognizing something in her. He pointed a finger at her.

  “It was you.” He stepped closer.
“Like, freshman year. No. Maybe sophomore. March or something like that. It was cold and raining real hard.”

  Chloe could only stare back, realizing that Kevin was about to key into another of her sacredly held memories, and the very foundation of their relationship at Hollington.

  All she could do was shake her head at him, feigning bewilderment. Maybe he wouldn’t piece it together. Maybe he would leave it alone.

  “I was driving back to my frat house after a really bad date in Atlanta.” His gaze wandered as he struggled with details. “And then, I passed someone on the road, slogging through the rain. They had a coat over their head for cover, for all the good that did. I kept going. I was mad and pissed off at this…this girl who…”

  Kevin stopped, clearly not interested in revisiting the incident or the girl. He squinted at her.

  “Then I felt like a dog. It was going to be a long, wet walk back to the campus.”

  “Why did you think it was a student from Hollington?” Chloe asked.

  Kevin shrugged. “There’s nothing much on that road. The campus was only another mile or so away. But that’s how I knew I had to go back. Walking in the rain wasn’t going to be fun. But that made me even madder ’cause I couldn’t just leave somebody out on the road like that.

  “I drove back and turned around and pulled up next to this person. They didn’t even look to see who’d stopped.”

  “What did you do?”

  “Opened the window, said it was raining and asked if I could give them a lift. It was a girl. She said she was going back to campus. I said, so was I and to get in. So, she did. Got my front seat all wet, but…”

  He tilted his head and stood with his hands on his hips as the pieces fit into the jigsaw puzzle of his memory.

  “It was you. I know it was you.”

  Chloe grimaced, staring at his chest.

  “I asked you, what were you doing on the road like that in the rain? You said, ‘bad date.’ What do you remember?”

  She made a vague gesture with her shoulders. She’d never told anyone about that night and the date who’d put her out of his car because she’d refused to put out for him. She saw no reason to make a confession now. It was still humiliating and hurtful.