Leave the Lights On (12 page)

“Oh my God, they’re beautiful.” Sophie’s eyes lit up as she stared at the flowers. “I can’t believe you remembered that I love hydrangeas.”

“I used to watch you clip them every summer. You always said there weren’t enough blue flowers in the world.”

For a second Sophie looked like she might cry, and he wondered if he’d said something wrong. “They’re still my favorites. And there
aren’t
enough blue flowers. Thanks for remembering that.”

I remember everything about you.
Parker followed her into the house, thankful to be able to put the pizza box down before his hand melted. He grabbed a beer, allowing the cool bottle to soothe the overheated skin on his palm. “Beer?”

“Sure, thanks.”

He twisted the cap off and handed the beer to Sophie, watching as she took a sip. “How’d your meetings go today?”

Sophie took down plates and headed for the family room. “Good. What about you?”

“Not bad.” He put the pizza box on the coffee table and sat next to her on the sofa.

Sophie curled her legs under her and leaned closer, the sweet smell of her surrounding him. “Just not bad?”

He kissed her. Even the light brush of her lips felt electric. “Better now,” he whispered, kissing her again. Sophie’s tongue met his in a gentle caress, and he thought about how cold pizza is almost as good as hot pizza.

“Mmmm. I could totally forget about things like dinner when you’re around,” she said.

“Was just thinking the same thing.” Parker was about to kiss her again when the phone rang. Sophie startled. “You can get that, you know.”

She reached for the phone on the end table, scowling when she looked at the caller ID. Without answering she stuck the phone back in the charging cradle.

“Everything okay?” Parker asked.

Sophie nodded, not looking directly at him. “It’s my parents. I’ll call them back.”

“You could have picked up.”

Her eyes darted to his, and he could see that she was chewing on her lower lip like she always used to when she was stressed. “Let’s just say I don’t want to ruin our evening.”

“What’s going on with your folks?”

Sophie inhaled deeply then sank back against the couch. “You know my divorce was a pretty messy affair, right? Lots of gossip. Not exactly quiet.”

“Yeah.”

She looked so stressed and vulnerable he wanted to hug her, but he just listened.

Her hand went to the base of her neck and started massaging. “Well, part of the reason they moved down to Florida ahead of schedule was to get away from me. From the ‘disgrace I brought on the family’ to be more precise.”

The hurt in her voice made Parker’s stomach twist. “Your ex is the asshole who cheated on you. What disgrace?”

“They thought I should have worked things out with him. I think they thought it was my fault that our marriage didn’t work. I don’t know.” She shook her head, staring down into her lap as she fiddled with the hem of her shirt.

Parker reached for her hand, linking his fingers with hers and rubbing her wrist with his thumb. “That’s bullshit. You know that, right?”

She half shrugged, half nodded.

“Hey, listen to me.” He tilted her chin up with his free hand, waiting for her to make eye contact before he continued. “Relationships fail all the time. That’s not a disgrace. And in this case, if your folks are mad at anyone, it should be your ex, not you. If that’s really their attitude, then I’m glad you’re not taking their calls. You don’t need that kinda crap.”

“Thanks for saying that.”

“I’m not just saying it. I know a thing or two about what it feels like to be cheated on. It’s easy to blame yourself. I know.”

Sophie’s eyes darkened. “Did you? Blame yourself, for Chrissie?”

It had been over two years, and Parker hadn’t really talked to anyone about what he’d gone through after Chrissie cheated on him. He’d certainly had enough time to think about it on his own, though. Hour upon hour spent turning it over in his mind while his body recovered from the accident. He knew Sophie needed his honesty.

He continued to rub her wrist, letting the smooth feel of her skin soothe him. “I did for a while. Hell, I’d planned on marrying her and then—boom—she was marrying some other guy. That stung.”

“I bet.”

The sensation had dulled over the years, but talking about it still pained him. “After a while it’s not even about the act itself—it’s just about the betrayal. Maybe it’s me, but as far as I’m concerned, if you care about someone, you don’t do something that’s going to hurt them. It would have been bad enough if she’d decided she wanted to see this other guy and had broken up with me. The fact that she did it all behind my back was what hurt the most.”

Sophie nodded. “Yes. Oh my God. I totally agree. I’d have been devastated if Nate had said he wanted to end our marriage after a few months, but we could have talked about it and gone our separate ways and, in the long run, that would have hurt so much less than finding out while I was getting a haircut.”

Parker’s eyes bugged. “What?”

“I was in the middle of getting my hair done and I heard two women gossiping while they were getting manicures. They hadn’t noticed I was sitting there and they were openly discussing what a shame it was and how ‘poor Sophie probably doesn’t have a clue’. They were right. I didn’t.

“One of the manicurists saw me and shushed them, but I was so freaked out I left mid-haircut. Just grabbed my purse and walked out like a lunatic.”

Parker squeezed her fingers tighter. “I’m sorry, Soph.”

“It gets worse. I went straight to his job—hair still damp, clips on one side of my head—walked into his office and caught him. With her.”

“Jesus.”

Sophie snorted. “I’ve never been more humiliated in my life.”

Parker’s stomach knotted in sympathy. “You realize this makes me want to beat the living shit out of your ex, right?”

“There was a time when I’d have gladly taken you up on that offer. Now I’m just thankful it’s over. I never would have been happy with him. And he never would have been happy with me.”

“You deserve to be happy.”

Sophie tilted her head, a rueful smile tugging at her lips. “So do you.”

“I am. Now.”

Chapter Fifteen

“Ready for that swim?” Parker asked when the last of the pizza had been wrapped and stuck in the fridge.

“Absolutely.”

“Oh, hey, I almost forgot. Are you busy next Friday night?”

Sophie thought for a second.

Please say no.

“I don’t think so,” she said.

“Good. How’d you like to come with me to see Joey play?”

Sophie’s eyes widened. “Seriously?”

“He called and offered me seats behind first base. You wanna go?”
Say yes.
He realized he was holding his breath.

“Sure. Sounds like fun. I wasn’t sure the two of you were still friends. You’ve hardly mentioned him.”

“To be honest, I was surprised to hear from him. He’s got this thing about hospitals and medical facilities. You know, from when his mom was sick when he was a kid. I didn’t see him once the whole time I was recovering.”

“That sucks.”

Parker shrugged. “It is what it is. It’s not like I expected people to put their lives on hold waiting for me to get better.”

“Still…”

“I know. We could have been better about staying in touch, but I think the blame goes both ways.”

“Well, to answer your question—yes, I’d love to go.” A funny look flickered across her face as she narrowed her eyes. “Did you tell him I might come with you?”

“Nope. Just asked for two tickets.”

Sophie laughed, the sound sending warm tremors down Parker’s spine. “Good. I can’t wait to see the look on his face when he sees both of us.”

Both of us. Together.
“Me neither.”

Sophie carried two towels over to the edge of the pool and placed them by the ladder. “I can’t believe how warm it is tonight.”

Parker nodded, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. “Finally smells like summer.”

The water, which had still had a chill to it days before was now a comfortable temperature. Sophie sat on the side of the pool, slowly kicking her legs back and forth, watching Parker. He walked the perimeter of the pool, reaching behind him to pull his T-shirt over his head. Air got momentarily stuck in Sophie’s lungs.
God he’s hot.
He threw her a quick smirk then dove straight into the pool. His body skimmed the water, long and lean, the muscles on his back rippling as he swam straight to her.

Rising out of the water right in front of her, he looked like a statue caught in the rain. Droplets ran down his chest, over the contours of his arms. He raked his hands through his hair, slicking it back off his face. A single bead ran down his perfect nose. Sophie swallowed hard.

Parker raised an eyebrow at her. “Don’t tell me you’ve turned into one of those girls who doesn’t want to get her hair wet.”

Sophie snorted. “Hardly.”

“You’re looking awfully dry right now.”

Was he always this sassy?
Yes. It was part of what had made her fall for him over and over.

“You saying you want me wet?”

The grin on his face made her stomach flutter. He answered with a splash that sent water sprinkling across her thighs and belly. “Maybe.”

“Hey.” She kicked her leg, scattering a spray of water across his chest.

“You know it’s much easier to splash from inside the pool.” He slammed the heel of his hand against the surface, causing a miniature wave to land on her lap.

“I can’t believe you did that.”

Mischief twinkled in his eyes. “What? This?” he said, doing it again.

“You’re in so much trouble now.”

“Not unless you catch me.” He splashed her again then took off, heading for the deep end.

Sophie slid into the pool, took a deep breath and dove underwater. She hadn’t swum with her eyes open in so long it felt funny. The underwater lights made everything shimmery. She broke the surface of the water and was surprised when Parker wasn’t where she’d thought he would be. Kicking her legs to stay afloat, she spun just in time to see him beside her.

“Wet. But not quite wet enough.” A tidal wave engulfed her, and she momentarily went under, bobbing back up with her hair streaming down in front of her face. Knowing he was still right in front of her, she shook her head hard enough to make water spray all over his face.

“Oh, you’re going down.” Parker disappeared, and before Sophie could see where he went she felt him grab her legs and tug her under.

They wrestled beneath the surface, flipping over one another for all of three seconds before Parker pulled her into a kiss. Sophie forced herself to open her eyes, checking to make sure all of this was real. Parker’s open eyes greeted her before closing as he kissed her harder, his arms tightening around her waist as they spiraled through the water.

Just as Sophie was about to run out of breath, he pulled her up. A rush of air swirled around them as they bobbed together. Before she even had a chance to take a full gulp of air his mouth was back on hers. His tongue, warm and sweet, worked its way into her mouth, and she locked her legs around his waist. Parker managed to keep kissing her as he kicked his way over to the shallow end of the pool.

She could tell he’d started walking but was too mesmerized by his mouth to give it much thought. Kissing had always been one of her favorite activities, but kissing Parker elevated it to a new level. She didn’t want to stop. Ever.

The night air felt cool against her overheated skin as he lifted her out of the water and set her down on the edge of the pool. No longer needing to hold her, his hands were now free to explore. They moved in tandem, thumbs stroking her cheekbones as his fingers sank into her hair. He seemed so totally focused on Sophie that it took her breath away.

He kissed his way over to her ear. “God, it feels good to kiss you.”

“Don’t stop.”

She could feel his smile against her cheek as his lips made their way back to hers. His hands ran down her arms to her hips. Strong fingers pulled her to the very edge of the pool as his torso pressed against her thighs. She was about to suggest they go inside when Parker began to kiss his way down her neck. His tongue traced a delicate pattern of swirls along the sensitive skin, and Sophie forgot what she’d been thinking about.

Massaging her hips with his fingers, he made his way lower, covering her belly with a combination of kisses and licks that had her gasping harder than she had when she’d come up for air. He reached her bikini bottoms and traced a finger beneath the top edge, a distinct question in his touch. His lips moved over the damp fabric, pressing kisses against her. Sophie moaned.

“Lay back,” he whispered against her inner thigh, licking and nibbling as she felt herself lying down on the rough concrete.

Parker eased her legs over his shoulders continuing to kiss a maddening path from her thighs to her hips then lower again.