For the Love of Pete by Sherryl Woods Page B
Authors: Sherryl Woods
but ironically she couldn't picture it anymore. In fact, it hardly seemed to matter. Seeing Pete again had done that for her. Feeling the stir of those old emotions, knowing that the depth of what they'd once shared was so much more than anything she'd ever felt for her ex-fiance, had put her heartache to rest. Since her love for Pete hadn't died nearly as quickly, she could only wonder if she'd ever loved James at all. Maybe that relationship had been on the rebound, despite the years it had taken for her to let another man into her heart.
Pete's gaze was steady and serious. "Want me to go beat him up for you?"
She returned his gaze with a solemn expression. "That's a lovely thought, but Ashley already offered. I turned her down."
"I'm meaner."
"You obviously don't know my big sister all that well."
"I saw her use a hammer," he said, then added with a grin, "She's a sissy."
Jo burst out laughing. "Please tell her that," she begged. "I want to be there."
"Think she'll pummel me to a bloody pulp?"
"I certainly think she'll try."
"It's good to hear you laugh, Jo," he said, his expression suddenly serious again.
"It's good to have something to laugh about," she admitted. "I was beginning to think I'd lost my sense of humor along with my fiance."
86
FOR THE LOVE OF PETE
"That would have been the real tragedy," Pete told her.
She lifted her gaze to his and felt the familiar stir of old desires. "It would have been, wouldn't it? I think I'm just beginning to see that."
"I could always make you laugh," he reminded her.
Because it hadn't always been that way, she reminded him. "You made me cry, too."
"And it's something I'll regret till my dying day," he told her.
Jo shook off the desire to weep one last time for all they'd lost. Instead, she met his gaze and lifted her glass of water in a solemn toast. "Here's to concentrating on the laughter from now on."
Pete lifted his bottle of beer and tapped it against the glass. "To laughter."
But even as they made the pact, Jo knew that there were no guarantees. The one thing certain about the future was its unpredictability. In fact, she would never in a million years have predicted that she would be sitting here in the kitchen at Rose Cottage sharing a meal with Pete again. Moreover, they'd found a way to laugh together again. That wasn't just totally unpredictable, it was a miracle.
But looking into Pete's eyes, feeling her heart begin to heal at long last, she realized that miracles truly could happen.
87
r ete cursed himself six ways to Sunday all the way home from Jo's for having gotten drawn into even the briefest mention of his marriage. Up until tonight, he'd had a hard and fast rule: He didn't talk about it, not with anybody. What was the point, anyway? It was over and done with. Nobody needed to know the gory details. He'd always told himself he was keeping silent for his son's sake, but it was more than that. He didn't want anybody to know just how badly he'd screwed up.
Tonight he'd broken his own vow, and now he was regretting it. It would have been bad enough no matter whom he'd opened up to, but he sure as hell shouldn't have gotten into it with the woman who'd suffered because he hadn't known at twenty how to keep his pants zipped.
88
FOR THE LOVE OF PETE
Then, again, maybe he had owed Jo that conversation. Maybe it was long overdue and damn the consequences to his pride. Possibly it would give her some satisfaction to know that he'd suffered too for the mistake he'd made. Maybe the humiliation of reliving it all would turn out to be worth it, if she'd been able to take some comfort in finally hearing the truth about his hasty, ill-advised marriage. Surely she couldn't think any worse of him than she did already. If she did, so be it. He could live with that, knowing that he'd finally been honest with her.
If they were ever going to have a second chance, Jo had to know the whole story. The fact that such a chance was even possible was a miracle,
Pete's gaze was steady and serious. "Want me to go beat him up for you?"
She returned his gaze with a solemn expression. "That's a lovely thought, but Ashley already offered. I turned her down."
"I'm meaner."
"You obviously don't know my big sister all that well."
"I saw her use a hammer," he said, then added with a grin, "She's a sissy."
Jo burst out laughing. "Please tell her that," she begged. "I want to be there."
"Think she'll pummel me to a bloody pulp?"
"I certainly think she'll try."
"It's good to hear you laugh, Jo," he said, his expression suddenly serious again.
"It's good to have something to laugh about," she admitted. "I was beginning to think I'd lost my sense of humor along with my fiance."
86
FOR THE LOVE OF PETE
"That would have been the real tragedy," Pete told her.
She lifted her gaze to his and felt the familiar stir of old desires. "It would have been, wouldn't it? I think I'm just beginning to see that."
"I could always make you laugh," he reminded her.
Because it hadn't always been that way, she reminded him. "You made me cry, too."
"And it's something I'll regret till my dying day," he told her.
Jo shook off the desire to weep one last time for all they'd lost. Instead, she met his gaze and lifted her glass of water in a solemn toast. "Here's to concentrating on the laughter from now on."
Pete lifted his bottle of beer and tapped it against the glass. "To laughter."
But even as they made the pact, Jo knew that there were no guarantees. The one thing certain about the future was its unpredictability. In fact, she would never in a million years have predicted that she would be sitting here in the kitchen at Rose Cottage sharing a meal with Pete again. Moreover, they'd found a way to laugh together again. That wasn't just totally unpredictable, it was a miracle.
But looking into Pete's eyes, feeling her heart begin to heal at long last, she realized that miracles truly could happen.
87
r ete cursed himself six ways to Sunday all the way home from Jo's for having gotten drawn into even the briefest mention of his marriage. Up until tonight, he'd had a hard and fast rule: He didn't talk about it, not with anybody. What was the point, anyway? It was over and done with. Nobody needed to know the gory details. He'd always told himself he was keeping silent for his son's sake, but it was more than that. He didn't want anybody to know just how badly he'd screwed up.
Tonight he'd broken his own vow, and now he was regretting it. It would have been bad enough no matter whom he'd opened up to, but he sure as hell shouldn't have gotten into it with the woman who'd suffered because he hadn't known at twenty how to keep his pants zipped.
88
FOR THE LOVE OF PETE
Then, again, maybe he had owed Jo that conversation. Maybe it was long overdue and damn the consequences to his pride. Possibly it would give her some satisfaction to know that he'd suffered too for the mistake he'd made. Maybe the humiliation of reliving it all would turn out to be worth it, if she'd been able to take some comfort in finally hearing the truth about his hasty, ill-advised marriage. Surely she couldn't think any worse of him than she did already. If she did, so be it. He could live with that, knowing that he'd finally been honest with her.
If they were ever going to have a second chance, Jo had to know the whole story. The fact that such a chance was even possible was a miracle,
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