on the dance floor stopped, laughed and held onto their aching sides.
The next song was slow and easy. The kind of song made for belly rubbing and belt buckle polishing. Tag held Leslie’s hands in his and stared down into her eyes. “Are you up for one more.”
She chuckled. “As long as all I have to do is stand here and sway, I’m good for another.”
Tag pulled her close. “We can sway. No pressure. No fancy dance moves.” He rested his lips near her temple and inhaled a deep breath. “Your hair smells like honeysuckle in the summertime.”
Leslie chuckled. “I hope that’s a compliment, and that you’re not allergic to honeysuckle.”
“Trust me, it was a compliment. I love the scent of honeysuckle,” he said and gathered her closer.
As promised, he stood in one place swaying back and forth with Leslie in his arms. He couldn’t think of any place he’d rather be. When the song came to an end, he pressed a kiss to her temple. Then he took her elbow and guided her back to the table where the others had taken their seats.
“Can I get you another beer?” he asked.
Leslie nodded.
Tag didn’t wait for the waitress to come take their order. He walked toward the bar and leaned his foot on the rail. He needed a moment or two away from Leslie. The more he was with her, the more he wanted to be with her. He wanted to hold her close and kiss her until they both needed a long, steadying breath.
He sighed.
Tag wasn’t sure she was ready for him to make his move.
* * *
Leslie sat beside Ava at the table, surrounded by their friends. She’d never felt so included as she did at that moment. At the same time, she felt like she didn’t quite fit in. Everyone else at the table was paired off. Everyone except her and Tag.
Ava leaned toward her. “I noticed you and Tag getting pretty cozy out there on the dance floor.”
Leslie glanced in Tag’s direction. She couldn’t deny the man was handsome. Nor could she deny that she was attracted. At that moment, Tag smiled at one of the waitresses.
Leslie’s heart pinched hard in her chest. How could she be jealous of a waitress, when she had no ties to Tag? He didn’t belong to her, and she didn’t belong to him. At that moment, Leslie found herself wishing she did belong to Tag. How weird would that be? Tag was her husband’s best friend.
“Earth to Leslie,” Ava said.
Leslie shook her head and turned to Ava. “Sorry, did you say something?”
Ava rolled her eyes. “Why are you bothering to date other men?”
Leslie frowned. “What do you mean?”
“You don’t need to date other men.” Ava tipped her head. “Everything you need in a man is right in front of you.”
Leslie glanced at her hands instead of the man at the bar. “Ava, I told you. Tag is my friend. I don’t want to screw up that friendship.”
“How are you going to screw up your friendship with Tag?”
“He’s been with me every step of the way since my husband’s death,” Leslie said. “If we throw in a romantic element between us, and it doesn’t work out, then what? That friendship will be compromised.”
Ava took Leslie’s hands in hers. “Sometimes, you gotta take a risk.” Ava looked toward Tag. “Do you find him attractive at all?”
Heat rose up Leslie’s neck into her cheeks. “Of course, I do.”
Ava laughed. “There’s no ‘of course’ about it. I don’t find him attractive…well, as attractive as I find Sean. He is an attractive man. He just doesn’t appeal to me like my Sean does.”
Leslie sighed. “Yes, I find him attractive.”
“Then why don’t you go for him?” Ava asked.
Leslie shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe I’m not ready. Maybe he’s too good for me.”
Her friend snorted. “You’re both good people. I believe you could make each other happy. I believe he could be your future baby daddy.” Ava looked at her. “Have you thought about that?”
Leslie watched as Tag came back across the floor, carrying two mugs of beer. Yes, she’d thought of him as the father of her children. And, immediately, she’d felt guilty. She had the sperm from her dead husband stored in a bank. “Randy and I had planned on having children. I still have the sperm we saved back when we discovered he was dying. What am I supposed to do? Just ignore them?”
“It’s just sperm. Frozen sperm, at that,” Ava reminded her.
“It’s more