His spilling on my tongue said he understood, though words were never spoken. I stroked myself to completion as he cried out.
Afterward, we lay entwined. With our lust slaked, what would he say? My heart fell when he spoke, for they weren’t the words I wanted to hear. “I brought divorce papers for you to sign.”
If he wanted this, truly wanted to officially end us, I wouldn’t give up without a fight. “No.”
“No, what?”
“No, we’re not getting a divorce.”
He stared at me with those gorgeous eyes, as deep as the sea and as lush as a mountain forest. “You… you don’t want a divorce?”
“No, I don’t. You heard me. I love you. Why would I let you go?” No way would I remind him that he’d said those words too. Thank God for my coaching sessions with my counselor, otherwise I’d use whatever evidence I could.
Travis caught me in a narrowed-eyed gaze. “But you can’t imagine we’ll get back together like nothing happened.”
Expect it? No. Would love him to return? Definitely. “No, I don’t,” I said again. “But I don’t want us to end, either.”
His laugh emerged dry, humorless. “If you don’t want to end it or go back to how we were, what other choice is there?”
I thought he’d never ask. “We move forward, create a new beginning.” I joined my gaze to his, letting him see as deep as he dared into my soul. “Let’s start over. You have your life, I have mine. Let’s rediscover each other, like when we first met years ago, and see where the road takes us.”
Travis rolled away to stare at the ceiling. A wrinkle that hadn’t been there two years ago formed between his brows. Almost persuaded, but not quite. “With Bob grown and gone, what would I do with my time?”
Perhaps I wasn’t finished arguing after all. “Whatever you like.”
“Don’t take this wrong, but I don’t want to be the man behind the man anymore.”
His words took another nick out of my heart. I wouldn’t be where I was today if not for his love and support. “Then what do you want?” His acting would keep him away from me many nights, if not weeks, the reason he’d put his career on hold to stay home and raise Bob. Wait! The man behind the man? No wonder he’d left if he didn’t consider us equal partners. If I wanted him in my life, it appeared it would be on his own terms. I’d just have to convince him that his terms included me.
And darned if Travis didn’t make me fall more in love with him. “I don’t know. Something helpful to you. I used to want to become a paralegal. That way I could be more a part of your work, understand what you went through on a daily basis.”
Okay, we were on a roll. Confession time. “If you could do anything you wanted to, make your living doing what you’re good at, what would you do?” I braced myself for answers like “Broadway” or “Hollywood.”
He turned to me then, a beautiful smile on his face that I hadn’t seen in years. “You know what I’m best at, right?”
Vulgar answers crowded my mind, but I managed to keep them in check. Instead I offered, “Acting? Cooking? Making people feel like they’re the most important beings in the universe?” In my mind, he excelled at everything. My life was certainly a dull place without him.
“No.” His smile turned sheepish. “Think about all we ever accomplished together. I, domestic god extraordinaire, and you, upholder of the law, made one hell of a team and raised one hell of a son. I’m mighty damned proud to have had a hand in that. And though I may not have said it often enough, I’m proud of the work you do.”
No boss’s praise had ever pleased me more. “Is there anything else you want to tell me?”
His words came out on a murmur. “I’d do it again.”
Hallelujah!
I lay in his arms, stroking his chest and feeding him a Belgian chocolate. After Bob had left for college we’d stopped having family day and date night. I’d used that time for my work, thinking with Bob gone we no longer needed the togetherness. How wrong I’d been. “We’ll need a written agreement,” I heard myself say.
“A pre-nup? But we’re already married.” His tone turned cold. “I don’t want your damned money, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
I shut him up with a kiss. “‘I will take vacations every