being with you again,” Lauren answered with a smile.
Max went on, “I’m so glad we could put all that family nonsense behind us.”
“Me too,” she lowered her head, “though, my father always regretted what he did.”
“It was unfortunate all around, let’s put it that way.”
“Well said,” she raised her wineglass. “I sometimes wonder.” Seeming to read his curious expression, she explained, “How do people ever get together at all, much less stay together?”
“I don’t defend what my father did because I’d never cheat on my wife. I’ve seen the sorrow it brings and the damage it does. It would never be worth it.”
“I understand,” she said, “I feel the same way.”
“I don’t mean that stupid feud, but my mother had this look on her face when she found out he was unfaithful, and she never got over it to tell you the truth. Pops thinks that’s what killed her, part of why he’s still so upset. On some level, I imagine he blames her death on your father too.”
“I hope that’s not the case.” She shook her head. “How horrible is that?”
He shrugged, unable to conjure a reasonable answer to the mysteries of life or death. “The fault lies with my father. Your dad did what he felt he had to do. He was looking out for the best interests of my mother because my father hadn’t been.”
She nodded, but that pretty smile vanished from her pale, freckled face. “Still, it’s just … I don’t know.”
“It hasn’t soured you on love, has it?”
“Soured me? No, I believe in love, or at least I want to believe in it. Does that make sense?”
“Perfect sense,” he said. “We all want to have hope. Without that, what do we have?”
She tilted her angelic face. “Faith?” She lifted her glass. “Wine?”
Max couldn’t disagree, and he didn’t want to. What he wanted was to round the table and kiss her until her lips were numb. He wanted to hold her and have her all to himself.
“What about you? You’re a handsome, eligible bachelor from a high-profile family. I’m guessing there must be a crazy ex lurking around somewhere.”
They shared an easy chuckle. “More than one, I’d imagine.” Max didn’t want to think about it too much and talk about it even less. “There hasn’t been anyone special. My father’s money was always a problem because I always saw dollar signs flashing in girls’ eyes. Or … maybe it just never seemed right. What about you?” He did and didn’t want to know if she had a great love outside of him.
She turned away, glancing out the window. “Boys came and went at college and in Park City, where I helped run that resort, but they always left, and I stayed. It’s hard to establish a long-term relationship with transient people.”
He reached across the table to take her hand. “Isn’t it obvious then?”
“Isn’t what obvious?”
“Us. I want you to know that what my father did all those years ago was wrong. He caused my mother terrible pain, and I would never do that, ever.”
“No,” Lauren said, “I don’t think you would. You’re a better man than that.”
He had to shake his head. “Good men have done worse. As for your father … he did what he felt was right. He was an honorable man, and my father was wrong to hold the grudge for as long as he has. I’ve tried to talk sense into him, but he’s so damn stubborn.”
“He is, but he loves you and loathes me.”
“I’m not my father, and he can’t stand between us anymore. I didn’t have much choice when I was younger. It was his house and his rules. When I was away at college, it was his money and his rules, but I shouldn’t have stood for any of it”
She shrugged. “It’s family, and it’s business.”
He growled. “Not my family, and not my business, not anymore, anyway.”
Her expression wavered. “I’m worried about all that. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad you’re here, but if being with me causes your family to fall apart, it’s not right.”
“It is right, Lauren. I’m standing up for what I want and need.” Her face brightened, and she turned away but left her hand in his grip. “Do you remember how it used to be when we were younger?”
She blushed, eyes rolling. “Yes, but we were just kids.”
“We knew about life and love.” A long silence passed before Max recited, “I don’t have to see you, because you are in everything. You are the