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Sliding his hands into his pockets, he thought for a second. “Uh, well, I hope I’ll be a great husband.”
“Duh.” She popped him on the arm. “Kids. Do you see yourself having kids?”
“I would love to have a couple, but I guess it’ll be up to me and the non-existent wife prospect. How about you, Miss World Traveler?”
“I—” She took a deep breath and hooked her thumbs in the waistband of her shorts. “To be honest, I’ve never really thought about it before now.”
He looked at her, eyebrows raised. Genuinely surprised the conversation had never come up. “You and Craig never talked about having kids?”
Shaking her head, she replied, “Not really. He was too focused on his law career. When I’d bring it up, he’d change the subject.”
“Well, then, what do you want?”
She blinked like it was a foreign concept that someone would even think to ask. “Uh…” She took a few beats. “I would. I want to have at least two. I think it brings balance, but like you, it’ll depend on what my non-existent husband prospect thinks.” She grinned.
“I suspect that’s what a relationship boils down to. Listening to each other, keeping the lines of communication open. Respecting the other person’s wishes and desires. A willingness to compromise. Finding someone who is willing to do the same.” He glanced at her and found her smiling at him. “What?”
She shook her head. “Nothing. Just… I agree. You can’t expect the other person to do all the compromising. You have to think about their needs and wants and desires.”
Natalie left Jack after his accident, but there had already been cracks in the relationship. She liked fun, wild Jack. The guy who was close to ruining his life. She didn’t want to compromise or grow up or push him to be a better person.
Sadly, he didn’t feel compelled to be a better person for her.
A nearly one-eighty from the way he felt about Jo. Not that he needed to have those sorts of thoughts. They were still getting to know one another, but man, did he see the potential.
His brain screamed at him. New York! She lives in New York! His heart, the rascal, seemed to whisper, she isn’t a prisoner there. She can move.
To both, he forcefully said to shut up. The last thing he needed or wanted was his heart broken. Losing his career was hard. He could see losing her, raking him out and leaving him so empty he would never recover.
No, he needed to keep his head straight and his heart duct taped in the basement, at least for now.
Jack
Jack stretched his legs out in front of him. He’d returned to his apartment, taken a shower, and laid down on the couch, not really watching television but wanting some noise.
A knock came on the door, and his heart immediately sped up. Jo.
He jumped up, strode to the door, and deflated as his brother’s ugly mug came into view. “Hey.”
“Don’t look so happy to see me, big brother.”
“I thought you were someone else.”
“Jo?” He wiggled his eyebrows as he moved past Jack into the apartment. “Mom said you two were cozy, and you took a walk with her. She said you’ve been moody ever since.”
He grumbled, trudged back to the couch, and sat. “I’m not moody.”
“Says the grouch on the couch.” Ethan joined Jack on the couch, sitting with his back against the arm. “Where’s your trashcan?”
“Shut up.”
Ethan leaned over and pushed his shoulder. “What happened?”
Jack crossed his arm over his chest. “Nothing happened. We had a walk. It was great. End of story.”
“Dude, I know you. Tell me what happened.”
Nothing. Nothing happened except that he realized it was pointless to even pursue a relationship with a woman who lived a thousand miles away. All it would bring was chaos and destruction. That and she lived in a city with sophisticated, wealthy men whom Jack couldn’t even begin to compete with.
