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"Megan and I are different people and my choices were very different than hers. Megan is smart, and I want her to have all the tools to do whatever she wants in life. And some of those tools can only be acquired with more formal education."
"Did your parents raise a fuss when you decided not to go to college?" he asked curiously.
"I'm not sure they even noticed."
He tilted his head to the left, his expression contemplative. She had a feeling he was putting things together, and they weren't making sense.
"So, I'm confused," he said. "You said your parents divorced when you were eleven. Megan told me her parents had the greatest love story of all time."
"Is that what you were talking about in the car?"
"Among other things. You have to be at least ten years older than Megan, maybe more. So I'm thinking you and Megan are not full siblings. Did one of your parents remarry? Is Megan the product of a second marriage?"
"Do you want some ice cream?" she asked, as she got to her feet to clear the table.
"You're going to ignore me?"
"I'm going to try."
"More mystery," he mused. "I'll figure it out, Ria. I don't think it will be that difficult."
She set their empty plates on the counter, then said, "Megan and I aren't full siblings. But I love her and she loves me, and that's all that matters." She gave him a pointed look. "Satisfied?"
"For the moment. It's very generous of you to step in and raise her."
"We're family. End of story."
He smiled. "I'm sure you'd like that to be the end of the story, but we both know it's not. Is Megan the reason you needed a clean start?"
"Partly," she admitted. "I'm not going to tell you anything else, Drew. I think you should go home now."
"I thought you said something about ice cream."
"Really? You're still hungry?"
He nodded. "What kind do you have?"
She opened the freezer. "Cookie dough."
"My favorite."
She hated to admit it was her favorite, too. She was trying to find reasons why she and Drew didn't go together, not why they did, but ice cream was the least of her problems.
She scooped out ice cream for two bowls and then carried them to the table. Before she handed him his bowl, she said, "One condition."
"What's that?"
"No more prying questions for the duration of the ice cream."
"You're always setting boundaries for us, Ria. What happened to the free spirited girl who sailed around the world instead of going to college? The one who lived on an island in the middle of nowhere, who took a chance on a stranger on a warm, tropical night?"
She knew he didn't intend to hurt her with the questions, but the reminder of who she used to be was more than a little painful.
"Can you agree to the rule or not?" she asked.
"Since you're holding my favorite ice cream hostage, I agree."
She pushed the bowl across the table. "Great."
"So," he began.
She sent him a pointed look.
"I wasn't going to ask about you," he said, as he spooned ice cream into his mouth. "Do you like Megan's boyfriend?"
"I wouldn't call Eric a boyfriend yet, but he seems like a good kid. He's a little shy, which I think is a good quality in a teenage boy. I'd be more worried about a cocky jock. They're always trouble."
"Are you speaking from experience?"
Although he'd once again veered into her personal territory, she decided to answer. "I dated one of the star football players junior year. He thought he was God's gift to girls, and most of us girls agreed. We went to the prom together. He got wasted, threw up on my shoes, and then got into a fight with one of his friends. It was a disaster. I'm hoping Megan's prom date is not as disappointing.
"So was that your type?" Drew asked. "The cocky jock?"
"Apparently I still have a weakness for that kind of man," she said pointedly.
"Hey don't put me in the same category as football vomit boy."
She didn't think he was anything like her prom date, but it was hard not to put him in the category of God's gift to women. He was very attractive with his thick wavy brown hair, intelligent eyes and strongly defined features. He was also intelligent and funny and he didn't take himself too seriously. He had a cocky edge, for sure, but that only made him more appealing. She liked a man who knew what he was doing, and Drew had already proven to her that he knew exactly what he was doing when it came to making a woman happy. She blushed at the thought and reached for her water glass.
