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“Why didn’t you?”
Rather than answering, I just drained my beer. Tossing the cup in the trashcan, I cleared my throat. “The biggest problem is that your three fans over there spent all day following Danielle and me around the boutiques. We didn’t really talk about the deal that you and I made, but I did talk about the other night with her, and that could raise some suspicions.”
“I’m not worried.” He finished his beer and took my hand. “Want to dance?”
I was about to tell him no when I spotted Dennis talking to his father, and Harry’s eyes were trained on me. God knows what Dennis was saying. “I’m thinking that might be a good idea,” I murmured as I grabbed Brendan’s arm and walked him around until he could catch a glimpse of Blackwell himself. His jaw clenched, and he led me to the dance floor.
As he pulled me into his arms, he leaned down and kissed me on the cheek. “That’s not why I asked you to dance, but I can see that it’s the only reason you said yes.”
“I’m just trying to do what you asked me to do.” It was terrifyingly easy to slip into his arms and feel comfortable.
“I told you that I wanted tonight to be about relaxing and having a good time.”
I was about to apologize when I looked over and saw even more women glaring daggers at me. “It’s a little hard to relax with Dennis and all the single women of Springs County hating on me,” I grumbled.
“Just forget about them.” He squeezed my hip gently as we swayed to the music. “Think about something else.”
“Like what? You want to chat about my dissertation?”
“No. Actually, I want to talk about the other night.” I tried to look away, but he captured my chin and forced me to look at him. “You would tell your clients to face their obstacles, wouldn’t you?”
“Yes, but Brendan, we’re not an obstacle.”
“We absolutely are an obstacle if you haven’t been able to drop your guard long enough to be with another man. Danielle told me while she was yelling at me.”
Humiliated, I closed my eyes. “I’m going to kill her. She had no right to tell you something so private, and you have no right to try to give me advice about it.”
“Listen to me, Jillian. We both dealt with the end of our marriage in different ways. You can see the consequences of my actions. I know my reputation, but it’s time that you faced your consequences as well. You shouldn’t have to be alone because of the mistakes we made. You had so much to give. You still do.”
Stunned, I stared at him and stopped dancing. His arms tightened around me. “I don’t really understand what you’re trying to say.”
“Relax. Dance with me, sweetheart,” he said soothingly. Automatically, I started to sway. “I’m saying that maybe if we stop fighting with each other, we might actually be able to move on when this is all over with. Let’s try being friends.”
That was a novel concept. We’d never actually been friends. There’d been no “getting to know you” phase in our relationship. We’d gone from introductions to lovers in just a few days, and from lovers to married in just a few months.
“Friends?”
“Friends.”
It would make things so much easier. Friends didn’t sleep with each other. Friends didn’t bring up past mistakes or fight over petty things. Friends didn’t hate each other. For the first time since I’d set eyes on Brendan, I was able to breathe just a little bit easier. Friends. That had a nice ring to it even if I wasn’t sure that I trusted it.
Resting my head on his chest, I smiled. “I think I can do that.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Brendan
It was strange having her in my arms again, especially considering that we weren’t fighting or falling into bed together. Instead, we were just dancing. And waving the white flag.
She wasn’t exactly relaxed, but she was warming up to me. Her head rested on my chest and she even hummed a little bit to the music. I resisted the urge to kiss her on the top of her head. The truth was that I’d just given her a whole load of bullshit. I didn’t want Jillian to move on from me. I wanted her to stay in my arms forever, but that was never going to happen if she didn’t trust me again.
And if that meant starting back as friends, then that’s what I was willing to do.
After the song, she stepped back and gave me a hesitant smile. “I’m going to go get some food and walk around a little.”
I knew what that meant. She needed to get away from me a little, but I wasn’t worried. Jillian always needed her alone time to sort through her thoughts.
