Page 4 of The Maverick's Homecoming

But not anymore. They honestly had been too young. Plus, he’d been as brokenhearted at the loss of their baby as she had. And his awful father, Finn Sr., hadn’t helped the situation one bit. Finn’s dad had big dreams for Finn and had constantly pressured him to move on, to leave Tenacity and his high-school girlfriend behind.

In hindsight, she could clearly see that Finn had done his best. He’d stepped up when she told him she was pregnant. He’d asked her to marry him, vowed that they would make it work somehow. He’d bought her a ring and they were both beginning to adjust to all the changes having the baby would bring—and then, four weeks later, the baby was gone.

It was an unexpected loss, one neither of them had known how to deal with. And now, years after all the pain and bitterness had passed, what stuck with her was the love. Because theyhadloved each other so much. More than they’d known how to deal with at the time.

Finn helped her on with her jacket and they left the Grizzly together.

Out on the street, a cool spring wind blew down from the north and the Montana sky was an endless wash of baby blue dotted here and there with fluffy white clouds. They paused on the sidewalk and faced each other.

“So,” he said, “I have to tell you, for a woman who just got bad news in the mail, you are looking mighty fine.”

“So nice of you to say so.” She guided a loose curl of hair off her cheek and grinned up at him. In the bright, late-afternoon sunlight she could see that he still had that scar on the bridge of his nose from the time he’d gotten up close and personal with the face mask of a defensive lineman. The injury had occurred in a preseason scrimmage back in their junior year. She used to kiss that scar and whisper that it made him look super-hot and dangerous.

“It’s good to see you,” he said, those blue eyes holding hers.

“It’s good to see you, too. Though I do owe you an apology.”

“For what?”

“Are you kidding? I took shameless advantage of you. I made the last hour and a half all about me—along with a little detour into our sad, painful past.”

“No apologies.” He put on a stern look. “I asked you to tell me. I wanted to know how you’ve been.”

“Well, then you definitely got what you asked for.”

“Yes, I did.” Oh, the way he was looking at her now. Like there was no place he would rather be than standing on the sidewalk in front of the Grizzly with her.

She was vaguely aware of cars going by, people strolling along the sidewalk, too. Were they watching the reunion of the famous Finn Monahan and the girl he left behind?

So what if they were? Today had been a rough one. But then, Finn had followed her into the Grizzly and things had started looking up. She stepped a fraction closer, until there was less than an inch of daylight between them.

“I feel I should confess…” She let her voice trail off.

“Kenzie. Don’t you dare stop there.” His teasing threat made her laugh and his smile got wider.

She lifted her hands and rested them on his chest, felt the soft leather of his jacket and the strength of his body beneath it. “I watched every game when you were in the NFL—and I do mean starting with the very first one.”

“I don’t think I ever got on the field that first game.”

She laughed again. “Still, it didn’t take you long to be a star. Until the injury you were unstoppable…”

“Go ahead,” he said in a growl. “Rub it in.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to bring up a tough subject. But I really did watch all your games, when you were in college and on through your years in the pros. I just…couldn’t help myself—and I have no idea why I’m telling you all this.” She started to step back.

Gently, he caught her arms. “Wait.”

“What?”

“Damn, Kenzie. You’re as beautiful as ever—scratch that. You aremorebeautiful than you were in high school. And back then, there was no girl who could even hold a candle to you.”

She could not resist. People were probably staring…but so what? She was a single woman again. And she could kiss whomever she pleased—even the big-shot jock who’d dumped her the summer after their senior year.

Kenzie lifted up on tiptoe. “Thank you…for listening.”

And then, she kissed him.

It wasn’t a deep kiss or even a long one, but it was oh, so very sweet. She breathed in the clean scent of his skin and reveled in the feel of his big arms around her.