Page 46 of The Maverick's Homecoming

Sandy nodded. “Learning, sadly, takes a back seat to picking fights and first love.”

“So true,” said Lauren.

Now, both Sandy and Lauren were watching Kenzie. Like just about everyone who had grown up there in town, her friends knew that she and Finn had been inseparable all through high school.

Kenzie glanced from Lauren to Sandy and back to Lauren again. She liked and trusted both women. And there was nobody else sitting nearby at the moment. Whatever she said could be kept between the three of them.

However, maybe she was misreading them, thinking they were wondering about her and Finn because the man was constantly on her mind. Maybe neither of her friends had a clue of what was going on between her and Coach Monahan…and she ought to just leave it at that.

The silence at the table stretched out. Sandy and Lauren seemed to be waiting for her to speak. “What?” she demanded.

“Well…” Sandy took a slow sip of her iced tea.

Lauren broke first. She nudged her lunch tray to the side and leaned in. “It was so great seeing you with Finn Monahan at his speech at the Dinosaur Center. You two look good together.”

“We’re just friends,” she said, outright lying. Then again, it wasn’t really a lie. Theywerefriends—but notjustfriends.

Lauren’s eyes were full of understanding. “Hey. It’s okay if you don’t want to talk about it.”

On Kenzie’s other side, Sandy lightly squeezed her shoulder. “We care about you, that’s all. And we’re here. If you need us.”

Kenzie blinked away the sudden moisture in her eyes. “Thanks. I mean that. And well, it’s just…really hard to trust a guy after a rough divorce.” She should stop there. But she didn’t. “Plus, Finn and I have some rocky history together, too. Our breakup was a long time ago—but let me tell you, it was brutal.”

Her friends were nodding. They were both a little younger than Kenzie and Finn. But it was Tenacity. They must have heard the stories.

Lauren said, “Yeah. You two were legendary. And then he went off to the University of Michigan and you went to Montana State. You came back, but his family moved away and that was that. Eventually, we all knew that it must be over between you two.”

“It ended that summer right after graduation,” she said. “We only just reconnected recently. We’re friends, Finn and me. I think he’s great. And, yes, we are spending some time together. But that’s all it is, a temporary thing.”

“You’re saying you can’t trust him because he broke your heart all those years ago?” asked Sandy.

“I just don’t want to go there. But I don’t blame Finn for what went wrong all those years ago. However, between that old heartbreak and the disaster that was my marriage to Tate… I’m kind of done with falling in love. So if you’re thinking that Finn and I are getting serious, don’t. We’re just having fun together, that’s all.”

“Hey, now…” Sandy looked crestfallen. “Never say never.”

Kenzie didn’t argue with her. Sandy was still in her twenties, still looking forward to falling madly in love with the perfect man and making a good life with him. Lauren, on the other hand, had been burned by love, too. Like Kenzie, she had the divorce papers to prove it.

“I have to tell you,” Lauren said, “I watched you and Finn when we were all hanging out at the Dinosaur Center. You two really do seem to have a connection, like you know each other so well. It’s hard to explain. He reached for your hand once when we were all sitting together at the picnic table. You took it and you glanced at him. You smiled at each other, one of those secret smiles, just between the two of you, like you were having a whole conversation that no one else could hear.”

Kenzie scoffed. “That never happened.”

Lauren threw up both hands. “Fine. Don’t believe me. But I know what I saw. It’s like the two of you understand each other on a cellular level.”

“Science?” Kenzie rolled her eyes. “You’re bringing science into this discussion? Lauren, we’re talking about men and how some of us aren’t sure what they’re good for—at least, not anymore.”

“Ahem…” Sandy snickered and raised her hand. “I know exactly what they’re good for.”

“Well, then, share,” demanded Kenzie, feeling grateful to be let off the hot seat at least for the moment.

“Love and romance!” declared Sandy triumphantly. “And that upper-body strength does come in handy now and then.”

Lauren eyed their colleague with skepticism. “Okay, yes, I did pick up on the vibe between Kenzie and Finn. But Sandy, when it comes to men in general, not all of them are there for the long haul.”

“Maybe not.” Sandy seemed thoughtful. “But the right man can also be a girl’s best friend.”

“So can another woman,” Kenzie reminded her. “And dogs. Dogs make really great best friends. Personally, I’m thinking of getting a cat. They’re soft and cuddly, and they never cheat on you.”

“You are so cynical.” Sandy sipped her iced coffee. “And nothing against dogs and cats—I have one of each, as you know—but they do have fleas. And sharp teeth. And claws. And what about the barking and the meowing in the middle of the night? Every creature on Earth has flaws. We women have them, too.”