Forever My Love by Heather Graham Page A

in love.”
    â€œIt was a video. She was acting.”
    â€œShe is a…friend, though, I take it?”
    â€œI met her through the Hicks brothers. They always have lots and lots of friends around them. Why don’t you just come right out and ask me what you want to know.”
    She gazed at him, startled. “And what is it that I want to know?”
    â€œIf I’m sleeping with her or not.”
    She kept staring at him. She wanted to tell him she could care less who he was sleeping with. “All right,” she said blandly. “Are you sleeping with her?”
    He picked up a piece of pepper and popped it into his mouth. “No, and I never was. My turn. Are you sleeping with Mr. So-so?”
    â€œBrent, that’s none of your—”
    â€œAre you?”
    She exhaled. “I—no.”
    He smiled and turned away, coming around the counter to pick up the eggs. He broke them into a large bowl. “I’m glad,” he said quietly.
    â€œOh? Was I supposed to remain celibate forever?”
    â€œHardly,” he said, whipping up the eggs. “But if you’re going to have an affair, it should be a lot better than just fine.”
    â€œThanks. I think.” She hesitated. He’d turned on a burner and begun to cook. Once he’d flipped the omelet he glanced up to find her staring at him.
    â€œWhat?” he demanded.
    â€œI was just wondering about the rest of your life.”
    â€œWhat about it?”
    â€œOh. Just what you’ve been doing with it.”
    â€œAnd who I’ve been doing it with?”
    â€œIt’s really none of my business, is it?”
    He offered her a crooked smile, lowered his lashes and slid the omelet onto a plate without answering. He poured in the remaining mixture. “My life is rather at a stalemate,” he told her.
    She didn’t say anything, but picked up the plate along with napkins and silverware and asked, “Want to eat topside?”
    â€œSure. There’s a great moon out there tonight.” He was still staring at the frying pan, and still grinning, she thought. Then his eyes rose to hers. “You’re not afraid to be with me, up there, in all that moonlight, are you?”
    â€œHave you taken up turning into a wolf during the full moon?” Kathy asked. Then, before he could reply, she answered herself. “Never mind. You always were a wolf by the full moon. And any other moon, at that.”
    â€œNot always.”
    â€œOh?”
    â€œIt depends on the available prey,” he told her.
    â€œAh, I see. Where do ex-wives fit in?”
    â€œI’ve only got one,” he reminded her.
    â€œSo?”
    â€œIt kind of depends on the ex-wife,” he said. He flipped the omelet, slipped it onto a plate and smiled innocently at her. “What are you drinking, Ms. O’Hara? Wine cooler or a foreign beer?”
    â€œA domestic beer will be fine, thank you, Mr. McQueen,” she said sweetly, then quickly preceded him up the steps. She felt the warm breeze touch her, and she was instantly aware of the moon. It was very full, glowing with a soft shimmer over the water. The Sweet Eden rocked gently at anchor. Across the lightly rippling waves, Kathy could see the lights of the shoreline. It was a beautiful view, stunning. And they were all alone within it. She couldn’t see another boat anywhere. There was nothing to see except for the lights on the shore, the velvet darkness of the sky and the beauty of the moon and the stars. And there was the water, too, seemingly eternal. The shoreline was the only touch of civilization, and it seemed a long way away.
    She perched on the padded fiberglass bench, and in another moment, Brent was with her. He sat down on the curve of the seat, so that they weren’t touching, and yet they weren’t very far apart. He offered her a beer and she silently passed him a fork and napkin in return.
    â€œWhat a stunning