From One Night to Forever by Synithia Williams Page A

Better for her to recognize that and walk out first than have him get commitment cold feet and hurt her later. Yep, this was all for the best.
    Maybe I’ll stop by Momma’s Kitchen for dinner and try to see her again.
    The receptionist stopped at a door. She knocked before opening it and announced Aaron. She stepped back and motioned for Aaron to enter the office. One glance at his old friend and Aaron grinned.
    Reggie hadn’t changed much. Tall, dark, and big. The three words to best describe his friend. But beneath all the brawn Reggie was just a puppy. The combination drew in the ladies.
    “Yo, Aaron, I’m glad you made it,” Reggie said. His long legs got him across the office in only a few strides, where he took Aaron’s hands in one of his large ones and pulled him in for a one-armed hug. “How’s it going, boy?”
    Aaron would’ve chuckled, but Reggie’s half hug nearly knocked the wind out of him.
    “Damn, Reggie, I see you’re still eating bricks for breakfast,” Aaron said.
    Reggie stepped back and gave Aaron a firm pat on the shoulder that made Aaron tilt to the side. “And you’re still as scrawny as ever.”
    Aaron chuckled. “Hey, I’m sleek and slender.”
    “Sleek and slender, huh? I never did understand why women fall over themselves to be with you.”
    “And I couldn’t understand why they’d go for you. I’d think having sex with a grizzly bear would be easier.”
    Reggie laughed and walked back over to his desk. “I do miss you and your smart mouth. We had some good times for the second we were in college.”
    “Good times is an understatement.” Reggie sat behind his desk and Aaron slid into the chair across from it. “Remember spring break?”
    Reggie’s thick brows went up. “Remember it? You know I remember it. Bahamas, the booze cruise, those twins from Texas.”
    Aaron ran a hand over his chin and grinned. “You’re never going to let me live that down.”
    “Hell, no. It was the one time I stole a woman from right under your nose.”
    Aaron laughed at the memory. Aaron had worked every last one of his seduction and charm skills to convince the twins to spend the night with him. Only to have Reggie snag one away before the end of the night. Though Aaron had had a great night with one sister, he’d given Reggie hell for thwarting his attempt to have his first threesome.
    He and Reggie had both loved the ladies, and their pursuits had earned them a reputation envied by other guys during their short stint in college. After one year, Aaron purchased his first big rig and hit the road. Traveling across the United States to places not always on a tourist map seemed infinitely more appealing than sitting in lecture halls for the next three years. Soon after, Reggie did the same. Though they hadn’t seen each other in two years, they kept up with each other via social media and occasional phone calls.
    “The one and only time, let’s not forget that,” Aaron said.
    “Hey, I’ll talk about that for the rest of our lives. You were the man, and I rarely bested you. Baseball hero and ladies’ man extraordinaire.” Reggie chuckled and shook his head. “I can only imagine the number of women you would’ve bagged if you’d signed that baseball contract.”
    Back in college a minor league team had approached Aaron and offered him a contract to play. Aaron liked playing baseball, even competitively, but he hadn’t wanted to make baseball his career. He liked his freedom. A contract felt like signing his life over to the league. No money was worth that. When he’d turned down the offer, his brother David had said he was crazy.
    Maybe he had been, but not playing baseball wasn’t on his list of regrets. “I didn’t need a contract to pull in the ladies. Still don’t,” Aaron said with a grin. He glanced around. “You’ve got a nice office, and I like the layout of your place. Hard to believe you only got this place a year ago.”
    Reggie nodded. “Yes, sir, it is