The Accidental Encore Read Online Free PDF Page B

grateful for my husband. You know as well as
I do that you’re a little sensitive in that area.”
    “So you censor your comments with me?”
    “No, I just don’t bitch to you about Ben. I have plenty of
other girlfriends and fellow moms for that.”
    Allie stopped jogging and frowned at her friend. “Well, what
kind of friendship do we have when you can’t be honest with me about your
life?”
    “We have a very good friendship. And I am honest with you,
but I don’t think you want to listen to me gripe.”
    “You listen to me gripe all the time.”
    “I know,” Melissa said and started jogging again, forcing
Allie to do the same. “And hearing you gripe about men really helps my
marriage.”
    “How?”
    “When Nick cheated on you, Ben and I talked about cheating,
in real terms. It was the first time we’d ever drawn that line in the sand
without just assuming it was there.”
    “So when my relationship crashed and burned, your marriage
got stronger?”
    “Exactly. And remember when you went out with that guy who
only took you to sporting events on your dates?”
    “Yeah.” Allie wasn’t sure where Melissa was going.
    “Well, it made me think about when Ben and I first started
dating. We used to go to clubs and restaurants and we’d take turns choosing.
After we got married, we only did things with his friends and went to games and
concerts of his choice. I put my foot down, and now our rare evenings out are
spent doing things we both want to do.”
    “And all this happened because of me?”
    Melissa cocked her head and smiled at Allie. “Yeah, pretty
much.”
    “Well. Perhaps I should charge you a fee for these marriage
sessions I didn’t realize we’ve been having.”
    “I’d say the therapy works both ways.”
    Allie would have quickened her pace to outrun Melissa if she
didn’t have the extra weight of the stroller holding her back. As it stood,
they were neck and neck. At least Melissa had stopped talking and let Allie
digest what she’d learned. The more she thought about what Melissa confessed,
the more everything about their lives bounced around in her head, the more she
realized what she’d already known: dating sucked. And that, she knew, did little
to help her attitude about her upcoming date.
    ***
    Craig dropped the sledgehammer and pulled a section of
sheetrock away from the stud. The annoying pain in his knee didn’t stop him
from enjoying the destruction of a wall that served no better purpose than to
close off a corner of the house. Besides, he needed the exertion, the feel of
something powerful in his hands and the sweat that crept down his back.
    Mark had zoned in on a sore spot and Craig hadn’t been able
to shake his mood ever since. So what if he didn’t date? What was the point? He
wasn’t looking for a relationship, and whenever he needed sex, he always had
his hand if a willing woman couldn’t be found. He’d found quite a few willing
women in the last couple of years.
    He’d spent too much time with Mark and Leah, thinking of the
three of them as a unit, a family. He’d known for a while that Mark and Carolyn
were getting serious. At first, when Mark had asked Craig to watch Leah while
he went out of town for the weekend, he hadn’t mentioned a woman. But Mark,
being Mark, couldn’t keep a secret for long. He’d met someone. She lived in
Chicago. They were seeing each other. Their no strings, no expectations
weekends together went beyond serious when Mark proposed.
    Craig was envious of his brother, for more reasons than just
because he was moving on. Mark had grieved for Becca because he could. He knew
what they’d had, what he’d lost. He could mourn for the wife who’d loved him
and given him his child. If only Craig could’ve had that chance.
    He shook off his mood when Davis Hollingsworth walked in,
his Italian loafers popping like dry wood on the unfinished floor. He stood at
the threshold between the kitchen and the newly opened room with his hands