The Ties That Bind Read Online Free PDF Page A

wasn’t working through the possibilities.
    He brushed his fingers over her bare shoulders, an intimate gesture, more than he’d touched her in years.
    “You can’t guess?”
    She shook her head. “No.” Something formed in the back of her mind, but she shrugged it off. Confusion had taken hold, so again she asked, “What are you doing here?”
    He grabbed her drink, laid cash on the bar counter, and found a table for two in the corner. A waitress came over and Rick ordered a drink.
    “Are you here with your…” She couldn’t find the words. “Are you with someone?”
    That was all she’d need. Rick here with his new lady love. She would hide in her room. She wasn’t ready to handle it. In theory, maybe. In person…no way.
    His lips quirked. “I am now. I’m here with you.”
    “I don’t understand.” Was she being dense? Did she miss something?
    He rubbed his index finger over the top of her hand. He never touched her. They were both so careful to maintain a discreet distance,never wanting to give Kayla the wrong idea. And just this tiny caress gave her shivers, despite the sultry heat in the bar.
    “Rick, what are you doing?”
    And oh, shit, she forgot she was supposed to be meeting someone. “What time is it? I’m…I’m supposed to have dinner with someone.”
    One dark brow arched and he smiled. “I know.”
    “You do?” How the hell could he know?
    “I’m your date.”
    “What?”
    “Connie’s not coming.”
    She frowned. “Okay, I’m confused.”
    “I know you are, and I’m sorry for that. It was the only way we could come up with to get you here.”
    “We? We who?” A seed formed in her mind, but she didn’t want to say anything. Not until she knew for sure.
    “Me. Connie. Kayla.”
    Her stomach tumbled. She’d been set up, but why? She shook her head. “I’m not really this dense, but I still don’t understand. What’s this all about?”
    He leaned in and oh man did he ever smell good. Not like cologne or anything phony. But like Rick. Like he’d just showered with the best soap ever. Clean and fresh and she really wanted to lick that pulse-pounding spot on his neck. Jesus. She leaned back.
    “It’s about you and me, Lisa. A chance to reconnect, spend some time together.”
    “Why?”
    He laughed, then, and she felt stupid, like there was some huge joke that everyone got but her. “Why do you think?”
    She shrugged. “I have no idea. Obviously everyone I know is in on this but me. Why don’t you spell it out in simple terms an idiot like me can understand.”
    His smile died. “Now you’re getting mad. I’m sorry. Let me tell you what’s going on.”
    “That would be helpful.”
    “I started all this. The idea about the vacation, about setting you up to think it would be you and Connie. Well, actually, it was Kayla’s original idea.”
    Her brows shot up. “Kay’s?”
    “Yeah.” He rimmed his cocktail glass with the tip of his finger. “Seems our daughter thinks there’s some unfinished business between the two of us.”
    “What kind of unfinished business?”
    “Maybe the fact that we divorced all those years ago, but neither of us ever remarried, or even really date?”
    This conversation was heading into dangerous territory. She and Rick never discussed their personal lives. They only talked about Kayla. “I thought you had…someone.”
    “That someone was you.”
    Oh, holy hell. Her heart started up with this
thump thump thump
rhythm and she was getting dizzy. She grabbed for her drink, taking a couple long swallows. “Me?”
    “Yeah. You. I’m not seeing anyone else. The only one I ever see is you.”
    “I don’t understand.”
    “Don’t you?”
    He picked up her hand, held it. When was the last time they’d held hands? She didn’t remember.
    “You and I have been together twenty years, Lisa. We’ve been through hell and back. We’ve married, divorced, and raised a daughter together. And even though we’ve lived in separate