“His whole life changed in an instant and he doesn’t understand why or how.” Lila had a set of sheets in her hands.

That had happened to more than the dog.

“Sometimes all you can do is get through a day.” He took the sheet from her and spread it over the couch. “One foot in front of the other.”

“Just keep swimming. It’s funny. I have a couple of nephews and they like that movie. I was babysitting one night. I liked holding the babies. After what happened, holding John or Brendon was one of the only ways I could calm down. I watched that movie about a hundred times. I was treading water in Dallas. I wasn’t swimming. I need to swim, Armie.”

He understood what she was saying. He’d been there.

“And you will. You have to be patient.” He stood in front of her, letting his hands find her shoulders. She hadn’t kicked him out. It was enough for tonight.

She turned those gorgeous eyes up to meet his own. “You won’t change your mind? About the pretending-to-date-me thing?”

“I want you to think about actually dating me.” He rather thought she was a woman who would appreciate honesty. “I’m not a good bet. I’m forty. I wasn’t the best husband the first time. I was a workaholic, and being a cop in the big city sometimes made me difficult to be around. I have a daughter who needs me and might always need me. My current job doesn’t pay well, and I’ll likely stay in this crazy-ass town for the rest of my life. But I would like to date you. I would like to see if there’s anything between us because I felt something the first time I saw you. I felt it again yesterday, and I feel it right now. I’m tired of logic. I’m tired of responsibility. I want one thing for myself.”

Her eyes met his and he could see her soften. “You want me for yourself?”

“I want to see if you could be the thing in my life that makes me feel young again. That’s how I feel around you. Young. Dumb. Oddly hopeful. Maybe it’s a trick of my mind. Maybe it’s wishful thinking, but if it’s not, I don’t want to look back and not have tried.”

“You don’t know me.”

He invaded her space a bit. “But I want to and not because you’re worried the town won’t like you. They’ll turn around. I’ll talk to some influential people and fix this problem for you. Whether or not you ever want to date me.”

She didn’t move away. “Real date you.”

Something real. That was absolutely what he wanted, what he was ready for. “Real dates. Real other stuff if the real dates go well.”