She’d been so sure that her fiancé and his wonderful mother would help make her dreams a reality. There was plenty of family on his side—he was always after her to check out zillions of photos online, what with all the cousins and a big brother who lived out of state but was still the head of the family somehow.

Mary Beth had never gotten around to it. Social media wasn’t her thing and she didn’t even have a Facebook page. After long hours on the job, solving problems right and left for so many people, she wasn’t interested in posting and instant messaging or photos of what anyone’d had for lunch and carefully posed selfie shots.

Outside of meeting a few individuals at various get-togethers, she really didn’t know much about the family she’d wanted so much to be part of. Perhaps she had instinctively been aware even then that reality would never live up to her girlish fantasies. After tonight, she realized that her unfaithful boyfriend was hardly the man of her dreams.

There was no doubt whatsoever in her mind that he had secretly reconnected with his former flame on some damn Web site designed for people who wanted to do things like that. She didn’t spend a lot of time online but she had a general idea of what was out there.

Betrayal was just a click away.

Lesson learned. She wouldn’t be so naive next time.

Chapter Two

Chapter Two

“A silver dollar for your thoughts,” Parr couldn’t resist whispering in her ear.

She jumped a little. The sound of his voice seemed to snap her back to reality. From where he’d been standing, buttonholed by his long-winded pal, she’d looked like she was a million miles away.

“I didn’t know thoughts were going for such a high price these days.”

“I’d pay more than that for yours, Strawberry.”

Her cheeks pinked slightly. “Is that my new name?”

“Until you tell me your real one, yes.” She seemed to like the sound of it. As far as he was concerned, it was definitely an endearment.

“Why?”

His huge hand lifted hesitantly to touch her hair. “This, for one thing. Beautiful. Never saw anything like it. If you don’t mind a mixed metaphor, it glows like strawberry blond fire.”

“Oh. No. Mix away. I don’t mind.”

“And I know it’s natural.”

She nodded. “My mother’s hair was the same color. She had all-over freckles to match. I only have them here.” She pointed to each shoulder.

The innocent gesture got to him, big time. His black eyes caressed those creamy, sun-kissed shoulders while his hand moved ever so slowly over the red gold curls to the bare beauty of her neck.

He stopped.