He ran his fingers through her hair and down her neck, his touch making her tremble. “You must be hungry.” He placed strategic kisses on her neck that had her wishing they were alone so she could touch him all over.

“You must be hungrier. You worked hard all day.”

“Not all day,” he said with a smile that she felt against her neck. “There was this one part, right in the middle… Mmm, pure pleasure. No hard work required.”

Jenny let her hands slide down to his backside. “There was a little bit of hard work involved. It was awfully hot out there.”

“It was some kind of hot,” he said suggestively as his lips traveled from her throat to her ear, capturing her earlobe between his teeth. “Let’s eat, and then we can pick up this conversation while we watch a movie.”

They enjoyed Mrs. Upton’s tasty lasagna, as well as salad and garlic bread that Jenny said she would only eat if he did, too.

“Sounds like you want to make out with me after dinner.”

“If you’re lucky,” she said with a nonchalant shrug.

He covered her hand with his much larger, work-roughened hand. “I’m sorry our plans for tonight got messed up.”

“Did they? I hadn’t noticed.”

“You are far too kind.”

Jenny swirled the merlot he’d opened to go with dinner around in her glass. “Do you think I’d ever blame you because you needed to be at home with your mother when we had other plans?”

“Some women would.”

“Well, I’m not some women.”

“No, you certainly aren’t.”

“I understand what you’re dealing with, Alex. I saw my mother and her sisters go through it for years with their mother. I helped where I could. I answered the same questions over and over. My heart broke when I had to identify myself to the grandmother who’d once doted on me. I get it.”

“Was this before or after you lost Toby?”

“After.”

“I thought about that, about him and what happened, all afternoon. I wondered…” He shook his head as if he’d reconsidered the question.

“It’s okay to ask about it.”

“Are you sure?”

She nodded, but her stomach knotted with nerves. Even though she’d said it was okay, it was never an easy topic for her.

“I wondered where you were that day and how you found out.”

“I was at work in Midtown, and he called my cell phone. We texted but didn’t call each other during the day, so I took the call even though I was in a meeting and got the stink eye from my boss. It was the hardest call I’ve ever received, but I’m so glad I didn’t ignore it.”

“Did he know how bad it was?”