“I don’t think I like being that transparent.”

“Too late now.”

“What else can you see?”

A smart man would change the subject. “You’re in a lot of pain and you don’t know how to process it. I’m not sure if you want to move forward, or if you simply think you should. As you said, you’re afraid of change.”

“Actually you said that.” She picked up a french fry and ate it. “You’re not wrong.”

“Thank you.”

She smiled. “You’re welcome. All this talk of what you can see makes me uncomfortable, but I don’t think you’re being mean about it.”

“I’m not.”

She studied him. “You’d be a good dad.”

“My ex and I broke up before that could happen. I want children.”

“Me, too,” she said, then frowned. “I mean I did.”

“But not anymore?”

She looked surprised by the question. “I can’t. Stuart’s gone.”

More information he should pay attention to. “You won’t have children without him?”

She paused, a french fry halfway to her mouth. “You’re saying I could have a child with someone else.” She sounded scandalized by the concept.

“It’s not unheard of.”

She set down the fry. “I never really thought about it—having children now.” She shook her head as if trying to dislodge the concept.

“Let’s change the subject,” he said gently. “Great weather we’re having.”

She glanced at him, then away. After returning her attention to him, she said, “You’re different than I thought you’d be. Although to be honest, I had no idea what to expect.”

“Is reality better or worse?”

She smiled. “Better. But I am confused about one thing. You’re this rich, good-looking, successful guy. Why are you here?”

An excellent question he’d asked himself several times. “I told you. I can’t stop thinking about you.”

“In a boy-girl way?”

“Some. Why did you say yes?”

“I wanted to go skydiving.”

Ouch. “Honest, but painful.”

“Why? Oh, because I wasn’t thinking about you.” She ducked her head, then straightened. “But I’ll think of you now. After today.”

“Yay, me.”

“This is very confusing.”

“For both of us.”

She finished her glass of champagne. “What happens now?”

He flagged the server and ordered Unity a second glass. When they were alone, he said, “That’s up to you. My suggestion is we try this again and see what happens.”

“You mean go out?”

“Yes.”

She considered the question. He watched her, looking for clues as to what she was thinking. There weren’t any.

His head told him they were doomed—that he was a fool and he should get out while he could. His gut was less sure. Unity intrigued him. Maybe it was just the appeal of the unfamiliar. Maybe it was something else. Freddy would tell him he had a death wish.

She pulled a sheet of paper out of her handbag. “So I have this list I made with my friend Ellen. We’re both in a rut and we’re going to spend the summer helping each other get out of it. We’ve set it up as a contest. Whoever does the most stuff on the list wins.”