Vickie slid into Gordy’s arms as easily as she might shrug on a warm winter coat. Once again, fifty-some years after the first time, her head rested on his shoulder and her eyes closed. She inhaled and held on, reveling in the scent of him—man and spice.

She’d been afraid back then, too. Not of Gordy, but of what people might say, what dating him for real might do to her plans to conquer the world with her class and her wit.

She’d wanted to be like Grandma’s idols—Bacall, Kelly, Hepburn—and the classy socialites they portrayed on the screen. A rough-edged linebacker wasn’t part of the plan. She’d explained it to him then, and that memory made her cringe. She must have sounded like such a bitch. But he’d just given her that laid-back, slanted smile and told her he understood.

She sighed softly. “It really was pretty perfect, wasn’t it? And then I tossed you aside. How could you possibly forgive me for being such a snob?”

Gordy rested his cheek against her hair. “That snob routine was your armor. It wasn’t you. And you were right—I didn’t fit into the neat little life of your dreams. You were Breakfast at Tiffany’s and I was On the Waterfront.” His arms wrapped around her and she snuggled even closer. “You weren’t the only one with big dreams back then. I got that football scholarship to Syracuse and thought I’d go straight into the pros from there.” His chest rumbled with low laughter.

“Reality smacked me in the face when I busted up my knee two years later. The pros were out for me, and I was a slacker in the classroom. So I came home to Rendezvous Falls to work for my dad, and found you married to Stanley Noor and living in that big stone mansion near the college. You were barely twenty-three and already on the fanciest charity committees in town, hostessing your little white glove tea parties just the way you’d dreamed of doing.”

Vickie heard the edge in his voice. She pulled back and looked up into his gray-blue eyes. “So you were angry with me.”

“Nah.” He grinned. “Well, maybe a little. More envious than angry. You’d chased after your dream and caught it, just like that. And me? I’d chased and failed.” He kissed her temple, leaving his lips against her skin. “But I got over it. I built a good life. Had a good marriage. Raised good sons. And I watched you shine like the star you are.” He kissed her temple again. “And now I’m holding you in my arms again, so one of my goals did come true.”