When Cade got home, he looked at the clock. He was going to live up to his reputation of being late. He agreed to meet Leigh for breakfast at her favorite restaurant. First, he had to shower and didn't have time for public transportation, so he would have to drive into Boston. The restaurant was on Beacon Hill and it would take an act of God to find street parking.

When he arrived, he found Leigh already in line. She frowned. "Good thing I know what you like, pancake boy." He laughed, as she asked, "How was your run?" He shrugged. She studied his face. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I didn't sleep well."

"A bad dream?"

He didn't answer because they had reached the counter. Cade pulled out his credit card to pay. When they sat down, Leigh stared at him.

"What?" Impatiently, he wished she ignored his mood like Meg had.

Meg had just assumed they would meet up next week. They had become running partners, but Cade wondered how long it would last. Until the cold weather? Until she woke up on weekends in someone else's bed. His gut tightened.

"You know I won't stop until you tell me."

He let out a long sigh. "Fine. Mom called me last night."

"Seriously, what did you say?"

"She said she hadn't heard from me in a while. I said I was busy. There was no point in telling her. She would never believe me."

"What did you talk about?"

"Confetti. I told her I had a dog. She asked what he was like and I said, mean."

Leigh smiled. "You wanted her to tell the fucker."

"Yeah, but then I worried he would bring a steak like on TV. Plus, I'm afraid Confetti's bark is worse than his bite."

"He would protect you. You're his person."

Meg's too. His dog would look for her on Monday morning.

Leigh sighed. "You couldn't sleep because of steak."

"My mind is my own worst enemy."

"It's called paranoia."

He nodded. "I kept thinking V was outside. At first, I thought of him cheating, but in no time, I had him outside my house. Confetti was restless and barked at the window a few times."

"He probably picked up your nervous energy."

Cade shrugged. "I stayed up, but I set my alarm to run."

"You should have skipped your run."

He shook his head. "I didn't want to."

She stared at him and shook her head. "I know you Caden. You saw her again."

"Who?" He was horrible at lying to Leigh.

"Her. I didn't get it right away even when you tried to protect her, but you like her."

Their food was delivered, and he poured warm syrup on his buttery pancakes. Leigh had ordered a skinny omelet, but Cade didn't know why. She had lost weight during the ordeal too.

Did he like her? Cade could deny it to himself, but Leigh was a tougher critic. "It's complicated."

"Uncomplicate it. See where it goes."

Cade froze as if thinking of her made her appear. He watched as she walked past and sat down. Her hair was down like at the club. He had never seen her wear jeans before. They looked as good as her running shorts or the dress he took off her.

She was with the other guy. He watched as they cleaned their dirty table. Did she move on to the friend? No. Cade had reconciled that he had been wrong about her. He believed when she said she never loved Tyler. Love? Who brought love into it?

He whispered. "She's here." He knew the instant she saw him. He wanted to run to her when she raised her voice.

Leigh's eye flew wide open and Cade winced as she turned around. "She's pretty. That's not Hathorne."

He shook his head. "They had a falling out. It's his friend. He was there too."

Leigh nodded. They didn't need to rehash that night. Cade wanted to hold on to one part of the night, but it always led to the other. Maybe he needed to replace it with a new memory. The thought hit him as his eyes connected with hers.

"Are you going to say hi?"

He shrugged. "I already saw her today."

"I should thank her."

Cade felt like he was in seventh grade and his mother wanted to call his friend's parents before he slept over. Brenda deserved an award for the biggest transformation. If the father was like Vinnie, she would have pulled him home by the ear. Now she was sleeping with the fucker.

"Come on, Cade, I won't embarrass you."

"Do you remember how overprotective mom was?"

"She was cautious."

"A lot of good it did her."

"Changing the subject, how's doggy training going?" Leigh smiled.

"Good. Confetti is smart." Cade's voice trailed off as he watched Meg bite into her burger. She had told the truth. As his dick twitched, he thought about buying ground beef to grill before it got too cold. September was a transition month in New England, by the time it ended the temperatures dropped.

He drained his coffee cup, and asked, "What are you doing today?"

"Preparing for court tomorrow."

"So no more second chair?"

"Nope. My clients, my defense."

"I'm proud of you."

She stood. "Are you coming?"

He wasn't sure he wanted to. Meg looked white as Leigh approached her. "Excuse me, but I just wanted you to know I'll be forever grateful to you."

"Me?" Meg's eyes met Cade's. As he rolled them, she looked at Leigh.

"Of course you. You saved my brother."

"Oh," she sighed. "Your brother. I never doubted him."

It hit Cade like a punch in the gut. She had been jealous of Leigh. Her face pinked up as soon as she learned Leigh was his sister. Jealousy meant feelings, right?

At home alone, he ran his hand along Confetti's smooth back. "What do I do? Friends or more." His dick put in his vote. Confetti looked at him with his cocked head, as if to say, whatever you do, don't screw it up.

There were times during the week when he didn't think it would ever end. He considered running in the late afternoon to chance seeing her.

When she sent a text on Friday afternoon, he thought she might cancel. Instead, she asked if they could run later. She had to wait for the dog. He ran early during the week because of work, but on the weekends it didn't matter since the temperatures had cooled.

Confetti was slower to approach her while Cade wanted to run to her. She stood with a beautiful golden, a purebred. Cade saved a dog by adopting a rescue. He held Confetti by the collar, as the two dogs greeted each other.

Meg reached over to pet Confetti. "This is Blue."

"She's golden."

Meg laughed. "It's a long story."

He liked her stories, but that one included Tyler. Who was the jealous one now? The dogs greeted each other. He didn't apologize when Confetti sniffed Blue's butt.

Meg looked up with her expressive eyes. "They like each other."

He nodded. "Are you ready?"

"Yeah. Come on, girl."

It was obvious they had run together. Confetti ran alongside the other dog. Cade kept a slightly slower pace, because he wanted to talk.

"Another coincidence."

Meg nodded. "Yeah, your sister was friendly."

Cade had to drag Leigh out the door before she sat down and picked up a fry off Meg's plate. He could see them as friends. The thought warmed his insides. "Everyone likes her, except the prosecution." Meg laughed. "And your friend?"

"Mick. He's Tyler's best friend. He asked me to lunch to tell me he's leaving for a year."

"Oh." Cade didn't know what to say.

"Yeah. I know. He hopes things will be back to normal when he gets back."

"What's normal?"

"Tyler forgiving me. He was. I don't know, it was weird when I saw him. He dropped Blue at my house and asked for his key back."

"That's harsh."

"I guess I deserve it." Cade had a lot of thoughts but none were kind. "I'm afraid this is it. It's a lifetime of memories." She wiped her eyes and Cade slowed.

He pulled her to the side by the river. "Hey, it will be okay. Time changes perspectives." She stood in front of him and he resisted the urge to wipe her tears. One touch and all his restraint would erode.

The dogs ran in circles and before they knew it the leashes were wrapped around both legs drawing them together. Meg laughed, but Cade was distracted by the feeling of her against him. Their eyes met and held, but neither was smiling.

She reached up and touched his beard. "You look different."

He reached for her hand and pressed it to his lips. "I remember every moment." One tear fell down her cheek and then another. "I didn't mean to make you cry."

"I do too. I'm so sorry."

"Sorry? That it happened?"

"No, that I left. That I didn't know you needed help."

He sighed in relief. She was there right in his arms, looking vulnerable and so damn beautiful. "When we bumped into each other in the lobby, I wanted to..." He looked at her lips. Instead of finishing his thought, he showed her.

When their lips met, it was better than he remembered. She molded into his body and tasted like his favorite food which he had forgotten about. At some point, a dog sighed loudly, and they pulled apart laughing.

Cade stopped laughing first and asked, "What are you doing today?" He didn't want to watch her walk away.

"Just me and Blue. My mother agreed to have her in the house, but she didn't want to."

Cade frowned. "Sounds like my mother. Come, hang out with us."

She frowned. "I'll be gross if we finish our run."

He smiled. "Let's not. We can walk."

"Are you..."

He kissed her lips, stopping her words. Her hands linked behind his neck. When their lips pulled apart, he put his forehead against hers. "Come on, please."

She nodded and looked down. "We're trapped."

Cade unhooked Confetti's leash and held his collar. He said, "Heel." The dog stayed by his side as he stepped out of the tangled leashes. "Drop the leash and step out. Hold him."

Meg held both collars as Cade untangled the two leashes. Once the dog were secure, Cade led them back the way they had run. Meg said, "We can run. It'll take us forever to walk back."

Cade smiled. "Let's go. I can wash your clothes." He winked. She would have to take them off. 

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