Quiet and imaginative, Derek O'Reilly spends a lot of time watching a movie in his head. His fiancé Nathan wonders why Derek hasn't taken any interest in their wedding planning, and Aunt Fran -- his spiritual guru -- would like to know when her guilt-tripping nephew became a kept boy. When she drops Derek's childhood journal on his lap, he's forced to remember the name he's been trying to forget since he was twelve years old. Nicolai Lund. Nick was Derek's neighbor ... and first love. Weeks before Derek's engagement party, a chance meeting with Nick catapults Derek into the past. But Nick isn't that seventeen-year-old rebel anymore. He's a man hardened by invisible scars. A man struggling with grief. As Derek reads through his childhood diary, he realizes what Nick was to him, still is today, and yet might be ... NOTE: This edition has been expanded and substantially edited.

Split

“Get out here so I can get a better look at you. Come on.” She grabbed my hand and pulled me out. Within seconds, her warm, soft hands were on my face. Our eyes met. “Oh my,” she whispered. “You’re so beautiful. I can’t believe it.” She turned to Nathan, but her hands never left my face. “Don’t hold this against me,” she said, her voice thick with femininity. Her mouth found mine and without a thought, or any hesitation, my hand reached up for her neck, and I pressed her curves against my body, deepening our kiss.


At our left, Nathan let out a hard breath, “Hey.” He chuckled, but his laugh was tense. “Okay, now, that’s enough.”


Lene bent her face to my neck and giggled softly, embracing me. “Let’s go inside,” she murmured. “Dad is dying to see you.”


Chapter 47