Chapter 2
Friday, April 6, 1973
Philadelphia VA Medical Center
Matt strolled out of the Philly veteran’s hospital right after lunch lugging a duffel bag which contained the few things he’d bought at the Clark PX using the allotment the Army had given him.
In addition to three sets of civilian clothes, underwear, toiletries, and a pair of black basketball sneakers, he’d bought himself a watch and a wallet. Somehow, those two simple possessions made him feel like a free man with a new lease on life. And practically no money to pay for that lease.
The major had told him it would take a while to straighten out the accounting nightmare involving his back pay, the benefits his wife had already received, and whatever disability compensation he was entitled to. In the end, he’d probably get something. But considering the bureaucratic red tape, it could be several months, and he had no idea how much it would be.
The month’s pay the army had disbursed to tide him over wouldn’t go far, seeing as he had no car, no job, and no home. And he’d been worried about providing for a wife? More likely she’d need to support him.
Rather than wasting his cash on train fare, Matt walked to University Avenue and stuck out his thumb. Fate smiled when one of the nurses who’d cared for him stopped. She was on her way to New Hope to visit her sister, so she agreed to give him a lift to the address in his file. During the ride, a peculiar sense of familiarity nagged him. He knew every curve in the road, yet he had no memory of ever being there.
Arriving at the quiet residential cul-de-sac, Matt sank onto the curb across the street from his wife’s property under a large maple tree garbed in green buds.
He breathed in the fresh scent of the hyacinths and daffodils blooming in the nearby yard and studied the small white rancher and its breathtaking view of the countryside. The house desperately needed a coat of paint.
Obviously, Dr. Grant knew what she was talking about. His wife must have some sort of a job. She wouldn’t be able to afford to live in such a nice area on only his army benefits. Nor would she have what appeared to be a brand new Mercedes-Benz and a ‘66 GTO parked in her driveway.
When the front door sprang open, Matt jumped up and ducked behind the tree. A brown-haired man in his early thirties stepped out of the house, followed by a tiny woman whose head would barely reach Matt’s chin.
Blonde waves cascaded down her back, brushing the come-hither strip of flesh flashing between her pink tie-died T-shirt and faded bell-bottom jeans. Her curvy figure matched the faceless woman’s who previously existed only in Matt’s dreams. High, full breasts and a slender waist topped a gently rounded bottom accentuated by her low, hip-hugging pants.
No way could this young girl be his wife. She would’ve been just a baby when they got married.
The man brushed a kiss across her lips before striding to the silver Mercedes and calling, “Love you, Ab.”
Damn. She was Abby.
“See you tonight.” Her dazzling smile made Matt’s breath hitch.
Except for the contradiction of her sexy figure, she looked like an angel. He’d bought his jeans on the loose side with the intention of gaining weight, but after getting a gander of his erotic fantasy in the flesh, he still didn’t have enough room to be comfortable. From his vantage point, he couldn’t tell for sure, but he’d give ten to one odds Abby had green eyes.
He’d been too embarrassed to tell Dr. Grant about the intense X-rated encounters that teased the edges of his mind the same way a dream does after waking up. They were irrelevant since the woman was indistinguishable in them.
All he remembered was burying his face in luxurious rose-scented hair, gazing into emerald eyes, and an incredible physical experience. Seeing his dream woman come to life, after spending more than six interminable years either alone or with a bunch of smelly men left his body screaming, Come on, Baby!
What had a gorgeous creature like her ever seen in him? She could have any guy she wanted. He swallowed hard past the .45 caliber lump lodged in his throat. Even though he didn’t remember her outside his dreams, it still hurt to see his wife kiss Mr. Mercedes.
Matt heaved a sigh. He must have masochistic tendencies. Why else would he put himself through this?
Despite the man’s mutton chop sideburns—a style that should have stayed in the Victorian era—he seemed like a decent guy. And his luxury car proved he could provide for Abby a helluva lot better than Matt could. He should just write her a note and bow out of her life gracefully.
After the Mercedes sped off, instead of going back into the house, his wife strolled the thirty yards to the corner. She stopped and stood there for several minutes.
Hearing the fellow tell Abby he loved her had settled things for Matt. As he turned to walk away, a school bus pulled up to the corner and two little boys scrambled off, one with sunny blond hair and the other with a windblown mop the same shade as toffee. They both ran to Abby, their arms outstretched for a hug and the shower of kisses she rained over their faces.
When they trooped back toward Matt, he jumped behind the tree, his gut in a knot. The boys appeared to be about six, so he’d bet everything he had—which, granted, didn’t amount to much—he was their father.
Once they got closer, he studied the blond child’s face. The kid didn’t look anything like Matt, although he did have Abby’s coloring. The other boy grabbed a paper out of the towhead’s hand and sprinted off as if a starter pistol had been fired.
“Tommy!” The blond little boy chased after him.
Abby planted her hands on her hips and hollered, “Matthew Thomas Foster, Jr. give that back to Royce. Right now!”
O-kaaay. That settled any question about who’d sired the twins. Matt watched the two boys race each other into the house. Anguish clogged his throat. He might be able to walk away from this sexy woman. But not from his sons.
He rubbed the tightness in his chest as six years of fear became reality. He really did have something worth remembering.
About the Author
Laurie Kellogg is a two-time winner of the Romance Writers of America® Golden Heart® award, a winner of the Pacific Northwest Writers Association® Zola award, and a Romantic Times® American Title I finalist. She began writing to avoid housework and has since resorted to naming the dust-bunnies multiplying as fast as real rabbits while she plots sensual love stories that are steamy, heartwarming, romantic fun. To learn more about Laurie and her books, visit https://www.LaurieKellogg.com
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Coming Soon
A Little Bit of Déjà Vu
Winner of the Romance Writers of America® Golden Heart® award
and the Pacific Northwest Writers Association® Zola award
Sometimes destiny has the last word....and laugh
Fate thrust them together
Blackmail and deception tore them apart
Nineteen years later, their children’s love reunites them
Now, only truth and forgiveness can make them a family
Margie Bradford is picking up the pieces of her shattered life following her husband’s death. When her meddling cousin encourages her to make a fresh start with her teenage daughter, unsuspecting Margie takes a reading specialist job in the small town of Redemption, PA. The last person she expects to encounter is Rocket Manion, the ex-NFL quarterback and Dr. Phil wannabe who broke her heart nineteen years ago.
Divorced teacher and head football coach Jake Manion experiences an eerie sense of déjà vu when his son announces he’s
gotten his girlfriend pregnant. The feeling simply grows stronger when Jake learns the girl’s mother is Maggie, the same woman on whom he’s wasted nearly two decades of bitterness.
While planning their kids’ wedding and helping them grow up too soon, Jake attempts to pick up right where he left off—in Margie’s bed. But no matter how irresistible his kisses are, she isn’t stupid enough to let him hurt her again. Or is she?
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