Read Online Fourth Down Baby: A May-December Romance by Lauren Landish - Free Book Online Page A

cover with a line of bullshit. "Whit, you know me. There's no way I'm ready to settle down yet."
    We keep talking, and at the end, I give Whitney another hug. I whisper in her ear, “Take care of him, Whit.”
    I leave her behind after exchanging meaningful looks, only to be rodeoed in by Dani, who looks great in her white cocktail dress she's wearing for the party. “That was sweet of you.”
    “They deserve happiness,” I say, giving them both a bit of a sad smile. “I'd like to see what they've got planned. There's certainly something up their sleeves.”
    Dani nods, then pulls my arm. “Come on, Pete would love to talk to you. And I'm not letting anyone get all moody at my wedding reception.”
    “Deal, Harley. I can't believe you pulled back into the ponytails for this thing either.”
    Dani's still got some of the diamond studded combs in her head, but she's parted her hair back to her normal style, and she's as cute as ever. “You know I can't help it.”

    * * *
    I 'm sitting with Troy as the food starts, and I have to laugh as we try the chicken Florentine. This is too much like the prom to be overlooked. “Good God, man, it's the Lone Ranger and Tonto all over again.”
    “Yeah, you always were the one who was tonto ,” Troy jokes, using the Spanish meaning of the word.
    “What're you talking about, Kemosabe?” I toss back. “I'm the Lone Ranger.”
    Troy laughs, and we listen as the speeches start. When Pete gets up, he's seriously looking like the happiest man on the face of the planet, and I'm jealous again, but I can't fault him. He deserves happiness. “ . . . and all I can say is . . . am I not the luckiest guy in the world right now, or what?"
    “We feel sorry for Dani though!” I call up, earning a laugh.
    I sit back, thinking as Dani and Pete have their first dance. Everyone claps when the song is over. I'm lost, imagining that someday it'd be my turn in his place, but my bride would have auburn hair and she'd be slightly taller.
    Troy gets up, and I know what's coming, but even I'm caught up in breathless anticipation—or shock—as he crosses the dance floor, going over in front of Whitney's table.
    I watch silently in a weird mix of sadness and total elation as Troy and Whit come together, nobody else joining them on the dance floor, but instead, we're all spellbound as they dance, the music fading away before Whitney stands on her tiptoes and kisses him. Everyone swarms them, Dani and Pete at the front, exchanging hugs and congratulations.
    Troy finds my eyes in the crowd, and he nods. I understand and nod back.
    My turn.

    * * *
    F rom : Cory Dunham
    To: Patricia Nelson
    Subject: You and I
    Dear Patricia,
    It's taken me a few days to put this into words, and I've tried about a dozen times, but I don't have much of a gift for words, so I'll just stumble through this as best I can. First, I can understand why you didn't go to the wedding reception. I mean, that had to have been hard enough for Troy and Whitney, and it probably was best that Laurie wasn't there to ask a ton of questions. I hear that Troy told Laurie that he's her father. That's great.
    Maybe I'm a fool. If so, I'll be a total fool, because watching your daughter and Troy dance, the only thing that was going through my mind was that I wanted us to be out there too. I wanted to hold you in my arms, to dance with you.
    On the other hand, I also know that if that's to ever happen, I need to be deserving of your affections. It's part of what's driven me since I left years ago.
    I'm going to take the next few months to try and get things squared away here in San Francisco. I've already taken the first step—I learned today that I passed my final licensing exams, so I can put everything in my name as the broker now. But it's just the start.
    Patricia, I'm asking you to give me a little more time. From the way our eyes met in the church, I know I've been on your mind as much as you’ve been in mine.
    I want to see if there's a