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golden opportunity to kiss her, yet he’d stepped away.
    She definitely wasn’t the only one who wanted them to be friends, not lovers, or the only one who’d changed.
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    When Liz was gone, Cain lowered himself to the floor. Leaning against the old stone fireplace, he rubbed his hand down his face.
    He could have kissed her. Not out of habit. Not out of instinct driven by happy memories. But because he wanted to. He longed to. She’d hardly left the house for their entire marriage. Now she was a business owner, a volunteer for a charity, a confident, self-sufficient woman. This new side of Liz he was seeing was very appealing. When he coupled her new personality with his blissful sexual memories, she was damned near irresistible.
    But the clincher—the thing that almost took him over the top—was the way she looked at him as if she’d never stopped loving him. As if she wanted what he wanted. As if her entire body revved with anticipation, the way his did. As if her heart was open and begging.
    He’d always known he was the problem in their marriage. And now that he was older and wiser, he desperately wanted to fix things. But he didn’t want to hurt her again. He saw the trust in her eyes. Sweet, innocent trust. She was counting on him to do the right thing.
    Part of him genuinely believed the right thing was to leave her alone. Let her get on with her life. Become the success she was destined to be.
    The other part just kept thinking that she was his woman, and he wanted her back.
    But he knew that was impossible.

CHAPTER FIVE
    W HILE THEY WORKED , Amanda and Joy returned from Joy’s playdate, and Amanda prepared a barbecue. Liz didn’t realize she was cooking until the aroma of tangy barbeque sauce floated through the downstairs. Just the scent brought Liz to the patio. A minute later, Cain followed behind her.
    â€œWhat is that smell?”
    Amanda laughed. “It’s my mother’s special barbeque-sauce recipe. Have a seat. Everything’s done.”
    A glance to the right showed the umbrella table had been set with paper plates and plastic utensils. A bowl of potato salad sat beside some baked beans and a basket of rolls.
    Starving from all the work she’d done, Liz sat down without a second thought. Cain, however, debated. She couldn’t imagine how a single man could turn down home cooking until she remembered their near miss with the kiss. Their gazes caught. He looked away.
    She could guess what he was thinking. It was getting harder and harder to work together because the longer they were together the more tempted they were. But his stepping away from the kiss proved he was here to help,only to help, not to try to work his way back into her bed.
    And that meant she was safe. But so was he. He simply didn’t know that she was as determined as he was to get beyond their attraction. Perhaps even to be friends.
    So maybe she had to show him?
    â€œCome on, Cain. This smells too good to resist.”
    He caught her gaze and she smiled encouragingly. She tried to show him with her expression that everything was okay. They could be around each other, if he’d just relax.
    He walked to the table. “You’re right. Especially since I’d be going home to takeout.”
    He sat across the table from her, leaving the two seats on either side of her for Amanda and Joy.
    She smiled. As long as they paid no attention to their attraction, they could work toward becoming friends. She would simply have to ignore the extreme sadness that welled in her heart, now that their glances would no longer be heated and they had both silently stated their intentions not to get involved again. Mourning something that hadn’t worked was ridiculous. She didn’t want to go back to what they had. Apparently neither did he. So at least trying to become friends would make the next few weeks easier.
    â€œWhere’s Billy?”
    â€œBeach with some