Return To Rose Cottage: The Laws of Attraction

“Uh-oh,” Maggie said. “Watch your step, Ashley. You’re about to unite these men in a common cause. Something tells me it won’t be pretty.”

“Doggone right,” Josh agreed, suddenly eager to stir the pot. “Men are not the problem. We think logically and rationally.”

“Oh, please,” Ashley said. “What was logical or rational about letting me off the hook so easily?”

“You were clearly shaken up. I was trying to be a nice guy,” Josh retorted.

“Ha!” Ashley muttered.

“Women hate that,” Rick advised.

“They see it as a sign of weakness,” Mike confirmed.

“Well, you can be sure I won’t make that mistake again,” Josh vowed. “I thought you were a reasonable woman.”

“I am. You’re the one behaving like an idiot. You’re no more injured than I am.”

He frowned at her. “You’re calling me an idiot?”

“You bet I am.”

As the exchange ended and her declaration hung in the air, Ashley suddenly blinked and looked embarrassed. “What just happened here?”

Maggie grinned at them. “Offhand, I’d say we just witnessed an explosion of hormones. I, for one, found it rather fascinating.”

“Stimulating,” Melanie added, casting a pointed look at her husband.

Before Josh could utter a desperate denial, Ashley whirled on her sisters. “Eat dirt,” she muttered, then stood up. “I have to go.”

Josh was way too tempted to follow her. Instead, he merely winked as she passed. “Drive safely,” he murmured under his breath.

She stopped and scowled at him. He waited for her to utter the curse that was obviously on the tip of her tongue, but she fought it and won.

“Lovely seeing you again,” she said sweetly. Her voice, thick with Southern syrup, nonetheless lacked sincerity.

“I’m sure we’ll cross paths soon,” Josh said. “Hopefully without colliding.”

Though he had to admit, as he watched her walk away, that bumping into Ashley D’Angelo, literally or figuratively, was starting to make his life a whole lot livelier.

3

Fresh from his second disconcerting, intriguing encounter with Ashley D’Angelo, Josh knew he couldn’t delay the inevitable talk with Stephanie for another minute. That explosion of hormones Maggie had referred to had been very real. It had been a couple of hours now, and he was still half-aroused when he thought about it. Stephanie had never had that effect on him. They’d been friends who’d understood what was expected of them and accepted that real passion wasn’t part of it.

Even as he reached for the phone, he acknowledged that it was probably a conversation he should be having face-to-face. Since he didn’t plan on being back in Richmond for a while, though, he wanted to get it over with now, tonight. Something told him that by morning, or at least by the time he had his next encounter with Ashley, he should be totally free from the past.

Fortunately, Stephanie was a night owl. Even though it was after eleven, he knew she’d be awake. What he hadn’t expected, though, was the sound of a party in full swing in the background when she answered. She sounded carefree and happy, happier than he could recall her being in a long time. Somehow when they were together, she always seemed subdued and thoughtful.

“Steph, it’s me,” he said.

“Josh, sweetheart, I wasn’t expecting to hear from you this late.”

“Evidently.” He had no idea why he couldn’t seem to keep the edge out of his voice. He wasn’t jealous. No, if anything, he was relieved. Maybe this odd mood he was suddenly in simply had to do with the possibility that now wasn’t the best time to have this conversation, after all. “Look, you obviously have company. Maybe I should call back in the morning.”

“Don’t be silly. It’s just a few friends kicking back on a Friday night. I’ll just go into the other room, where I can hear better.”

The music and laughter grew more muffled. “There. That’s better,” she said. “How’s it going? Are you having a good time? Are you getting all that deep thinking done?”

“Some of it,” he said.

“I wish you’d let me come with you. Maybe I could have helped. You’ve always liked bouncing ideas off of me in the past.”

“Normally that’s true,” he said, “but not this time. I had to work this out on my own.”

“You’re thinking about us, aren’t you?” she asked, sounding resigned but not surprised.

Josh had always known that Stephanie was smart and intuitive, but he hadn’t expected her to cut right to the chase on this one. “Yes,” he admitted. “I think we need to talk about where we’re headed.”

“Okay,” she said.

“I owe you better than a conversation on the phone, but I didn’t want to wait till I get back.”

“Come on, Josh, just say it and get it over with,” she chided.

“I know your father is counting on us announcing our engagement soon and that we’ve been talking about it for a long time now,” he began. “But I think you and I both know that he’s more enthusiastic about the idea than either of us are.”

His words were greeted with silence.

“Stephanie?”

“What are you saying, Josh?” she asked.

He sucked in a deep breath and forced himself to be brutally honest. “That we’re all wrong for each other, Steph. We both know it. We’ve been trying to make the pieces fit, but they don’t. This isn’t your fault, Stephanie. You’re amazing. It’s me. I want something else. I wish I could explain it better than that, but I can’t. I only know this isn’t fair to either one of us. I need to let you go, and I feel sure you’ll be far happier with someone else.”

“I see,” she said softly.

She didn’t sound half as brokenhearted as he’d feared she might. “I’m sorry,” he apologized.

“No need to be,” she said, sounding oddly relieved.

Josh was astounded that she was taking his announcement so well. He’d expected tears or histrionics. In fact, he’d been dreading a messy emotional scene, if only because he was throwing a monkey wrench into her father’s plans for the two of them, and Stephanie was, first and foremost, a dutiful daughter who understood what was expected of her.

“Do you mean that?” he asked, still not quite believing that the breakup could go so smoothly.

“To be honest, I’ve seen this coming,” she confessed. “It’s something I should have done myself, but I’ve never had the courage to defy my father. I guess I owe you for making it easy.”

“You’re really okay with this?” he asked.

“Were you hoping I’d fight you?” she asked, sounding amused.