"I'd be smiling too. He's so handsome, and so nice."

"It seems like you two have spent a lot of time together."

But before Ellie could respond, there was a knock at the back door.

Abby jumped up, her heart skipping a beat at the sound. Maybe it was Chase. She hadn't seen him all

day.

Maybe he was done helping Mason Sweet with his leaky roof. Maybe he was missing her as much as

she was missing him.

So when she opened the door she couldn't keep the surprise tinged with disappointment from her voice.

"Summer-Ann. Hello."

Chapter 21.

"I'm sorry to just show up here, but I need to talk with you." The blonde glanced over Abby's shoulder at Ellie. "Alone, please." Abby nodded and followed the other woman out onto the back stoop. She threw a puzzled glance at Ellie before closing the door.

The evening air was cool; Abby wrapped her arms around herself. "If this is about Chase and Willy, I told you the other day that I wouldn't become involved." Summer-Ann stood there silent for a second, her shoulders hunched, her head hung. When she lifted her eyes to Abby's, they glistened with tears.

"Did you know that Chase and I dated from the time we were fourteen years old?" she said softly, the quiet words heavy with anguish.

She seemed to be waiting for a response, so Abby nodded.

"We had so many firsts together, first date, first kiss. We lost our virginity to each other." Again, Summer-Ann paused.

Abby shifted, trapped between the sympathy and the envy she felt for this woman.

"We have shared more experiences than you could even imagine," Summer-Ann continued, her voice quavering with pain. "We had wonderful times, and I won't lie, we had bad times too. We were going

through a rough time when I found out I was pregnant with Willy. And when I told Chase... Well, he wasn't ready to be a father."

Abby listened, but she couldn't correlate Summer-Ann's words to the man she knew.

"At the time, Chase was still so wild, still living life in the fast lane. So when I decided to keep the baby, I told Chase that I would never tell Willy that he was his father. Not unless Chase decided that he wanted Willy to know. And not too long ago, Chase did decide he wanted to tell Willy. Right before you came back to town, we resolved to try and make a go of it again, for the sake of Willy." A tear rolled down over her high cheekbone.

Even when she cried, she was beautiful, Abby noted. Her tears seemed to make her eyes greener, like fresh grass wet with dew.

"But after you arrived," Summer-Ann sniffed, "he became obsessed with you."

Obsessed with her? Abby found that hard to believe. Plus, Chase wasn't a flighty guy who would abandon a relationship he'd decided to save, even if he thought he might be interested in another woman. "Maybe you misunderstood his intentions."

Summer-Ann's tormented features hardened. "Maybe you lured him away."

"I didn't."

"Well, obviously you did, because he was in bed all last Saturday morning fooling around with you, rather than being at his son's Little League game."

Her accusation caused nausea to roil in Abby's belly. Was that true? Had Chase ignored his son to pursue his own pleasure?

She could visualize Willy in his uniform, wearing a base ball glove that was a little too big for him, searching the stands for Chase. "I'm sure he forgot. I know he wouldn't miss Willy's game for anything."

"Chase is a good man, " Summer-Ann agreed. "But he is a man, and he's ruled by a body part other than his head or his heart. Please, Abby, don't ruin our chance to build a happy family. Please."

Abby stared at the gorgeous woman. She never thought she'd see Summer-Ann Bouffard begging her to break things off with Chase Jordan. It was unbelievable. Like an elaborate fantasy she would have constructed while watching them in study hall.

But this was real, and it involved the emotions of a very real little boy.

"I would never discourage Chase from claiming his son, and I certainly would never come between them," she promised again.

"That's not enough," Summer-Ann insisted, again her green eyes appearing hard like emeralds. "I need that chance to save my relationship with him. Willy needs him. He longs for a father, and every time I see tears in his blue eyes, I ache to tell him that he has a daddy. That Chase is his daddy. Please. We need to be a family."

"I..." She didn't know what to say. As selfish as it was, Abby wasn't ready to walk away from Chase.

She would never want to hurt Willy, or Summer-Ann for that matter, but she couldn't lose the person that was making her happier than she'd ever been before.

Summer-Ann's shoulders began to shake. She dropped her face into her hands and sobbed.

Abby didn't know what to do, how to comfort the distraught woman. Hesitantly, she reached out and touched her shoulder.

Summer-Ann wept harder.

"Shh, it will be okay," Abby finally whispered.

The blonde raised her head, brushing her honey-colored hair out of her face. "You will help us?"

Abby felt her heart break, but the pain was for herself, not for the distressed woman in front of her. She

nodded.

Summer-Ann's crying stopped, and she peered at Abby. "You promise you will help us? That you'll

stop seeing him?"

Abby nodded once more.

"Good," Summer-Ann smiled warmly. Her tears were dry.

Abby was reminded of the warmth the beautiful girl had bestowed on her nearly fifteen years ago, on

graduation day. Her instincts told her she was making a mistake to help this woman. Then Willy's freckled nose and gap-toothed smile flashed in her mind. What if she wasn't? What if Willy's happiness depended on her? Whatever she decided to do, Willy would come first.

"So you're her boy-toy, eh?" Mason grinned as he passed a two-by-four to Chase.

Chase didn't like the title, only because he feared it was a little too close to home. "We're just going to

have a good time this summer and then see what happens."

Mason shook his head. "Man, I would love an arrangement like that. I swear you have all the luck."

Chase nailed the new board to the exposed studs. He didn't feel lucky. He felt frustrated, because even

after a full week of mind-blowing sex, he wanted more. He wanted more of Abby. More than a fling.

It was crazy. One week with the woman, and he wanted her to give him forever.

"Oh, no," Mason groaned. "You're falling for her."

Chase's hammer missed the nail, nearly hitting his thumb. How did his friend have this uncanny ability to

recognize his emotions before he even understood them? He found it highly eerie, and even more irksome.

"I'm-hell, I don't know how I feel about her."

"If you're feeling that confused, then you're already too far gone."

Chase didn't respond, pounding in the final nail with more force than necessary.

"So, are you planning to try and convince her you want more than just this summer?"

Chase shrugged. "It's complicated. She has a job and an apartment in Boston. Her project at Rand was

never a long-term thing. And there are other obstacles."

"Like what?"

Chase held out his hand for another piece of lumber. "Just-things."

Mason nodded and let the topic drop, for which Chase was infinitely thankful. Mason didn't know the

extent of Chase's problems, and he wanted to keep it that way. Chase had considered the idea of suggesting to Abby that they make their affair something more, but he couldn't figure out how to have a real relationship with her and still keep his secret hidden. And he knew she wouldn't want him if she discovered the truth. It would just make their differences glaringly obvious. So, he was going to continue on, status quo. And hopefully the sex was fantastic enough that she wouldn't lose interest too soon. Personally, he couldn't imagine losing interest ever. If anything, each time he was with Abby he wanted her more. He had the sensation of being in the desert dying of thirst, and Abby was water. No matter how much he drank of her, he couldn't get enough. He'd never experienced this kind of need.

Before Abby, sex was all about having fun. He'd dated several ladies, and while he liked them, he didn't feel this consuming drive to be with them.

Even his years with Summer-Ann had been more about amusement than commitment. He had believed

himself in love her, but by the time the whole incident with Willy happened, he had been more than ready to call it quits.

"So at least answer this, for a poor deprived guy, who isn't getting used for his body," Mason said.

Chase looked up from lining up the next board.

"Does she have a sister?"

Chase shook his head with a sympathetic smile. "I don't think Ellie would touch you with a ten-foot pole."

Mason chuckled self-deridingly. "I think you are right."

It had gone well, Summer-Ann decided as she drove back to her house. And fate had been on her side, because it was apparent from Abby's reaction that she hadn't questioned Chase about Willy's parentage.