Chapter 2

Noon, Saturday

Andy pulled his 10-year-old Saturn into the parking lot of Clairborne Benedict Preparatory Academy for Girls. He drove to the farthest edge of the lot away from where everyone else had parked. He didn't want the value of the parents' luxury cars to go down just because he parked beside one of them.

He also didn't want to risk dinging the door on one of the fancy cars. He was certain it would take him 10 years to work off what it would cost to repair it. He had washed his car the previous evening between calls from Regan - despite the fact that the weather had been less than idyllic.

It still looked like a polished turd.

He realized that's what he looked like, too. He had on a pair of tan slacks and blue pullover. They were the nicest everyday clothes he owned. He had even considered dropping $25 for a haircut but couldn't fit it into his tight schedule.

Still, he knew everything in his closet cost less than the underwear worn by some of these people. He gulped and got out of his car.

Regan and her father were halfway across the lot by the time he closed the door. He hadn't counted on seeing Robert Riley again. He could only imagine the conversation Regan's father had in store for him.

He tried to shake off the jitters.

"She is just another pretty face," he said to himself – although he didn't believe it for a moment.

He saw her walking toward him and she was a vision. She wore a black skirt and a green sweater over a white shirt. Her red hair was loose on her shoulders and it framed her angelic face perfectly. He was certain her haircut cost a hell of a lot more than $25.

Regan made it to 20 feet away before she outpaced her dad. Andy had decided a handshake would work best but Regan practically launched herself from five feet away. He either had to catch her or she would smash into his car. As it was, she almost bowled him off his feet when she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

She felt entirely wonderful.

"It's good to see you again," Andy said. He tried to find a place to put his hands to help hold Regan up but he couldn't figure out how. He decided to bend forward with the hug until her feet were on the ground.

When she touched down, she pulled back slightly and looked at Andy. He saw a trace of tears in her eyes and he worried that he wasn't effusive enough in his greeting. So he leaned down and kissed her on the forehead.

Regan smiled and shook her head before laughing aloud.

"It's good to see you again, too," she belatedly replied. "I've missed you."

She finally released Andy and turned to her father who was watching the show without much expression. Robert was worried that the entire painful conversation he had just had with his daughter was for nothing.

"You remember my father?" she asked.

Andy blushed but took Robert's extended hand.

"Sir, I should apologize for my behavior the last time we met," Andy began. "I made a spectacle of myself. I embarrassed myself and, I'm sure I embarrassed you and Regan too."

"You didn't embarrass me," Regan corrected. "I thought it was great."

"I have to say I enjoyed it myself," Robert admitted. "Probably a lot more than is healthy for me, if I'm honest. I just wanted to stop and say hi. I hope you have a nice day."

"Why don't you stay and eat with us?" Andy asked.

Regan turned her head slightly and narrowed her eyes.

"I think not," Robert said quickly. "However, I would like to invite you to dine with Regan and me next week before her dance. Is that acceptable?"

"We'll discuss it, Daddy," Regan answered before Andy could accept. It would be rude for him to turn down such an invitation – particularly since it didn't appear to include Regan's mother (who still scared Andy shitless).

Robert nodded and smiled at Andy again.

"Once piece of advice, if you don't mind," he said.

This time Andy got to answer before Regan could.

"Certainly," Andy replied.

"Don't let them start making all your decisions for you," Robert said with a chuckle. "Once that starts, you'll have a hell of a time getting that power back."

"Daddy!" Regan said. But she laughed and Robert said his goodbyes and walked to his car for the drive home.

"You've already cleaned up," Regan said. "I like your shirt. It looks really nice on you. And you smell great."

Perhaps the most time-consuming decision Andy faced the night before regarded cologne. Erin had gotten him a ridiculously expensive bottle for Christmas the year before. Andy didn't like it but he figured Regan would. Still, it seemed tacky to arrive for an afternoon smelling the way your ex-girlfriend wanted you to smell.

"Soap," he admitted.

Regan smiled.

"I know," she said. "I showered at your apartment, remember? I smelled like you the whole day and, well, I bought some."

She held up her wrist. Andy laughed when he realized she smelled almost exactly like he did.

"So, I, uh, it's really nice to see you," Andy finally got out.

"Yes, we've been through this," Regan joked. "You're happy to see me. I'm happy to see you."

"After eight weeks in solitary confinement, you're probably happy to see anyone," Andy rejoined.

"It wasn't that bad," Regan replied. "Really, outside of not being able to contact you, it wasn't a lot different from my normal life. Sure, I couldn't catch up on stuff on the internet but that was my only real hardship."

Andy smiled and shook his head.

"See, you played that all wrong," he said. "You should have told me how horribly you were treated – that they put bamboo under your fingernails or something – and I would want to baby you and smother you with kindness."

Regan put her hand to her forehead dramatically.

"You have no idea the hardships I've endured just to make it through to today," she said.

"Too late, you missed your shot," Andy said as Regan put her arm through his and started to lead him to the dining hall.

Regan couldn't believe it. It was like the last hour of their brief time together and the past eight weeks had disappeared. They were right back to where they were when he picked her up at the bus station – except her hand didn't hurt.

She could tell Andy was nervous when she approached him. It wasn't the only reason she hugged him. She had dreamed of that hug for weeks. But it was the reason she hugged him so quickly. She saw him start to extend his hand to shake hers. Like she was going to let him get away with that.

He had started to relax even before her father had left. Andy had gone from nervous to charming in about 30 seconds. She had no idea that the hug she'd initiated played a large part in that transformation.

Still, there were a couple of things she needed to talk to him about and she wanted to do it before he was introduced to her schoolmates.

"That morning, Andy," she began.

"It's OK," he cut in.

"It's not OK," Regan insisted. "I acted like an idiot. I know how I reacted hurt your feelings and I apologize. I never want to say or do something to hurt you."

Andy nodded. He knew Regan regretted the intimacy they had shared. He not only saw it on her face when she awoke in his bed, he heard her berating herself for it in the bathroom. In fact, he had considered that if he hadn't stood up to her mother, Regan probably would never have spoken to him again.

"I saw things were different once I got out of the shower," she continued. "I didn't want them to be different."

"I think you did," Andy answered. He wasn't angry or defensive. It was a simple statement. "It wasn't just about how you acted when you woke up. It was about, well, it was about something I overheard while you were in the shower. It's OK, really. I know that it probably wasn't how you wanted things like that to happen and you told me you would probably regret it the next day."

Regan stopped cold and almost jerked Andy's arm out of socket.

"I regret only one thing," she said fiercely after she spun him around to look at her. "Actually, I regret two things. The first thing I regret is that I feel asleep before I could try to make you feel as wonderful as you made me feel. The second thing I regret is that I didn't wake up in time to try it the next morning. I don't know what you heard me say in the bathroom, but I can promise you it had nothing to do with what we did. If anything, it related entirely to what we didn't get the chance to do."

"You asked yourself how you could have been so stupid," Andy said. He could still hear her words in his head if he tried. He worked hard not to think about it.

"Yes," Regan said. "I was asking myself how I could act like a complete asshole to you when you are the sweetest guy I've ever met. I was wondering why I would behave like you had attacked me when I spent the whole time we were snuggled together enjoying the kisses you gave me and being close to you. I'm sorry, Andy. If I had thought for a minute you misunderstood – or even heard what I said – I would have explained it. I tried a hundred times to think of a way to let you know how nice it felt to be with you. But I couldn't come up with a way that didn't sound ridiculous. I had no idea that it would be so long until I got the chance to explain it or I would have gone with ridiculous and we could have fought our way through it."

She looked around and frowned at the number of people nearby. Some of them were paying obvious attention to Regan and Andy. She couldn't do what she wished she could do – pull him to her for a kiss. So she did what she considered the next best thing. She told him the truth.

"I like you," she said. "In the few hours we spent together, I've come to like you more than I've liked anyone in my life. I don't mean just guys. I mean I like you, Andy Drayton, more than I like anyone else I've ever met and spent time with in my whole, entire, stupid life. I don't know how far that like extends. I want to know, though. I hope we find a way for us to see how far it extends.

"With you, I'm not some snotty rich girl. I'm not Rita Riley's daughter. You don't care that I'll probably inherit a fortune. In fact, you probably would rather I didn't. You didn't treat me any differently when you found out who my family is than before you knew. No one else has ever done that. No one, Andy. With you, I'm Regan and that is enough. I don't have to be anyone else.

"I guess I'll settle for being friends with you if that is where our future leads. But I never want you to think for a moment that I regret being near you or sharing things with you and doing things with you. I don't. I never did and I don't now after having time to think about it. I will, however, regret it if we don't try to become much more than friends and if I never take the time to tell you how I feel about you. OK?"

Regan gulped when she finished. She felt like she opened herself up for a serious heartache if he didn't feel the same way about her. She thought he did, but she couldn't be sure. Andy gave a half smile and nodded slightly. It didn't answer the question she still had but at least he hadn't answered that he didn't think of her that way.

So she smiled and pressed forward.

"I have today pretty well planned," she said. "Those plans, like all my brilliant schemes, are subject to change if you find you're uncomfortable with them. Is that OK?"

Andy's smile grew larger.

"Did you spend more than 20 seconds on this idea?" he asked, referencing Regan's jailbreak two months earlier.

Regan returned the smile. This was exactly what she meant. No one who knew how much money Regan's family had would pick on her or make fun of her. Ruth DeLancy and Harmony Wentworth would make snide comments or rude remarks. But no one would take a light-heart poke like Andy did.

"Yes, I did spend more than 20 seconds this time," she replied. "In fact, I probably spent twice that amount of time on this one. Good enough?"

"Well, the last one turned out OK, I guess," Andy joked again. "Do I get to know about it or is it supposed to be a surprise?"

"We'll talk about it after lunch, if that's OK," Regan told him. Andy nodded. "Now, a couple of things I do need to fill you in on before we go inside to the dining facility. First off is our PDA policy."

"I haven't even replaced my cell phone yet," Andy interrupted.

Regan rolled her eyes. She couldn't tell if he was serious and out-of-touch with electronic devises or making a smart-assed reply.

"Public Displays of Affection," she clarified. "A brief hug or a chaste kiss on the cheek is acceptable conduct upon greeting a friend. It is appropriate for you to take a friend's arm when walking."

She saw the look that crossed Andy's face.

"That is a direct quote from our student handbook," Regan said, smiling at him. "I wanted to explain why I greeted you with only a hug and why I'm not holding your hand – or at least trying to hold your hand. 'It is unseemly for an unengaged young lady to exhibit more emotion than that when in public.' Another quote, seriously, I think the thing was written in the 1600s or something."

"It's fine, Regan," Andy replied.

"Well, you'll be happy to know that there are no instructions on how to behave in private," she said with a wink. "I didn't tell you this because I think you hoped to ravish me on the table at dinner."

She paused at look to the sky for a moment.

"Actually, I hope you do wish to ravish me on the table at dinner," she said, laughing. "But, I'll be blunt. I'm skating on thin ice here and at home. My mother practically forced C-B to let me come back and graduate. In return, I have promised to abide by the Code of Conduct for the remainder of my time here. That means I couldn't kiss you when I saw you. I wanted to. I want to now, in fact. But I agreed and I'll do my best to live up to that agreement."

"I understand," Andy said, a wave of relief passed over him with her words but he tried not to show just how happy he was that she hoped to get to know him better. He wanted to know her better, too.

Chapter 3 »