stepping closer. “What harm could there be in inviting me in?”
His words made her skin burn hot, and Heather immediately assured herself that her reaction was only from seeing him so unexpectedly, not at all because of his nearness or the familiar scent of him. No, she couldn’t afford to let her heart respond to him.
“None, I assure you,” she retorted, then wished she hadn’t let him provoke her.
“Then let me in—” his lips curved ever so slightly “—since you have nothing to be afraid of.”
Heather thought about it for a moment. Well, technically he was still her husband, even if she didn’t want to acknowledge that fact to him. That they’d been separated for a year apparently meant nothing at all to him. And she really couldn’t refuse, since he still owned the house they’d shared through six years of marriage.
She shifted and moved away from the door. “All right. For a few minutes.”
Justin stepped inside, and then he shut the door behind him. As he entered the foyer and then the living room, his gaze slowly swept it, as if cataloging every item in minute detail.
His scrutiny made Heather edgy, and she glanced about, again searching the room to be sure it was free of anything that belonged to her son. Then she walked over to the sofa and stopped beside it. “Would you like to sit down?” She gestured toward the chair across from her.
“I’ll stand.” Justin walked farther into the room.
His gaze swept her from head to toe, and she nervously smoothed her hair with her hand. The curls refused to cooperate, and she tucked a stray strand behind her ear.
“How long have you been seeing Dailey?” It came out sounding like a blunt demand.
“We’re just friends. I haven’t been seeing him.”
Justin stared at her, his expression disbelieving. “Then that was the first time he’s come on to you?”
Heather blushed furiously.
“I didn’t think so.”
“All right, I’ll admit that it wasn’t, but that doesn’t mean anything!” She put her hands on her hips to stop them from shaking. He had the power to annoy her without even trying. Apparently he hadn’t changed. Justin always had to be in control. It was one of the things she’d first admired about him. He’d been a no-nonsense, hard-driven, dependable person in her life when she’d needed someone to care for her. After years of struggling with feelings of abandonment by her father, it had been easy for her to let him take charge.
But she was no longer the love-starved young girl he’d married. She no longer needed someone to lean on, someone to protect her and take care of her.
“I see.”
“Apparently you don’t,” Heather retorted, taking in his skeptical expression. “Maybe Paul’s asked me out a few times, but I’ve always refused.” Heather had her hands full working full-time as a teacher and being a mother.
Okay, so maybe she got lonely once in a while, but she wasn’t ready to date again. She didn’t have time for a relationship, nor did she want one. She knew too well how easy it was to get hurt.
Justin’s jaw tightened a fraction. “He didn’t look as if he was going to take no for an answer just now,” he remarked.
“You didn’t give me a chance to make it clear to him that I wasn’t interested.”
“If he’s come on to you before and you’ve discouraged him, apparently he isn’t getting the message,” he reasoned, and a muscle worked in his jaw.
Heather gave a frustrated sigh. “I really don’t see that this is any of your business. You’ve been out of my life a long time, Justin, and I don’t owe you any explanations.”
He favored her with a curious look, lifting his brow in question. “We’re still married.”
She bristled, annoyed by the intimate reminder she saw in his eyes. “We haven’t lived together in a year,” she stated, resolving to end the conversation.
“That’s why I came to see you.”
Heather paled and her breath caught. She felt as if she’d been punched in the chest.
He’s come to ask you for a divorce!
She trembled before she brought herself under control. Though totally unprepared for this, she could handle it. She could, dammit! Shaking her head, she realized she should have expected that he’d find someone new.
“You want a divorce,” she stated flatly, denying him the chance to tell her he was in love with someone else.
A small smile gradually spread on Justin’s lips, just enough to expose a trace of the dimple in his right cheek. Heather’s heart hammered. His smile was what had first attracted her to him. His smile and that damn attractive dimple.
“What?” Confusion etched her brow. Feeling lightheaded, she touched the back of the sofa for support. “Isn’t that why you’re here?”
“No.”
She glanced at his hand, and for the first time realized he still wore his diamond-and-gold wedding band. “Why are you here, then?”
Justin regarded her silently, then seemed to choose his words very carefully. “Actually, I want us to give our marriage another try, Heather.”
“What?” Heather couldn’t have heard him right. Surely, her mind was playing tricks on her.
“You heard me correctly,” he assured her, apparently reading the bewilderment on her face. “I want us to give our marriage another chance.” He stepped closer to her, and she immediately took two steps away from him.
“I don’t understand,” she whispered softly. This didn’t sound at all like the Justin who had turned his back on her and walked out on their life together after her miscarriage. “I mean, why?” She wondered again if he knew about Timmy. But from the way the conversation was going, that was doubtful.
Justin reached toward her and touched his fingers to her cheek. She moved her head a fraction, out of his reach, and he let his hand fall. “A lot has happened in the year we’ve been apart.”
“Such as?” she prompted. What could possibly have happened that would have a bearing on their marriage? she wondered suspiciously.
He’d never been one to open up, and she’d always thought they would have had a chance if he’d told her what he was thinking, what he was going through.
“I met my birth mother.”
She blinked with surprise. “You have? Really?”
Heather was stunned that he was talking about his past. She always believed the reason that Justin was so reserved and reluctant to share his feelings was the way he was raised. As a baby, he’d been left on the doorstep of a sheriff’s office in Nevada. Because he was unable to be put up for adoption, he’d been placed with a foster family, had
