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tousled as usual, but smooth and flat. Her eyes were covered with oversized sunglasses.
Maddie eyed the box and cocked an eyebrow at her.  I was thinking about lunch.
 Hell, I ll eat all this and whatever you go get. I m starving. Delia tossed the white box on the
counter and flipped it open, attacking the flaky pastry with gusto. She bit into one and her face underwent a
shift to orgasmic bliss.
Maddie reached over and pulled Delia s glasses off, tilting her chin up and inspecting her eyes as the
other girl chewed and stared back impassively. Clear.  No hangover, then? I m impressed.
 Nah. I didn t even go out.
 Really? I tried to call you.
 I crashed early.
 What s gotten into you?
Delia shrugged. Only after she d demolished a croissant did she sip her coffee and pass Maddie her
own.  Did you get me cheese danish? Maddie asked.
 It s lunchtime, Delia mimicked, propelling the box toward her.  Of course I did.
 Like I need it. She d packed on a few extra pounds in the past several months& okay, more than a
few. She was a stress eater, and, well, there had been a lot of stress to eat about lately. Two weeks ago, in a
fit of rage, she d tossed her scales in the cabinet under the sink. It was too depressing to watch the numbers
climb.  I need to start exercising, she announced suddenly.
Delia almost choked, managed to swallow with an audible gulp.  Jesus, Mad, when would you have
time? Sometimes I want to fire you just so you can relax.
 Ha. Don t you dare. I would starve.
 Well, maybe I would feed you every now and then.
 Gee, thanks.
 It s only because I love you. So, how did your date go last night?
She d known the question was coming. For the past couple of days she d been confiding in Delia
about her hopes for last night. Breathing deep, she said,  You wouldn t believe me if I told you. You
absolutely will not believe it. I mean, I m glad it s not April Fool s Day, or you d accuse me of trying to
pull one over on you.
Delia s round blue eyes had grown even rounder and seemingly even bluer as Maddie spoke.  What
the hell. Did he propose?
 He dumped me.
Delia s jaw dropped.  That bastard! Holy crap! Mad& I mean, holy crap! Why the& what the&
Dude, you look pretty awesome for just having been dumped. I mean, you re glowing. It doesn t make any
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Far from Heaven
sense. With the way you re looking, I was expecting you to flash your fucking new diamond sparkler or
something.
 It makes perfect sense once you hear all of it.
 What, did you make up and break up all in one night? Wild make-up sex?
 I think we can safely say David is out of the picture. There was no wild make-up sex. There was,
however, wild sex.
Maddie chanced a look at her friend and burst out laughing. There was no description for the look on
Delia s face. She only wished she had a camera to capture it for posterity. Or just to hang on the wall in this
place. Plenty of the regulars would get a kick out of it.
 With who?
 Oh God, Dee. This guy. I met this guy by some freak accident in the parking garage as I was leaving
the restaurant. And he was& wonderful and gorgeous and sexy, and we talked for only a few minutes
but& I took him home with me.
 Holy shit! I m& speechless! And speechless never happens to me.
 I know, right?
 So, spill. Details, girl.
 Oh, I can t go into all the lurid details. But he was& he was awesome. Maddie practically felt the
wistfulness in her own smile as she lifted her coffee to her lips. She glanced at Delia over the cup. Her
friend shook her head slowly, still in disbelief.
 Damn. I feel as proud as a& as a mother or something, like my little Maddie is all growed up now.
 Let s not be ridiculous. It happened, and it was good, and it definitely got my mind off things. If
nothing else, it showed me there s plenty more out there. David wasn t the be-all, end-all.
 So are you going to see this guy again? Tell me his name, at least. Maybe I know him if he s from
around here.
 I don t think he is. He s got a little bit of an accent, but I can t place it. He didn t talk about himself
much& but his name is Ash&  Damn. She hadn t even asked his last name.  Um, well, we didn t get that
far. But I doubt I ll be seeing him anymore. It was just one of those things, you know?
 Maddie. To me it would be just one of those things. But to you? I don t mean to sound all maternal
on you for real, but& are you sure you re okay with this?
The question sent an odd pang through her. She didn t like it how it seemed to curl up and
reverberate. Flashes from the night before assaulted her& Ash s hands on her skin, his eyes looking down
at her. His hard body, the sound of his voice. For that moment, all of her senses were overwhelmed and she
could still feel him deep inside her where she was still tender and aching. She waved her hand, pretending
to be absorbed in looking at a couple of CDs stacked on the counter.  I m fine.
 You obviously like him.
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Cherrie Lynn
 Well& yeah, of course for the few hours I spent with him. But so what? I made the decision. I m a
big girl, I can deal with it.
 So what is David s problem?
Oh no. To tell her that would be to admit what she was going through, what she d always gone
through. What if Delia came to the same conclusion as David? What if Maddie was slowly coming to the
same conclusion? That was the worst thought of all.
 David& doesn t love me. Hey, it was the truth. The truth underlying it all, actually.  End of story.
 I m so sorry, hon.
 Yeah, well. You lose some, you lose some. A bitter chuckle escaped.
 Look, there s someone out there for you. I think maybe you should give Mr. Hot Stuff from last
night a shot, see if this can go beyond the bedroom. Any man who puts a look like that on a woman s face
is worth the chance. Hell, I wish I could find that.
Involuntarily, Maddie lifted a hand to her cheek. Did she really look that different from one night of
sex?  I don t really want to see anyone, though. I m  She cut off, coming dangerously close to
explaining that she was dealing with so much crap right now, but she didn t want Delia asking about it.
Sadness settled in her soul. I don t have one friend I can really talk to about this.
Except Ash. The person she d taken home to get her mind off life, the one she d wanted to use for
orgasms but keep at a safe distance, had been the one she d effortlessly opened up to. The one who d held
her when she freaked out with not an ounce of judgment in his eyes.
 I didn t get his number or even his last name. I don t know where he lives he could just be passing
through. He knows where I live, though, so if he wants to see me, it s up to him to come to me.
Delia nodded, looking troubled, then popped another piece of croissant into her mouth. Her
expression instantly dissolved into near-ecstasy.  See, all I have to give me that womanly glow is a gigantic
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