Paige exhaled, threw her hands up, and flopped against the back of the booth. June and the rest of the patrons sat nodding their heads and smiling and then went back to their dinners. Apparently all was right in the world again.
"So, you're really not married?" She couldn't believe it, all the guilt she had been suffering, all the pulling back, all because she thought she was wrecking a marriage.
"I'm really not married, and now the only woman I want to be with is you. Will you let me walk you home?" He looked so nervous. He was usually so confident that she couldn't stop from reaching out and taking his hand in hers.
"Sure. I'd like to go home now." Will smiled and squeezed her hand. He let her step in front of him as they walked toward the door. As Will reached to open the front door for her, she looked back and saw June high-five Paige. She shook her head at them and then shook for a completely different reason as she felt Will's hand slide along her waist and pull her against his side.
Will guided her across the street and too soon they were on Miss Lily's porch. Will cleared his throat and brought her to a stop turning her to face him. "I know I'm not royalty, and I know I come with baggage in the form of a nasty ex-wife. But what I want to know is… do I have a chance? Kenna, do I have any chance to be with you?"
Her heart was thudding so loudly, she knew he had to hear it. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. He didn't think he had a chance with her. Will, who was her first kiss and was so kind, so caring. He looked after his parents, the farm, and all the employees. He coached kids for free, helping them achieve their dreams. And he thought he wasn't good enough for her because he wasn't royalty.
Kenna smiled slowly and took a step toward him, placing her hand on the ridges of his abs, gently running it up his chest and around the back of his neck. She took another step closer and pulled his head down to hers. She gently touched her lips to his and tasted his shock. It only took a second for him to comprehend her meaning. She felt one arm come around her waist and the other reach up her back to pull her flush against him. He deepened the kiss and Kenna was lost to the feeling of her breasts pressed against his chest and his erection pressing against her stomach. His fingers were dancing down her spine as he opened her mouth further and found her tongue with his. She didn't know how long the kiss went on and felt the vast space between them as he pulled away. A slight moan came from her. She opened her eyes and realized the porch light had been turned on. Miss Lily, with her broom, was at the window by the door and looking out at them.
Will rested his forehead against hers. "We've been busted." This time, both laughed and saw the curtain fall back as they heard Miss Lily open the front door.
As Kenna got ready for bed that night, she thought about all that Will had told her and that Whitney had showed up at the sales and had wanted half of all the money Will had earned. She didn't seem to care that money went to the payment of his employees, training of horses, payment of vets, trainers, jockeys, and the upkeep of the farm. Nope, she just wanted money. It also didn't matter to her that they had been divorced for two years and their settlement was all she'd ever get from him.
Will had told her the reason she was so greedy for his money was that he had listened to his mother about getting a pre-nup. His parents said they would leave the farm to charity before giving it to him if he didn't protect the revenue and property of the farm. They had also pressured him into a clause protecting all the money he had made prior to marriage. And finally, they made Whitney agree to a cash payout in the event of divorce.
Whitney had been sweet, attentive, and talked on and on about wanting children, which Will told her he wanted. The thought of Will as a father brought a sense of peace within Kenna, especially if she were the mother. But she decided not to look at that too closely right now. One week after Will and Whitney returned from the honeymoon, she approached him with a reality TV deal, similar to those of other athletes and their wives. The show would revolve around how hard it is to be the wife of a pro athlete. They would pay to have her redecorate his bachelor pad. They asked to put him in situations where women where throwing themselves at him so Whitney could talk about infidelity among players. And worst of all, they wanted to set up cameras all over the house, in the cars, and even in the locker room at the stadium. When he had told her there was no shot in hell of his agreeing to this, he began to see the shift from sweet girl next door to greedy bitch. She whined, pouted, and spent ungodly amounts of money until he had to close his credit cards. They had only been married six months when Will got news of his father’s heart attack. It had been the easiest choice he ever made. He let the front office know it was going to be his last season, and he started packing up to move back home to take over the family farm.