Perfectly Ms. Matched(49)

“No!” Was she breaking things off with him? Panic clenched his gut. He needed to change the subject—quick. “You need that money to expand. Let’s just focus on the time we have left. Last night was fantastic. Right?”

“It was.” A smile tugged the corners of her mouth before she kissed him.

As her tongue made love to his, desire for her welled up inside of him again. He could never get enough of Jo.

When she finally broke their kiss, he grabbed her hand, hauling her out of bed with him, and made his way toward the shower. “I want you one more time. And later, there’s some business I’d like to discuss.”

She arched a brow. “On one condition.”

“Name your terms.” He reached out to turn the water on, but she slapped his hand away. She hated cool showers like he liked.

After turning the water to scalding, she pulled him under the spray with her. “My condition is that you tell me what you’d like me to do to you for a change.”

“That’s a deal.”



Jo stared out the window of Chad’s truck as they neared the cemetery where Bryce had been buried. With an aching heart, Jo did her best to stay out of the conversation Chad was having with Ryan about dogs. Ryan wanted one badly, but Chad was against it. She figured every kid should have a dog to love and care for, but she wasn’t the one who’d be taking care of it in the long run. Unfortunately. She kept her opinion quiet and tried to prepare herself to see the headstone her parents had picked out because she’d been too distraught at the time to do it.

Ryan crossed his arms and blurted out, “You’re just being mean, Chad! Right, Jo?”

Chad reached out and took her hand, giving a little squeeze. “Don’t drag Jo into this, Ryan. She has other things on her mind today.”

“What things?”

She turned around and smiled at Ryan. “Chad and I had a baby a long time ago, but he died before he could come home from the hospital. We’re going to visit where he’s buried to leave him a present, and then we can go get some pizza to celebrate his birthday. How does that sound?” She hoped that had been the right thing to say to a five-year-old.

“Pizza party?” Ryan threw both fists above his head. “Yes!”

“Pizza?” Chad sent her a stern look, but it quickly morphed into a grin. “I guess we can top it with vegetables.”

Jo shook her head. “That’s like ordering a burger and fries and then justifying it with a diet soda. Do what you want, but I want mine loaded.” It was easier to think about pizza than what they were about to do. Instead, she’d look forward to having something fun to do in Bryce’s honor afterward.

Ryan called out from the back, “I want loaded too!”

“Fine. Loaded it is, then.” Chad sighed as they passed through the iron gates.

She poked him in the ribs. “I can remember someone who used to have large loaded pizzas delivered to his dorm room for a late-night study snack. And then eat the whole thing by himself.”

He smiled. “You never wanted any so late at night. But that just proves how young and dumb I was back then.”

Now it was her turn to sigh. “I can’t argue with that.”

Instead of the smart rebuttal she expected from him, sadness settled in Chad’s eyes as they slowly drove the meandering road surrounded on both sides by snow-covered monuments. Finally, he pulled over, so she grabbed the flowers she’d brought and steeled herself for what she needed to do.

She’d vowed she wouldn’t cry. She’d done that for far too long after her baby’s passing.

As she followed behind Chad and Ryan in silence, she glanced up and her heart melted. A small headstone stood before them, decorated for Bryce’s birthday. Mylar balloons in the shape of cartoon superheroes, and a bright happy birthday banner draped across the top.

God, how sweet was that? It made the dam break and her threatening tears fall.

After she laid down the flowers she’d brought, Jo wiped away her tears, and studied the headstone. It was beautiful white marble with winged cherubs and angels carved into it.

Reading the short span of time between the dates of his birth and death brought tears back to her eyes again. Chad appeared at her side and stood silently as she fought the bad memories that threatened to make her fall completely apart. But as she noted the smooth stone, and the lovely carvings, a strange sense of peace filled her. Bryce had been loved. And he was with those angels. She was glad she’d agreed to come.

Ryan slipped between them and took both hers and Chad’s hands. “Did the baby like loaded pizza too?”

Jo blinked back her tears and smiled. “I bet he would’ve.” Another lump formed in her throat thinking of what Bryce might have been like.