Until Now. Kayla Perrin

am in your car after a night at your house that I don’t even remember. This isn’t like me. I do—” She faltered. “I do remember kissing you. And then...I wake up half-naked in your bed?”

      Marshall’s eyes widened, as though intrigued. “You don’t remember what happened?”

      “No. Which tells me I obviously wasn’t in my right mind. And you...you should have known better, even if I didn’t.”

      “So that’s why you seem on edge,” he said, sounding as though he finally got it.

      For someone who touted himself as a trained investigator, he was also a little dense.

      “Of course that’s why I’m on edge,” Tamara responded, her words a little harsher than she’d intended. “I’m not the kind of woman you typically date.”

      “How would you know the kind of woman I typically date?”

      “It’s obvious.”

      “Really?” Marshall sounded amused. “How is it obvious?”

      Tamara had started something, something she wished she hadn’t. She should have just kept her mouth shut. Moved on from the mistake of the night before and forgotten it ever happened.

      “Come on. You say something like that, you’ve got to explain yourself. I met you last night. How on earth can you act as if you know me?”

      “Didn’t you start off at the wedding with someone else?” Tamara raised an eyebrow as if she had just scored a match point.

      “My cousin, Renee. I told you that.”

      “Right,” Tamara scoffed. “She looked like she just came from the Playboy mansion.”

      “She is beautiful. And she’s also my cousin. I wouldn’t lie about that.”

      Tamara glanced at Marshall. He appeared truthful. Which only made her feel even dumber than getting so drunk the night before that she didn’t remember a thing.

      But the truth was, she knew of Marshall’s reputation. He could pretend to be a choirboy, and maybe he had changed, but life had taught her that people didn’t just transform into better versions of themselves. She had married Patrick, ignoring his early bouts of jealousy, thinking he would calm down once he felt secure with the reality that she was his wife. Instead, Patrick’s behavior had only intensified.

      Marshall had always had a reputation as being a ladies’ man, and she didn’t imagine that that would have changed throughout the years. The fact that she’d ended up at his house, in his bed, did more to prove he was the same man he’d been thirteen years ago.

      “The fact that you took me home last night speaks volumes,” Tamara said.

      “Does it, now?” Marshall asked.

      “In my state of mind? Of course it does.” She still didn’t understand how she’d gotten so drunk, but that was a moot point now. “But I’m just letting you know that whatever happened, it was a one-time thing. I’m not the sort of woman who hooks up with men for one-night stands. That is totally not me.”

      Marshall nodded slowly. “I see.”

      “I suspect that’ll suit you just fine anyway,” she added in a voice that was almost a whisper.

      “Excuse me?”

      With a huge sense of relief, Tamara started to recognize her old neighborhood. “Oh, thank God. We’re almost there.”

      “Can’t wait to get away from me,” Marshall commented, sounding as though he was speaking to himself. “I guess I should be offended.”

      Tamara didn’t respond, just sipped her coffee. She wished she could be out of the car already.

      Away from Marshall.

      Maybe it was better that she had no recollection of last night. Even if all she and Marshall had done last night was fool around a little, it was still too much for her liking. Not knowing the details, she could pretend that nothing had happened.

      Sure, it wasn’t the most mature way to look at things, but she didn’t particularly feel like being an adult about this. Because as she neared Callie and Nigel’s house, she was wondering how on earth she was going to explain herself to her son and to her friends.

      Minutes later, Marshall slowed and turned into the driveway of Callie and Nigel’s home and pulled up behind Tamara’s car. Yesterday, between the wedding and the reception, Tamara had followed Callie to the house when she’d brought the boys to the sitter, and they had gone to the reception hall in one car. Tamara was extremely grateful she’d had the foresight to do that, which saved her from having to head back to the reception hall this morning.

      As Marshall put the car into Park, Tamara began to undo the seat belt immediately. But as she reached to open the door with her other hand, Marshall took her gently by the wrist.

      She looked at him. “What are you doing?”

      “You don’t want to ask me what happened last night? You don’t want to know?” he said as he released her wrist.

      Tamara swallowed. She wanted to know, but then again she didn’t want to know. Her chest tightened with anxiety even while her stomach fluttered with a different sensation.

      “Whatever happened, I think it’s best that we for—”

      “Forget it. Fine.”

      Marshall’s response gave Tamara pause. Guilt made her stomach tense. She was being harsh with him, and he looked as though he had no clue why.

      It was time she fill him in. “You dated my cousin,” she told him. “That’s how I know all about you. I’m not passing judgment out of thin air.”

      Marshall’s eyes narrowed with confusion. “What?”

      “Twelve years ago—thirteen, actually—you dated my cousin, and you broke her heart. Gloria Miller?” she added, when he continued to seem clueless. “You chased her, you got what you wanted and then you dumped her. She was crushed. And she wasn’t the only woman you used and abused. There were plenty. Your reputation...it was pretty infamous.”

      Understanding filled Marshall’s eyes. “Ahh, so that explains your attitude.” He paused. “Then the kiss last night...?”

      “Was a bit of payback. I was toying with you. Letting you know that you can’t get your way with every woman. The kiss was about...teaching you a lesson.” Tamara quickly looked downward, shame coming over her. Some lesson that had been.

      “At least now I know why you think ill of me. But clearly, whatever lesson you wanted to teach me didn’t go exactly as planned.”

      Tamara whipped her gaze to his. “I realize that! You don’t have to rub it in.”

      Several seconds passed, seconds that seemed like hours. Marshall stared at her, and Tamara held his gaze, determined not to let her embarrassment get to her.

      “I really do need to get inside.”

      “And here I thought we’d made some sort of connection last night. I mean, that kiss didn’t feel like payback...”

      “You need me to spell it out? I’m not interested. Not in a guy like you.”

      “Ouch.”

      “Okay,” Tamara said, breathing out harshly. “This has gone in a direction I never intended. Please, let’s just forget all of it. I apologize for being offensive. Obviously things got to a certain level between us last night and I’m upset about that. And now I keep putting my foot in my mouth. I’m embarrassed enough.”

      “I’m not stopping you from leaving,” Marshall said.

      “Thank you.” Tamara opened the door.

      But as she was stepping out the car, Marshall said, “Though