Good Husband Material
Kara Lennox
MILLS & BOON
Before you start reading, why not sign up?
Thank you for downloading this Mills & Boon book. If you want to hear about exclusive discounts, special offers and competitions, sign up to our email newsletter today!
SIGN ME UP!
Or simply visit
signup.millsandboon.co.uk
Mills & Boon emails are completely free to receive and you can unsubscribe at any time via the link in any email we send you.
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter One
As Natalie Briggs looped her name badge around her neck, she casually checked out the remaining badges on the table.
Casually, until she saw the one that read Josh Carlson. Then she had to swallow hard and look away, hoping her panic wasnt obvious. How was this possible?
Her friend Melissa had assured her Josh wouldnt come. Hed made partner a couple of years ago at the Houston law firm hed been working for since he got his law degree. That meant he didnt have time for a silly class reunion.
She didnt bear him malice, really. But it would be so awkward seeing him after all these years.
Natalie!
She found herself scooped into a bear hug by a five-foot-two tornado. Though Natalie couldnt see the tornados face, she knew it was Melissa Bailey Pelton, the only person in tiny Camden, Texas, shed kept in touch with over the last several years.
With her mounds of bright red hairalways completely out of controland mischievous green eyes, Melissa had an eternal youthfulness about her that would probably still be with her when she was a hundred.
Natalie, you look fabulous! I cant believe you actually came!
I told you I was coming, didnt I? Then she added in a whisper, But you told me Josh wouldnt be here. You promised.
He RSVPd at the last minute, Melissa said with a shrug. Anyway, I want to see him. Weve exchanged a few calls and e-mails over the years, but I havent actually laid eyes on him since you guys split upwhat, twenty years ago?
Twenty years ago this month, as a matter of fact.
Ah, so you keep track. Before Natalie could comment, Melissa led her to a table, where a few others from their old crowd were sitting drinking beer and noshing on chicken wings. Look who I found!
Hey, its Stick!
Shrieks of recognition and lots of hugging followed. Back in high school, theyd been the brainy group, the ones who actually read the assigned books in English class and enjoyed them. The ones whod planned on going to college, though not all of them had.
Lookin good, Stick, said Tommy, the one whod dubbed her with her not-very-flattering nickname because shed been so skinny.
Not such a stick anymore, she said with a grin.
Natalie hugged each of them in turn and met a few spouses as warm memories flooded her. Diane Helms, whod played flute in the marching band; Bud Conklin, who read books on theoretical physics just for fun; Tommy Garrett, who loved practical jokes. Though some of them had less hair, more padding and a few more laugh lines, they were all instantly recognizable and seemed exactly the same.
It was too bad shed let these friendships slip away. After her mother died, shed found no compelling reason to return to her small hometown.
Camden and her old friends had only been a painful reminder of how happy theyd all beenhow happy she and Josh had been before the struggles of the real world had taken their toll.
One more person came forward and Natalie found herself nose-to-chin with Josh Carlson.
Her ex-husband.
She stepped back, and every molecule of air in her lungs whooshed out, leaving her unable to speak.
Natalie. His voice was warm, sexy, almost provocative. Melissa said you couldnt come to the reunion.
Natalie shot her friend a scathing look, but Melissa pretended not to notice.
I decided at the last minute, Natalie said when she could find her voice. It came out sounding remarkably normal. Oh, Lord in heaven, why couldnt he have aged like their friendslike her? Josh Carlson in the flesh was justan assault on her senses. Hed filled out some, but he wasnt carrying an ounce of excess weight anywhere she could see, and his hair was as dark and thick as ever, though he wore it quite a bit shorter than she remembered. The slight silvering at the temples didnt detract from his appeal at all.
He was six feet of lean, broad-shouldered, gorgeous male, and Natalies knees had suddenly turned to rubber.
You look fabulous, he said. The men are going to line up to dance with you like they did in high school.
Natalie laughed. The comment was such an exaggeration, and for some reason it put her at ease. This was the same Josh, even if he was a fancy lawyer now, and he didnt appear to hate her. Maybe that was what shed feared most.
Sit down, you two! Melissa insisted. Here, have a beer. Someone had brought a round of cold bottles from a well-stocked cooler. Hey, this is just like prom except we dont have to sneak the alcohol.
Natalie felt her face grow warm. Every class at Camden High held their junior-senior prom at the VFW Hall. It was the only place in town that could comfortably hold a few hundred people. Memories of her own first prom were sharp in her mind; that was the night she and Josh made love for the first time, at the end of their junior year.
She glanced over at him and saw that he was studying her, his expression pensive. Was he remembering that night, also? A lot of their friends had been slipping out to the parking lot to drink, or sneaking sips from contraband flasks. But Josh and Natalie hadnt needed any mood-altering substances. Theyd been high on each other. Theyd only been dating a few months, but theyd both known their relationship was special, and theyd decided to wait until that particular night to consummate their love.
Natalie had driven all the way into Austin, more than an hour away, to visit a clinic and get birth control pills. Ironic, now that she thought about it. She hadnt needed themwould never need them.
As if she didnt have enough nostalgia coming at her from all directions, the reunion committee had dug up the same band that had played at their proms. It was hard to believe they were still together. Now graying, some of them near retirement age, they nonetheless could still play, at least as well as they did twenty-five years ago, which hadnt been all that great. But the music was loud, and the songs were the hits of their era, each one with memories attached.
Hey, come on, what are we sitting around for? Melissa demanded. Lets dance!
Oh, sure, right. Everybody at the table was already paired upexcept Natalie and Josh. She was going to kill Melissa when she got the chance.
Josh started to his feet, but Natalie froze. Melissa grabbed her by the arm. Come on! You love to dance!
But
Stop being such a stick-in-the-mud, Melissa said with a gleam in her eye. Drink down that beer, then yall get out here and dance.
Stick-in-the-mud. Melissas ultimate insult when she was trying to get someone to do something they shouldnt. Natalie had fallen for it every time in high school, and to her surprise she wasnt immune to it even now.
Josh drained his beer, then gave Natalie a challenging look. Cmon, Nat. Its just dancing.
Oh, all right. If she didnt agree, Melissa would bug her until she did. They would all be dancing in a big group anyway, like they used to, the girls dancing more for each other than for the guys, who always stood around like lumps and shuffled their feet.
The dance floor was crowded. Melissa carved out a spot for their group, and pretty soon they were all dancing to songs made famous by Hall and Oates, Huey Lewis and John Cougar. The years fell away. They were all seventeen againbut no one had a curfew.
Inevitably the band turned to country music, and almost without noticing, Natalie was in Joshs arms for an easy two-step. By the time she realized where she was, it was too late to back out.
Josh grinned at her. Its great to see you, Nat. Ive missed you.
She swallowed, trying to relieve the dryness in her mouth. This would be easier if he werent so darned confident. She sought a subject of conversation, and decided something that reminded them both of the huge gulf between them would be welcome. So, how are your boys?
His smile widened. The boys are great. Seans going into his senior yearplays football and guitar. He has a girlfriend, too, which scares the hell out of me.
Afraid hell run off and get married? Which was exactly what Josh and Natalie had done, right after high school graduation.
Yeah. Or hell get the girl pregnant. Theyre already, you knowsexual.
Your son tells you?
I pried it out of him. Wanted to make sure he was being responsible about it.
Natalie knew she would soon have those same kinds of worries. Her daughter, Mary, had turned sixteen just last month. Shed told Natalie she was still a virgin, and Natalie believed her. They were very close, and Mary knew Natalie would support her fully and love her unconditionally no matter what she did. But these days, Mary was looking more and more grown-up, and she seemed to be constantly on the phone with boys.
It was only a matter of time.
So what about your younger son? Doug, right?
He arched one eyebrow at her in surprise.
Hey, I read our alumni newsletter.
Ah. Doug is great. Hes the serious onea little bit more like me when I was that age. Kind of shy, but he has lots of friends. And hes a brainiacstraight As.
I bet theyre both handsome.
They take after their mother. Blond hair, blue eyes. And very handsome, even if I do say so myself. He paused. You have a daughter, I hear.
From Melissa, no doubt. Natalie was sure Josh didnt approve of her decision to adopt without a husband. She smiled, ready to prove to him that shed done an excellent job raising her daughter alone. Yes. Marys sixteen and perfect in every way.
Thats motherly love for you. No teenager is perfect.
Well, maybe not perfect. But shes my joy. Never gives me any trouble.
My kids are great, too, but they keep me in a constant state of terror.
There is that, Natalie conceded. I guess I do worry about Mary, though shes never given me any real reason to.
You wouldnt be normal if you didnt worry.
Well, that exhausted the subject of children. Your parents? They doing okay? Joshs parents, whod owned the Camden National Bank, had sold the bank and moved to a posh retirement community in Galveston a few years earlier. Theyd never been overly fond of Natalie, but she still felt obliged to ask after them.
Theyre great. They live right by the beach, and my father plays golf every day. I was sorry to hear about your mom. I wanted to come to the funeral but
I know. Melissa said you were worried about making me uncomfortable. The flowers you sent were beautiful, and I very much appreciated the donation you made in her name to the American Cancer Society.
Your mom was always really cool.
Unlike his parents, who were tense and controlling. If his father played golf, he was probably competitive as hell.
Do you love being a lawyer? she asked. Nice and safe.
I like it a lot, though I still have to work too many hours. Makes being a single parent something of a challenge.
I know what you mean.
Youre still doing the nurse thing?
Loving every minute of it.
Hey, if I were in the hospital, Id want you as my nurse.
Good Lord, he was flirting with her. Youre a little old.
What?
Im a pediatric nurse. I work in the neonatal unit, so all of my patients are newborns.
Josh smiled again, a little sadly. I can definitely see you doing that.
Of course he could. From the time she could walk and talk, shed been fascinated with babies. How many times had Josh been forced to stand around while she oohed and aahed over some baby shed spotted at the mall? Shed volunteered to take care of babies at the church nursery and shed babysat every chance she got, looking forward to the day when she could hold her very own newborn in her arms.
Only that day never came. Shed thrown away her birth control pills the day shed gotten married, with Joshs full blessing. Though they had no money and no plans, they knew they wanted kids.
But the pregnancy never happened.
They saw a fertility doctor. The problem was Nataliesshe had under-functioning ovaries. If she ovulated at all, it had been extremely erratic. Theyd tried fertility drugs, which hadnt worked, and they simply hadnt had the money to pursue the next step, which would have been in vitro fertilization.
The constant efforts, continual worries and monthly disappointments when pregnancy tests came up negative combined to put stress on a marriage already overburdened with money problems. Theyd both been going to college and holding down various jobs, all while navigating around the strident disapproval of Joshs parents, whod been horrified by the sudden marriage of their only son.
Natalie hadnt been willing to give up. She was going to get a baby, no matter what it took. Shed wanted to adopt, and shed been ready to put them on a list, figuring that by the time a baby became available they would have the money for all the legal fees. But Josh drew the line. Hed wanted to raise his own child, and had insisted that they keep trying, pretending that some miracle was just around the corner.
In hindsight, she understood his hesitation. But at the time, shed thought he was being narrow-minded.
Her attention was jerked back to the present when the lights dropped down low and the band switched gears to a slow song.