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to stick around for a while. She chuckled lightly when Rob finally caught up with her sons, scooping one up in each arm and swinging them around. That was no small feat considering Joseph had just had a growth spurt. She could hear their laughter. Eric had never roughhoused with the boys. He always said he didn’t want them messing up his clothes or his hair. It still was hard to swallow that she had actually married such a man. The more time passed, the less she could explain what she had ever even liked about him or what had attracted her enough to make her believe she had loved him and wanted to marry him.
    Sighing, she walked slowly, making her way to catch up with them while enjoying the feel of the sand between her toes. The slowness of her gait wasn’t only because of the pleasurable feel of the silky-soft sand; it was all part and parcel of her recovery. Walking long distances still caused some discomfort, but after the scene she had just witnessed, she’d gladly deal with the muscle aches.
    By the time she met up with the three of them, her boys were already sitting down in the sand enjoying their ice cream cones. She smiled at them as they waved and just then, Rob turned and handed her a cone. She nearly cried when she saw it. He had remembered all her favorites: chocolate ice cream, wafer cone, and chocolate sprinkles.
    Reading her thoughts, Rob leaned in close to her and whispered, “I always think of you when I have chocolate ice cream.” His voice was so deep, so masculine, Jordan had shivers of delight running down her spine.
    Memories of other picnics, picnics shared under the stars after making love when he’d fed her chocolate ice cream, swam in Jordan’s brain. The playfulness of young love, the laughter, the plans… Being with Rob back then had been a full-sensory experience. Everything had been new and exciting, and their whole future had loomed brightly ahead of them. It had been a long time since she’d allowed herself to look back on that time in her life and remember all that was good, all that was right, and how much she had loved Rob.
    Tingling all over, Jordan moved away quickly to the safety of her children. Rob joined them moments later on the sand, and they all ate in silence, enjoying the cool breeze coming off the water and the sweet ice cream.
    â€œThank you so much,” Jordan said finally as she bit into her cone. “It’s been a long time since we’ve indulged like this, right, guys?” The sight of her boys nearly made her cry out with laughter. There seemed to be ice cream everywhere. Rob, noticing the same thing, jumped up to grab some extra napkins to assist in the cleanup.
    He’d make a great father. Jordan blushed at the thought. “Thank you,” the boys said in unison when he came back and handed them each a stack of napkins. Once they were done and cleaned up, they stood and asked Jordan if they could go down near the water and look for shells.
    â€œOh, I don’t know, guys.” She hesitated. “I’m sure the water is very cold now and—”
    â€œWe’ll walk down with you while you check it out,” Rob interrupted. He was getting awfully cocky with her and he knew he was pushing some buttons that he probably shouldn’t, but he couldn’t seem to help himself. The look on her face when he spoke had been priceless. He chose to ignore her wide-eyed response to him and instead stood up, brushed off the excess sand, and held out a hand to her.
    Instead of arguing, Jordan reached up and accepted his hand. The contact was electric and as soon as she was steady on her feet, she quickly removed her hand from his and turned to look out to where the boys had run off to. Without a word, she and Rob walked side by side toward the water.
    The loud shrieks confirmed what Jordan had thought: very cold water. The boys didn’t seem to mind, and after she finished her cone, she sat back down in