“I think we should talk,” Ava replied, looking extremely uncomfortable. Gwen felt a perverse sense of pleasure that the usually poised Ava Stone seemed ill at ease. She always felt frumpy compared to the other woman and this was like a small, although petty, victory for her.

Pinching the bridge of her nose, Gwen doodled on her desk pad as she said, “I don’t see what we would need to talk about. We’ve never been friends or even acquaintances so there’s not really anything to say.”

Ava took a few steps into the room until she was in front of her desk. Gwen was surprised to see her hands trembling as she clasped them together. “Please, Gwen. I realize that you don’t owe me anything and that you probably hate me, but I would like a chance to clear the air with you. Dominic and Mac are best friends, and I don’t want anything to change that. I owe you an apology and an explanation, and I hope that you’ll give me the opportunity to do both. Please . . .”

Gwen studied the other woman for a moment before getting slowly to her feet and pulling her purse from her desk drawer. She had no idea why she was agreeing to this. Maybe, at the very least, she was curious as to what had happened to end her relationship with Mac so abruptly. She had told Dominic that she didn’t love Mac and that was true, but Ava was offering her something that she’d never had in past relationships—an explanation. A reason why things had ended. “Okay, how about the sandwich shop around the corner?”

Ava waved Gwen in front of her saying, “I’ll just follow you. I’m not sure which place you’re talking about.” Gwen clenched her jaw as she preceded the other woman down the hall. No matter how much Dominic seemed to admire her ample ass, she still felt self-conscious knowing the thin blonde was behind her. The jersey dress that had seemed like a good idea this morning suddenly felt too tight. When she heard Ava clear her throat and say, “I like your dress,” Gwen had to fight the urge to run away. She also had to wonder if Ava was being sarcastic even though she heard nothing but sincerity in her voice.

“Um . . . thanks,” she replied grudgingly. She was grateful to see the usual crowd of people on the elevator, which made it possible to avoid further conversation. In fact, not another word was uttered between them until they were seated at a table in the sandwich shop.

Gwen ordered a bowl of vegetable soup and a turkey sandwich while Ava, damn her, ordered a chef salad with the dressing on the side. Was it too much to hope that she’d at least have some carbs in her meal? Seeing Ava’s hand shake as she lifted her water glass to her lips gave her a moment’s pause. Apparently, they were both nervous about this unexpected lunch. Finally, Ava took a deep breath before saying, “I . . . God, this is so awkward, isn’t it?”

Relaxing just a bit, Gwen nodded before admitting, “Yeah, it sure is. I don’t guess there is much of a way around that, though, considering the circumstances.”

“No, I don’t suppose so,” Ava agreed. “Gwen, I had planned to seek you out even before I found out that you and Dominic were seeing each other. If not for discovering that this morning, I would have probably chickened out for at least a few more weeks before I worked up the nerve to speak to you.”

Gwen couldn’t contain the reluctant smile that curved her lips at the other woman’s candor. She had fully expected to dislike her forever, but found that she seemed more down-to-earth than she had imagined. Curious, she asked, “What does my seeing Dominic have to do with this meeting?”

“I care about Dominic—as a friend.” Ava smiled fondly. “Also, he, Mac, Gage, and my brother Declan are extremely close. I don’t want my actions with Mac to drive a wedge between them.” Gwen could see Ava mentally bracing herself before saying, “I love Mac—I always have—but I’m not proud of my recent behavior, especially where you are concerned. In order for you to understand the relationship that I’ve had with Mac for years, I need to tell you a little about our past. It’s difficult for me, but it’s the only way you’ll hopefully understand some of our history.”

Seeing how hard this was for Ava, Gwen held up her hand, saying gently, “You don’t have to tell me anything. Yes, I was hurt by what happened with Mac, but I’m a big girl and I’ll recover.”

“Please,” Ava begged, “just let me try to explain myself.” After a moment, Gwen nodded for Ava to proceed. “Mac’s family lived next door to my grandfather, so we knew each other most of our lives. I’ve loved him for as long as I can remember, but he treated me more like a sister. Fast forward several years and I went to my first prom with a guy who I’d been seeing for a bit. That night he . . . he raped me.”

“Oh, my God,” Gwen gasped out, hardly able to believe what she had just heard.

A single tear tracked down Ava’s cheek before she quickly wiped it away. “Afterward, I managed to make it to Mac’s house, and he found me. I—I wasn’t the same after that. My grandfather didn’t report it to the police and made me feel like it was my fault. Mac . . . he tried to be there for me, but I pushed him away. Eventually, he joined the Marines along with my brother, Declan. He still wrote and visited me anytime he could. After he was discharged, we formed a friendship again, spending a lot of time together, and I knew that he wanted more from me, but I wasn’t capable of giving it to him. I did everything I could to push him away and to make him believe that I was normal, when I was anything but. Finally, he had had enough and decided to move on with his life. When he started dating you, I panicked. I knew Mac slept with other women, just as he believed I slept with other men. But, he never dated anyone—until you.”