When I made my first lap, I found Rhys grinning at me like the Cheshire cat in Alice in Wonderland. Ignoring him, I kept walking and reciting “Tomochichi.” Of course, while I might have been saying the dead chief’s name out loud, it was Rhys’s name I was saying inside my head.

Once I was finished, I took my hand off the stone and turned questioningly to him. “Now what?”

“You just wait for your wish to come true.”

“Have you ever done it?”

“Nope. Not even when I was a kid here on a field trip, and the tour guides told us about it.”

“Why not?”

He shrugged. “I guess I didn’t have anything to wish for.”

“Well, that’s just sad. Life is all about having wants and desires, isn’t it?”

“I suppose so. I just never gave much time and effort to thinking about them.”

It was so strange that I had known him for seven years, spent hours and hours of time with him in different places, yet when it came down to it, I felt like I didn’t know him at all. He was a puzzle that needed to be solved, but at the same time, I had the feeling that some of the pieces were missing. Pieces that I would somehow have to dig deep to unearth.

“Where to now, Captain Tour Guide?”

“River Street is just a few blocks down there.” He motioned to the north.

“Okay, sounds good.”

“I’ll sweeten the tour by taking you in to River Street Sweets for a famous praline.”

“Mmm, I love pralines. I don’t think I’ve been down on River Street since our 8th grade overnight field trip.”

“I think you’re totally overdue for one then.”

As we continued the walk down to River Street, Rhys pointed out different landmarks of interest. He didn’t just keep it to a history lesson. He also told me great places to eat and hang out. Of course, I didn’t care about any of the places unless he planned to bring me back to them.

When we got down to the cobblestoned pavement of River Street, Rhys and I stopped into a few shops. I especially enjoyed the ones with gag gifts and T-shirts. Once we’d laughed and dared each other to buy several obnoxious ones, Rhys steered me into the huge candy store. The moment I stepped inside, I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply. “That smell is pure heaven,” I murmured.

He laughed. “I would have to agree.”

After eyeballing the many delicious goodies under the glass, I decided on some chocolate covered pecan clusters along with a caramel apple dipped in nuts. I also added a famous praline. As I munched on one of the samples of chocolate bark, Rhys put in an order that caused my eyes to bulge. “What?” he asked.

“You’re getting all that for you?”

“I’ve been known to have them ship stuff to me when I’m out on tour,” he replied, getting out his wallet.

“Who knew you had such a sweet tooth?”

“It’s epic. Trust me.”

I couldn’t help protesting when Rhys had them ring up my sweets with his. “No, let me get mine,” I protested.

“It was my idea, so let me treat you.”

“But only this one time since I’m a poor, struggling college student, and you’re mister money bags.”

Rhys laughed. “Whatever.” Once he had paid, he gave them his address to ship the candy to. I had been wondering how he would possibly get it out of the store, least of all back to his house.

After that was sorted, we walked back out into sunshine. “Are you hungry?” Rhys asked.

“Maybe a little,” I replied, after polishing off my second pecan cluster.

“How about some good seafood?”

“I’d love some.”

“Follow me then.”

When he started into Huey’s, which looked like a higher-end restaurant, I grabbed his arm. “No, I’m not dressed for this place,” I hissed, motioning to my jeans and T-shirt.

“It’ll be fine.”

“No, Rhys, please.”

His brows shot up. “Does it really bother you that much? Because I could give two shits about the way you’re dressed, and I’m a VIP.”

A smile played on my lips at his words. “Are you sure?”

“I’d hardly call my Ralph Lauren shirt and shorts black tie. Besides, it’s a tourist trap. Lots of people stumble in not realizing.”

“Fine. If you say so.”

“Trust me,” he said, holding my gaze with his dark eyes.

“Okay,” I muttered lamely.

He grinned as we walked up to the hostess stand. When the hostess glanced up from a pile of menus, she did a double take at the sight of Rhys. I think it was safe to say she totally recognized him not from being a hometown boy, but from his Runaway Train fame. “Oh, um, hi, how many?”

“Just two. Can we get a table with a river view?”

“Sure, yeah, one second.” She wrote and rewrote some numbers on a whiteboard before grabbing two menus. “Right this way,” she replied, with a megawatt smile that belonged on a Miss America contestant.

As she started leading us through the maze of tables, I leaned in close to Rhys. “I’m pretty sure your VIP status just jacked someone else’s table for us.”

Rhys chuckled. “I’m surprised she even recognized me. The bass player is never the noticed one in a band.”

I fought the urge to tell him that not all bass players were as hot as he was. Instead, I replied, “Here I thought it was the drummer lost behind the kit.”

“Do you think AJ could ever be lost to fans?”

I laughed. “Not really.”

The hostess motioned to our table, which gave us a great view of the river past the crowds sauntering down the street. Once she sat the menus down, she swept a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled broadly at Rhys. “Have a great dinner.”

“Thank you. I’m sure we will.”

Once she was out of earshot, I couldn’t help laughing. “Frankly, I don’t think she even noticed I was alive. She had total Rhys tunnel vision.”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” he teased, as he picked up his menu.

“Now you’re starting to sound like Jake or AJ.”

“That’s an awfully cocky combination.”

I laughed. “Exactly.” Glancing at my menu, I asked, “So what’s good here?”

“Since I’ve eaten your nana’s cooking before, I know you like Southern food.”

“What kind of Southern girl would I be if I didn’t enjoy collard greens and fried green tomatoes?”

“Not a very good one,” Rhys replied. Waving his menu, he added, “This place is fucking fabulous when it comes to Southern food. The fried green tomatoes here are kick-ass. Plus there’s low country boil on the menu, so you should be able to get the greens I know you love.”

My stomach rumbled in appreciation at his words. “Sounds good to me. Of course, everything looks good.”

When our waiter, with the name-tag, Lance, arrived, he had a star-struck moment as well at Rhys’s presence. “I know you’re here to eat and I don’t want to bother you, but I’m a huge Runaway Train fan,” he said, after he got our drink and appetizer orders.

“Thank you. That means a lot,” Rhys said politely. With the charm that I’m sure that had been bred into him from the time he was born, he added, “I’d be happy to sign something for you.”

Lance’s eyes bulged, and he momentarily fumbled with his leather envelope for taking orders. “That would be awesome. Thank you. Seriously, thank you!”

He then proceeded to back into another waiter and almost mowed him down along with a tray of alcoholic beverages. I had to bring my napkin up to my face to hide my laughter. When I recovered, I put down my napkin and asked, “Who would have thought it would have been the guy who lost his shit for you, rather than the girl?”

“Oh, I guarantee she’ll manage to find a way to slip her number to me.”

“You can’t be serious.” When he nodded, I said, “But you’re here with me.”

He shrugged. “You could be a friend or a sister. To some women it wouldn’t matter if I was sitting here with a wedding band on.”

“That’s disgusting,” I huffed, while reaching for my glass of water.

Rhys chuckled. “Why are you getting so incensed?”

“Because marriage is a sacred thing. A woman should see a gold band and understand that a man is off limits.”

When Rhys raised his brows at me, I felt warmth flood my cheeks. With just that one action, he had made me realize the irony of my comment. After all, I wouldn’t even be here if my parents hadn’t had an affair. Obviously, my mother hadn’t let the gold band on my father’s hand stop her. With my gaze focused on the white tablecloth, I asked, “Mind if we change the subject?”

“I’m sorry.”

“It isn’t your fault.” I glanced up to meet his gaze. “I guess I should say that I truly meant what I said. Regardless of what my parents did, I think cheating is very wrong. It’s something I could never do.”

Leaning forward, Rhys patted my hand tenderly. “You don’t have to worry about it. I know as well as anyone that we are not our parents.”

“You’re right,” I murmured.

“Now why don’t I tell you about Jax peeing in my face when Jake made me change his diaper last weekend?”

I giggled. “Oh no, he did?”

Thankfully, the conversation then flowed just as easily between us as it had all day. While it certainly wasn’t the first time we had ever been together, it was the first time it had been just the two of us. Usually we were with at least Jake and Abby, if not AJ and Brayden and their families. Rhys wanted to know about the classes I was taking. In between the appetizers of my gumbo and Rhys’s fried green tomatoes, I steered the conversation away from me and to him. “So how long are you here in Savannah?”

He took a bite of crispy fried tomato. “It just depends. Two weeks, three weeks, or until my parents drive me absolutely fucking nuts, and I have to flee for my sanity.”

My spoon filled with gumbo paused in midair as my heart ached for him. “Is it really that bad?”

With a shrug, Rhys replied, “Now they’re more annoying than anything else. Once they realized they weren’t going to be able to control my life, they eased up a bit.”

“Jake told me once they had disowned you,” I said, softly.

“Oh yeah, they did that after I left law school when the band got its first deal. As their firstborn son and keeper of the family name, they were not exactly thrilled I was ‘throwing away my life on a foolish dream.’”

Processing his words, I took another steamy bite of gumbo. Once I had swallowed it, I asked, “Did they change their mind when you had more financial success?”

Rhys speared a piece of tomato a little more forcefully than necessary. “No, it had more to do with my grandfather’s death, and the stipulations of his will.”

“Oh?” I asked, but I was interrupted by the waiter bringing out dinner. Although I was already half full from chocolate and now gumbo, the platter full of fried shrimp, oysters, and scallops made my stomach rumble in appreciation. After Rhys and I both dug in, a silence hung over the table while we began devouring our dinner.

After we both made a dent in our plates, I gave Rhys a sympathetic look. “I’m sorry about your grandfather.”

“Thank you. He was actually one of the most decent men I knew in spite of his wealth.”

“What was it in his will that made your parents change their minds?”

“One thing my grandfather believed in was family unity and putting on a strong family front to the world. As the only surviving son, most of the business investments would be going to my father. In order to receive them, he could not have his only son disowned. So in a way, my grandfather’s death paved the way for our reconciliation.” With a mirthless laugh, Rhys added, “It wasn’t so much that they cared about me. They cared about the money they would otherwise be losing.”

I shook my head. “I don’t believe that. Your father could have always rigged something on paper and continued ignoring you in real life. He must’ve wanted a reason to reconnect with you.”

After dabbing his mouth with his napkin, Rhys leaned back in his chair. “Not everyone’s family is like yours, Allison. They don’t all have honest motives for what they do, and most don’t experience or share much love. My parents have never hugged and kissed me like your parents do. I don’t know if I ever even remember them telling me they loved me.” When I gasped in pain for him, he shrugged, “It’s just something I’ve come to terms with over the years, and something I’ve learned to accept.”

“But it’s so wrong.”

“I don’t need your pity. I’m perfectly fine with the way things are.”

“No, you’re not. I can tell you’re putting on a front for me when truthfully, the situation with your parents is something that bothers you a lot.”