Dane was the childhood friend Mariel could always rely on. They spent a lot of time together, and had many memories, good and bad, that they shared. Mariel had mistakenly thought her teenage self in love wih Dane, pursuing him to his home one night after a first kiss, and found him going at it with another girl in his garage. Dane was upset by her leaving, but even he was not ready to admit to any feelings of forever after, then or in the present.
Mariel has been gone for ten years. Back with her family, broke from an ex-lover and business partner that squandered her fortune, she wants to design mens clothing. Dane is now all grown up and he agrees to help her, as long as she helps him by pretending to be his lover.
Dane and Mariel sizzle together, and it is not long before they are really lovers. Mariel knows she loves him, but Dane does not do commitment or forever after. Will bringing him back together with his father help him learn to love?
A very nice story.