Page 57 of Forbidden Flame

I nodded. “You just need to pack your bag.”

Izzy scrambled off the bike, and I followed her inside. The house always seemed so empty when she was gone.

When we came back downstairs with her bag packed and her favorite blanket clutched in her hand, Dad said, “Feel free to go out tonight with your friends or whoever.”

I waited for Izzy to climb into the back seat of his truck and close the door before I said, “Daddy, nothing is going on with me and Cole.”

“If not him, then you should get out there and meet someone else. You and Izzy deserve the world, and I want you to be happy.”

“I am happy, Dad.”

He nodded and got into his truck. “I’ll call if there’s any issues. But there won’t be, right, Izzy?”

I didn’t hear her response before he closed the door and pulled away. It felt worse knowing that Dad would support me, but Cole didn’t want me.

I understood his situation was impossible. But I still wanted more time with the man I saw this morning. The one that was so patient and kind with my daughter. How could I finally find a guy who could be the one for me and my daughter, but we’re separated by a ridiculous family feud?

Dad sent me pictures of Jameson sitting at a small table and chairs with Izzy, pretending to drink tea out of tiny teacups. I loved that my overprotective brothers went soft for my little girl. Even if she didn’t have her biological father, she had a lot of men in her life that loved her.

I took advantage of the unexpected time alone to go through my closet and donate items I no longer wore. I didn’t feel like going out with the girls and experiencing their pressure to meet someone. Now that they were all paired off, they wanted me to find someone too.

What were the odds I’d find another man like Cole? The thing was, I was attracted to him in a way I wasn’t to anyone else. Did that come along more than once in a lifetime? I wasn’t so sure.

Chapter 13

Daphne

After the Easter Egg hunt, I found Izzy’s Easter basket on the porch. I texted Cole to thank him but he hadn’t asked to spend more time with us. Occasionally he’d ask how Izzy was doing, and I said she was fine. When he didn’t initiate more conversation, I sensed that he was keeping his distance.

What are you doing?

I just got done taking a bath.

There was a pause before he finally responded.

I was wondering if you and Izzy would want to come out and look at the stars. It’s a clear night for it.

Izzy’s at my dad’s.

I want to see you.

I want that too. But nothing has changed.

What if he changed his mind again? I couldn’t blame him, but I didn’t want to get hurt in the process.

Will you come see the stars, and we can talk?

I didn’t think it was a good idea. In fact, it was a terrible idea. I shouldn’t get in any deeper with Cole than I already had. But the reality was that trying to stay apart for the last few weeks hadn’t changed how I felt about him.

I thought about the time we spent together and wondered if things could be different. Didn’t we owe it to ourselves to explore it?

Okay

I’ll swing by to pick you up.

Dad said Cole wasn’t the right man for me because he wasn’t strong enough to handle my brothers, but this was the third time he’d risked coming onto my family’s property. Encouraged, I pulled on a sundress and a light sweater, unsure what he had planned. I waited on the porch for him.

His truck rumbled up the driveway, and my heart fluttered. I felt like a teenager who was waiting on her boyfriend to pick her up. The only difference was none of my brothers were nearby to interrogate my date. It was just us.

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