Page 90 of King of Temptation

“Yeah?”

“Hang on a minute? My plane is boarding.”

“Okay,” I answer, disappointed. Did he not like my plan? I hear the attendant in the background speaking to him and then it goes quiet again.

“I guess I want you to know that I meant my offer. We can go to New York.”

My insides melt. “I can’t even imagine the hours and dedication it would take to recover from the baby and then be a professional dancer.” Something is shifting. My mom worked three jobs because she had to, there weren’t any choices. But I’ve got them. “I think I know what kind of mom I want to be and that’s the kind that’s around for the kindergarten plays and the first dance recital or little league game.”

But it’s more than that. “And if I’m honest, I took a hard look at why my dreams have always been what I thought I needed to prove to the world that I was worthwhile. And maybe to my father, whoever he is…”

“Your father?”

“Yeah. I’d envision this moment where we’d meet and I’d be like, my mom could have been a professional ballerina, you know, that woman you didn’t want. But she raised me, and I ended up being the professional dancer because she was right to keep me, and you could have been part of this.”

“Sweetheart,” Leo sounds pained.

“I know. It’s raw. But I need you to know that it matters to me that you’ll be there, Leo. That you’re going to stick with us.”

“I’m sticking, baby. Don’t you worry. Where you go, I go. Including Minneapolis. Speaking of, the flight attendant is glaring. I’m not used to flying commercial and I think I’m pissing her off. I think I need to hang up.”

I almost smile at his words. “Okay. But you’ll be here tomorrow?”

“I’ll be there. Get some sleep.”

Amazingly, I do. The moment we hang up, I’m out, and when I wake, I hear my mom softly speaking from the kitchen.

I open my eyes and Leo is sitting at her tiny kitchen table. He looks ridiculously large in this place.

I gasp as I vault off the couch.

He turns and stands in one fluid move, catching me in his arms.

Wrapping my arms about his neck, I kiss him several times. I don’t stop until my mom clears her throat.

“Promise me the next time we fight, we can stay home?” he chuckles into my ear.

My mom’s place isn’t great for makeup sex. I kiss his neck. “I’m going to run to the bathroom and then maybe we’ll head out for breakfast?”

He gives me a squeeze before setting me down. “Mom, we’re probably going to hang for the day, Leo was up all night so he needs some sleep, but how about we all do dinner tonight?”

She gives me a wink and a nod as I collect up my stuff, brush my hair and change my clothes.

I’m assuming we’re going back to the hotel to eat, shower, and go to bed, all of which I’m down for.

Where and how many times we make up is the only question on my mind as Leo takes my hand and leads me out to his rental car. A Toyota Camry.

I’m used to his sports car so I stop, my brows lifting.

He sighs as he opens the door for me. “They didn’t have anything else and I thought I might as well get used to a sedan. A baby seat is not fitting in the back of my 911.”

“You’re thinking of car seats?”

“Did you know that the Camry has some of the best crash-test ratings?”

I slide in, marveling at the man who comes around to the driver’s side.

He sits in the driver’s seat, adjusting the review mirror before he starts the car. “I have to be honest,” I say, turning to him. “I’ve never found a guy driving a Camry hotter.”

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