Page 76 of Unbreakable Love

“What if I want to? Help you, finish, I mean.”

She was so damn cute. Feisty and honest, but there was this vulnerable side to her, like now. Like she couldn’t fathom someone only focused on her. I gritted my teeth against how angry that made me, that she’d grown up that way.

“And you will, and can, another night.”

She peered at me and nodded. “Okay.” She glanced up and scanned the room. “So what do we do now then?”

“I use the bathroom,” I told her, and she blinked. “Take care of this.” I pushed against her, and she laughed with surprise but started climbing off me. Once she was standing, I stood next to her and kissed her softly. “And then we have dessert. Josie and my mom spent the day baking, and I brought home extras.”

“Okay, then. Dessert. Although, didn’t I already have mine?”

I laughed against her mouth. “That was the appetizer, Miss Pesco. The dessert will be far better.”

I stepped away, left her gaping at me with surprise and excitement swirling in her beautiful blues, and went to the bathroom.

I took care of myself, washed my hands, and by the time I returned to the kitchen, Penny was sitting at the island, a glass of water in front of her and plates of cookies and brownies uncovered.

“I helped myself,” she said and bit into a white chocolate brownie with frosting covering it. “Hope you don’t mind.”

“Not at all.”

When it came to Penny, in my home, she was welcome to do whatever she liked.

For as long as she pleased.

TWENTY-ONE

PENNY

I did that. I did that with a man. And it felt so much better than it ever did when I tried to take care of myself. Lasted longer too, but it was the way my entire body seemed to light up from the inside out as I succumbed to it. Gavin’s words, “let go, it’s okay to let go,” bounced around my brain for the rest of Sunday night. They still echoed the next morning as I got myself ready for work, and I swore, my legs were still a little bit shaky and my stomach muscles were sore as if I’d done a fantastic ab workout.

I hadn’t.

It’d been Gavin. All him. Well, his fingers at my breasts helped, too.

As I thought it, they hardened beneath my bra and my cheeks flushed. I glanced down, grateful I was wearing a heavy sweater. The kids didn’t need to see that so early in the morning. Or ever.

“Hey you!”

I jumped as Faye strolled into my classroom.

She blinked at me. “What’s wrong? You have this weird look on your face.”

“No, I don’t.” I shook my head, trying to clear the images of last night’s reminder from my brain, but it was hopeless. My chest started heating and Faye broke out into a large, knowing grin.

“Oh, we are chatting this morning, young lady.” She closed my classroom door and hopped up onto one of my kids’ desks, right across from me.

She twirled her finger in the air, gesturing to my face. I reached up and patted my cheeks.

“Oh… tell me.” She leaned forward. “You have to tell me what happened last night because you, girl, look like you’ve had the most incredible dream, but it was real, and I’m guessing, ultra satisfying.”

“That’s not a thing,” I drawled.

“Psssh. Says you. Spill.”

I stacked papers that were perfectly stacked to begin with and set them back down. “I’m not telling you anything, about dreams or reality. Ever.”

“Ugh.” She groaned playfully and swung her feet in the air. “You’re no fun. Where’s Maize? She’d tell me all the good gossip.”

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