Page 133 of Summer with the Single Dad

Justine was more than happy to take on the responsibility of feeding and reading to Aya and Emme. In fact, she relished the distraction.

She was sitting on Bennett’s couch, having said “goodnight” and put the girls to bed two hours ago, when he walked in the front door looking absolutely shredded. The dark smudges under his eyes told her he definitely needed to sleep and not wake up for a run early tomorrow morning. But there was a tense and angry air about him too.

Hopefully it wasn’t directed at her.

Did Tad say something to Bennett about seeing Justine? Did he fill Bennett’s head with lies about her?

“They’re awful people,” were the first words out of his mouth. “Truly terrible.”

She nodded. “I know.”

“They arrived early, expecting to be able to check in before three. Which, okay, fine. The cabin was ready, but that’s not the point. They threw around the whole ‘for the amount we’re paying’ bullshit.”

“Mhmm.”

“And she’s just a shrew. I knew she was when I first met them, but today just confirmed it. She micromanaged everything. Down to how Dom arranged the booze bottles behind the bar. She didn’t think the way he’s had it for years was aesthetically pleasing. So she wanted them organized in a pyramid. The shortest at the ends, tallest in the middle. He argued that he’ll never be able to find the bottles if they’re not in their rightful places, but she just dismissed him. We are literally the help.”

“I’m sorry.”

He waved his hand to dismiss her apology. “Not your fault. It’s not like you brought them here.” Raking his fingers through his hair, he dragged his gaze back to her. “How were the girls?”

“Wonderful, as always. No issues. I made a tofu stir-fry for dinner and they gobbled that up. Then we had some frozen pureed mango on vanilla ice cream for dessert.”

He sighed. “Thank you.”

“My pleasure.” She stood up to go. “You should sleep in tomorrow. We don’t need to run.”

She made to walk past him, but he gripped her by the wrist. “I don’t want to miss out on our time together. We only have so much of it.”

There her heart went again, sinking down to her toes. Her mouth must have dropped into a frown.

“What?” he asked, pure exhaustion in his eyes, voice, and all over his face.

She shook her head. “It’s nothing.”

A flash of frustration flickered in the deep-blue of his gaze. “What’s the matter now?”

“You still act like my time here is temporary. When I don’t want it to be.”

He exhaled another deep sigh. “Can we not do this right now?”

“I tried not to, and you pushed for me to tell you. I know you’re tired. I know those are terrible people down there. I know all of this, which is why I didn’t want to bring up my feelings. But you pushed. I love it here, Bennett. I want to figure out a way to move here. I don’t know how, but I want to find a way. Whether we’re together or not. But it just seems to me that you have an expiration date on this … relationship. That you’ve almost got a countdown going on until you’re rid of me and my baggage. Of my indecisiveness. I can tell that you find it annoying that I’m thirty-five, with a ton of education and degrees behind me.

“And yet, I’m trying to find myself again. I know you don’t need that on your plate. I know you don’t understand that I’m not sure I want to, or can, return to medicine. That you think I’m giving up too easily. I know all of this. I see it on your face. I hear it when you speak and in your tone. So maybe we should just call it now. End it before hearts truly get tangled in the mess. I’ll just be your guest and you can just be my … landlord or whatever. I’ll even move back into cabin five when The Earl of Evil and the Countess of Cruel move out.”

Crap! She should have called Ashli the Countess of Cruel earlier when she was talking to Tad.

Confusion swam in his gaze. “Justine, I …” He hung his head. “I just don’t know how it would work. I can’t make sense of the logistics. There is nothing for sale here. And we don’t have Bonn’s land. And we may never get it. Where are you going to move?”

She knew it was too soon for him to offer for her to move in with him, but just like she’d been an imbecile wishing she’d gotten pregnant the first time they had sex against the tree, even though she had fibroids and a hostile uterus, now she was also an imbecile wishing now that he’d invite her to move in with him. Brooke moved in with Clint after only a few weeks. So it could work if both people in the relationship wanted it to.

Only in this case, just one person in the relationship wanted to.

Did only one person in this relationship even want the relationship?

Was this just a fling to him?

He has kids to think about. He has a life here and a business with his family. You’re expecting him to just change his whole world because of your whim? You’re just chasing the high of being this happy, but it’s not realistic or logical.

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