Page 37 of Sweet Temptation

He was silent for a moment, and then the words rushed out of him, as though he’d been waiting a long time to tell them just to her.

“Every kid deserves a positive role model in their life,” he began, his eyes slowly lifting from the now-shredded label of his beer bottle. “Like you were for your sisters. I know that wasn’t easy for you at times...”

“It could have been far worse.” She shrugged. “When you have family, you get through it.”

He snorted. “Yeah, well, I never had that. My mom, she was an addict. I loved her, but she checked out a lot. It was all I could do to stay out of the system.” Her throat tightened at his words, but she remained silent, giving him the floor to continue. “I spent a lot of time on the streets.”

He shrugged like it was nothing, but she guessed it was everything. “I learned, obviously. I figured out what kind of life I wanted and how to get it. But when you’re a kid, sometimes you just want someone to take the responsibility away for a bit, you know?”

The threat of tears pounded in Meg’s skull, and she wanted to scream. Jesus, she’d thought that she had a sob story? Her life was a freaking dream.

“That must have been hard,” she said, shifting a little closer to offer comfort without words, something he would appreciate. He’d proven he could handle himself with her tears, ones she shed when she was overcome, but she was very certain he wouldn’t appreciate any shed on his behalf.

“It was.” A faint smile touched his mouth. “There was this guy. He was a lot older than me. He was only around me for maybe a month when I was sixteen. But he pushed me. Told me I was better, could do more.”

“That’s nice, John.” Don’t cry, Meg. Don’t you dare cry. “I’m so glad you had him.”

“Everyone needs that in their life, which is why...” His voice fell off, stolen by haunted memories.

“Which is why you donate half your money to the Boys and Girls Club,” Meg finished.

“Yeah.”

“Sometimes...sometimes the struggles we have are the reason we are who we are.” His head shot up, and she finished quickly. “I’m not trying to minimize your experience. You know that. I’m just saying... I like who you are.”

She cupped his cheeks and angled his head her way. Old pain and hurts lingered in the depths of his eyes, and it nearly split her heart in two. She wanted to take his pain away, to absorb it into herself, to carry half his burden, so he didn’t have to shoulder it all alone.

“I don’t want your pity, Meg.” The words were sharp, but the tone was not. And here, while they were both flayed open, was as good a moment as any to ask what was really on her mind.

She was scared of the answer, terrified, really, but she needed to know, so she asked.

“Well, then. What do you want?”

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

JOHN HAD ALWAYS prided himself that, no matter was going on in his head, he could push it out and have a laser focus on his work. Today, though, he was running around like a headless chicken.

What the hell was happening to him?

Meg Marchande. That was what—or rather who—was happening to him, every day, all night, on all channels.

He stared at his computer, a shit ton of work to do to wrap up the contract with Crossing Lines—with Theo—but all the words blurred together.

Well, then. What do you want?

When she’d asked him that question at the restaurant, he wanted to blurt out you, even though he wasn’t sure what her response would be. But the opportunity was lost when Lhane came back to the table and their meals arrived. The conversation had turned back to volunteering with the organization, with Lhane explaining what Meg’s duties would be. She’d listened, enthralled, eager to jump in headfirst. Jesus, he loved that about her.

He rubbed the back of his neck, cracking the overly tight joints and hoping to ward off an impending headache. His gaze wandered to the window, to take in the setting sun and the streak of purple bruising the horizon. Soon enough, he’d be on to the next job—work wasn’t something he could walk away from. His drive came from the need for security, and he never had enough.

He’d built a business and his reputation as a man who followed things through until a successful completion was everything in the corporate world. Without that status, he’d slide to the bottom rung in record time and lose everything he’d spent years building.

He’d had enough loss in his life, and dammit, he didn’t want to lose his next contract. But he also didn’t want to lose Meg.

Did he have to make a choice?

What the hell am I going to do?

“You look like someone just kicked your puppy.”

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