Page 27 of Sweet Somethings

"You said your dad died, and I know you came to live with your grandfather when you were fifteen. What happened to your mom?" she asked.

"She had a lot of problems—addictions, mental issues. I was taken away from her a couple of times. The last time, my grandfather stepped in and brought me here."

Her gaze filled with compassion. "I'm really sorry."

"It is what it is. I learned early on that the only person I could count on was myself."

She stared back at him with her big blue eyes, and he could see a dozen more questions brimming in her gaze. He needed to cut those off right now.

"I don't really want to talk about my past." He waved his hand to the crowd of customers at her dessert table. "You should get back to work. Your assistant looks like she's going under."

She started. "I do need to help her. Can we talk about Cameron again, maybe tomorrow?"

"What's to talk about?"

"How we can help him."

"We don't know if he needs help."

"Yes, we do. And I don't want Cameron to think that the only person he can count on is himself," she said, throwing his words back at him. "I don't think you do, either."

He wanted to deny her words, but he couldn't. And why fight her on a desire to help a little kid? Maybe sticking her nose in Cameron's family business was exactly what the child needed.

That didn't mean he had to help her.

But he was starting to realize that she was really hard to say no to. There was something about her pretty blue eyes and those tantalizing lips, and the fact that every time she walked away, he wanted to call her back. But he shouldn't call her back, and he shouldn't make himself available to her. She was the kind of woman who would want too much from a man. She'd want to get inside his head, his heart, his feelings… He did not need that. He'd locked away a lot of stuff a long time ago, and he wasn't breaking that safe open for her or giving her a key. He wasn't that reckless—at least, he didn't think so.

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