Page 29 of Single Dad's Second Chance

I dropped my face in my hands and whined. “I don’t know. I can’t.” I shot back up to face her. “Technically, he’d already made a move. He kissed me, right? That’s a move. But thensheshowed up, and that was that.”

“That was that? He didn’t say anything about it? He’s acting like it never happened?”

I cringed. “We’ve both been too busy. I haven’t had a chance to speak with him alone.”

Until today.He asked me to lunch, and I ran here instead.

“This friendship thing between you two has gone on long enough, though, hasn’t it?”

“I’m just worried he will never want me as anything more than his secretary. Than his friend.”

She shot me a dubious look. “He kissed you.”

“But that could’ve been a heat-of-the-moment thing. Jealousy because another man was hitting on?—”

“Aha!” She pointed at me. “Jealous of another man near you… becausehewants you.”

I shook my head. “Aside from that, I am his employee. And that will always stand between us.” Talking with her felt a lot like listening to a devil’s advocate. She was all for my telling Henry how badly I desired him. Hearing myself talk out loud aided in getting it all out of my mind and off my chest, though.

“I need to work harder on keeping things separate in my life. Henry is my boss, and that’s a job I need?—”

“But you’re halfway in love with both of them. Father and son.” She frowned, concerned for me.

“—to pay off the last time I lowered my guard and thought I was in love with someone.” The last time I let love in, I was hurt so badly.

“Not every man will be like Dennis,” she said gently.

I sighed, hating to hear my ex’s name. Because of him, I was conned into participating in an armed burglary. Because of him,I’d been stuck with all the blame and captured, forced to serve a sentence for a crime I had no knowledge about until it had happened. I’d done minor time for a crime I hadn’t committed. I had a record to expunge because I’d been duped to think a man loved me and wouldn’t use me.

Henry wouldn’t. I knew he wouldn’t do anything to be in the same category as Dennis.

The residual pain from being burned in love lasted to this day, and it served to warn me back from wanting more with Henry anytime soon. It was simply too complicated.

Or is it?

“I say you should just tell him how you feel about him,” Gina advised. “Or… tell him that you’re the dancer he’s trying to contact and bribe to work for him.”

I shook my head faster. “Heck no,” I replied of the latter.

It had to be safer to keep my worlds separate—for as long as I could.

11

HENRY

Mia didn’t want to have lunch with me and Jason, and it didn’t sit well with me. She came to our arcade night, but she seemed to only focus on my son, being merely cordial to me. That was how sensitive she was to him, perceiving when he might need more reassurances. If Ann made a flippant comment about Jason going to a boarding school—which I couldn’t see why or how she’d assume she’d haveanysay in that matter—then Jason’s upset mood made sense.

I didn’t ask Mia about it. I wanted her to explain what happened. But she was a distraction. She was that good at making my son smile that I couldn’t bear to bring up the topic. At least not around him. Instead, I went along with the evening and had fun, too, watching Jason for any sign of his being sad or anxious.

I was sure that many children did well at boarding schools. Or I hoped they would. Jason had asked many questions about those kinds of institutions after he watched a movie about it, and I hated that it instilled a fear in his mind.

No, he’d never go to a boarding school. He belonged at home, with his family, even if it was small. I was the holdup for keeping our family unit so small. If I could marry and have more kids,then he wouldn’t be so lonely. I lacked the time go hunting for a wife. And it seemed that Jason had already made up his mind about that, anyway.

“I wish you were my mommy.”

I’d never forget my son’s teary face as he said that to the woman I couldn’t get out of my mind.

I groaned, closing my eyes and dropping my head back to rest it on my chair. Rubbing my face didn’t soothe me. It didn’t perk me up. I was frustrated and tired, and adding my desire for Mia into the mix worsened my patience.

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