Page 29 of The SEALs' Single Mom Baby Surprise

I can’t linger on this. I need to get out of here. I’m already late picking up my daughter. The school is good to me, but I can’t keep relying on them to stay with her when I have a long day.

Throwing my bag over my shoulder, I turn to find Shepard holding the door out of the office open for me. Amusement lines his features, making him look happy with himself.

Or me.

My chest tightens, but I pull it together and stomp toward him, past him, to my car.

Again, he opens my door before I can, and I clamp down a screech of annoyance. Taking a deep breath, I slip into my car, but he’s in the opening, hand on the door, the other on the roof. He bends down to look me in the eyes.

“I’ll be seeing you later, Sloane.” Shepard winks.

And I’m back to wanting to slap him across his smug face.

He backs away, that small, infuriating smile making me more promises as I close my door and back out in frustration.

The swirl of emotions pings back to embarrassment because kissing him was good. I shouldn’t even be thinking about it.

I’ve been single for days.Days. It doesn’t matter that I’ve been trying to find a way to get away from Alistair’s clutches for the last year. The reality hasn’t even set in yet. I should not be entertaining the idea of Jack Shepard and his mouth.

I don’t want this.

It’s not the time.

I want to be there for Reese and give us time to find ourselves. It’s going oh, so well so far.

Wringing the wheel with my hands, I’m half in despair at having failed at taking care of myself after less than a week on my own.

No, this confirms it. I’m not in a good place to deal with another man in my life, whether just sexual or not.

I rush to Reese’s school, only to find it empty. I get out of my car and look around. Surely, she’s not hanging around here alone, but where… where is my daughter?

Panic grips me tight. Spinning around, I spot her bright yellow backpack hanging off the back of her chair where she sits with Cole at a café.

Fear beats up my heart as I struggle to breathe.

Oh, thank God.

Cole peers across the street at me, and the fury flashes back to life. Why is he here? What is he doing picking my daughter up from school? Why sneak off from work to do it?

I told them that I didn’t want her involved in all of this.

Fists clenching, I look both ways and cross the street to them.

Cole leans in to speak to Reese across the table, and she collects a small pack of crayons and a few loose sheets of paper to stuff in her bag as I approach.

Those gray blue eyes peer up at me, telling me that he sees my anger and he’s distracted my daughter so that I can shelf it.

It’s hard, but I do. My independence is taking another hit, and all the times I was not enough for Reese flare up. The blow to my chest is painful. Sharp.

I swallow back the biting words at Cole’s audacity to intrude in my life.

All three of these men don’t understand the meaning of boundaries. Are all men like this? Do they all think their belief that they know better than me means they have carte blanche with my life?

He lifts a hand for me to wait, but not high enough to alert my daughter. “Finish up that hot cocoa. I’m going to chat with your mom.”

Reese nods and smiles at me, like she wants to be sure I know she’s having a good time.

I let Cole turn me away, and we walk a few steps, and he just looks at me—a similar kind of look from yesterday when I turned down his protection.

---