Page 69 of Reckless Desire

“These are kids from families who can’t afford sports or gym memberships. They come here every Sunday and we move together.”

Her eyes widen. “You spend your Sunday working out with underprivileged children?”

I nod. “Can you wait, so I can walk you home properly afterward?”

“I wouldn’t miss this. I shouldn’t even be surprised this is what you do during your weekends, but let me tell you, handsome, this is very sexy.”

“I gave you my best performance this weekend, andthissways you?”

Her laugh swells in my chest.

* * *

The next two weeks are a flurry of stolen dates and brief encounters at the most inappropriate places. We now know that my office desk can withstand abuse, but the sofa is not very stable. And that, unfortunately, our schedules are not very compatible to see each other as much as we would like.

I learned Sydney hates Indian food but loves Mexican. That she scratches her eyebrow when she tries to remember her to-do list. She bites her lips when she wants to do something, but her head is stopping her from letting go.

When she drinks enough she is quite a good lap dancer, and a funny and hot AF stripper. And she blushes when reminded of it once sober. She cares about her students, not only Caro, beyond her professional duties. She can’t cook—I’m still waiting for the right moment to tell her. When she lets her guard down she is funny, and when she laughs I am happier.

I’m much busier since I’ve started dating her, but I’m also calmer. Despite the hiding, I have this unshakable feeling things are as they should be. It makes no sense since we’ve been together for mere days, but one of these days I might just fucking start to believe that fate is not a bitch after all.

I also find out that the school is full of gossip.

“So you like Mrs. Lowe?” Caro asks.

The sidewalk is damp from the rain and the air chills me almost as much as her words. Shit.

“I do. Don’t you like her? She is a great teacher.” I really hope this is what we are discussing.

“Please, Dad, of course, she is a wonderful teacher. She’s helping me with reading, and she is helping Ruby with math as well. She smells really nice, and I like her hair too. But Ruby’s mom said you look at her with those eyes.” She stops, forcing me to look at her. “What eyes?”

“Pumpkin, I don’t know what Ruby’s mom thinks.” Shit, have I been that obvious during school runs? “But I look at her the way she deserves. I respect her and I appreciate that she’s been helping you. And yeah, she smells nice, and I also like her hair.” Not a lie, but not the complete truth either. I can’t tell my daughter the other things I like about her teacher.

“Don’t call me pumpkin.” Her glare is just short of foot stomping, but only because she probably doesn’t want to stain her new purple leggings. That’s another thing the new school—and I might be biased, but Sydney in particular—brought to our lives.

Caro finally ditched the dark colors and allowed some spark in her wardrobe. Though getting changed every time before we leave the school grounds is a pain in the ass, I love this new outgoing, sparkly version of my girl.

I laugh, glad that the nickname shifted her attention. We arrive at the gym, and I leave Caro with Lea at reception before heading to my office.

“What are you doing here?” I frown at Ash who is sprawled across my sofa.

“And hello to you, too. I just thought I’d make sure you don’t ditch Delaney again.” He pushes up to sit.

“I’ve never ditched her. My daughter was lost, and yes, I have been postponing the meeting, but no worries, it’s happening”—I check my watch—“in five minutes.”

“Can I sit in?”

“I don’t see why not. Suit yourself. Things are okay at Tribeca?”

“Yeah, we’re good to go ahead and start planning the opening before Christmas.”

“Perfect. I’m sorry I haven’t been able to get there much, but I’ll come over next week.”

“No problem. I have it under control. We should discuss the budget for the new club.” Ash leans back while I boot up my computer to see if there are any emergencies to deal with before the meeting with Delaney.

“Look, Ash. The deal with the company next door is taking ages, going through their internal procurement, but once that’s done, we can use the financial injection and reinvest it in the marketing of the new location. Otherwise, it will be a soft opening and we’ll see how things are going before we invest more strategically. Social media being the priority, I think.”

Ash looks like he wants to argue. He has been dreaming big about the new location. His club, as he sometimes calls it. But he doesn’t get a chance to voice his concerns because Delaney knocks on the door.

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