Page 56 of Perfect Fling

“Actually, I think she’d applaud,” Erin muttered as Jed made his way to the door.

“Now you’ve got a woman fighting your battles,” Jed said, getting in his parting shot at Cole.

“Go home, Dad.”

“He’ll break your heart just like his mother broke mine, mark my words.”

“But I’ll be a better father than you ever were,” Cole said, getting face-to-face with the man who’d fathered and raised him but had never ever liked him. “And I’ll have Brody to thank.” Cole slammed the door behind Jed before Erin could take the pleasure away from him.

A few intense, quiet seconds passed, in which Cole took a few moments to compose himself, breathing in and out, letting his heart rate return to normal.

“Cole?” Erin asked softly, placing a hand on his shoulder.

He didn’t want to have this conversation. If he could change anything about his relationship with Jed, it would be so he didn’t have to suffer the humiliation of confrontations like these in front of a woman like her. Because if anything Jed said had been right, it was that Erin was a damned nice woman, one whom he’d hurt in the end.

But not only was he tied to her through his child; he couldn’t bring himself to walk away from her—from this relationship she was attempting to build with him—yet.

He turned. “Sorry about that.”

She raised an eyebrow, a defiant look on her face. “Don’t you dare apologize for his behavior. The one thing you should learn? How Jed acts is no reflection on you. Now, I’m hungry.” She spun around and started for the kitchen.

“It’s cold by now,” he informed her.

“That’s what microwaves are for.” She strode into the cheery kitchen with lavender-purple accents and picked up both their dishes. “Luckily for you, that’s my specialty in the kitchen.” She shot him a cheeky grin and proceeded to heat their breakfast.

The conversation about Jed was seemingly over.

But was it?

Didn’t she want to dig deeper? To poke into his and Jed’s unhealthy and definitely ugly relationship? Wasn’t she worried that Jed’s view of him was somehow right? That maybe their kid would inherit his behavioral flaws? Because Jed might be an emotionally abusive jerk, but he hadn’t made up the fact that during his childhood, Cole was one hundred percent an out-of-control pain in the ass. But since Erin wasn’t bringing it up, Cole didn’t have the stomach to either.

***

A few hourslater, after a stop at The Family Restaurant to pick up the cake Erin had promised Nick she’d bring with her today, they pulled up to Nick and Kate’s cabin on the lake. Serendipity Lake was located on the edge of town. Many of the wealthier residents owned summer cabins, and some had been renovated.

Erin was surprised when she’d heard Nick had built his permanent home here, but she knew he was a builder, having inherited his father’s business when he passed away. She’d figured he’d bought a run-down place at a good price and fixed it up.

Except that as they approached, it became clear Nick’s home wasn’t a renovated cabin—this was more like a state-of-the-art luxury home.

“Wow,” Erin murmured as they pulled up the paved drive. The other homes they’d passed had gravel-lined paths for cars to take.

“It’s something, right?”

“Amazing!” Erin loved the house on sight.

Nick had maintained the rustic feel, so the house wasn’t completely out of place in the area, but it had a newer, more modern look on way more than one lot of land.

“Nick put his heart and soul into building this house. He planned it for years and worked during slow times when he could get his crew here.” Cole parked behind a Ford F-150. “Inside and out. He even carved a lot of the furniture.”

“Impressive,” she murmured.

“Nick doesn’t like to brag, though. He doesn’t show off.”

Erin nodded. “Kate’s not like that either. I’ve always liked her.”

Cole met her on her side of the car. She took a few steps forward, only to realize he wasn’t beside her.

“Cole?” She turned back to face him. “What’s wrong?”

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