Page 27 of The Single Dad Project

Flo elbowed him in the stomach, and Cole’s chuckle ended in anoof.

“You’re a little late, Cole. Mr. Reed and I have already met.” Her brown eyes met his, and for a moment he got tangled in them, powerless to unravel himself from their snare even as a sliver of panic rippled through him. Surely, she wasn’t about to tell herbrotherabout their night... “I had the pleasure of meeting him and his little girl a couple of days ago when I stopped by here after work.”

Relief smoothed out the jagged edges of alarm, and he caught the twitch at the corner of her mouth. Very funny.

“Yes, Justine is still talking about her friend Flo,” he said, tone wry. “You made quite the impression.”

“Same. She’s adorable and funny. And to avoid her shade, I’ve now started carrying candy and gum on me at all times.” In spite of the awkward situation, humor trickled through him. Jussy was a staunch advocate of treats. Flo shifted her attention away from him, and he vacillated between releasing a relieved sigh and demanding she fix that beautiful, soulful gaze back on him. “Is she here? I’d like to say hi.”

“No, she’s with her babysitter, but I’ll let her know you said hello.”

Cole smiled, dropping his arm from around Flo, stepping back. “Since I’m not needed here, I’ll go meet the rest of the crew as the official Rose Bend welcome wagon.” He pressed a kiss to the top of Flo’s head, murmuring, “Knock ’em dead, lil’ sis.”

Giving a last wave, Cole turned and walked toward the crew, leaving his sister alone with Adam. If the other man suspected just how well he knew his baby sister, Adam doubted Cole would’ve been so magnanimous.

“You gave me your real name,” she softly said. No, accused.

He stared down at her, momentarily taken aback. By both her blunt words and by the almost instinctive urge to give her an excuse.

ButI couldn’t stand the thought of you calling anyone else’s name but mine when you cameprobably wouldn’t go over well. It was the truth, but he doubted she would appreciate it. And he could barely admit that to himself much less to her. So he went with something less incendiary to his pride.

“You said any would do. And I chose to give you mine.” Simple. And still honest.

Mostly.

Her eyes narrowed at his answer, and he would be lying if he denied the spark of anticipation that glimmered inside him.Thiswas what had drawn him to her that night at the bar. Yes, she was beautiful. But it’d been that barbed wit, the glints of vulnerability and the sensual charisma that had kept his ass on that stool. The desire to discover how that clever, sharp tongue and unexpected hints of softness would translate to sex...

Now he knew. And fuck his curiosity. Because now he couldn’t forget. Even when he wanted to. When he needed to.

“Semantics seem to be your thing,” she murmured, the bite in her tone unmistakable. He checked himself before he could lean in, feel the razor edge of it scrape over his senses, his skin. “First with your name and then about whether you were from here or not.”

“I didn’t lie.” He hadn’t given her all of the information. But he hadn’t lied. “I’m from Chicago, not Rose Bend.”

“You knew what I was asking,” she bit out, glaring at him. “If I’d believed for one second that I would run into you again, there’s no way in hell I would’ve...”

She trailed off, a frown creasing her forehead. Adam crossed his arms, cocking his head.

“I believe the words you’re looking for are ‘fucked you.’ There’s no way in hell you would’ve invited me home to fuck me,” he calmly supplied. He huffed out a short, acerbic chuckle. “I’m having the damnedest time imagining you at a loss for words.”

Especially when she’d been so bold about what she wanted that night.

“Well, when I’m just feet away from my brother and a whole crew of people with cameras and microphones, then yes, I’m at a loss for words. Particularly those,” she snapped.

On reflex, he cast a look around them, scanning the front lawn to see if anyone had overheard.

“That’s fair,” he said, returning his attention to her. “But I did warn you about regret, didn’t I?”

She didn’t quite manage to conceal her flinch. And though it made zero fucking sense, a hole opened up behind his sternum. One that eddied with resentment and—God, help him—sadness that he’d become something she looked back on with remorse.

A one-night stand. That was all he was to her, and she to him. And after the lust cleared and reason returned, a lot of people probably regretted having them. This wasn’t anything special. What they shared hadn’t been unique.

Even in his head, the words fell flat.

“If it’s any consolation, if I had known you would end up being the photographer on my next project, I would’ve made a different choice, too,” he said. Because he didn’t shit where he ate.

Ever.

He’d made that mistake with Jennifer and look how that had turned out. A miserable marriage that had ended in divorce, and a daughter with an absentee mother. Not that he regretted Justine. God, no. And he’d suffer through the hellscape of his marriage all over again just to have her. But would he have willingly chosen a mother who’d rather be on a plane to the next adventure—and by adventure, he meant party—than actuallymother? No. No, he wouldn’t have wanted that for Justine.

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