Total pages in book: 30
Estimated words: 27900 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 140(@200wpm)___ 112(@250wpm)___ 93(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 27900 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 140(@200wpm)___ 112(@250wpm)___ 93(@300wpm)
I’ve never had reason to introduce a man I am seeing to my son. For one thing, I’ve been careful before bringing someone into his life who would only disappear a few weeks or months later, and for another, no man has been that interested.
Swallowing hard, I gesture for Shane to sit in the chair beside me. “Speaking of friends, I want you to meet a friend of mine. This is Shane Warden, honey. I met him this summer.” No reason to explain to my ten-year-old that Shane is my professor.
I turn the phone so Shane can see my brown-haired little boy. “Hi, L.J. I’m Shane. Your mom has told me so much about you.”
He lifts his hand in a shy wave.
“Say hi to Mr. Warden, honey. I mean, Professor Warden.”
“Shane is fine. I hear you’re having fun with your grandparents in New York.”
L.J. nods. “Next week we’re going to a Yankee game!”
Shane grins. “I also heard you love baseball. Maybe we could play some catch when you get home. I could dust off my catching mitt.”
An excited light hits my son’s brown eyes. “That would be awesome!”
“I’ll look forward to it. Here’s your mom.” He fully turns the phone back to me.
I have to fight back the lump in my throat and the tears forming in my eyes. This man, he’s barreled into my life or I’ve barreled into his and turned my world upside down. He makes me feel things long forgotten, and now he is including my son.
I swallow hard. “Hi, honey. I need to go. I’m sitting in a restaurant.” At least no one is around us, or I wouldn’t have taken the call and disturbed other guests’ lunch.
“Okay. I love you, Mom.”
“Love you, too, baby.”
“I’m not—”
“You’ll always be my baby,” I say before he can finish. Laughing, I say goodbye again and we each disconnect the call.
I draw a deep breath and meet Shane’s warm gaze.
“Well, that went well,” he says.
“It did.” Acting on impulse, I lean forward and kiss him, expressing everything he makes me feel without using my words.
His tongue slides against mine, the moment quickly heating up, the kiss going on, arousal settling low in my belly, desire pulsing between my thighs.
He places a hand on my leg and breaks the kiss, his dark eyes meeting hers. “We really need to get back to your place.”
“We so do.”
He straightens in his seat. “But there’s something we need to talk about first.”
With my mind still hazy from his warm lips on mine, I’m not thinking all that clearly. “What is it?”
“Where we go from here. At least for the next two weeks while class is still in session.”
I freeze, knowing the wonderful feelings I’ve experienced since he showed up on my doorstep are about to disappear. Temporarily, I hope, but it hurts. Still, I am adult enough to understand and handle it.
I straighten my shoulders. “I get it. We can’t be seen together.” But is he going to disappear from my life as if our time together never happened? “What are you thinking?” It is his job on the line. No matter how my heart feels, because I know I am falling hard for him in a very short time, I can handle a few weeks apart. I have to.
“I need every possible angle of professionalism covered. To start with, nothing changes in public. I’m the professor, you’re the student.”
I nod in understanding.
“And for the final exam, I’m going to have my teaching assistant proctor the exam. I’m going to assign random numbers to each student and grade anonymously. If anything ever gets out about us, nobody can say I favored you at all.”
“Makes sense.” I pause. “You’ve really thought about this.”
“The whole trip here. My time with you is precious.” Taking my hand, he holds it up to his face. “I don’t want us to risk anything or have anything taint our future.”
I blink, shocked by the tears that suddenly fall from my eyes. “Future?”
He meets my gaze, staring into my eyes. “I know it’s fast. I know we have a lot to learn about each other, but that’s what I want. The chance for a very real future.”
“I want that, too.”
“Good. Then let me do everything I can to protect it.”
I nod. Because I’ve never wanted anything more.
* * *
Shane
Is there really such a thing as the one? Because I sure as hell am certain Amber is it for me.
The whole way home from the hospital, my focus wasn’t on my sick father but his attitude towards Amber. I’ll be damned if I’ll tell her the rude things my father said. Instead I’ll do everything in my power to get through the next two weeks and move on with our lives.
I drop her off at her house and walk her to her door, stepping inside.