Page 16 of Playing With Temptation

I could practically hear Zoe yelling at me. He’s ten, Mama Bear. You have to let him grow up. Experience life. Make choices—good or bad. Then show him the way.

Sweet Jesus, I missed her.

“That depends,” I told him slowly, inching my way forward. “How’d you do on your math test?”

“I missed two questions. Still got an A.”

That was my smart boy.

“It pays to be a winner,” I muttered, Zoe’s favorite maxim. “And your spelling test?”

“Aced. It!”

I didn’t have to be looking at my kid to know he was pumping his fist in the air.

The car in front of me suddenly slammed on its brakes. Obviously, I did the same, leaving my heart in my throat and a millimeter between our bumpers. I swallowed down the hundred curse words that were fighting to get free.

“You okay?” I asked glancing in my rearview mirror.

Lucas wasn’t the slightest bit concerned with our near accident. He was waving out the window with little-boy abandon.

One day he wouldn’t wave with such excitement.

One day he’d play it cool and probably tip his chin or just lift his hand.

Hell, one day he’d be driving himself to and from school.

Lord, that made my heart ache.

I followed his gaze and found the object of his fascination.

Juni.

But it wasn’t the girl who had my lungs suddenly fighting for oxygen. It was the man next to her scowling at the car in front of me.

Juni’s dad.

Dad.

Oh, God.

Oh, fuck.

This couldn’t be real.

Mercilessly, his eyes snapped to mine.

Eyes I’d drowned in countless times.

Eyes I would never in my lifetime forget.

Eyes I’d dreamed about so many times it was impossible to count.

Jase.

My Jase.

My first and only love.