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All she could think about were the women at his place, clearly in the mood for whatever threesome party he was throwing. She shouldn’t care, but for some reason it bothered her. She’d spent a year thinking Kai was brave and selfless.
She didn’t like the conflicting images of Kai she now held in her mind. It was much easier when she just thought of him as a nice-guy hero. Or maybe that’s just because you’re jealous. Wish you were in the hot tub with him, Jun?
“Earth to Jun. Come in, Jun.” This was Tim Reese, the owner of Island Fit and her boss. He used to be an Olympic athlete and had won a silver medal in some track-and-field event. Now he was the charismatic bodybuilder who inspired people to come in his gym just by standing near the window up front.
“Sorry, Tim. I wasn’t listening.”
“I gathered that. I was asking if you could pull a double shift Friday. Jenna bailed on me and Rich’s still on vacation, so that means just me, unless you save me.”
Jun hesitated. It would mean paying extra for day care or calling in a babysitting favor from her sister, which would cost her in a different way. Then again, the overtime pay could always come in handy. Po had outgrown his clothes, again.
Tim put his hand on her shoulder and let it linger there. Jun stepped out of the touch automatically, putting space between her and her boss. Sometimes Jun wondered if Tim had a crush on her or if he was just the touchy-feely type. Either way, she felt a smidgen uncomfortable when he closed in on her personal space. But Tim offered her a decent job, a steady one, and she spent a good deal of time convincing herself it was all in her head.
“Hey, if it’s a big deal, I mean, don’t worry about it...” Tim worked hard to backpedal. He put his hands up and backed away, and it was times like these she thought, I’m just imagining that he’s coming on to me.
“Let me see if I can get someone to watch Po,” she said. “If I can, I’ll do it.”
“Great.” Tim’s eyes lit up in a way that was a little bit too excited. Nope. Definitely not imagining it. Jun definitely did not feel the same way about Tim. Not that he wasn’t a nice guy, but Jun wasn’t interested in dating or adding complications in her life right now. She’d never yet met a man who was okay with Po being her first priority.
“I’ve, uh, got to head out.” Jun finished stuffing her bag and zipped it closed, itching to get some distance from Tim. She had only two hours of day care left and thirty minutes until her Tai Chi class on the beach.
“See you Friday,” Tim called as she walked out the door. Jun waved, but thankfully, her phone rang, so she could ignore Tim’s intense blue stare.
She glanced down at the screen and saw the number of Po’s day care. Instantly, her heart slid into her throat. What had happened now? Every time she saw Day Care on her caller ID, she felt as if she were right back in that moment a year ago when she had been told by a crying teacher that somehow they’d lost Po.
She took a deep breath, shoring herself up for bad news, and answered.
“Hello?”
“Ms. Lee,” said a crisp voice on the other end of the line. The director of the day care, Penelope Anne.
“Mrs. Anne, what’s wrong?”
“I’m afraid you’re going to have to pick up your son.”
“Is he sick?” Jun’s heart thudded. Sick, or worse, hurt? He always played rough on the playground, swinging his little body dangerously off the monkey bars. Jun fumbled in her bag for her car keys. They jangled in her hand as she searched for the right one. Her car was so ancient it didn’t have automatic locks.
“No, no. He’s fine. I’m afraid he’s...” Mrs. Anne swallowed “...bitten his teacher.”
Jun froze, her key in her door.
“Oh, no.” Jun’s stomach lurched. “Not again.” White-hot embarrassment flared up her neck. She’d talked with Po often about biting, but nothing seemed to get through. Last week he’d bitten a boy who’d taken his crayon, and the week before, he’d bitten a girl who’d spilled water on him, and now this. She’d thought it was just a phase, something he’d grow out of, but now she was starting to wonder if it was related to the nightmares and the stress and everything else left over from the tsunami. “I am so very sorry. Is the teacher okay?”
