DONOVAN (Gray Wolf Security, #1)(82)

“Do you think ripping him away from his friends, the only home he’s ever known, is going to be any better?”

Harrison hesitated and that surprised me. I expected him to have a quick answer. But he didn’t.

Maybe neither of us truly knew what was best for JT. But I knew that allowing him to go off with a virtual stranger wasn’t the answer.

I walked off, leaving Harrison standing there alone on the steps. I didn’t look back, but I could feel his eyes on me. And, despite myself, I liked it. I liked that he couldn’t look away, that I’d left him wanting more. In a strange sort of way, it made me feel powerful.

But it also hurt worse than any heartbreak I think I’d ever felt. Because I also knew it was all about this mess, not about what happened between us last night. And last night was an experience I’d never known before, one that every inch of my heart wanted to experience again.

*****

I went to the house when I got back to town, but JT wasn’t there. I headed over to the bakery, overwhelmed with the guilt that I’d left Nick and Amanda to handle all the work all day. It was nearly time to close the shop, but Nick would probably still be at it for few hours more, trying to get a head start on tomorrow’s orders.

I let myself in through the back door, moving silently. The floors were covered in rubber mats back here to reduce the chances of someone slipping on spilled water or flour, so my heels didn’t make that tap-tap sound that they might have otherwise. So Nick and JT didn’t know I was there at first.

They were standing side by side at one of the work tables decorating a wedding cake. Nick was patiently showing JT how to create the delicate flowers that would flow down one side of the three tiers. JT was listening closely and when Nick complimented the purple rose he’d just completed, his face beamed with pleasure. It reminded me of the hours and hours I stood there beside my mom, learning from her talented hands how to do the same thing.

Once again, tears filled my eyes. I don’t think I’d missed my parents quite as much as I missed them in that moment.

“JT,” I said, clearing my throat to rid it of the sound of tears.

He turned and smiled. “Look, Penny,” he said, gesturing to the flower.

I smiled. “It’s perfect.”

He looked at it, giving it an objective study. “This petal is a little too wide.”

“The little mistakes are what make them perfect.”

“That’s what I keep telling him,” Nick said, winking at me. But then the flirt went out of his expression as he saw something unsettling in my face. “Everything okay?”

I shook my head no, but then JT looked at me, so I forced a smile.

“We need to talk, JT. Do you think I could take you for a burger?”

The contentment disappeared from his face as he handed Nick the frosting bag. “Did coach call you?”

“It’s not about that. This is…it’s complicated.”

“Now I’m really scared,” he said as he flashed that cocky smile of his. But I could tell it wasn’t a joke. Not completely.

Nick crossed the room, stopping just in front of me as JT went into the small store room to take off his apron and hat. Nick touched my arm, smoothing his palm over my skin.

“What’s going on?”

“It’s too much to go into right now.” I glanced over his shoulder to watch JT. “But I…”

“Is there anything I can do?”

“I’m going to have to take tomorrow off, too. Do you think—“

“You don’t even have to ask.”

I looked up at him, so grateful I could have kissed him.

“Thank you.”

He pressed his lips to my forehead. “I’m here for you, Penny. No matter what.”

And that brought the tears back. I brushed at my cheek as JT joined us.

“Ready?”

He looked from me to Nick and back again, and I could see that he was worried. My heart ached as I put my arm around him and led the way out to the car.

*****

We parked at the local drive-in and ordered cheeseburgers and cheese smothered tots, our favorite junk food indulgence. We didn’t really talk. JT fiddled with the radio knob, searching for music that wasn’t ‘ridiculous’ as he called anything that was written before 2005. When the food came, I picked at my burger, eating a pickle or two. But my appetite had disappeared and didn’t show signs of returning any time soon.

“So…?”

I glanced at JT. He was watching me even as he took a huge bite of his hamburger.

“What do you think of Mr. James?” I asked.

He shrugged. “He’s pretty cool. Why? Are you guys dating?”

My eyebrows rose. “What makes you ask that?”

“He was at the house this morning and you guys were fighting.”

“I’m sorry you saw that.”

He shrugged, taking another bite of the burger.

I put my burger down on the dashboard and popped a tot into my mouth. I chewed slowly as I tried to figure out how to say what needed to be said. How do you tell a kid that his biological father had just showed up out of the blue? Oh, and by the way, he’s your English teacher.

I could feel him watching me. I ate another tot to give myself a few more seconds. Then I sighed.