Mistakes Were Made(5)

Then again, Parker had broken Seth’s nose and ended things when she found out the douchebag had a girlfriend, so maybe she’d earned herself a favor or two.

“When are you picking me up?”

Breakfast was at one of Cassie’s favorite restaurants, so by the time they arrived, she didn’t even mind being out of bed so early on a weekend. A crowd of people waited to be seated.

“My mom’s got a table already,” Parker said, scanning the restaurant. “There.”

They headed toward a woman sitting alone, facing the window, a cup of coffee steaming in front of her.

“Call her Dr. Bennett if you want to make a good impression,” Parker muttered to Cassie.

“I’m great with parents, thanks.”

Parker reached the table first, and as her mom stood to hug her, Cassie almost fell over.

“Hey Mom, this is Cassie. Cassie, this is my mom.”

Cassie had to give Erin credit; her only tell was the slight widening of her eyes as she extended her hand. Cassie shook it, trying to keep the shit-eating grin off her face.

“Nice to meet you, Dr. Bennett,” she said.

Erin squeezed her hand a little too hard. “Please, call me Erin.”





Two





ERIN


Erin thanked the waitress for her coffee and the three waters for the table. She wrapped both hands around her mug and left her menu closed. No need to look before Parker and her friend arrived. Erin had found the place on Yelp earlier in the week, so she already knew it had plenty of good offerings. She’d wanted to go to Parker’s favorite breakfast spot, but her daughter hadn’t had any suggestions—she hadn’t made it off campus for breakfast yet.

The restaurant was cute—the yellow walls bright with light from the large windows. Open umbrellas of varying colors and patterns hung upside down from the high ceiling. Erin had had to make her way through half a dozen people waiting for a table to give the hostess her name for her reservation.

Erin missed Parker. Joint custody in high school had been bad enough. Parker had done student government and the science fair and art lessons—both taking and teaching—plus, she’d spent half her time at her father’s new apartment. But it was different, with her away at college. Worse.

It’d been barely more than a month, but Erin missed her. She wished she didn’t have to share her with Adam this weekend. Though, if Adam wasn’t also visiting, Erin wouldn’t have been at that bar last night. Even if it was ridiculous she’d slept with a college student, she couldn’t bring herself to regret it.

A blush crept onto her cheeks just thinking of the previous night. She had hooked up with a college student in the back seat of her rental car. Rachel would have a field day with this, but Erin hadn’t decided whether she’d tell her. Her best friend had been trying to get her to, well, sleep around a bit for three years now, basically as soon as the divorce was final. Every date Erin had had in the last three years, Rachel made her recount in a full blow-by-blow—sometimes literally, depending on how the date had gone. She would love the recap of last night. Erin couldn’t even imagine how she would explain Cassie to Rachel. The way Cassie had looked at her, the way she’d touched her, no hesitation.

Erin shook her head and smiled into her coffee mug. She should be thinking about her daughter, not about the cocky woman with the filthy grin who’d bought her a drink.

As though summoned by Erin’s thoughts, Parker appeared beside the table.

“Baby!” Erin gushed, leaping up to hug her daughter.

She squeezed her tight, eyes closed, and breathed her in. Her kid. Parker smelled like the cheap perfume she’d worn since freshman year of high school. Erin pressed a kiss against the side of her head then let go before she could be reprimanded for holding on too long.

Parker’s smile was wide and toothy, and Erin wanted to cry. God, she’d missed her.

“Mom, this is Cassie,” Parker said. “Cassie, this is my mom.”

It took Erin a moment to shift from looking at Parker to looking at Parker’s friend. Her brain lagged, catching on the name but not figuring out why until her eyes landed on Cassie.

Cassie.

Thank God for Erin’s mother drilling manners into her since she was a child—her mind might’ve been a never-ending scream, but Erin didn’t miss a beat before extending her hand to shake Cassie’s.

“Nice to meet you, Dr. Bennett.” Cassie’s face was nothing but a self-satisfied grin. She ran her other hand through her blond hair, just as gorgeous and cocky as she’d been last night.

Erin tried not to squeeze too hard. “Please,” she said. “Call me Erin.”

This could not be happening.

Parker flopped down into the booth, and Cassie slid in beside her. Erin had to put a steadying hand on the bench as she sat down.

This could not be happening.

Erin took too big a swallow of coffee. It burned her throat.

Parker was still smiling, and Parker’s smile did what it always did: made Erin’s heart sing. She loved her kid so fucking much. She could not let this—this—this clusterfuck of a situation mess anything up.

“How was dinner with your dad last night?” Erin asked dutifully.

Parker’s smile dropped a couple of watts. “Fine.”