Page 132 of Just One Kiss

The words hung in the air and Carly tried to knock them away, but she couldn’t. Did Josh deserve a second chance?

“He’s my dad, Gramps,” Jaden said. “And he loves my mom.”

Carly faced Jaden. “What did you say?”

“He told me. He’s never stopped loving you.”

Carly’s breath caught in her throat, and she struggled for air. The room seemed to be closing in. Josh had told her the same thing, but she had no idea he’d discussed it with Jaden.

“And you love him too, so what’s the big deal?” Jaden pushed his chair away from the table. “I’m going out to shoot some hoops.”

“Be careful,” Carly said.

“I won’t even break a sweat.”

“It’s not anyone else’s place to get in the middle of your relationship with Josh,” Quinn said simply. “Not even yours, Dad.”

“I disagree,” their dad said. “When I see one of my daughters heading for disaster, you better believe I’m going to steer them the other way.”

Anger welled up inside of Carly, and she thought she might explode. “But how would you even know if it’s a disaster? You don’t even know Josh anymore. You never really did.”

“I know plenty,” Gus said.

“Because you’re buddies with his dad?” Carly’s words were as dry and sarcastic as she’d intended them to be.

“Well, yes, if you must know. Jim has told me stories over the years—two fathers trading battle wounds.”

“Battle wounds.” Carly threw her napkin over her plate. “That’s rich. If you knew what that man—” She stilled. Josh didn’t want anyone knowing about his father. It wasn’t her place, no matter how her silence made Josh look.

“That man, what?” her dad asked.

“Forget it,” she said.

“I don’t know why you’re defending him,” Dad said. “Clearly you’ve blocked out the pain of the last sixteen years.”

Carly stood. “My last sixteen years haven’t been all pain, Dad. I got a great kid out of the deal. My life wasn’t ruined, and Josh didn’t destroy me. He made me stronger. He forced me to become the person I was meant to become. I’ve forgiven him for leaving. And if I decided that I love him, I would expect you all to accept that and stop having an opinion about it.” She looked at Beverly. “Thank you for dinner.”

“Carly, don’t go,” Quinn said.

She looked at her dad. “Of course you aren’t willing to give Josh a second chance—you haven’t even given your own daughter a second chance. What more can I say? I screwed up. I let you down. I disappointed you. But you can’t hold it against me for the rest of my life.”

She didn’t expect him to follow her—her dad was too proud for that—but she did hope he’d at least consider what she said.

Inside the quiet of her Honda, she let out a heavy sigh. She’d been holding that all in for years—why had she chosen today to let it all out?

She glanced at Jaden as he slid into the passenger seat and found him staring at her, the faintest hint of a smile on his face. Wow, he looked like Josh. Same dark hair. Same strong cheekbones. She’d stopped thinking so years ago, but with Josh back in her life, the similarities were hard to ignore.

“What are you smiling at?” she asked.

He held his hands up in mock surrender. “Nothing.”

She started the car.

“Except you just totally defended Dad in there.”

“So?”

“Told you you still love him.”

---