Page 49 of Just One Kiss

“Why not?” he asked. “Look, Carly, I know we don’t talk very much anymore, but I’m doing pretty well now.”

Her eye roll was less sarcastic and more amused. He wondered if she was secretly proud of his success. He hoped she was. He’d only ever wanted to make her proud.

Besides, he’d never admit it to anyone else, but it had been nice to prove everyone wrong.

Nobody would’ve believed that C student and perpetual detention holder Josh Dixon would ever do more with his life than work at a gas station and play the lottery.

He’d shown them, hadn’t he?

Success should make him feel better than it had. Somehow, it was always overshadowed by the sins of the past—not only the mistakes he’d made with Jaden and Carly, but mistakes he’d made so many years before that.

“I know you want to be with him,” Josh said, forcing his mind to stop wandering.

“Of course I do.” Tears welled in her eyes. He could pull her into his arms. He could give her the kind of comfort he used to when she’d had a bad day—no questions asked.

But she took a step away, as if she’d overheard thoughts he would never say aloud.

Point taken.

He stared at her.

“Don’t look at me,” she said, covering her face with her hands.

“Still the best view I’ve ever seen.” He smiled, despite not feeling like it.

She waved him off. “If I take weeks off right now, I can kiss that promotion goodbye.”

“You don’t know that. Extenuating circumstances must count for something.”

She shook her head.

“Let me do this for you,” Josh said. “Let me take care of you guys.”

Carly pressed her lips together and turned away just as Jaden stepped off the elevator with a can of Coke.

“Can we go home?” he asked.

“Yep,” Josh said.

Jaden turned back toward the elevators, and Josh looked at Carly. “Okay?”

“We’ll talk about it later,” she said.

“Talk about what?” Jaden cracked open the can of soda and took a drink.

“The schedule,” Josh said. “Just trying to work it out.”

“I don’t need a babysitter.” Jaden faced them.

“You’re going to need someone to take care of you after surgery,” Carly said.

“That’s you, right? You’re the nurse.”

The elevator arrived and Jaden stepped inside and put a hand on the door until his parents entered.

“It’s complicated, Jaden,” Carly said.

Their son pushed the button for the first floor and they stood in silence as the doors closed.

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