Page 23 of Reluctantly Yours

“We ordered room service.”Sofia was too excited to be held, wiggling out of my arms.I had to put her down or drop her.“It was so good!How come you’re back already?”

“Well, turns out I’m free for the rest of the afternoon.I wondered if you ladies would show me around town since I haven’t had much of a chance to check it out yet.”I stripped off my necktie and slid out of my jacket while they gaped at each other like they couldn’t believe it.“Well?Am I going out alone, or are you coming with me?”

Sofia’s shriek left me wincing as she ran for her room.“I’m getting dressed!”

“Let me help, for heaven’s sake,” Penny called out with a laugh.“Or you’ll end up wearing who knows what.”But she turned to me first, and I knew exactly what she was thinking when her mouth twitched.

“Don’t start,” I warned.

“Start what?”She was the picture of innocence.There might as well have been a halo over her head.“I was smiling.This is nice.”

“So you aren’t feeling even slightly smug that I came back earlier than planned so we can go out together?”I asked, removing my cufflinks.“Not the slightest bit?”

She screwed her mouth up like she was giving it serious thought before holding her thumb and forefinger an inch apart.“Just a tiny bit.But let the record show I was willing to let it go without saying anything.”

“Very mature of you.”I headed for my room at the far corner of the suite with her on my heels.“For what it’s worth, I gave it some thought and decided, yes, I could use a little time with her.”

And you.Not something I needed to say.That was the sort of thing I couldn’t take back.It was the effect she had on me.No matter how I told myself to keep it professional for Sofia’s sake, if not my own, all of it dissolved when we were in the same room.

Now that I knew what she tasted like and the sound of her moaning my name, I didn’t have a chance of going back to where we were before.

What made it impossible was her sweet but knowing grin once I reached my room and turned to find her in the doorway.“I’m sure you did,” she replied in a way that told me she was secretly patting herself on the back for getting through to me.She would patronize me a little, the way she would let Sofia think she had her way when, really, she had been nudged in a certain direction.

It had to be the air out here in New York because I would have lost my shit if we were back in LA when almost every word the girl spoke left me wanting to strangle her.

“I’m ready!”Sofia emerged from her room across the hall wearing leopard print leggings under a long T-shirt featuring a glittery neon rainbow.In her hands, she held a pair of pink, sparkly sneakers.

“At least we’ll be able to find her in a crowd if she wanders off,” Penny pointed out under her breath as Sofia waited for approval.She was so damn proud.

What the hell did it matter, anyway?I was facing the prospect of missing a lot of time with my little girl.No point in wasting any now, arguing over her fashion sense.“You look great,” I decided.“Give me a couple of minutes to get changed.I seriously doubt I’ll find anything that compares with you.”Penny’s wide, happy smile meant almost as much as Sofia’s.

It was damn dangerous, letting her open me up this way, but what choice did I have?Something about her left me powerless to defend myself.No matter how I knew I should.

10

PENNY

By the time we got back to LA and settled into our routine again, one thing was obvious.I was officially sleeping with my boss.My rich, older, off-limits boss.

How was I supposed to help it?It was like that first night together unlocked a whole flood of wanting and needing, craving him every waking moment.I couldn’t open my eyes in the morning or close them at night without thinking about him.I wondered if he was thinking about me, or if we would spend any time together that day or night.I was living in the happy bubble that only existed when I had a big crush on somebody.Something fun, something that got my heart pounding whenever I heard his footsteps and made it sink whenever he left for the day.

It wasn’t always easy to turn my full attention to Sofia, but I did my best to keep her busy and happy.The next few weeks after visiting New York were filled with museum trips, park visits, trips to the library, art lessons in the spare bedroom, which Travis had agreed I could set up as a studio.Maybe using the wordlessonswas generous, though I was interested in her instinctive understanding of color and form.

“You have a lot of talent,” I told her, and every time I did, she seemed to grow a little taller and stood up straighter, proud of herself.If that were all I ever managed to do for her, it would be more than enough.Making sure she was proud of herself and seeing herself as the smart, talented girl she is.Kids only needed somebody to believe in them so they could believe in themselves.

Cecilia, Travis’ housekeeper, stopped in the kitchen on her way out.“Goodnight, ladies,” she chirped as she swung a very large purse onto her thin shoulder.The woman was stronger than she looked.“I’ll be back Thursday.And Penny, I left the dress with the grass stains soaking in the laundry room sink.”

“Thanks,” I told her, giving Sofia a knowing look.I’d warned her about sliding on the grass at the park.“See you Thursday.”

“Will Daddy be home for dinner tonight?”Sofia sat on one of the stools in front of the kitchen island, swinging her feet as she colored once she said goodbye to Cecilia.Like most things she did, she took coloring seriously, choosing exactly the shade of pink she wanted before coloring in a bouquet of roses.

“He sure will,” I announced, turning away from the stove, where I was simmering sauce for lasagna.“He texted to say his last meeting would wrap up soon, so that’s why I got dinner started.”

“Do you like Daddy?”

The question almost made me swallow my tongue, but I quickly reminded myself this was a four-year-old child I was talking to.She couldn’t mean it the way it came out.“What do you mean?”I asked, keeping it light and casual.One of the worst things adults could do was project their thoughts and experiences on something an innocent child said.

“You know.Do you like him like I like you?Are you friends?”

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