Page 40 of The Hang Up

I slid my gaze to her. “You were?”

“You’re aware of your attractiveness, Joshua. And you’re no longer married.”

“True. I mean the not being married part.”

“Don’t worry,” she said, turning on the dishwasher. “I’ve changed my mind.”

I leaned back against the counter and folded my arms. “Why?”

“Same reason I didn’t pursue you before. I don’t date men who are taken.”

I rubbed my hands on my shorts. “I’m not—”

“Save it.” She stared out the patio doors where Sean and Brock were horsing around. “I’m not in favor of this relationship. My son has his whole life ahead of him. What right do you have to take that away?”

“Regina, I’m not trying to do that—”

She held up a hand to stop me. “But he also seems happier. When he’s not crying in the bathroom.”

“That wasn’t my fault,” I said as she tried to hide a grin. That had been a test. And Brock—and I—had failed. “I’m not going to hurt him—”

“You’re wrong. And you know it. My son has had a crush on you for most of his life. When this ends—and I can’t see how it works out—it will devastate him. If you somehow make it work—he deserves better than hiding. He’s done that enough, don’t you think?”

I nodded.

“If this is like your Corvette—wanting a younger guy so you don’t feel so old or whatever—end it now, I beg you. It will hurt him, but maybe a little less.”

“That’s not what this is. I care about Brock.”

“Okay, then,” she said with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Just remember, I’m handy with a kitchen knife. If you hurt him, I will cut off your balls. Then I will slice them and dice them and feed them to you for breakfast. Got it?”

“Got it.”

CHAPTER10

Brock

The weight of everything—school,work, family, and hiding from everyone—started to melt away as I relaxed into the leather seat of Joshua’s sports car. The feel of the open highway. The smooth vibration of tires on the road. The scent of leather and Joshua and coffee.

“Did you bring your passport?”

And I was no longer relaxed. I turned and stared at his way-too-gorgeous profile. “Do I need it? Because you didn’t—”

His grin stopped my words. Was he teasing me? I didn’t find it funny in the least. I liked to have things planned. Not Ben-planned but a one-eighty from Sean, who once decided we needed to go mountain climbing with barely a week’s notice, in Kalymnos, Greece. “I was kidding,” Joshua said, the smile sliding off his face. “I wasn’t sure you had a passport.”

“You’ve met your son, right?”

He nodded, and his hand on the steering wheel tightened. “You don’t need it. We’re not leaving the country.”

“Sorry. That was—” What could I say? I had assumed Joshua knew what his son did with his money. But maybe he didn’t monitor Sean’s bank accounts. He had people for that.Way to start the trip off right, Brock.

“It’s fine. I forgot about the trips you’ve gone on together.”

“I hate this—whatever this is. This weekend is supposed to be about leaving all that behind.”

Joshua slipped his hand in mine and smiled, soothing some of my anxiety. “I’m trying.” But his shoulders were still tense as if he were bracing for something.

“What?” I squeezed his hand. “Just tell me.”

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