Page 43 of A Place Like You

Her eyes stare at me, one brow arching a little higher than the other. “Umm, no offense, but you kind of included yourself by offering lunch.”

“And I appreciate that you let me tag along,” I respond, grateful for the opportunity to spend time with her and her son.

“You could indeed be a criminal, but I doubt CQS would let you frolic around the town if that were the case,” she points out, making a valid argument. “Still, giving you a job without knowing your qualifications is a big risk.”

“Why are you taking it?”

“You worked well under pressure, and I do need help,” she explains, her brows slightly furrowing in thought. “Turning people down because there’s only one me weighs on me. But most importantly, I can spend more time with Milo. He’s growing too fast, and I don’t want to miss these years because I’m working all the time. Hiring you helps me find a balance between my son and my career.”

I nod in understanding, though a part of me wishes I had done something similar before it was too late with Noelle and Sinclair.

“Glad I can help,” I say, my fingers twitching to reach out and caress her cheek, to lean in and capture her mouth. I’m dying to kiss her. But I resist the temptation, reminding myself to keep my hands to myself. I can’t risk complicating things between us.

Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I order myself to calm the fuck down before I do something foolish. I clear my throat, focusing on the dishes in front of me. “You own my time, so just schedule me whenever you feel like it, okay?”

I hurry to wash and tidy up the kitchen, keeping myself busy to distract from the strong attraction I feel toward Wren. It’s not that I don’t want to spend time with her. On the contrary, I find myself drawn to her. But I can’t fuck this up for either of us.

We need each other and not in the way my dick thinks.

When I finish, I dry my hands and walk swiftly toward the door, eager to put some distance between us.

“Thank you again for today,” she says with a playful glint in her eyes, her lips curling up into a subtle, flirtatious smile.

I linger for a moment, my eyes involuntarily tracing the outline of her lips, before offering a salute. “Anytime. See you tomorrow, boss.”

As I turn to leave, I catch a flicker of something in her gaze. Is it disappointment? Perhaps, but it’s better to step back now than to complicate things further. She doesn’t need the added aggravation, and I can’t afford to let my desires cloud my judgment.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Drake: Morning, got the coffee. Did River drop breakfast at your place?

Wren: You’re spoiling Milo.

Drake: I want to think that we’re just helping.

Wren: I appreciate it, but I can prepare breakfast.

Drake: Sure, but do you have time to prepare dino-muffins with fruit?

Wren: Well, no. I don’t own molds or have a chef in the family. How did you make this happen (the molds)?

Drake: We have our ways.

Wren: Something tells me that you guys are using a lot of CQS assets to live more comfortably.

Drake: Surprisingly no. We’re not allowed to do much unless we use the magic words.

Wren: Which are?

Drake: THIS IS FOR MILO. :wink: emoji

Wren: You’re using my son?

Drake: Not at all. Gael is just asking for dinosaur molds, cooking gadgets, and more to create new food. They only say yes because they’re for Milo. We can’t get anything else, so no, we’re not using him.

Wren: I appreciate everything you are doing for him.

Drake: It’s fun to see him gush about dinosaurs and learn that he’s no longer fighting lunchtime.

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