Chapter Ten
Duncan
"I'm sorry. We were dancing, and I didn't realize you'd be here so soon. Hi, Jeremy." He just looked at her, shocked. "Come in."
"Are you certain?" I asked. "We don't want to disturb you."
"No, of course not. I also bought some things for tomorrow, Jeremy."
"Oh, can I see?" he asked, finally recovering his voice.
"Sure."
I looked curiously around the house. It was a very typical Californian bungalow.
Two women poked their heads in from a doorway. "Hi. We're Riley's roommates. I’m Christine, and this is Julia."
I didn’t know she had roommates.
"I'm Duncan Sterling, and this is my son, Jeremy," I said.
"Wow, this is so cool. When I grow up, I also want to live with my friends." He looked up at me. "Dad, can I live with my friends now?"
"No. You have to be at least eighteen."
He nodded. "That’s okay. I only have eight more years left."
Riley waved us forward. "Come on, the kitchen is this way."
She walked in front of us, and I was trying to look anywhere but at those long, tan legs. Though above them, her ass was delicious and calling to me in the tight white shorts she was wearing. Damn it.
"What snacks did you buy? Dad and I also went shopping," Jeremy said.
She smiled. "Snickers. I heard they were your favorite. I saw them on sale and thought they'd make your day."
His eyes lit up. "Can I have one now?" he asked.
Riley looked at me.
"No. You already had enough brownies in the car. Any more sugar and you won't sleep tonight."
"I promise I’ll sleep, Dad," he whined.
"That's not how sugar works," I said patiently. "Remember? Then if you don't sleep well tonight, you'll be tired tomorrow."
He pouted but nodded. "Yeah. I don't want to be tired for the roller coasters. I don't want to fall asleep like a baby. Did you know some people faint?" he asked Riley eagerly.
"Yeah."
"I have no idea why," he went on.
"Not everyone's meant to go on roller coasters" was all I said.
Julia poked her head in. "Hey, Jeremy?"
"Yes?" he said.
"Riley said you like Spider-Man."
My son immediately perked up, as did I. She'd spoken about him with her friends?
"I've got a figurine collection I think you'd enjoy," she continued.
Jeremy looked up at me. "Dad, can I go look?"
"Sure." I usually didn't allow my son to go off with strangers, but they were Riley’s roommates, after all.
He ran out of the kitchen before I even had time to add anything else.
Riley took the truffles from me. “Thanks for bringing these.”
“Riley, you can buy anything you and Jeremy want with the credit card I gave you.”
She nodded. “I just wasn’t sure about these. They’re exorbitant.”
I couldn't get over how beautiful she was. Her sun-kissed skin and the blonde streaks in her hair made her blue eyes pop. She was simply stunning.
"Sorry to crash your Sunday. Are you going to bake now?" I asked.
“No, I’ll do it tomorrow morning so they’re fresh. We’re going to the club after you leave.”
Something about the idea of her dancing in a club triggered me. What if some dude came up to her and wanted to dance with her? What if he put his hands on her? The thought drove me crazy. "It's just the three of you who are going?"
"Yes. We're trying to take Julia's mind off her latest breakup. The girl doesn’t have any good luck, I swear. Then again, none of us do."
I moved closer. She licked her lower lip but didn't break our eye contact.
"And why is that?"
"I don't know. I, for one, have been buried in work and school for the past few years. Law school isn't for the faint of heart, and that bar exam still gives me nightmares. Dating was something of an afterthought, and the guys I did go out with… weren’t exactly what I was looking for."
"Which is what? What do you want in a man?" Why I was asking these questions baffled me. No, that was a lie. I wanted to know about her, about Riley, what made her who she was.
She averted her gaze. "I don't know how to put it into words. It's not a list of qualities or something." Then she looked back at me. "Just someone who makes me feel alive and wanted and cared for. Like I mean something to them, you know?"
She spoke with so much passion that I nearly kissed her right here against the sink.
"Anyway,” she continued, “don't worry, I promise I won't stay out very long tonight. I'll be fresh for Jeremy tomorrow."
"What you do in your free time is up to you. I have no problem with you clubbing." I sounded like an angry bear.
"Your voice sort of contradicts what you're saying." Her smile was more of a smirk.
"It does," I confessed. Somehow, I was even closer to her now. She must have showered recently, because a faint smell of lemon came off her hair. It was damn delicious.
"Duncan," she murmured.
"I’ve been thinking about you constantly since that day at the pool.”
She gasped. “Me too.”
I tilted my head, looking from her lips to her eyes. "But you've refused to stay for dinner since.”
She swallowed hard. "I thought it might be easier, you know?"
"What would be easier?"
"If I wasn't so tempted by you."
I forgot myself completely then. Forgot that there were three other people in this house—and that one of them was my son. Forgot that she was his nanny and completely off-limits.
I kissed her. She tasted like cherries.
I was a goner the second I pressed my mouth to hers.
With both hands on her hips, barely keeping myself from bunching her shirt up so I could feel her bare skin, I kissed and kissed her until I was out of breath.
And still, I didn't pull apart. A faint tremble went through her body.
She moaned against my lips, then put her fingers on my biceps and dug in her nails.
"Riley, can you come here for a second?" Julia's voice filtered to us.
I came back to my senses, pulling away. Riley leaned back, pressing her lips together, then putting a hand on her chest.
"Why did you pull away?" The urgency in her voice nearly brought me to my knees.
"Julia called you into her room."
"Oh my God! I didn't even hear her."
In a fraction of a second, Riley’s demeanor changed. She glanced around, clearly checking if anyone had seen us. Then she darted out of the kitchen.
I found a glass in the overhead cupboard and filled it with cold water before drinking it quickly. It would have been more efficient if I'd dumped it on myself, but this would have to do.
That's it, Duncan. Now you've done it. It was one thing to pretend that moment between Riley and me at the pool hadn't happened, but this was harder to ignore. Both the kiss and what she said before it—that she hadn't wanted to stay because I tempted her too much.
I was so screwed. I had to get my shit together.
Jeremy came running to me. "Dad, Julia's Spider-Man is awesome. I don't have that one. I hope I can find it."
I laughed but didn't do anything to curb his enthusiasm. It wasn’t long ago that he’d been into Mario Kart, and now it was his Spider-Man phase. I was sure there would be others as he grew up, and I’d be there to support him all the way.
Jeremy led me down the corridor to one of the rooms. Julia and Riley were huddled over a shelf. "Anything wrong?" I asked.
"I accidentally knocked the shelf over, and it came off," Julia said.
"I can fix it," I offered.
Riley straightened up. "We've got it."
"The hell we do. Sorry, Jeremy," Julia said with a wince, then turned to me. "Yeah, we can do a lot of things, but we're not good at handling tools."
“Do you have a toolbox?” I asked.
Riley opened her mouth, clearly about to protest, but I cut in.
“You’re baking for Jeremy in your free time. The least I can do is this.”
Twenty minutes later, I’d fixed the shelf.
"Well, well, Duncan, you really have skills," Julia said. “Thank you!”
“No problem.” I looked at Jeremy and clapped my hands together. “All right, it’s getting late. Let’s go, Jeremy.”
“I’ll walk you to the door," Riley said in a small voice. She'd avoided looking at me the entire time I was fixing the shelf.
I didn't want her to feel awkward at all, but I knew I wasn't going to make things better tonight. Quite the contrary. So when she walked us to the door, I said, "I'll bring Jeremy tomorrow at nine o’clock. Good?"
We’d agreed that they would take my car tomorrow, since it was more comfortable than the one Riley used on a daily basis to drive Jeremy around and the park was an hour away.
She sucked in her breath and then nodded. "That's great. Thanks."
"Have a great evening, Riley."
She smiled, "I will."
"Have fun. But not too much."
Jeremy looked up at me. "Why not, Dad?"
That effectively cut through the tension between me and Riley. Damn it, I couldn’t keep myself in check even around my son.
Riley blushed, and I shook my head, replying, “It’s just a saying.”
Jeremy frowned but didn’t ask anything else. I nodded at Riley just before we turned and went to the car.
After strapping Jeremy in, I went to my side of the car and got in. Riley was still standing in the doorway. I smiled at her, and even from a distance, I saw her lips curl in response.
I was certain of two things.
One: This was absolutely insane. She was completely off-limits.
Two: I couldn’t fight my attraction to her anymore.