Page 19 of Room 908
He took me by the shoulders and turned me around to face him. “It’s not nothing. Tell me.” When I pinched my lips shut and looked away from him, he moved one hand to my jaw and tipped my chin up. “Jasper, please. Cam was your son first, and you’ve done such a great job raising him. You’re the professional in this, and I’m nothing but a rookie. I’ll never learn unless you teach me.”
I drew in a deep breath and blew out a sigh, my resolve softening. “It’s just…”
“Yeah?” he coaxed.
“I wouldn’t put a TV in his room at this age. It’s important that we encourage him to be social and interact with his family and friends, but if he has a TV in here, he might never leave his room. And he’ll never do his homework with that kind of distraction.” I glanced back at the comfy-looking bed. “Hell, I wouldn’t leave if it were my room.” I gave Eric an apologetic smile, but he nodded.
“I totally get it. It makes sense. Consider it gone.”
“Thanks,” I whispered. I knew he was trying to make this as easy for me as possible, but it was still a lot of change to get used to. I eased out from under his hands and made my way back to the kitchen, pulling open the fridge to see what kind of food he had.
I felt Eric behind me, but I tried to ignore the way he made me feel. “Cam can be a picky eater about some things, so I’ll make you a list of some of his favorite meals and snacks.”
“Sounds great.”
When I closed the fridge and turned back to face him, Eric was leaning back against the island, arms crossed over his chest. “So, do I pass the inspection?” he asked, smirking.
I let out a snort. “You know you do. It wasn’t really a concern.”
“Then why did you want to come and check it out?” His lips spread in a slow, lazy smile. “Was it so you could get me alone, all to yourself? All you had to do was ask, baby.”
Rolling my eyes, I went to move past him. The kitchen suddenly felt too small for the two of us. “You’re so full of yourself. Do omegas really fall for your lines?”
He snagged my arm on the way by, his smile falling a little, and he turned serious. “There are no omegas, Jasper.”
My breath caught. He looked so… earnest. So real. But he couldn’t possibly be saying what I thought he was saying. “What about that model you were seeing?”
He shook his head. “Remy was only ever a friend.” His grip on my arm tightened, then he slid his hand down to mine and tugged me closer. “I dated a couple guys over the years, but nothing serious. You?”
“Uh… yeah, same.” Between raising my son, juggling classes then work, I hadn’t found the time to commit to a relationship—but I found myself suddenly trying to rearrange my schedule.
“It’s always been you, Jasper,” he whispered.
Eric reached up, slowly enough that I could pull away if I wanted to, but I couldn’t seem to get myself to retreat, to push him away, to stop him from whatever it was he was about to do. It was déjà vu from when we were just eighteen.
And I still wanted him, even after all this time.
His lips felt familiar as he pressed them to mine, warm and firm, in a chaste kiss. It was totally innocent at first, but then I opened for him without planning to. He trailed his tongue teasingly along my bottom lip, dipping into my mouth gently, testing the waters. And when I moaned, he took that as confirmation and deepened the kiss. His arm snaked behind me, his hand flat across my lower back dragging me in, and I came up against his hard body.
I didn’t know how it happened, but I found my fingers sliding up his chest and around his neck, gripping his short hair. I couldn’t think straight, couldn’t get enough oxygen. Heat surged through me, and my cock thickened, slick dampening the back of my underwear. When I felt his erection grinding into my stomach, I gasped, my thoughts clearing just enough for one message to get through.
This isn’t right.
My head swam, and I groaned in frustration, putting my hands flat on his chest and pressing away. He loosened his grip on me, and I took a step back before it could get even more out of hand, his hands slipping down to my hips.
“I-I can’t.Wecan’t. We aren’t teenagers anymore, Eric. We have a son, and I don’t want to complicate things any more than they already are.”
His grip tightened briefly before he peeled his hands off me and stepped back. “Okay. I understand.” He took a deep, bracing breath then ran his hand over his face, and it was like a mask descending over his features, turning colder, harder. “All right. I’ll be in Florida for a game this weekend, but maybe Cam could stay with me for a few days next week? I can pick him up from school.”
“Oh. Um, sure. I’ll, uh, add your name to the school’s list of approved guardians.” He’d switched gears so quickly I was getting whiplash. Was I so easy to let go? Clearly, he’d been exaggerating his feelings for me if he was so unaffected.
“Great. And maybe we could sit down and work out a schedule for shared custody. I’m sure we can work together on our own, but if you would prefer we have a contract, I’ll pay for the lawyer.”
“A lawyer?” My brain was still addled from the kiss. Things were moving too quickly. We’d been careening down the highway, and suddenly we were taking an exit ramp on two wheels. What the fuck was going on?
This felt too familiar all of a sudden. My mouth went dry, and acid coated the back of my tongue. “Is that why you kissed me? So you could manipulate me?”Just like old times.
“What?” Eric frowned. “No, of course not.” He tried to reach for me, but his hand closed on air as I stumbled back.