Chapter 16: Surly Romance: Chapter 16

The second Rex Connors recognized me, I felt the walls around my secrets crumbling.

The truth is beginning to unravel, and it’s different from what I’d understood it to be.

I overheard some of Rex and Sunny’s conversation. They’re talking about illicit pictures. Sunny seems bewildered and I’m just as stunned. Who put those pictures in her locker and what do they have to do with the incident that scarred me for life? Most importantly, where will Sunny and I stand when the dust settles and we’re standing on either side of the truth?

Rex looks at me again, and his eyes shudder with fear. He licks his lips, sticks a hand into the pocket of his pants and leans back. He’s stuck between me and Sunny. He’s not running anywhere.

“The pictures that you saw,” he blinks rapidly, “Eric staged them.”

Sunny grits her teeth. Nostrils flaring, she asks sharply, “Why would he do that?”

I fold my arms over my chest. I know the answer to that question, but I keep my mouth shut.

“Eric caught hoodie guy slipping a note into your locker. He asked me to crack your lock so he could get inside. Turns out, the guy left a love confession.”

It’s hard to keep from flinching. It’s hard to keep breathing. Rex is pulling a scene straight out of a nightmarish time in my life and rolling it out for Sunny to inspect. I could interrupt now. I could say my piece. But I don’t.

“Eric thought it was hilarious.”

“Hilarious?” Sunny’s voice turns shrill. “He thought it was funny to replace a regular love note with…” She sputters. “R-Rex, I—” She snaps her mouth shut. Eyes burning, she growls, “You know what I did after I found those disgusting pictures. You know we… what we did to that boy. You’re saying Eric knew the truth the whole time and watched me get revenge… for what? A laugh? A story to share with the buds?”

“I’m sorry, Sunny.”

Sunny seems out of it. Dazed, she turns to me and mumbles, “What have I done, Darrel? What have I done?”

I know the answer.

I was there.

On the receiving end.

Sunny hunches her shoulders. The confidence she so naturally exudes is replaced by trembling hands and hitching breaths. “You’ve heard me say that I wasn’t… the best person in high school. I stepped on a lot of people, but the worst thing I ever did was to the hoodie kid.”

“The hoodie kid?” The words escape raspy and choked. Sunny doesn’t notice. She’s too wrapped up in her guilt to hear it.

Her eyes dart back and forth. “That’s what everyone called him. No one knows when he started school. He just kind of… appeared one day. He walked around with this hoodie and was always lurking around me. I saw him a couple times, watching me, but he never spoke.”

I wince. A memory of that day swells in my head. He’s such a freak. Why would I ever go out with him?

“I thought he was harmless.” Sunny’s voice is getting tighter and tighter. “Until one day, I found some really disgusting pictures in my locker. There was a note. It said ‘from Hoodie Guy’.” Sunny slaps her forehead. “I’m such an idiot. Why would he sign it like that? He would have signed it with his own name. I should have known something was shady from that moment.” Her eyes throw daggers at Rex. “Someone should have spoken up.”

“Hey, no one forced you to do what you did next,” Rex points out.

“I wouldn’t have done anything if…” Sunny stumbles back. “I thought I needed to teach him a lesson. I didn’t think—” She crouches over and holds her knees. “I set him up…”

As she speaks, the memory returns to me in startling clarity.

“Hey.”

“Me?” I point a finger in my jacket.

“Yes, you.” Sunny Quetzal beckons with a smile that sends fireworks through my body. Did she get my note? Is she going to respond so soon?

I stumble toward her, keeping my head down because looking her in the eyes feels like a privilege I have to earn.

“Are you going to the pep rally tomorrow?”

“I didn’t plan to.”

“You should come. Sit with me.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really.” Her voice is as smooth as silk. “Maybe after, I’ll even let you take me out for a milkshake.”

“Darrel, I…” Sunny’s voice in the present is thick with shame, “I publicly embarrassed him…”

“Sunny said you should sit here.” Rex Connors wears a big grin and points to a spot on the bleachers.

I stumble to my seat. My knee is jittery and my mouth is dry. I can’t believe Sunny asked me to sit with her. I can’t believe she read my note and wants to go out with me.

The auditorium is filled to the brim. The entire student body showed up and they’re all chatting loudly. I can’t see Sunny anywhere. When is she getting here?

Suddenly, a giant projector screen rolls down from the rafters and everyone goes silent. A picture of the football team rolls onto the screen. Eric’s at the front, smiling in his uniform. I scoff. He’s a jerk. I’ve thought for a while that Sunny should dump him.

The picture on the screen changes.

A recording of Sunny’s voice blares through the speakers. ‘Who is the hoodie guy?’ My picture appears on screen. ‘A creep’. Footage of me looking at Sunny in the hallway plays.

Everyone around me laughs.

‘A freak’.

Another image plays. This one of me in the boys’ locker room after P.E. Someone had stolen my clothes. I was stomping around trying to find it and slamming my fist against lockers when I couldn’t.

My face heats up. I had no idea someone was filming me. I thought the locker room was empty.

Now the entire student body is laughing at my naked body wrapped only in a towel.

More fingers point in my direction.

More laughter.

More ridicule.

‘He actually thought I would date him?’ Sunny’s pre-recorded laughter shreds my ears until they bleed. ‘I would never be with someone like him. Never in a million years. So go away, hoodie guy. And don’t even look at me again.’

“He left the school because of me.” Sunny’s hardly able to speak between gasps. “He was terrorized after that prank at the pep rally. He lasted, maybe, three days max before he dropped out of school. And now, I’m finding out… the reason I did that was because my ex manipulated me. I destroyed someone—” She sinks to the ground.

I breathe in deeply. My emotions are chaotic. Jumping from one thing to the next. Swinging between anger and pain to sympathy and concern.

The truth is here.

And it’s time to face it.

I glance at Rex. “You. Out.”

His eyebrows jump. “What?”

“I need the room.” Jutting my chin at his bags, I growl. “Take your things and leave.”

Sunny lifts her head. Tears shimmer in her eyes. She looks exactly like the queen bee of John Hearst. The girl who made me believe there was a chance I could be with her. The girl I was willing to risk public shaming for.

Yeah, I knew something like that could happen.

I knew Sunny Quetzal suddenly being into me was too good to be true. Still, I attended the pep rally because I liked her so much that just the chance of being with her was worth it.

“I’m sorry, Sunny.” Rex hurls the words over his shoulder. The door bangs shut as he disappears from the room. I see his head bopping in the distance before he finally turns the hallway and leaves my sight.

“Sunny, get up,” I say stiffly.

She shakes her head. “I can’t.”

I slip my hand under her elbow and tug her to her feet. She stumbles against me and I wrap my arms around her. “There’s something you need to know.”

Her body quakes against me. “Not right now, Darrel. I can’t… I can’t look at you right now. I’m too ashamed.” Head still bent toward the ground, she mumbles, “I think I should go home.”

“No.” I tighten my grip on her.

“Darrel, didn’t you hear me?” Sunny explodes. “I’m a bully. I’m a terror. I don’t deserve to…” She swallows the rest of her words with a warbled cry. “I don’t deserve your comfort right now. And I can’t accept it. You weren’t there. Okay? You don’t know how awful I was to him.”

“I was there,” I whisper.

She turns her head to me, and I meet her gaze without flinching. As the silence stretches, I absorb her guilt and regret. I take in everything. Then I let it disperse softly because I’ve had time to come to grips with the Sunny she used to be and the Sunny she is now.

“What?” Sunny searches my eyes desperately.

I should have told her from the start. It was the right thing to do. The mature thing.

And I didn’t.

But how could I tell her I was the guy in the hallway, staring at her as she glided through the school with her posse and her pretty smile and her hair that shimmered with every step? How did I tell her that the day we spoke for the first time was the day she showed me the most cruel part of herself?

I don’t know how to fix this. I have a ton of practice fixing other people, but I don’t know where to start tonight.

She covers her mouth in shock as she makes her own deductions. “Is that why you didn’t want me snooping around your room? In case I found your high school yearbook?”

“And the photo albums.” I glance aside. The breath I take in is so painful that it squeezes my chest. “I look different today than I did in high school. And I have a much better understanding of who I am now and how to be confident. Most John Hearst kids don’t recognize me when they see me.”

She stumbles back. “The evidence was right in front of me this entire time. I had no idea.” Eyebrows tightening in distress, she whispers, “Darrel, what… how long have you known who I was?”

My pulse speeds up until it’s sprinting.

Her brown fingers slip over my arm. She leans forward, her eyes imploring me.

“I recognized you the moment we ran into each other in the furniture store last year. You looked… exactly as you did in high school.”

Her eyes turn hazy. “That’s why you didn’t want to shake my hand.”

It wasn’t dislike that made me ignore her hand. It was shock. Micheal and Bailey were coming to stay with me for the first time while Ms. Jean did her treatments. I was stressed about accommodating them. When I saw her, the girl who stole my heart and then crushed it all those years ago, I did the immature thing. It’s not a moment I’m proud of.

She trembles. “I can’t believe this.”

“I should have told you earlier.”

“I can’t…” She paces away from me and sinks into the bench.

“I thought you were the same person that you’d been in the past. I thought that if I just scowled at you and ignored you, everything would be fine.”

Sunny is silent for a long time.

I plod to the bench and sit beside her. My knee is jittering. My fingers curl against it to stop it from moving. “I’m sorry.”

“Sorry?” She swallows. “Why are you apologizing? I’m the one who’s sorry. No, I’m more than sorry. I can’t even look at you because I’m so ashamed.” She makes a pained face. “It must have been sickening to see me. I didn’t know that I’d done that to you, and I intentionally picked fights with you every time we met.”

“You never made me sick, Sunny. In fact, it was the opposite.” I’m unloading the truth. It’s pouring out of me like a mountain wave that’s strong enough to topple houses and lampposts. “It didn’t take long to realize how much you’d changed. You were kind and genuine and determined. You went out of your way for your friends. I was attracted to you even more than when we were in high school. I panicked at first. I didn’t want to be drawn to you all over again, but I started having feelings for you and they kept growing even though I fought it.”

She hops to her feet and starts pacing. “You could have told me.”

I shake my head. “I know. I wasn’t trying to lie to you.”

“You knew…” her steps slow, “oh my gosh, you knew and you still hired me to decorate the boys’ room.”

I blink rapidly.

“You knew and you still went up against Stinton Group to help me.” She looks at me with such a fierce expression that I wonder if she’s going to slap me. “You knew and you still told me you loved me.”

The knots in my stomach are squeezing so tight I can barely breathe. “Sunny.”

She takes giant steps toward me, her long arms swinging. Without warning, she throws her arms around my neck. I almost crash off the bench.

Sunny holds me tight, not caring that we both almost toppled to the ground. “I don’t deserve your forgiveness.” Her eyes squeeze shut. “But I’m going to ask for it anyway.” She eases back and stares into my eyes with her soulful brown ones. “I’m so sorry, Darrel. I’m sorry I led you on that day. I’m sorry I showed that private footage to the entire school. I’m sorry I was so cruel to you. And I’m sorry that it took me this long to find you and say these words to your face.”

“It’s okay.”

“It is the opposite of okay.”

I cradle her chin. “Sunny, we were so young back then.”

“It doesn’t matter. I knew better.”

I detect the guilt in her eyes and feel an overwhelming urge to comfort her. “I won’t lie. What happened that day left an impression.” She cringes and I smooth out her frown. “But it also taught me to be stronger. I had a choice to fall apart or be more confident. I chose to turn my life around so that no one could bully me again.”

“That’s not a lesson any child should have to learn, Darrel. I should have been kinder. Instead, I was a monster to you. You left the school—”

“That wasn’t because of you.”

“Don’t even try to make me seem like a decent human being.”

“I didn’t leave the school because of the pep rally, Sunny. I mean it.”

She gazes up with tear-filled eyes. “No?”

“No.” I rub her back soothingly. “A few months into the school year, my dad got another assignment. I knew we were going to leave. That’s why I gathered my courage and wrote you a letter.”

“I never got to see it. What did it say?” She holds her breath.

“That I loved you.”

Her eyes widen.

“There was also a brain scan,” I add sheepishly.

“A what?”

“The teenage-me thought it was cool.”

“Seriously? A brain scan?” Her lips wobble as if she doesn’t want to give herself permission to smile, but she’s amused anyway. “Like an actual picture of your brain?”

“Yes.” I’m glad she’s laughing. I’m glad those dark days can be dragged into the light and feel like a funny memory. I don’t hold what happened in the past against her. Sunny’s here. She’s holding my hand and she’s apologizing and she’s looking at me as if she wants to go back in time and throttle her younger self. I never imagined that I’d end up meeting her again or falling for her or finding out the reasons behind her cruel prank.

“Tell me why,” she presses, wiggling in my lap.

My body rises to attention, but I force myself to focus on the conversation. “I’d been interested in science and neuropsychology since I was a kid. I went to one of my dad’s friends at the hospital and I asked for an MRI scan. You shouldn’t be able to do that, but I used my mom’s money to pay for it and they were happy to accommodate me.”

“That’s still not a ‘why’, Darrel. Why did you think a brain scan would convince me to notice you?”

“I didn’t want you to notice me. I wanted to show you the evidence.”

“Evidence of what?”

“The way you made my medial insula light up.”

“Translation.”

“My… pleasure sensors.”

She shakes her head. “Wow.”

“It seemed like a good idea at the time. And I had nothing to lose. I’d be leaving school in a few days anyway. I slipped the brain scan and a note in your locker. I didn’t think anyone had noticed me but, clearly, I was wrong.”

“I can’t believe Eric swapped out your message.” Her lips get firm. The smile drips away from her face. “I’ll punch him in the neck if I ever see him again.”

Rubbing my fingers over her hands to calm her, I add, “It was a really long time ago.”

“He should still apologize. I know I don’t have an excuse. I was wrong for what I did. Even if you had sent me those nasty pictures, it didn’t require shaming you publicly. But at least I had a reason.”

“Eric had a reason too. I was creeping on his girlfriend.”

Sunny rolls her eyes. “Don’t be ridiculous.”

“The weird hoodie guy, the one you remember, he—I really was watching you back then. I changed classes just so I could spot you walking down the hallway. I looked for you when you were hanging with your friends in the cafeteria. Seeing you was the highlight of my day.” I rub a hand over the back of my neck. My face is heating up and I don’t have to check the giant mirror to know my ears are getting red. “Saying it out loud makes me sound like a creepy stalker.”

“No, it doesn’t.”

“Be honest.”

“Okay, a little.” She interlocks our fingers and it makes me feel a little better about her opinion of the teenaged-Darrel. “Maybe it was a good thing you never talked to me. I would have been rude to you. I wouldn’t have been able to appreciate the amazing guy you are.”

“Or maybe we would have been together sooner.”

“I was too superficial. I… I would have ruined it.” She tries to climb off my lap, but I hold her fast. Sunny’s voice breaks. “Darrel, how can you even look at me after what I’ve done?”

“How can I not look at you?”

“I ruined your life.”

“That’s being dramatic. Which isn’t unusual coming from you.”

“Don’t crack jokes.”

“I’m not.” I hug her to me. “I’m relieved.” She’s not mad at me for hiding the truth from her. She’s not running away. I can finally breathe easily. “You could have gotten angry at me.”

“Angry?”

“That I didn’t tell you.”

“How can I be angry at the victim?” She frowns. “That makes no sense.”

“Hm.”

“I’m not the same person I was in high school.”

“I know.”

“You were the one who got hurt. I should spend the rest of my life making it up to you.”

“Mm. I like the sound of that.” I nuzzle her cheek with my nose, enjoying the full glow of her presence. Who the hell knew honesty was so refreshing?

“Why did you always wear a hoodie?” Sunny asks, pressing her fingers against my face.

“Growing up, my sister and I moved around a lot. I knew I wouldn’t be attending John Hearst for long, so my only aim was to be invisible. I didn’t want anyone to notice me and I didn’t want to notice anyone.” My eyes scour her face. “Until I saw you. I couldn’t stop looking at you.”

“Darrel.” Her sigh is regretful.

I study her face. See the flash of regal strength in her cheekbones. The guilt still thick in her eyes. The resolve firming her plump lips. She’s strong and vulnerable and flawed and perfect. She’s everything.

“After I met you, I didn’t want to leave John Hearst. It was the first time I fought with my dad.”

“You had an argument?”

“No.” I clear my throat. “We had a fight. When I told him that I wanted to stay, he said I could… if I took him out in hand-to-hand combat.”

Sunny’s eyes widen. “Are you serious? That doesn’t sound like a healthy parent-son interaction.”

A moment of silence passes as Sunny looks expectantly at me and I build the courage to be honest with her. My insides knot and the words just won’t come out.

Sunny cradles my face between her warm brown hands and whispers, “Did he hit you, Darrel? Your dad? Did he… is that the real reason you always wore a hoodie?”

“No. It wasn’t like that.”

“Then what was it like?”

“My dad planned out my life from the day I was born. He wanted me to follow in his footsteps, so he had me doing drills since I was five.”

“What kind of drills?”

“Army drills.” I glance away. Push against the memories of training as a kid while my dad looked on and called me a ‘pathetic loser’.

“Did he have you training all the time?”

“Yes,” I say simply.

A dark look flashes in her eyes. Like the approach of a thunderstorm. “Why?”

I squeeze her hand. “He thought he was making me strong. He thought my mom was coddling me.”

“Did he do that to your sister too?”

“No.” I swipe the sweat gathering at the back of my neck. “Girls should be protected and men should be the protector. That’s what he said. I couldn’t protect anyone if I couldn’t fight.”

“How long did it continue?”

“Until I was fifteen.”

“Did Claire know he was treating you like that?”

I pause.

“Darrel, did she know?”

“She did.” I blink rapidly. “We never talked about it. Until the night she died. Claire called asking me to go with her to visit dad’s grave. I told her I wouldn’t. She asked me why I was being so stubborn when dad loved us so much.”

I expect Sunny to make a sarcastic remark, but she doesn’t. She just looks at me.

“Claire and I couldn’t agree. I called her a pampered princess. Told her she would never get it. I hung up on her.” My Adam’s apple bobs. “I regret it with every breath.”

Sunny wraps her arms around my neck. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s… it’s not like anything can change now.” I pat her back and stare unseeingly at the wall. “Dad might not have gotten the military son he wanted, but I knew how to throw a punch.”

She gasps. “That’s why you threw me down at the bachelorette party.”

“I’m sorry about that. It was instinctual.”

She waves away my apology. “I never knew your side of the story. I never knew ‘hoodie guy’ was going through so much. Yet, I piled it on by making fun of you and treating you without the decency of a human being.”

“We can’t change it, Sunny.” I close my eyes, suddenly weary. A side effect of unloading decades worth of secrets, guilt and shame is feeling extremely tired after.

Something grazes my knuckles and, when I focus on Sunny again, I realize she’s taking my hand in hers. “I was not ready for you when I was younger. And I think, Darrel, that maybe you weren’t ready for me. But I’m glad we found each other again. I can’t imagine… I can’t imagine being with anyone else. I really am sorry to you. And I’m also grateful that you can look at me without hating me.”

“I tried to hate you. I really did. And I failed so hard.” I brush away a strand of her hair from her cheek. All the empty places are being filled by her. By sunshine and Sunny and everything I didn’t know I’d been missing.

“I love you,” I whisper.

Sunny blinks rapidly. “I—”

She lets out a surprised little gasp as I pull her close and claim her mouth. My lips move insistently over hers, drowning out the sound of my roaring heartbeat and the pulse down south.

My hands press her closer. Closer still. As if I won’t be able to breathe without feeling her skin. My mind goes blank except for Sunny. The softness of her body. The silkiness of her hair. The fragrance of her skin.

She yanks her mouth away, leaving me yearning for more. I hear her sharp intake of breath, see the dazed look in her eyes, and reach for her hand. Her rushing pulse easily matches mine.

“You never let me finish, dammit.” Her lips curl up. “I would like to speak to the hoodie guy.”

I bark out a laugh even though my head is spinning and I need her naked yesterday.

“The hoodie guy?”

“Mm-hm.” She jumps to her feet.

“Uh…” I glance back and forth. She interrupted our kissing to role-play? I don’t know if that’s a good sign or a bad sign.

“Hi.” She juts out her hand.

I stare at it.

She pushes her hand further toward me until I take it. Then she wraps her long, elegant fingers around my palm and shakes. “I’m Sunny. I’ve noticed you watching me in the hallway for a few months now.”

I lick my lips. “I’m Darrel.”

“Darrel.” She tests my name on her tongue and I want to rip her clothes off immediately. “Fits you. Much more than the hoodie guy.”

“Cute nicknames are welcome.”

She laughs. Her eyes sparkle at me. “You’re funny.”

“Not particularly. But if you think so…”

“I do think so.” She leans forward. “Darrel, I want to tell you something.”

I nod. Gesture for her to continue.

“I’m going to do something really awful to you. Across all the crappy things that I’ve ever done, what I’ll do to you is the worst. When I find out the truth—that you were innocent and I hurt you when you’d been nothing but sincere to me, it’s going to tear me up inside. I’m going to live with the guilt like it’s a tumor.”

I blink slowly.

“But,” she sighs, “in many years—I’m not going to say how much—you’re going to run into me in a furniture store…”

I chuckle.

“… And you’re going to rudely ignore my handshake.”

“Idiot.” I grunt.

She shushes me with a look. “And then we’re going to spend the next year dancing around each other, either arguing or ignoring one another until you decide to adopt two little boys.”

The pressure in my chest gets worse.

“And I’m going to tell you something else, Darrel-Not-Hoodie-Guy. You’re going to be an amazing father to those kids. You’re not going to be anything like your dad. In fact, those kids are going to be so comfortable with you, that they’ll run to you when they’re sad and they’ll talk to you when they’re bullied.”

A lump of emotion presses against my throat.

“I’m going to fall for you so hard when I see the way you are with those boys. And I’m never letting you go because, somehow, you were crazy enough to fall for the mean girl from high school. Again. And I don’t ever want you to realize how insane that is.”

“It’s not insane.”

“That’s another thing I forgot to mention. You take the long route to becoming a brain nerd. Congratulations.”

“Sounds like a dream.”

“It’s reality.” She leans down until she’s bent at an almost perfect ninety-degree angle. “Okay.” Leaning close, Sunny whispers, “Can I have the present-day Darrel back? I can’t do the things I’m thinking of with a minor.”

I laugh, spring to my feet and then I crash my mouth against hers. Her fingers drift into my hair, scraping my scalp and sending all my nerve endings crackling like they’re being hooked up to a generator.

I can’t remember ever being this happy.

I can’t remember ever feeling this free.

Sunny’s here.

She’s touching me.

She’s kissing me.

I’m not sure what I did to be so lucky, but I’m not letting this chance pass me by.

I want her.

I need her.

So I lift her by the backs of her thighs until she’s wrapping her long, ballerina legs around my waist. Taking three steps across the room, I push her against the nearest wall of mirrors and I kiss her.

I’ve lost my mind.

That’s the only explanation.

Oh, but insanity never felt so good.

Her lips taste like chocolate brownies and coffee. I suck harder. Deeper. Devouring her until she fuses herself to my body like we were always meant to be one person. Her fingers slide against my face. The way she grazes my ears, my scalp, my neck with that magical touch, sends my world up in flames.

She bucks her hips and I ram her against a surface of glass.

Bad idea.

The mirrors tremble.

Sunny doesn’t care. She makes a soft noise from the back of her throat as she kisses me and strokes my back.

More. Sunny.

My body has reverted to caveman instincts where the only pressing needs are for survival and a warm woman.

This isn’t enough.

Mouth fused to Sunny’s neck, I slip my hands under her shirt, graze her toned stomach and scrape my fingers against her back. I feel her full-body shudder right up against my skin and I muffle my groan into her throat.

I keep stroking her skin, moving my hands higher and higher until—

There it is.

Her bra isn’t lace. It’s some silky material that feels smooth against my fingertips. I run my hand over it and let the flames skitter from my palm all the way down to my toes. She sputters, squeaks and makes a breathy moan that sends my head spinning.

Scraping my thumbs over her, I breathe out, “Any cameras in here?”

“I have no idea,” she pants.

“Maybe we should move this somewhere else.”

I can’t believe my mouth had the audacity to say that. Stop? Why would I stop when I finally have a moment of uninterrupted bliss with Sunny Quetzal?

I don’t want this to end. I want to yank her pants to her ankles and rake my tongue over her—from her head to her toes. I want to suck and nip and pinch until she screams so hard the entire dance studio, no the entire city, hears how good I’m working her.

I’ve only experienced that moment in my dreams, in the visions I rarely allow myself because the only thing worse than pining after Sunny Quetzal is torturing myself with thoughts of being with her.

Her thighs clamp around my waist as she roughly tugs at my shirt.

Damn. No part of my imagination was as sweet as this.

“If we leave and…” She breathes out, her lips moist and glossy, “we’re interrupted again…”

“Good point.” I press my thumbs harder against her and her eyes slide to half-mast.

She parts her lips and her head falls back. Her neck is exposed in all its creamy-brown temptation. I can’t resist it. Impossible. I bite her neck just enough to make her cry out and she rewards me with a sweet, sweet bump of her hips that sends a puff of white-hot energy between us.

It’s a good start, but it’s not enough. I need more of her clothes off. I want to feel her. All of her. Skin to skin. There are too many layers in the way.

I fumble to get her shirt over her head, but she pushes against me and attacks my mouth with her own. My brain completely shuts down and all logical thoughts misfire until I hear someone rattling the door.

What the hell?

I come back to myself and slide Sunny down my body, not stopping until her feet touch the floor. A quick glance into the mirror makes me cringe. Our sweat left smear marks all over the glass. At least we didn’t break the thing. Given how hard we were bucking against each other, that’s more of a testament to the strength of the glass than anything else.

The door opens and old women wearing colorful bandanas, T-shirts and tights flood the room. They stop when they see us, welcoming smiles passing over wrinkled faces.

“Oh, I didn’t know this room was still occupied.” One granny marches toward us. “We came a little early so we could warm up.”

I’m about to burst out of my jeans and Sunny’s bra is hanging from the hem of her pants like a tail, but yeah, we can totally put a pause on our activities to accommodate some nice old ladies.

“Uh…” Sunny steps out from behind me. “We were just leaving.”

The granny smiles and glances down. Then her face turns crimson and she chuckles. “Oh dear. I guess we should have dropped in a little later.”

I snatch Sunny’s bra from where it’s hooked in her pants, roll it into a ball and stuff it into my pocket.

“Have a good practice,” I mumble, nodding to the old ladies.

“You two kids have fun.” She waves and then winks mischievously.

As I usher Sunny out of the room, I hear the old lady sigh, “What a beautiful couple. But why didn’t they lock the door?”

We stumble into the hallway. My face is on fire and Sunny looks just as flustered. I wasn’t ready to stop and my body is protesting every second. My walk is an awkward waddle as we pass the lobby of the dance studio.

The women around the front desk smile and nod at us before they tuck their heads together and whisper loudly. Shoot. Maybe there were cameras in there. Maybe the security guards were popping popcorn to enjoy the show.

Thankfully, we didn’t give them too much of one.

I shake my head and glance at Sunny who’s thrilled smile tells me she’s still running high on adrenaline. This woman. She’s the only one who could make something so illogical feel so enjoyable.

I grab her hand. “I don’t want to call it a night.”

“Me either.” She follows me to the exits. “But the kids.”

Right. Micheal and Bailey. Homework. Responsibilities.

We step into the balmy night and I open the car door for her. She jumps in and waits for me to climb in too before mumbling, “Rain check?”

“How about I sneak you in?”

“And risk getting interrupted again?” She runs her hands down my chest. “I wish I could say yes.”

I want to tell her we could finish the night in the backseat. Or drive to a hotel. Or I could fling her into the nearest bush and make it worth her while. But the moment has passed and she’s right about the boys.

Ms. Hansley wouldn’t mind watching them overnight, but she didn’t sign up for that. She’s been working all day and deserves to have time to herself.

You have responsibilities, Darrel.

Sometimes, I hate that I’ve tuned my logical side so well.

I bring Sunny’s hand to my mouth and kiss it. “We’ll have a do-over.”

“At the dance studio?”

“Why not?” I feel her pulse leap and it makes me smile. “Next time, I’ll lock the door.”

“It’s a date.”

I lean forward and kiss her temple. “It’s a date.”

The next morning, I get up early and take another cold shower. It feels like my body hasn’t touched hot water since I met Sunny again.

I really wish we could have continued last night, but at least I got a consolation prize. My eyes drop to the smooth black bra in my bathroom drawer.

Before she left last night, Sunny kissed me, told me to keep the bra and promised me the other piece of the set. I could barely see straight on the way home. It’s a miracle I didn’t run right into a ditch.

Today’s a brand-new day. Later, I’m going on a date with Sunny—a proper date at a nice hotel. I’m going to hire someone to watch the kids, and we’re going to have a long, uninterrupted night. I’ll make sure of it.

After dressing in a button-down and slacks, I head down the hall and wake both Bailey and Micheal. It’s much tougher to get them out of bed as they were up playing with their cousin until way past their bedtime.

“Come on, boys!” I yell up the stairs, checking my watch as I slather two slabs of bread with peanut butter and jelly. “You’ll be late.”

Micheal trudges down the stairs first. His hair looks like he rolled out of bed and didn’t bother to run a brush through it. But at least he’s semi-smiling. And the cut on his lip is healing well.

“PB&J! Yeah.” He snatches the plate in front of me.

Bailey soars down the stairs next. “Yes!”

I shake my head in amusement. These kids get excited for the simplest things.

After breakfast, I drive Micheal and Bailey to school.

Bailey hops out first, giving me a bright smile and yelling, “Bye, Mr. Darrel!”

I wave at him.

Micheal reaches for the door handle.

“Wait, Micheal.” I stop him before he leaves the car.

He looks over his shoulder at me.

“I made an appointment with the principal.”

His shoulders slump. He nods.

“But I’m not going to talk about Ebenezer.”

Micheal’s eyes jump and hope fills them. “You won’t?”

“I thought about your concerns and your discomfort with being ridiculed. While I don’t agree with keeping silent all the time, I think your feelings are valid. I’m not going to get the school involved. This time. But if Ebenezer doesn’t heed Sunny’s warning, I’m going to—”

“Thank you!” Micheal pounces to the front seat and wraps his hands around my neck. “Thank you, Mr. Darrel.”

My heart rearranges in my chest. I blink a couple times to keep my voice level. “I still think bringing it up to the authorities is the right decision, but I’ll back off. Just this once.”

Micheal nods so enthusiastically that his curls fall all over his eyes.

I nod to the door. I’m getting choked up, and I’m not sure why. “Have a good day at school.”

“I will.” He bounces out of the car.

I drive to the center feeling oddly joyful.

My phone rings on the way.

I tap my ear buds twice. “Hello?”

“Mr. Hastings.”

“Ms. Bennet.” I stiffen. “I was going to call you soon. I’d like to get the paperwork started for legal custody—”

The social worker’s voice is flat and chilly in my ears. “Mr. Hastings before you continue, I’m calling to inform you that I’ll be picking the boys up from school this evening.”

“Why would you do that?” I flick the indicator.

“Because I’m taking them to visit a potential foster family.”

My foot rams on the brakes. “What?”

“They were only placed in your care temporarily. The terms of your emergency guardianship are almost up.”

I grit my teeth. “The boys are staying with me.”

“I’m the one who’ll be deciding that.”

“You can’t just rip them away from the only stable home they’ve had since their gran passed.”

“Stable?” Her tone rings with disapproval. “Who decided that you are the most stable home for them?”

“I…”

“The boys will be meeting their potential foster parents this evening. I’ll return them to the farmhouse when we’re done.”

“No, you can’t—”

The line goes dead.

She hung up on me.