I gulped, fighting the sick, clawing feeling that took to my blood when I thought of the consequences of anyone finding out.
“No one’s gonna find out. We’re gonna make sure that divorce is final and then it won’t matter, anymore. It was just temporary, Hope. You know that.”
I did.
But I realized the closer Kale got, the more he knew, there was a chance I might be putting his career on the line, too.
Besides that, I hated the idea of Kale no longer caring for my son.
He was a good doctor.
I’d seen it the second he sat on that stool in front of Evan in the exam room.
We’d been through enough physicians that I instinctively knew when they actually cared. When they felt for their patients and would do everything possible to keep them healthy rather than treating them as another number or dollar sign.
“But honestly? My biggest concern about all of this is what Dane would do with the information if I started seeing someone. He wouldn’t hesitate to use it against me. Call me a cheater.”
Not to mention, the unease and obscured fear I couldn’t help but notice flicker in Kale’s eyes. A part of him I couldn’t really see. A demon of his own. Gone before I could establish exactly what it was. As if that sea of blue suddenly went murky, muddled with questions and reservations and panic before he forced it down into a secret place.
Maybe we both were complicated.
“Pssh . . . that asshole has been cheatin’ for years, Harley Hope. If he tries to use it against you, it won’t take much to dig up evidence to throw down your own accusation. Maybe you returning the favor and calling him out on in it court is exactly what Mr. Limp Dick needs.”
A wry grin took to Jenna’s face. “Hopefully his mama will be there for support so she can have a front-row seat. Dane Gentry III. Heir to the Gentry fortune and lousy cheater shoots himself in five seconds. Every. Single. Time. Poor boy wouldn’t know a clitoris if it smacked him in the face. Think we can bribe anyone to add in those few minor details? They may not be admissible in court, but I think it’s about time someone brought that horrible obstruction of justice to light.”
A giggle slipped free. “Could you picture his mama’s face?”
Jenna made a face like she was sucking on a lemon. “Well, I never,” she feigned the rich Southern accent, her hand pressed to her throat.
“I bet she never.” It slipped out before I could stop it, and my eyes bugged as my hand slapped over my mouth.
Jenna busted up laughing. “Oh my God, what has gotten into you, Harley Hope?” She leaned in closer. “Tell me it’s a big, huge, yummy dick.”
This time I did smack her, unable to keep myself from laughing. “Jenna. What is wrong with you?”
“The question is, what is wrong with you? A man like that wants you, and you’re sitting over here wrapping lollipops on a Saturday morning? Here we went through all that trouble to hire a manager to run the cafe on the weekends so we could have them off, and we are both still working. You should be spending this time wrapping something else.”
“Oh, I think I have plenty of wrapping to do. We need to get all of these packaged by noon so Evan and I can drop them off at Kale’s place.”
She jostled her shoulder into mine. “Swapping addresses now, huh?”
I sent her a playful scowl. “Yeah, because of your meddling.”
And because of the meddling, the few evenings I’d spent with Kale Bryant had come to feel more profound, more important, than all I’d spent with Dane combined.
“Give that man a chance. You really need to move on and find what’s right for you and Evan.”
The concept of that flared in my chest, pressing out, wrapping me in warm, perfect ribbons. But I had no idea what Kale really wanted. Why he kept coming through my door, shaking up my world, tempting me with the kind of pleasure I’d never known before.
And if he did want it? Us? Would it be me who hurt him in the end?
“I’m not even sure he wants a chance. He said it himself when he asked me out. He wanted one night.”
“Yet, where was he last night? Here, with you, working on lollipops for your son’s charity, on a Friday night nonetheless. Doesn’t sound like a one-night thing to me.”
Warmth fluttered in my belly.
Wings of hope.
Still, my reservations were like an updraft. “And you know me dating isn’t only about me. Especially when Evan gets involved, which he already is. That man is his doctor. And Evan and I are a package deal.”
“Maybe he likes the look of your package.”
“Jenna.” It was pure exasperation.