Sara flinches, startled—her face flushed, her heart caught in her throat like guilt and desire mixed in one.
“Good morning,” Sara says, voice cracking like her composure.
“Good morning. Where’s Daddy?”
“I think he’s still asleep. How about you go wake him up?”
Jaqueline scurries off to go wake her dad, leaving Sara standing in the kitchen alone with her pulse still pounding from everything she just imagined. The silence hums around her like a secret. The kind you can’t admit out loud—but one that lives under your skin.
Between the memory of last night’s almost-kiss and the erotic storm of thoughts she barely managed to survive while making breakfast, Sara knows this morning is going to be anything but easy.
Upstairs, Jaqueline bursts through Jaxon’s bedroom door and launches herself onto the bed.
"Good morning, Daddy! It’s time to wake up!"
Jaxon groans softly, rolling over with a sleepy smile. "Good morning, baby. How did you sleep?"
"I slept well! Breakfast is ready."
He rubs his eyes, her words sinking in like warmth. Breakfast. From Sara.
"Okay. Let me get ready, and I’ll be down."
As she scampers off, he lies there for a second longer.This is the life I’ve always dreamed of. A daughter who loves me. A woman downstairs who made breakfast.But that hope curdles with the memory of last night—when vulnerability met silence, when his kiss was met with a retreat.
Breakfast turns out to be more strained than any of them expected.
Jaxon and Sara keep to themselves. No small talk. No apologies. Just carefully placed glances and the occasional nod. The air is thick with tension—like they’re both afraid to breathe too deep or say too much. Only Jaqueline’s chatter keeps things from completely unraveling.
"After breakfast, I have to run to the hardware store," Jaxon says.
"Can I go, Daddy?"
"Of course. After that, we’ll stop by the Shoppe."
"What’s the Shoppe?" Jaqueline asks, curiosity sparkling in her voice.
"Ice cream," he replies with a grin.
"Can you come too?" she turns to Sara with wide, hopeful eyes.
Sara nods, smiling despite the ache still sitting on her chest. "If you want me to, then yes."
"Yay! Family ice cream day!"
The words hit them both like a sucker punch wrapped in cotton candy. Family. That word shouldn’t hurt. But it does.
Jaxon and Sara lock eyes—an unspoken agreement to push everything aside. For today. For Jaqueline.
"Why don’t you go change out of your pajamas?" Sara says gently.
Jaqueline bolts upstairs, and the second her feet hit the second floor, the emotional damn between Jaxon and Sara cracks.
"Jaxon, about last night—"
"Don’t worry about it," he interrupts coldly.
"No. I want you to know—"
