Page 142 of Protecting Love

He wasn’t sure what he expected, but it wasn’t this calm response.

She was acting like this was nothing more than an assessment of facts for her next job.

The shield was back in place now and that should have been warning enough to end this conversation, but he wasn’t thinking clearly.

“I moved fast,” he continued. “New job. A new place. You. Maybe Ian didn’t get time to adjust as well as I thought.”

“He likes me,” she said quietly. “You can’t fake the way he acted a few days ago.”

“I know he does.”

“But?”

“But what if that changes?” he asked. “What if I’m forcing him to grow up too fast? To accept things he’s not ready for? What if he’s putting up a front and I didn’t see it? I can’t live with him acting towards me like he did his mother last night.”

“You don’t know if she’s telling the truth on anything,” she said. “Not if you haven’t talked to him.”

“You’re right. And I will tonight. But just that she invoked that response in him was enough for me to say I need some time to figure this out with him. Time to talk it out and get a feel for where he is at.”

“So you’re asking for a break?”

“Time,” he corrected. “Not really a break.”

This time she crossed her arms, a smirk almost building at her lips. “How long am I supposed to wait for you?”

“I don’t need pressure.”

She ground her teeth. “I’m not pressuring you. I’m asking a question. I think that’s a reasonable question.”

“Aren’t you?” His voice sharpened despite himself. Again, not thinking clearly. “I’ve spent his whole life prioritizing work. I kept saying time would come for him. I finally get us in a good spot and I meet you.”

“You’re entitled to a life. You even said Ian told you that.”

“I know,” he said. “But to find out about you and meet you the next day. Knowing you spent the night. I shouldn’t have done that.”

Her lips disappeared between her teeth again. “Arguing with you is going to serve no purpose. Telling you you’re being a coward is going to piss you off.”

“Then you shouldn’t have said that,” he said, his voice on the edge of losing his shit. Which again, should have been warning enough he didn’t need to come here first.

She held her hands up. “You’re right. I’m kind of in shock right now. I’m entitled to toss a dart at you. How much time are you asking for?”

“Enough to sort things out with Ian,” he clarified quickly. “To make sure I’m not dividing my attention in a way that hurts him. Maybe a few days, a week. I don’t know until I talk to him.”

“Sounds to me like you should have talked to him to gather your facts before you did me. You’ve been doing that all along, not sure why you didn’t now.”

She turned back to her computer, telling him, he was dismissed.

And that statement right there.

That hit almost harder than what Lorraine had said.

Because she was right. He shouldn’t have come here first.

33

DOING SOMETHING WRONG

“Hi, Mom,” Paris said hours later.