“You already know where he lives.” I turn and look at Bella, confused.
“Maverick stopped by Inked today to talk to the new owner about the tattoos we want, and Travis is the owner. He’s the one Noah was talking about who bought the house he renovated. It all makes sense now. Noah told us he had a son, and his brothers lived up north. Then it hit me why Travis looked so familiar to me the day I met him. He’s the one I told you about when Maverick and I had lunch at Rusty’s a while back. It must have been his brothers with him that day because they look just alike. They were probably down here looking at Charlie’s Ink to buy.”
“Travis bought Noah’s house? The one I fell in love with and decorated?” I spent so much time on that house, making sure each piece of furniture and decoration was just like I would want if I lived there.
“There are just too many little things lining up here, and I’m getting goosebumps.” Emma rubs her arms. “What did it feel like when you saw him again? Were there fireworks like last time?”
I remember how my body reacted to him again when I saw him. I also saw the way he was looking at me. There’s definitely something still there between us. “Yeah, there were. He felt it, too. I could feel it coming off of him in waves.”
“What if Max is bringing you guys together? What if all these coincidences is just the Universe aligning you to be together?” Emma grins over at me with stars in her eyes.
“Or I’m being punished for something I did in another lifetime. I can’t date the dad of one of my students. You know how that ended up last time. The school board would never let me keep my job if this relationship got messy and interfered with my work at the school. I would be known as the teacher who sleeps with single dads and disrupts her student's lives.” I lean back on the couch and close my eyes tight. “And now I’ve got to see him three times a week at his house. The house that I loveand have my touch all over it by the way and pretend nothing has happened between us and that despite everything, still don’t want to rip his clothes off.”
The girls both giggle, and I give them the evil eye. “You aren’t helping.”
“I’m sorry. I’ve just never seen you so worked up about a guy. Seems a lot like what Emma and I went through, besides the whole dad/student thing,” Bella laughs. “Seriously, though, Emma and I were a mess with our emotions until we both got on the same page with them. If this were any other guy, you wouldn’t have volunteered to babysit. You like him. Really like him. Just take it day by day and see what happens. This whole mess could turn out to be the best thing that has happened to you.”
“I agree,” Emma says, nodding her head. “Sometimes, the hardest things we have to push through turn out to be the best things that could happen to us. On a more positive note, I can’t wait to meet this Travis guy. Anyone that has you burning for his touch has got to be a walking sex god.”
“Oh, he is, trust me. They look fucking amazing together.” Bella grins at me and gives me a wink.
“He’s a sex god, alright. A six foot four sex god that I have to keep my hands off of.” I mumble.
“Sleeping with a gorgeous dad behind the schoolboard’s back sounds kind of hot if you ask me,” Bella says, fighting back a grin as she sips her wine. “What they don’t know won’t hurt them. It’s not like it’s a teacher/high school student type of thing.”
“I won’t do anything to hurt my job, no matter how hot it sounds. I’ve got this. Every day, people walk around fighting their attraction to one another. I’m a grown woman who can control herself. I’ll watch Max for him until he finds someone else he trusts, andthen I’ll be on my way.”
I ignore the laughs I hear coming from my two best friends. It can’t be that hard. Max will be in the room with us anyway, so it’ll be easy to stay away from him. I could do this, I repeat to myself, trying to get my mind and body to believe it.
Chapter Ten
Travis
I walkinto the house and hear laughter coming from Max’s room. I’ve tried to prepare myself for this moment for the past two days ever since I found out Sophia was Max’s teacher. All along, it was her that Max has been talking about and bringing flowers to. I can’t say I blame him. If she had been my teacher back in elementary school, I would have been crushing hard, too. Hell, I’m crushing now even when I shouldn’t.
We both agreed, though, that it can’t happen again. She knows my life is complicated, and she doesn’t want to be involved with the dad of one of her students. It still doesn’t make it any easier to see the two of them together. My worst fear is Max getting attached to someone and they end up leaving him. Then he goes and chooses the one person who has the potential to hurt us both the more time we spend with her.
I should have said no to her babysitting, but I really need the help, and even though we just met, I trust her with Max, and that doesn’t happen. Ever.
I follow the laughter and peek my head in the door.They’re both lying down on their stomachs on the rug in his room. Hot Wheel cars are sprawled out in front of them, and they have their heads together while Max points out his favorites.
Their hair is the same color black, and you would easily think I’m looking at a mother and her son right now. I rub the ache starting to form in my chest before knocking softly on the door.
Max whips his head around and grins before getting up and running to me. “You’re home!”
I ruffle his hair before kissing his forehead. “I am. Did you have fun at school today?”
I listen to him tell me all about it as I glance at Sophia as she puts the cars back in his bin. She’s still dressed up from school and has on a green skirt with a white t-shirt. Her long legs and feet are bare, and memories of them wrapped around me tightly come crashing down on me. She turns and meets my gaze as if she can tell what I’m thinking about.
“And then, when we got home, Miss Lane and I played with my dinosaurs and cars. She loves my room, Dad. She said if she were my age, she would want this room too.”
I tear my gaze away and look back at Max. “That’s great, buddy. I’m glad you had a great day.”
“Can I watch a little TV before dinner?”
“Sure.” I set him down, and he takes off down the hall. Sophia sets the bin back in its place before turning to me.
“How was work today?”
