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“Harley…”

“I’m not going to uproot Dylan’s life,” I said quietly. “Not right now. I need time.”

Stephan’s lips flattened into a hard line. He leaned against the counter, watching me as I chopped up the chicken, carrots, and almonds. Then after a few long moments, he sighed. “I understand. Really.”

“Okay,” I said quietly. “Good.”

Stephan stepped closer. He stood behind me, and the heat of his body surrounded me. My hand quivered around the handle of my chef’s knife. He slid his hands over my hips, then tucked his face into the crook of my neck. He inhaled, then placed a soft kiss on my skin. “I’m gonna go clean up, too,” he murmured. “I need to get to the garage this afternoon.”

I nodded. “You want lunch to go?”

“I’ll get something in town.” He planted another kiss on my neck, then pulled away.

We had to talk this out. That upset little furrow was still present on Stephan’s face. But he smiled at me, then went upstairs.

Soon, Dylan was back downstairs, cleaned up and a little calmer—but only a little. I let him hop up onto the counter, and he sat there with his heels knocking against the cabinets as he told me all about the smoke tricks he’d learned with Stephan. He devoured two chicken salad sandwiches, while I finished half of mine.

When Stephan came downstairs, he was dressed for work at the garage, in a snug black shirt and dark jeans. His blond hair was combed back. He looked polished. Put together. It was a sexy contrast to the sweaty, sun-soaked man who had walked in an hour earlier.

That furrow was still in his brow, but he kissed my forehead before he left.

The front door clicked closed. Dylan put his plate in the sink, then rubbed his chest and looked at me with a pinched brow. His expression looked so much like Stephan’s that I almost laughed.

“Is Dad okay?” Dylan asked.

I frowned. “Why? Does your dragon sense something?”

“I don’t know,” Dylan said. “Just feels weird.”

I pulled Dylan into a hug. “Everything’s all right, kiddo. Just adult stuff.”

I wished I could’ve done something about the pained expression on Stephan’s face. But had he just expected me to fall into his arms? Drop everything? Change my whole life? I couldn’t do something like that impulsively. He had to understand, even if it hurt him and his dragon.

“Sounds gross,” Dylan muttered. He wriggled out of my hold like a worm. I laughed at his disgusted expression, but my amusement didn’t erase the little twinge of guilt. First, I’dwithheld my real feelings from Stephan, and now I was doing the same to Dylan.

I’d known this summer would be a challenge, but it was proving to be a lot more complicated than I’d expected.

“Well, since your dad’s busy at work, why don’t we do something fun?” I asked.

“Aren’tyoualso busy with work?”

“Not anymore,” I said. “Not when I could be doing something fun with my favorite child.”

“I’m your only child.”

We both started laughing, and some of the weight lifted off my heart. “It’s nice outside,” I said. “Let’s go get ice cream.”

The two of us climbed into the slick, tuned-up sedan Stephan had provided from the garage. As I drove us into Lakeview proper, I realized we’d spent barely any time in the town itself. We’d spent all our time at the clan’s houses, and had only gone into town when we ran errands. We hadn’t even been back downtown since our trip to the pizza parlor our first night here. We walked the cute downtown strip to the local ice cream shop, which was busier than ever. We waited in line for our fancy ice cream—me a scoop of lemon, and Dylan a double-chocolate brownie-crunch with sprinkles—then strolled down the narrow brick path that led from the back of the shop to the small public park behind it.

“Hey, Harley!” a familiar voice called. I looked up and saw Mia near the playground. Bella toddled around at her feet, looking very seriously and attentively at the swing set.

“Aunt Mia!” Dylan waved at her.

“Looks like we had the same idea,” Mia said as she approached. She ruffled Dylan’s hair. “How’s that ice cream treating you?”

“It’s so good,” he said. “Does Bella like double-chocolate brownie-crunch?”

“I don’t know, why don’t you go ask her?” Mia said with a smile. “She’ll definitely want to try whatever her big cousin is eating.”