Page 60 of Forbidden Kisses

I looked at him with narrowed eyes. "No sexy interlude?"

“We'll see. Maybe after breakfast."

"Mm-hmm." I loved his bossy side.

After we dressed, we returned to the kitchen. I didn't bother putting on my panties because they were stretched out of shape.

In the kitchen, Duncan took out the batter and eggs and a million other things. We were side by side, but I was watching him more than doing anything. It was fascinating. He had a system, and he was efficiently moving through it.

“Wow. You weren't kidding when you said you have skills. Did you always know how to cook?"

"Yeah. Ever since we were little, we’d help Mom around the kitchen. It was just something we did. I don't know why. I think it was one of our favorite spots, mostly because cooking was always Mom's happy place. My parents rarely fought when she was behind the stove. Anyway, once Jeremy and I were on our own, I had to seriously up my game."

I touched his arm, grateful that he'd chosen a shirt with short sleeves. "Want to tell me about it?"

"I'd been with his mother for a very short time when she got pregnant. We decided we’d try our best to make our relationship work."

His voice was tighter as he put the batter in the waffle maker. We'd yet to finish the avocado toast and the omelet.

“We threw in the towel a year later,” he continued. “We were fighting constantly, and then we both decided that it was better if we separated. We never married; I think, deep down, we both knew it wouldn't work out. We decided that I’d have primary custody of our son. In the beginning, she lived in San Francisco, so she met with Jeremy more often, but then she moved to Dublin. Her job took her there, so now he mostly vacations with her."

"Are you two on good terms?"

"We’re co-parenting the best we can. Despite the time difference, she really does her best to talk to Jeremy every evening, but it's not the same, you know? I want to fill both roles, but it’s not possible. He's nowhere near as emotionally close to his own mother to talk to her about everything. My mom tries her best, but…"

His body had tensed up as he talked. I kissed his bicep. "You're doing a great job, Duncan, trust me. Jeremy's a happy kid. He feels and knows that he’s loved.”

“Does he mention anything to you?”

I loved that he was so in tune with his son. It made me want him more.

“Not anything in particular, just that he loves you and that you’re besties. He loves his uncles too. Finn the most, though that can change to a different uncle depending on the week. He mentioned his mom once to me but hasn’t said anything since. Just that she lives far away and they talk on the phone.”

“You’d tell me if he said anything that, you know, I should know about?”

“Of course. But I truly think you have nothing to worry about.”

"Well, we're all doing our best, and I don't regret any of the decisions his mother and I made."

A few seconds later, he took the waffles out, putting one on each plate. “Breakfast is ready.”

“This is so decadent. I’ve never had a food festival like this before,” I said as we carried the plates to the table.

"Really?"

"I’ve always had oatmeal. It’s cheap and filling. Growing up, my sister and I ate our biggest meal at school. Lunch was everything. In the morning, we had a hurried breakfast at home before Mom went to work, which she had to do seven days a week."

"Damn, that's tough," Duncan said. He touched my forearm, brushing his thumb up and down.

"I know. That's the other thing I want to accomplish once I start earning the big bucks. I hope Mom will be able to get by without working nonstop. It's always been rough, but now she’s getting older, and it’s hard on her body. She tries to play it cool, but her knees and hips are bothering her more than a few years ago. But once I start at the firm, I'm going to knock everyone's socks off. I’ll work my way up to partner, and then I can spoil Mom and my sister all day long."

"I'm sure you’ll kick ass."

I munched on my avocado toast. "Oh my God, this is great.” I wasn’t sure what he’d put in it even though I’d watched him prepare everything. I then asked, “And why do you say that? That I’ll kick ass?"

"You've got a lot of determination and grit."

"That I do, in spades. A lot of people complain about the work hours, but if you think about it, ever since I was sixteen, my days were twelve hours long. Sometimes fourteen. I mean, this is honestly the most relaxing period of my life. And the only reason I'm not taking a second job is because you’re paying very generously. And looking after Jeremy is important to me. I don’t want to be exhausted by the time I pick him up because I’ve been working somewhere else."