Even though Cody’s body was strung to the point of snapping, and his mind raced with what-ifs, he couldn’t help but smile at the kid’s anything-but-respectful tone. Then Jacob sighed and with a final shrug of the shoulders, said, “Come on.”
Cody swung his legs over the side of the mattress and sat up. Not wanting to be left alone with his mind still in another dimension, and needing to make some kind of connection with his son, he slid on his jeans and followed Jacob to the kitchen.
The boy scoured the various pantries and cupboards, in the end lining up a gallon of milk, powdered cocoa, vanilla, a pot, two mugs, and a jar of cinnamon on the counter. He shuffled over to the table, took a seat and gestured for Cody to do the same.
Looking at the items meticulously arranged as if prepped by a sous-chef, Cody found himself wondering if the kid thought the cocoa would make itself. Needing to keep hold of what little leeway he’d gained with Jacob, Cody figured the best bet was to pull up a chair and wait it out.
He’d no sooner rested his elbows on the table than Cody felt, more than heard, Shelby pad into the room. Dressed in that pale yellow robe that stopped mid-thigh, and gave way to several fantasies Cody had harbored over the years, her eyes were dazed with sleep and her hair bed-rumpled sexy. Her nude feet, tipped with red polish, added a hint of sensual to the adorable.
Cody wanted to take her back to bed and hold her while she slept. Then wake her up moaning with pleasure. Neither of which was going to happen.
“Nightmare, huh?” she mumbled, smoothing Jacob’s hair in a maternal gesture that had Cody’s heart melting.
Jacob looked at Cody, then back to his mom. “Yup.”
“All right, one sweet-dream coming right up.”
Shelby, still looking half-asleep, assembled the ingredients in the pan in a clockwork manner that said she’d done this before.
“Cody needs one too.”
Cody started at the sound of his name coming off his son’s lips. It wasn’t dad, or papa, but it also wasn’t sir or him or that guy. So for now, it was a start.
“Oh?” Shelby turned around, her voice giving away her surprise as if she had only just realized Cody was there. Her gaze dropped and widened when she took in his half-naked state, and the haze of sleep faded to make room for desire.
Cody watched her watch him, happy that this mind-blowing attraction was mutual. Her eyes jumped to his, and he winked. She quickly spun back around, a flush tinting her cheeks. “Two sweet-dreams it is.”
With a final flick of the whisk, Shelby poured the concoction into the mugs and set them on the table. Jacob inhaled half of the football-shaped mug in a single gulp, a cocoa mustache marking his upper lip, before Cody had even taken his first sip.
“Thank you,” Cody managed, unable to look away from Shelby and suddenly feeling the need to say something. He was embarrassed about waking up crying like some kid, especially knowing that this woman was the only one who could look beneath the cool exterior and see right into him. “I’m sorry if I woke you.”
As if sensing his unease, Jacob polished off his drink and said, “Sometimes I have nightmares too. Mom just makes me a sweet-dream, and I go right back to sleep. No biggie, right, Mom?”
“Right, sweetheart. No biggie.” Shelby’s tone was one of acceptance, meant to comfort. But even though the words were spoken to Jacob, Cody knew they were directed at him.
Seizing the small opening Jacob had given him, and needing to divert the focus off himself before Shelby saw too much, Cody turned his full attention to his son. “What do you do the other times?”
“I crawl into her bed.”
Shelby flushed at the innocent comment. And Cody began to think that a night in Shelby’s bed could quite possibly cure all of his problems. Then he remembered how responsive she was, how freely she gave of herself, and knew that one night with Shelby would never be enough.
And that was the problem.
Shelby shuffled Jake off to bed and tucked him back in with very little resistance. Walking into that kitchen and seeing father and son looking sleep-mussed still took her breath away. She considered going straight back to her room and putting off talking to Cody for just one more night, especially after the sparks that had simmered between them. But they had put this off long enough.
She stopped inside the doorway and watched Cody for some sign of awareness. After a few minutes she realized he was purposely keeping his eyes averted. Which meant he’d been avoiding her as much as she’d been avoiding him. Tonight, Cody had been blessedly absent at dinner. And now they stood, forced into the same room by their son, still managing to avoid each other.
“Any point in asking if you’re ready to talk about yesterday?” she asked.
From the angry look on Cody’s face, he was more than ready. “Any point in expecting you to tell the truth?”
“I get that you’re pissed.”
“Pissed doesn’t even begin to cover what I am. You put me in one hell of a position. What do you expect me to do? Walk around pretending that he isn’t mine?”
“Are you ready to start acting like he is?”
“Like you gave me any choice.” His voice was clipped, his expression tight. For one second, she thought she was as good as dead, but then his face evened out, back into the appearance of total control.
“I get that you’re trying to cope with Silas passing and everything that goes along with that. Then being forced to come home only to find us here, no doubt complicating your carefully laid plans, must be frustrating for a man like you. But you know what, Cody? Life is messy and screwed up and unpredictable, so get over it.”
“You expect me to just get over this?”
Angry tears burned her eyes. Why was he so mad? If anyone had the right to be pissed off, it was Shelby. But getting into a screaming match would only hurt her cause. Not to mention, a one-sided argument. Men like Cody didn’t yell.
“Look, the last thing Jake needs is for us to be arguing or avoiding each other all the time. This was a difficult year for him, he lost his grandpa and then you show up and—” Shelby choked on the familiar emotion. “God, Cody. He’s confused enough without you making him feel unwanted.”
That seemed to hit home, because Cody was suddenly at a loss for words, which was a problem because the longer he was silent, the tighter Shelby’s throat got, until she could barely breathe through the tears, let alone keep the conversation going. She wanted to tell him what a great kid Jake was, how easy he was to love, and how badly he needed his daddy right now.
“Come over here and sit down,” Cody said, sounding tired.
“I’d rather stand.” She would rather have hidden under her covers, but that wasn’t an option. “But I’ll sit if you agree to share a piece of pie with me and figure this all out, like two old friends solving a problem.”
“That’s the problem, Shelby Lynn,” Cody said quietly. “We’ve already proved that it’s impossible for
