Forbidden Kiss (Carson Cove Scandals 1)

“I wish I could convince you to come work for me at Benson Enterprises. My chair will be yours one day.” I raised an eyebrow.

“Yeah, I know.” He nodded. “I just want to get some experience and see what else is out there—I might have some new ideas when I finally do some work for you.”

Maybe he’ll change his mind before graduation—he’s still got a few years to do that.

I knew part of the reason Dylan didn’t want to move back to Carson Cove and start working at Benson Enterprises right after graduation was because he missed his mother. He didn’t say that, but they were always close—he was our youngest, so he got to be the baby longer than Shaina or Victoria did. It was no coincidence that he was thinking about working in the city after graduation, which was where she moved after the divorce. He didn’t get to see her very often. It was easy enough to make a trip to Carson Cove for the weekend, but it was a long drive to the city.

“Oh, speaking of people that you haven’t talked to in a while…” Dylan seemed to hesitate, and he looked down before he continued speaking. “Mom is working now. She got a job at Dillinger Tech.”

I didn’t think he’d actually bring her up—he must think the wound has finally started to scar. It has, but he has no idea why…

“Really?” I raised my eyebrows in surprise. “Did my last alimony check bounce or something?”

That was a little harsher than I intended, but it’s hard to hold back—she was the one who decided to file for divorce.

“I think she’s just bored.” He leaned back against the couch.

My comment seemed to sour Dylan’s mood a little bit and normally I would have apologized, but I was distracted by other things—namely Taylor, who was still hiding in the library. Dylan and I continued discussing his future, how things were going at school, and he let it slip that he had a girlfriend—which I decided to start calling mystery girl as a tease since he wouldn’t tell me her name. I finally found a break in the conversation and excused myself. I blamed it on work, which would explain why I was going to the library. Taylor had been in there for almost two hours, and if she wasn’t angry, it would be a blessing.

“Hey…” I pushed the door open and found her sitting at my desk reading a book.

“Is he gone?” She put the book down and stood.

“No, I’m so fucking sorry.” I walked over and hugged her. “I’ll get you out of here as soon as I can.”

“I never thought I would be hiding in here from your son—usually I was hiding from you when I was exploring this place.” She leaned back from our embrace and grinned.

“We already addressed that behavior,” I chuckled under my breath and kissed her forehead.

“Some of it…” She bit down on her lip and giggled.

I’d love to have a long discussion about it upstairs, but that isn’t possible now.

“Damn it—I was looking forward to spending the day with you.” I exhaled sharply and shook my head.

“It’ll be okay. I’ll find a way to entertain myself…” She shrugged and sat back down.

I couldn’t do much more than apologize—and I couldn’t stay in the library long or I would risk Dylan coming to check on me. A part of me just wanted to rip the mask off the charade and tell him the truth, but it wouldn’t be fair to Taylor—she was still Victoria’s best friend, and there was no way Dylan would keep our secret. He was too close to his sister for me to ask him to choose sides—and choose mine. If my relationship with Taylor continued, we would have to tell Victoria the truth, but that conversation was best had in person.

“Everything okay at Benson Enterprises?” Dylan looked up at me when I returned.

“Yeah, just had to check in on a few things.” I nodded and sat down.

Dylan and I hung out for a little bit longer, ate lunch, and I managed to sneak a plate to Taylor after he returned to the living room. It was another hour before he decided to shower and get ready to meet his friends. As soon as he was upstairs, I hurried Taylor to the front door and gave her a quick kiss before she took off. I considered asking her to come back after Dylan was gone, but I had no idea how long he would be out with his friends. He wasn’t much of a partier, so he didn’t normally stay out late when he was visiting Carson Cove. Taylor didn’t seem angry with me at all, but I could see a hint of disappointment in her eyes before she walked to the car. I watched until she was gone and let out a sigh of relief since the crisis had been averted.

I’ll make it up to you, Taylor—I just don’t know how yet.

Chapter Thirteen

Taylor

I kept my composure with Bryant, but I was in full-blown panic mode when I left Benson Estate. In the back of mind, I knew there was always a risk—if we didn’t get caught in the act, someone who knew Victoria could see us when we were together. I was convinced that she would believe my intentions were pure if she had found out after the art show—but the purity didn’t last long. If someone told her about the kiss—it would be really hard to explain. If Dylan had realized I was at Benson Estate when he arrived, then there would have been no explanation that made sense. I had hours to let the guilt toy with me, and it was beginning to become unbearable. I was falling for Bryant, but the reality of the situation made a relationship impossible—the sooner I accepted that, the better it would be for both of us.

The longer it drags on, the more it’s going to hurt when the inevitable tears us apart.

“You’re home?” Anna poked her head out of her room when I walked upstairs. “I thought you were planning to stay out late.”

“My plans changed.” I shrugged. “It looks like I’m spending Saturday night at home—maybe we can hang out?”