A Little Dare

Shelly cleared her throat. “I know how anxious you are to have AJ meet you, but I think it would be best, considering everything, if he were to get to know you as a friend before knowing you as his father.”

Dare frowned, not liking the way her suggestion sounded. “But I am his father, Shelly, not his friend.”

“Yes, and that’s the point. More than anything, AJ needs a friend right now, Dare, someone he can trust and connect with. He has a hard time making friends, which is why he

began hanging out with the wrong type of kids at the school he attended in California. They readily accepted him for all the wrong reasons. I’ve talked to a few of his teachers since moving here and he’s having the same problems. He’s just

not outgoing.”

Dare nodded. Of the five Westmoreland brothers, he was the least outgoing, if you didn’t count Thorn who was known to be a pain in the butt at times. Growing up, Dare had felt that his brothers were all the playmates he had needed,

and because of that, he never worried about making friends or being accepted. His brothers were his friends—his best friends—and as far as he’d been concerned they were

enough. It was only after he got older and his brothers

began seeking other interests that he began getting out

more, playing sports, meeting people and making new

friends.

So if AJ wasn’t as outgoing as most ten-year-old kids, he had definitely inherited that characteristic from him. “So how do you think I should handle it?”

“I suggest that we don’t tell him the truth about you just yet, and that you take the initiative to form a bond with him,

share his life and get to know him.”

Dare raised a dark brow. “And just how am I supposed to do that? Our first meeting didn’t exactly get off to a great

start, Shelly. Technically, I arrested him, for heaven’s sake. My own son! A kid who didn’t bat an eye when he informed me he hated cops—which is what I definitely am. Then

there’s this little attitude problem of his that I feel needs

adjusting. So come on, let’s be real here. How am I

supposed to develop a relationship with my kid when he dislikes everything I stand for?”

Shelly shook her head. “He doesn’t really hate cops, Dare, he just thinks he does because of what happened as we were driving from California to here.”

Dare lifted a brow. “What happened?”

“I got pulled over in some small Texas town and the officer was extremely rude. Needless to say he didn’t make a

good impression on AJ.”

She sighed deeply. “But you can change that, Dare. That’s why I think the two of you getting together and developing a relationship as friends first would be the ideal thing. Ms.

Kate told me that you work with the youth in the community and about the Little League baseball team that you coach. I want to do whatever it takes to get AJ involved in

something like that.”

“And he can become involved as my son.”

“I think we should go the friendship route first, Dare.”

Dare shook his head. “Shelly, you haven’t thought this

through. I understand what you’re saying because I know how it was for me as a kid growing up. At least I had my brothers who were my constant companions. But I think you’ve forgotten one very important thing here.”

Shelly raised her brow. “What?”

“Most of the people in College Park know you, and most of them have long memories. Once they hear that you have a ten-year-old son, they’ll start counting months, and once

they see him they’ll definitely know the truth. They will see

just how much of a Westmoreland he is. He favors my

brothers and me. The reason I didn’t see it before was

because I wasn’t looking for it. But you better believe the

good people of this town will be. Once you’re seen with AJ they’ll be looking for anything to link me to him, and it will be easy for them to put two and two together. And don’t let

them find out that he was named after me. That will be the icing on the cake.”

Dare gave her time to think about what he’d said before

continuing. “What’s going to happen if AJ learns that I’m his father from someone other than us? He’ll resent us for

keeping the truth from him.”

Shelly sighed deeply, knowing Dare was right. It would be hard to keep the truth hidden in a close-knit town like

College Park.

“But there is another solution that will accomplish the same purpose, Shelly,” he said softly.

She met his gaze. “What?”

Dare didn’t say anything at first, then he said. “I’m asking that you hear me out before jumping to conclusions and totally dishing the idea.”

She stared at him before nodding her head. “All right.”

Dare continued. “You said you told AJ that you and his

father had planned to marry but that we broke up and you moved away before telling him you were pregnant, right?”

Shelly nodded. “Yes.”

“And he knows this is the town you grew up in, right?”

“Yes, although I doubt he’s made the connection.”

“What if you take him into your confidence and let him know that his father lives here in College Park, then go a step

further and tell him who I am, but convince him that you

haven’t told me yet and get his opinion on what you should do?”

Since Dare and AJ had already butted heads, Shelly had a pretty good idea of what he would want her to do—keep the news about him from Dare. He would be dead set against developing any sort of personal relationship with Dare, and she told Dare so.

“Yes, but what if he’s placed in a position where he has to accept me, or has to come in constant contact with me?”

Dare asked.

“How?”

“If you and I were to rekindle our relationship, at least pretend to do so.”

Shelly frowned, clearly not following Dare. “And just how will that help the situation? Word will still get out that you’re his father.”

“Yes, but he’ll already know the truth and he’ll think I’m the one in the dark. He’ll either want me to find out the truth or he’ll hope that I don’t. In the meantime I’ll do my damnedest to win him over.”

“And what if you can’t?”

“I will. AJ needs to feel that he belongs, Shelly, and he does belong. Not only does he belong to you and to me, but he also belongs to my brothers, my parents and the rest of the Westmorelands. Once we start seeing each other again,

he’ll be exposed to my family, and I believe when that

happens and I start developing a bond with him, he’ll

eventually want to acknowledge me as his father.”

Dare shifted in his chair. “Besides,” he added smiling. “If he really doesn’t want us to get together, he’ll be so busy

thinking of ways to keep us apart that he won’t have time to get into trouble.”

Shelly lifted a brow, knowing Dare did have a point.

However, she wasn’t crazy about his plan, especially not the part she would play. The last thing she needed was to pretend they were falling in love all over again. Already, being around him was beginning to feel too comfortably familiar.

She sighed deeply. In order for Dare’s plan to work, they would have to start spending time together. She couldn’t help wondering how her emotions would be able to handle that. And she didn’t even want to consider what his

nearness might do to her hormones, since it had been a long time since she had spent any time with a man. A very long time.

She cleared her throat when she noticed Dare watching her intently and wondered if he knew what his gaze was doing to her. Biting her lower lip and shifting in her seat, she

asked. “How do you think he’s going to feel when he finds out that we aren’t really serious about each other, and it

was just a game we played to bring him around?”

“I think he’ll accept the fact that although we aren’t married, we’re friends who like and respect each other. Most boys from broken relationships I come in contact with have

parents who dislike each other. I think it’s important that a child sees that although they aren’t married, his parents are still friends who make his wellbeing their top priority.”

Shelly shook her head. “I don’t know, Dare. A lot can go wrong with what you’re proposing.”

“True, but on the other hand, a lot can go right. This way

we’re letting AJ call the shots, or at least we’re letting him think that he is. This will give him what he’ll feel is a certain degree of leverage, power and control over the situation.

From working closely with kids, I’ve discovered that if you try forcing them to do something they will rebel. But if you sit tight and be patient, they’ll eventually come around on their own. That’s what I’m hoping will happen in this case.

Chances are he’ll resent me at first, but that’s the chance I have to take. Winning him over will be my mission, Shelly, one I plan to accomplish. And trust me, it will be the most

important mission of my life.”

He studied her features, and when she didn’t say anything for the longest time he said. “I have a lot more to lose than you, but I’m willing to risk it. I don’t want to spend too much longer with my son not knowing who I am. At least this way he’ll know that I’m his father, and it will be up to me to do everything possible to make sure that he wants to accept me in his life.”