After lunch, Nora went home determined to give the vision board a try. She was still skeptical, but she supposed it couldn’t hurt. But she didn’t want to put her pictures on the refrigerator like Steph. Instead, she’d put hers in her bedroom where it was more private. She had a nearly blank fabric bulletin board that she could use. She and Ella had found the board at a yard sale a few weeks ago. Even though she’d had no use for it, the board had been too pretty to pass up, especially since the colors—lavender, green, and white—perfectly matched her comforter.

As Cosmo rushed over to greet her, she warmed up to the idea of a vision board. If nothing else, it would be nice to fill her bulletin board with happy pictures. She rubbed Cosmo’s head. “Did you miss me?”

Woof!

She bent down to kiss the top of his head and love radiated from Cosmo’s heart into hers. “I’m so glad you came back.”

Cosmo’s tailed thumped on the hardwood floor.

“Come on, buddy,” she said, rising and eyeing the room. “We need to find pictures so we can make a vision board.” She grabbed a couple of magazines. “It feels silly, but who knows? Maybe making the board will help me figure out what to do with my life.”

Cosmo’s shaggy white and gray head bobbed up and down as if in concurrence with the idea.

She picked up a few more magazines, then trotted up the stairs with Cosmo at her heels. Inside her room, she sighed happily. It was the biggest bedroom she’d ever had, and it even included a small en suite bathroom. She’d hit the jackpot with this duplex. She loved everything about it, including living next door to Steph.

Scratching Cosmo’s fuzzy head, she glanced at the bulletin board. It only had one item pinned to it—her favorite picture of Ben. She’d taken Ben to Dollywood a few years ago and had snapped a photo of him standing in front of the Dreamland Forest fountains with an expression of childlike wonder. That picture was staying since her number one goal was to give Ben a happy life.

She put the magazines on her bed and grabbed scissors from the desk. After climbing onto the bed, she sat cross-legged next to the stack of magazines. Cosmo jumped onto the bed and put his head on her right knee just like Astro used to do. Gently scratching Cosmo’s ears, she took a long moment to marvel over his return. “I’m so grateful that you’re here.”

He gave her an adoring look, then licked her hand.

“I love you too, Cosmo.” She bent down and kissed his head again.

She flipped through the magazines and cut out pictures that spoke to her. A couple in love, a family, and last, but certainly not least, pictures of farm animals. She tacked the pictures onto the bulletin board, then returned to her bed to look at them.

Steph had been right. This exercise was not only fun, but it had pushed her to figure out what she wanted.

Her goals related to Ben were clear and easy. But, the rest of it had surprised her.

Studying the picture of the couple, she acknowledged that someday she wanted to find true love. She wanted a man who looked at her starry-eyed like the handsome blond looked at the beautiful brunette in the picture. She wanted a man who loved her for who she was and who loved Ben as much as she did. A love where her happiness was his happiness…the kind of love she had never believed in but now wanted to believe was possible.

Next to the couple was a picture of a family. A mom, dad, and three kids. Hugging her knees to her chest, Nora sighed wistfully. One day she wanted that family too, so she could give her children all the things she’d never had—like unconditional love and support.

She shifted her gaze to the last row of pictures. There was a photo of a brown and white cow with big soulful eyes. A picture of adorable piglets. The last was of a small farm with a big red barn, green fields, and lots of animals—cows, pigs, donkeys, goats—all happily grazing together in the fields.

She rested her head on her knees. What on earth would she do with a farm? She didn’t eat meat nor did she use dairy products, and she certainly wouldn’t sell them to others. Still studying the picture, she twirled a strand of hair around her finger. If that was her place, she would visit with the animals. She would talk with them, walk with them, play with them. But a farm of pets wasn’t exactly practical.

Huffing out a breath, she shook her head. Other than the first picture of Ben, she hadn’t come up with any realistic goals. Glancing between the picture of the couple and the family, she began to second guess herself. She was highly independent and had been for her entire life. She’d been taking care of herself, her mom, and her sister before she’d turned double digits. She didn’t need a man, she didn’t even believe in romantic love. And she already had a family with Ben. But before she could change her pictures, the front door thudded open.

“Aunt Nora!” Ben shouted from downstairs.

“Stupid vision board,” she muttered, hopping off the bed. It hadn’t helped her figure out her life’s purpose at all. Instead, she’d selected pictures of things she couldn’t have.

“Come on, Cosmo,” she said, pushing the vision board out of her mind. “Come meet Ben.” That put a smile on her face. Ben would be super excited that they had a dog.

She rushed down the stairs and opened her arms to Ben.

Ben hugged her. “Aunt Nora, we had so much fun! We went—”

Woof! Woof!

Ben jerked back and gaped wide-eyed at Cosmo. “Whose dog is that?” He sprinted over to Cosmo. “He’s so cute.”

“He’s our dog.” Nora’s gaze shifted to Davey as she spoke. Standing in the doorway, he looked handsome in a dark polo shirt with his thumbs hooked on the tabs of his faded blue jeans.

“You can come in,” she said.

He flashed a sexy smile before closing the door and sauntering over to her and Ben.

“We got a dog!” Ben dropped to the floor to pet Cosmo.

Cosmo licked Ben, a long swipe across his cheek.

Nora laughed. “Ben, meet Cosmo.”

“He kinda looks like that dog on the roadrunner,” Ben said.

Cosmo’s chest puffed. The dog glanced up and locked eyes with her. Told you.

Shaking her head, she smiled at Ben.

His face was bright with joy. “He’s really ours?”

“Yep.” She squatted down and kissed the top of Ben’s head. “You’ve been saying you wanted a dog.”

Ben gave her that sweet look again. “Thanks, Aunt Nora. This is epic.” He rested his head on Cosmo’s. “I love you already.”

Ben and Cosmo both eased to the floor.

“See, he likes me,” Ben said. “Look Dad—” he waved Davey over “—I got a dog now, just like you.”

Davey stepped over and scratched Cosmo’s head. “Pretty cool.”

Cosmo sniffed Davey’s leg, probably drawing in the scent of his dog, then licked Davey’s hand.

“Look! He likes you too, Dad.” Ben’s smile extended from ear-to-ear as he turned toward Nora. “Me and dad had lots of fun.” Then he talked so fast that she could barely keep up. Racing boats on the lake. Go-Karts. Paintball.

Maybe her Pap had been right. Ben was deliriously happy and this time he’d come home in one piece.

“I’m glad you had fun.” She ruffled his hair. “Want a cookie? Ella brought over a batch of her chocolate M & M cookies.” As Ben jumped to his feet, she glanced at Davey. “Come on, you too.”

Davey followed her and Ben into the kitchen. The space was small, but warm and cozy, and Nora loved it.

Ben poured himself a glass of juice.

“Iced tea, coffee?” she asked Davey as she put together a plate of cookies.

“Coffee, please.”

As she poured his coffee, she nodded toward the table. “Make yourself at home.”

Although she’d tried to convince herself otherwise, the man was sinfully attractive. He looked uber sexy with half-slit eyes and at least a day’s worth of light stubble. She wondered if Ben had worn him out, then wondered why sleepy looked good on him.

She handed Davey the coffee, then poured herself a glass of iced tea. After they were all seated, she asked Ben what he’d had to eat.

He gave her minute detail about the enormous breakfast Cruz had prepared. “Last night’s dinner was good too.” Ben stuffed half a cookie in his mouth. “And so much fun! You shoulda been there.”

“I’m sure your aunt doesn’t want to hear about it,” Davey said, looking a little pale.

Curiosity up, she angled her head. “Actually, I do.”

The color drained from Davey’s face, raising her interest…and her angst.

“Paintball,” Davey said, with a hint of desperation. “Wasn’t that fun?” he asked Ben.

“Loads of fun.” Ben beamed at Davey. “So was dinner. I got to meet Dad’s girlfriend.”

She gave Davey a sharp look. “Really?” She’d bet her next paycheck it had been a hook-up and not a girlfriend. She had Googled Davey, and based on what she’d read, he didn’t do girlfriends. “What was his girlfriend’s name?”

“She wasn’t my girlfriend,” Davey said, his voice tight.

“Cee-Cee said she was your girlfriend of the night,” Ben offered.

“Cee-Cee was joking.” Davey picked up a cookie and took a bite. “Hey, these are really good.”

“Her name’s Brandy,” Ben said, “and she had big sweater puppies.”

Nora choked on her tea. “Excuse me?”

“That’s what AJ said.” Ben sat tall in his chair. “Then I drank Dad’s beer.”

Nora felt her eyes widen with shock as Ben stuffed the rest of the cookie in his mouth, looking pleased with himself. She slowly turned toward Davey. “You gave Ben beer?”

“No!” Davey shook his head vehemently. “Jesus!”

“Jesus!” Ben mimicked.

“Ben! We don’t use Jesus’ name in vain,” she said, shooting daggers across the table at Davey.

“I shouldn’t have said that.” Davey rubbed the back of his neck. “Your aunt’s right, neither of us should have said that. Okay?”

Ben shrugged agreeably. “Sure.”

“I thought you didn’t drink,” she said, through gritted teeth. Davey had made that statement multiple times, yet somehow, he always ended up around alcohol.

“I don’t,” he said in a clipped voice. He turned toward Ben. “When did you drink beer?”

“When you hit the can.”

Davey glanced at her, the tips of his ears flushed. At least he had the decency to be embarrassed over Ben’s sailor talk. “When I went to the restroom,” Davey said, stressing the more civilized word, “you tried someone’s beer?”

Ben’s head bobbed up and down. “I tried yours. Cee-Cee said it would be okay.” He scrunched his nose. “But I didn’t like it so I spit it back in your glass.”

Nora raised a hand to her mouth but was unable to help the snicker that popped out. She was still mad, but Ben spitting beer in Davey’s mug was both funny and karmic.

“It was an O’Doul’s. A non-alcoholic beer,” Davey said, running a hand through his hair.

“Ben, honey, why don’t you take your stuff upstairs?” she suggested. “You need to unpack, see if you have any homework.”

“ ‘Kay.” Ben grabbed two cookies, then pointed at Davey. “Don’t leave without saying ‘bye.”

“I wouldn’t think of it,” Davey promised.

Ben high-fived with Davey, then scampered off.

Nora got up and put the tea kettle on the stove. She gave herself a moment to calm down, but it didn’t work. When she spun around, she was still pissed with a capital P. “I don’t think you’re a good influence on Ben.” She crossed her arms over her chest.

Rising, Davey’s lips thinned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Your friends, your language, your alcohol.” She put a hand on her hip. “Not to mention the questionable women in and out of your life.”

Davey made his way over and leaned against the counter next to her. “How do you know about me if you don’t follow racing?” He grinned. A big, cocky-ass grin. “Maybe you just follow me.”

“Oh, you’d like that, wouldn’t you?” She made a sound of disgust. He had some nerve and a super-sized ego to go along with it. “For your information, not every woman on the face of this earth is interested in you.” She lifted her chin. “I Googled you.”

Davey’s grin widened.

“Ergh.” What was wrong with him? He was the most arrogant man she’d ever met. “I did it for Ben, to see what kind of example you would set for him.”

Davey’s grin faded. Good. Because he appeared to be an asshole when it came to women. According to the articles and pictures she’d found online, he had a different woman at every track, or so it seemed.

“Didn’t like what I saw.” Now Davey was frowning, and although it was out of character, Nora took delight in taunting him. “Is it your MO to have a different woman at every race?”

A muscle in the corner of Davey’s jaw twitched. She stepped toward him, ready to have it out. But upon closer inspection, she detected something beyond the irritation. Something she didn’t want to acknowledge—unadulterated male desire.

In truth, she felt something too. Staring at him, her flesh tingled, her insides fluttered, and her heart raced.

Davey’s eyes raked over her.

He had such audacity, she thought, and at the she same time wondered if he liked what he saw.

What was she thinking? This was ridiculous. She wasn’t interested in Davey…she needed to stay focused on Ben. She slapped her hands on her hips. “Don’t you have anything to say?” she asked, her tone intentionally snippy in an effort to diffuse the tension.

But it didn’t work.

Davey closed the space between them and the air sparked and pulsed. Her head sputtered with indignation even as her pulse did a happy dance. Davey didn’t speak, but his eyes slowly dropped to her mouth.

Oh, not that.

That was a very bad idea.

She lifted her chin to tell him as much, but for once in her life no words came out. Instead, her lower lip quivered with eager anticipation and Davey swooped in, cupping his big hands around her cheeks and brushing his lips over hers.

His touch started out light as if he was giving her the chance to beg off. But she couldn’t pull away from his warm, tender, mesmerizing lips. She let out a soft moan of pleasure, and he slid a hand down her back, drawing her in closer. Moving her hands into his hair, she swept back his long bangs. He pressed hot kisses along her cheek and jaw before reclaiming her lips, this time intense and needy.

She didn’t have a lot of experience with men. She had only had a couple of boyfriends before Matt. But one thing was for sure—no one had ever kissed her like this. She tried to come to her senses, but her girly parts had other ideas.

Davey’s hands dropped to her butt and squeezed, making her jerk back.

“What are you doing?” she asked, her voice thick with both arousal and disbelief. She glanced down at his hands which were still clutching her big rear.

His eyes followed her gaze. “What can I say?” He gave her a lazy grin. “You’ve got a great ass.”

What? She’d never heard those words before. Matt, a gym rat, had been on her to work out more regularly, which she’d found obnoxious. She knew her chest and butt were big. Even so she was only a size 10—well, sometimes a 12—in order to fit her butt and boobs into various clothing cuts. But she’d been sensitive about her butt for as long as she could remember. She’d been a chunky child and her schoolmates had poked fun at her. Her own mother had nicknamed her ‘fat-ass.’

She sighed. Davey thought she had a great ass. Was he telling the truth? With his hands still on her butt, she lifted her gaze to meet his. His eyes shone one thing and one thing only—red hot desire.

She couldn’t help herself. She put her hands around his face and tugged him back for more.

Davey was more than willing to go for round two. His mouth was all over her lips, her jaw, her neck. His soft, sweet nips made her whimper with pleasure. Her hands went on an exploration, moving through his hair, down his back, across his chest. When she slipped a hand under his shirt to touch his hard stomach, he let out a ragged groan.

From somewhere in the deep recesses of her mind, she remembered the negative press about Davey’s womanizing. And it wasn’t just one or two claims. Combined, they could have wallpapered the walls in her bedroom. Even so, she had to summon up every ounce of will-power to disengage from his alluring spell. She allowed herself one last indulgence—a slow nibble on his bottom lip—then she put her palm on his chest and gave him a hard shove.

They both staggered back.

It took her a minute to catch her breath. After she’d pulled in air—a whole lot of air—she regained her composure.

Crossing her arms, she forced a riled look. “What was that about?”

Davey ran a hand over his face, through all that sexy stubble, looking every bit as bamboozled as she felt.

“Well?” While she waited for him to answer, Cosmo trekked into the room. She bent down to rub his ears. “Hi, sweet buddy,” she cooed.

“You wanted that every bit as much as I did,” Davey finally said. His voice wasn’t conceited nor was it defensive. Just a simple, matter-of-fact voice that was still a little breathless.

Rising, she pressed her lips together. They were still warm and tingly from his touch, making it hard to think straight. “Did not,” she said childishly. Well, she didn’t want to want it.

He put a finger under her chin and lifted her head. “Where’s my honest girl?”

His girl? Her heartbeat skittered with his sweet talk, but she could not do this. She had no luck with men. She’d just been dumped and the last thing she needed was a new man in her life. Even if she wanted to date again, she wouldn’t pick a playboy with an ego the size of a monster truck. On top of that, Davey was Ben’s father. Their relationship needed to remain platonic so she could concentrate on what was best for Ben.

Cosmo caught her eye and gave her a liar-liar-pants-on-fire look before trotting off.

Davey let out a low laugh. “I think your dog is making fun of us.”

Her gaze followed Cosmo until he disappeared, then she turned to Davey. “We can’t do this,” she said, ignoring her body’s sag of regret. “We need to focus on Ben.”

Disappointment flashed through Davey’s blue eyes, but he gave her a nod, then ran a hand through his bangs. “Again, I’m sorry.”

He’s doing the best he can. Pap’s words drifted into her head. Maybe he was, but he needed to do better.

“If you want to be a good role model for your son,” she said, “you’re going to have to step it up.”