I quickly tried to disguise the truth with a smile. "You're old enough to do what you want, Ari."
"But if you'd rather I stick around and keep you company, I can stay."
Bad idea. Bad, bad idea. I needed to fix what the hell was broken with me that I thought this way about him, but I couldn’t do this with him around.
"No, no, go have fun." I waved at him. "You have friends I'm sure you're dying to catch up with while you're here. By the way, you never said how long you're staying."
He exaggerated a gasp. "You're already tired of having me here?"
"Of course not, brat." It was supposed to come out as a joke or teasing manner. We’d always had that easygoing banter between us, and I’d never thought twice about it before. But after my crazy chemical reaction to him, it sounded different. Sexual. Like something I would say to a lover.
His face stretched into a charming smile. "You've never called me brat before."
"Yeah, well." I cleared my throat. "Where are you heading off to anyway?"
He shrugged. "I'm meeting a couple of guys at a bar for a drink."
"There better not be a bar that'll sell drinks to a minor.”
Ari chuckled. "I turned twenty-one two months ago, Daddy."
A shiver ran down my spine. He always called me that, and I’d never thought much of it, though it had annoyed the hell out of my ex-wife. Now all the blood rushed to my cock. His soft purr and sweet innocence pulled me in like a moth drawn to a flame. Goddammit. The very idea of getting singed excited me. And there was no mistake that I would burn if I touched him.
"That's right.” I swallowed away the lump in my throat. “I've missed four birthdays."
"Yeah, you did."
Had they been happy birthdays or sad ones? I'd taken this boy in, sworn to protect him, and failed so miserably.
"Go have fun," I said sincerely. "You deserve it, and thanks for dinner."
"You're welcome, Daddy."
I shifted on the couch, grabbed one of the cushions, and discreetly placed it on my lap. Damn, damn, damn.
"Do you want to borrow my car?" I asked. "It's covered in spray-paint, but—"
"Actually, I called a cab. Just waiting for it to get here."
And right on time too. A car drove up to the house. Then a horn blasted.
"Your ride's here."
"Yeah, I'll be back soon, but don't wait up. Four years is a long time to catch up."
Don't I know it?
What had he been doing for the past four years? I would wait to ask him. Dinner had already been overwhelming for both of us. I could get more answers tomorrow.
"If you need anything, a ride home, call me."
He nodded, then leaned in and kissed my cheek. "Thank you. It's been a while since someone really cared."
My heart broke for him. I wanted to know what he'd been through, but I just watched him go, stifling my groan. Ari had grown and filled out his jeans in a way I didn't recall at all. I couldn't stop staring.
Never in a million years would I have thought Ari would get tattoos or pierce his belly button and lip. Butterflies, intertwined with delicate petals and vines, snaked up from the waistband of his jeans and disappeared under his top. Did his tattoos extend all over his back?
It suited Ari more than I wanted to admit.