A Little Dare (12 page)

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.”

He
inhaled
deeply.
“So
will
you
at
least
think
about
what
I’ve
proposed?”

Shelly
met
his
gaze.
“Yes,
Dare,
I’ll
need
time,”
she
said
quietly.