Page 33 of Let's Call a Truce
“Hello, Miss Sophie,” Ben said. “Looking lovely as ever.”
Sophie giggled and snuggled into my side. He had obviously won over one of the Ryan girls. “Mom, I told you Paris’s dad was cute. Mr. Ben, are you still single? You could marry my mom. Paris and I decided we want to be sisters.”
Ben choked on the water he was drinking, coughing to clear his throat. Count on Sophie to dial the awkwardness up to eleven.
“I told you in the car, pea. Stop trying to set me up with people. Our family is perfect, just the three of us.”
Ben stared at me flatly, reading the subtext of what I was saying. Whatever goodwill he had gained with me over the past few weeks was wiped away when he hid his daughter. Or chose not to tell me. Or didn’t tell me because I told him I wasn’t ready to be a part of his life. I was aware there was some merit to his argument, but it didn’t change the fact it all felt like a lie. Like one big manipulation so he could get the upper hand in our war.
And beyond that, it seemed like a message from the universe. Between the reminder of Jason and the lies, it was like a blinking sign was hanging over Ben’s head.
BAD IDEA. DO NOT PURSUE.
Ben’s daughter smiled shyly from her dad’s side. “Hi, Mrs. Ryan. I’m Paris. Sophie is my best best best friend.”
I chuckled and tried to check my anger, reminding myself this little girl was not responsible for her dad’s faults. I squatted down in front of her.
“Hi, sweetie. You can call me Miss Juliana. Sophie talks about you all the time. Did you know Paris is my absolute favorite city in the whole wide world? I think that’s a sign we’ll be best friends, too.”
She giggled, and I smiled wider when she threw her arms around my neck for a hug.
“Time to load up, Miss Mendoza’s class,” Gabriela called from the door. “Please line up in single file so I can count you off.” Sophie and Paris skipped to the line holding hands, leaving me alone with Ben.
He dropped his voice to a whisper. “We are going to finish this conversation.”
I kept my eyes forward. “Nothing to finish. The past few weeks were a mistake. I should have trusted my first impression.”
“You know what I think?” He dropped his mouth to my ear like we were schoolkids trading secrets instead of two grown-ass people trying to keep a screaming match at bay. “I think you’re full of shit. You feel something for me and don’t want to admit it. This is an excuse to hide behind all the bullshit rather than deal with those emotions.”
I did the mature thing and pretended like he didn’t exist until Gabriela called for us all to head for the bus. I forced her into the seat next to me before Ben could take the space, throwing a glare in his direction.
“What’s the deal?” Gabriela whispered as the bus rolled out of the parking lot.
“That question would take way more than a twenty-minutebus ride to answer. I’ll explain everything at wine night tomorrow after the girls go to sleep. But, yes, to answer your question earlier, that istheBen.”
Ben’s eyes were on me the entire ride. I sat there fuming, wishing I had gone to Clara’s soccer game.
Chapter 11
“Okay, folks! Who’sready to get dirty?”
Parents and students alike let out a loud cheer as the environmental center’s employee revved them up. Even with the annoyance of Ben hovering behind me, I found myself pulled into the excitement. I freaking loved the Mud Walk. The school district had been doing this field trip for over fifty years, and I still remembered my own. Being back here made me feel like a kid.
“Now that we’ve gotten through all the boring educational stuff, let’s get ready to hit the trail. Walking through these wetlands will help you see how unique our Florida ecosystem is. It’s not every day you get to walk through a swamp!”
Gabriela stepped up next to the guide. “Okay, everyone. I want you to separate yourselves into groups of five. Chaperones, I’m going to come over and talk to each pair about the responsibilities.”
I looked around frantically, realizing everyone had paired up already. Did I miss the memo on that? Gabriela smirked as she came up to me.
“Mr. Thomas, you’ll be with Mrs. Ryan.” She was getting way too much joy out of sticking Ben and me together. “You’ll have five kids in your group, so one of you will be at the front and one at the back to make sure no kids get stuck.”
“I hope you get stuck,” I muttered to her. Ben came up beside me as Gabriela flashed her giant smile and walked away.
“Hi, partner,” Ben said. I kept my eyes trained away from him. “I gotta say I’m surprised to see you here. You don’t strike me as the type to like a mess.”
“Just because we’re chaperoning together doesn’t mean we have to talk,” I replied.
“Oh, don’t be like that. You would miss me so much.” Great. Teasing, conceited Ben was making a comeback. I rolled my eyes and turned my attention back to the kids.
