Page 32 of Enticed
Panic filled my chest, and the breath seized in my lungs. Did she know? Could she tell that I craved Jasmine, that I wanted her more than I’d ever wanted another woman? I choked on air, coughing to clear my throat.
“I don’t… She—” I began, attempting to sputter some bullshit excuse. Rose placed a weathered hand on my arm in reassurance.
“It’s okay, Gabriel. I know what it’s like to fall for someone everyone says you shouldn’t,” she said, giving me a sympathetic look. I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t breathe. She had figured me out and was flaying me open to reveal my secrets. Shock rendered me motionless as she continued. “My husband—God rest his soul—was thirteen years older than me, and we spent thirty-five blissful years together.”
This was news to me. I’d known Joseph since I was a kid and had never realized he was that much older than her. He always seemed so young and full of life. Maybe that was because of Rose.
“I was barely older than Jasmine is now, and everyone told me it was a mistake, that I was too young and naive. But I was a grown woman, and I knew my own mind.”
Movement past her shoulder caught my eye. I glanced up to see Jasmine and Rory heading back toward us, and I stiffened. I didn’t want either of them to overhear this conversation. Rose must have read the panic on my face. She squeezed my arm to get my attention and leaned in so only I could hear.
“Jasmine is smart, and she’s fierce. She’s wise beyond her years and stubborn to boot. I trust her to make her own decisions. You should too.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
GABE
“What are you going to order? The rainbow unicorn with sprinkles is the best!” Rory said when we walked into the ice cream parlor. She skipped to the display case while we trailed behind her, not waiting for Jasmine’s response. Jasmine giggled, amused by her fervor.
“I remember being that excited about ice cream at her age. It was devastating the first time we passed this shop after getting my diagnosis, knowing I couldn’t have it,” she said, and my stomach sank.
“Shit, Jasmine, I’m sorry. I wasn’t even thinking.” I felt like the world’s biggest asshole for bringing her here when she couldn’t even eat what they served.
She held up her hands to stop me. “Don’t worry about it. I know how to manage my diabetes now and can have a little ice cream here and there. Back then, my parents were terrified of doing something wrong and were still learning how to navigate this new lifestyle.”
“Are you sure? We can go somewhere else. I think they have a place that serves frozen yogurt in Oneida,” I offered.
“And refuse Rory her rainbow unicorn sprinkle ice cream? Not a chance,” she replied playfully.
After we placed our orders, Rory and Jasmine went to find us a seat while I waited for our ice creams. Once I had them in hand, I headed toward the corner booth where Jasmine was showing Rory her insulin pump and explaining how it worked.
“So it squirts insulin in your belly all the time, but you can make it squirt extra if you’re going to eat ice cream?” Rory asked, curiously.
“Something like that,” Jasmine replied good-naturedly. “I have to give myself a little extra any time I eat. Ice cream just requires more because of how many carbohydrates are in it.” Rory was fascinated. She studied the device like it was alien technology.
“And your phone tells you how much sugar is already in your blood?”
“Yep. It's connected to this little guy right here,” Jasmine replied, pulling up her shirtsleeve and tapping on the white disc attached to her arm. She pulled up the app on her phone that tracked her glucose and showed it to Rory. “It reads the level of sugar in my blood all the time. It will also send me a message if it gets too high or too low.”
I loved that Jasmine took the time to answer all her questions and explain things in a way she could understand. My daughter was at that age where she was curious about everything and wanted to know how it all worked. She was also unapologetically nosy.
Taking the seat across from them, I slid their ice cream across the table and handed them each a spoon. They both thanked me before digging in. They chatted between bites, and I took a moment to simply observe them, imagining doing this regularly and making Jasmine a part of our lives. The age difference was starting to feel like less of an impediment themore time I spent with her, and watching her with Rory showed me how easy it would be to integrate her into our lives. If she was any other woman, I might consider letting my guard down and seeing how things went, but she wasn’t just any woman. She was my best friend’s daughter. And I knew for a fact he wouldn’t share his mother’s sentiments regarding our age gap.
“What’s wrong?” Jasmine asked, and I lifted my gaze to her worried face. For a moment I feared she knew what I was thinking, but then she nodded to my ice cream. “Is yours not any good?” I looked down and found my untouched double scoop of Rocky Road melting and tried to recover quickly by digging my spoon into it and bringing it to my mouth.
“No, it’s fine. Just got a little brain freeze,” I said, popping my spoon into my mouth and chewing to keep from saying anything else. If she caught onto my lie, she didn’t let on.
Once we were finished, we headed to the movie theatre. There were only a few other families there to watch the new animated film, so we had an entire row all to ourselves. I was relieved when Rory insisted on sitting between Jasmine and me. Sitting next to her in a dark theatre was more than I could handle. The temptation to take her hand in mine or wrap my arm around her and pull her close would be unbearable. But sitting here, with my daughter between us just felt … right. It felt like the start of something I was powerless to stop.
And I didn’t want to.
“That movie was so good!I think it’s my new most favoritest,” Rory proclaimed when we came out of the theatre.
“It was awesome,” Jasmine agreed, pulling her in for a hug. “Thanks for inviting me. I had a really good time.”
“Wait, you’re not leaving yet, are you,” Rory asked, panic lacing her voice.
“Oh, um…” she began, her gaze flitting to me in question. I had nothing to offer since we had no other plans. At least none that I was aware of. “Was there something else you wanted to do?” she asked, refocusing on Rory.
