Diego is an amazing guy. All you need to do is let him know you’re open to the idea of being with him, and things will take care of themselves.”
Bree let her gaze go to the rappelling wall again, pushing her hair back behind her ear. Diego and Brandon had made it safely to the bottom, and while she couldn’t hear what they were saying, it was obvious from the way they were laughing they’d both had fun. Seeing Diego bonding in a way Brandon never did with his own father almost brought tears to her eyes. Rachel was right. Diego truly was amazing. In addition to being attractive as sin, sexy as hell, and more caring than any guy she’d ever met, he was incredible with Brandon.
Why was she hesitating to take the next step when everything about being with Diego felt so right? Had her travesty of a marriage to Dave wrecked her confidence so completely? But then Diego glanced her way and flashed her a grin that made her warm all over, and those instincts Rachel mentioned told her if she didn’t take a chance with him, she’d regret it for the rest of her life.
Maybe she needed to stop thinking so much and follow them.
* * *
Diego and Brandon moved down the wall much faster the second time, each of them kicking away from the wooden vertical surface in front of them in time with each other, the rappelling rope singing as it slid through their gloved hands while they flew through the air. When they hit the ground at the exact same time, Brandon let out a shout of excitement. Diego was pretty stoked, too. The kid was a natural at this.
“One more time,” Brandon begged, running the last of the rappelling rope through his carabiner. “Maybe Australian style?”
Diego shook his head with a chuckle. He could only imagine Bree’s reaction to that. “Your mom about vapor-locked when you went down backward. She’d absolutely lose it if she saw you go down face-first. How about we save Australian rappelling for another day?”
Instead of being disappointed, Brandon looked at him like he’d just announced Disney was opening a new park right outside Dallas with unlimited FastPasses for everyone.
“We can do it again sometime?” he asked excitedly. “Really?”
“We can do it anytime you want. At least when I’m not working,” Diego promised. “And if I am working, you can rappel with anyone from the Pack, if you want. They’d all jump at the chance to hang out with you.”
Brandon shook his head as he began to loosen the straps on the rappelling harness. “Nah. I’ll wait until you have time to do it with me.”
Diego couldn’t explain the warm sensation that crept into his chest at that announcement. But he liked it—whatever the hell it was. He moved away from the base of the tower to make room for the next group getting ready to come down the wall, motioning for Brandon to do the same. “Works for me.”
“Cool.” Brandon watched as Connor came down the wall with Kat balanced on his chest. “By the way, I wanted to say thanks for spending so much time with my mom. I haven’t seen her smile this much in a long time. I think she really likes you.”
Damn if hearing that didn’t make his heart do a backflip in his chest. “I like your mom, too.”
Brandon seemed to consider that for a moment before turning to look curiously at him. “Do you like my mom or do you really like my mom?”
Diego almost laughed. Was he actually getting grilled by a teenager? If the serious expression on Brandon’s face was anything to go by, the answer to that was yes. Talk about a role reversal. Next, the kid would be asking him what his intentions were with his mother.
“Would you be okay with that?” he asked. “If I really liked your mom, I mean.”
“Definitely!” Brandon grinned. “I think it’d be really cool if you two got together. I know she’s given up a lot for me, and she deserves something good in her life.”
Whoa. That had to be the sweetest, most selfless thing he’d ever heard any kid say.
He was about to tell Brandon that very same thing when Moe Jenkins, a tall, muscular beta from Jayna’s pack, jogged up to them.
“Burgers and steaks just went on the grill, Brandon. Want to grab some food and head inside to play some video games with us?”
Brandon glanced at Diego. “Mind