All Chapters of Resisting The Playboy's Charm: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

EvansThe next day—Wednesday, the middle of an already busy week—I can't bring myself to focus on anything in the office.I stare at the same file for approximately two hours. It's a portfolio of last month's investments, and it's completely fucking irrelevant at this point, but it's the only thing open on my computer as I sit in my office, stare at the screen, and think about Carolina.What was she dreaming about?The image flashes through my mind of her in bed, the tank top strap slipping down her shoulder. I wanted to reach out and adjust it—or better yet, tear the whole thing off.The thought alone is enough to turn me on. I'm half hard beneath my slacks.It's starting to get a little obsessive, I have to admit.I shake my head, trying to put her out of my mind. There are more reports I need to go over before the day is done, and the longer I spend daydreaming about Carolina, the longer they go unopened.Handling investments is something I can sink my entire focus into. Something

EvansEvery month, Brandon's pre-K holds an optional event, a field trip of sorts, where the kids get to pile onto a bus and go somewhere interesting. I always make sure Brandon is signed up for it—some enrichment is good for the kid, and I want to give him the chance to make friends.Last month, they went to the Natural History Museum, and the time before that, the aquarium. This time around, the trip is outside of the city, to a petting zoo upstate.Parents are encouraged to accompany their children on the trips, but I'm usually too busy to go. They fall on Fridays, which are some of my busiest days of the week, so I'm always stuck in the office waiting to hear about Brandon's adventures at the end of my day.But when the petting zoo trip rolls around, I decide to bite the bullet and go. I take a bit of time off of work, telling myself that I'll make up for it by working from home tomorrow, and join the gaggle of five-year-olds and their teachers on a bus headed out of the city.Car

EvansWe wait in the park across the street from the petting zoo while my driver brings a car up from Manhattan. It takes around half an hour, during which Brandon tires himself out climbing on trees and Carolina and I sit on a bench, talking.Even though we live in the same house, I don't usually get the chance to have a one-on-one conversation with Carolina like this. Sure, we talk at night after Brandon goes to bed, but that's usually in the context of her job—she tells me about Brandon's day, and about anything I should be worried about.Now, though, as we watch him run through the trees, our conversation is a little more personal. She tells me about growing up in foster care, and how her experience informed her path through education."So that was the goal of the social work?" I ask, after she tells me about her degree program.She nods. "I wanted to help kids like me—and like Noah." She gives a little sigh, then continues, "It's a tough world out there. Things don't always turn

CarolAs soon as Adam's out of earshot, I heave a sigh. Evans retracts his arm from my shoulders."Thank you," I say, relieved. "So much.""It's no problem," he replies. "It was pretty obvious you wanted the conversation to end.""Yeah, I definitely did.""I figured I'd help you out." He gestures back toward the table. "Come on. I'll get the check, and then we should probably head out."By the time we return home, it's getting late. The sky is dark as we make it to the front door, ushering a tired Brandon inside."It might be a good idea for you to head to bed, mister," I say to Brandon, who yawns widely as I make the suggestion.He nods, not even bothering to protest, which I take as a sign that he's exhausted from his busy day. I glance over at Evans."Is it okay if I take him up?""Go for it," Evans says, nodding.I get Brandon in bed, and he falls asleep only five minutes into tonight's bedtime story, in which Ralphie the sheep has joined the lion and the dinosaur on their adventu

CarolFor the next few days, Evans keeps his distance.He's not cold to me like he was before, but he's also never more than cordial. We don't share the kind of laughs we shared during the outing to the petting zoo, and he never gets as close to me, emotionally or physically, as he was that night.It bothers me, and I hate that it does. I keep reminding myself that this is what we agreed to, and that it's for the best.But still, I hate it. I hate the distance, because the worst part of it all is that I'm starting to like him.Living with him, and being around him so often, I keep getting little glimpses of the man he is beneath the ever-present stoic mask. He seemed like he was warming up to me, and it felt special to see that side of him, something that I'm sure very few people have seen.And it was unbelievably attractive. I don't think I've ever been this attracted to a man in my life. Now that he's withdrawn back behind his facade, I miss him, the guy I had started to fall for.I