Free A Rocker and a Hard Place by Hunter J. Keane Page A

other, neither one pretending that they were happy with the situation. T.J. ran in behind Tyler, blissfully ignorant.
    “Tyler burnt one of the steaks!” He laughed gleefully. “My steak turned out perfect.”
    “Here.” I handed Tyler a clean plate and he took it from me without making eye contact. He was still carefully appraising Connor.
    I turned back to the chopping board and added the vegetables to the large pan. “I still need a few minutes. Can the two of you keep an eye on the steaks until we’re done in here?”
    “Sure.” Tyler understood the implied hint. I needed some time alone with Connor. “Come on, T.J. Let’s give your mom some space.”
    Connor waited until the door closed behind them and said, “Thanks for the heads up.”
    “I’m sorry.” I faced him grimly. “We ran into him at the store and T.J. invited him. I couldn’t exactly tell him not to come.”
    “Yes, you could have. You don’t owe him anything, Emma. He’s just an old flame that fizzled out a long time ago.” Connor looked at me for confirmation. “Or has something changed?”
    “No.” I repeated myself. “No, nothing has changed.”
    “Then why is he here?”
    Connor and I had been dating for six months. We had met at a charity event in Morgan and I had fallen for him right away. He was polite, kind, smart, and treated me better than anyone had in a long time. So while it had only been six months, I felt like I owed it to him to tell him the truth.
    “Tyler is T.J.’s father,” I said, quickly adding, “But T.J. doesn’t know.”
    “His father?” To say that Connor was surprised was putting it very mildly. “Does Tyler know?”
    I nodded.
    Connor placed his hands on the counter, rocking slightly. “What does this mean for us, Emma?”
    “Nothing.” The word just came out, before I’d had a chance to really think about his question. “I don’t know. Tyler is going to be a part of my life now. Part of T.J.’s life.”
    “Do you still have feelings for him?”
    He looked at me with hurt in his eyes, like he already suspected the truth. I didn’t want to hurt him, but he needed to know the truth.
    “I don’t know.” That was the absolute truth.
    “You don’t know?” He threw up his hands, exasperated. “What am I supposed to do with that?”
    “You deserve a better answer than that. I know. But I can’t give you one right now.” I twisted a dish towel in my hands. “I don’t want to feel like this, confused about Tyler. I want to put him in my past and move on, but it’s not that simple.”
    “Because of T.J.?” he looked at me, hurt in his eyes. “Or because you’re still in love with Tyler?”
    I didn’t answer him, but I didn’t have to. He could see the truth in my eyes.
    “I’m going to go.” The words caught in his throat. “I don’t belong here.”
    Tyler and T.J were laughing again outside, salt in Connor’s open wound. He grimaced and turned, walking away swiftly.
    I remained frozen as I watched him go. It hurt to breathe.
    “Connor, wait!”
    He stopped just as he was opening the front door. I ran to him and grabbed his arm.
    “I don’t want to hurt you.” I stopped, and started again. “You’re such a good guy, and you’ve been so amazing-”
    “Emma, I know. Look, I still care about you and I want more than anything for us to be together. But I need you to want that, too.” He pressed to fingers under my chin, lifting my head so that he could kiss me softly on the lips. “Take some time, figure out what you want. And I really hope that what you want is me.”
    I stayed in the doorway until his car turned the corner at the end of the road. He was out of sight, but not out of mind. Connor was one of the best men I had ever met, but I wasn’t convinced that he was the right man for me.
    Neither T.J. nor Tyler asked why Connor hadn’t stayed. They were too lost in their newfound camaraderie to care about my love life.
    I let them provide the entertainment over