Dare
smiled
slightly.
“I
don’t
know
if
I
can.”
Before
AJ
had
time
to
make
a
comeback,
Dare
unsnapped
his
seatbelt.
“Come
on,
it’s
time
to
go
inside.”
Shelly
pulled
onto
the
interstate,
hoping
and
praying
that
AJ
was
on
his
best
behavior.
No
matter
what,
she
had
to
believe
that
all
the
lessons
in
obedience,
honor
and
respect
that
he’d
been
taught
at
an
early
age
were
somewhere
buried
beneath
all
that
hostility
he
exhibited
at
times.
But
right
now
she
had
to
cope
with
the
fact
that
he
was
still
a
child,
a
child
who
was
getting
older
each
day
and
enduring
growing
pains
of
the
worst
kind.
But
one
thing
was
for
certain,
Dare
was
capable
of
dealing
with
it,
and
for
that
she
was
grateful.
When
she
thought
of
Dare,
she
had
no
choice
but
to
think
of
her
traitorous
body
and
the
way
it
had
responded
to
him
earlier
that
day
at
her
house.
As
she’d
told
AJ,
Dare
was
smart.
He
was
also
very
receptive,
and
she
knew
he
had
picked
up
on
the
fact
that
she
had
wanted
him.
All
it
had
taken
was
one
mind-blowing
kiss
and
she’d
been
ready
to
get
naked
if
he’d
asked.
When
she
came
to
a
traffic
light
she
momentarily
closed
her
eyes,
asking
for
strength
where
Dare
was
concerned.
If
she
allowed
him
to
become
a
part
of
her
life,
she
could
be
asking
for
potential
heartbreak
all
over
again,
although
she
| 
