Sweet Temptation by Cora Reilly

We spent our first summer vacation at the beach house. It was early June and
the sun was shining brightly. The weather forecast had predicted a few days
without rain. Cassio had taken the week off from work, which didn’t mean he
wouldn’t have to return in case of an emergency, but I was still ecstatic about the
chance to have a family vacation on the beach.
I dressed Simona in a cute two-piece with ruffles and sunflowers, cute
sunglasses, and a straw hat. My bikini looked very similar, minus the excessive
frills, but we still managed a cute twin look. Daniele wore his favorite Superman
swim trunks.
Cassio was eye-candy in his board shorts. He carried Daniele into the water
while Simona and I dipped only our toes into the Atlantic. I preferred lukewarm
water, so I didn’t understand how Cassio and Daniele could enjoy a dip in the
cold. Simona shared my opinion and squealed every time the waves touched her
tiny toes. Her eyes brimmed over with joy as she raised her arms. “Arm, Mom.”
Every time she called me “Mom,” my heart skipped a beat. She occasionally
called me “Giula” when she tried to imitate Daniele, but she had trouble
pronouncing my name. Daniele had been confused the first few times she’d
called me mom, but after I’d explained to him that I wasn’t trying to take his
mom’s place and that it only showed how much I loved and cared for them, he’d
come to terms with it.
Hugging Simona to my chest, I watched Cassio carry Daniele on his
shoulders. Everybody who saw them knew they were father and son, not because
of physical similarities but because of how they acted around each other. It was
beautiful. Loulou barked wildly beside me, enraged that Cassio and Daniele
were out of her reach, but she wasn’t very fond of water.
“Dad!” Simona screamed, stretching out her arms. Cassio came out of the