Nyght's Eve (19 page)

They turned off the shower and silently dried
off. Bracing herself from the pain she felt, she tried to act normal. She took
out a new toothbrush, leaving it on the sink for him as she got ready for bed. When
she was done in the bathroom, she turned to leave.

“I’ll be out in a minute.”

She nodded and walked back into her bedroom.
What the hell had just happened? They were acting like two strangers and it was
unnerving. Evie considered putting pajamas on for a minute, then thought fuck
it. She got into bed and pulled the covers up. She rolled over, facing away
from the bathroom and stared out at the night sky.

This wasn’t easy. A part of her wanted to
pretend to be sleeping when he came out of the bathroom giving him an excuse to
leave, while another bigger part of her wanted to yell at him and ask him what
the hell was wrong with him. After the day she had, she just didn’t have the
strength to deal with any more emotional blows. She knew she’d made a major
mistake thinking about the rescue, because that was when the shaking started.

“What the hell?”

Dare hurried into the room, jumping on the
bed to pull her into his arms and cursed himself for a fool. There he was,
brooding in the bathroom while she had been lying in the bedroom because he’d
pulled away and left her alone. After what they had just shared, he felt like a
total ass.

Christ, he
was
a total ass.

“I’m so sorry, baby. Please don’t cry. I just
needed a minute to deal with the fact I broke one of my own rules.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” she asked.
She tried to push herself away from him, but he held tight.

“Stop it. Don’t pull away.”

“You mean like you did?”

He cupped her face, brushing away her tears.
Seeing her cry over something he’d done tore him up inside. “Listen to me. It
might seem stupid, but I’ve never made love with a woman without a condom
before. It’s been a rule of mine, and I needed a moment to think about things.”

“I didn’t force you,” she snapped. “But stow
your ego, you big stupid jerk. I’m not crying about you. Now, let me go. I was
thinking about those poor dogs...”

He forced her head down on his shoulder,
holding her close. Lifting her with him, he laid down on the bed with her
cradled against him. Voice softening, he said, “I’m sorry, princess.”

She began to shake again, but this time she
was surrounded by his warmth. Burrowing closer to him, she contradicted herself
when she said, “Maybe you should just go.”

“Not a chance. First, I want to say that it’s
natural to be upset by what happened today. And I’m sure I didn’t help by
acting like an idiot just now.”

“We don’t have to do it again.”

He lifted her chin and placed a gentle kiss
on her lips. “I want to. God, do I want to. I’m going to fuck up, Eve. It’s
been a long time since I’ve been in a relationship, and even longer since it
was with someone who really mattered. You matter. I was just realizing how much
you matter to me. You have to give a guy a moment to catch up.”

She sighed. “I guess this counts as your
stupid male moment of the day. But this was a biggie.”

He kissed her again as he chuckled softly.
“How about I help you forget about today and make it up to you?”

“How do you plan to do that?”

He rolled on top of her, nudging her thighs
apart so he could settle between them. He was hard again just from feeling her
soft skin against his body, and he knew he was in trouble of getting addicted
to her. He’d had a moment of panic after the last time they’d made love, but he
quickly realized that he felt more alive being with her than he had in a long
time.

And he wasn’t about to let that go.

He wasn’t about to let her go.

“Why don’t you let me make love to you again,
then I’ll hold you while we sleep?”

She smiled up at him. “I guess we could give
that a try.”

He kissed her sweetly as he slid inside her.
They made love again, this time slowly. Their bodies moved as one in the
shadows, their touch tender as they caress one another. When he came inside
her, filling her with his release, she joined him, whispering his name.

And when they closed their eyes, they drifted
into dreams, together.

Chapter Eleven

Over the next several days, Evie and Dare
fell into a comfortable routine.

Every morning, Dare went downstairs and took
the dogs out while she made them coffee. When he got back, they would sit out
on her balcony and drink their first cup snuggled together on a large ottoman,
before getting in the shower. It pleased her that he seemed to enjoy her
bathroom as much as she did, and he also seemed particularly fond of sex in the
shower with her.

Talk about starting her day off right.

After that first morning they had woken up
together, she had explained why they couldn’t go into the center if they had
sex after they showered. All of the dogs would smell it on them, and that would
just get awkward. So, he had made it a point to either wake her up with sex, or
they jumped each other while they were in the shower.

And their nights were filled with passion.

Evie was surprised how well Dare fit into her
crazy life. He went into the rescue center with her after they left her house.
Even thought they parted ways to do their own jobs, she loved being able to see
him throughout the day. No job was too small for Dare, from cleaning to helping
make small repairs, but she knew he was being wasted working there and it would
only be a matter of time before he had to go back to being a doctor full time.

It didn’t seem to bother Dare that Shane
followed him around like a sidekick whenever he was at the center. Despite all
his grumblings about kids, he actually seemed to enjoy the boy’s company. And
when he needed a break from people, Dare went into town to work out at Fight
Hard or to hang out at The Fox Hole with Dante. Regardless of the time he spent
away, he always came back to Evie at the end of the day. He even brought dinner
home whenever he was in town.

Dare had been living with her at her house
since that first night they had spent together, although he still kept his room
at the boarding house. It bothered her that he was careful not to leave any of
his belongings, except for a small bag he brought over every day. It was a
constant reminder that he still had one foot out the door. He’d given no
indication of whether he would be staying in Breakers, and Evie was afraid to
bring up the subject. But every day she spent with him made her want a future
with him...a future he might not be interested in.

She was glad when Kali stopped by the center
on Thursday afternoon. The week had been so hectic around the center with Tony,
Maddy and Francesca still out of town that Evie hadn’t really had time to see
any of her friends. Hunter had tried to help out with the adoptions, but that
meant she was stuck at the center overseeing things. Her other cousin Beckett
made sure she didn’t have to worry about the clinic, and she had spoken to him
about taking Eugene and Claudette on as interns. He had been all for the idea,
and also told her they were considering hiring a new veterinarian at the clinic
in town to help with the workload, which would free up more of his time to
spend at the rescue center.

Evie and Kali decided to take a walk since it
was such a nice day. It wasn’t usual for Kali to stop by in the middle of the
day, so Evie assumed privacy would be good for whatever Kali wanted to talk to
her about. They each held a leash for one of the dogs from the center. If they
were going to take a break, they might as well let a few of the animals enjoy
it as well.

“It’s such a nice day out. I always forget
how much I miss being outside when I’m at the bakery all day,” Kali said as
they walked around the pond.

“It really is. I’ve been stuck doing
paperwork and rearranging some of the cages inside most of today.”

“So, how are things going with Dare?” Kali
asked.

They both looked over to where Dare was
playing with Hero in a small fenced enclosure outside. Evie found herself
smiling as she watched the pair. “Great. Even though he’s kind of rough around
the edges, everyone loves working with him and he’s wonderful with the animals.
Shane idolizes him like he is some sort of superhero or something, and he has
been such a help around the center.”

Kali laughed. “That
would be useful information if I was interested in interviewing him for a job.
I mean how are things going between you and him? I heard he’d living with you
now.”

“Not really. He’s
over at my place every night, but he’s not all there. It’s like he’s holding
back a part of himself from me that I can’t reach.” She sighed. “He’s amazing. I’ve
never met another man like him.”

“You’re in love
with him.”

Evie stopped in her
tracks. “What? No! Crap, I don’t know. Maybe I do. It’s crazy, I’ve only known
him for a few weeks. I can’t, can I? It’s way too soon.”

“Oh my God, you are
totally in love with him. You’re babbling. You never babble.”

“Shut up.”

Kali bumped her
shoulder as they started walking again. “I think I started falling in love with
Jared the moment I first saw him. I didn’t know him that well, but as soon as
we began spending time together I knew I loved him.”

“Dare and I aren’t
like you and Hammer. Dare is...complicated. He has a whole life that he’s been
hiding from, an exciting and dangerous life.”

“I know Jared wants
Dare to stay. He’s been worried that Dare will go back to doing...whatever it
was he was doing.”

“I am, too. Worried
that staying in Breakers won’t be enough for him. That I won’t be enough.”

“Evie! How can you
say that?”

“This has been like
a vacation for him. A break from the real world. He’s a trauma surgeon, for
Christ’s sake. He can’t give up being a doctor to work at a rescue center.”

“He could get a job
at the hospital.”

“I know, but I’m
not sure if he wants to. You know that I don’t have the best track record with
relationships. I work too much, and men usually don’t like coming in second on
my list of priorities. Hell, not even second. They always seem to fall further
down the list. Dare is...he confuses me. Half the time I don’t know whether or
not I want to kiss him or smack him.”

“How is the sex?”

“It’s...there are
no words.”

“Right on, sister!”
Kali grinned.

“But we can’t build
a future together just because we have great sex. I guess I’m just greedy. I
want it all. My work at the center and with my SR team, my home here in
Breakers, and a man that loves me enough to stay here and start a family.”

“There is no reason
you can’t have all those things.”

“If Dare doesn’t
stay, then I don’t see how we could work out. My life is here. I think I do
love him, or at least I’m beginning to, but it doesn’t matter if he’s going to
be leaving. I’ve just decided to enjoy whatever we have while it lasts. I’ll
deal with the fallout after he’s gone.”

“Oh, Evie...”

She smiled, trying
to hide the anxiety she felt just thinking about losing Dare. Now would be a
damn good time to change the subject. “Enough about me. You didn’t come here
just to ask me about my love life. What’s going on?”

Kali blew out a
breath and looked over at Evie. “Actually, there was something I wanted to ask
you. As you know, Jared and I have started all the wedding planning stuff.”

“Has he finally
stopped bugging you about Vegas?” Evie asked with a chuckle. A few weeks ago, Kali
and Hammer had gone to Las Vegas for a Cage Fighting League MMA fight that he had
been an announcer at, and he had tried to convince Kali to get married while
they were there. It was lovely to see that her cousin so in love that he
couldn’t wait to get married to the woman he loved, but he had backed off when
Kali had said she wanted a real wedding.

Kali laughed. “I
love how he can’t wait for me to take his name, but I really do want the white
dress and everything. Jared said he would be happy with whatever made me happy.
I love him so much. It’s just that he is absolutely clueless when it comes to
wedding planning.”

Amused, Evie shot
her a look. “That doesn’t surprise me. You know I’ll help you with whatever you
need.”

“And this is why I
love you.” Kali said with a smile. “We’ll have to figure out a day where we can
all go dress shopping soon.”

“I still can’t
believe you got Nikita and Sam to agree to be bridesmaids. I can’t wait to see
them in their dresses. It’s going to be a Kodak moment for sure.”

Kali had a
mischievous glint in her eyes when she said, “I’ve decided my colors are pink
and silver.”

“Oh lord, Niki is
going to kill you.”

“Of that I have no
doubt,” Kali agreed. “But I really wanted to talk to you about is the venue.
Jared and I have been looking at places all over. My parents insist the wedding
should be in Houston, because of all their connections there.”