Redemption is Here (An FBI/Romance Thriller Book 9) (14 page)

He
simply saluted.

Heading to
ward the Navigator, across the parking lot, Elizabeth heard a familiar voice, right before dread settled in.

It was the
sheriff.

Well
, hell.

As she turned, Callen moved to stand in front of her, protecting her from the man in the beat up truck.

“Are you her boss?” he asked, pointing at Callen.

Elizabeth made the introductions and prayed that Callen could remain calm.
The odds weren’t in her favor.

“I am,” he replied, propagating the lie his woman had begun. Elizabeth was generally straight forward. If she didn't admit she was the boss, there had to be a reason, especially since her belt buckle clearly stated otherwise.

“You should be nice to this filly. She’s as gentle as a lamb and a good girl,” the sheriff stated.

Callen glanced over his shoulder and nearly laughed
at the absurdity of that statement.

Yeah,
she had this man snowed big time.

“I’ll try,” he replied
as the man pulled away. When he was gone, Callen stared at her. “What exactly did you do in there? Witchcraft or black magick?”

The expression on his face was entertaining. “Hey! I resent that. I am
sweet and gentle. You two brutes don’t appreciate how lucky you both are.”

Now,
it was his turn to be amused.

“Let’s get you back to the cabin. I need to feed you. You’re
obviously delirious.”

                                 *     *     *

It didn't take long to get the morgue cleaned up. After helping the techs, and setting up their space, Tony glanced over at the petite woman.

She’d been chatty and pleasant the entire time.

“Hey, do you want to grab dinner?”

Jax glanced over, a little surprised. “Yeah, that sounds great. I don’t cook,
so I live off energy bars and drinks.”

He had a better idea. “I could cook us dinner. I happen to be extremely proficient in the kitchen. My best friend’s wife has been teaching me a few new things.” Thank God for Cyra. He was going to
thank her the next time he saw her. Who knew cooking was going to come in handy?

“That sounds good, Tony.”

“There’s a grocery store not far away and it’s still early. We can swing in and get whatever you like.”

Jax couldn’t help but stare at the man. Here, a sexy,
sweet, and intelligent man was willing to make her dinner. Gazing into his aqua eyes, she finally spoke, “Why don’t you surprise me?”

Yeah, he could do that.

When he moved closer to her, she froze in place before placing her finger on the dent of his chin. Finally, she found her voice. “You’re cute, Doctor Magnus. I’m looking forward to tonight.”

Then, she walked away.

Tony nearly had a heart attack. Here, a beautiful woman called him cute. Most females told him he was too smart for his own good. But Jaxon, an intelligent woman, was giving him compliments.

Damn!

He wished Chris was around. He had a million questions and no one to answer them.

                                 *     *     *

As
the couple pulled up to the cabin, they looked around. It was definitely smaller than Callen’s back home, but they really only needed a kitchen and bed. When working in the field, Elizabeth and Callen were accustomed to roughing it.

“I guess we’re home,” he said, carrying her bags
toward the cabin.

“Yeah, we are,” she stated, grabbing their provisions. “I’m absolutely starving,” Elizabeth stated. “This child is ravenous all the time.
I have no idea why I’m not the size of a bus.”

“You think you’re always eating, but I’ve watched you, Lyzee. You really don’t.”

She’d have to take his word for it. Elizabeth could swear she was always shoving food in her face.

Opening the door, Callen headed right for the fireplace. “How about I get some wood chopped
, and you start cooking? Then, we can eat in front of the fire and curl up in bed. Today had to be tiring for you.”

She was more than good with that.
Each day was getting progressively longer, but that was the norm with pregnancy.

As Callen headed outside, Elizabeth found a pot and got the water boiling for pasta. Normally, Ethan would make them his sauce, but he wasn’t there. So, they were
relegated to using a jar.

Again, they were roughing it.

Once Elizabeth had everything going, she headed over to the window to watch Callen chop wood.

Her heart skipped.

As of late, he’d been growing his hair back in, and she was glad. Where Ethan had decided to keep the new cut, in honor of the second chance he was granted, Callen had taken the opposite route. There was no doubt how much he missed his.

Honestly, Elizabeth did too.

She loved running her fingers through it while they made love or simply while they lounged on the couch. She couldn’t wait until it was back. There was something about his brown curtain of silky hair as it rained over her during sex.

Yeah
, she missed it.

As he swung the ax, her heart skipped even more. Her focus was on his big hands. Later, she was going to get him to run them all over her body. There was nothing more erotic than the way Callen shared
all of himself with her.

It heated
Elizabeth’s blood, stirred her soul, and gave her peace.

As he finished
with his task, she raced back into the kitchen, not to get caught ogling the man. If she did, he’d bust her ass.

“How’s dinner coming?” he asked, dropping down in front of the fireplace to start the fire.

“It’ll be ready by the time you’re done,” she offered, digging out some plates.

It was hard not to watch him.
There was the bunch of muscles beneath his shirt, moving as he worked. She was in awe that such a large man was graceful.

God
! She loved him.

Elizabeth wanted to run over and jump on him. Then, she realized they were alone and she absolutely could.
Creeping over, she knelt behind him to wrap her arms around his body. When she rested her head over his shoulder, he stopped what he was doing.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“No,” she admitted.

That had his attention. “Angel, what’s wrong?” he asked, running his fingers over her hands
, braced around his torso.

“I’m crazy, stupid in love with you, Callen James.
You stole my heart and made me a silly, sloppy, romantic mess.”

His heart tripped in his chest
at the way Elizabeth was always free with her affection. Yet, every now and again, she’d catch him off guard.

Turning, he sat on the floor and pulled her i
nto his lap. She went willingly, wrapping her arms around his neck. They sat forehead to forehead.

“You’re an amazing man, Callen. I just wanted you to know how lucky I am to have you.
I know that I get wrapped up in life and don’t say it enough, but please know I feel it.”

He grinned. “I’m pretty lucky too, angel. You’re a wonderful partner, wife, and mother. Our kids are so very lucky. I
was always worried that if I had children, they’d get a Charlene Whitefox for a mother. Let’s face it. I’ve made some questionable choices in my past, but now I know how silly it was to worry.”

That touched her.

Elizabeth knew how hard Callen had to work at finding peace. His worthless mother had done so much damage by not keeping her only child safe. Finally, he had come to grips with his past.

She broke the moment.
“How about we have dinner?”

What he wanted was to hold onto her forever, but Callen needed to feed Charlie.

There were priorities.

Releasing her,
Callen watched her walk away. His heart was so filled with love, that it felt like it would explode at any second. There would only be one woman for him the rest of his life. He had found his other half. Nothing would ever force him to leave her side. Since finding Elizabeth, he had found his true path in life.

Elizabeth carried two plates of pasta
to the couch and placed them on the table. Taking a seat beside him, they began eating together.

“What are you thinking about?” she asked, noticing how quiet he was.

“You.”

She slid closer on the couch
to rest against him. “What specifically?”

Callen glanced around the room. “Even here, in
these simple surroundings, you fit in. I just feel complete,” he offered.

“I happen to like the cabin. The colors are warm and inviting. I love the way it feels in here. It reminds me of Timothy’s,” she admitted.

There was a slight flicker on Callen’s face, and then it was gone.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, immediately concerned.

“I can tell you anything, right?” In his heart, Callen knew he could, but still there was that little niggling fear that he couldn’t. Thanks to some shitty women in his life, he still had some worries.

She placed her dish on the coffee table
before staring up into his eyes. “You know you can. You and Ethan are my best friends in the entire world. You know that.”

“How upset would you be if I asked to bring some of my things from the cabin and placed them in the house?”

Her heart ached that he even had to ask that.

“You can bring anything you like into our home, Callen. You live there so you should be happy,” she stated. Then, she paused before continuing, “You’re not happy
with us? Are you telling me you want to move back into your cabin?” Elizabeth felt sick at that thought.

He laughed. “No! I’m very happy
! I sometimes miss my cabin and the ties to my heritage. I’m Native and miss feeling like one. Don’t get me wrong. I love our home, but it doesn’t always feel like me.”

Elizabeth understood.
You could take the Native out of the woods, but you couldn’t take the woods out of the Native. “Then, we can redo it. If you’re not comfortable, we can make it more a haven for all of us and not just me. Honestly, I never thought about it. When Ethan bought it, we never painted it or did anything but move the furniture in. So, if you want to make it Native chic, have at it.”

He
couldn’t help but tease Elizabeth. “So, you’re going to let me hang animal heads all over the house?”

She touched his cheek
to force him to stare into her eyes. When Callen was upset about something, he’d cover it with humor, much like now. Obviously, he needed this in order to cement him to where he belonged in life. It was the least she could do for him. After all, their kids were all half Native. They should have a chance to experience the art and traditions of Ethan and Callen’s culture.

“Yes. If you want to hang your antlers over the fireplace or our bed, go f
or it. I want you to feel like it’s your sanctuary too. You pay bills and have a life there. Bring all your things and have at it. We’ll paint it and buy new furniture.”

He stared into her eyes.

“By
‘we’ll paint’
what I mean is, you and your brother will. I can’t pickle the fetus.”

Callen relaxed. For a while, he’d wanted to bring a few of his things there. When he’d moved in, he only brought his clothes, and now he wanted to bring his favorite reading chair, desk, and all his books.

“I love you.”

She didn't doubt it. “I love you too, but you screw those antlers in damn good. I don’t want them falling on me while we’re carousing in bed.”

Picturing that visual in his head, it was hard not to laugh. “Thank you, Lyzee. I was worried about bringing it up.”

“You shouldn’t have been. That’s your home too. We own it three ways. You’re not just staying there, Cal. You’re living there. We share everything, and you can bring your guns, bows, anything you wa
nt to place in OUR space. I think it’ll be nice. I happen to have loved the way Timothy’s home looked the first time I saw it. I say have at it.”

“And Ethan?”

“Your brother would do anything for you. He’s not going to give a rat’s ass if you change the wall color or ask him to build you a few display cases for your Native weapons. Ethan enjoys doing things like that for the ones he loves.”

Callen was indeed lucky.

He grabbed the plates. “Why don’t I clean up, and you can head to bed? I’ll meet you there.”

She was good with that. In fact, she had some slinky clothes to torment the man with and would need a head start. “Deal.”