Surrendering (24 page)

“Good isn’t a word I would use to describe what just happened; Remarkable, amazing, astounding, earth-shattering- those are terms that come to mind.”

I smile up at him. He leans down to kiss me and I hold him there. I feel him getting hard against my stomach so I adjust my leg over his hip.

“As much as I want to go again, we can’t. I don’t have any more condoms.”

“Why?”

“I haven’t bought any since summer and that was the only one left in my drawer.”

“You haven’t had sex since last summer?”

“Not since the day I met you. I guess I’ve known for a while you were going to be mine.”

“Wow, I don’t know what to say.”

“Don’t say anything. Come lay on my chest and let me hold you.”

I roll over on top of him and listen to the sound of his heartbeat. I’m almost asleep when I hear him murmur, “All mine”
.

Chapter 25

425

I try to roll over but my entire body is entwined with Declan’s. We’re skin to skin except for the tiny fabric of my boy shorts and I’m suddenly aroused. I lift up to see his eyes staring at me.

“Good morning.”

“Yes it is.” He squeezes my arm. His voice seems a little off, but I can’t pick up if it’s concern or anger.

“Is there something wrong?”

I try to unwrap myself, but he holds on tight.

“Nothing really wrong, I’ve just been watching you and thinking about something we said last night. Raven, when you said you were falling in love with me, I shouldn’t have told you the feeling was mutual.”

He sees the tears well up in my eyes and he shifts so my entire face is in his hands. I have no choice but to stare straight at him. I’m such an ass. I shouldn’t have ever said anything.

“Don’t cry. What I should have said was I love you too. I wasn’t kidding about you catching up. I think I have loved you since the night you picked that stupid movie for us to watch. I wanted nothing but to make you happy. And subconsciously, I think I knew you were the perfect girl for me.”

The tears fall down my cheeks, but they’re happy tears.

“There were only three women in my life that I loved before you. One was my mom, and the other two are my sisters. I love you in a different, deeper way and these feelings are foreign to me. I want to be a better man for you. I want you to be proud of me. I want you to be happy all the time, and I want our dreams to be the same. I don’t want to be without you. I love you.”

It takes a second for me to find my voice, “I love you, Declan Collins.”

A smile passes his lips and he leans down to kiss me. Things quickly escalate and I’m on top of him rubbing my body all over his. I need him again. My phone starts ringing in my purse, but I don’t dare move to get it. Then my message alert pings several times in a row.

“You’ve got to be kidding me. Who has the worst timing in the world?”

“Sparkle, you don’t have to answer it. Whoever it is will get the hint in a minute.”

“Honey, you do realize that most of the people who call me have access to the GPS tracking system on my phone. If I don’t at least check it, we might get the FBI at your door in less than twenty minutes.”

I roll off him and fumble for my phone. I have three missed calls and two texts from Finn.

Finn: 425! ETA 1 hour- he wants me there too- no idea why.

Two minutes later

Finn: RJ, where are you?

“Oh my God, we have to go now. You have to take me home.”

Declan jumps off the bed in a mad rush. You can hear the panic in his voice. “Baby, what’s wrong. Is everything okay?” He reaches for his jeans.

“Finn has been trying to warn me, code 425.”

He stops pulling his shirt over his head and I’m digging through my bag for my yoga pants and t-shirt.

“Raven, is someone hurt?”

“Huh? No, of course not. Code 425 means my dad is on his way to my house. He wants Finn there too. Not sure why, but you need to drop me off before he gets there.”

His face falls and there’s hurt in his eyes. “Why would I drop you off? Don’t you want me to meet your dad?”

I didn’t realize how harsh I sounded; he can’t possibly think I’m ashamed of him. “Baby, of course I want you to meet my dad, but not today.”

“Tell me why.”

I make my way to his bathroom to try and put myself together. When I look at the mirror, I squeal. I look thoroughly screwed. My face is flushed. There’s a few small bite marks down my neck and stubble burn on my chest. My hair is wild and my lips are swollen. I start by throwing my hair in to a messy bun and washing my face with cold water. If I can hide the love marks with a hoodie, then we should be fine.

“I’m still waiting on an answer.” I jump because I didn’t realize he was behind me.

“Declan, did you forget my dad is ex–Special Forces? He shakes hands with presidents and probably had firsthand knowledge when Osama Bin Laden was found. He may have even trained on torture techniques. He’s going to take one look at me and know what I’ve been doing. Do you really want to meet my dad the morning after you took his only daughter’s virginity? Do you want to die today? I love you and I’m not ready to bury you yet. Not to mention Finn keeps a gun in his truck.”

He starts laughing at me. I’m trying to push all my toiletries back in my overnight kit when his hand covers mine. He stops me and pulls me to him.

“I don’t see what’s so funny. I’m completely serious.”

“Sparkle, let me get this straight. You want me to drop you off at home and hide from your dad because we had sex? Granted, it was the best sex of my life so far. And I plan on doing it again, a lot.”

I swat at him, trying to get out of his arm so we can go. “Yes, you need to hide. If he sees us together, he’ll know. He’ll figure it out. Look at me! I’m glowing. I never glow! My lips are swollen and I’m pretty sure you gave me another hickey!”

“Baby, finish getting ready. I’m going to meet your dad today; it’s time. I’ll be a perfect gentleman. I love his daughter and he needs to know Finn isn’t the only one watching out for you. You’re mine now- in every way. I plan on you being mine for a very long time- maybe even forever, so just relax. Give me five minutes to get ready and we’ll go.”

There’s so much to process in his words that I can’t even argue with him. I shake my head and try to get my things together. He grabs my overnight kit from my hands and puts it back on the vanity.

“I think you should leave some of your things here. It’ll be a pain in the ass to carry it back and forth. Let’s just have a set of each other’s things in both our places.” Then he shuts the bathroom door and I hear the water running.

Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!!! This is too much all at once.

I’m no longer a virgin.

Declan loves me.

Declan is about to meet my dad.

Declan wants me to leave my stuff at his house.

I’m about to hyperventilate and the pounding in my head is so loud I can’t focus. I hold onto the wall and steady myself to calm down. Another message comes through on my phone and I zap from my freak out. I finish getting ready and type Finn to let him know I’m on my way. The door opens behind me and I see that Declan has indeed freshened up. His sexy hair has been tamed and his face is shaved. I smell his cologne and automatically calm down. He’s right; he needs to meet my dad and there’s no time like the present.

“Ready, babe?”

“Yep, but don’t say I didn’t warn you. I’ll hold them back long enough for you to get a head start, but you’d better be ready.”

He smiles and grabs my hand, taking me through the house and to his truck. I hope to God my dad isn’t armed.

*****

Finn gets to my house five minutes after we do. He comes straight to the kitchen where I’m preparing a light breakfast. I’m thankful for the cooler weather so I can keep my sweatshirt on. He pours some coffee and sits next to Declan.

“What’s up?”

“I have no idea. He just told me to meet him here in an hour. I don’t think anything’s wrong. Maybe he wants us to help him with a job or something.” Finn replies.

Declan clears his throat and looks between the two of us, “What’s with the codes y’all use… 311, 425?”

I laugh and look directly at Finn; he’s smiling too. “When we were kids, everyone got a code based on their birthday. It started as a silly game so we could warn each other before we got caught doing something we weren’t supposed to be doing. For example, my mom is 311 because her birthday is March eleventh. One time, Finn and Robbie were sneaking girls out of the house and I knew my mom was in the living room. I shouted 311 from the hallway and they knew to go a different way. It’s just stuck with us.”

He laughs. “I think that’s pretty genius. I wish we would’ve thought of that. I bet I wouldn’t have spent half my high school years on restriction.”

There’s a knock at the door and I glance nervously at Declan before going to answer. He gives me an encouraging grin.

Even though I’m nervous, I love my dad and he’ll like Declan. My dad is a man’s man and Declan is all man. Daddy might question the facial piercings, but he won’t say anything to him directly.

“Daddy!” I scream and jump in his arms. “What a nice surprise!”

He picks me up and spins me around before planting me back on the ground. “Baby Girl, you look pretty as ever.”

“Thanks, come on in. I have some food for us in the kitchen.”

When we get to the kitchen, Declan is ready and waiting. Dad gives Finn a quick shake and turns to Declan with an impassive look. He’s sizing Declan up, but he’s polite enough to be discreet.

“Daddy, this is…”

“Declan Collins, sir. Nice to meet you.” Declan cuts me off and reaches out to shake hands.

“James Hayes. So this is Declan Collins. Hate to tell you kid, but I’ve heard your name before.”

Oh no! Robbie and mom. I forgot all about them and I’m not sure mom knows we’re back together. I haven’t called her this week.

“I hope you heard good things.”

“Not all, but some.”

He’s going into daddy defense mode. I see him stand a little straighter and cross his arms. He’s an intimidating man, but Declan is still a few inches taller than him. “I heard there was a misunderstanding after the gala, but you were working things out. My son told me you met for a few beers and had a plan on how to get my baby girl back. Plan must have worked out well seeing that you are here at 10:30 on a Friday morning.”

“Yes, sir, she was gracious enough to give me another chance. I won’t screw this one up; you can count on it.”

“Glad to hear it.”

“Um, Daddy, you want some coffee?” I need to break up this little talk because I’m starting to feel uncomfortable. Finn is enjoying this immensely. I roll my eyes at him and motion for him to step in, but he shakes his head at me.

“Yeah, buttercup, black and I’ll also have some of that fruit and a bagel. I’m starving.”

Once everyone has a plate and is seated, I can’t take the suspense anymore.

“Daddy, I’m really glad you surprised us, but it’s a little unexpected. Is everything okay?”

“Absolutely! I wanted to get you and Finn together to talk about a few things and I’ve never seen your place. Meeting your boyfriend was just an added bonus.”

Daddy didn’t even stutter when he called Declan my boyfriend. I guess Declan will live to see another day.

“We need to talk about the Veteran’s Day Parade and Events and Thanksgiving plans. Your mom will be hosting a private luncheon for the local wounded warrior wives and I wondered if you could help. You can invite your friends too. It’s a good way for these women to network and meet others that share similar situations.”

“Sure, you can count on me. I’ll touch base with Mom this weekend and get a plan together.”

“Great. Finn, are you interested in being in the parade? I talked to Robbie and I think you both should think about it.”

“No go, old man, but I’ll help you out if you need extra security.”

My dad sighs. It was great of my dad to try, but the answer is always the same. Finn and my brother are both very private about their time in the Marines. They don’t want any attention, but they volunteer to help behind the scenes.

“Okay, I’ll let you know about the security. I think we have it handled, but I’ll find out. We’re always extra cautious with large public crowds. Since the Boston Bombing, the city officials are on high alert. Now let’s discuss Thanksgiving. I hate to say it, but I think your mom and I will be out of town. I need to scope out something for an old friend. We’ll be gone through the weekend, but we can celebrate before or after. I thought you and Robbie could spend Thanksgiving Day with Finn’s family. Just figure it out and let us know what is best for the two of you. Sorry we won’t be here for it.

“That’s fine, Daddy. We’ll figure it out. All the girls will be home and I think Max will be back. Maybe I can cook something here and have our own Thanksgiving.”

“Whatever you decide is fine as long as you’re not alone.”

Before I can say anything, Declan replies, “She won’t be alone. I’ll make sure of it.”

I see a look of approval on my dad’s face and we move on to another subject. Over the next hour, we talk about everything from school schedules, to Declan’s band. When it comes time for my dad to leave, I tell him I want to show him my room first. I wonder if he notices my bed wasn’t slept in, but he doesn’t say anything. I secretly hope he thinks I cleaned up for him this morning, but I know he knows better. I’m the worst when it comes to making my bed.

“Declan, will you walk me out?” My dad asks him directly.

Declan nods and squeezes my shoulder as he follows my dad out the door. All my anxiety from this morning returns. I’m not sure what my dad will say, but he will be direct and, I’m sure, inappropriate. I look over at Finn to find his smile less than comforting.

“What?” I ask him tersely.

“Nice hickey, Rave, super classy.”

Shit! I run into my bathroom, but it isn’t noticeable.

“Finn, you jackass, you don’t see a hickey.”

“Baby Girl, not on you, on Declan. “

I turn to find him in my room leaning against the door. He’s openly laughing now and I blush.