The Marine's Red Hot Homecoming (7 page)

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Hannah stared into Caleb’s indigo eyes, desire and regret and compassion swirled in their azure depths. The noise from the television screen faded and the air seemed to form a bubble around them. He had called them his family when he’d offered to paste together a new album of photos. And she had faith that he would do exactly what he had promised. Protect them. Financially and physically. And, where Jason was concerned, Caleb had already established a clear emotional bond with their son. But he couldn’t protect her heart from breaking again when he left Sweetbriar Springs.

His mouth was dangerously close to hers, making her want to taste him again. But doing so would be like trying to eat one piece of chocolate. She’d never get enough, craving so much more.

Still, he’d jumped right in to take care of the monumental mess the fire in her boutique had caused and maybe, just maybe, that meant he cared for her. She chewed her lower lip, watched his gaze darken even more, and a zip of electricity shot through her.

Her nipples tightened and heat pooled low between her thighs. Oh, how she longed to act on the desire pulsing between them. To be wanted by this glorious, sexy beyond imagination man was intoxicating. But it would be way too addictive. One taste, one slide of his mouth against hers, would never be enough.

Taking a fortifying breath, she held the air until the exquisite ache tugging her sex subsided enough for her to speak clearly. “I’d be a fool not to accept your generous offer. After all, once our apartment above the spa is habitable, we can go home. Then you can get on with your life, too.”

He swallowed hard. “You can stay here as long as you need, but I know how important making that deadline is to you—your business. I’ll make sure the work is completed on schedule.”

“Thanks.” She took a little step back. “Now let’s get our little boy and tuck him into bed.” Best to focus on forging a bond between father and son than on fantasizing about acting on her attraction.

Before she turned, Caleb caught her hand, then brought her palm to his mouth and pressed a feather-light kiss at the center. “Thanks for letting me in,” he said. “And thanks for giving me a chance to know our son.”

Warmth spread through her, making her want with an intensity she’d never thought possible.
Stop it. This is about family. There can’t be anything more than mutual respect. Period. The. End.
“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” she said. But the truth was she had always hoped for more than shared custody of their son when Caleb returned from his war. But he refused to give her what she needed most which meant she had to let him go.

Unfortunately, what had brought him back, his father’s stroke and the need to handle his family’s vast conglomerate of companies, wouldn’t keep Caleb home.

Still, standing in the circle of his powerful strength, feeling the way his denim clad muscular thighs framed hers, and resting her cheek against the soft jersey shirt covering his broad chest made her wish she could always rely on his solid presence. Her nose prickled and tiny needles stabbed behind her eyes. If only Caleb would let go of the past that haunted him. She’d known for two years that the demons that had driven him to fight battles had more to do with the stigma of being the product of a shotgun marriage. Though she tried to eradicate them from Caleb’s brain the night they’d made love, she wasn’t able to get him to change his way of thinking.

Caleb had never truly felt like he’d been accepted. He carried a weight of responsibility for the misery his mother experienced because of his father’s philandering ways. He’d run from that knowledge all the way to boot camp when he’d been fresh out of high school. Then he’d refused to take the helm of his family’s business after discovering his father had yet another mistress in the wings. That accelerated into a terrible fight with his father. Caleb had left town to sign up for another dangerous, covert mission overseas.

She’d tried to stop Caleb from acting on his anger. But he’d been bullheaded like her ex-boyfriend. Brandon had returned to Los Angeles with a major case of PTSD, refused to seek professional help, choosing alcohol as his medication instead. Then Brandon had taken his anger, frustration, and pain out on her before he’d wrapped his SUV around a street light.

That accident had finally forced her to leave before he killed them both.

“Momma,” Jason called from the living room. “Juice.”

His demands jarred her back to reality. Reluctantly, she broke away from Caleb’s sheltering arms. “One drink then it’s off to bed, little buddy.”

“I’ll get his sippy cup ready,” Caleb said, turning toward the oversized stainless steel fridge.

“Great.” She watched him walk over to it and open the door, her eyes glued on the way his jeans hugged his butt to perfection. Her hormones sighed an
oh-my
. She shushed them with another dose of reality. “I’ll get his diaper changed while you pour his juice.”

She moved into the living room to where Jason sat on a square patch of blanket with his favorite stuffed animal, the only one remaining because he refused to be without the raggedy gray and fuzzy elephant. “Daddy’s going to tuck you in tonight.”

“Want you,” he said, then pursed his bow shaped lips into a telltale pout.

“You’ve got me until story time.” She scooped him into her arms and moved to get off the floor, almost tumbling before Caleb’s caught her and pulled them up together.

“Gotcha.” Caleb gave him his cup. “Here you go little man.”

Her skin heated and electricity zipped through her nerves. Why did Caleb have to be so
there
? So perfect? So easy to rely on? His attentiveness confused her more than she cared to admit.

Hannah moved away from his touch again. “Thanks for the save.” She shifted Jason to her left hip. “Let’s get this guy ready for bed before we all fall asleep on our feet.”

“You still doing diaper duty tonight?” Caleb asked hopefully as they walked together toward Jason’s bedroom.

“A deal is a deal.” Their bet during their FaceTime call with Michael while he attended a pre-Olympic swim trial in Atlanta, Georgia had resulted in her pick losing. Caleb’s—with Michael’s input during their call—had won. Much to her chagrin. “Remind me never to gamble against you again.”

“Hey, if you had listened to your big brother then we’d be alternating.”

She laughed. Though Michael’s ALS diagnosis had cast a shadow over her world, his indomitable attitude held everyone’s fears at bay. “If I know Michael, he probably gave you an inside tip. You men always stick together,” she said.

“I take the fifth,” Caleb said, opening the door to Jason’s new, albeit temporary, bedroom.

After a diaper change, and many snuggles, she sat in the gliding rocking chair, holding little Jason as she reread the last stanza of Goodnight Moon for the third time. Caleb sprawled on the floor next to them, glancing up at with one brow raised in question and mouthed
is he asleep yet
?

She nodded and he quickly stood, his movement silent and swift. Without speaking, he reached out his hand. Hannah hesitated, then clasped it. He gently helped her out of the chair, giving her the right amount of space to hold Jason and come to her feet.

Caleb wrapped his arm around her weary shoulders. She let her head fall into the comforting curve of his embrace, for once letting go of the invisible barrier she’d erected against succumbing to the desire for his touch. This was about sharing a special moment as parents, nothing more. Wordlessly, he transferred Jason from her and more than the weight of their son lifted. It was as if by sharing this burden, albeit one she loved with her entire being, Caleb had also given her respite from the world of worry. One she’d carried throughout not only this day, but through all the days that had gone by before he had returned.

His lips brushed against the top of her head ever so briefly. An echo of her earlier yearning. A gesture so tender that her heart ached for more. More of these moments. More of the special bond of loving their child together. And more of the shared intimacy of loving each other for that gift.

But yearning for more had always gotten Hannah into trouble. This time she couldn’t get caught up in an illusion. This wasn’t the kiss of a lover, but the kiss of a man who shared a child with her, and nothing more. No matter how much she wanted to believe in the fantasy.

Chapter Five

Caleb didn’t know what had happened after he’d helped Hannah tuck Jason in on Thursday night. But now, as he played his third round of volleyball at Zach’s beach front property, he couldn’t stop thinking about how much he’d wanted to kiss her. And then do a whole lot more. But she had pulled away from him and gotten down to business as a parent. That was the end of that little fantasy coming to life. A good thing, he kept telling himself despite every randy thought in his brain that refused to stand down.

She was so much more than the mother of his child. But they had agreed to a platonic relationship. He intended to honor that agreement. At least until he proved to her that he wasn’t anything like Brandon Walker. Slow and easy. He had his eye on a bigger prize than sex with Hannah. But shit. It sure as hell was hard to stick to his plan when staring at how awesome her cherry red tankini hugged her curves made his hormones go into overdrive.

She jumped to hit the ball over the net.

“Block it,” Zach shouted.

Adrenaline spiked along with another serious dose of the hots for her because man oh man all he focused on was the bounce of her breasts. “Got it,” he called, rushing to stop the play, only to miss by a fraction of an inch while slipping in the soft sand to his knees.

“Score,” she called, then high-fived her father who was standing next to her. “One more point. Then you’re toast.”

“Not unless I get the next point off the serve.” He retrieved the volleyball, then walked to the net. “And I rarely miss an opportunity to score.”

Hannah licked her lips, and held his gaze, her pupils a dark contrast to her irises. “Excellent,” she said. “But I wouldn’t bet on you winning.” She stepped away from the net, then moved to her position.

He watched her sweet bottom sway and his blood thundered in his ears.
Jesus. Get a grip. Or you’ll make an ass of yourself.
He had to grab control of this situation and the damn game. “You’re on,” Caleb said. “If you win I’ll change his diapers for the rest of the weekend.”

She stopped, and looked over her shoulder, her blonde ponytail swinging against her bare shoulders. “Sure, but I’d like to up the stakes.”

“How so?”

“Diapers changed and an entire night to do what I please—no kids allowed,” she said. “I haven’t had a date or a ladies’ night out in months.”

Shit. A zillion ways to please Hannah for an entire night popped into his brain, but he doubted she had any of those scenarios in mind—at least not with him. A twinge of jealousy drop kicked him in the gut. He didn’t want to imagine her with anyone else, but then he’d given up the rights on having any expectations of her other than sharing a son.

Overhead a seagull called and the whump-whump-whump of a speedboat sounded as it crested over another boat’s wake. Waves lapped the shore line and wind gently rustled the leaves. A breeze carried the scent of pine needles, wildflowers, and earthy soil, but they didn’t erase the scent of woman, sun and citrus he’d inhaled only moments ago.

Why did she have to smell so damn good?

He squeezed the volleyball closer to his chest and nodded. “You’re on,” he said, then turned away to make his way to his spot extra determined to win.

“You gonna serve in this lifetime, or what?” Zach asked.

Caleb shook his head. “Just getting my bearings,” he said, then prepped his serve. He tossed the ball in the air, then slammed it and it sailed with perfect precision over the net.

She scrambled to return the serve, bumping the ball to her father. Sunlight and shadows shifted over Hannah’s sensual curves. The rays cast a glittering, golden gleam against her skin. A flash of light glinted at her midriff, surprising him. Enticing him. Making him want to lick his way all the way down her torso until he reached the sexy jewel to suck it into his mouth. And then he’d go lower still.

“Shit.” Zach dived in front of him and tipped the ball offside.

“That’s game,” her father, Paul, called.

“Awesome Dad,” she whooped as she high fived Paul again.

“Sorry man.” He held out his hand and pulled Zach up. “My bad.”

Zach shot him a man-have-you-got-it-bad look. “Next time I choose partners I get dibs on Hannah.”

Though he knew Zach only had eyes for Kennedy, a small part of Caleb wanted to clock his buddy for having the thought. “You’ve got your own woman,” he said. Because Hannah was his—well not really, but he sure as hell planned to change that fact during the next several weeks.

“Unfortunately, she’s sidelined again.” Zach grinned, the smile crinkling the corners of his very proud eyes and he waved to Kennedy who lounged on deck several yards away. “But for all the right reasons.” At seven months along in her second pregnancy, Kennedy once again had taken every precaution to ensure another healthy baby’s delivery. Caleb was happy for them. They deserved everything they had together as a couple after all they had gone through to get to this point.