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
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
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