by Dawson, Zoe
The guys chuckled, and Hollywood sat there and took it. He guessed he probably deserved it after his track record. “Okay, get it all out.”
Kid sang, while he pretended to eat popcorn. “Hollywood and Willow sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G…”
Nothing was going to deter him from getting involved with Willow. He simply couldn’t imagine not waking up to her as often as possible. After all, he had morning wood to share with her and Lefty’s persistence that he had to see her pirouette into the bathroom at least once…preferably buck-assed naked.
11
When Willow got home, she immediately changed into comfortable clothes. Her thoughts weren’t far from either man. Hollywood, her whole body flushed with heat when she thought about him. Reading over his texts had made her laugh all over again. He’d also texted her that he had her dad with him to allay her fears when she got home to the empty house. It was tidy except for the two wet towels in the bathroom.
Something that had been knotted under her breastbone unraveled. For a moment, the relief of having her dad do simple, normal things like take a shower and shave left her feeling fragile. She never wanted to go through losing him again. She wondered what they were doing.
When she got to her bedroom, she smiled softly. He’d made the bed with nice crisp corners, even putting her pillows in the right order.
As she changed, she thought there were some perks to having a Navy guy around, but there were too many on the negative scale for her. The absences—remembering her dad’s, tugged at her heart, and look at what serving had done to him. Risking losing the man she loved to death or losing him slowly to the horrors of what he did for a living seemed the same. She’d never want any of her kids to have to endure that disconnection from their father.
But the thought of not seeing Hollywood again jolted her heart. Maybe she was a fool for letting him into her life. Who was she kidding? He’d bulldozed his way in with finesse. She also hadn’t been joking—the man was a sex god. She’d never experienced that kind of orgasm in her life. Witty, charming, funny as hell…yeesh, his qualities settled inside of her, and she couldn’t seem to get them out. He was a force of nature.
As she headed for the kitchen for a quick lunch before setting up for Hollywood, there was a knock at the door. Frowning, she headed for it, not expecting anyone today. When she pulled it open, Emma Lock and Joe Colson, or more aptly Dozer, were standing there with a tiny coal black Labrador retriever, cradled in Emma’s arms.
“Hi, come on in,” she said as she moved away from the door. She caught the brief sight of a black sedan across the street as Dozer and Emma stepped inside, wondering who in the neighborhood had bought that kind of car. It looked new, and the windows were tinted so she couldn’t see who was inside.
“We’re sorry for barging in on you, but we wanted to see if you could take some pictures of us with Winston.”
“Aw, you are a sweet little boy,” Willow said to the puppy as she reached out to pet his head. His whole body was wagging, and he yipped enthusiastically. Willow closed the door, forgetting about the vehicle to focus on the wiggly puppy and his owners. Willow led them into the living room, and she and Emma settled on the sofa while Dozer took one of the comfy side chairs.
“We just got him a week ago, and we love him to pieces.” The besotted, indulgent expression on Dozer’s face was priceless as he stared at Emma. “The portrait is for my mom’s birthday, and Joe was supposed to make an appointment but forgot.”
He looked sheepish as Emma gave him a pointed look. He shrugged. “I got busy, and it slipped my mind. I would get out of the doghouse if you could do it.”
“Hollywood mentioned when we were searching for your dad the other day that you took amazing photos. Would it be too much of an imposition?”
Before she could say anything, Winston, the puppy, toddled from Emma’s lap right into Willow’s. He was warm and fuzzy, with a roly-poly belly. He yipped at her, and her heart melted into goo. He set his tiny front paws on her chest, and she set her hands around him so he wouldn’t bounce off her lap.
“You want your picture taken, handsome?”
He yipped again, and they all laughed.
“You hedged your bets by bringing him.” Willow gave them a besotted look, picked him up, and he wagged his tail so hard she could barely hold him. He yipped again then licked her face so enthusiastically. How could she even think about saying no? She nuzzled him and kissed him on the head. “Okay, let’s get to my studio, and then we can have some lunch.”
“Thank you so much,” Emma said, her smile wide.
Over the next hour, she photographed or worked at getting some good shots of the three of them, but Winston wanted to give her more kisses. He wiggled and popped out of Emma’s grasp several times, running to her with a purpose. She had to kneel down and pet him, stoically endure more puppy kisses and then set him back in Emma’s arms. They talked about everything, and that’s when she found she had so many things in common with her. Later on when Winston got tired, Joe took him downstairs to let the groggy puppy sleep. He insisted he would pay for lunch.
“Why don’t you come upstairs with me, and I’ll get this up on my computer and see which ones you’d like. Then we can produce something for your mom. That’ll give you time to frame it for her birthday.”
“Stellar,” Emma said, following Willow up to the Rose room. “I love your tower. It’s so princessy. You must have had a ball, pun intended, when you were little.”
“I named the rooms after princesses,” Willow confessed with a grin.
“Oh, I love that. What did you name them?”
“My studio is in Rapunzel.” As she entered her workroom, she went to the computer. “This room is Rose, for Sleeping Beauty—technically her name is Aurora Rose. But I shortened it because I couldn’t really say Aurora when I was little.”
“And the bottom room?”
“Éowyn.”
“Oh, I loved her character.” Emma gushed as their eyes met, and Willow felt a kinship with Hollywood’s sister. She couldn’t figure out if it was because she was so deeply into him that his sister appealed to her or if it was one of those friends-at-first-sight mystic connections.
Emma looked up, the smile faded from her face, and she breathed out softly. “Oh, my God.” She walked over to the calendar pictures. “Willow…” She trailed off as she studied them. “These are stunning. These are such delicious beefcake with a twist. I have a friend who owns a gallery. I could contact her—”
“I don’t do this professionally.”
“What? You should. They are gorgeous, fierce, inspiring. Warrior angels.”
“I don’t know. I haven’t done any public artwork since college. I had a bad experience with critics who tore me apart when compared to my mom’s work.”
“Short-sighted idiots. From what I’ve seen of your mom’s stuff. These aren’t anything like her landscapes. Maybe you found your own voice?” She looked closer and asked, “Did you paint the wings, weapon, and armor on them?”
Willow flushed and sat down into her chair. “Yes, that was my idea, and I thought it came out all right.”
“More than all right,” Emma said. She turned to Willow and asked, “So they were…ah…naked?”
“Almost. They wore jockstraps. It was the only way to do this type of painting. I needed them stripped down to as bare as possible.”
“You go, girl. So…um…my brother—”
“Will be buck-assed naked too.”
“Ha. What did he say about that?”
“He doesn’t really know yet, but after this morning, I don’t think it’ll be a problem.” Oh, damn, she had spilled the beans.
Emma’s eyes glowed, and she laughed softly at Willow’s reaction. When she got to the headshots of Hollywood, she pulled one off. “Can I get one of these? You’ve captured my brother’s essence here. With his clothes on,” she added softly. She blinked rapidly, close to tears. Willow got up from her seat and walked over to Emma. “He
looks so handsome. I know my mom would cherish this.”
“Of course. I can print that one up, too.”
Emma turned toward Willow. “I hope my brother doesn’t screw this up.”
“What do you mean?” Willow asked, walking back to her chair and pulling up the images she’d just taken of Emma, Winston and Dozer.
“You and him. It’s so evident.”
“Even if I hadn’t stuck my foot in my mouth?”
“I saw the way you looked at him and him at you. You’re together, and my brother doesn’t waste any time in pursuing what he wants.”
“We are just hanging out. It’s not anything serious,” Willow said, maybe for her own benefit.
“Give him time. He’ll grow on you,” she said smugly.
Willow patted a chair next to her, and Emma sat down. She leaned forward and started to look through the shots, delight on her face. “You really are good.” She looked around the room. “Is all this art on the walls yours too?”
“Yes, it’s something I love to do.”
“They are beautiful, vibrant abstracts. In fact, I have been looking for something for a wall in my loft. It’s a large space, and I want scads of color. Could I commission you to do something for me?”
“Commission me?”
“Yes, would you do it?”
“But my mom was the artist in the family,” Willow said, remembering her terrible reviews by the art critics.
“I don’t agree with that. Your work is fresh and vibrant, mirroring your personality. Please don’t say no,” she wheedled.
“You and your brother have a lot in common,” Willow said then sighed. “As soon as I finish this calendar, we can talk about it. I’m actually running out of time.”
“And here we are, dropping in on you and asking you to take puppy pictures.”
“No, it was fun. I loved it. I’m doing Hollywood this afternoon.”
Emma gave Willow a knowing smile. “That doesn’t surprise me. My brother is irresistible to all women, young and old. To his credit, he handles them effortlessly and with compassion.”
Willow flushed, realizing what she’d said.
“I meant taking his picture.” She nudged Emma.
Emma laughed. “I know, but you look like he’s made an imprint on you.”
Willow smiled, her heart jumping at the thought of getting more involved with Hollywood, her head warring with her heart. She would be a fool to continue to see him after the shoot, but he was so good for her dad. Willow was in great danger of falling for him, but then where would that leave her? It would be so difficult to love a man in uniform. She’d vowed that she wouldn’t go through it all again. Her heart persisted, and she sighed, giving up the fight for now.
“He is a beautiful man,” Willow said, her voice going soft and her eyes unfocused.
“Sounds like you’re a goner. That’s what it was like with Joe. I walked into Hollywood’s hospital room, and bam! I was a goner.”
“His hospital room?”
Emma nodded as she perused the pictures on the screen, deciding on the right one for her mom. “It’s where I met Joe. Jude was tortured on that mission, taken by the bad people he was fighting and held captive. He had a concussion from a firefight.”
She said it so nonchalantly, but everything in Willow tightened and turned over thinking about him in pain, hurt and fighting for his life.
Emma pointed to the screen and said, “This one. Could I get two eight-by-tens and some wallets?” She turned to look at Willow then bit her lip. “What’s wrong? Not the best choice?”
“No, the choice is perfect.” She worked the mouse and started the pictures printing, including the one of Hollywood. “I don’t like the thought of Hollywood…in pain.”
“Oh, I know. It was so hard when he went into the Navy. My mom cried a bit. You probably know our dad was a San Diego police officer and was killed in the line of duty.”
“Yes, Hollywood told me.” Willow turned her chair and said, “And you’re involved with Joe…Dozer. Is he on the teams?”
“No. Not anymore. He served with Jude, but he hurt his shoulder during a mission.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“No, it’s fine. He has no pain, just limited movement in it. Anyway, he is an intelligence operations specialist and works for the DoD. He assesses foreign militaries and whether they are a threat to the U.S. He used to work at the Pentagon but left that job to move from DC to San Diego to be with me.”
“Does his job require a lot of travel?”
“Some, but luckily he’s not away as long…” She trailed off.
“As a SEAL would be.”
“Yeah.”
Willow rose and grabbed up the prints just as Joe called from downstairs. “Lunch is here.”
“Ten bucks it’s either pizza or hoagies.”
Willow laughed. “Do I look like a sucker?”
* * *
The sound of the door opening interrupted Dozer’s story about what happened in Mobutu and how he had injured his shoulder. She couldn’t lie—she was soaking up all the information about Hollywood and how valiant he’d been during the mission to stop a terrorist named Vyncent Eze and how Dozer and Hollywood had killed his brother.
Her dad came into the living room and found them, pizza boxes open. “That smells good.”
Dozer stood as if he couldn’t get away from the fact that her dad wasn’t in the Navy any more.
“Sit down, boy. I can get my own plate,” Will said, totally misinterpreting Dozer’s reason for standing.
Then she took a breath and looked at Hollywood. The impact of him hit her hard, and she had to remember to breathe.
“Hello, beautiful,” he said, leaning down in front of everyone and kissing her on the mouth. She automatically reached up and cupped the back of his head, the feel of his soft hair against her palm as arousing as his mouth against hers.
He pulled away as Will, eyes narrowed at Hollywood, came back into the room with two plates. He shoved one in Hollywood’s hands almost before he was ready, and he had to juggle it a bit.
“I’ll get us some refills of iced tea,” Willow said. “Be right back.” In the kitchen, she had to hold on to the counter as she closed her eyes. His arms went around her, and he nuzzled her neck. “What the heck is my sister doing here?”
She leaned back as his mouth found her nape, and she shivered. “She needed a portrait for your mom’s birthday. She also took one of your headshots for her.” Her voice came out breathless.
“Right. She should have asked you first before coming over. She used that cute little dog as bait.”
“She did.”
“Can’t fault her for that. That would have been my plan.”
“It worked. He’s irresistible. Like you.” She turned and captured his mouth. Could it only have been four hours since they had woken up together? How could she have missed him in that short period of time?
He pressed her back against the counter. “If we didn’t have a houseful of people…”
“Oh, really. Right here in the kitchen?”
“Yeah,” he said. “The counter gives us a lot of options.”
Liquid heat washed through her.
“How’s that iced tea coming?” her father called.
Hollywood grinned. “Papa bear. Been giving me the teeth and claws all day.”
“I’m sorry. How did it go?”
Hollywood shook his head. “Don’t be sorry. I loved every minute of sparring with him, and he did too. He was in his element, and he loved it. Hemingway is Kid Chaos’s brother-in-law, and he’s training to be a SEAL. Your dad is a great instructor. I think he’d make an excellent mentor. He even got in the water with Hemingway. That kid went all out for him and beat his own times. It was magic. Command is always looking for guys like your dad.”
Pride washed through her with hope that her dad could come out of his slump and stay home and off the streets. It would be such a relief to have him act
ive again. It was a good idea if her dad would go for it. He was still working out a lot of stuff, not only from his retirement but his last mission.
“You think that would be good for him?” she asked.
“Yes, I think he misses the community, babe. He craves being part of the teams. This would give him an opportunity to shape young guys into the kind of recruits we’re looking for. I think it would be great therapy for him.”
She reached up and cupped his face. “Thank you for taking him today. This means so much to me.”
“It was a no-brainer. I know how I’d feel in his shoes. I couldn’t live without the teams in some form. I suspect it’s been hard for him to have so much then lose it so quickly.”
She nodded, her eyes misting over. “It has been, and your compassion is so appreciated.”
Emma came into the kitchen and grabbed her brother by the arm. “As I suspected. Let’s go, Romeo. Juliet needs to make some iced tea before her dad either breaks his neck trying to look around the corner or busts a gasket.”
He chuckled as he was dragged out. She sighed. Damn, she was in some trouble here. She turned to the counter and started making the iced tea.
An hour later, Dozer and Emma had to go, but Emma set up a lunch date the day after tomorrow with Willow. Will got a call from Wicked to see if he wanted to join them for a pumping iron session. He jumped at the chance and actually fired up his car and got it out of the garage.
“We need to get to that photo shoot, Hollywood,” Willow said. “Are you ready?”
“Yes.” He dumped the rest of the trash into the can, including the empty pizza boxes. “Lead the way.”
He followed her, and she couldn’t help but be aware of him. As soon as she got to her studio, she took a hard breath to get into professional mode. She started moving around the room, setting up her lights, lowering her backdrop, a version of hell that she’d painted on a huge canvas, complete with rocks, debris and rivers of fire in the background. Hollywood stood there with his hand hooked through his belt loops.
Willow walked to her stash of jockstraps and picked one that had the usual waistband, but there were two sets of straps and rings, one set connecting the band from the waistband to the leg strap and a second one on the leg strap. Her imagination was on fire. This mimicked the type of armor she would paint on him. He would also need big, full wings.