Tempted by Love: Jack Jock Steele (The Steeles at Silver Island Book 1)

by Melissa Foster

  “The wedding was months ago. You have to come for Grandma’s birthday. You didn’t come last year, and all she does is cry about how much she misses her eldest grandson. It’s heart-wrenching.”

  “You’re not a very good liar.”

  She sighed. “Fine! Leni is bringing her friend Indi, who is super cute, and we want you to meet her.”

  “Jules,” he warned for the umpteenth time, and tried again to change the subject. “Is your shop doing well?” Jules owned Happy End, an eclectic gift shop.

  “It’s going great! I just started carrying a new brand of greeting cards, the Mad Truth. They’re hilarious, and the designer lives on the Cape. You should track her down. Her name is Madigan Wicked. I bet she’s cute because her cards…”

  A dog barked outside, and Jock heard Daphne calling Hadley’s name. As Jules went on about that designer and the upcoming events she was planning at the shop, Jack went to the front window and looked outside. Cosmos was running in circles in the grass beside the entrance to the pool, and Hadley was chasing him, giggling up a storm. Daphne was bent over, holding her side like she’d been laughing too hard or running too long and she was smiling brighter than the sun. He’d never met anyone who could face down a man twice her size, fiercely championing for her child, and then turn around and be as delicate and vulnerable as butterfly wings. The way she’d blushed last night, the spark of surprise in her eyes when he’d given her the gifts, and her nervous laughter, which had caused her to look away in embarrassment, had all tugged at something deep inside him that he didn’t quite understand and had no interest in fighting. Though he knew he had to.

  “Promise me you’ll come to the party,” Jules said, bringing him back to their conversation.

  “I can’t do that, Jules.” He watched Daphne sweep Hadley into her arms as she ran by and twirl her around. The joy in their faces filled him with happiness.

  “I’m going to come to that resort and drag your butt back here. I’m not kidding.”

  “Jules, you know how things are.” His family didn’t know exactly what Archer had said to him in the hospital, but the rift between them had affected everyone. It had hit Jules especially hard because she always wanted everyone to be happy, and it slayed him that he couldn’t make that happen for her, though he did his best to minimize the damage. He hadn’t wanted their family to take sides when it came to his and Archer’s feud, but inevitably, fine lines were hard to toe. That was another reason Jock had stayed away from the island. Archer had built his life there, and because of Jock, he’d lost out on sharing that life with Kayla. His brother didn’t need to deal with a divided family, too.

  “You’re both stubborn asses, you know that?” Jules said angrily.

  He couldn’t argue with her there. “Sorry, sis,” he said, watching Daphne and Hadley play with Cosmos. He could hear their laughter ever so faintly now, and it was a sound of beauty. He wondered if he was being selfish forming a friendship with a woman who had so much happiness in her life. He didn’t want to dim her light, but he sure wanted to bask in it.

  He spotted a group of guys walking out of the pool, checking Daphne out, and his muscles corded.

  “I’m not going to let you out of this,” Jules said.

  “I know,” he said through clenched teeth, eyeing the guys who were now chatting with Daphne. Jealousy gnawed at him as Daphne flashed her glorious smile, looking down every few seconds in that bashful way he adored. Hadley wrapped her arms around Daphne’s leg, and Daphne lifted her into her arms. Even from that distance, he could tell Hadley was scowling. “Attagirl.”

  “What?” Jules asked.

  “Nothing, sorry. I’ve got to run, Jules. Love you.” He ended the call and strode over to the door. But as he reached for it, reality hit like a brick in the face. His hands curled into fists, and he uttered a curse. If he opened that door, Hadley would come running. That would serve his purpose in sending a message to those guys, but he fucking knew what would happen next—and there was no way he was going to put Hadley or Daphne through that again.

  DAPHNE GRABBED HADLEY’S favorite pink pajama short set out of her drawer, the one with white birds all over it, and said, “Come here, Had. Let me help you get undressed.”

  “I do it!” Hadley pushed her shorts and underwear down to her ankles, plopped onto her bottom, and kicked them off.

  “Underwear,” Daphne reminded her.

  Hadley pulled her undies back on and tugged her T-shirt up her belly. She struggled and twisted, trying to get it off. Daphne reached over to help, but Hadley leaned out of her reach, insisting, “I do it!”

  Daphne wished she could bottle up her daughter’s enthusiasm for doing things herself so she could give her a big dose during those trying times when she didn’t want to do anything at all. Like earlier tonight, when she’d refused to take a bath because her owl couldn’t take one with her.

  Hadley wiggled and twisted, her face pinched with determination. Daphne couldn’t suppress her smile. She loved her stubborn little girl so much, she physically ached with it. It had been just the two of them since Hadley was only a week old, and even in the most trying times, Daphne wouldn’t want to imagine her life without her daughter in it.

  “Honey, please let me help you.”

  Hadley made a whiny noise, shaking her head vehemently, and continued struggling.

  “Had…”

  Hadley shook her head again. “I do it.” She pulled one arm out of the sleeve so hard, it looked like an act of defiance, and then she tugged the other arm free, but as she tried to pull the shirt over her head, it got stuck. “Mommy, help!”

  “You did such a good job,” Daphne said as she took it off. She put the pajama shirt over Hadley’s head, and Hadley put her elbows against her sides, her fingers pointing toward the ceiling as Daphne lined them up to the sleeves and said, “Ready?”

  Hadley nodded, and together they counted, “One. Two. Three. Takeoff!” As they shouted takeoff, Hadley’s arms shot up through the sleeves.

  Daphne wrapped her arms around Hadley, both of them laughing. She’d come up with rocket ship arms when Hadley was a wiggling, giggling moving target of about two years old.

  Hadley put her soft hands on Daphne’s cheeks and said, “Love you, Mama,” and plastered her lips to Daphne’s.

  “I love you too, baby girl.” Daphne kissed her cheek and patted her bottom. “Now, off to brush your teeth.”

  As Daphne picked up the dirty clothes, Hadley grabbed her stuffed owl and bird and said, “I bwush!” She hurried out of the bedroom and down the hall toward the bathroom.

  Daphne dropped the dirty clothes in the hamper, mentally ticking off her to-do list for the evening as she followed Hadley down the hall. Laundry, empty dishwasher—she stepped over a doll—pick up toys. She needed to read more of this month’s book club selection so she could come up with discussion questions, too. No hardship there. Among those thoughts were her plans to see Jock, which she was trying not to get too excited about. She knew it wasn’t a date, but still. He’d brought her apology gifts! That was a pretty darn special gesture, especially the owl, which had immediately become Hadley’s favorite stuffed animal. Daphne had almost told Chloe about last night when she’d called earlier, but she’d decided to keep it to herself because any way she framed it, it sounded ridiculous to be so excited about becoming better friends with a guy. At the same time, she kind of liked having private time to get to know each other better without the pressure of anyone making it into something that it wasn’t. Including Daphne.

  Hadley was standing by the sink on her tiptoes, trying to reach her toothbrush with one hand, clutching her owl’s head and bird’s tail in the other. “I bwush!”

  “You will—just let me put the toothpaste on first.” As Daphne did that, she said, “What story do you want to read tonight?” She felt a little guilty hoping Hadley picked a short one so she wouldn’t miss seeing Jock when he came by. Although they hadn’t specified a time, she was ants
y to get outside.

  “How Much Love You.”

  “Guess How Much I Love You,” Daphne corrected her. She handed Hadley the toothbrush.

  Hadley snagged it and spread her arms out wide, beaming at her. “Dis much!”

  “That’s right.” She touched the tip of Hadley’s nose and said, “Even more when you brush your back teeth as well as your front.”

  Hadley watched herself in the mirror as she brushed the heck out of her front teeth and took one swipe at her back teeth. She spit down her chin and onto the edge of the sink and bared her teeth, showing Daphne.

  Daphne absently wiped the sink and picked up Hadley’s toothbrush. “You did a great job. How about next time you stand on your stepstool when you spit?”

  Hadley giggled.

  “Open up.”

  Hadley opened her mouth, letting Daphne brush the rest of her teeth. Daphne filled Hadley’s PAW Patrol cup with water, and while Hadley rinsed her teeth, Daphne rinsed the toothbrush. Hadley leaned over the sink, dribbling the water out of her mouth instead of spitting.

  “Keen.” Hadley lifted proud, bright eyes and a spit-covered chin to Daphne.

  “Perfect.” She washed Hadley’s face, and after Hadley used the potty, they headed back to her room.

  Hadley climbed into bed and snuggled up to Daphne for a story with her stuffed toys. Hadley knew the story by heart, and every time Daphne turned the page, Hadley called or acted out the measure the nut-brown hares used to proclaim their love.

  “Dis much!” Hadley threw her arms out to her sides. She pointed her toes when the rabbit stood on his and shouted, “To the wiver!” “Wiver and hills!” “Moon!” as Daphne read.

  When Daphne finished reading the story, she set the book on the nightstand, and Hadley snuggled against her side with a sleepy yawn. This was Daphne’s favorite time, when her daughter went from constant movement to snuggle bunny.

  “Sing, Mommy. ‘Eyes on You.’”

  Daphne had been singing to the tune of Chase Rice’s “Eyes on You” to Hadley for a long time. With a few different words, which Daphne inserted, Chase could have written it about her life.

  She whisper-sang, “We’ve been to North Carolina, seen the big blue sky. Driven down the coast a time or two. Brewster, Eastham, Wellfleet. I can’t remember much of what I’ve seen. I believe I’ve missed it every time, because of my love for you.” As she sang the chorus, using Chase’s lyrics about keeping her eyes on Hadley everywhere they went, her daughter gave in to sleep. Daphne continued singing for another few minutes, before quietly moving off the bed. Hadley stirred in her sleep, and Daphne brushed a kiss to her forehead, whispering, “’Night sweet girl. Mama loves you.”

  She turned on the baby monitor and closed the door most of the way as she left the room. She didn’t have to stay with Hadley until she fell asleep, although she often did, simply because she liked to. It hadn’t always been that way. Daphne and Hadley had both struggled through the Ferber method, which had taught Hadley to self-soothe and Daphne to let her. But it had paid off. Hadley had become a great sleeper.

  She hurried down the hall to her bedroom, her pulse quickening as she pulled off her sweatshirt, leaving on the peach tank top she’d worn underneath. She rifled through her sweaters for one that would look good, but not like she was trying too hard. She tried on a black crewneck, but black wasn’t really her color, so she tried a yellow one. It was too bright. She tried on several others, but they were too long, too short, too tight, or just too something. Frustrated, she gave up and wore her old favorite, a long-sleeve teal V-neck with threadbare elbows and a frayed hem. She’d had it forever, and she loved it because it didn’t cling to her belly or boobs.

  She hurried into the bathroom to brush her teeth and hair. She couldn’t remember the last time she was this excited to spend time with a guy. Then again, she hadn’t spent time alone with a man since her divorce. She was usually with Hadley or with her friends. And she’d never met anyone like Jock before. He was like a mysterious puzzle—a sinfully hot, funny, and flirtatious puzzle. She felt like she’d discovered a few of his outer pieces last night and a couple of random center pieces, but she needed to find the corners to anchor the rest in place.

  Her stomach growled, and she realized she’d forgotten to eat dinner. As usual, she’d fed Hadley but hadn’t thought to feed herself. Did she have time to eat before Jock showed up? She should have asked what time he wanted to meet, but her brain had taken off for a vacation in Lustville when they’d said good night. If he caught her eating again, he was going to think she ate all the time. Ugh. Did all girls go through this?

  I made it through giving birth. I can make it through a night with my body tingling.

  She shouldn’t even be thinking about choosing between eating dinner and talking with a guy. Who cared if he saw her eating again? This wasn’t a date, no matter how much he made her body tingle.

  She set down her hairbrush and took a deep breath. It didn’t matter what she wore, or if she was eating dinner when he arrived. She was a busy mom, and this was her life.

  With a little more courage and a little less giddiness, she left the bathroom and her worries behind, slipped on a pair of flip-flops, grabbed the baby monitor, and headed into the kitchen to make herself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. The sight of the muffins reminded her that she’d said she’d bring them. She and Hadley had shared an apple crumble and a chocolate-chip muffin for breakfast.

  She put one of each kind of muffin on the plate with her sandwich and cut them in half. After checking on Hadley one last time, she gathered the baby monitor, the plate, her book, a notebook and pen in case she had ideas for book club discussion questions, snagged a bottle of water, and hurried quietly downstairs, hoping Jock wasn’t there yet.

  Chapter Four

  THE NERVOUSNESS DAPHNE had thought she’d left behind returned with a vengeance, clinging to her like a second skin as she stepped outside. Daphne made her way around to the side of the building, saying hello to a couple as they passed, the din of guests milling around the recreation center carried by the chilly evening air. She was relieved Jock wasn’t there yet. But that relief was short-lived. What if he’d already come and gone? What if he decided not to show up?

  Too nervous to eat her sandwich, she settled into a chair with her book and began reading. A few seconds later she checked the time and wondered what time it had been when he’d shown up last night. Having no idea, she set her phone down and tried reading again, but she couldn’t concentrate. Would she seem overly anxious if she was waiting for him when he got there?

  All the second-guessing was painful.

  She was being ridiculous. They were just getting to know each other better as friends. She shouldn’t be nervous. Returning her attention to her book, she began reading, but moments later she realized she’d read the same paragraph twice and still hadn’t processed what she’d read. She decided to text Chloe to distract herself. But she’d have to text back and forth and she didn’t want to be focused on her phone when Jock got there, since he was coming to hang out with her. That thought brought a reminder of the call he’d gotten last night. Had it been a booty call? She wondered about his private life. She knew firsthand how hard it was to find free time with Hadley around. It must have been the same when Jock was taking care of Harvey. But while she’d gone three years without being touched by a man, she’d had a child to care for and for a while she’d had the grief of her divorce to contend with. Surely Jock’s personal life was far more active than hers. That opened up several paths of curiosity that she couldn’t help but ponder…

  The next time she looked at the phone, half an hour had passed. Maybe he wasn’t going to show up after all. Disappointment pierced her, but it was quickly followed by annoyance. That would be just plain rude. She should have at least checked to see if his SUV was parked by his cottage. She set her book and phone down and pushed to her feet.

  As she came around the corner of the building, she
plowed into him with an umph. He caught her around the waist, holding her against his muscular, broad body. He wasn’t bodybuilder hard. He was firm and huggable. Lickable. Oh God! Now she was thinking about licking him, catapulting her lonely girlie parts into a frenzy of delight, making her blush even harder.

  “Ah, there’s the sweetest blonde around,” Jock said, snapping her from her embarrassing reverie. His dark eyes trailed down her face, lingering on her mouth just long enough to stoke that tingly fire inside. “You’re not trying to skip out on me, are you, gorgeous?”

  Gorgeous? “Um…No. I was just…”

  “Looking for me?” His hand pressed a little firmer to her waist.

  She swallowed hard, trying to hold his gaze so she didn’t appear as nervous as she felt, but his stare was too intense. It was like he could see right through her facade, and she had to look away.

  He dropped his hand and said, “No warning label, no ice pack. Girl, you are going to be the death of me.”

  Laughter bubbled out before she could stop it, and she went to sit down, grinning like a fool. “You must really like to make me blush.”

  “Ya think?” he teased. “Where were you really going?”