Discovering Rafe

by Sara Blackard

  “Hey! Whoa, now.” Derrick sprinted into the room, stepping between Davis and Rafe. “I know Rafe’s jokes can be bad, but they aren’t worth decking him over.”

  “He better be joking, or he’ll get more than a slug to the face.” Davis pushed against Derrick’s hands.

  Rafe shook his head to clear the ringing and stared Davis down. “It’s no joke, Davis. If she’ll have me, I’m marrying Piper.” He stretched his jaw. Dang, that hurt. “You better calm yourself down, man. Piper’s had enough stress over the last three weeks to last a lifetime. You better not add more.”

  Piper’s footsteps sounded in the hall. Derrick glanced between Rafe and Davis, his eyebrows rising in question. Davis stepped back and jerked his shirt straight.

  “We good?” Derrick patted Davis on the shoulder.

  “Yeah.” Davis turned toward the kitchen. “For now.”

  Just great. Rafe’s hands trembled. He’d expected Davis to get defensive. He’d always wanted to keep Piper protected in bubble wrap. This intense of a reaction spiked pain not just across Rafe’s face but also through his heart. He rubbed his chest as Piper rushed into the room.

  “Okay, I’m re—” She stopped short, her eyes bouncing between the three men. When her gaze landed on Davis, her eyes narrowed. “What’s going on?”

  “Nothing.” Rafe smiled widely, then tempered it when she cocked one eyebrow. “Just a little roughhousing to say hello.”

  Her eyes darted to his cheek and widened. He needed to fix this. He didn’t want her to have to worry over him and Davis, not when she’d been so relaxed.

  He stepped up to her and put a hand on her back. “Listen, why don’t you go fishing with Derrick and Davis. I want to stay behind and analyze the latest reports.”

  “Okay.” Her shoulders dropped before she hitched them back up with a weak smile.

  He leaned closer, not wanting to see the disappointment on her face. “Maybe after you get back, we can go for another walk.”

  She reached out and squeezed his hand. “I’d like that.”

  Davis thunked his glass down hard on the counter with a huff. She glanced at her brother and growled. Rafe chuckled, squeezing her hand before heading toward the office. Maybe she’d sort out Davis so Rafe wouldn’t have to.

  “So, Derrick, it looks like we’re stuck with the grump.” Piper’s words forced a snort from Rafe.

  “Looks like.” Derrick’s deep chuckle followed.

  “Whatever. Let’s go fishing.” Davis’s grumble was the last thing Rafe heard as he closed the office door.

  He crossed the room, slid into the leather chair, and woke up the computer. The boat motor firing up drew Rafe’s gaze out the window as Zeke’s speedboat eased away from the dock. Derrick said something that made Piper’s head fall back and her mouth to gape wide in laughter. Even Davis’s face lost its hardness.

  Rafe ran his palm over the emptiness that settled in his chest. Davis couldn’t mean what he’d said. He knew Rafe had put his partying life away shortly after graduating high school. Sure, he’d go out dancing and hanging out with the guys when off duty, but he definitely wasn’t a playboy. Davis didn’t know what he was talking about.

  Rafe would never hurt Piper. He tore his gaze away from the boat and pulled up the programs he’d had running. He’d just tone things down with her, give Davis some time to adjust. His best friend had to be struggling with something more than just Rafe’s relationship with Piper. Davis had to be. Otherwise, Rafe would have to decide between following his heart or saving his oldest friendship. No, he shook his head. He had to fix whatever had Davis’s boxers in a bunch, because deciding between the two might just rip Rafe’s heart out for good.

  “Piper, why did the fisherman suddenly turn his boat?” Derrick asked as he started the boat up.

  “I don’t know. Why?” Piper prayed he could ease the tension that radiated from her brother.

  Rafe hadn’t fooled her with the whole “we’re wrestling” bit. He and Davis may have played rough growing up, but they’d rarely come to blows. Maybe if Davis would just relax, she could get him to tell her what the heck was going on.

  “Just for the halibut.” Derrick laughed as he said the punchline.

  The joke startled her in its ridiculousness. Her head fell back, and her laugh exploded loudly across the water. Davis snorted next to her. She darted her gaze to him. His face had relaxed, and his lips tipped up on one side. Praise God for Derrick Nicholson.

  “What does one tide pool say to another?” Derrick’s smile stretched across his face, and Piper couldn’t help but do the same.

  “What?” Her cheeks hurt, waiting for the answer.

  “Show me your mussels.” Derrick wiggled his eyebrows up and down.

  She shook her head as she clutched her sides. The jokes were horrible, but also exactly what she needed to calm down.

  “Wait, I’ve got another.” Derrick paused for effect. “What do sea monsters eat?”

  Piper wiped a tear from her cheek. “I’m afraid to ask.”

  “Fish and ships.”

  Davis leaned back against the seat, his arm bouncing against hers in silent laughter. “Man, those stink.”

  “I know, right?” Derrick maneuvered the boat to the coral reef.

  “Did Emori tell you those?” Piper asked.

  “Yeah. That man is full of good ones.”

  “Full of something.” Davis snorted.

  Piper turned her face to the salty wind as it whipped through her hair. She let it slush off the heated energy that still clung to her. Her brother was here and done with the Army. So what if he was cranky? He’d get over it, eventually.

  Her fingers chilled as she peeked at her brother. Had something happened to Davis? Was that why he wasn’t acting like himself? She chewed on the inside of her cheek. What if she couldn’t help him see reason? Her relationship with Rafe couldn’t possibly bother Davis that much. Could it?

  “Pip, what are you thinking?” Davis scowled up at the house. “Rafe’s just going to hurt you.”

  “You’re wrong, Davis.” Piper shook her head.

  “No, I’m not. You don’t know him like I do.”

  “I know him.”

  “You think you do, but he’s not the guy you put on a pedestal all those years ago.” Davis leaned forward, placing his arms on his legs and clenching his hands together. “He’s a player, Pip. He’s got a line of women with their hearts broken because of him.”

  “Maybe he used to be a player, but he’s not anymore.”

  “Why? Because he told you?” Davis snorted.

  “Why are you acting like this?” Piper crossed her arms over her chest, her insides heating in anger. “He’s your best friend.”

  “Some best friend, taking advantage of my little sister.”

  Piper poked Davis in the arm. “He didn’t take advantage of anyone. In fact, he tried to keep his distance because he knew you’d be upset.” Piper took a deep breath so she would keep from shouting. “I’m not the naïve little girl anymore, Davis. I love him, and he loves me, too. Please, can’t you be happy for us?”

  “Not gonna happen.” Davis pushed off of the seat and moved to the front of the boat.

  She peered back toward the shore and blinked the tears from her eyes. She didn’t want to cause her brother to fight his best friend. Davis should be ecstatic that she and Rafe were together. If they got married, Davis could call Rafe a brother for real.

  If Davis never got over it, then what? Could she live with herself if her brother disapproved? Since their parents’ deaths, she had looked to him for approval. She’d tried so hard to earn his smile and “good job,” not that he had required it from her. She put a hand over her stomach. Just the thought of disappointing Davis rolled her gut.

  Yet, she couldn’t lose Rafe either. She looked up toward the sky to ease the sting in her eyes. No, not when she’d seen how her love was healing him. There was no way she could go back to being just the tag-along littl
e sister now.

  “Come on, Piper. What is it you’ve dreamed of for you and only you? There has to be something.”

  Rafe’s words echoed in her brain. Her gaze swung toward the crumbling fort on the hill. Rafe was her dream. A life full of love and family had been her hope. She wanted to have Rafe’s gaze warm her to her toes for the rest of her days. She wanted to keep close the way she felt cherished when he was around. She longed for babies to snuggle and grandchildren to adore. She wanted that all with Rafe. Her heart wouldn’t have it any other way.

  The only obstacle to her dream was Davis. She set her jaw and darted her gaze to her brother. She couldn’t be her passive self this time, not when so much hung in the balance. She refused to allow his anger to crumble what she and Rafe had like the remains on the hill. She also refused to let her brother lose the best friend he’d ever had.

  She pushed her shoulders back and lifted her chin. If she could coordinate Chloe’s career to rocket her to stardom, she could figure out how to get her knucklehead brother to see her and Rafe as a good thing.

  Eighteen

  Rafe sat in the hammock, swinging while he stared at the ocean. All the joy and hope that had built within his heart had shriveled and dried since Davis had arrived two days earlier. Davis’s well placed barbs against Rafe’s character had dug deep into his skin. The reminders of his past brought up memories of events even Davis didn’t know about and covered Rafe’s throat with guilt every time he found himself with Piper.

  He sighed and pushed against the decking of the cabana, sending the hammock to swing higher. Davis was right. Rafe didn’t deserve Piper. For the life of him, though, he didn’t want to let her go. Was he being selfish in wanting to hold tight to her? Would he end up hurting her like Davis said?

  “Penny for your thoughts?” Piper’s sweet voice slid down his spine, releasing all the tightness bound there.

  Her words registered, and his back bunched right back up. He couldn’t tell her his worries.

  Not yet, at least.

  Maybe never.

  He cleared his throat. “I was just thinking how calm it was here. Makes one almost forget there’s a world still grinding just across those waters.”

  “Can I join you?” She twisted her hands in the bright sarong she’d wrapped around her waist.

  Her nervousness clenched his gut. He was a jerk. She had to know that his mind was at war. He’d hoped to hold his thoughts close, but he couldn’t seem to hide anything from her. That fact both unnerved and calmed him at the same time.

  He nodded and stopped the hammock, scooting to the side so she could sit next to him. He didn’t dare open his mouth or he might spew all his doubts right onto her lap. He desperately wanted to ease her burden, not add to it. So far, he’d done a lousy job at accomplishing that end.

  “I’m worried about Davis.” Her words caused Rafe’s breath to whoosh out.

  She hadn’t been worried about him? Maybe he was doing a better job at hiding than he thought. He draped his arm across her shoulder as she sat next to him. She snuggled close and sighed.

  “Yeah, me too.” Rafe ran his fingers up and down her arm. The smoothness of her skin beneath his rough fingers soothed him.

  “He’s so cynical.” She pulled her legs up to her body like she needed to protect herself. “He’s never been like this before.”

  Hurt laced through her worried tone. Rafe’s neck heated, and he barely held back the urge to rush up to the house and beat Davis. Why’d he even come if all he was going to do was make everyone miserable?

  “Us grunts all have different ways we deal with what we’ve witnessed. Some manage better than others. Some guys lash out in anger, some become reclusive, pulling away from everyone to protect themselves.” Rafe thought of Jake and how Chloe had yanked him from his dark solitude.

  “Others hide in plain sight, pretending everything’s all right.” Piper spread her hand across Rafe’s chest and curled her body in a hug around his side.

  He grabbed her hand and kissed her wrist. Since Davis had shown up, Rafe had tried to keep the affection down to a minimum. He hated it. He missed threading his fingers through hers and pulling her in for a kiss when the urge hit. He missed the easy way they’d talked and how he’d finally remembered who he was when he was with her.

  She lifted her head from his shoulder and peered at him. He kissed her palm, closed his eyes, and pressed her hand to his cheek. Why couldn’t life just be simple for once? He’d found his princess and swept her off her feet. Wasn’t this where his happily ever after was supposed to happen?

  Maybe all those movies Eva forced him to watch were nothing but lies. No, otherwise Zeke and Sosimo wouldn’t have gotten their perfect ending. Even Jake had found true love. Rafe’s heart clenched. More than likely the problem lay with him. He pressed her hand more firmly against his cheek. He wasn’t prince material. Plucky sidekick, maybe, but not the hero. His inability to track Piper’s stalker proved that.

  “Don’t you dare, Rafe Malone.” Piper’s voice cracked.

  Rafe’s heart splintered. He was hurting her again. She flexed her fingers through his beard. He pushed aside his cowardice and opened his eyes.

  He expected worry to be pulling at her features. Her bright red cheeks and blazing eyes caught him off guard and quickened his pulse. Good thing she wasn’t a mythical goddess, otherwise she’d be striking people down with her sheer force. Where had this Piper been hiding?

  “Don’t you even dare believe anything my creep of a brother has said.”

  “Piper.” He averted his eyes down the beach.

  “No, Rafe, you listen to me. After years of dreaming and hoping, I’ve finally gotten your attention.” She placed her other hand on his cheek and forced him to look at her. “You make me feel alive and beautiful for the first time in my life. You make me want to chase after my dreams—mine, not anyone else’s. I’m marrying you, Rafe Malone. We’re going to fill our house with love and babies. All my life I’ve prayed to be a mom and wife, just like my mother. Since I was fourteen, you’ve been the one walking through the door each evening in my dreams.”

  She leaned forward and pressed trembling lips to his. Everything faded but her and her crazy words that stalled his breath and set his skin tingling in the ocean breeze. He wanted her dream more than anything he’d ever wanted in his entire life.

  Her breath stuttered and tangled with his. He caught it, swallowing her anger and pain, and kissed her in return. The desire to nestle their children against his side while he read them stories warmed his gut. The image of her sharing his life with him until they were old and gray burned hot under his skin.

  She pulled away, her chin set and raised stubbornly. “I’m marrying you. I don’t care what that stupid brother of mine thinks.”

  A thousand tropical birds flapped in his stomach. He had to tell her before he exploded. “I—”

  “You don’t care what I think.” Davis’s sharp words sliced through the air and burst the moment to shreds.

  Piper’s newly tanned face paled, and she swallowed so hard Rafe heard it. “Davis, I—”

  “I have always protected you. Always wanted what’s best for you.” Davis’s nostrils flared, and Piper scrambled off the hammock.

  Rafe stood, keeping his eyes on Davis. Rafe crossed his arms to hold back from taking a swing at Davis’s face. His best friend’s neck corded as he steamed where he’d stopped at the edge of the cabana.

  “Davis, please, calm down.” Piper took a step toward her brother, her hands held out in front of her.

  “I want more for you than this guy.” Davis motioned his hands wide. “You don’t know the things he’s done.”

  Rafe’s face tingled and heated with the words. Denial sprang up his throat, but he couldn’t push it past the boulders lodged there. How could he? Davis spoke the truth.

  “I don’t care.” Piper’s voice was firm and without hesitation. “If God forgets Rafe’s past as far as the east is from the w
est, why should it matter to me?”

  Davis laughed, the sound razor-edged. “You’re so naïve. You can’t trust him. You can’t trust anyone.”

  “It’s you I can’t trust.” Piper’s raised voice cracked. “You’re the one breaking my heart!”

  “Piper.” Rafe placed a hand on her back.

  He should take her back up to the house and let Davis cool off. Rafe had never seen Davis this mad before. He looked about to implode, and Rafe didn’t want Piper anywhere near him when it happened.

  “No.” Piper stepped forward, and Davis clenched his fists. “Rafe has always been there for you, and he’s never let me down.”

  “Hasn’t he? What about the years you spent pining away for him, and he didn’t have a clue?” His voice bit, causing Piper’s shoulders to flinch. “You didn’t think I noticed your pathetic crush, but I did. The only reason he’s suddenly interested in you is because he doesn’t have his video games to play with.”

  “You’re wrong.” Piper took a step back.

  “Besides, why worry about missing a video game, when he has you crawling into his bed? You’re just a temper—”

  Rafe swung his arm hard, connecting with Davis’s cheek and snapping his so-called best friend’s head sideways. How dare he talk to Piper like that? He could be mad at Rafe all he wanted, but Rafe wouldn’t stand there and let Davis say those things about Piper.

  Davis growled and rammed his head into Rafe’s gut. The stench of alcohol covered Rafe as he stumbled backward and landed on the hammock. Time slowed as the hammock swung their clamoring bodies before snapping and crashing to the ground. Rafe bucked his hips, but Davis clung tight. Davis’s fist connected with Rafe’s chin. His teeth knocked together, and he tasted blood. Rafe blocked Davis’s next punch and slammed one of his own into Davis’s head, knocking him off balance.

  Rafe pushed Davis off and scrambled to his feet just in time to see Piper running down the beach. “Piper!”

  She stumbled, but gained her feet and turned into the island foliage. Rafe had to find her. Had to make sure she was okay.