“Morning, Twila,” Michael greeted.
“Good morning.”
“I had this crazy idea. I’ve been in Florida for four years, and I’ve never taken an airboat tour.”
“Been a long time for me. I did one when I was a senior. It was fun, you should do it.”
He paused. “I was hoping you’d come with me. We could find a tour operator to take us out then grab some lunch. Why don’t I talk to a friend? He knows a bunch of guys who do those tours.”
“Michael, that sounds great, but I’m fully booked today with the residents. I won’t be free until after four.”
“Okay then, an early evening tour and dinner.”
She ran her hand through her wet curls stalling. “Michael—”
“Twila, I just want us to become familiar with each other on a more personal level.”
“But isn’t it a business partnership?”
“Sure, but it doesn’t hurt to know each other a little better.”
“I suppose not. All right.”
“I’ll come by and pick you up. No sense taking two cars out there. See you at four.”
She hung up feeling queasy. Why had she said yes? The answer would always be no if Michael wandered past the professional relationship. Or would it? She rubbed her upper arms, cold inside and out. Drake resonated so much masculinity, her heart shuddered with loss. Thank God it didn’t have a voice because it would be standing on the top of her trailer howling. His physical strength impressed the eye, but his inner strength and gentle touch made her heart quake. The ties that bound him to her didn’t want to let go. If Drake hadn’t come home last night, he had moved on, and she needed to pull up her knickers as they said in England, and put her concentration on a new future. A Drakeless one.
* * * *
At four o’clock Michael parked out front of her trailer. The day had dragged even though she’d filled every second of it with movement. As she ran around the park visiting the residents, her heart kept hoping to catch a glimpse of Drake, but her mind told her that would just make her miss him more.
Forty-five minutes later, the wind pressed her back into the seat. The thrill of the airboat as it cut through the sawgrass of the swamp, exhilarating. Michael threw his arm around her and pulled her close. He had a great smile and didn’t all men look sexy with aviator glasses. They both wore ear protection because of the propeller. Their operator was a guy in his mid-fifties who’d offered them his knowledge of the alligators he’d lived with all his life. They swept down shallow waterways and turned a sharp corner. He cut the engine and drifted toward shore. She couldn’t see anything, but his eyes were trained to spot the gators hiding on the edges of the glades.
The bow bumped up to a bramble of branches and the mouth of the female yawned open with a hiss. Her little ones had been born in the spring, but they clung to her and nearby branches. They were pretty cute. The female wasn’t too large, maybe six feet from snout to tail. Their guide explained how the mating worked and that the males only came out for the act and then disappeared again. She shook her head. Reminded her of someone else she knew.
They saw a few larger gators slither from the muddy banks when they approached. When he cut the engine again, they drifted. The gator’s eyes remained on the surface keeping watch. They were used to the airboats and didn’t always head for the safety of water, some remained content to sleep on the banks of the canals.
Michael thanked their guide as they returned to their departure point, and helped her out of the boat although she didn’t need it, he offered a hand. When she jumped to the ground, Michael didn’t remove his arm from around her waist.
“Hungry yet?” he asked. His gaze skated across her face and a small sexy smile rimmed his mouth.
“Sure, nothing too heavy,” she said, stepping out of his grasp.
By nine they were back in her driveway. “That was really fun. Thank you,” she said with her hand on the door.
Michael’s smooth voice rolled over her as he turned in the seat to face her. “I enjoyed it too. Think I enjoy any time we spend together.”
“We didn’t really get a chance to discuss any particulars about the business.”
“How about tomorrow for brunch?”
Why did he think they always had to meet to discuss the business? The phone would do just fine.
When she stalled, he said, “I’ll come by and get you at eleven.”
“Sure.” Maybe she was imaging it, but the air seemed thick with anticipation and it wasn’t coming from her. “Good night.”
She watched him back out of her driveway. Her heart leaped when Drake’s voice said, “Kind of hard to say good bye when you’re on another date with him.” She looked up to see him sitting in her Florida room.
“Drake? What are doing here?”
He didn’t move. She opened the screen door and stepped inside, his eyes tracking her.
“Two days in a row. You must have a lot to talk about.”
She moved to the couch across from him and sat down. He had some nerve. “Your luncheon must have been a success, since you didn’t come home,” she shot back.
He leaned forward, his muscled arms resting on his thighs. “No, I didn’t. I needed time to think, and I do it best on the Rebecca.”
She swallowed heavily. “You, you…” The stutter had to go, but then her tongue swelled and her insides churned. “I thought—”
His anger made him rigid. “I can see what you thought, and I suppose you didn’t give us a second one.”
“It wasn’t a date,” she said, knowing it sounded weak, but jealousy reared its claws too. “You expect me to believe you and Heather didn’t hook up again?”
His eyes didn’t waver. “That’s what she wanted,” he said quietly and finally looked away. “What I wanted was out for two days in a row with an eligible doctor who has the hots for his new business partner. I guess I’m the fool.”
It shouldn’t be possible, but her heart sang a happy song at the same time she suspected he was sorry he hadn’t taken Heather up on her offer. She shook her head. “You’re not a fool.”
He rose and her gaze followed.
“I wanted to convince you to change your mind, but I guess you already have.” He breathed out a shallow breath from between his lips. “Listen, if you don’t mind I’d like to call once in a while. The folks aren’t always honest, and I know you’ll let me know if something is wrong or one of them gets sick.”
She nodded. Her pulse sped up, the end of their relationship only a few words from the finish line. Shouldn’t she at least tell him her heart wanted him to stay even though she knew he couldn’t? “Of course you can.”
“Thank you.”
She watched him leave and her breath stuttered as she held back the tears. Nothing she could do but watch. Halfway down her front lawn, he veered around and came to a stop below her, he flattened his palm against the screen. Raising her hand, she laid it on his, the cool metal a slim separation between them. Drake’s handsome features softened. She wanted to feel the stubble on his cut jaw graze her skin. She wanted him.
“For a short moment, I didn’t know how to answer Heather, but then I saw you in my mind, and the answer was clear. No matter what Heather offered, none of it could ever replace you. The only woman I could love for the rest of my life is you. Even without you, I won’t change my mind. I’ll miss you, sweetheart. Every day I’ll miss you.”
Tears poured down her face as the night stole him from her view. Wandering back inside, she stopped in front of the TV. The late night news filled the monitor with images of the US fighting forces in the Middle East. She turned up the volume. A reporter interviewed a team of heavily armed soldiers. He shook the soldier’s hand, and the Marine nodded saying, “Semper Fi.” A round of “ooh-rah” was shouted by the men surrounding him.
The reporter looked into the camera for the wrap up. “Semper fidelis. Always faithful. Those are the words our United States Marines live by as they fight
to bring balance and peace to this barren land.”
Drake had said those words to her, but she’d never looked up the meaning.
Once she’d emptied an entire box of Kleenex, she called Michael and cancelled their brunch. If he wanted to talk to her about the business, he could do it during business hours. She slipped her running shoes on and headed out the door. It was well past bed time for most of the residents, and she walked in the dark listening to the breeze playing different tunes on the wind chimes.
When she rounded the corner onto Eucalyptus Street, she saw the lights from the Addison’s trailer still on. She knocked quietly just in case everyone was asleep. The door opened and Drake filled it.
“Twila? What’s wrong?”
“I—” She cleared her throat and tried again. “I need to tell you something.”
Drake stepped outside and closed the door. “The folks are already asleep.”
She blinked and stared at him. Not sure what would come out, her thoughts garbled. Good or bad. Whether it was right or wrong didn’t matter. Drake said he wanted her to fight for them, so she was going to take a page from Heather’s book. The tears hadn’t finished yet, and she just let them fall.
“What’s wrong, sweetheart?” Drake’s brow furrowed with real concern.
She took a step back and straightened her shoulders. “I’m…I need you to know before you leave that I love you and my heart is breaking. You have to go, and I’m not asking you to stay, but you’ll be taking my heart with you when you leave.” She gasped it out before she choked up.
Drake’s expression lit with an understanding smile, and he drew her into his arms. The warmth of his body felt so good. She hung on tight and sobbed like a stupid girl.
“Shh, sweetheart, don’t cry. Did you really think I was going to give up on us?”
He kissed her wet cheeks, her mouth, and she gathered each one and locked them in her heart. Being in Drake’s protective arms was the best place in the world. Half of her thought he was crazy for loving her, but he took the loneliness away.
“I’m sorry. I can’t stop,” her voice stuttered. “I can’t stop crying.” She really couldn’t. Now that she’d let herself feel how much she loved him, it hurt so badly to know he’d be gone. Waving her hand in front of her face, she cleared her throat. Another stuttering breath followed. “I had to tell you. It doesn’t change anything, but I had to tell you.” She wanted to turn tail and run, but he wouldn’t let go.
He backed up, holding her tightly. “Get in here,” he said against her lips.
Squirming didn’t help. With a solid grip, he backed her all the way to his bedroom. “Drake, your parents…”
“Are asleep, and I’ve had to listen to creaking bedsprings for the last four weeks. It’s their turn to know what love sounds like.” He peeled her shirt from her body and nipped at her shoulder and neck. “Tell me again.”
Her breath hitched as she stared into his waiting gaze. “That I love you?”
He nodded. “Those words used to scare the hell out of me until I said them to you. Then I was scared all over again that you didn’t feel the same way.”
With a quick scoop, he laid her out on his bed. A swift pull, and he yarded his T-shirt over his head and flung it to the floor. Hovering his broad shoulders and massive chest above her, he looked into her eyes. “I love you, Twila. No matter what it takes, we will have forever. If I have to learn how to fly a plane so I can be with you every night, I’ll do it.”
His mouth left a trail of wetness down the middle of her body as he pulled her shorts from her hips. “Drake, I’m going to miss you too much,” she hissed as his mouth delivered hot little kisses to her body. She floated somewhere between bliss and lust. Within seconds, their passion blinded them, and they found their way by touch.
She wanted to sneak out after they made love, but instead he wound his arms around her and cuddled her.
“Do you know in all the years that I’ve been with women, I always thought pet names were ridiculous? On the day that I brought you the bike it just fell out of my mouth. It shocked me for a second, but I realized, even then, you are my sweetheart.”
She nestled her head against his upper arm, breathing in his familiar scent. With his hand palming her breast, she whispered against his skin. “Always faithful.”
He smiled down at her. “To you. Always.”
* * * *
A knock on the door woke her and Drake at the same time.
“Good morning, darlings. Breakfast is waiting on the deck when you’re ready,” Becka chirped. “There’s extra towels in the closet, Twila.” Becka hummed a little tune as her footsteps departed.
She turned a look over her shoulder at Drake and grinned.
“Morning, sweetheart,” he said and leaned over her, pressing his warm body against hers.
They didn’t shower right away and breakfast would get cold but the sweet kisses he laid on her mouth and his massive hands moving across her skin had them lulling in bed for a little longer.
They appeared on the deck together holding hands. Becka and Gordon looked up with broad smiles, and her nerves receded.
“I just want you to know that I had to double my blood pressure medication over the last couple of days,” Becka said with a narrowed eye.
Gordon chuckled and pushed the platter with some delicious mixture of eggs and mushrooms topped with cheese on flat bread toward them. “Don’t let her guilt ya, she drove me crazy. Think it’s me who needs the blood pressure medication.” Then he winked.
Twila felt her cheeks heat and Drake just laughed at his parents. “I’m starving,” Drake said.
“You should be,” his father muttered and put the paper in front of his face.
Becka swatted him. “Shush now.”
“Gotta change the frame on the guest bed, Mother. It squeaks too damn much.”
Becka rolled her eyes as she filled their cups with coffee. “Who’s going to fess up first? I want to hear it from one of you.”
Twila glanced at Drake not understanding. He held his fork near his mouth and gave her a sideways smile.
“She wants me to say that she was right, and I fell in love with you just as she plotted,” Drake explained.
“Oh.”
“Hmm,” he said, putting down his fork and threading his fingers through her curls.
Twila’s heart stirred with happiness. “She was right.”
“Yeah, she was, but don’t let her know, cause she’ll hang it over our heads forever,” he teased as if Becka wasn’t there.
Becka sighed. “Now, neither of you move. You’re going to listen to your mother. I am seventy years old—”
“Here it comes,” Drake said out of the side of his mouth.
“I had you boys too late in life. I don’t want to wait for my grandbabies,” she said ignoring his comment.
When the entire table groaned, her hand jumped in the air. “It is a reasonable request. Your father and I have agreed that we will move closer so we can help.”
“Help or badger?” Drake’s broad shoulders shook with a laugh.
When Becka’s New York long-eye began to narrow, they all knew they were in trouble. Drake plastered a devilish grin on his lips and kissed Twila deeply, a kiss that neither of them wanted to end. “I think we should practice at your place,” he said.
She chuckled. When they looked up, Becka and Gordon were holding hands and smiling at one another.
“Dad, you always had words of wisdom for me and Layton when we were growing up.” His father cocked his head listening. “Your best advice,” Drake said, rising and then helping her up, “was that I needed someone who had a heart like my own and you were right. I hope one day I’ll be as good of a father as you are.”
Gordon sniffed and nodded his head sharply, the tears in his eyes unmistakable. “Thank you, son. I have no doubt you will be.”
Drake’s phone bleeped and a text appeared on the screen.
Baby, I’m off to a sh
oot, but I’ll call you when I get home. Luv u
Drake sighed and shook his head. Twila stared down at the phone and considered her options, then she picked it up, stared at the message and typed a response using two words. Ones she didn’t often use because a southern lady refrained from vulgar language. She hit the send button and dumped his phone in her full glass of orange juice. When she looked up at Drake to see his response, he rubbed his neck and gave her a churlish grin.
“Looks like I need a new phone, with a new number, huh?”
“Looks like,” she said sweetly.
“How about we grab Lindy and go get two phones? His and hers.”
“Sure, but you’re not driving.”
His brows shot up. “What? Why not? I let you drive the Rebecca.”
She shrugged. “It’s called steering a course, Captain. Haven’t I taught you anything?”
They bickered good-naturedly over who would drive Lindy all the way through the trailer to the front door. Becka and Gordon followed them, and they were both laughing and shaking their heads.
“I know, you drive there and I’ll drive back.”
“Nope,” she quipped.
“Why not?” he sputtered, then said, “No problem, I can buy a car that looks just like her.”
“Go ahead, but it won’t be Lindy.”
He growled and attacked her with a big bear hug. “See you folks later,” Drake said, hustling her out the door.
“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you love my car more than me?” She stopped in the middle of his mother’s new front patio when she realized he wasn’t walking beside her. When she turned, her soul shuddered at the way he looked at her in all his handsome masculinity. “What?”
“Thank you,” he said and bowed his head, peering at her from under his bangs. “For putting yourself first and choosing us.” He took a step closer. “You know, the first time I saw you, I was standing where you are now.” He shook his head. “I don’t think I’ll ever forget that moment. Dad always tells us how he fell in love with mom at first sight. I never believed him. Not until now.”
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