by Dana Marton
“Just the abrasion on his knee. I gave him first aid. He’s as tough as a Navy SEAL.”
Zak grinned at her, but the grin disappeared as his mother tried to pick him up. “Mom! You’re embarrassing me.”
“Sorry, baby.”
“I’m not a baby!” He flushed. “Kate just said I’m as tough as a SEAL.”
He looked to Kate for help.
She winked at him. “Actually,” she told the mother, “I promised him a treat. If that’s okay.”
The mother nodded, tears in her eyes. And as Kate led Zak off toward the kitchen, the woman collapsed onto the chair her son had just vacated.
Kate liberated a cookie from the counter just as Shannon ran in. “We need more bottled water.”
“I hope this is okay,” Kate said, caught, literally, with her hand in the cookie jar.
“Of course. Hi, Zak. Take two.”
“Thank you, Mrs. O’Brian.”
“Also,” Kate said, this seeming as good a time to push their luck as any, “I told him you might let him touch one of the glass eyes? He was very brave when I was picking dirt out of his wound.”
Mrs. O’Brian was stuffing water bottles into the deep pockets of her knitted cardigan. “You can take one, if you want.”
“For real?” Zak pumped the air, like he’d just found Willy Wonka’s golden ticket. “Thank you, Mrs. O’Brian!”
Shannon had time for one last smile before she rushed on her way.
Zak eyed the mason jar with a dozen or so eyes on the shelf next to the pantry door.
Kate lifted it off for him. “Pick one.”
“I want blue.”
“Go for it.”
He did, admired it for several seconds, then stashed it into his pocket before skipping out, perfectly contented.
Kate figured he wasn’t going to show it to his mother until they were at home, in case Mom was of the opinion that they needed to give it back. But the second he reached the still-sniffing woman, he showed off his treasure.
“Look into my eye!”
The poor mother shrieked and almost tipped her chair over.
“Mrs. O’Brian gave it to me.” Zak’s grin kept growing until the smile took over his entire being.
A variety of responses flitted across the woman’s face. She settled on “How wonderful.”
Then she thanked Kate. And on their way out, she thanked Mrs. O’Brian, while Zak turned to wave.
“You’ve always been wonderful with children,” Kate’s mother commented from behind her.
“It’s a good thing.”
“Thinking about going back to pediatric treatment?”
Sounded like Emma hadn’t told her the news yet. She’d probably thought Kate should be the one.
Kate turned and held her mother’s gaze. She drew a deep breath and smiled. “Maybe someday. But not for a while. First, I’m going to be providing child care at home.”
Her mother stared at her in confusion for a second, but only for a second. Then she screamed. Which gave the already shaken people in the B and B a heart attack, every head snapping to them and her father rushing over.
Then her mother shouted, “I’m going to be a grandmother!”
And that roused a round of clapping and cheers, while Kate’s father collapsed into the chair Zak’s mom had left available next to them.
“I’m going to be a grandfather?”
Kate kissed his clean-shaven cheek. “Yes, Dad.”
The mood around them changed. People congratulated her. Her news managed to dispel the darkness and fear from the room.
“And how are things with Murph?” Kate’s mother asked over her shoulder as she began cleaning up another patient.
“We’re fine.” Kate picked up a pile of soiled bandages and other discarded medical supplies. “I might have been a tad overemotional.”
“You can be as emotional as you need to be. You’re going through massive hormonal changes Murph doesn’t have to deal with.” Then her mother looked behind Kate, and her eyes snapped wide, worry washing over her face. “Oh my God. Is that blood on your overalls?”
Murph stepped up next to Kate and took her hand. “Brief encounter with a homicidal maniac.” He smiled, and it was even brighter than when Zak had received the glass eye. “Hi, Ellie. Did Kate tell you I’m going to be a dad?”
Chapter Thirty-Three
Murph
Much, much later, when the last of the injured had either gone home or were taken to West Chester in an ambulance, Murph scanned the living and dining rooms of the bed-and-breakfast that looked like it had seen war, the furniture all over the place, empty bandage boxes littering the floor, along with empty water bottles.
“You all right?” Shannon came from the kitchen. “What a day. Let’s not do this again anytime soon. Or ever.” She leaned against the broom she carried. “Kate just ran up to take a shower. Room 202. The people who had it checked out and went home. I suppose that’s understandable.” She sighed. “What’s the final tally?”
“About a hundred people injured. Nobody dead. There were multiple devices, but only one blew, the float that Kate and Emma had escaped. It helped that they yelled ‘bomb’ as they ran. People got out of there.”
The rest of the devices had been found and disarmed in time, thanks to SEAL demo expert Dan Washington from Hope Hill. The mayor had better give the man a medal. In fact, Murph was going to make sure that happened.
“Nobody dead.” Shannon repeated the words, as if she needed to hear them again. “Nobody dead.”
Murph had been holding on to that thought for the past few hours since he’d last checked on Kate. Along with the thought that he was going to be a father.
“Let me help,” he offered.
Shannon shook her head. “You see to Kate. I’m going to take my time down here. I need it to calm down. But you can help me with the furniture in the morning. You should stay.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Shannon smiled. Clearly, he’d given her the right answer.
Murph ran upstairs and knocked on the door of room 202. “It’s Murph.”
The door opened. “I was just calling around trying to find you.”
“My phone battery went dead.” He stepped inside, closed the door behind him, and pulled Kate into his arms. “I love you. I can’t tell you how nice it is to be able to say that and not have you argue. I’m going to be saying it a lot.”
“I’m going to be saying it a lot back.”
He held her and held her. She was the perfect fit for him, the perfect partner, the perfect woman.
When he could finally let go, he still didn’t let go all the way. He kept her hands. “Tell me again that you’re pregnant.”
“I’m pregnant.”
“And you’re feeling all right?”
“I’m feeling all right.”
“Are you sure I don’t need to take you to the hospital?”
“I’m not worried about me,” she told him. “I’m worried about you.”
He shook his head. “I walked some people over to Dr. Cameron’s office. He took a look at me. Stitched me up. Drugged me up. I’m good to go. I’ll call my dentist tomorrow.” He smiled at her. “Right now, I feel no pain.”
“One of the EMTs checked me out,” she told him in return. “He said I looked all right. And I just called my ob-gyn. She asked a bunch of questions. She also doesn’t think that the baby is in imminent danger at this stage, but she wants to see me first thing tomorrow morning.”
“I’m taking you. I mean, can I take you?”
“Yes, please.”
“You weren’t sure if you wanted children. Are you okay with this? I thought you’d be more freaked out.”
“The day’s freak-out load is already pretty high. Maybe I just don’t have room for more today. It could still hit me. But I don’t think it will.”
She laid her palm over her still-flat belly. “I’m happy about the baby. I figured it out in the basement of the r
epair shop. Actually, Emma figured it out for me.” She smiled. “I wasn’t about to give up before that, but once I knew in my heart that this baby was real…” She shook her head. “I can’t explain it. The connection was instant. Limitless love and fierce protectiveness. A switch flipped. This baby is mine, and I’m going to protect my child, always.”
“You did. You escaped. You’re the bravest woman I’ve ever known.”
He brushed a kiss over her lips. He’d had a brief meeting with a large bottle of mouthwash at the doctor’s office, so he figured it was all right. “I guess we won’t know for a while if we’re having a boy or a girl.”
“We might find out tomorrow.” She brushed a kiss back. “The doctor mentioned an ultrasound.”
They grinned at each other like two lovesick fools.
Then her gaze dropped to the blood stain on his chest. “Now, honestly. How do you feel?”
“Like I’m the luckiest son of a bitch in the country.”
* * *
Kate
“I’d like to name her Ellie after my mother,” Kate said, pulling Murph farther into the room.
“I’m going to buy him one of those baby Jeeps.” Murph indicated the size with his hands.
Did they even have toy cars that big?
“That’s your first thought?” She laughed. “Boys and their toys.”
“Not my first thought. My first thought, now and always, is that I want you.”
The way his voice deepened and his gaze heated sent a delicious shiver down her spine. “I want you too. And I will have you, when you recover.” Soon please. She was desperate to have her hands on his body. “You’re in no shape right now,” she said, more to herself than to him, to bolster her self-restraint. “You’ve been hurt.”
“I’m fine.”
“You’re not fine. I—” She broke off when he took her hand and put it on the undeniable proof of just how fine he was. “We shouldn’t,” she finished weakly.
He raised an eyebrow. “Are you trying to tell me what I can and cannot do with my own body?”
A desperate laugh bubbled up her throat.
“But only if you’re sure you’re okay,” he told her. “You’ve been kidnapped. You’re pregnant.”
“At least I’m clean. I just took a shower.”
“I cleaned up at the doctor’s office, but I have to keep my stitches dry for a couple of days.”
“I could always give you a sponge bath.” Which might have sounded helpful and selfless, but really she just wanted to see him naked again.
“Definitely, yes. Later.” He maneuvered her to the nearest flat surface, the wall behind her. “I’m going to undress you now.”
“Then I’m going to undress you. I’ve never peeled you out of workman overalls before. It’s sexy. Like plumber porn.”
He narrowed his eyes at her. “What do you know about plumber porn?”
“Nothing?”
A sound of warning rumbled up his chest as he put his hands on her hips to hold her in place.
She squealed under his dark gaze, then confessed. “Allie’s bachelorette party had a plumber stripper. He came to the door and pretended it was a repair call, then ripped his overalls off and—”
“I’m going to have to have a talk with Harper,” Murph said with mock outrage.
“Later.” Kate began divesting him of the overalls. Stopped. “Oh God.”
She’d seen his cuts on the torture table, but not fully. His blood had covered them. Now they were out in the open. “How many stitches did you get?”
“What stitches?”
“You should lie down.”
“Maybe for round two. Seriously, I’m fully anesthetized. I feel no pain. And I mean to do things before that changes.” His intent gaze promised a wealth of pleasure.
“Why are you orange?”
“I’ve been swabbed with iodine.”
“I feel like I’m about to make love to Garfield, the cat.”
“Now that hurts my feelings.” But he was struggling with a grin as his seeking fingers caressed her skin.
She didn’t know what to say. Then, as he stood before her, naked, magnificent even in his battered and orange state, Kate remembered Linda’s marital advice, and she made her eyes go wide with wonder. “How is that thing getting bigger every time I see it?”
Murph burst out in a shocked laugh. “Marry me.”
She didn’t have to think about it. “Yes.”
God, the immolating look he gave her. The heat of it seared through her. And the endless love in it made her heart melt. Then she was naked too, and they were touching just about everywhere.
He only let her go to check her over. He was careful with her, tender, scrutinizing every inch of skin, swearing at every bruise, every scratch.
“I want to make love to you. But if you think we should wait—”
“Don’t wait.” She was weak, that was what she was. She wanted him with a desperate need. She couldn’t even pretend to play hard to get.
“Are you sure?” he asked.
“Do you want me to beg?”
“After what you’ve put me through these past months? Definitely.”
“Please.” There. Apparently, she was also shameless.
He hooked her right knee over his hip and unerringly positioned himself at her opening, his boiling gaze holding hers. “I’ve missed you.” He pushed inside, a tight inch, and her breath caught. They hadn’t been together like this in three months. Her body needed to adjust to him being back.
He gave her time. Held.
Until she grew impatient at last. “Murph!”
That evil gleam was back. “I’m not going any farther until you say you’re sorry for torturing me, and you promise not to torture me again. Promise that you’re not going to change your mind before the wedding.”
“Are you seriously blackmailing me while you’re inside me?”
He didn’t say anything. He held.
Fine. Time to find her backbone. They would just have to see who could hold out longer. She drew her hands from his neck and braced them on the wainscotting, a move that gave her more leverage and put enough distance between them so he could have a better view of her breasts.
His nostrils flared. “You don’t fight fair.”
He withdrew his hand from under her thigh and braced them on either side of her head.
Since she lost some of her support, she had to hold his waist tighter with her legs, but he would not let her pull him in. He stood his ground, even when her traitorous body squirmed for more of him.
His biceps bulged in her peripheral vision. His wide chest blocked the sight of the rest of the world. She didn’t miss anyone or anything in it.
His head was tilted slightly down to hers, tendons protruding in his neck from the effort to hold the line.
“You’re going to bust your stitches.”
“I don’t care.” He was a hulking beast, piercing her with his hungry gaze, ready to devour her.
She wanted to be devoured, dammit!
Trouble was, she had no room to maneuver. She considered shoving off the wall and pushing herself onto him. She wanted, desperately, for him to fill her. But if she jumped on him and slid down on his…
What if she broke it?
For some reason, in the moment, she found the thought hysterical, and a peal of laughter escaped her.
His eyes narrowed dangerously. “You find this funny?”
She found none of it funny. With him pressed a single maddening inch inside her, she found everything urgent. She shook her head, pressing her lips together. “My emotions are all over the place. Do you think I’m hormonal?”
His eyes narrowed further. “Is this a trap? I don’t think that’s a word a man should ever say to a woman.”
“Did they teach you that in some police self-defense class?” How were they still conversing? She was about to lose her damn mind, if he didn’t fill her the next second.
“They shoul
d have. It’s a shame how many things men are forced to find out about women the hard way.”
A perfect pun floated somewhere in her brain about something else hard, but her brain was shutting down rapidly.
He bent his head closer.
Oh, a kiss. Yes, please.
Instead, he dipped lower, and sucked her nipple into his mouth. Her extremely sensitive nipple. Because, had she not mentioned, her nipples had been growing more and more sensitive lately—thank you, pregnancy.
He not only sucked the throbbing, aching peak of flesh, he sucked it in hard. And then he bit it.
Pleasure rushed through her, a blinding heat. When he sucked again, at a more leisurely pace this time, she nearly came.
She waved an imaginary white flag. “I promise I’m not going to change my mind about the wedding.”
He was inside her before the last word left her lips. All the way. Sweet truffle paradise. Had he grown? She wasn’t even joking.
Her body stretched to welcome him back. “I missed you. Does that sound stupid? We saw each other every day.”
“Not like this,” he said as he made love to her with a thoroughness that deserved a commemorative plaque, or a newspaper mention at the least.
When he dedicated his mind to something, he got the job done. That was Murph.
Her back bowed, her body drowning in pleasure. As she held on to his shoulders, she could barely gasp out the words, “Not like this.”
Her body flew. Her mind cleared of all thought. For endless moments, she floated in bliss.
Then thoughts returned, one by one, awareness, little by little.
They’d met under unusual circumstances. They’d spent years in forced proximity. Shared danger had brought them together.
All true.
But as they walked to the bed—she refused to let him carry her—she acknowledged a greater truth yet. She sincerely and completely loved Murph Dolan. And she believed that he loved her. And suddenly it seemed incredibly stupid to have worried so much about how they’d gotten there.
She turned to him on the bed to tell him that.
He was watching her with some serious heat in his eyes.
“Now what?” she asked.