Resisting the Hero

by Cindi Madsen

  Partner is giving me dirty looks for texting on the job. See you later, BABE.

  A flutter went through Faith’s chest, and instead of stopping herself from enjoying it, she leaned back and basked in it. So she’d failed horribly at resisting a ridiculously hot guy who knew how to calm her fears and handle a two-year-old. A few weeks ago, she’d had no idea how amazing those qualities were.

  “Cannonball!” Ella leapt off her booster chair, narrowly missing the counter. She giggled and grinned up innocently.

  “Kid, you’re gonna give me a heart attack.”

  Ella tore off down the hall, most likely to destroy something, and Faith made a mental pros and cons list about letting her do it. Pro, she’d be happy and out of her hair for a moment. Con, she’d have to clean it up later. Pro, it might make her tired enough to take a nap.

  And the pros win.

  Faith turned to wash her hands and noticed a scrapbook poking out from under the pile of bills on the counter. Mom used to spend hours scrapbooking, always putting all their pictures in colorful books with stickers and clever word bubbles. Faith tried to help once, but got bored about five minutes in.

  She tugged the book out from under the bills, her heart squeezing when she saw the familiar blue fabric and the family photo of her, Kaleb, Mom, and Dad. Faith had a similar pink book, but it was buried in the boxes she’d stored instead of unpacked every move. She sat down at the kitchen table and opened the book, instantly transported to past memories. On Lake Norman, fishing. The Christmas she got an Easy Bake Oven—clearly that hadn’t made her a good cook. In fact, now that she was thinking about it, she’d only ever burned brownies in it.

  The McAdamses were in several of the pictures. Page after page of fishing, each fish documented. There were a couple of other candid snapshots, Dad still in his uniform, since she and Kaleb often attacked him the second he got in the door, climbing over him and insisting on rides. He always gave in, too, regardless of how tired he must’ve been.

  Ella ran back into the room, a doll tucked under one arm—upside down and an inch away from falling to the floor—and a princess wand in the other hand. “Dat book has grandpa. He was a cop, dust like Daddy.” She yanked down the book and pointed. Then she took off in the other direction, her doll’s head dragging against the floor.

  A moment ago, Faith had been excited thinking of a date with Connor—of forgetting her reservations and allowing herself to see where it went. Now all she could think was he’s a cop, he’s a cop, he’s a cop.

  The summer fling idea was stupid, but pretending she could have a long-term relationship with Connor Maguire—or that she could keep herself from falling for him—was even stupider. The guy was quicksand, drawing everything to him, no escape once you got in too deep, and she was one more good night with him away from letting him suck her under.

  Maybe I should cancel our date. Tell him something came up.

  Knowing him, he wouldn’t accept a text excuse. And she wasn’t sure she could go through with canceling if she heard his voice.

  …

  Connor wanted to be over at Kaleb’s house, helping with Ella, sneaking kisses with Faith, and making sure everything went smoothly with getting Anna back home. But right as Connor had been about to leave for the day, Sullivan tracked him down. Erica Corbett’s neighbors called in, telling the dispatcher they’d heard shouting.

  So he found himself in front of an all-too-familiar door with Sullivan, clenching his fists as he waited to see who’d open up. Waiting to see if Erica would have bruises on her face, or if her asshole of a husband made sure he hurt her in places clothing would cover.

  “Don’t lose it, dude,” Sullivan said. “One more outburst and the sheriff will take you off the case for good.”

  “I know. I’m in control.” Honestly, he was never fully in control at any domestic disturbance call, but he knew how to play the game. He’d come pretty damn close to taking a swing at Hal Corbett when they’d taken him last week, but Kaleb had talked him down. He’d scared himself enough that he’d gone over it later, pinpointing when he’d started to lose it so he could keep from doing it again. Of course last week, he’d hoped Erica was finally ready to take legal action.

  Connor raised his fist to knock again and Erica Corbett opened the door. Clearly she’d been crying, her eyes and cheeks red and wet with tears. “We got a call from a neighbor. Said there was yelling.”

  “It was just a small fight, Officer Maguire. I’m fine, I promise.” She smiled, but it was shaky, no joy behind it.

  “You know I’ll help you,” Connor said, lead filling his gut as the sensation of being out of control and bad memories tugged at him. “You say the word and I’ll make sure he never touches you again.”

  Erica glanced over her shoulder, eyes wide, and Hal appeared behind her a moment later.

  “What’s the problem, officer?” the little shit of a man asked, his smug grin needing wiped off his face with a nice hard punch.

  Angry heat built low in Connor’s gut, rising through his chest, pumping through his veins. He sucked in a breath and held it, counting down from ten in his head.

  “Noise complaint,” Sullivan said.

  “Everything’s fine.” Erica’s eyes met Connor’s. “We were just watching the game and got carried away cheering. We’ll keep it down. Thanks for stopping by.”

  In his mind, Connor saw himself yanking the door open and showing the man who abused his wife exactly how it felt to be beat by someone larger. Deep breath in, long breath out. Sullivan glanced at him and he gave a small nod, so the guy knew he was okay. “We’re going to be patrolling this neighborhood all night, making sure everyone’s nice and safe.”

  “Thanks, officer,” Hal said, taunting him with another snake oil smile. “I really appreciate it.”

  With little else they could do, Connor walked back to the car with Sullivan. “You can go home if you want,” Sullivan said. “I’ll drive by a few times after I drop you off.”

  Connor eyed the house, watching for movement inside. One of his biggest fears was finding out Erica was in the hospital this time—or worse. He kept hoping he’d get through to her. He wondered if Faith could help somehow, using what she’d learned. Maybe he could convince Erica to meet them away from the house. He knew it was easy to give up on people like her, but he also knew what could happen when one person out there didn’t.

  Someday she’ll be strong enough, and I’ll be there when it happens. “Nah, I’ll ride with you for a while longer. It’s probably too late to go see my girl now anyway.”

  “Don’t you mean girls?”

  Connor shook his head. “I’m done with that. I’m with Faith now.”

  Sullivan burst out laughing and then clamped his lips when Connor shot him a glare. “Fitzpatrick’s cool with you banging his sister?”

  Connor reached over and smacked the back of his head. “I’m dating her.” Sullivan’s eyebrows drew together, confusion etched across his features. He didn’t care what the guy sitting next to him thought—Connor had been guilty of not understanding before. But he wasn’t about to get into why it was different this time, or how Faith made him want more. “Just shut up and drive before I take my anger out on you.”

  Sullivan put the car in gear and muttered, “Jeez, someone gets pissy when he’s not getting laid.”

  “Hey, without me in the picture, you might actually have a chance now.”

  Sullivan flipped him off and started the car. As they pulled away from the tiny gray house, Connor glanced at the glowing windows, the light cloaking the darkness within. The pinch in his chest happened every time a call went this way. Usually, he’d go hit the weights to push away the sense of failure and the bad memories that always followed. Instead he focused on Faith, and how things were finally changing between them.

  His phone rang and he smiled when he saw Faith’s name. “There’s my girl now,” he said, liking the sound of it even better the second time. Right now, having a girl to c
all his felt like the only thing getting him through the day.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Faith had meant to cancel her date with Connor, she truly had. Only when he’d answered the phone, his voice held such happiness and hope, and a vulnerable undertone that made her think he’d had a rough day. Then he asked how she was holding up, and they’d ended up talking and laughing over the phone until she started to fall asleep, his calming voice in her head.

  The next three days, she went back and forth between it’s okay to go out with Connor and it’s the worst idea ever. But mostly she’d been busy checking on Anna now that she was home, making sure she didn’t overexert herself, and taking care of Ella and last-minute things for the festival. She’d hardly stopped to take a breath and she was desperate to get out. And, well, Connor showed up looking like himself, and her hormones screamed louder than her rational thoughts.

  Connor leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. “Hey, Blondie.” Kaleb cleared his throat from his spot on the couch. Ella sat next to him, her eyes glued to The Little Mermaid—a nice change from Sleeping Beauty three hundred times a day, actually. Anna was back in her bedroom with mac and cheese Faith hadn’t messed up by some miracle, and access to a boatload of movies.

  Connor took Faith’s hand and laced his fingers with hers, meeting Kaleb’s gaze head-on. A wordless conversation passed between them, then they said their good-byes and Connor led her outside.

  Faith stared at the giant black Silverado with raised tires, shaking her head as he opened the door for her. “You would drive something this huge.”

  Connor put his hands on her waist. “Stop acting like you’re not impressed with my huge everything, and get in.” He boosted her onto the seat and gave her knee a quick squeeze before closing her door. The cab smelled like him, earthy and woodsy and whatever sexy smelled like.

  Even in this huge truck, he seemed to take up all the space. When he slowed for a stoplight, he glanced at her. His eyes darkened and a shiver of anticipation trembled across her skin. He leaned over her, his hand skimming her leg as he reached to the other side of the seat and grabbed the lever.

  And then her seat was reclined all the way back. He crushed his lips to hers, a quick, hard kiss, and then she shot upright again, the seat clicking into place. The light turned green and he accelerated through the intersection, a huge grin on his face, while she worked on catching her breath.

  “Pretty smooth,” she said.

  “Right?” His hand curved around her thigh and heat pooled low in her stomach. For the entire drive to Charlotte, she went back and forth between excited and nervous, for both the date and the fact that the date involved a helicopter. She was trying to pretend she wasn’t a bit worried about whatever adventure he’d planned. As they were pulling up to the helicopter office, though, she cracked. “This is going to be mild, right? Like my mild, not yours.”

  “Don’t worry,” Connor said, which made her do the opposite of what he said. “Most girls wouldn’t appreciate where I’m taking you, but after the way you talked about going with your family the other night…” He twisted the keychain in his hand. “Well, I figured it’d be better than me trying impress you with an expensive meal at a fancy restaurant.”

  Faith couldn’t help staring. She loved how confident he was, but the slight waver as he went over tonight’s plan tugged at her heart. “As long as we’re not jumping out of the helicopter, I think I’ll be okay.” She leaned over and kissed his cheek. “I don’t want the lady killer treatment.”

  He draped his arm around her and curled her closer, brushing his nose against hers. “Well, that’s not something I can just turn off.” He sighed dramatically. “It’s a blessing and a curse.”

  “I’ll try to control myself.”

  “I’d rather you didn’t.” He nipped at her bottom lip and then took her hand, pulling her out of the truck on his side. Like the showoff he was, he hefted the large backpack he’d brought onto one shoulder, never letting go of her hand. All those muscles, the grin, taking her fishing—resistance was futile.

  Dani and Wes met them inside the office and then they climbed into the helicopter. Faith’s stomach rose as they did. The ride was smooth, and the scenery passing under them beautiful. About thirty minutes later they were touching down in a meadow somewhere in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

  Wes pulled off his headphones and shut down the helicopter, the sound of the blades slowing until everything went quiet. He pulled what she was pretty sure was rappelling gear out of a compartment in the helicopter.

  “Um, are we rock climbing there?” she asked, eyeing Connor. “’Cause that’s not mild.”

  Connor squeezed her hand. “Wes and Dani are going to climb one of the smaller falls. You and I are just fishing.”

  Wes shoved the gear into a large black backpack. “Unless you want to climb? I have enough gear in the helicopter.”

  “By a slippery waterfall?” Faith shook her head. “I’m good with just fishing, and you know, not breaking all my bones.”

  “It’s not that slippery,” Wes said to Dani when she raised an eyebrow at him. “Definitely easier than that climb we did in Bald Mountain, even with the water.”

  Dani shook her head. “The things you talk me into.”

  “Five bucks I can make it to the top before you.”

  She looked at him, a competitive glint in her eye. “You’re going down, Turner.” He held out his hand, she put hers in his, and they started into—well, the wilderness. Like the kind you needed a machete to get through.

  Connor wrapped Faith’s hand in his and they followed after them. She thought maybe they’d come across a trail at some point, but it was just Connor and Wes consulting their compasses, occasionally saying to head a few clicks north or west. Hopefully they knew what they were doing, because Faith couldn’t find her way back to the helicopter if her life depended on it. The three of them looked like they’d done it several times before, though. So she tried to keep up even though her legs were shortest by far, ducking low-hanging branches and climbing until her thighs and lungs burned.

  After an intense forty minutes of hiking, as Connor was giving her a hand over a large rock, she asked, “Is there really not a nice, easy trail to get to the lake?”

  “There is, but…” The trees suddenly cleared and there was a stream leading into a cave with a waterfall cascading through it. The sunlight coming through a hole in the top of the rocks illuminated the spray of water, turning it into glittery drops against a dark background. The contrast gave the entire place a cinematic, magical, almost too beautiful to be real feel. Connor laced his fingers through hers. “Then we’d miss this.”

  They stepped over slippery rocks, sticking to the higher ones to avoid getting their shoes too wet, and entered the cave. Droplets sprayed off the rocks, hitting Faith’s cheeks and every spot her skin was exposed. Connor wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her back to his chest.

  For a moment, she simply stared at the beautiful scene before her. Then she glanced over her shoulder at Connor. He lowered his lips to hers, and she turned, never breaking the kiss and tugging on his shirt, pulling him closer. He grinned against her mouth and wrapped a strong arm behind her back. She inhaled the mix of him and the water, taking a moment to enjoy the warmth of his mouth on hers and the cool water splattering her skin.

  When she pulled away, she noticed Wes and Dani enjoying a moment of their own. She’d never really double-dated—definitely not in the extreme adventure way. But it was nice, seeing the friendship between them and Connor, having them accept her so easily. Being here with a guy of her own that she knew could and would take care of her.

  They headed across the cave and she noticed the light growing. Water trickled over the rocks, dripping into the lake at the bottom of the slope.

  Dani peeled off her jacket to reveal a Lycra tank top and peered up to the very top of the rocky wall, where the water started. Wes was pulling out climbing gear, the two of them wo
rking like they’d done it a hundred times.

  Wes glanced at his watch and then Connor. “Catch you back here in about two hours?”

  “Have fun.” Connor put his hand on Faith’s back and they started down the slope. The ground leveled out and Connor took off his backpack. He unrolled a raft, sticking in a pump and setting it to fill up. Then he assembled the oars. Faith saw the fishing poles in the pack, so she took them out and put them together, going so far as to put PowerBait on the hooks.

  Within a few minutes they were pushing off into the calm blue water, toward the afternoon sunlight fanning out in the distance. Connor rowed them out in long, powerful strokes, his muscles working in a way that was hard not to watch.

  Faith pushed against the side of the yellow raft. “I’ve actually never been in a blow-up boat. I keep getting the image from the cartoons where it pops and goes skidding across the water for a few seconds before sinking.”

  One corner of his lips kicked up. “There are separate compartments to keep that from happening. Even if one popped, I’d be able to get us back to shore before we started to sink.”

  Faith reached over the side, into the water, watching tiny green floaties swirl around. After several days watching a two-year-old who never stopped moving, she drank in the peace and the chance to close her eyes without being afraid something would need to be done—or worse, ruined—when she opened them.

  “So, how’ve the past few days been?” Connor asked.

  “Yesterday I tried to wear Ella out by chasing her around the yard all morning, but the only one exhausted was me. She was still jumping around like she’d downed a six-pack of Red Bull. Which made me think, hey, I should start drinking Red Bull to keep up. Only that’d require going to the store, and I didn’t think I’d have enough energy without the drink, so it was a bit of a catch twenty-two.”

  Connor flashed her a devastatingly handsome smile.

  “Today I had a semi-breakthrough, though.” Faith paused her story to cast, the familiar plunk sound in the water small, yet comforting. “I found out she actually loves to help, so if I can keep her busy, she’s less likely to destroy something or leap on me when I least expect it. Then we tapped off the day watching Sleeping Beauty two times in a row, during which I fell asleep and she gave me this—” She swept her hair aside and showed him the purple marker spider on her neck.