Always for You: Jack (Sergeant Joe's Boys #1)

by Alexis Morgan

  Then he disappeared back into the house, leaving Jack staring at his back and wondering how his night out with his friends had gone. He didn’t know how to ask without sounding as if he were giving the kid the third degree. Ricky seemed relaxed and had met Jack’s gaze directly as if everything was okay, and he had nothing to hide.

  Even so, maybe taking this job wasn’t such a good idea while their relationship was still in its beginning stages. There was also the matter of whoever had put Ricky in the hospital. The boy wouldn’t really be safe until the bastard was behind bars. Jack still saw red every time he saw that cast on the kid’s arm and thought about all those bruises that had finally faded away. The boy never complained, but Jack knew from personal experience how badly he had to have been hurting. Before heading upstairs to bed, he did a short detour back into the gym to take his frustrations out on the punching bag.

  It was too late for second thoughts about the job now. Gabe was counting on him. He’d go wheels up tomorrow and work hard to bring the client back in one piece.

  After that, Jack would stick closer to home until he had a better feel for how this was all going to play out for him and Ricky.

  Chapter 6

  “I know you don’t want to hear this, but I think your summers would be better spent doing something besides tutoring. Maybe something fun like a nice vacation at a resort that caters to young singles.”

  Caitlyn sipped her coffee rather than immediately responding. Her mother was right about one thing. Caitlyn didn’t want to hear it. They’d had similar conversations too many times already. Nothing she ever said stopped her well-meaning mother from bringing up the subject again and again. Ellen Curtis was nothing if not determined.

  “I like what I do, Mom, and my students need the extra help.”

  “I don’t doubt that, Caitlyn, but you deserve to take some time for yourself. You can’t tell me that they couldn’t do without you for a week or even two.”

  She reached into her purse and pulled out a brochure. After staring at it for a second, she laid the brightly colored paper down on the small coffee shop table and slid it toward Caitlyn. “Your father agrees with me, and so we decided to give you an early birthday present. We bought a nonrefundable gift certificate for you and a friend to spend a week at this resort and spa. Seven gorgeous days and six nights, all expenses paid.”

  Caitlyn left the brochure right where it was. “Mom, you shouldn’t have.”

  Her mom offered her a bright smile. “Well, what are parents for if not to spoil their kids a little?”

  It was hard not to roll her eyes in response to that. “So, did you also spring for a trip to this spa for Jeremy and a friend? He’s single, too, you know.”

  Although the image of her geeky older brother hanging out at a place like the one pictured on the front of the brochure made Caitlyn want to laugh. Meanwhile, her mother’s guilty look was answer enough to Caitlyn’s question. She pushed the paper back across the table.

  “Thanks, but no thanks, Mom. My summer is pretty much booked up through at least the second week of August, and then I have to get ready for the school year.”

  Her mother’s eyes flashed with hurt and anger. “I did mention it was nonrefundable, didn’t I?”

  Now what was Caitlyn supposed to do? “Mom¸ I know you meant well—”

  Her mother immediately cut her off. “Honey, I’m sorry that your husband turned out to be such a jerk. I also regret that we didn’t realize how bad things were between the two of you sooner. Having said that, you can’t condemn all men because of one bad apple. You need to give them—and yourself—another chance.”

  “Mom, I know not all men are like Josh. The men at work are all nice, and my friends are married to some great guys.”

  For some reason, the image of Jack McShane popped into her head. He was both ruggedly handsome and what her college roommate would have described as “hot damn sexy.” However, that had also been true of Caitlyn’s husband, at least at first. She’d learned the hard way that good looks coupled with a hot body weren’t reason enough to risk getting involved with a man. Despite her body’s tendency to go all melty whenever she got within ten feet of Jack, what really drew her to him was how he’d opened his home to Ricky and how determined he was to offer the boy a chance at a better life.

  Meanwhile, her mother picked up the brochure and once again set it back in front of Caitlyn. “Your father and I want you to find happiness. That won’t happen until you put the past behind you. We’re not saying this resort trip will be the final answer, but it could be a start. And who knows, maybe you will meet someone nice. At least it’s a chance to remember that not every man is like your ex.”

  Caitlyn did her best to blink away the burn of tears. Again, she knew that not every man was an abusive jackass like her husband had been. After the divorce, she’d joined a support group that had helped her deal with that particular issue. She’d also learned how to stand up for herself, and no man was ever going to run roughshod over her again.

  Not trusting men wasn’t the real problem that made her hesitate to get involved in a relationship. No, that was because of another issue that stemmed from the same time period in her life, one that remained too raw and too painful to discuss in such a public place. She picked up the brochure and stuck it in her purse.

  “I can’t promise I’ll go, Mom. I know you mean well, and I appreciate the thought.”

  Sort of, anyway.

  Rather than continuing the discussion, she glanced at her cellphone. “Oops, I almost lost track of time. I have one more student I need to see today.”

  Before her mother could protest, Caitlyn stood up and walked around the small table to kiss her on the cheek. “Thanks for the coffee and scones. Tell Dad hi for me.”

  “You’re welcome. I’ll relay your message to Dad, but I also have one from him to you.”

  Her mother started to pick up her own purse and the shopping bag containing the dress she’d bought before meeting Caitlyn, but then she set them back down on her chair. “He said for me to point out one more time that there’s more to life than work, and you deserve to enjoy yourself once in a while. Just because it didn’t work out with Josh doesn’t mean you can’t have a happy marriage and even a family.”

  Caitlyn winced in pain. “Mom! I can’t believe you’ve forgotten—”

  Her mother held up her hand. “No, I haven’t forgotten, but there are ways, Caitlyn. I apologize if I brought up a painful subject.”

  Caitlyn tolerated her mother’s hug, hoping this conversation was finally over and done with. It wasn’t. Her mother gave her one last penetrating look before releasing her hold on Caitlyn’s arms. “Your father won’t…no, actually, we won’t be happy if you don’t make that reservation.”

  There was nothing Caitlyn could say to that. After all, a few days of being pampered definitely held some appeal. It was the idea that she should be on the hunt for a man while she was there that bothered her. Did they really think her life lacked meaning and purpose because she wasn’t married with children?

  “Tell Dad his message was received.”

  And would be ignored.

  Driving out of the parking lot, she wondered why her mother couldn’t understand why Caitlyn found the life she’d built for herself after the divorce so satisfying. A good example was how excited she was about this next tutoring session. She always took great pleasure in seeing her students’ progress, and Ricky Patton was her star pupil this summer. Beneath that teenage-boy gruffness, he was really likable, and she was convinced he just might excel in school given the right support. Certainly, he’d done well so far with his math lessons, and she held great hope that he’d be able to catch up just as quickly in his other subjects.

  But honesty made her admit that part of her excitement was due to the possibility she might see Jack McShane again. She had no desire to get involved with any man right now and especially not the foster father of one of her students. That was a complicatio
n she didn’t need in her life.

  However, the intense attraction she felt for the man was a nice reminder that her ex-husband hadn’t succeeded in ruining her for all men. Who knows, maybe she had healed enough to be ready to let someone into her life again, which brought her back to the reservation at the resort. Maybe she should go and perhaps indulge in a little flirtation. Nothing serious. Nothing permanent. Just some fun and laughs.

  The guy, whoever he was, would have to be attractive and intelligent. A great sense of humor wouldn’t hurt his cause, either. While she was asking for the moon, there was one more thing. Back before she’d met Josh, she’d always had a thing for a guy who was a good dancer. It was one of many things she’d given up for that man. Next time, if there was one, she wouldn’t settle for anything less than someone who made her happy, and that meant dancing.

  As she drove, she tried to imagine just what this paragon of American manhood would look like. In the past, she would’ve said she preferred a blue-eyed blond, but for some reason the imaginary guy twirling her on a dimly lit dance floor insisted on having reddish-brown hair worn military short and intelligent green eyes. He was also tall with broad shoulders, the perfect build for holding a woman close.

  The car behind her honked, dragging Caitlyn out of her dream world and back into the moment. Whoops! The light had changed while her imagination had been running wild. She lifted her hand in apology and drove through the intersection. Considering she was only a few blocks from her destination, it was time to get her head back in the game.

  She spent the remaining time mentally reviewing her lesson plans for Ricky. By the time she pulled up in front of the house, she was ready and back on target. It came almost as a relief to notice that Jack’s SUV was missing from the driveway. He never intruded on her time with Ricky, but she’d been almost painfully aware of him moving around in the kitchen or passing by the dining room window on his way to the garage out back.

  Marlene stepped out onto the porch just as Caitlyn started up the driveway. “Hi, Caitlyn. Come on in. I baked some chocolate chip cookies this morning. I hope you don’t mind if I pack some up for you to take home with you.”

  “My hips might not thank you, but I’d be crazy to turn down some of your cookies.”

  The older woman looked pleased. “I know I shouldn’t bake as much as I do, but I can’t seem to help myself. My late husband had a major sweet tooth, and somehow baking makes me feel like he’s still here with me. As a growing boy, Ricky can make a fair number of the cookies disappear, but even he can’t eat them all by himself.”

  “Jack doesn’t help him?”

  Marlene opened the door and followed Caitlyn into the house. “Normally he does, but he’s out of the…that is, he’s out of town for a few days. He’s supposed to be back over the weekend.”

  Interesting. That slight hesitation sounded as if Marlene had started to say something else before catching herself. Where had Jack gone that his mother thought it had to be kept secret? Not that it was any of Caitlyn’s business. She realized the other woman was still talking.

  “Anyway, I also mail care packages to my other two sons. If they can’t eat everything I send them, their friends are only too happy to help out.”

  “Ricky mentioned that you have two sons still in the service and that Jack had been in the army.”

  A mother’s pride in her sons shone brightly in Marlene’s smile. “Jack was in the Special Forces until he hurt his knee. Tino is in the military police, and Mikhail is a recon marine. I guess you could say that it runs in the family. My husband was in the army for twenty years himself. He was so pleased that all of our boys understood how important it was to give back to our country.”

  Marlene crossed the living room to pick up one of the framed pictures that were scattered around the room. “This picture of us was taken last year when they were all home at the same time. As you can imagine, that doesn’t happen very often. In fact, the last time was when they came home for Joe’s funeral.”

  Her voice cracked just a bit, and her eyes sparkled a little too brightly with a sheen of tears. Then she drew a deep breath and smiled as she handed the photo to Caitlyn. “Sorry about that. Some days are harder than others. But as I was saying, these are my sons. They’ve all served with distinction.”

  Caitlyn did her best to hide her shock. She’d already noticed that Jack didn’t look like his mother and knew they didn’t share the same last name. She hadn’t given the matter much thought, but it was clear from the picture that Jack and his brothers couldn’t be related by blood. Although each was striking in his own way and looked really good in a uniform, the resemblance ended there. Jack’s chestnut-colored hair and green eyes stood out in sharp contrast to one brother’s dark eyes and hair while the third had silvery-blond hair and icy-blue eyes.

  Beyond that, Jack’s features were more blunt, and he carried more muscle than either of the other two. The dark-haired brother was built along leaner lines, and his handsome face looked Italian or perhaps Greek. The third member of the group stood several inches taller than either of the other two and definitely had the cheekbones to go along with his Slavic coloring.

  “I can see why you’d be so proud of them. They’re all very handsome.”

  She suspected that some of her confusion showed, because the other woman smiled again. She pointed at each of her sons in succession. “Jack came to live with us first, followed by Tino, and then Mikhail. There’s less than a year between the three of them in age.”

  Marlene set the picture back on the table. “My Joe and I fostered several children before Jack came, mostly ones who needed a place to stay for a short time. He was the first one who needed a permanent placement.”

  Before she could continue, Ricky walked into the room, a visible reminder that Caitlyn wasn’t there to soak up information about Jack McShane and his brothers. “Hi, Ricky! Are you ready to get started?”

  He nodded and did an immediate about-face to head for their usual spot at the dining room table. The two women watched as he settled in and opened his math book.

  Marlene dropped her voice. “How is he doing?”

  “Really great, at least so far. I deliberately started off with math, because he likes it. However, today we’re going to begin working on language arts, which he’s not so thrilled about.”

  “Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help. Meanwhile, I’ll go finish packing up your cookies. Can I bring you a cup of tea?”

  “That would be nice, but don’t go to any special effort for me.”

  “It’s no effort at all. I often have a cup about this time of day myself. I’ll fix our tea, and then I’ll be upstairs in the sewing room.”

  That was the second time Marlene had mentioned spending time sewing. “What are you making?”

  “I like piecing quilts and belong to a quilting group through my church. We donate lap quilts to nursing homes, but we also make some little ones for the fire department to give to children with the teddy bears they hand out after accidents or house fires.”

  She glanced back at the picture of her sons with a wistful smile. “I’m also piecing quilts for each of my sons for when they get married someday. So far, none of them have had any serious relationships, but I can always hope.”

  Considering Caitlyn’s earlier conversation with her own mother, she supposed it was a subject that was frequently on a mother’s mind.

  “I’d love to see some of your quilts sometime.”

  Even if she had no interest in seeing the one Marlene had planned for Jack’s future bride. “Right now, I’d better get Ricky started.”

  —

  He looked up when she sat down at the table. “I finished the last of the algebra over the weekend.”

  “Great! Did you have any questions or anything you needed help with?”

  “No, I don’t think so. It was mostly review, anyway.”

  She took the algebra text from him and exchanged it for a grammar textbook.
“Let’s get started on this next. We’re going to be moving through the material pretty quickly, but I think you’ll be able to keep up. If not, we’ll slow down.”

  He grimaced, but at least he opened to the first page. After giving him a little time to look it over, she began at the top and went through the first three lessons with him, answering his questions as they went. When they reached the end, she gave him some worksheets to complete.

  “These cover the material we just went over. Do you want to work on them now or do them on your own so we can start on the geometry book I brought?”

  He immediately set the papers aside. “I’ll start these later and finish them before you come back on Wednesday.”

  She hid her smile as she dug the new math book out of her pack. “Okay, then. Let’s get started on the geometry.”

  As he began looking through the geometry text, she wondered if anyone had made any progress in tracking down his family or at least his school records. She’d have to ask Jack when he got back from his mysterious trip.

  “Hey, Earth to Caitlyn!”

  She blinked and realized that Ricky was waving his hand in front of her face to get her attention. “Sorry about that, kiddo. I must have zoned out there for a minute.”

  “You think? I’d already said your name twice.” His grin was a bit wicked. “Gotta hot date tonight or something?”

  “Ricky!” Caitlyn’s face flushed hot, and she did her best to look stern. “That’s not an appropriate question to ask me.”

  “Sorry.” Although the twinkle in his eye made it clear he enjoyed seeing her flustered.

  “Apology accepted. Now, we should both get back on task. What was your question?”

  He pointed to the page. “Can you go through this one with me? I’ve read through the problem twice, and it’s still not making any sense.”

  She turned the book so she could read over the problem and the explanation offered in the text. Then she reached for the small whiteboard she kept handy for just such situations. “Let’s break the problem down into its component parts and see where that gets us.”