Issued to the Bride One Airman (Brides of Chance Creek Book 2)

by Cora Seton

Connor had opened to her as much as she was opening to him. He was fully present, and his attention nurtured her as much as the rain did the plants growing out in the gardens.

  When he finally pulled back, his breathing was rough and so was hers. “Will you let me stay, lass?” he asked in a light burr.

  “You’ll do what I tell you? No questions asked?” She couldn’t possibly explain what she needed him to do.

  “No questions asked.”

  “You’ll help with the garden?”

  “Anything.”

  Why not take him at his word? Why not take one more chance?

  Surely her heart could survive being broken one more time.

  “Okay. You can stay. For now.”

  Connor wasn’t sure what he’d expected when Sadie took his hand in the greenhouse. In a way, he hadn’t expected anything. Sadie was so full of contradictions he’d stopped trying to puzzle her out, but part of him had hoped against hope they might make love.

  Instead, they spent the remainder of the day working together, first in the greenhouse and then in the garden outside, Connor struggling to keep his libido under check. This close to Sadie, he couldn’t help want her all the more. He helped fetch and carry various types of soil amendments and fertilizer and had jiggered the irrigation system to Sadie’s requirements, but mostly he watched her as she worked. Once he realized she wanted to keep a connection between them—touching him frequently as she added the amendments to the soil around one plant, sprayed a homemade concoction to rid another of aphids and adjusted the water near a third, he made a point of touching her arm, her shoulder or her back so she didn’t have to interrupt her work. He had no idea why they were doing this, but he figured touching each other couldn’t be a bad thing. Maybe it was her funny way of building a connection to him. Maybe it was a test.

  If it sped them toward his goal of getting to know her—getting to marry her, he didn’t care.

  By the end of the day he was burning with need for her, but while Sadie allowed him to kiss her good-night, she broke away from him when he tried to angle her into the guest room for a more intimate encounter.

  “I’m… not ready for that.”

  There was something so raw and truthful in her voice Connor didn’t feel played. He knew she’d been through a lot. Knew the man who’d dated her before him hadn’t treated her well. Knew the texts she’d seen from Lila and Bridget made her doubt him. He couldn’t blame her. Connor hated the thought that any man had touched her, but he got that anger under control. Sadie needed his gentleness.

  “I can wait,” he made himself say. He hoped he was right.

  She laid her hands on his chest and he struggled to stay still. He’d never waited before. He’d either been with a woman or hadn’t. He realized now how much sweetness he’d missed. Anticipation was a heady sensation.

  “I like to touch you,” she said simply. “I shouldn’t, but I do.”

  She was killing him. “Know what you mean.” His hands ached to cup her breasts and feel their softness, but in this situation he needed to keep a cool head.

  “I think…” She met his gaze and searched it. “I think… maybe.”

  He stilled. Such a simple statement—but he couldn’t think of another that had affected him so much.

  She didn’t trust him yet, but she’d left a little opening to her heart he might be able to pass through. He’d prove to her he could be the man she wanted. Fast. Because he wasn’t sure how much longer he could hold back. Bit by bit his desire for Sadie had crept up on him until it consumed him, making clear thought difficult.

  “Any time,” he added. “You come looking for me, I’ll be here. I’ll be here tonight, as a matter of fact.”

  Sadie grinned. “Really. You’d like me to look for you tonight?”

  She really was killing him. “Yeah,” he admitted. “I’d like that. But like I said, I’ll wait.”

  Sadie’s lips parted. For a moment her own desire was visible on her face. Relief swept through him. He was right; he hadn’t lost her irrevocably with those damn texts on his phone.

  He forced himself to pull away. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  Sadie nodded and slipped down the hall to her own room. She hesitated in the doorway almost long enough to make him think she’d changed her mind, before heading inside and closing the door behind her.

  After a night full of dreams so erotic he woke up more frustrated than rested, Connor took an ice-cold shower, and spent several hours working with Lena. He’d just come back to the house mid-morning when a familiar red Ford truck pulled up and parked, and a man climbed out of it just in time to head Jo off as she approached from the carriage house.

  “Who’s that?” Sadie asked, coming to the door.

  “Grant Kimball. He wants one of Jo’s puppies,” Connor said curtly. He didn’t like how often the man was coming around.

  “Are you sure? Looks to me like it’s Jo he’s interested in.”

  She was right.

  Grant didn’t seem to be in any hurry. He’d leaned against his truck, cocked his hat back and was chewing the fat with Jo.

  “Something about that guy rubs me wrong,” Connor told Sadie.

  “I’ve never seen him before. Is he new in town?”

  “Near as I can make out. I’m going to make sure he isn’t bothering her.” As he turned, Sadie held out a hand to stop him.

  “Take it easy. I’m all for letting this guy know Jo’s got people who care about her; I don’t want anyone to hurt her again. But if he’s just flirting, don’t scare him away. She could use a good relationship right about now.”

  Connor was sure that was true, but that relationship was supposed to be with Hunter—not Grant. He kept going and arrived at Jo’s side in time to hear Grant say, “I’d like to get on your list for next time.”

  “That list is a mile long,” Jo told him. “Could be years before your name comes up.”

  “Then I guess I’ll have to keep stopping by to see where I’m at.”

  A faint flush on Jo’s cheeks told Connor she liked the attention Grant was paying her.

  Connor didn’t like it. “There’s no need to pester the lady. She’ll call you up when it’s your turn. Do you have this man’s phone number?” he asked her.

  “Not yet.” She dug out her phone and passed it to Grant to put his information in.

  “Your address, too,” Connor said. “So she knows where to bring the dog.” And he knew where to go to find out more about Grant.

  “I’m kind of in between places right now,” Grant said evenly. “But here’s my number.” He handed the phone back to Jo. “Where are they at, anyway? The puppies.”

  The flicker of Jo’s gaze to the carriage house betrayed their whereabouts before she even said a word. Connor stifled a curse. He didn’t like the idea of Grant knowing where the dogs were kept.

  “Mind if I see one?”

  “Yes, she minds,” Connor said, stepping between them. “Jo takes her business seriously. She knows every family before she gives them a dog. When she gets to know you, she’ll be ready to talk business. Got it?” He’d made all that up, but he had a feeling it was mostly true.

  “Sure,” Grant said after a long moment. “I can see you all are busy. I’ll come back another time. So we can get to know each other,” he said to Jo.

  Jo nodded.

  Grant got back into his truck, started it and peeled out.

  “Lunch is ready,” Sadie called from the porch. “What was that all about?” she asked when Connor and Jo reached the back door.

  “He wants a dog,” Jo said.

  “I’m not sure that’s all he wants,” Connor said darkly. “Jo, don’t trust that guy. Something’s off about him.”

  “I think he’s kind of nice. And he likes dogs.”

  “Just be careful,” Sadie said.

  “I will. I’m not an idiot.”

  Connor sighed. Jo was no dummy. And maybe his dislike for the man was simply due to the circums
tances they were in. Jo was meant for Hunter, not Grant. “Just go count those dogs. Make sure they’re all where they’re supposed to be.” He couldn’t overplay this, and he couldn’t explain about Hunter, either. He’d do what he could to squash the budding relationship between Jo and Grant, but he’d also tell Hunter what was happening. Maybe the General would send the man early.

  “The door’s locked.” But Jo set off toward the carriage house. Connor took Sadie’s hand and guided her along with him as he followed Jo. When Jo opened the door to the room where the puppies were living, she counted quickly. “Five. Everyone’s here and accounted for.”

  Connor dropped to his knees and let the puppies overrun him. Max in particular liked to lick his nose and Connor laughed and shoved him gently aside, only to have the puppy come back for more.

  “He knows he’s yours,” Jo said, softening a little.

  “You gave him a puppy?” Sadie sounded surprised.

  “Max likes him.”

  “But—”

  “Max likes him,” Jo said again obstinately. “Arnold Meyers will have to wait.”

  Connor looked up to find Sadie watching him speculatively.

  “People wait for years to get one of her puppies,” she told Connor when they finished up and left the carriage house, Jo hanging back to secure the door. “I’ve never seen her play favorites like that before.”

  “Max likes me,” Connor said with a grin.

  Sadie’s answering smile warmed him right to the core.

  All day, Sadie puzzled over Connor in her mind. She didn’t know how to reconcile his kindness and consideration with the man who collected women like playing cards and lied to his parents about getting married. He put up with her strange requests all afternoon, working in the garden side by side as if they were tethered together, but not pushing her past her comfort zone as far as their physical relationship was concerned.

  Could a player show such restraint?

  Would a two-timer be so gentle around her? And around Jo’s puppies? Mark certainly wouldn’t have been.

  After dinner, he helped her with the dishes, and afterward led her out onto the back porch, but when he bent toward her as if he’d snatch a kiss, Sadie pulled back.

  “Nope.”

  “Why not?” His tone was light, but his question was serious.

  “You know why not. I’m not some woman you keep around for fun.” He was hard to resist, especially after she’d spent the day so close to him, but she needed to resist him.

  He didn’t pretend not to understand. “Like I said, while I was in the Air Force I didn’t want anything serious. I wasn’t ready for it. That’s changed.” He pulled out his phone. “I probably shouldn’t show you this. It won’t make me look good.” He tapped it a few times and showed her the screen. She read texts he’d written to several women making it clear he needed to end their flirtation. “I’ve met someone,” he’d written to each of them. “I have to take this seriously.”

  She wasn’t sure how to react. She was pleased to see the messages but… “You were flirting with all those women at once?”

  “I told you it wouldn’t make me look good.” Connor shrugged. “I told you why I kept things light. My line of work can get… grim.”

  “You haven’t told me much about your line of work.”

  Sadie sat down on the wicker couch. Connor joined her.

  “It’s my job to save pilots who go down behind enemy lines—among other things,” he said, as if that explained everything.

  “Sounds dangerous.”

  “Know a job in the military that isn’t?” he asked her.

  “No, but that sounds more dangerous than most.”

  “It can be.”

  “Thinking about something specific?” She could tell he was.

  “My last mission was… interesting.” He shifted closer to her and the rattan couch creaked. “We dropped into Syria, looking for a plane that went down. We found the plane, but the pilot was missing. I have to admit I expected the worst—that he’d been found by enemy forces. Taken hostage.”

  Sadie suppressed a shiver that traced down her spine. She could only imagine the wreckage of the plane, the sere landscape and their desperate search.

  “Then a man came—an old man. A Syrian. Halil.” Connor shook his head. “He kept beckoning to us. ‘He’s over here, over here!’ We didn’t know if it was a trap. He was ancient. Thin—you wouldn’t believe how thin. We followed him.”

  Sadie bit her lip. Connor must have known he could be killed at any time—

  “It wasn’t a trap. He led us to a makeshift camp. Just a tarp and a little fire. Hardly anything. But he and his wife, Fatima, had been tending Shaw—the pilot—doing their best to save him. He would have died if they hadn’t.”

  Connor took another sip, but all Sadie could do was watch him. “Why did they do it? Wouldn’t they have been in danger?”

  “Damn straight.” Connor nodded. “They were refugees on their way to the border where they hoped to cross to safety. They knew damn well plenty of people in the area wouldn’t be sympathetic to Americans. That’s why they carried him to their camp. They were trying to hide him. Fatima was as old as he was—I have no idea how they carried Shaw.”

  “That’s amazing.”

  “You have no idea.” His gaze was distant, and she was sure he was back in Syria again.

  Connor chuckled suddenly. “In the middle of all that, he wanted to do things right; to introduce himself. He told me his name, then his wife’s. He was so proud of her.”

  “What was she like?” Sadie didn’t want to move. Didn’t want to break the spell. She wanted to know exactly what had happened.

  “She wore a long dress, a head scarf, but her face wasn’t covered. I think she must have been beautiful when she was young. She still was in a way. Frightened, though. Or maybe just shy. But I swear, when Halil looked at her, she smiled and you’ve never seen anything like it. Those two were in love. In the damn desert, starving probably, trying to walk to safety—eighty if they were a day. Totally in love. Halil told me they’d been married for sixty-two years. You know what he said?”

  Sadie shook her head.

  “Find a good woman. Make her your everything—your life. Then you will know peace no matter where you go.”

  “What happened to them?” Sadie knew Connor probably had no idea.

  He hesitated so long she thought he wouldn’t answer.

  “They had hundreds of miles to go to the border. They’d been walking with their family, but they were too slow. They told the others to go on ahead. They knew their chances of making it were slim.”

  She thought he was done and her heart ached for Connor. It must have been so hard to leave them there—

  “I put them on the helicopter. Took them back with us. They saved Shaw.” His gaze pleaded with her to understand.

  Sadie sucked in a surprised breath. Of course she understood; how could he do anything else?

  But that must be why Connor was here. Why he’d gotten in trouble with the Air Force.

  “I couldn’t leave them. I don’t know where they are now. No one will tell me,” he confessed. “All I can hope is I did the right thing and they’re safe.”

  “Of course you did the right thing,” Sadie cried. “They saved our pilot.”

  “That’s not what the Air Force thinks. So I ended up at USSOCOM under your dad’s command.”

  She took that in. “And the General sent you here to build a walled garden?” What a finish to the man’s career. Connor didn’t deserve that.

  “Gets me out of his hair, doesn’t it?” Connor said lightly, but she could tell the whole series of events had made a lasting impression on him. He’d saved the pilot and two refugees.

  And lost everything over it.

  “What are you going to do now?” She couldn’t imagine how he must feel.

  “Build you a walled garden, for starters,” he said simply. “Don’t feel bad for me, Sadie. I c
an’t think of anywhere I’d rather be right now.” He leaned over and kissed her.

  And Sadie let him.

  Chapter Seven

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  How could one innocent kiss spark so much want inside him? How could one innocent country girl like Sadie make him want to toss everything else to the wind and follow her everywhere?

  Including up off his seat, down the steps and back out into the garden—which was where she was leading him in between kissing him like she could never get enough.

  He knew he couldn’t.

  At first he couldn’t figure out her plan. She wandered first in one direction, then in another, with no apparent rhyme or reason until he tore away from a kiss that was driving him half out of his mind, lifted his head and realized she was walking the rows of the garden one after another.

  “Lass, what the hell are you doing?” he asked when he finally pulled her to a stop. He wanted more than kisses and she was distracting him from his goal.

  “Drawing it out. We’ll get to the maze sooner or later.” She went up on tiptoe and kissed him again.

  “Get to the—?” Hell. Connor gave in. If Sadie wanted to seduce him in every row of her garden, let her. If she wanted to be with him in the center of the maze, he was down for that. Couldn’t think of a better place, in fact. The long summer’s day was fading into twilight. No one was around.

  Sadie turned a corner and led him down another path. Connor took a chance, put his hand on her waist and skimmed it up her tight-fitting T-shirt to caress her breast through the fabric.

  Sadie stumbled, tore herself away from him, but kept a hand on his shoulder, breathing hard while she looked around her. “They can see us from the house—”

  But before she finished her sentence, she trailed off and stared at the zucchini plant near her feet. It was by far the healthiest thing he’d seen in the garden since he’d been here, Connor thought. When Sadie grabbed his hand and placed it over her breast, however, all thoughts of zucchini fled his mind. Connor happily obliged her with a firm caress. Sadie’s breathing hitched, but she kept her gaze on the ground, then laughed.

  “What?”

  “They—they like it when we’re together. I can feel them… growing. Getting healthier.” Connor wondered if she’d lost her mind when she turned in a slow circle, then suddenly shouted, “Is that what you want? A fertility rite?” She paused as if listening.