by Addison Cole
Caden’s gut told him to stop by and meet the parents, but he trusted Evan, and he didn’t want to make his son appear to be a daddy’s boy. Kristie had already given him both of the boys’ parents’ names, addresses, and phone numbers. He decided to give Evan a little rope and hope he didn’t hang himself.
“Okay, but be home by ten. Do you want me to pick you up?” He felt like he was sending him off to preschool for the first time. At least with preschool he could sit in his car and watch Evan playing safely under the guidance of the teachers. This was much scarier.
“Nah. I’ve got my bike, but can we say eleven instead?”
“Evan.”
“What? I had a curfew of eleven back in Boston. And it’s summer, Dad.”
The frustration in Evan’s voice shot straight to the center of Caden’s chest. He was right. It wasn’t an unreasonable request, and it would give Caden an extra hour with Bella.
“Okay, but not a minute later.”
Caden showered and changed, excited to spend a few hours alone with Bella. On his way out the door, he grabbed his leather tool belt. He loved this little ruse they were playing, and he intended to make the most of it.
He pulled over to the side of the road before driving into the Seaside complex. He removed his shirt and wrapped the leather tool belt around his waist, feeling the thrum of anticipation. He caught a glimpse of himself in the rearview mirror and shook his head. He had no chance of quashing the smile from his lips. He tilted the mirror so he could see his abs. He worked out often and he was in great shape. As he confirmed that fact, he felt incredibly silly. He hadn’t done anything even remotely similar to this since his college days, when he and a group of his buddies went to an Anything But Clothes party wearing nothing but plastic beach inner tubes to cover their private parts.
He pushed the mirror back into place and leaned his head back. What am I doing?
He pulled out his cell and brought up the picture of Bella in her lingerie and leather boots. The mischievous glint in her beautiful eyes gave him confidence.
Oh yeah, he was so going to do this. He threw the truck into drive. After he parked at Bella’s cottage, a quick scan of the immediate area told him that no one was outside, which was good, because while he loved the idea of surprising Bella in his shirtless, boot-clad getup, he knew perfectly well that there would be no hiding the thought behind the outfit.
With a deep breath, and his stomach doing all sorts of funny things, he climbed from the car.
“She’s at Leanna’s.” Tony came around the side of the cottage and assessed Caden’s outfit with a knowing smirk.
Caden closed his eyes for a beat and shook his head.
“Dude, let me get her. Trust me. You don’t want those girls seeing you like that. Bella yes, but Jenna? Man, she’ll eat you alive.”
Caden couldn’t even thank him, he was so embarrassed. He banged his forehead against the door, then reached for the buckle on the tool belt to take the stupid thing off.
He heard their giggles before he could get the tool belt off. For crying out loud.
“Oh, come to mama,” Jenna teased.
“You are one hot handyman,” Bella said as she came up behind him and patted his butt.
“Wowza,” Amy said. “I told you that lingerie, leather boots outfit would put a spark in your relationship.”
We needed a spark? What else could he do but roll with it? Caden turned, threw his hands up in the air, and spun around slowly. “There you go, ladies. Get an eyeful, because it’s the only one you’re gonna get.”
“Dude, you’re upping the ante here big-time. How are we supposed to keep up?” Kurt and Leanna followed Jenna onto the deck.
“Well, you know. You’ve already got Leanna, so you probably don’t need to do this stuff anymore. I’m still wooing Bella.” Bella trailed her fingers lightly along his abs, with such a lustful look that he was thankful the tool belt was hanging in front of his junk.
Kurt shook his head. “If you think it ends after you’re together, boy, you’ve been out of the dating scene for too long. I know I was.” He pulled Leanna close, and she wrapped her arms around his waist.
Bella hooked her finger into the belt and smiled up at him. “I love that you came over ready to work.” She lifted her brows and nibbled on her lower lip.
He shot a look at the others.
Tony held his hands up in the air. “I tried, dude.”
“Thanks, man.”
“If you thought we’d miss this, you were sorely mistaken.” Jenna and Amy made no effort to hide their gawking.
“If you’re going to drool over me, you’d better have a few dollar bills ready.”
Bella put her hand flat on Caden’s chest. It was warm and soft, and even with all the people around them, he couldn’t help taking her in his arms and kissing her.
“Hi, sexy,” she said. “Kurt and Leanna were helping me write up some of the stuff I need for the project I’m working on. We can finish tomorrow.”
“No need. It’ll take me some time to get these locks on. Why don’t you guys finish and then we’ll spend time together.”
She ran her finger down the center of his chest. “Will you stay dressed like this?” She fluttered her lashes and nibbled on her lower lip.
Did she have any idea how crazy that drove him?
He glanced at the others, talking among themselves but still close enough to hear them. Being with Bella had calmed his nerves, and he no longer felt embarrassed. It struck him that Bella’s friends had already become that comfortably familiar to him.
He shrugged. “Why not.”
Bella went up on tiptoes and kissed him. “Hot damn! And in case you didn’t get the memo, we’re dating, so you can totally do boyfriendy things.”
He lowered his cheek to hers. “I got the memo and the racy selfie. Do you really think I’d have dressed like this if I didn’t think we were dating?”
Her smile didn’t falter.
“Does this mean you’re committing to seeing only me, or do you plan on dating anyone willing to don a tool belt?”
She drew back and searched his eyes. “I am totally breaking my plan for you, you know.”
“I do know.” But I’m hoping your new plan will include me and Evan.
BELLA HAD A hard time focusing on the marketing pitch and designing the outline for the work-study program with Caden walking around half naked. They’d been trading heated glances that made her feel like a high school girl crushing all over again. Only Caden was not a high school boy. He was one hundred percent man. She wondered what he was like in high school. Was he strong and silent, a little mysterious, the way he was as a man? Or did that come with being a father or simply growing up? Had he been a jock or a studious nerd?
She imagined he was a sexy combination of both.
Bella brought her attention back to Kurt, staring at his laptop and tweaking the marketing plan for the work-study program. Leanna claimed to think better when her hands were busy. She’d made a catastrophe of Bella’s kitchen, while baking bread and calling out ideas for them to jot down. Now Leanna was poking around in Bella’s refrigerator.
“I think you’ve got a solid plan.” Kurt turned the laptop toward Bella. “I just changed a few words here and there.”
“Really? It doesn’t suck?”
Kurt laughed. “Of course not. What you had before didn’t suck, but this is even better. I like the new spin on it.”
Leanna pulled a fresh loaf of bread out of the oven, filling the small cottage with the delicious scent of warmth and comfort. “You know I’d sign up for the program if you really wanted me to.”
“I know you would, but there’s no need. I’m going to make this work. I just have to be creative.”
Leanna closed the refrigerator door. “Where’d you hide the jam?”
Bella opened the refrigerator and pulled a jar of Luscious Leanna’s Sweet Treats apricot-lime jam from the door and waved it at Kurt and Leanna. Surprise r
ose in Leanna’s eyes. “Don’t sweat it. I can never find anything in my fridge either,” Bella assured her.
Caden came out of the bedroom, where he’d been installing the last of the new locks on the window. “It smells like heaven in here.”
“Leanna made bread.” Bella glanced at Leanna’s dirty T-shirt. “As you can see by the flour, sugar, and”—she leaned in close to look at an oily streak on Leanna’s jeans—“butter that she’s wearing.”
“That’s my girl.” Kurt kissed a streak of batter from Leanna’s cheek.
“Hey, cleanliness and creativity do not go hand in hand.” Leanna began gathering the bowls and utensils she’d used. “That’s a banana, cranberry, almond loaf, and this mess is a small price to pay.”
“Agreed,” Bella said. “Leave it. I’ll take care of it. Thanks for your help, you guys. I couldn’t have done it without you.”
“Of course you could have, but if we didn’t keep you busy, Caden wouldn’t have gotten any work done.” Kurt reached for Leanna’s hand. “Come on, babe. Let’s go check on Vera and give them some privacy.”
“Thanks for helping Bella and for giving me time to get the locks installed,” Caden said. “Now at least I know she’s got ample security.”
Leanna opened the door to leave. “Like she’ll lock her doors? See ya guys.”
“Tell Vera we said hello,” Bella called after them.
Caden placed his hands on her hips. His fingers slid beneath her billowy tank top and skimmed her waist as he touched his forehead to hers.
“Do you feel good about what you’ve accomplished?” His breath was hot, his voice rich and seductive.
Bella’s body hummed with anticipation. She wrapped her arms around his bare back, feeling the muscles she’d just spent more than an hour watching flex and bunch beneath his taut, tanned skin. He felt so good.
“Yeah,” was all she could manage. “How about you?”
He lifted her chin and kissed her softly. It was the kiss of a man who had no place else that he’d rather be, tender and full of promise.
“That depends. Will you use these new locks?”
I’ll do anything you ask. “Mm-hm.”
“Then yes. I feel better knowing that you’re a little safer.”
“I never thought I needed protecting, but I have to admit, there’s something about you protecting me that feels good.”
“Yeah?” He lowered his mouth to her neck and trailed kisses to her ear. “Everyone needs protecting.” He licked the shell of her ear, then whispered, “Even tough women who make plans.”
Bella closed her eyes, relishing the sound and feel of him.
“Are you sure you can commit to me?” he whispered.
Oh, yes. A shiver of worry skittered up her spine. With her eyes still closed, she whispered, “I know I can commit, but you might find I’m not all you were hoping for.”
He pressed his lips to her cheek. “You’re exactly the woman I’ve hoped for.”
Her throat tightened.
Caden drew back and cupped her cheeks in his big, strong hands. “Look at me, Bella.”
She forced herself to open her eyes, and the compassionate, loving look in his told her everything she needed to know, and his words drove that feeling home.
“I’m not afraid to commit, and I’m not afraid to love.” He searched her eyes, pausing, Bella assumed, long enough for his words to sink in.
“But we’re adults, and Evan’s still just a kid. I’m not a free agent, Bella. My life includes Evan, and always will. My decisions affect him, so if there’s any chance you’re going to run scared, then let’s take things slow.”
She tightened her grip on him. “Slow? It doesn’t matter what we call it, Caden. Our hearts and bodies don’t know slow. At least not when we’re together. You’ve weaseled your way into my heart so fast. I have no desire to go slow with you. I just want to…Oh, Caden, I don’t want to make a life decision about my job, or my house, and then get hurt. I need to make those decisions without the rest, but that seems unrealistic.”
He brushed her hair from her forehead and tucked it behind her ear. “Then how about if we just make sure we don’t hurt each other? Because I need that same level of commitment from you. I can’t afford to be hurt. Evan doesn’t need a lovesick father making his life more complicated.”
“I don’t cheat or lie. I never have,” Bella said adamantly.
“Neither do I.”
He sealed his mouth to hers in a tender, drawn-out kiss that made her long for more.
“Tell me what I need to know before I take you into your bedroom and make sweet love to you until neither of us can remember how to talk.”
She could barely breathe, much less think straight.
“I…I break rules,” she managed.
The left side of his mouth quirked up. “In the bedroom or in general?”
She placed her hands on his bare chest and felt his heart beating as fast as hers. Every breath, every second, pulsed with heat. She forced herself to answer.
“Both.” She didn’t really break rules in the bedroom, but now, with him, the idea was tantalizing.
“Holy…I’m not a cop in the bedroom.” He lowered the strap of her top and kissed the curve of her shoulder, sending her mind reeling. “Tell me about the rules you break outside the bedroom.”
He ran his tongue along her collarbone. Bella closed her eyes, relishing the feel of his hard body against hers, his tongue on the skin above her breasts.
“Fireworks,” she said in one long breath.
“You see them now?” he whispered. “Or you use them?” He slid his hands up her ribs, making her feel small and feminine—and crave the feel of them everywhere.
“Both.” Another breathy word. She couldn’t help but bring her lips to his chest. He smelled like passion and strength. Earthy, musky, and sweet all at once. She kissed the arc of his pecs, nipping at the muscle.
“I can’t break the law,” he whispered.
She heard restraint in his voice. “I would never ask you to.”
His eyes darkened as he grazed the underside of her breasts with his thumbs. Oh, yes. She couldn’t have pushed words from her lips if her life depended on it. She was too focused on his hands on her. She felt ripe and ready, hot all over.
He kissed her again, then whispered, “Tell me all the bad stuff now so we go into this with our eyes open.”
He captured her mouth with his and took her in an impatient, tongue-thrusting kiss. When he drew back, she was dizzy, drunk with desire.
“Eyes open, baby. No secrets, no lies, no hidden agendas.”
She opened her eyes, and his hungry gaze brought the truth to her lips.
“Skinny-dipping.” He was going to run out the door if she kept spewing her rule-breaking ways.
His mouth quirked up again. “You are a naughty girl.”
“Tell me.” She kissed his chest again and forced herself to continue. “Your bad stuff.”
He sealed his mouth over the curve of her neck, pulling a moan from her lungs. His lips grazed hers as he answered.
“I’ve been a single dad for a very long time. And I’m a cop,” he whispered. “No bad stuff.”
He lowered her other shirt strap and kissed his way across her shoulder. A light breeze blew through the kitchen, and Bella realized the only thing between them and the outside world was the screen door. He took her in another knee-quaking kiss and slid one hand to her bottom.
“Only fantasies,” he whispered against her lips.
He slid his eyes from hers to the door. “Of all the things I haven’t had a chance to do.” He kissed each corner of her mouth, then pressed a soft kiss to her lips. “Like make love to a woman outside.”
Bella’s knees weakened. Outside. “Like, on the beach?” She was beginning to realize that her rule-breaking ways were pretty tame. She’d never made love outside, and the idea of making love to Caden outside revved her up even more.
“Too open
.” He kissed her again. “Indecent exposure.”
“The woods?” she offered.
He touched his forehead to hers again. “Bella.”
“The pool?” she asked softly.
He met her gaze. “You are going to get me in trouble.”
He tangled his hands in her hair and took her in another deep kiss.
She wanted to be closer, to feel the weight of him on top of her.
He drew back, his eyes jumping over hers. “Bella, if there’s more, tell me quick.”
“I. Can’t. Think.”
She pulled him down for another kiss, and they stumbled into the bedroom. Caden kicked the door shut and kissed her so deeply that she felt as if she were floating on a cloud. He tasted deliciously sweet, and hot, tearing his lips from hers only long enough for her shirt to slip off; then they were mouth to mouth again. She fumbled with the buckle on his tool belt and heard Tony’s laugh filter through the open window.
Bella froze.
“Window,” she whispered.
He moved quickly toward the window. Bella dashed out the bedroom door with her arms crossed over her chest. She closed the window over the kitchen sink and pushed the cottage door shut. She took a second to get ahold of herself before she lost all control and climbed Caden like a tree. She pressed her hands flat on the door and leaned her forehead against it, breathing deeply.
She sensed Caden behind her before she felt him unhook her bra. His hands circled her from behind. Heat radiated from his bare chest. He brushed her hair from her shoulder, and lowered his mouth to the back of her neck.
“You like that,” he whispered.
He turned her roughly in his arms and pressed his body to hers, her back against the wooden door. He pressed barely there kisses to her cheeks, her chin, her neck, everywhere except her lips, making his way slowly down her neck, then back up to her face again. Every feathery tease heightened her anticipation.
“Caden, please.” She was ready to crawl out of her skin and into his.
He placed one hand on each side of her head, their thighs touching. She leaned forward to kiss his luscious lips and he pulled away.
“No rushing.”
He traced the edge of her lips with his tongue. Each time she moved forward, wanting to taste him, to feel his mouth consume her, he drew away. He kissed along the edge of her jaw, and she closed her eyes, giving in to the torturously slow progression he was lavishing on her, feeling as though she might come apart from sheer anticipation.