by Christi Snow
20 years ago
Felicia twirled in the middle of the dance floor, sending her skirt swirling high up her thighs. At any other time in her life, she would have worried about that flash of too-much skin, but she was on her third strawberry margarita for the night, it was the first night of spring break, and she was on the verge of finishing her second grueling year of veterinary school. To top it off, she’d assisted with the care of a feral cat today in labs, and her input might have just saved that cat’s life. She deserved to celebrate, and that’s what she planned on doing.
Her best friend and lab partner, Whitney, squealed over the pounding music as she shimmied and leaned in to yell in Felicia’s ear, “Girl, look behind you. Hottie at four o’clock, checking you out. He hasn’t taken his eyes off your ass for the last two songs.”
Felicia glanced over her shoulder, and her stomach did a somersault. Gorgeous didn’t even begin to describe the man. Tall, dark, and handsome, he stood at the edge of the dance floor, watching her with intent. When he saw her looking, one corner of his mouth kicked up, showcasing an adorable dimple in his left cheek. He winked.
She bit her lip. Dang, he was gorgeous. “What should I do?” she yelled to Whitney as they continued to dance to the pounding beat.
Whitney began to answer, but her eyes widened. “Two words, Fe...have fun.” With a jaunty little wave, Whitney turned on her heel and walked away.
Felicia became aware of a tall, strong body standing behind her, moving with her to the music.
“Looks like you lost your dancing partner,” he said, his voice low and sultry. The hot air of his breath flowed over the shell of her ear, sending goosebumps erupting down her arms.
Felicia glanced over her shoulder and met the teasing, silver-green eyes of the hottie. She wouldn’t have thought it possible, but his deep voice made him even sexier. He was more gorgeous close up, and he smelled delicious...a spicy male cologne that made her want to bury her face in his neck and lick.
“Are you going to take her place?” he asked saucily...so much smoother than she usually was with a gorgeous guy. Thank the tequila gods.
FOUR HOURS LATER, FELICIA and Gage switched from tequila to coffee and sat in the back corner booth of the local pancake place. She had sobered from the alcohol, but the high from her chemistry with this guy had kept her flying. Never in her life had she felt so immediately at ease with someone, but at the same time, excitement thrummed under her veins with a realization that this guy was different.
Was it too early for thoughts like that? Hell, yeah. But that knowledge couldn’t slow down her speeding heart.
“So, why a veterinarian?” he asked as he stole one of her fries and dipped it in ketchup.
“The girl I was dancing with at the club, Whitney, has a ranch. I spent every summer with her since fourth grade. Their ranch is on the outskirts of a little New Mexico town called Terravista. That’s a couple of hours from my hometown. Going to her place was the best...not only because I got to spend time with her, but because of the animals.
“They raise goats, which are the most ornery creatures in the world. But they also have a few head of cattle they move from the valley where they winter to the BLM lands up in the mountains for the summer. Between the horses, cows, goats, chickens, and barnyard cats, there were always baby animals being born, grown animals to care for. A pure cycle of life happened on a daily basis, right there on their ranch. It was heaven. I knew I’d never make it as a rancher, but I could have a hand in it as a vet.”
“Do you still spend time on the ranch now? I’d like to see you on a horse.” His eyes glittered with interest.
She grinned. “Every chance I get. Her brother, Billy, runs it now.”
“Billy, huh?” He raised an eyebrow. “Is he just a friend, too, or more?”
She laughed. “No, unfortunately for women everywhere, Billy is gay. He’s gorgeous and sexy as all get out, but I don’t have the right parts. Besides, we really did grow up together. It would be like dating my brother. Ew, no thanks.” She widened her horrified eyes theatrically. “So, what about you?”
He shook his head morosely. “No, I don’t think I’d want to date Billy, either.” His eyes twinkled.
She snorted. “I hope not, or else I’m going to have my heart broken tonight.”
He stilled, and she wondered if she’d said too much, too fast.
He grabbed hold of her hand. “I know we haven’t known one another very long, but the man who would deliberately break your heart doesn’t deserve you. I don’t plan to be that man.”
She couldn’t stop the fluttery sigh from escaping. “Wow,” she whispered. “You’re smooth.”
“Only with you, darling.” He gave her that flirty wink again that lightened the moment.
She shook her head at what was obviously a cheesy line. “But what I was asking was...why the Air Force? Have you always wanted to be a pilot?”
She attended vet school at Oklahoma State University, but Gage had come into town for the weekend from Vance Air Force Base, a pilot training base about an hour away from her quaint college town. He said it was for the nightlife, but she was pretty sure the college coeds were the real draw for the van-full of pilots in training.
“I’ve always been an adrenaline junkie. My older brother is in the Air Force, although he flies KC-10s. Those are the huge planes like DC-10s that are tankers that refuel the other jets in the air. I’m hoping I get a fighter or bomber slot.”
“Is that likely? Do you get a say in what plane you fly?”
“No.” He shook his head at her. “It’s all based on skill, but I’m not worried.” He waggled his eyebrows at her, and his mouth spread wide in a complete shit-eating grin. “I have skills.”
“Oh my god.” She laughed as she shook her head at him. “That was so bad. It’s good to see that your ego is completely intact.”
He joined her and laughed. “No, but seriously, I think I’m doing okay. This is the first weekend I’ve taken any time off from studying, and that’s just because we’re in a slight break as we switch our training between airframes.” He traced over her palm sending shivers through her body. “I think I owe fate or the Air Force a thank you, since neither one of us are known to go out like this. What were the odds that our weekends to let go would coincide?”
“Do you really believe in fate?” He didn’t strike her as a romantic, but how well did she really know him?
He drew a finger around the rim of his coffee cup as he considered her question. “I believe that we all make decisions that affect our lives every day...big ones, little ones. Do I think it’s all out of our control? No. Do I think tiny miracles happen every day like meeting the right people at just the right time?” He looked up to meet her eyes, his gaze intense and serious.
Her breath caught. She felt like she was on the edge of jumping off a cliff. She could die, but the adrenaline rush might be worth it.
“Yeah, I do,” he answered. “I think we’re seeing it at play here.” He tilted his head and nodded toward the windows. “I think fate, god, my guardian angel, or some sort of other higher being brought you into my life tonight. And from all the signs, they want to keep me here...at least for tonight.”
In the couple of hours they’d sat in the restaurant, it had begun to snow. There were several inches on the ground, and it was a virtual whiteout with the swirling flakes still cascading out of the sky. He wouldn’t be going back to Vance tonight. The highway would be too treacherous.
Maybe it was fate. Felicia didn’t know, but she was thrilled that their night wasn’t ending, because she wasn’t ready to let him go.
Chapter Four
Present day
Gage opened his eyes with a gasp, the lingering dream of sweet memories fading to only a tendril along the edge of his consciousness. Memories of the night he’d met Felicia.
They’d had a discussion about fate that night. He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at his naivety about the cruel twists
of fate and choices. He’d made so many bad decisions over the years. He shook his head and wiped his hand over his face. No, he didn’t believe in fate anymore. His love life had been fucked up by him and only him.
But that didn’t mean his body didn’t remember and want what he’d once had with the gorgeous brunette. His cock throbbed at the memories of how that weekend had gone. In the end, they’d been snowed in because of a freak spring snowstorm that hit the southern Oklahoma plains. Felicia and he had taken advantage of the time, spending three glorious days and nights in her bed, getting to know everything about each other.
When he had finally returned to the base four days later, he’d been more than halfway in love with her. Eventually, he’d ruined it all.
That particular memory had his morning erection flagging, which was a good thing since he could already hear the twins up and in the kitchen, arguing. The echo of their voices carried throughout the empty house.
He glanced at his cell phone lying beside the air mattress on the floor. Forty-five minutes before the movers were supposed to arrive with their furniture. Maybe if they had their things, the twins would calm down a bit. They’d sniped at him and had been at one another’s throats for days. The stress of this move so close after their mother’s sudden death had pushed all of them to their max tension levels.
He almost set the cell phone down, but then saw he had several missed texts from a local number. Felicia. He opened them.
They were from her. His heart jolted at the knowledge she’d reached out to him, even if it was only about the kids’ dog, and she truly had nothing to do with him personally.
There were several updates...about every two hours throughout the night. The latest had been an hour ago. Ralph holding his own. Think he’s going to make it. Will test further this morning.
Relief flooded Gage. Maybe the twins would relax a bit once he shared this good news. And on that note, it was time to get this day started. It promised to be a busy one.
He rolled off the air mattress and onto the hard wood floor and groaned as his back twinged. While the temporary beds were better than sleeping directly on the floor in the empty house, he’d be glad to have his stuff and real bed here. They had two days counting today to get the house unpacked and situated before the wing change of command, and he reported into his job. Piece of cake, right?
“Hey, asshole. Shut the fuck up!” London’s screamed from the other room, making Gage wince.
His seventeen-year-old daughter had the mouth of a sailor, and she was in a great mood this morning.
He took a deep breath and squared his shoulders. First task, get the unhappy teens under control.
A few minutes later when he entered the kitchen, London scowled at her brother, but her eyes were filled with tears.
Damn. Those tears made his gut clench. He hadn’t seen either one of the twins cry in all this time until last night and now they didn’t seem to stop. He’d only been able to come home for one day for their mother’s funeral two months ago since his assignment in Japan had been wrapping up. He wouldn’t have been given even that much leave if he hadn’t had to sort through the twins’ paperwork to take custody of them. In the fourteen years since their mother and he had gotten divorced, he’d never had custody of them.
It was a sad state. He was a virtual stranger to his own kids, and they didn’t trust him enough to be vulnerable and let him see their emotional turmoil. Last night with the dog was the closest they’d come.
He blew out a loud sigh and examined the twins. “I have no idea what you’re fighting about, but chill. It’s already going to be a long day without you two at one another’s throats.” He held up his cell phone. “Dr. Parks texted me all night long. Ralph is still holding his own, and she’s sounding positive about his prognosis.”
London’s tears immediately dried up as relief flooded her face. “Can we go see him, Dad? Please?”
He glanced over at the clock on the stovetop. “The movers are going to be here in thirty minutes, so I can’t leave.”
London drew in a breath to start arguing with him, but he raised his hand. “Hold on. I’m not through. I can’t go, but I think it would be fine for you two to go to the vet clinic this morning and visit him.”
“Really?” London’s smile hit him in the gut. It was huge and the first real smile he’d gotten from her.
He nodded. “Yeah, I’m a pro at handling the movers. Just tell Dr. Parks that I’ll be in after we finish up this afternoon, or I can come in when the movers break for lunch if she needs me to.” Butterflies kicked up in his stomach at the idea of seeing Felicia again. Damn, he’d missed her over the years, and that fact was driven home now that she was just a few miles away. He wanted to see her...badly.
Austin squinted at him. “You know her from somewhere else, don’t you? You’ve met her before. She said your name last night before anyone told her.”
His kids...they weren’t dumb. He just had no idea how much he wanted to reveal to them. They were still mourning their mother. They probably wouldn’t appreciate knowing that despite marrying their mom, his heart had always belonged to Felicia, especially back then.
“Yes,” he said slowly. “I met Felicia a long time ago. Back when I was in pilot training, and she was in veterinary school in Oklahoma.”
London’s eyes widened dramatically. “And you both ended up here? That’s bizarre.”
Fate. That word from his memories filtered through his brain like a taunting melody. It was a huge coincidence that was for sure.
“Yeah, I had no idea she still lived here.” Although somewhere in the back of his brain when he’d been told of his new command, he’d hoped. When she’d accepted her internship, he’d helped her move to Terravista. Last night, things had been so frantic, it just hadn’t occurred to him that they were taking Ralph to the same clinic where she’d interned.
“Did you date her?” Austin asked, his frown growing even more suspicious.
“It was a long time ago.” Gage glanced at the clock again. “Why don’t you two go ahead and take off before the moving truck boxes your vehicles in. Take some time. Explore the town. This is going to be your home for the next two years. Well, I guess just one year for you guys since you’ll be headed to college next year.”
Suddenly, Austin’s gaze slid to the side. What the hell was that about? He’d thought Austin wanted to go to college.
Damn. He didn’t have time to question the look right now.
“Just make sure you’re back by lunchtime. In fact, if you could bring me something back, that would be great. Whatever you get is fine.” He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a wad of cash and handed it over to the teens.
London reached for it, but as she tugged, Gage kept hold to make sure he had her attention. “Just remember to text me periodically throughout the day with where you’re at. This is a new town, and I don’t want you two getting lost.”
She rolled her eyes. “This town is tiny. We’re seventeen, and my car has GPS built into it. I think we can handle it.”
There was the petulant teenager he knew and loved. Well, he couldn’t say he loved the attitude, but she was still his daughter, so he dealt with it as well as he could. Interpretation...he bit his tongue and ignored the ’tude. “Text me,” he said with a bit more sternness in his tone.
“Yes, Colonel,” she bit out before snagging the money and flouncing out of the room.
Gage blew out a breath. Austin just smirked and turned to follow his sister out of the house.
Gage rested his palms on the counter and deep-breathed for a count of five. Coffee. He needed coffee to deal with this day. Luckily, he’d made enough moves over the years to know to travel with a coffee pot and all the essentials in his vehicle. He went to the counter and opened the box to the new, top-of-the-line, one-cup brewer that he’d brought in the night before.
He was inhaling the steam from the caffeine when the doorbell rang. The movers were here. Let the chaos ens
ue.
FELICIA HAPPENED TO be in the waiting area, discussing scheduling with her office manager, Patty, when the twins walked in. They weren’t officially open for business yet, but they’d left the door unlocked so the staff could come in. Felicia knew the kids were anxious to see their dog, so she smiled at them in greeting.
She’d been too focused on Ralph to really pay attention to the teenagers when she’d met them last night. Both kids heavily favored Gage. They had his thick, dark hair, his green eyes with flecks of silver and gold in them, and his good looks. Gage had always been a gorgeous guy, and his son looked almost just like he had when she’d met him. But his daughter surprised Felicia. Who knew Gage’s good looks would translate into a feminine version so well?
Most teenagers had to deal with being horribly awkward and a little odd looking as they grew into their adult bodies. Well, that certainly wasn’t the case with the Winston kids. They were both beautiful.
Who was their mother? She hadn’t come in with them last night, and Gage hadn’t been wearing a wedding ring, but as a pilot, he wouldn’t. Jewelry of any sort wasn’t allowed in the jets.
The idea of Gage being married hurt, but it only made sense. They hadn’t seen one another in eighteen years. He certainly hadn’t acted like a priest during that time. Hell, he hadn’t even managed to stay monogamous during their relationship. The idea that he might have remained celibate was ludicrous.
But she had Steven now. It didn’t matter who Gage had in his life.
She shook herself free of her musings and stepped forward to greet the kids. “I bet you two want to see a certain golden retriever. I was just back there, and Ralph was eating some breakfast. Come on back, and you can check him out for yourself.”
“He’s really going to be okay?” the girl asked.
Felicia took in the worry lines between the girl’s eyebrows. “What’s your name?”
“She’s London,” the boy answered. “I’m Austin.”