by Marie Force
“Well, I suppose that’s as good an endorsement as we could hope to get.” He paused, cleared his throat. “So, you like this boy, huh?” The question was poised in the same awkward fashion he’d used to extract information about her first teenage boyfriend.
“Yes,” Laura said, amused by him as always. “I like him. He’s been a very good friend to me through all of this.”
“I’m glad to hear you’re making new friends and putting the pieces back together.”
“I’m trying.”
“I wish I could say the same for your brother. He seems to have totally given up.”
Laura sighed, thinking of Shane’s terrible heartache over his wife’s addiction to prescription pain medication. “What’s the latest?”
“Courtney asked for a divorce.”
Laura winced. “That might be for the best, no?”
“Try telling him that. He’s waited all this time for her to get through rehab and now she wants out.”
“Did she say why?”
“He says she’s so ashamed of what she put him through that she can barely bring herself to look at him.”
Laura’s heart ached for her poor, sweet brother. He’d fallen so hard and so fast for Courtney, who’d hidden a raging addiction from him for more than a year before it blew up in her face—and his. “What will he do?”
“Once he finishes the job he’s working on now, he’s going out there to be with you for the winter. I think it’ll be good for him to get some space from everything here and clear his head.”
“We’ll take good care of him. Don’t worry.”
“All I do these days is worry about both of you.”
“I’m okay, Dad. I promise. But I do need a favor.”
“Name it, honey.”
“I have to tell Justin about the baby.” It hurt to say the words. She was so utterly unprepared to see her philandering ex-husband again, but Owen was right. Justin deserved to know about the baby. “I expect he’s going to give me a hard time. The more I think about everything that happened, it’s clear to me that he was far more interested in forming a connection to you than he was in me.”
Frank gasped. “That’s not true! He was crazy about you. I saw that with my own eyes, which is why this is so hard to believe.”
“You saw what he wanted you to see. He played us both.”
“Why would he do such a thing?”
“Why else? To further his career, which is his first love. Being Judge Frank McCarthy’s son-in-law furthers his career. That’s the only reason he’s fighting the divorce.”
“That makes me sick. You don’t think he’ll want the baby?”
“I don’t know what to expect there.” The uncertainty terrified her, not that she would admit that to her dad and give him one more thing to fret about. Since her mother died when Laura was nine and Shane was seven, her dad had been both mother and father to them.
“What can I do, honey”
“I’m coming over this week to speak to Justin. Would you mind terribly if I threw your name around a bit if it comes to that?”
“Of course not. Do whatever it takes to get that pond scum out of your life for good.”
“He’s going to be in my life for as long as we share a child.” The thought of that was a hundred-pound weight on Laura’s chest.
“I don’t want you to see him alone.”
“Owen will be with me.” Laura knew without even asking that Owen would go with her.
“Are you sure that’s a good idea? Won’t it throw gas on Justin’s fire if he sees you with someone else?”
“Owen will keep his distance unless I need him.”
“If that son of a bitch has the nerve to get physical with you, I’ll kill him myself.”
“It won’t come to that. I’ll meet him in public. He’s far too concerned about what people think of him to risk a scene.”
“Will you come see me while you’re here?”
“Absolutely.”
“I want to meet your Owen, too.”
Laura’s face heated with embarrassment. “He’s hardly my Owen.”
“I’ll be the judge of that.”
Laura laughed at his pun. “You’d better behave, do you hear me?”
“So I can’t ask his intentions?”
“Dad!”
Frank’s guffaw brought a smile to Laura’s face.
“I’ll be on my best behavior,” he said.
“Love you, Dad,” Laura said, her throat squeezing with emotion.
“Love you, too, sweetheart. Everything will be okay. I promise.”
Since her dad had never once let her down, Laura chose to believe him.
Chapter 5
Maddie got home before Mac and made good use of the time. She changed into the white silk nightgown he’d bought her when they were first dating and covered it with the matching robe he’d given her for her birthday the following year. He’d given her everything, most importantly his love and devotion. Certainly, no woman had ever been so adored by her husband. He’d never been more attentive or solicitous as he’d been since she delivered their baby daughter in the midst of a tropical storm.
She brushed her hair until it hung in soft, shiny waves on her shoulders and smoothed on some of the strawberry-flavored lip balm that had been known to make her dear husband a little crazy. Who was she kidding? Everything about her seemed to make him a little crazy, and she loved every crazy, over-the-top thing about him.
The bang of the sliding door opening caught her attention. “Madeline! Where are you?”
“Show time,” she whispered in the mirror with a small, satisfied smile. At the top of the stairs, she looked down to find him on the sofa tearing at his work boots with hasty, fumbling movements.
“Maddie!”
She bit her lip to keep from laughing at him and went down the stairs to sit next to him on the sofa. “You beckoned?”
He turned to her, and when he saw what she was wearing, his eyes got big. His mouth opened and then closed. “You’re stunning.”
“You’re dirty.”
“I know. I’m sorry. I’ll take a shower so fast I’ll be back before I’m gone.” He stole a quick kiss and headed for the stairs, stopping halfway up. “Where’re my children?”
“With my mother and Ned until dinner time.”
“God, I love you so much.”
Maddie laughed as he bolted up the remaining stairs and disappeared. She thought about going upstairs to meet him after his shower, but decided it would be far more fun to make him come after her. Sure enough, he came flying down the stairs less than five minutes later, with a towel wrapped around his waist, his dripping-wet hair standing on end and a small spot of blood on his chin from where he’d nicked himself shaving.
“You’re a mess,” she said, laughing as she held out her arms to him.
Smelling of soap and sexy man, he came down on top of her and sighed with relief when she hugged him. “I know. I can’t help it. Waiting for this day has made me nuts.”
She combed her fingers through his hair, attempting to bring some order. “Good thing I love you even when you’re a messy nut case.”
That drew a smile from him. “So what did David have to say?”
“Everything looks good.”
As she’d expected, he scowled darkly. “You’re damned right it looks good. I hate the idea of that guy having his face. . . there.”
Once again she held back a laugh at his ridiculousness. “He’s a doctor. Seen one, seen them all.”
“That’s crap. Yours is way better than most. I should know. I did a lot of shopping before I bought.”
“Mac!” She sputtered with laughter as she smacked his shoulder. “Oh my God! I can’t believe you said that! You’re outrageous. Don’t forget ‘that guy’ saved your daughter’s life.”
“I’ll never forget that, but it doesn’t mean I want his face in my wife’s hoo-ha.”
She squished his lips together before rel
easing them. “You really need to stop talking now.”
“Why? Is there something else you’d rather be doing?”
“Definitely.” She kissed him fully, deeply, letting him know exactly what she’d rather be doing.
Mac stood and held out his hand to help her up. He lifted her and headed for the stairs.
Maddie looped her arms around his neck and rested her head on his shoulder. She’d never felt truly at home anywhere until Mac McCarthy put his arms around her and refused to let go.
He put her down next to the big bed he’d insisted they needed. That they occupied about three feet of it was a source of endless amusement to her. Sleeping in his arms had become as necessary to her as air and water.
For a long time, he only ran his hungry gaze over her, taking in every detail and heating her from within.
“I never get tired of looking at you, Madeline.”
She released a nervous laugh and put her hands on his superbly formed chest. “I could say the same to you.”
“I want you to know. . .” He combed his fingers through her long hair. “These last few weeks, watching you care for our baby, watching you feed her, you just. . .” His voice faltered and he rested his forehead on hers, collecting himself. “You take my breath away.”
“Mac. . .”
He drew her in closer to him. “You positively glow when you’re looking at that baby. Do you know that?”
“You should see yourself with her. So big and protective. She’s a lucky girl to have you as her daddy.”
“She won’t think so when I refuse to let her date until she’s thirty.”
Maddie laughed. “I’ll be around to manage you on her behalf.”
He raised a rakish brow. “Manage me, huh? I could use some of your brand of management. I thought I’d die waiting for this day to get here.”
She dragged her hand from his chest to his belly and pulled the towel off him, licking her lips as she tried to figure out where she wanted to kiss him first.
Mac let out an unsteady sounding laugh. “You’re going to finish me right off if you keep looking at me that way.” He got busy removing her robe and nightgown in quick, well-practiced movements.
Maddie was always astounded at how competent he was at divesting a woman of her clothing. He’d had plenty of practice in his bachelor days.
“What are you thinking?”
Feeling guilty, she met his intense gaze. “About how you got so good at getting a woman’s clothes off so quickly.”
“The only woman whose clothes I want off—quickly—is the one I was smart enough to marry.” He kissed her then, hot and sweet and full of the love and passion they’d shared from the day they met. His hands were everywhere, combing through her hair, smoothing a path on her back, cupping her bottom, coasting over her ribs to her breasts.
Maddie was mortified when the stimulation made her leak. She tried to pull back from him, but he let out a tortured-sounding moan and used the moisture to slide his fingers over her tender flesh.
She wrapped a hand around his throbbing cock, stroking him the way he liked, harder than she would’ve done without his guidance.
He stopped her. “Can’t,” he gasped. “I want to be inside you when I come.”
“Hold that thought.” She went to the beside table and retrieved a condom left over from their dating days. When she handed it to him, he moaned.
“Seriously?”
“I don’t want to be pregnant again any time soon.”
“But you’re breastfeeding. You can’t get pregnant.”
“That’s a load of crap. Suit up or no nookie.”
He took the condom from her. “Fine. Be that way.”
“Want me to do it for you?” she asked with a coy smile.
“Absolutely not.”
Maddie loved it when he pouted. He was so used to getting his own way that when he didn’t, he acted like a petulant little boy—an adorably petulant little boy.
He rolled the condom on and reached for her. They landed on the bed in a tangle of arms and legs, lips fusing, tongues mating in a frantic, familiar dance.
He tore his lips free and bent to lave her sensitive nipples with his tongue.
“Mac. . . Wait, I don’t want you to. . . Oh God.” She wanted to die when her breasts tingled with the familiar sensation of milk letting down. “Mac. Don’t. Please.” She worried about him being turned off by the flow of liquid, but it seemed to have the opposite effect.
“Wow, look at that.” His tongue dabbed at the moisture on her nipple in a moment so erotically charged, Maddie knew she’d never forget it. The shocking intimacy, the reverent expression on his face. . . The images etched indelibly into the growing album of memories that made up their beautiful life together.
She wrapped her arms around him, holding his head to her chest. She’d spent most of her life hating her oversized breasts, but he managed to make her forget all about that with his worshipful treatment. “I love you, Mac. More and more every day. Just when I think I’ve reached the outer limit of how much it’s possible to love you, you go and top yourself, and I discover there’s even more.”
When he raised his head to meet her gaze, she was stunned to see his shockingly blue eyes swimming with tears.
“That might just be the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me.” He pressed his lips softly to hers. “In fact, I know it is.”
She combed her fingers through his damp dark hair, leaving it mussed and sexy looking. “I mean every word of it.”
“I know you do. And I feel the same way. I never imagined anything like this happening to me. I love you so much sometimes I feel like I could burst with it.” As he spoke, he shifted so he was poised between her legs, his cock pressed against her, without demanding anything she wasn’t ready to give. “Speaking of bursting. . .”
Laughing softly, Maddie cradled him between her legs, and ran a soothing hand down his back. She cupped his muscular rear end, and tugged, urging him to take her.
He let out an unsteady sounding groan. “I want you so bad, but I’m afraid of hurting you, babe.”
“You won’t.”
“After what you went through. . .” A shudder rippled through him.
“Don’t think about that or you’ll never want to have sex with me again.”
Laughing, he kissed her with sweet reverence. “No chance of that.” He reached between them and used his fingers to test her readiness. “Oh, God,” he gasped when he found her slick and primed for him. “Will you tell me to stop if it hurts?”
“Yes,” she gasped when his fingers pressed on the tight bundle of nerves that pulsed with desire. “Mac, please. Hurry.”
Moving slowly, he slid into her in small increments, giving her time to adjust and accommodate him. “Is it okay?” he asked through gritted teeth.
“It’s divine,” she whispered. “Nothing hurts. I promise.”
That seemed to snap his control and he surged the rest of the way in one thrust. “Oh shit, sorry. Sorry, I can’t help it—”
She raised her hips in encouragement. “Love me, Mac. It feels so good.”
Sweat beaded on his brow and back as he thrust into her, still holding back.
Aware of what it took to break him, Maddie grasped his firm ass and squeezed. As she’d know it would, that shattered his control. He let go, surging into her and taking them both to the place they could only go together.
For a long time afterward, he lay on top of her, heavy and solid and throbbing with aftershocks.
“I’m crushing you,” he muttered.
“Don’t go yet.” She tightened her hold on him.
“I’m all yours, baby,” he said, his lips soft against her neck.
The words only added to the glow of contentment that surrounded her.
“I’m sorry I was so rough,” he said.
“You weren’t. You were exactly what I wanted. I’ve missed this as much as you have.”
“I don’t know if tha
t’s possible.” He raised his head and kissed her while gazing deep into her eyes. “I was like a horny teenager getting lucky for the first time. I skipped over all the preliminaries.”
Maddie giggled at the look of disgust on his face. “Mom’s not bringing the kids home until they wake up from their naps. You’ve got plenty of time to make it up to me.”
“Have I mentioned lately how much I love your mother?” He withdrew from her and kissed his way down the front of her. “So much time to make up for.”
As his lips left a trail of sensation on her belly. Maddie closed her eyes and gave herself over to him, body and soul.
After Mac and his dad left for the day, Luke spent a couple more hours at the marina, winterizing the fuel system, bleeding gas lines and securing pumps.
This time of year usually filled him with melancholy as the long lonely winter stretched before him. This year, however, everything was different. Syd was back in his life, living with him, sleeping with him, filling his days and nights with her sweet love.
Nothing could’ve prepared him for the changes her presence had brought to his sparse existence. Whereas life without her had been satisfying in its own way, life with her was a vivid landscape full of endless possibility.
He snorted to himself as he tightened a bolt. “Look at you, spouting poetry.” But that’s what she did to him—what she’d always done to him from the time he was a boy in the throes of first love.
Over the last few months he’d watched her blossom out of the fog of grief and into the land of acceptance. She would always miss and mourn the family she’d lost to a drunk driver, but she laughed more freely and more often now. She took pleasure in her work as an interior designer, and she gave herself to him with the kind of passion that left him speechless and humbled.
Thinking of the passion they shared had him closing up early and heading home to her. The only thing in the world he wanted now that he didn’t have was a commitment from her to marry him. He’d asked her back in early September, after they attended the sentencing hearing for the guy who’d killed her family and moved her out of her former house and into his island home.
His timing, he now saw with hindsight, hadn’t been the best. With the raw wound of her loss reopened by the court proceeding and the painful weeding out of her family’s possessions, she wasn’t ready to take the next step with him. He should’ve known that.