“Gabby?” Caitlin stood behind her desk, leaning towards her young pupil. “You know how I feel about notes being passed in my class.”

She watched confusion cross Gabby’s face as she put the neatly folded piece of paper on her desk. “But it’s for you.”

Caitlin’s eyebrows rose. “For me?”

Gabby giggled and ran back to her seat.

“Ten more minutes to finish your writing,” Caitlin instructed, before sitting back down herself. “Then you can all share your stories with the class.”

She carefully unfolded the paper and looked to the end of the letter as soon as she had it unfolded. Tom. His name was printed neatly, his handwriting bold and uniform, as she imagined he was at work.

For the first time since he’d walked out on her his name made her smile.

Caitlin looked up to make sure all the children were busy before letting her eyes rove back to the start. Her pulse started to race, her body tingling with … anticipation. She’d never been sent a letter by a man before.

Dear Caitlin

Gabby came home with a note in her bag last night and it made me think of you. I’m sorry for the way I behaved. Thank you for a lovely dinner and please don’t think I’m some rude idiot with bad manners. My mum would kill me if she found out.

Meet me Saturday afternoon? I’d like to make it up to you if you don’t mind giving me a second chance. Let’s go hiking. I’ll pick you up around 2 p.m.

Tom

Dear Reader,

I’ve always been fascinated with Navy SEALs. Their discipline, dedication and mental strength makes them perfect hero inspiration, and when you meet Tom Cartwright I’m sure you’ll agree! He has all those attributes and more, although with a traumatic accident having ended his career he’s also deeply troubled.

Finding an equally inspiring woman to complement Tom was no easy task. However, as soon as Caitlin Rose appeared on the page I knew she was the one. Caitlin is an upbeat woman who hasn’t let her past hold her back—except when it comes to love.

I hope you enjoy reading about my gorgeous Navy SEAL as much as I enjoyed writing about him, and if you’ve read my previous book, Back in the Soldier’s Arms, you’re in for a nice surprise. Tom made brief appearances as the hero’s brother in that story, and I was so excited to be able to give Tom his own book! It’s with a very heavy heart that I say goodbye to the Cartwright brothers.

Don’t forget to visit me at my website www.sorayalane.com for more information about upcoming and past releases, and for behind the scenes “sneak peeks” of your favourite characters.

Enjoy!

Soraya

About the Author

Writing for Mills & Boon® is truly a dream come true for SORAYA LANE. An avid book reader and writer since her childhood, Soraya describes becoming a published author as “the best job in the world”, and hopes to be writing heartwarming, emotional romances for many years to come.

Soraya lives with her own real-life hero on a small farm in New Zealand, surrounded by animals and with an office overlooking a field where their horses graze.

For more information about Soraya and her upcoming releases visit her at her website, www.sorayalane.com, her blog, www.sorayalane.blogspot.com, or follow her at www.facebook.com/SorayaLaneAuthor

The Navy
Seal’s Bride
Soraya Lane

www.millsandboon.co.uk

This book is dedicated to two very special women. Firstly, my mom, for looking after my young son so I can write every day. Your love and support are invaluable, and I can’t imagine how I’d ever find time to write without you! This book is also for Natalie, who is the most amazing friend. Where would I be without our daily chats? You are a talented author, a wonderful mother and the most inspiring friend. Thank you both for being such an incredible support team.

CHAPTER ONE

TOM Cartwright sat slumped, his head bracketed by his palms. The hallway was oddly familiar, took him back years to when he was a schoolkid. All the times he’d sat outside the principal’s office, trying to figure how to talk himself out of trouble.

He stifled a low groan.

The principal’s office might be better than a room full of six-year-olds. How he’d been talked into doing this …

“Uncle Tommy?” Gabby’s sweet, pure voice pulled him from his thoughts. She was standing in the doorway only a few feet away. She skipped over to him and tugged on his arm, her tiny hand dwarfed by his biceps. “Come on.”

That’s how.

Tom dropped a kiss to his niece’s head before dragging his feet out from beneath him and standing. She didn’t even reach his waist, but she slung her arm around him anyway.

“You look sad.” Innocent eyes locked on his, looking up, and he did his best to convince her with a smile.

“Are you sure you want me to do this?”

Gabby rolled her eyes. “You’re way more exciting than Mom and Dad. I’ve told the others all about you.”

Tom found her hand and followed her to the classroom. He tried not to laugh. If only she understood what she was saying. “Gabby, your mom’s a retired soldier and your dad was a Navy helicopter pilot. They’re hardly boring.”

She dismissed him, shrugging as only a kid could.

And just like that, after years of staying quiet about his career, of so fiercely protecting his identity, not wanting to put those he loved at risk, he was about to address a roomful of kids. To tell them a little about what he did, or what he used to do, all because a girl no taller than his hip had insisted he had to.

But he no longer had to keep his career close to his heart. He was free to talk about some of what he’d once done.

He leaned forward to open the door, waiting for Gabby to walk through before doing the same. Tom swallowed as he surveyed the room, looked at all the little kids sitting on the mat, waiting, fidgeting.

“What do we say?”

Tom turned his body to see where the voice was coming from.

Oh. He sure hadn’t expected the woman standing behind her desk, the smile on her face so open and wide he was sure she must be directing it at someone else. Not at him.

“Good morning, Mr. Cartwright,” the children sang out.

Gabby still held his hand, squeezing it as though she was trying to wring water from it.

They all sat looking back at him, cross-legged on the mat, curiosity plain on their faces.

“Ah … good morning,” he said, prising his gaze from the woman before glancing at the class again.

She didn’t make it easy though, his eyes, as if with a mind of their own, being drawn back in her direction. The teacher’s hair was drawn up into a swishy-looking ponytail, almost-black locks with a slight curl at the very end. Blue-green eyes seemed to smile at him, wide and happy.

Tom looked away. He wasn’t used to being distracted, to finding his attention so easily diverted.

“Thanks for joining us, Mr. Cartwright,” she said, her voice low and filled with warmth. “Gabriella’s told us a lot about you and what you do.”

Now it was he who fidgeted. Not because of the woman crossing the room toward him, but because it went against all his instincts to talk about his work. He tried to settle his rapidly racing heartbeat. Gabby was only six. How much could she even know about what he’d done?

“You must be Gabby’s teacher,” Tom asked, even though the answer was obvious, needing to say something before she thought he was mute.

There went the megawatt smile again.

“Miss Rose,” she said before closing the distance between them and touching her hand to his forearm, leaning in ever so. “Or Caitlin, just not to the class.” Her voice had dropped to a whisper, barely audible, as if she was letting him in on a tightly held secret.

Tom fought the urge not to take a step back, was conscious of all the little faces turned their way. He wasn’t used to someone being in his space, had been trained to keep a distance in most situations. Had craved this kind of contact for so long that he’d forgotten what it felt like.

All the same, he was pleased that she was Miss Rose and not Mrs.

“Tom, please,” he said, forcing a smile and wishing it had come naturally. “Mr. Cartwright reminds me of my father.”

And that was not something he liked to be reminded of.

“Well, Gabriella, I think it’s time you introduced your uncle to the class.”

Gabby beamed up at Tom as he touched his open palm to her hair, before scurrying off and standing tall and proud before her classmates.

“I did my project about my Uncle Tom because he’s so interesting,” she began. Tom nodded when she looked at him, as if needing his support. “He works for the United States Navy, but he doesn’t go away anymore because now he teaches new …” Gabby’s face flushed. She paused, clearly stuck.

A warm, soft breath touched close to Tom’s cheek.

He jumped as it was followed by a gentle squeeze of his arm, words whispered near his ear. “I think she needs some help up there.”

He thrust his hands in his pockets and crossed the room in four strides, wanting to rescue his niece from embarrassment but needing to put space between him and the pretty teacher, too. He’d spent too many years almost exclusively in the company of men to deal with that kind of sensory overload. She looked too good, smelled too good … hell, she even sounded too good for his liking!

“Recruits,” he said, smiling at the children, pushing any thoughts of women aside. “I teach new recruits.”

Gabby leaned into him and he let his arm fall around her. It didn’t matter what happened, what had happened, she grounded him. Made everything right, showed him what was important. Made him realize that he had to suck up his pain and push past what was holding him back. What had stolen his career from him.

Made him want to stay strong.

“So,” said Gabby, confidence returned, “Uncle Tom was a Navy SEAL, like as in a seal in the ocean!” She giggled and the other little people did the same. “But really it means …”

Tom took over again when she floundered, wanting her to enjoy her school project rather than be nervous.

“A SEAL is someone in the Navy’s Sea, Air and Land team for special operations.” The room went silent. Gabby plopped down to listen, and suddenly Tom felt like a fraud standing there, not knowing what to say or do.

He glanced at Caitlin, the teacher, with her kind smile. She leaned forward a little from where she stood against the wall, as if to encourage him.

Suddenly he was back in the classroom as a kid again, wanting to act out and be naughty because he didn’t know what else to do.

Silly, because the man he’d become knew how to behave, how to take orders, do what was expected of him. And whether he was on active duty or not, he had no intention of letting the side down.

“Do you guys have any questions for me?” The last thing he wanted to do was stand up and talk about being a SEAL. Only the people closest to him had ever known his role, and even then he’d been selective about what he told them.

Now he’d retired, talking about it didn’t come any easier.

A confident boy’s voice piped up. “Is it true that most of you don’t pass the training?”

Tom blew out a breath. He could have guessed the boys would have most of the questions, and that they’d want to know about the physical stuff. He rocked back on his heels, head turned slightly to the right in case the kid asked another question.

“All Navy SEALs have passed a tough training test,” he said. “If you don’t pass, you don’t get in, simple as that. About eighty per cent of the guys who try out don’t make it.”

“What about the girls?”

Tom wasn’t sure where that question had come from. “Unfortunately there are no women in the SEALs yet,” he said, “but that might change one day.”

He watched as Gabby shrugged her shoulders. The girl next to her was pouting as though she was personally offended by his response.

“How hard is it?”

The same little boy again. Tom grinned at him, he couldn’t help it. He would have been just like that at the same age, full of questions and curiosity. He’d dreaded coming today, but this was doing him good—making him feel less like a failure, as if he no longer held any value, and more like a worthwhile member of society. So long as he could keep his eyes off the brunette on the other side of the room.

Tom cleared his throat then crouched down on his haunches, at the same height as the children watching him. Gabby was cute, but this little guy had spunk and he liked to encourage kids.

“The toughest challenge is when you train for five days on no more than four hours sleep. Your body is so exhausted you don’t know how you’re going to keep putting one foot in front of the other. But you do. That’s what makes a SEAL.”

The boy asking the questions shuffled closer. It made other kids do the same; they were hanging on his every word.

“So it’s kinda like being a superhero?” the boy asked.

Tom laughed, shaking his head and resisting the urge to ruffle the boy’s shaggy mop of blond hair. “Yeah, I guess. Only it’s like you’re going to die and you feel like …” He tapered off before saying the expletive that had nearly spilled. “Rubbish.”

Temporary silence filled the room and Tom looked up. Miss Rose had remained quiet, to the side of the room, but now she walked toward him, smile still firmly in place.

And suddenly he couldn’t take his eyes off her all over again.

“I think we should thank Mr. Cartwright for coming now,” she said, gaze firmly on those in her charge.

A groan rang out around the room, but not obeying her clearly wasn’t an option.

“Children?”

“Thank you, Mr. Cartwright,” they said in singsong unison.

Except for that one little boy again. “What about the trident?”

Tom’s head snapped up. “The trident?”

“Yeah, is it true you get one? Have you got it with you now? What’s it look like?”

The kid sure knew his stuff. Tom had no idea how he knew so much.

“No,” said Tom, before clarifying. “I mean no, I don’t have it with me now, but I was given one.”

He didn’t know why, didn’t know what made him do it, but he sought out Caitlin’s eyes, locked his focus on her. “Most of the men I know have given their trident away with their heart. When they get married, they’ve given it to their brides on a gold chain.”

Tom swallowed. Wished he wasn’t looking at the woman who’d taken his mind off everything yet put his brain on high alert at the same time. He shouldn’t have looked at her like that, didn’t know why he’d even disclosed the importance of the trident. Not in that context.

“How sweet,” she said, hands clasped together.

But Tom didn’t miss the gentle pink blush that had crept up her neck and was curling toward her cheeks.

He should never have said it, not like that. Didn’t know what had come over him.

He had nothing to offer a woman, not now. He didn’t know who he was, how he would ever cope with what had happened to him, what he’d had to give up. He was lost.

Before, he’d have done anything to meet a woman as sweet and kind as he imagined Caitlin to be. Now, he was damaged, and he didn’t want anyone else drawn into that web of pain with him.

No matter how darn cute her smile was.

Caitlin Rose faced her class and gave them her most serious of looks. “Gabby’s in charge for a moment while I see our guest out,” she instructed, knowing full well they’d erupt into chaos the minute she stepped out the door.

The truth was, she’d probably be better saying goodbye here, in front of the children. It was silly to walk out of the room with him.

But regardless of her worries, she was more polite than that. He’d volunteered his time and been sweet with the children.

She only wished she didn’t have to look into those dark brown eyes that seemed to have caught on hers from the moment he’d walked into her classroom.

“Thanks for taking time out to talk to them,” Caitlin said as she threw a final, stern look over her shoulder at the children. “It was very sweet of you.”

Tom held the door and she ducked beneath his outstretched arm to emerge into the hallway. She wasn’t used to that. To manners like that.

It had been a long time since she’d been in the company of a man, and even longer since one had treated her in that way. With courtesy. Kindness.

She felt him behind her, could sense there was something else he was waiting to say.

“It’s weird for me, talking about the Navy like that.” Honesty laced with uncertainty. “But Gabby wasn’t exactly taking no for an answer.”

Caitlin smiled—she couldn’t help it. She might not be attracted to the whole tough-guy persona, but she could appreciate a man acknowledging that a kid held all the power. She liked his manners.

“I’m sure they loved having you here. It beats most of the other parents we’ve had,” she told him, leaning against a locker as she stood facing him. He was at ease, feet shoulder-width apart, back effortlessly straight. “We usually have the odd doctor or even a lawyer, but a real-life Navy hero? Not often.”

Caitlin felt the smile flee her face as soon as the expression changed in his eyes. They turned stormy, the brown suddenly looking like the black of a raging thundercloud.

“I’m not a hero.” It sounded as though he had to bite down on his words to force them out. He didn’t look at ease any longer, his stance appearing fierce, displaying the edge of a temper.

Goose pimples sent a trail across her skin. “I can tell Gabby’s very proud of you,” she said, changing the subject and ready to back off. This wasn’t a situation she was prepared to be drawn into. “Thanks for coming in, I hope we meet again sometime.”

Caitlin turned before he had a chance to answer.

He might be handsome and kind to his niece, but she’d sensed something in him then she didn’t ever want to be witness to again.

She’d grown up with a military man for a father. Her one and only serious boyfriend had been a Marine. And they’d both known only one way to prove their point, to get what they wanted.

As far as she was concerned, big strong men had one thing in common, and their strength wasn’t something she’d ever fall for. Not again.

Caitlin stole a quick breath before pushing the door open and facing the kids again, knowing it would take her twice as long as she’d been out of the room to quieten them down.

Caitlin glanced over her shoulder to find Tom still standing there, his shoulders bearing the faintest droop.

But his eyes were still on her. Blazing.

She averted her gaze and walked into the room.

He might be attractive, but she wasn’t interested. Not in the least.

She was a teacher. She was happy on her own. Satisfied on her own.

And the last man she’d want if she did decide to let someone in was a Navy SEAL. Even a former one. Because his height, the breadth of his shoulders, the darkness of his eyes … it told her enough.

He just wasn’t her type. Period.

It took Tom a moment to kick into gear, but it was a moment of hesitation that took him by surprise.

He never hesitated.

But the look on Caitlin’s face had been like a blade through his stomach, had repulsed him. Because he wasn’t that guy.

He never snapped at women. Never let his emotions get the better of him.

But ever since he’d been back, he hardly even recognized himself. If it weren’t for Gabby he’d have sunk into a darkness that was still lingering on the edge of his mind.

Because all he could think of whenever anyone called him a hero or made him remember his last days as a SEAL was that he’d failed. That he’d turned into a man he’d never wanted to become.

Never leave a man behind. That was their motto, words that were so true to him they were like the beat of his own heart.

And not only had he been forced to leave one of their own behind, he’d left his career behind, too. Because he’d put himself in the line of fire and it was a risk he should never have taken. Something he’d pay for for the rest of his life.

The acrid smell swirled around him, made him drift back to consciousness. He tried to lift his head, tried to shake it, wanted to know why there was a high-pitched scream echoing through his head.

His hand shook, but his head wouldn’t move. When it did, when he regained control of his body, what he saw made him wish he’d stopped breathing and never had to witness the carnage that surrounded him.

Tom shuddered.

He hated the word hero more than a tomboy hated a dress.

Even when it came from the lips of a woman so beautiful, so obviously genuine and all things good.

Tom whirled around and stormed down the hallway, back the way he’d come in. Right now, he had to get back to work. Had to do something. Because the busier he kept himself, the easier it was to forget.

CHAPTER TWO

CAITLIN stretched, watching herself in the mirror as she went through her routine. The movements were as natural to her as walking, but she never tired of them. In less than ten minutes her class would arrive, tiny girls full of chatter and squeals, but for now the studio was quiet and she could indulge in a moment of silence.

There had been a time when she’d imagined ballet would be her life, but now it was like a long-lost love. Movements her muscles would never forget, a craft she’d always respect for the self-discipline it had taught her.

“Sorry we’re a little early.”

Caitlin turned, her stretches forgotten. A mom was standing with her perfectly attired daughter beside her. “No problem, I was only warming up.”

She ushered her student in and took a deep breath as she glanced out the window and saw the other cars pulling up. But the outline of one parent made her fingers curl around the blind, holding it in place so she could keep watching the road.

Only he wasn’t technically a parent.

Mr. Navy SEAL himself was leaning against the hood of a large 4x4. Long denim-clad legs stretched out, arms folded to show off golden skin and eye-raising biceps protruding from a crisp white T-shirt. She could see Gabby jumping up and down, holding hands with a little friend.

Caitlin let the blind go and stepped back. What the hell was she doing ogling him?

“Miss Rose?”

A shy voice made her turn, distracted her, but her eyes were still begging to flick back to the window, no matter how much her brain tried to argue.

“Miss Rose?”

“Two minutes class, then we’ll start,” she instructed, beaming smile locked in place as she addressed the girls. “You may start your stretches.”

Caitlin surveyed the room and touched a child on the back as she passed, trying to keep herself busy. She didn’t know why she was giving the man even a second thought, but something about him was pulling her like a magnet to metal. The flicker of kindness in his eye when he looked at his niece, the determined fix of his jaw as he’d stood listening in class today.

But there was a very valid reason she didn’t date tough guys, and he definitely fell into that category. Because she knew firsthand that physical strength didn’t necessarily mean the guy was built only to protect you. She’d already learned that the hard way.

Tom ran his hands over his hair, still surprised to feel the length of it. He’d always kept it close to buzzed off, but now that he wasn’t on active duty, he’d let it grow out.

“Are you going to stay?” Gabby’s face was turned up to him.

He dropped his hand to her hair, stroking her forehead with his thumb. “Sure thing, kiddo.”

She skipped off and into the building, and Tom was left walking on his own. There weren’t many other parents there, just a few moms standing in clusters inside, no doubt gossiping, so he headed for the door. Thought he might watch for a …

Wow.

The tiny ballerinas in a sea of pink surrounded their teacher. She was dressed in skintight black leggings and the palest of pink tops crossed over her breasts and tied at the back. She was pointing her toes, asking the giggling girls to do the same.

He’d had no idea that she was the schoolteacher and the dance teacher.

And he might have sat in the waiting area and kept his eyes off her had he known.

“I haven’t seen you here before.”

Tom turned, dragged his gaze from the all too distracting Miss Rose. “Sorry?”

He locked eyes with a middle-aged mom sipping from a paper coffee cup. “I just said that I haven’t seen you here before, and we don’t get many dads, so I’m sure I’d remember.”

“Ah, I’m Tom,” he introduced himself, still fighting the pull to glance back into the studio. “I’m looking after my niece.”

The woman held out her hand and clasped his warmly. “Then that’s why I didn’t recognize you.”

He rocked back on his heels, wished he’d dropped Gabby off and come back to collect her instead of waiting. He didn’t exactly enjoy small talk.

“Not married, or do you just not like to wear a ring?”

Oh, hell. This was definitely the kind of small talk he didn’t like to engage in.

“Single,” he said, the smile leaving his face. He didn’t take kindly to being interrogated. Never had, never would.

The woman didn’t look at all as if she’d picked up on his leave me alone signs, either.

“Well then, I guess you’re allowed to check out the teacher.”

Heat hit Tom’s cheeks before he could fight it. Jeez, had he been that obvious?

“You must be mistaken,” he said, voice cool. “I was watching my niece. She asked me to stay within sight.”

The mom looked confused, but Tom didn’t change the expression on his face. He’d been trained not to betray a hint of weakness, and here he was mooning over a pretty girl as though he’d never seen an attractive member of the opposite sex before. Sure, she was beautiful, but he wasn’t in the market for a relationship, and he didn’t want to be called out like that again. The last thing he needed was to hurt the feelings of a fragile paper ballerina who doubled as his niece’s teacher.

“Nice to meet you,” Tom said, turning his back and putting an end to the conversation.

He crossed the room and sank onto a chair, but he still couldn’t look away. Because even from there, he could see through the door to the happiness and laughter in the studio. Gabby danced around as if she couldn’t think of anywhere better to be in the world, and the mesmerizing Miss Rose twirled about amongst the girls as if she was loving every minute of it.

And she probably was. Darkness clawed its way into his chest and threatened to sink its teeth into him, but he steeled his jaw and fought it, pushed the haunting clouds of memory away.

Just because he was troubled didn’t mean everyone else around him had to be miserable. He’d gone through hell, but he’d emerged alive, and he wasn’t going to let anything drag him down.

Or at least he wasn’t going to be pulled any further into the web of emptiness than he’d already allowed himself to be.

Tom was struggling not to zone out. He’d never tried so hard in his life to focus, had never paid anyone so much attention in his life, but still … Gabby was talking a million miles an hour and it was hard to keep up.

“So, did you see me? Did you see how fast I can twirl? Were you watching when …”

He didn’t hear another word. Lost the fight to stay tuned in to what she was saying.

Because a slender frame, braced against the cool autumn wind with only a flimsy coat around her, appeared in his rearview mirror. Ankles bare and peeking out from skintight black leggings, but with her hair out and wrapping around her face; a contrast to the tight bun she’d had it pulled back in before.

“Tommy?” Gabby had just figured out he wasn’t listening. He had no idea what she’d been saying. All he could focus on was the slim figure retreating from view.

And he didn’t like it. Didn’t like it one little bit.

“I’m sorry, honey, hold that thought.” He gave her a quick smile, not sure whether he was trying to reassure her or himself. “Buckle up, there’s something I need to do.”

Tom thrust the key into the ignition, waited until he heard Gabby’s belt click, then checked in his mirrors before doing a U-turn. Caitlin hadn’t gotten far, had just turned the corner into the next block.

He ran his tongue over his teeth. His mouth was dry. And he couldn’t figure out what the hell he was going to say when he pulled over. Didn’t want to appear to be a sleaze-hanging-out-the-window-and-trying-to-convince-the-girl-to-get-in kind of guy.

“Is that Miss Rose?” Gabby burst through his thoughts again the way she always did.

“She looks cold. Don’t you think she looks cold?” Tom asked, needing the kid to agree with him.

Gabby met his gaze, the smile in her eyes settling him. “I guess.”

“I think she does. How about we offer her a ride home?” Tom asked her.

His pint-size passenger shrugged. “Okay.”

Tom didn’t need any further encouragement. He slowed the car to a crawl and pulled up to the curb, lowering his window at the same time.

Caitlin looked back, a frown line creasing the smooth skin of her face, and picked up her pace.

Damn. He’d done exactly what he’d hoped not to do. Tom leaped from the car and called over the hood, not wanting to frighten her any more than he already had.

“Caitlin!” he called. “You need a ride home?”

This time when she turned the beaming smile was back. Tom hadn’t realized he was holding his breath until he saw that, was pleased she’d recognized him straight away. She held her bag clutched under one arm, was holding her hair with the other to keep it from her face.

“You scared me before.”

He walked around the front of the car and gestured to the passenger side. “Can we give you a ride? It’s too cold to walk.” Tom could tell she was thinking about it. “Please.”

He’d negotiated enough to know when someone was about to say yes, but he still didn’t take it for granted. Tom turned his back and opened the door.

“Scoot, kidlet,” he said to Gabby.

She obliged, scrambling into the backseat and leaving the front free.

He rocked back on his heels and smiled. Didn’t find it so hard to do this time because it came more naturally. “Jump in.”

Caitlin nodded, before walking briskly to the car. She paused, looked nervous, before slipping past him and onto the seat. “Thanks.”

Tom shut the door behind her and walked around the back of the car this time. Took a moment to touch the cool metal of the trunk as he sucked back a breath and prepared to get in the car with a woman who was doing strange things to him. Making him yearn for things that weren’t within his grasp any longer.

But this was just a car ride. This was just him taking his niece’s teacher home. Nothing to get all hot under the collar about. Even he wasn’t capable of screwing this up.

Tom jumped behind the wheel and buckled up. “Do you always walk home in the freezing cold?”

She responded with a laugh that settled every bone in his body.

“No,” she said, leaning back into the headrest and angling her face to peer back at Gabby. “My car’s at the shop and I thought the exercise would do me good. Are you sure it’s no problem to drive me?”

He took his eyes off the road for a beat and glanced at her. “No problem. The last thing I need is Gabby coming home and telling me her teacher is off sick because I was too careless to stop and offer her a lift.”

Caitlin grinned at him before brushing her fingers over his arm in the most casual of ways. As though she was used to touching him, as though it was something she did often.

Tom kept his eyes on the road and wrapped his right hand tighter around the wheel. He wasn’t used to contact like that. Aside from Gabby, and maybe his sister-in-law, no one usually touched him. Almost all his adult life he’d had to be strong, physical, brave—and with that came a solitary life most of the time.

“Well, it was very kind of you to stop.”

He’d stopped in more way than one. Her skin against his had near stopped his brain from processing.

Caitlin tried to relax but her heart was skipping erratically. She hoped Tom didn’t pick up on it.

Hadn’t she heard something about guys like him, trained so carefully for special operations? That they could feel a heartbeat and know instinctively whether someone was lying or not? If they were dishonest? That’s what the kids had told her, years ago, in one of her past lives. She’d moved so much as an army kid that she found it hard to remember sometimes.

She wasn’t lying about anything, but the thumping of her pulse racing was signaling that something was affecting her. And she didn’t want him to know her nerves were on edge.

“So tell me how you ended up staying with your uncle Tom?” Caitlin decided it was safer to direct questions at Gabby. She’d be in less risk of getting hot and bothered.

“Mom and Dad are away.” Gabby’s voice was like a lullaby, a soft melody that spoke only of happiness. Caitlin loved teaching children like Gabby, when she knew instinctively that they were happy at home, that they were safe and loved.

Tom caught her eye, before he was focused on the road again. “They’re on a second honeymoon.”

Catlin laughed at the way he rolled his eyes. “Did they renew their vows?”

Gabby piped up then. “Daddy gave Mommy her rings back, plus a special new one that’s all sparkly, and they keep kissing. All the time.”

Tom and Caitlin both laughed out aloud.

“Okay, what?” she asked, suddenly not quite so nervous of making eye contact with Tom.

“Believe me, it’s a long story, but the short version of it is that Penny came back from serving overseas and Daniel did everything he could to prove that he was worth coming home to.”

Caitlin had questions, but she wasn’t going to ask now. “Sounds romantic.”

She watched as Tom flicked the fingers of his left hand against the wheel. “Yeah, they’re kind of cute.”

Caitlin watched him, suddenly unable to stop staring at him.

“If they don’t make you sick first with all the loved-up antics,” he added.

She laughed. Truly laughed, liking the way his mouth kinked up when he grinned back at her, as if he was trying to be serious and struggling.

“So that’s why you’re looking after Gabby?”

She watched as Tom’s lips parted, only to be interrupted by his niece. “Grandma is away already and so they weren’t going to go, but then Tommy came home and he said he’d have me.”

Caitlin got the feeling that Tom didn’t mind being spoken for. He was friendly, sure, but he wasn’t exactly bursting to talk. Was probably more comfortable being the quiet guy.

“Well, aren’t you lucky having an uncle to look after you?”

Tom looked serious, but she could tell he was comfortable in his role as uncle. Probably liked playing protector. Maybe she’d lumped him into the same category as other military-type tough guys too quickly. Perhaps he was kind, and didn’t misuse his physical strength or abilities. He sure seemed fond of Gabby; that kind of behavior was impossible to fake. She’d been around children and parents enough to know that for sure. Not to mention the way Gabby treated him, as if he was her placid Labrador puppy, jumping to her every command.

But still, it didn’t change the way she thought. There was no room in her mind or her heart to take any risks where men were concerned.

“Hey, Tommy?” Gabby asked from the backseat.

Caitlin watched as his eyebrows rose, waiting for the question that was sure to follow.

“Yeah?” he asked back.

“I think you promised that I could have ice cream before dinner tonight.” Gabby was giggling now, looking at him in the rearview mirror.

Tom put on a stern face. Gabby was still laughing, but Caitlin wasn’t convinced, and didn’t know what was going on.

He pulled over, before turning in his seat and staring long and hard at Gabby.

“Did I or did I not tell you to keep that a secret?” he demanded, voice low and gravelly. “Gabby Cartwright, answer me this minute!”

Caitlin’s heart started to pound in fright; her hands became clammy. She was trapped, felt that she couldn’t move, wasn’t in control. Wanted to do something and was paralyzed from action.

“Gabby?” he growled.

A high-pitched trill of laughter filled the car, verging on squealing. “Tommy!”

Tom pulled a face before opening his door, but not before he grinned at Caitlin. “I know you’re her teacher and you’re probably going to tell me off, but I did promise her ice cream before dinner. You know, trying to be the favorite uncle and all.”

“You’re my only uncle, Tommy,” Gabby piped up.

Caitlin nodded, it was all she could do. Tried to make her relieved smile appear stronger than it felt, needing a moment to let blood pump back through her leeched-dry veins.

Gabby and Tommy got out of the car, but it wasn’t until he opened her door that she followed—prised her fingers from the seat and forced her legs to cooperate.

They were at the ice cream shop. She turned her head slowly, could see the pink lettering glittering in the near-dark. But her heart was still pounding.

She knew it was stupid—she could see them holding hands, was watching as Tom poked at Gabby and had her leaping around and laughing, but for a moment there she’d almost lost it.

Because she hadn’t known they were joking around. Had thought she was about to witness something she didn’t ever want to see again.

Because she knew firsthand what it felt like to be spoken to like that, only without the laughter and jokes at the end.

When it had happened to her, that kind of seriousness, that type of conversation had never ended in ice cream.

“Caitlin?” Tom looked concerned. Gabby was watching her, too. “You all right?”

She closed the car door and fixed her smile again. “Sorry, I was a million miles away.”

Tom slung his arm around his niece and waited for her to catch up. “My shout.”

And just like that, Caitlin found herself having ice cream before dinner with a man she’d thought this morning that she’d never see again, and one of her favorite little students.

Tom passed Gabby her ice cream before reaching for the single scoop of chocolate Caitlin had ordered. “Enjoy.”

Her fingers brushed his as she took it from him. “I can’t believe you two talked me into this.”

Tom liked her smile, liked the fact that nothing about her seemed put on. “Believe me … the things that this girl makes me do.”

Gabby was licking furiously at her ice cream, completely ignoring him.

“It’s nice that you’re so close to her.”

That made him look up. “She’s pretty special to me, to all of us.”

Caitlin waited. He liked that about her, too, that she didn’t feel the need to press for information like some people did. He hated being quizzed when he didn’t want to talk about something, but he was finding with her that he was opening his mouth and spilling his stories before he even had a chance to think about it.

That needed to stop.

“We kind of made a pact, the three of us, when Gabby was born,” he told her. It wasn’t something they ever spoke about, had never needed to talk about again, because they were all committed to making sure she was the happiest little girl around. “There was a time when Gabby’s mom and dad both had to serve at the same time, and I was always there to step in, although her grandmother, my mom, she’s great with her, too.”

“Were you scared something would happen to them? That she could end up with—” Caitlin paused and lowered her voice, although Gabby was walking far enough ahead not to hear their conversation “—no parents?”

Tom felt a catch in his throat. “Yeah.”

Caitlin’s fingers fell over his forearm, rested there for a moment as they walked. “You’re very brave, Tom.”

He forced himself to look up. Not to shrug away the contact until she let her hand fall away of its own accord, not to recoil at her words. He sure as hell didn’t feel like he deserved the brave tag.

“Do you mean for serving in the Navy or for looking after her?” He had to ask, had to know what she was thinking.

Caitlin’s eyes met his, her gaze fluttering as if she found it difficult to hold the contact. “Both. But what I meant was that not many men are that committed to a child, especially to a niece or nephew.” She blew out a breath. “Hell, half the dads I meet seem to be less committed to their own children.”

Tom relaxed, was pleased they were still talking about kids, that she hadn’t tried to flip the subject back to his work. To that kind of bravery.

Caitlin looked fragile enough to snap beneath the weight of harsh words, and he didn’t exactly find it easy to bite his tongue these days. Not when it came to his work or what had happened to end his career.

“There was always the chance that one of us wouldn’t make it home,” he told Caitlin, suddenly wanting to talk, wanting to get the words off his chest. “I wanted my brother to know that I’d always step in, wouldn’t hesitate to fill his shoes if I had to. And Penny—” He paused, not able to help but smile. “Penny’s like the sister I never had. She’s pretty special to me.”

His eyes darted back to Caitlin, to see the look on her face, needing to see her reaction. The response was warm, a soft acknowledgment by way of a gentle blink, a curve of her lips in one corner, before she turned her attention back to her ice cream.

Tom didn’t know why, or how, but there was something about Gabby’s teacher that was pulling him in, reeling him like a fish resigned to being caught on a line. Maybe it was just because she was so good at her job, was skilled at playing the kind, caring teacher, at getting people to open up.

But something else, some whisper of a voice in his mind, told him that her being a teacher had nothing to do with it.

That he needed to back off now if he ever wanted a chance of escape.

Caitlin didn’t like to be confused. Ever. And tonight she was more confused than she’d ever been.

Tom was being sweet, kind … verging on downright charming, but she had no idea where he was going with it. Was he trying to impress her? She didn’t think so. Or maybe she just didn’t want it to be so.

There was something about him that unnerved her, that was rattling her like a key chain blowing in the wind, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. He was troubled, sure. There were things he was obviously holding tight to his chest. But he was honest, she’d give him that. From the expression she’d seen more than once in his eyes, from the way he looked at Gabby, she doubted he was any good at lying.

Although maybe that was just a by-product of his special-forces training. After all, she didn’t exactly have a great track record when it came to judging men.

“Penny for them?”

She laughed at his old-fashioned saying. “You caught me dreaming again.”

He opened the back door for Gabby, and then the front one for her. Caitlin wasn’t even sure a guy had ever opened a door for her before and yet Tom was already making a habit of it.

“You sure it’s okay to take me all the way home?”

His eyebrows nudged together as he frowned. “Like I’m gonna buy you an ice cream then make you find your own way to your place?”

Caitlin laughed. His expression was so comical she couldn’t do anything but laugh. “Okay, okay. I don’t like being a burden, that’s all.”

From the look on his face, he didn’t think she was a burden.

And from the look of it, he was struggling with what to say, how to behave, as much as she was. Could he honestly be as unused to attention from the opposite sex as she was? Caitlin sure doubted it. She’d perfected her look, a back-off way of staring at guys who so much as threatened to show interest in her. Tom’s body language was closed, but he sure didn’t have a stay-away vibe, not in that way.

“Miss Rose, do you have a husband?”

Caitlin coughed, tried not to inhale ice cream up her nose as she spluttered. Where the heck had that question come from?

“Gabby!” Tom scolded. “That’s not a polite question.”

Caitlin didn’t turn to look, couldn’t even brave a glance at Tom. But she wasn’t going to let Gabby get in trouble for being inquisitive. Didn’t she always tell her class the importance of asking questions? Maybe she needed to remind them of what types of questions were appropriate, though!

“It’s fine, Tom. It doesn’t matter.”

“So do you?” Gabby asked.

“Gabriella!” Tom’s voice boomed through the car.

No, thought Caitlin. No, she didn’t. But the thought of saying that in front of Tom scared her, made her want to wrench the car door open and run. Because she’d built a fort around herself, never made herself available in any way, and she sure as heck wasn’t ready for that to change.

“Sorry,” Gabby said, sounding unsure why she had to apologize. “It’s just that Tommy doesn’t have a wife and Mommy is always saying that he needs a ‘nice girl to settle down with.’”

Caitlin fought the urge not to laugh at Gabby’s put-on voice and failed miserably. One look at Tom and he was in hysterics, too, laughter ringing through the car. Jokes she could handle. Jokes were safe.

“A nice girl, huh?” She couldn’t stop the smirk that settled on her face when she found her voice again.

Tom glared at her, but that only made them both laugh again. “Don’t kids say the darnedest things?” Only this time his gaze hinted at a seriousness below the surface, and she wondered if Tom was after a nice girl, or if it was just his sister-in-law wanting him to find one.

Either way, it meant nothing to her. She wasn’t interested in a relationship, and Tom wasn’t her type.

What she couldn’t understand was why talking about Tom like that had sent an itch under her skin that she couldn’t dislodge.

CHAPTER THREE

“SO you’re telling me that nothing happened?”

Caitlin sighed into the lukewarm coffee she was nursing. “Correct.”

Her friend and fellow teacher sighed dramatically. “Look me in the eye and tell me,” Lucy demanded.

Caitlin wasn’t lying. She was dreadful at keeping secrets, but she was guilty of one thing.

“I promise nothing happened,” she said, raising her eyes and shrugging. “Seriously.”

Lucy tucked her legs up beneath her, curled like a cat on the sofa. “But you wanted something to happen, right?”

Heat burst onto Caitlin’s cheeks as she sipped her now almost-cold coffee, trying to avoid Lucy’s gaze. “I agree that he’s kind of cute, but he’s not really my type. And seriously, Lucy, what was going to happen in a class full of six-year-olds?”

The groan she received in response told her she’d given the wrong answer.

“He’s every girl’s type, Caitlin.” Lucy stood up and stretched. “Either you’ve got rocks in your head or you’ve gone blind. I saw him leave your class yesterday and he’s hot, hot, hot.” Lucy waggled her eyebrows suggestively. “Don’t give me that rubbish about being in a classroom either, because I know you walked him out. It’s about time you gave a guy a shot. One day you might just surprise yourself.”

Okay, so Tom was hot. Gorgeous in fact. Sexy as hell. But it still didn’t mean she was capable of liking him in that way. And if he’d been interested in her, surely he’d have made a move by now? Guys like Tom were used to playing the game, knew how to attract a girl and how to reel her in.

Which was another reason she wasn’t interested in him.

“I’ve got to get back to class,” Caitlin said, raising her fingers in a wave and scurrying toward the door. “And nothing happened, okay? I mean, jeez, I only just met the man. I was hardly going to jump him in the hall!”

“Admit it, Miss Rose,” Lucy called out, voice all prim and proper. “There’s nothing about him not to like and you know it.”

She ignored Lucy and kept on walking. That part her friend was wrong about. Caitlin had perfectly good reasons for not being interested in Tom, for wanting to keep her distance from him, she just had no intention of sharing them. Of delving into the past and letting those feelings resurface.

Not now.

Besides, she was happy. Liked her life the way it was. If a man came along to tempt her, he’d have to be perfect husband material. And Tom Cartwright sure as heck didn’t fit the bill.

“Miss Rose, Miss Rose!”

She looked up to find a little girl from her class jumping up and down in the hallway. “Honey, what’s wrong?” Caitlin bent to talk to her, preferring to be on the same level as the children.

“Sarah fell over in the playground and hurt her knee. She’s crying.”

Caitlin took the girl’s hand and let herself be led outside. “You did the right thing, sweetheart, let’s go find her.”

Tom found it hard to indulge in the simpleness of guzzling water on a hot day. He’d spent so long rationing every sip, being so careful to preserve what he’d come to think of as his lifeline. Yet here he was, back on American soil, gulping water as though he had an endless supply of it.

He stopped and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

It suddenly hit him as if he’d been slammed into a wall—a solid, massive brick wall.

He was back for good. There were no more rations, no more missions. Nada. He was back now and he had to lump it or leave it. Or however the hell that saying went.

“Sir?”

Tom turned, bottle almost squashed in his hand, the plastic pressed tight between his fingers. He paused, wanting to calm down before he risked snapping unnecessarily at his pupil. Just because he hadn’t been able to sleep last night didn’t mean he could take it out on anyone else.

“Yes?” He fought not to glare. The poor kid was suffering enough through his training without him being an ass, as well.

“Sir, I saw your name on the board and the guys wanted me to ask if it was you.”

Tom nodded, a tick starting to pulse at this temple. He could feel it, like a pressure point, thumping away. “Yes, that’s me.”

He’d taken the top honors in the water for his year. Had been in the top five percent consistently, one of the strongest of the bunch in all their training. Tom raised a hand to his ear as he so often did these days, rubbing, worrying it. Self-conscious of his hearing, he angled his body further to make sure he could hear the young man without having to ask him to repeat himself.

If he hadn’t been so close to the explosion, hadn’t suffered such damage to his eardrum he’d still be in the water instead of being on the sidelines with nothing to do other than coach others, encouraging them to do the same.

“You sure set the bar high, sir.”

Tom smiled as the young man walked back off to his buddies. A giant’s fist clenched around his throat, squeezing the lifeblood from him as he watched the group of men bond, knowing how close they’d become, those that made it.

It was something he’d miss for the rest of his life, but he was going to have to get used to it.

Because the doctor had been pretty clear about his prognosis. He could still go permanently deaf in one ear, and he’d never be able to get in the water again. Or at least not in the way he had to be able to in order to pass his physical.

It was over. Period. Something else he’d have to get used to.

“Okay, boys, break’s over. Back in the pool,” Tom barked. He also needed to stop playing Mr. Nice Guy. If these men were going to make it, they had to be the toughest of the tough. He knew that firsthand. “Unless you’re prepared to break my record or come damn close, you can expect a long night.”

Groans echoed out.

“Do I hear a ‘Yes, sir’?” he boomed.

“Yes, sir!” came an even louder response.

“That’s more like it. Now get in the water!” Tom ordered.

Tom folded his arms and fingered the whistle hanging around his neck. If he couldn’t be out there himself, he was going to make darn sure he trained the best Navy SEALs ever to graduate from the academy.

Tom was starting to wish he hadn’t been such a demon to his training team when they were still in the water two hours later. He was also starting to think that perhaps none of them were going to make the cut. Because they hadn’t left the pool yet and they still had hours to go.

“Come on!” he ordered. “Push yourselves. You can do this!”

He waved over another training officer over who’d clearly finished for the day. “Can you watch these guys for me? I have to make an urgent call.”

Tom gave his colleague a quick pat on the back and jogged into the office. He looked up the school number, glanced at his watch and dialed.

But all the bravado in the world wasn’t helping his nerves any. The hand holding the phone went clammy, he couldn’t stop fidgeting.

He didn’t know what the hell was happening to him. Why his usual nerves of steel and unflappable attitude were failing him now. But he wasn’t going to let a woman rattle him.

Not a pretty wisp of a teacher who could be blown off her feet in a strong gust of wind, who’d looked so vulnerable the other night that he’d struggled not to soften. Found it hard not to let her in.

Because he wasn’t that guy anymore. He didn’t have the strength to deal with his own problems, so he certainly didn’t have anything to give a woman, and he didn’t want to have to explain himself. Or hurt anyone else, let anyone else close, and then expose them to the demons that kept him awake at night.

“Brownwood Elementary School.”

Tom cleared his throat and made a fist, pressing it hard into the desk. “I’m sorry to call during school hours, but I need to speak to Miss Caitlin Rose.”

Caitlin nodded to the office lady and walked quickly down the hall. It wasn’t often she had to disrupt her lessons to take a phone call.

“Hello?” she pressed the telephone to her ear, dread crawling in her belly.

“Caitlin? It’s Tom.”

She didn’t know whether to be relieved or terrified! A ripple of goose pimples tingled across her skin. “Hi, Tom. Is … ah, everything okay?” Why was he phoning her during school hours?

There was silence, followed by the deep rumble of his voice. “Yeah, everything’s okay, it’s just that I’m not going to make it to pick Gabby up and I don’t have anyone else to phone.”

Oh. Caitlin ignored her feelings, kicking herself for hoping, even for the tiniest of seconds, that he might have been phoning her for something else. He’d hardly call her during class time to ask her out on a date!

“Caitlin?”

She had no idea what he might have said. “Sorry, Tom, I was listening to one of the children.” Caitlin cringed. She was a dreadful liar, surely he’d know she was fibbing?

“You wouldn’t be able to watch her for an hour or so, would you? I’m not going to be able to get away early and I don’t know what else to do.”

Caitlin relaxed, forced her shoulders to fall from their hunched position. “Of course. It’s no problem at all.”

“Are you sure? I hate having to ask you.”

She started nodding before realizing that he couldn’t see her. “Honestly, don’t even think about it.” She paused, knowing she had to end the call yet reluctant to say goodbye. “I’ll take her home with me if that’s okay? Save me hanging around here, then you don’t have to hurry.”

“I really appreciate it, Caitlin. I owe you.”

They said goodbye and she placed the receiver down carefully, before leaning against the wall and shutting her eyes, needing a moment to herself. Needing to think about what she’d said yes to, about the fact that she’d just invited Tom to her home. Sure, it was only to collect Gabby, but home was … well, until now it had been private. Sacred.

She’d never, ever invited a man there. Yet right now, without even being pushed into it, she’d told Tom to collect his niece from her place.

And there wasn’t a doubt in her mind that she’d be asking him in. No matter how hard her heart was pounding at the thought of it.

She’d always known the day would come, but it still troubled her. Her privacy—being alone—had been her sanctuary, the only way she knew how to protect herself, to stay out of harm’s reach.

CHAPTER FOUR

CAITLIN peered out the window, then berated herself for doing it. There was no point waiting, mooning around. He was coming to collect his niece, not to see her.

She looked up as the timer on the oven rang out.

So if she wasn’t trying to impress him, thinking of ways to lure him in, why had she scooted home to make lasagna as if her life depended on it?

So much for being committed to keeping guys out of her domain.

“Miss Rose, look at him now!”

Caitlin crossed the room and fell onto the sofa beside Gabby. “I think he likes you.”

She watched her patient, kind-natured Burmese cat as he stretched out in Gabby’s arms, paws swatting at the little girl but meaning her no harm. She knew he’d never show his claws.

“I’d love a pet.” Gabby sighed dramatically.

“They’re a lot of work you know,” said Caitlin, reaching over to stroke Smokey. “You need to feed them and love them every day, and if you get a dog you need to walk it, too.”

Gabby rolled her eyes, but she didn’t let the cat go and she was still smiling. “You sound just like my mom.”

“Well then, your mom must be a very smart woman.”

A knock echoed through the living room and Caitlin jumped. Jeez, just when she forgot that she was waiting for someone. The loud knock rang out again.

“Coming!” she called.

Gabby stretched out on the sofa, Smokey curled up against her belly. “Tommy always knocks like that. My mom says it like he’s always in a hurry and can’t wait for even a moment.”

Caitlin didn’t turn around when Gabby spoke, was too busy rushing to the door and running her hands over her jeans to answer.

Because no matter what Gabby’s mommy said, Caitlin guessed she never felt like this when Tom was knocking at the door. And Caitlin didn’t want him to be in a hurry, she wanted him to stay.

She didn’t know why, she just did. Even if she was nervous as hell.

Caitlin pulled the door back and found a rumpled-looking Tom standing on her porch.

“Hey,” she said, as though seeing him there was the most natural thing in the world.

“Hey,” he replied, running a hand through hair that looked as if he’d just fallen out of bed. “Sorry I’m so late.”

Caitlin took a step back, gesturing with one hand. “Come on in.”

He hesitated, shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans. “I don’t want to put you out, Caitlin, so we’ll head straight home.”

“But Miss Rose made us dinner,” Gabby called out.

Caitlin shut her eyes for a beat before forcing a smile on her face, trying to stop her hand from shaking, from trembling. She’d never been so pleased for a child to interrupt a conversation in her life, and she’d never felt like she’d held her breath for so long, either.

Tom raised an eyebrow, his head on the slightest of angles. “You cooked for us?”

Caitlin swallowed. “Yeah,” she said softly, “but it’s just lasagna …”

“Just lasagna?” Tom was grinning now, one hand falling from his pocket to rest on the doorjamb. “On second thought, I’d love to come in.”

Caitlin stood back as Tom passed her, his frame dwarfing her as he moved toward Gabby, grabbing her around the waist and planting a kiss on her head before following her to the sofa.

She paused, just for a second, knowing she’d taken a big step, but feeling as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

Just like that, she’d invited a man to step over the threshold and into her home. And she had no regrets whatsoever. Maybe if he’d been on his own she’d have thought otherwise, but with Gabby here, too, it comforted her. Made her feel secure.

“Tommy!” Gabby squealed.

Caitlin followed and stood, watching them play, seeing the look on Tom’s face as he pulled his niece onto his knee. Even if it was only one dinner with the pair of them, she was going to enjoy every moment of it. After years of wanting to live alone, to keep a distance from others, suddenly she was pleased to have company. No, more than pleased, she was happy.

“So, tell me about being in the Navy, or is that a taboo question?”

Caitlin nursed her glass of red wine, taking a slow sip before turning her attention back to her meal. She watched as Tom swallowed before pausing, his knife and fork hovering an inch above his plate.

“If I tell you I’ll have to kill you.” His voice was deep and dangerously serious.

Now it was Caitlin who was swallowing, or more like gulping furiously. He was joking, she knew he was, but those kinds of flippant comments still made her teeth rattle.

“Kidding,” he said, raising his eyebrows, smile hitting his eyes.

Caitlin laughed nervously and blew out a breath. “I didn’t mean to pry, I’m only interested, that’s all.”

Tom kept eating, focused on the food, before raising his head and setting the cutlery down. “It’s not that I don’t want to talk about it. It’s— I don’t know, complicated, I guess.”

Caitlin understood complicated. “Honestly, Tom, I was only making conversation.” The last thing she wanted to do was pressure him into talking about something he’d rather keep private. “Don’t feel like you have to answer me.”

“Tell her one of your stories!” Gabby called out from the living room, cross-legged on the floor and leaning against the sofa, eating her dinner in front of the television. “Please.”

Caitlin waited, not wanting to stare at Tom but finding it difficult to look away. She’d thought he was too similar to her father and her ex because he was military, and because he was physically imposing, but she could see from the look on his face that she’d been wrong. He was different. At least he seemed to be.

Tom didn’t have the hard edge to his profile, the cocky, self-assured aura that she had expected. Maybe when she’d first met him she’d wanted to think he did, but he was so far from that she didn’t know how she could have been so judgmental. When he’d found out that she’d made dinner for them tonight, his face had lit up like hot embers being coaxed back to flame.

The last thing Tom wanted to do was talk about his career, that much was obvious, but he never snapped at Gabby, and seemed to want to shield her from any hurt. “Maybe another night, okay?”

Caitlin could see the pain, see how troubled he was behind those deep, dark eyes. But if he didn’t want to talk she wasn’t going to push him. Because she’d been there herself.

“How do you feel about dessert?”

Tom grinned at her, his face breaking into the most genuine smile she’d seen in a long while. “I think that’s the best question I’ve heard all night.”

“It’s not much, so don’t get too excited. Some ice cream and a chocolate brownie,” she told him, clearing their plates and leaving them in the sink to do later. “And before you ask and make me feel guilty, they’re store-bought brownies. I’m not the world’s best cook.”

Tom laughed. “You could have fooled me. I’d never have known.”

She was pleased he was still at the table. Having him here—it was different. Ever since she’d been single she’d kept home as her private place, only ever inviting girlfriends over. She’d been on dates every now and again, but she’d never let a man collect her or come back to her place, so Tom being in her private space was … not uncomfortable, but something she was going to have to get used to. Slowly. Just like ever learning to trust a man again would be a huge leap of faith for her.

Caitlin ran her wrists under the cold water she had running; she was nervous, jangling like a bunch of jittery wind chimes. He was just a parent. An acquaintance.

Argh. Who was she kidding? He wasn’t a parent and that’s not why she’d asked him in.

She turned off the faucet and served up dessert.

“Can I help?”

Caitlin spun around and pressed a plate into Tom’s hands. “Here we go, this is for Gabby.”

His gaze held hers, eyes questioning, but he took the plate and took it to his niece.

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