Always (Family Justice Book 1) (43 page)

Fixing Calder with a cool look, she crossed her arms in front; an action that she knew threw the girls into full glory—something all too apparent in the low-cut slinky top she had on. It was her go-to boobalicious maneuver.

She saw him glance at Stephanie and almost broke apart laughing. Ah, so the beauty queen was fueling his fire. Thank God.

“Calder,” she demanded. “The band? Alex?

“He’ll bitch like a whiney teenager with period cramps and make you dance to whatever heavy-handed tune he can concoct. If you think that’s manageable, have at it, Red.”

She snorted a hearty laugh at Calder’s response. “No worries then. I can handle old Thunder Cock,
believe me
.”

“Oh, Jesus Christ,” he groaned. Covering his ears he made like he was about to throw up. “I’m going to forget I ever heard that.”

“Too much information, Irish,” Tori hooted with thigh-slapping giggles. “Thunder Cock! Holy shit that’s funny!”

Lacey, God bless her simple little heart, looked confused. “Wait a minute. I though Parker said Alex’s band name was Thunder Foot. ‘Cause he plays the drums and all.”

“Really?” Calder groaned with a heavy shake of his head. “How the hell did anyone this innocent end up with you lot?”

Suddenly, Lacey was blushing furiously and biting back a giggle. “Oh,” she deadpanned. “I get it now.”

“Now that you wicked ladies have totally corrupted poor Mrs. Cameron, I need to have a word with Stephanie. Can I borrow her for a moment?”

“Please do,” Meghan purred. Stephanie, for her part, looked like she’d just been called to the principal’s office.

“I’ll be right back,
shugah
,” she assured Victoria as she stood up. “Just be a minute.”

As Calder and Stephanie left the family room, Tori looked at Meghan and Lacey. “What do you think that’s about?”

CALDER WALKED STEPHANIE AWAY FROM the giggles coming from the family room, his hand resting low on her back. Guiding her through his touch, he maneuvered them into Alex’s study and shut the door.

The second they were alone, she was in his arms. Kissing Stephanie Bennett was like bungee jumping. There was the thrill of anticipation, the sensory imprint from previous kissing encounters, and then there was the woman herself. When their lips touched, he felt like he’d jumped from a high ledge. The adrenaline kick was massive—so was the feeling of flying without a net.

He liked the way her hands went straight into his hair and held on tight. And the way her soft breasts felt crushed to his chest. She smelled like a woman should, too. And how she tasted? Oh, holy God. He was hungry for her—insatiably so. And until she stumbled into his life and showed him what he’d been missing, he hadn’t known he’d been starving.

It took quite a while for them to ease off. Calder would have gladly remained as he was for the rest of the day, clutching her sweet body to his while he devoured her mouth. Until this point, that was all they’d done. Kiss like horny kids on a Friday night. He didn’t believe in rushing things. There was so much to savor at the start of a relationship. While other men might be focused on getting naked in the short run, he was half a mile down the road, mapping out a longer-term strategy.

“Hi,” he murmured when their lips drew apart.

“Hi, yourself,” she answered back.

“You look beautiful,” Calder told her.

“I bet you say that to all the girls.”

He laughed. She was quite a handful, this one. Taking her by the hand, he led her to the wet bar and poured a small glass of soda, remembering to drop a small lemon wedge in before handing it to her.

“Alex sent me to check on you ladies. He’s tied up with business at the moment.” Both things were true but what he didn’t and couldn’t tell her was what sort of business his nephew was engaged in. Now that he’d been let in on the secret, he had to hand it to Alex and his devoted gaggle of women. Carmen, Ria, and Betty were really outdoing themselves this time.

“My baby girl is exhausted, and I don’t think she’s feeling well at the moment. Do you know where Draegyn’s gone off to?”

This was exactly why Alex had sent him, instead of coming himself. Cam had dragged Drae into town on some pretext so he’d be clear from the compound for a while. He’d have to come up with a plausible story for Drae’s unusual absence.

“There was a problem with some gear that got fucked up during shipping. Guess it was a big deal because Cam loaded it into the truck and went to the trucking office in town to make arrangements for replacement stuff. Drae had to go with him.”

“Oh,” she whispered. He could see by the emotions running across her face that she was trying to make a plan.

“I’ll take you guys home, okay? And I think Raven should stay with Brody tonight if Tori’s having a tough day. Let me go see what Ria has on hand that we can use for dinner, and if you’re okay with me hanging around until Draegyn returns, I can lend you a hand. Keep Tori busy.”

“Thank you. I’d like that. It’s been a long day for her, you know?”

Calder smiled and ran a finger down her cheek. It was a simple gesture, but her eyes got smoky and dark. She liked when he touched her. Good. There was more where that came from.

“Why don’t you go say your good-byes and get your stuff together? I’ll grab one of the cars so Tori can recline on the way. I think a cart ride might be a bit much if she’s uncomfortable.”

“Calder, why are you being so nice?”

Her caution light was blinking. He probably deserved it, too. However, they were onto something, and he wasn’t going to let the opportunity pass without giving an honest effort.

Joining her on the other side of the bar, he put his hands on her waist and pulled her against him. Taken by surprise, she gasped and put her hands on his chest to counterbalance his insisting grip.

“Because I want to sleep with you, of course,” he declared proudly.

When she jerked as if she’d been slapped, he shook his head at her and frowned.

“That’s what you expected me to say, or at least be thinking,” he chided her gently. Shaking her slightly where he still held her waist, Calder made a disapproving grunt.

“Face it, Cowgirl. You have a chip on your shoulder…” he shook his head to silence her when she started to comment. “All the barrel riding belt buckles in the West can’t change the fact that you’re one seriously beautiful woman.”

He smirked at the death glare she tried out on him. She might want to pretend that her husband had been the source of Victoria’s feisty character, but from where he was standing, it sure did look like Mama got there first.

“We’re starting over, remember? Don’t lump me in with the other guys who only see the window dressing, Stephanie. I mean, fuck—it’s not my fault you’re gorgeous. In case you still haven’t grasped my meaning, I’ll even spell it out for you.”

She looked surprised at his directness. Boy, was she in for a shock because direct was all he knew how to do with her. This wasn’t a fucking game. Or a dress rehearsal. Or the second act of a play. He was fifty-two, and for the first time in his life, he was pre-occupied with a woman. Far from stupid and enlightened enough to listen when the universe whispered, Calder knew in his gut that this thing between them was a game-changer.

“I’m initiating a slow down plan. We’re not rushing into anything because I’m not interested in just scratching an itch. You’ve beguiled me in some way, m’lady, and I think that feeling is kinda mutual. Am I right?” he asked softly as he searched her face.

Yeah. Fucking starbursts lit up his brain when she bit her lip, looked away, and nodded her head. He’d been working in his mind on the word to describe what he felt. When beguiled hit him broadside—he knew that was the one, bringing to mind a whole slew of others like charm, enchant, bewitch, enthrall, captivate.

“Look at me,” he murmured with a finger under her chin. She tilted her head just so and peered up at him from beneath lowered lashes. He loved that when it counted, she was letting him see the shy, confused, uncertain soul behind the powerhouse female.

“Lady, you don’t need to wonder why I’m being nice. This is me. This is who I am. I’m in your life now just like you’re in mine.” He paused because he wasn’t sure if he should blurt out what he’d been about to say. But if he parsed what was an honest reaction, he’d be playing a part and not giving back to her what she was sharing with him—who he really was. Behind the mask.

“Stephanie,” he grumbled. “I really hope I can say this without you over-reacting but…well, here it is. You can rely on me. I’m there for you in every way. To lean on. Listen. Comfort. Whatever. I, uh, want to take care of you. Whatever that means.”

There. He’d said it. He wasn’t fooling himself. Or her. Calder was one of those, “I am the man” types. His respect for women was a given. But when it came right down to it, to be involved with him in an emotionally intimate way meant understanding that respecting women aside, he was the dominant male. Period.

For a brief second, he saw the one eyebrow arched smirk that women used to deflect a man’s arrogance, but then it vanished. She blinked and stared at him. His hands were still holding her body against his while her hands remained on his chest.
Shit
. He could practically hear the gears grinding in her head.

And then she gave in. Melted just a little, her body softening in his hold. Instead of pushing on his chest to maintain some semblance of physical distance, she relaxed and fiddled with the buttons on his shirt.
Oh. My. Fucking. God.
She was going to let him in.

“Thank you.”

Well, two words weren’t much, he thought, but they were pretty much the best two words she could have shared at that moment.

“Um, it’s hard,” she muttered. “I mean, I’m so…”

Calder brought his hands up slowly from her waist, joining them as they pressed against her back, pushing her torso closer to his. She was holding her breath.

Then, the dam broke and she trembled in his arms. “Oh, I’m just so worried about Victoria, and I’m really panicked that I’m going about everything all wrong. I hate doing this alone,” she whimpered.

It took a strong woman to share an emotional vulnerability. He was going to see to it that she never regretted letting him in.

“You lean on me, m’lady. Whatever you want, whatever it takes. You’re an amazing mother, Stephanie. Victoria is a truly wonderful and unique woman. She adores you—and…you’re
not
alone. Understand?”

MEGHAN’S GROWING ANXIETY WAS OFF the charts by the time she got Tori and her mother into the car Calder brought around to drive the ladies home. Crap. She needed Alex. Needed him to look at her in that way he did that let her know she wasn’t alone and that she belonged to him.

Maybe it was just a case of pre-bridal nerves because she was assuming the role of hostess in this wonderful, old stately Villa that had been graced by generations of proud Spanish people. In all the scenarios she ever envisioned for herself, a red-haired buxom Irish girl-next-door from Boston, marrying into an aristocratic European bloodline wasn’t one of them.

She drank green beer on St. Patty’s Day and had the mouth of a construction worker. Hardly what the Valleja-Marquez clan must have dreamt about for their eldest son.

And not just that either. This whole Thanksgiving thing was turning into a reality TV show. There was matchmaking going on. A challenging pregnancy. Battered and bruised family members. A secret that was threatening to drive her insane. Surprises out the wazoo. And in the midst of all that was a sitdown, dress-up dinner that required three adult women to pull it off. A cozy, intimate night with the family it was not.

Before Lacey bundled off with Dylan in tow, she took her aside. “Should we be worried about Tori?”

“I’m not her doctor, so I don’t really know,” Lacey stated cautiously with a deep frown. “But I do know that when a pregnancy is winding down in those last couple of weeks, all sorts of stuff happens that is completely normal and to be expected. “Look,” she added vigorously, “by the time they left, she seemed fine, so there’s that. And she wasn’t putting on a happy face. Let’s keep an eye on her tomorrow, though. Better that we’re forewarned so we know she’s already kinda fragile.”