Read Renewed Faith (CSA Case Files 3 / Military Romance) Online
Authors: Kennedy Layne
Tags: #Mystery, #Thriller
“Uncle Kevin and Uncle Kane said they’d build a snowman with us this morning.” Brianna hopped on the bed causing Elle to move over just a tad. The girl’s energy seemed to know no bounds. Annie, the younger one, stayed standing while holding a carrot. “Will you help us too?”
“We need a hat, but Papa is looking for one now,” Annie said, her eyes roaming the room. “Do you have anything shiny for the eyes?”
“Um, I don’t think so.” Elle wasn’t sure which question they thought she answered, but her response was to both. What she wanted more than anything was for her and Kevin to be on their way home. The thought of facing Kevin’s mother this morning was just too much. “I’m sure your uncles will find things to decorate the snowman.”
“Brianna, Annie. Did Nana say that you could wake Elle?”
Once more, for being such a large man, Kevin had managed to appear out of nowhere without a sound. His large frame was leaning against the jamb, his arms were crossed across his chest, and his gray eyes didn’t miss a thing. Elle resisted the urge to make sure her hair was still contained by her hair tie, but didn’t want him to think that gesture meant anything. The problem was it would.
“We didn’t wake her, Uncle Kevin,” Brianna replied in argument. The little girl was very intelligent and knew her way around rationalizing her defense. It must come from being in a large family, because Elle still didn’t have that art down. “We checked to see if she was sleeping and found her eyes open. So she was already awake.”
“I see.” A smile played on Kevin’s lips, but his eyes displayed anything but good humor. “Girls, go down and have Nana suit the two of you up in your snow pants.”
With an exaggerated sigh, Brianna blew at her bangs and then hopped off the bed. Grabbing Annie’s arm, she led the younger girl across the room. Kevin moved out of their way by stepping inside. The girls’ chatter could be heard from the hallway.
“I was right,” Brianna stated, her voice fading as it got farther away. The diminished words could still be heard. “Elle is Uncle Kevin’s girlfriend. He just wants to kiss her.”
Elle looked down at her hands, wishing the girls had just stuck to talking about the snowman they were going to build. She needed time to process these last few days and the only way to do that was to resume her normal routine back home. She wasn’t looking forward to the five hour trip, but seeing as she’d been awake all night, maybe she’d sleep the entire time.
“I figure we’ll head out around noon. I need to make a stop in town before we head out. Shouldn’t be more than an hour.”
That was it? Kevin wasn’t going to mention what happened? Elle sat up a little straighter and looked his way. He’d already turned to go. Why the hell was he being so nice to her after she’d embarrassed him in front of his mother?
“Wait.” Elle was glad she’d chosen to wear her flannel pajamas instead of sleeping in her usual tank top and panties. She tossed the covers aside and swung her legs over the side until her feet touched the cold wood floor below. “I’m…I’m sorry about last night. It was wrong of me.”
“If I thought you were apologizing for what you truly should be sorry for, then I’d cross this room and join you in that bed,” Kevin said as he’d turned around once more to face her. The gray of his eyes that usually resembled soft pillows were now hard as granite. Elle’s heart raced a little faster. Finality sunk in that the man who’d walked out of the kitchen last night had been transformed by her mistake. It wasn’t that he was closing himself off to her. It just seemed to be a different side of him and one that was a hundred percent determination. “You should shower and get ready for the day. I’ll meet you downstairs.”
Downstairs. That would mean having to talk with his mother. Kevin didn’t give her a chance to reply or ask exactly what he meant by her apologizing for the wrong thing. Elle glanced at the clock on the nightstand. For the foreseeable next four hours it didn’t matter, as she needed to deal with the fallout from last night. She let herself drop back against the mattress in defeat. Her calm, familiar, and comforting life had detoured off its tracks and there was no getting back on that train.
* * * *
Elle had thought she’d be able to apologize to Mrs. Dreier in private, but the kitchen was overloaded with her children. The only ones missing were Kevin, Kane, and the two little girls. Kelly was holding Mason on her hip while eating a piece of bacon at the counter. The others were sitting around the table talking over each other and laughing at the stories being told.
“Elle, perfect timing,” Kelly said with delight, walking toward her. “Would you hold Mason for a minute? I’m just going to change clothes quick. I won’t be long.”
Without waiting for an answer, Kelly thrust the little boy her way. Elle automatically put her hands in the air and ended up with a sturdy baby in her arms. Panic started to shroud every pore on her body as she looked into the innocent face blowing bubbles as if being held by a stranger was an ordinary thing.
“Elle, I poured you some coffee,” Mrs. Dreier said, her voice drowning out the ringing that had been resounding in Elle’s ears. “Come.”
Elle’s necessity to apologize and her need to hand off Mason to someone who knew what they were doing raged within her. Seeing as she had no choice, she took faltered steps toward the counter. Shifting Mason farther up on her hip, each stride seemed to become more comfortable. She’d finally taken a deep breath and had reached her destination. Now it was time to execute her plan before anything else went awry.
“Mrs. Dreier, I want to apologize for—”
“Elle, I’m going to stop you right there.” Mrs. Dreier waved her spatula in the air. “There will be no apologizing for how you feel. It was a good thing for you to express yourself and it was even better that Kevin was there to hear. Yes, we have a close family, but even we know when to leave matters in the hands of those that are affected. Now wipe that worry off of your face. You and Kevin have a long trip ahead of you and if I’m not mistaken, he said he was stopping at the Heroes Benefit Society before it began. So would you like French toast or pancakes? And before you answer that, it better be with my first name.”
“Just coffee for now, Florence,” Elle murmured, her voice weakened from having been reprimanded in a distinctive motherly fashion. She couldn’t bring herself to contemplate the ramifications of that, so she looked down at Mason, who seemed fascinated by her locket. His tiny fingers were having trouble grabbing hold. Heroes Benefit Society had been brought up many times. “I know that Kevin was wounded, but he had you and his childhood home to recover in. Why go to the center?”
Elle knew her questioning was one of weakness, giving her the chance to find out what she wanted while Kevin didn’t get to reciprocate. It didn’t stop her though. Concentrating on Mason and making sure her hold on him was tight enough, she silently willed Florence to answer her.
“Kevin really struggled after coming home from Afghanistan. My boy seemed lost.” Florence looked out the kitchen window, causing Elle to do the same. She hadn’t realized the view included Kevin as he and his brother were showing the girls how to build a large snowman. His smile was breathtaking. “It was Lloyd who suggested Kevin involve himself with the Heroes Benefit Society.”
Elle felt a pudgy hand against her cheek and drew her attention away from the outdoor scene. Mason was studying her, much like his uncle did. She gave a smile hoping it didn’t seem forced, but then realized he wouldn’t know the difference. Would he? The only thing in the toddler’s expression was curiosity and determination. Suddenly, it hit Elle why the Heroes Benefit Society had become so important to Kevin.
“It gave him purpose,” Elle said, looking up at Florence as understanding fell into place. Kevin’s mother had a knowing smile on her face. “He didn’t need the center, but rather the center needed him. He took control, didn’t he? He saw to it that the men and women who were having trouble acclimating to civilian life got the help they needed. In turn it alleviated the helplessness that had overtaken him.”
“She’s a smart cookie,” Florence whispered, her statement directed at Mason. “Now take this boy over to his father. I’m not allowing you to leave my house hungry.”
Elle stepped away, although she found herself reluctant to walk to the table and hand off the bundle of warmth. She’d never been in the vicinity of a child so young and found that it wasn’t as bad as she would have thought. Instead of feeling bitterness for recognizing how little it took to mold this innocent being, she found herself feeling grateful that Mason would grow up in a family like this. How different her life would have been had she been a member of this household. How different could her life be now should she accept that?
K
evin deposited Elle’s small suitcase inside the door of her apartment. She must have turned down the heat while they were away for the air was chilled. He opened his mouth to tell her to turn the temperature higher so that she’d be comfortable, but he immediately snapped it shut. It wasn’t his place.
“Thank you.”
Elle slowly took off her gloves as if she needed time to contemplate what to do. The trip had passed by in relative silence after they’d left the Heroes Benefit Society. She’d followed Kevin around while he paid his respects to the employees and volunteers that he knew. A few of the veterans that he recognized were there and he’d taken time to see how they were doing. Instead of the questions that he thought he’d receive, Elle had remained somewhat silent unless a question was directed her way. She’d seemed lost in her own world.
“It looks as if your debt is paid,” Kevin said, his voice containing no sarcasm. He meant it. If this was what she thought would put them on even ground, it wasn’t a bad thing. “I did appreciate the company, so thank you. It was a difficult time.”
“I didn’t make it better though, did I? I have a feeling things would have gone smoother without me.” Elle was still looking at the gloves in her hand. Kevin wished she would look at him so that he could read what was in her eyes. “You didn’t take my apology earlier, but I do want you to know that I never meant to cause you embarrassment in front of your family.”
Kevin felt exasperation fall over him as he didn’t know what else to say or do for Elle to grasp that her past didn’t embarrass him. If anything, he felt pride and adoration for the difficulties that she had overcome to get to this point in time. He had told himself that the ball was in her court and that he would wait out her decision on where the two of them went from here, but maybe it was time for another tactic.
Kevin unzipped his jacket and then shrugged out of the heavy material before hanging it on the back of the kitchen chair. He noticed that her eyes followed his movements. Her lips parted as if she wanted to ask what he was doing, but she remained silent. Closing the distance between them, he slowly removed the gloves from her hands.
“What are you doing?” Elle asked, her voice no more than a whisper. It was almost as if she were afraid to move. She cleared her throat. “I should go downstairs. The club is in full swing.”
“There’s no need to go downstairs when Jax said he has everything covered.” Kevin proceeded to unzip her white jacket and had just gotten the fastener to the bottom when her fingers encircled his wrists. “I’m just taking care of you, Elle. It was a long drive and I know you must be tired. You’re used to being awake at night and sleeping during the day. This trip has to have messed with your internal clock.”
“See?” Elle stepped back, dropping his hands. Her brown eyes shot to his, expressing her frustration. Now they were getting somewhere. He could handle whatever emotion she threw his way, but it was when she withdrew that he felt helpless. “This is the problem.”
Kevin studied her as she yanked her arms out of the insulated jacket and basically threw it on her kitchen table. She paced to the small kitchenette and then turned to face him with her hands on her hips. Was she finally going to open up enough for him to know the truth of what she was feeling? This guessing shit was getting old. He waited her out by crossing his arms, ensuring that she knew he wasn’t going anywhere.