Sizzle (St. Martin Family Saga): Emergency Responders (22 page)

17

I
t had grown
dark outside as Eve and Clay stood side by side in the large mirror at his dresser, readying themselves for an evening with Augie and Mia. Eve was wearing the bindings under her dress, and the excitement that simmered through made blush unnecessary.

In the days that followed the reunion with her sister, Eve learned that she wouldn’t need a divorce. Augie destroyed the paperwork, so there would be no trail pointing her way. Something had gone wrong, very wrong, and Nicolas would never hurt anyone again. She couldn’t mourn him, not even a little. Not even the man he’d been when they were dating. Not when she knew that his treatment of her had all been an act.

Augie wasn’t big on details, but Clay said it was best to not know those details in the event the authorities traced anything back to them. Truth be told, Eve didn’t want to know the particulars. Nicolas had been violent with her, and he’d drawn a violent end to his life. He was the one responsible for whatever had happened, she was sure. She did worry, however, about Augie’s involvement. About Mia’s. But she tried not to dwell on those worries. She now wanted to concentrate on building a life with Clay.

She would never have to worry that she’d run into Nicolas, that he’d come after her and hurt her. Her life was better than it had ever been, better than she’d ever hoped it would be.

Eve tried to decide on a pair of earrings to go with her dress, smiling at Clay, who was, as he often was, watching her.

Mia had confided that she hadn’t been upset when Eve left. Her sister wanted her safe and away from Nicolas. Mia had purposely not tried to contact her, had not even tried to track her, so Nicolas wouldn’t have any way to find her.

Now Eve was worried about Mia, but not for her safety. She’d been staying in Augie’s garage apartment. It was a cute little place and it meant Augie was right there if she needed anything, but Eve sensed that Mia wanting something more where Augie was concerned. Yet Eve knew from Clay that Augie was not a settling-down kind of guy.

She pushed her hair behind her ears and considered the earrings she’d put on. They worked. “My sister is in love with Augie,” she told Clay.

He frowned into the mirror. “I don’t know about in love with, but yeah, she likes him.”

“He’s a great guy and I’ll always be grateful for what he’s done for me, but if he hurts my sister, I’ll make him pay.”

Clay laughed at her admission, which set her off.

She whirled and cut her eyes at him as she jammed her hands on her hips, ready to give him a piece of her mind.

“Oh, looks like I have a little pissed-off kitten on my hands.” He tugged on her, pulling them backwards, and sat on the edge of the bed. He drew her across his lap.

If she wanted to, she could break free from his embrace. She didn’t want to.

“Don’t make fun of me. I’m worried about her. You think I can’t tell Augie’s a player?”

He sat quietly, looking at her with a ridiculous smile on his face.

“What?”

“Don’t you understand anything?” He kissed her lips. “Same was said of me before I met you. All it takes is the right woman to set a man on a true course.”

Her toes curled at his admission. She jumped up, turned, and hooked her hands behind his neck, straddling him in her dress. She placed a big fat wet kiss on his lips. “I love you Clayton James. And I’m glad your course stormed across mine.”

*

Clay was drunk on Eve. He had a special question to ask her and he could hardly wait. They’d picked up Augie and Mia and were part of the rowdy crowd in a raucous dance hall just inside the Texas state line. It was a bit of a drive but the spectacle of the hall made it worth it.

The musician was one of his father’s favorites, so he’d seen him several times before. What he hadn’t counted on was Eve’s reaction. She was beaming. He’d thought she’d enjoy the ambiance of the proverbial Texas honky-tonk—sawdust on the floor and beer served straight from the bottle. When the musicians brought out the rub-boards, she squealed in delight and tugged Clay to the dance floor.

It was loud, so he bent to put his lips next to her ear to ask, “Do you zydeco?”

She kissed his chin.

“What’s zydeco?”

“The swing-out moves you see everybody doing.”

“Never done it before, but it sure looks like fun!” She was so excited, he laughed and twirled her in circles. He didn’t know if it was her innocence or her youthfulness, but she made him feel like a king.

“It’s not hard. Watch me and go the opposite direction. I’ll lead you.”

She tried to go the wrong direction at first, but she was a quick learner and it only took twice around the fast-moving dance floor before she had the rhythm. The place was packed and there was hardly room to move, so they were close, close enough for him to feel the rope bindings through her dress. He had to excuse himself to the restroom twice to gather his composure. She’d insisted on wearing the bindings tonight, even though he’d argued that she wouldn’t need them. She hadn’t argued back, just offered her siren’s smile.

Surely the woman would be the death of him.

When the music slowed and the lights dimmed, he grew nervous. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been this worked up about a woman, if ever. Of course Eve noticed the change in him. They were so in sync they knew each other’s rhythms as if they were their own.

She pulled back from his hold. “What’s wrong?”

He kissed her forehead. “Nothing, babe. I’m just getting a little tired.”

She cocked her head and frowned. “Do you want to leave?”

“We’ll go after this dance.”

After the song ended they all piled into his truck and stopped at a diner he frequented whenever he drove this route. Everything had been planned in advance, including the diner stop. The only one not in the loop was Eve, who was currently almost asleep on his shoulder.

As he pulled into the parking lot he announced, “Anybody feel like coffee and pie?” He heard yeses all around.

Inside the diner they ordered right away. Clay was so nervous, his palms were sweating. He looked to Augie and Mia, but they were deep in their own conversation on their side of the table. Eve was smothering her coffee with too many sweeteners. His heart was racing and he couldn’t focus. What had they ordered? That was important. The orders had to be right.

Augie’d ordered cherry, he’d ordered blackberry, and Eve the blueberry. What had her sister ordered? Buttermilk.

Clay watched the waitress approach with the tray laden with their orders. He thought his heart had stopped, but then he felt it flutter, as if a damned butterfly flittered away inside of him. Fuck, he wasn’t going to be able to do this. He couldn’t breathe. God, he couldn’t breathe.

Their waitress kept coming. She slowly set the pies down. Augie’s, Mia’s, his, and Eve’s.

When he saw the overhead fluorescents catch the diamond and bend the light, shooting flares out from the ring, his heart did stop. Eve hadn’t yet noticed the ring topping her pie; she was punching through song selections on the tabletop jukebox. He looked wide eyed at Augie, who shrugged, smiled, and picked up his fork.

“Who would like to hear some George Jones?” Eve turned to him. “Got a quarter?”

He fished around in his pocket and dropped the coin in her palm. She cued up the music.

It was a horrid song for a proposal.

“Hmm, this is a really sad song, isn’t it?”

Augie lifted his head and said, “Cheer up. Ol’ George really was to blame for all the heartache that befell him. He was an ass.”

The women and Augie laughed while Clay sweated through his suit.

Finally Eve picked up her fork and looked down at her plate. She picked up the plate and pulled it in for a closer look. The plate hit the table with a clank as she grabbed the ring and cupped one hand over her mouth. Tears leaked from her eyes. Clay was down on one knee in front of her, but she wouldn’t let him get out a single word. She slid down on the floor with him, wrapping her body around his, smothering him with her arms around his head and neck, whispering of her love and need in his ear.

“Hey, silly girl, are you gonna let me do this, or what?”

She sat on his knee with one arm still draped around his neck.

She held the ring in her fingers and stared down at it. “I’m sorry; yes, do it. Do it now.”

He tugged her chin so that they were eye to eye. “Hey, this is our proposal. It doesn’t have to be conventional.” She snuggled her head between his chin and his neck.

“I love you and want to spend the rest of my life with you,” he said.

She lifted her head, kissed his lips, and smiled. “I’m so happy. I want my life to have started the day I met you.”

He pulled her in tight and with a ragged breath said, “It did, baby, it did.”

He couldn’t get close enough. He bit his knuckle to make sure he wasn’t dreaming or maybe to keep from crying. He didn’t want her to think he was weak. But she wouldn’t, he knew that. She didn’t.

“Say
cheese
.”

They turned as one entangled mass, and Mia flashed them with her phone’s camera.

*

The next morning Clay got up before Eve. They’d been out late and when they got home, they didn’t exactly go straight to sleep. He suspected she needed to catch up on her rest given how busy he’d been keeping her every night. Even the nights he was on duty he’d make excuses to run home and they’d engage in what she called a
dine-n-dash
. He grinned at the memories.

He fed and let Cookie out and then made his breakfast specialty for Eve; after all, it wasn’t every day a woman woke up engaged. The mix was sourdough bread with bacon, lettuce, avocado, tomato, pepper jack cheese, and a fried egg. It went together as a sandwich, but he had to be careful not to break the yolk until the first bite. He checked on Eve, but she was still sleeping. Seeing her in bed gave him an idea.

Back in the kitchen he brewed coffee and poured juice. He fixed up a tray with wildflowers that he was forever pulling out of his yard. Eve always brought the weeds inside, even after he’d told her they weren’t good for anything, but she said they made her smile and so whenever he pulled them, he’d put them in water for her.

“Sorry, buddy, but you don’t get any of this,” he told Cookie, scooting him into the guest room with a chew toy, one of a hundred toys Eve had insisted they buy for the furball.

He started toward their bedroom, tray in hand, but put it back on the counter. His Eve had a sweet tooth, so he opened the fridge and fished out fruit—blueberries, bananas, strawberries. He dished them up in a bowl and placed a dollop of whipped cream on top.

He wished the damned weeds had a scent, but since they didn’t, he held the coffee under her nose. She rolled over and stretched lazily. When she opened her eyes, a bashful smile took over her face.

“Mmm, smells delicious. What have you been up to?” She tried to tug up the sheet to cover her nakedness, but he stopped her with a raised brow and a shake of his head.

Then he cut her sandwich. “We’re doing breakfast in bed.”

She giggled and sat up.

He gave her half the sandwich and a napkin. “My specialty.”

She took a Texas-sized bite. “Oh, wow. I’ll definitely be wanting this again and again.”

She praised every bite, talking nearly nonstop, but she managed to demolish most of the sandwich. When she saw the flowers, her eyes lit up. “You brought me buttercups. But you hate those.”

“Not anymore. Now I have a deep fondness for them.” He tapped her nose with a finger.

“
Check
.”

“What’s check?”

She sipped her coffee. “I just checked off
breakfast in bed
from my bucket list.”

“That was on your bucket list?” He scooted behind her so that she sat between his legs.

“Yes, that and to have a puppy and also to see the beach. So
check
and
check
for those too.”

He wrapped his arms around her waist. “You have such modest needs, my simple lady.”

“When I get done eating this bit of culinary perfection, I’ll show you my complex side.”

He kissed her earlobe and whispered, “Promises, promises.”

“That’s right, old man. You’ll want to get some stretching in before we embark on what I have planned.”

He tickled her side, and she squealed. Then she snuggled her head into the spot she loved between his chin and shoulder and held her hand in front of her, admiring the traditional diamond engagement ring he’d given her.

“Thank you for giving me my life back.”

“Not me—
you
did that. I was just there to accompany you on part of your journey.”

“The best part.”

“The best part,” he agreed.

“Well, maybe not.” She sighed into his neck. “Because you know what they say.”

“What’s that?”

She looked up sweetly, love blazing in her eyes, and cupped his cheek. “The best is yet to come.”