Claimed by the Hero

by Yahrah St. John

  “Do you? Because all I need is you, Caden, not advisors and assistants. We rushed into this marriage without thinking everything through. I mean, we hardly know each other.”

  Caden narrowed his eyes. “We know each other in every way that counts.” He thought about the nights they’d spent on their honeymoon and how she’d responded to him.

  “I’m not just talking about sex, Caden. We have no problem speaking that language, but there’s more to marriage than the physical. What about finances? We never discussed how we were going to handle bills. And children? Do you want more children? I do. We rushed into this, and I feel—”

  “Overwhelmed,” Caden finished for her. He squatted next to the bed, facing her, and took her hands. “I feel your anxiety, Savannah. I felt it at the press conference and afterward. Yes, we got married quickly out of necessity, but that doesn’t mean we have to solve all our problems in one night.”

  “You can’t push this aside, Caden.”

  “I’m not,” he said, rising to his feet. “But it’s been a long day, and I was hoping to relax with my wife for the evening. Is that too much to ask?” He didn’t wait for an answer and instead walked into the en suite. He had stripped and turned on the taps to the shower when he felt Savannah behind him. He turned and found her arms folded across her chest.

  After testing the water, Caden stepped into the shower, but Savannah wasn’t finished with him yet. “Are you honestly going to ignore me?”

  As if that were possible.

  “We have real issues we need to discuss, Caden—issues that should have been discussed sooner than now. I’m not blaming you. I was just as swept away as you by the momentum of getting married, moving in together, and the honeymoon, but we have to figure this out.”

  Caden was tired of talking. It’s all he’d done all day, and he wanted a release. Before he changed his mind, he moved quickly and stepped out of the shower, dripping wet, and snatched Savannah’s hips to his. Before she could mutter a word, he pulled her into the shower with him.

  “Caden!” Savannah protested as the rain showerhead soaked her nightclothes through and through.

  Caden grinned at his handiwork. Savannah’s simple T-shirt was plastered to her bosom, and he could make out the outline of her nipples. His eyes held hers as he clasped the hem of her top and plucked it right over her head then tossed it to the floor. When he was done, he reached for the sides of her shorts and slid them down her creamy brown thighs.

  “What are you …” Savannah’s words died on her lips because Caden dropped to his knees to worship her. He was hungry for her.

  Savannah writhed and moaned above him, holding his head in place as he luxuriated in the act of bringing pleasure to his wife. When he glanced up at her, her eyes were closed. So he dragged his hands upward to squeeze her buttocks as his tongue played havoc with her swollen nub. He knew what she wanted and required. She was wound too tight tonight and needed a release. When he cupped her bottom, gently raising it to change angles, it was all she needed to soar.

  “Caden!” she cried. He rode the tsunami with her by licking every inch of her core until eventually she stopped trembling. Only then did Caden slowly rise to his feet, kissing his way up her body. When he reached her face, he brushed her wet honey locks aside, fused their lips, and entered her.

  Caden thrust upward inside her wet heat, and Savannah took all of him, wrapping one leg around his waist. He went deeper, and then he took them both to nirvana.

  Later, after he’d wrapped them both in fluffy towels, Caden carried Savannah to bed. She was quiet as he placed her on the plush pillows.

  “Did you make love to me to shut me up?” she asked, turning on her side to face him.

  “I made love to you because I wanted you. I always want you, but you were a bit tightly wound tonight and it relaxed you, yes? And now we can speak calmly?”

  He took her silence to mean yes. “So, to answer your earlier question, yes, I would like more children, but I didn’t want to bring it up for fear I’d be putting too much pressure on you.”

  “You do?”

  “Yes, but for now I’m happy to have you all to myself. Does that work for you?”

  She nodded.

  “And as far as finances go, what’s mine is yours,” Caden said. “I want you and Liam to have whatever you need. This weekend we can go to the bank and set you up on my account.”

  “I wasn’t asking for a handout,” Savannah huffed.

  “I’m not giving you one. But I’m Liam’s father, and not only do I want him to have the very best, but I should contribute and pay my fair share.”

  “I suppose you’re right.”

  Caden grinned. “You suppose? Come here, woman!” He pulled her into his arms, and reluctantly Savannah rested her head on his chest. “Don’t go looking for problems where there are none. Yes, we married quickly, but there’s nothing we can’t solve if we talk about it.”

  “Why do you have to sound so reasonable?”

  Caden shrugged. “It’s a gift.”

  “Ha-ha.” She smacked his chest with a thud. “Don’t press your luck, Caden Mitchell.”

  “That’s too bad. I was hoping to get lucky again.”

  Savannah stared up at him. “You’re insatiable, Caden.”

  Only for you.

  “Yes, I am.”

  Sex with Savannah wasn’t just sex anymore. Something else was happening. Something that defied definition and whatever it was, he was addicted to it. Marriage had seemed simple enough. Give Liam a proper home. Get Savannah in his bed. But nothing was as it seemed. Savannah had weaved a magic spell around him that was unearthing a weakness Caden couldn’t shake. So he didn’t.

  He succumbed to it and instead found a blissfully pleasurable experience that banished all other thoughts from his mind. For now.

  “Savannah, I’m surprised to see you here,” Charlotte commented when Savannah walked into the locker room the next morning.

  Savannah frowned as she tucked her purse into the locker. “Why? I work here.”

  “Honestly, I didn’t think you would much longer,” Charlotte said. “I mean, you married the mayor, Savannah, and he’s running for governor. You don’t have to work anymore, not like the rest of us.” She inclined her head around the locker room to a couple of other nurses in scrubs that had just come on duty.

  “Yes, I married Caden, but that doesn’t mean I have to give up everything. Does it? I’m still me, Charlotte.”

  “Of course you are, darling.” Charlotte walked toward her and grasped her hand. “I didn’t mean to make it sound otherwise. It’s just if I had the option to have that handsome, sexy husband of yours take care of me, I’d jump at the chance. I guess I assumed you would too.”

  “Don’t get me wrong, I’ve thought of it,” Savannah said, “but I don’t want Caden to feel like I’m using him as some sort of meal ticket. I can pull my own weight. I’ve been taking care of me and Liam for nearly twelve years.”

  “But, Savannah,” Charlotte said, squeezing her hand again, “you don’t have to anymore. You have someone to help. Let him.”

  “That’s easier said than done. I’m used to being independent.”

  “It’s been a long time since I lost my Derrick,” Charlotte said, “but I can tell you marriage is all about compromise.”

  “I know. It’s just hard.” Savannah was struggling with the marriage and finding her place and role in Caden’s life, in his world. “I’ve tried to express it to Caden, and he doesn’t get it. He’s all logic, but this is about feelings and emotions.”

  “It’s not easy for men to express themselves.”

  Ordinarily, Savannah might have said the same thing to a girlfriend, but Caden had never been that way before—closed off emotionally. He’d been an open book, unafraid to share how he felt about her. Of course, that had bee
n before she’d hurt him.

  Have I broken his trust irrevocably?

  Is it possible I’ll ever get it back?

  “You’re married!” Natalee burst into Caden’s office that Tuesday afternoon as if she had a right to be there.

  “Natalee.” Caden rose from the desk he’d been sitting at and walked toward her. He noticed the eyes of several volunteer staffers curiously looking at Natalee, who was pacing his office uncontrollably. Caden made sure to close the door firmly behind him.

  “Yes, I am,” Caden said once the door shut. “This shouldn’t surprise you, Natalee. I warned you that any hope you might have for a relationship between us was misguided. I’m sorry if my mother led you to believe otherwise, but my heart has always been with another.”

  “Savannah Vasquez.”

  “Savannah Mitchell,” Caden corrected.

  “Caden.” Natalee softened her voice as she stepped toward him. “Surely, you realize the error of such a quick decision.”

  He remained where he stood because he wasn’t in the least bit affected by Natalee or any other woman. In his mind, Savannah was a goddess. He’d been smitten from the start. He supposed he’d put her on a pedestal and when she’d fallen off and made him a laughing stock to the other West Point cadets, he’d felt like a fool.

  “I realize no such error, Natalee. I knew exactly what I was doing—creating a family for my son, a family he should have always had.”

  “You could have done that without marrying her, Caden. I saw her on television. She’s clearly uncomfortable in the spotlight.”

  “You don’t know that.”

  “Don’t I?” Natalee asked. “I’m in PR, for chrissakes. I know how to read people. It’s my job. If you would have only taken some time to get to know your son without shackling yourself to a woman you hardly know, you’d be in better shape.”

  “I don’t know you either,” Caden responded evenly. They’d enjoyed a lunch and mingled at his fundraising gala, but that didn’t make them kindred spirits.

  “True, but we could have been great together,” Natalee said, sauntering toward him and touching his chest. “We’re from the same world, Caden. We could have made a great team. We still can. You can have this farce of a marriage annulled. It’s not like you’re some star-crossed lovers who’ve reunited. You married her for convenience.”

  Had he?

  That question had haunted him since he’d slid his ring on Savannah’s finger. He’d thought their marrying was for Liam to ensure he had a happy, stable home with two parents who loved him. But had there been more? Had he married Savannah for himself?

  “C’mon, Caden,” Natalee began, sliding her hands upward toward his neck. But Caden caught her hands and quietly pushed her away.

  “You need to hear me now, Natalee, because I’m not going to repeat myself. I’m no longer an option for you. That ship has sailed. I’m committed to my marriage and providing a stable home for my son, so I suggest you leave and not embarrass yourself any further by trying to persuade me because it won’t work.”

  “Is she really that good in bed?” Natalee hissed. “Because I promise you, I’m a lot better.” She stormed to the door and flung it open, leaving it swinging in her wake.

  Jack poked his head around the threshold once the coast was clear. “Everything okay in here?”

  “Yeah, man. Everything’s fine.”

  Jack raised a brow. “That couldn’t have been a pleasant conversation.”

  Caden pursed his lips. “No, it wasn’t. I made it clear to Natalee some weeks ago that another woman was in the picture. I told her it was a woman from my past I hadn’t been able to forget, but she just kept coming at me, Jack.”

  “I think she had dreams of becoming the next Michelle Obama and you’d be her Barack.”

  Caden laughed heartily. “Only in her head.”

  “And Savannah?” Jack asked. “How’s she doing? I noticed yesterday she couldn’t hightail it out of here fast enough after the press conference. She does know that’s only the iceberg, right? There’s going to be much more to come, along with fundraising events, rallies, and such.”

  “She knows.”

  “Does she? You need to prepare her, Caden, for her new reality. I’ll have her assistant, Alexa Marshall, do what she can, but ultimately Savannah will be looking to you to make this alright.”

  That’s what Caden feared. He’d married this beautiful wife who fired an intense desire in him that flared every single time he was within a few feet of her. But as Savannah said, attraction wasn’t the sole basis for marriage.

  Love was.

  He’d wanted that once when he’d hoped to marry Savannah more than a decade ago, but Caden wasn’t sure he could allow himself to experience that emotion again. The first time he lost Savannah, he’d grieved for what might have been, and the pain had ravaged his soul, leaving him an empty shell of a man incapable of having a normal relationship with a woman.

  “Caden?” Jack was staring back at him.

  “I heard you. I will speak to her.”

  Jack held up his hands. “It’s your marriage, my friend, and I’ll leave you to it, but handle it you must because we need Savannah to get with the program.

  “Understood.”

  Caden really did.

  More than his passion, Savannah needed his support and reassurance, but Caden didn’t think he had it in him to give her the one thing she’d trampled over so completely the first time.

  His heart.

  Chapter 20

  Carrying his mayoral duty workload while still campaigning was difficult. Caden tried to get home and talk to Savannah, but after yet another event on Wednesday evening, he didn’t make it home until after she’d retired for the night. He thought about waking her to have that overdue talk, but she had an early shift the next morning, so Caden left it alone.

  The rest of that week didn’t fare much better. They both had busy schedules and only ran into each other in the morning near the coffeemaker. It certainly wasn’t a good time to discuss the state of their marriage and expectations for what lay ahead.

  By the time Friday evening came, Caden knew he’d waited too long to have the conversation about expectations. He and Savannah were due to attend a fundraising dinner. Caden wanted to beg off. It had been a long week, but neither Jack nor his grandfather would allow him to take his foot off the pedal. His Republican opponent had double the amount Caden had in his coffers, and his war chest was steadily growing. Caden had to press on, but he worried about Savannah.

  Though maybe he shouldn’t. When he arrived home, Alexa was already in his master bedroom prepping Savannah with the key figures who’d be present at tonight’s event along with any salient information Savannah should know.

  “Is there not a Cliff’s Notes version of this?” Savannah asked Alexa as her stylist, Kianna, and a makeup artist Caden had never met, made his wife flawless. He hardly recognized the chic, sophisticated woman in a royal blue body-skimming dress that hit just above the knee. The sleeveless number had an asymmetric neckline with a big ruffle detail at the left shoulder. The eye-catching dress fit Savannah to perfection.

  “I assume you approve,” Savannah said when Caden failed to speak after finding the group assembled in their room.

  “You look stunning,” he said, unable to tear his eyes off her.

  A big smile spread across her lips. “Good, because I haven’t eaten all day because I was afraid of not fitting into this dress.”

  “You have a great figure, ma’am,” Kianna responded.

  “You lie,” Savannah said. “It’s your job to prop me up.”

  “You don’t need propping up,” Caden said. “You’re doing a great job. Listen, I have to hop in the shower, but I’ll be ready to go in fifteen. A car should be here by then to take us to the event.”

  “I
’ll be waiting,” Savannah said in a cheery tone, but Caden didn’t like the vacant look he saw in her eyes as he walked away. He shouldn’t have postponed talking to her about what to expect from campaigning.

  Unfortunately, he had no time to think about that and quickly rushed to the bathroom. In the time allotted, he showered, shaved again, and changed into a dinner suit. He found a complementary blue-striped tie that would bring out the blue in Savannah’s dress.

  As he exited the master bath, his wife sat alone in their bedroom. “Where’s everyone?”

  She chuckled, glancing around. “You mean my glam squad? Oh, they’ve left.”

  “Savannah.” Caden walked toward her, and when he reached her, he pulled her to her feet. “All of these trappings are for image and to help you feel more comfortable in the role.”

  “The role of your wife or a politician’s wife?”

  Caden frowned. “They are one and the same.”

  “Humph.” Slowly, she slid her fingers out of his grasp. “We should go downstairs. The car will be here any minute.”

  “And Liam?”

  “Handled. He’s spending the night at a friend’s, but we’ll need to talk about next steps for him since this is going to be our lifestyle going forward.” With that, she sauntered out of the room, leaving Caden to follow.

  He didn’t like her ominous tone, and Caden suspected he was going to regret not talking to Savannah sooner.

  Savannah tried to put her best foot forward during the evening. She’d been angry from the moment she’d seen Caden show up at home. They’d hardly spoken to each other after the night of their intense lovemaking in the shower.

  She’d hoped that Caden would sense how uncomfortable she’d been, but instead he’d used sex to shut down her attempts to express her anxieties and fears about rushing into this marriage and, by default, his campaign. She hadn’t fully realized how marrying a man who was running for public office would change her life.

  But thanks to her new assistant, Alexa Marshall, Savannah had come to realize her life and Liam’s were no longer their own. They would be considered public figures and would need to carry themselves with comportment. They’d always have to be on and had to be cognizant of how they looked, spoke, wherever they went, and the list went on and on and on.