With Honor

by Rhonda Lee Carver

  * * * *

  Consumed in pleasure at watching desire flit across Jasmine’s delicate features, he’d been momentarily lost, yet always alert. He’d heard the noise before Jasmine and was already jumping up. Too bad he hadn’t been quick enough.

  High up on the cliff he saw his friend Walter and two gray-haired women standing, watching him. All three had mouths agape, and eyes wide open. Walter’s face was crimson and one lady brought her hand to her mouth in shock. The other woman giggled.

  “Oh, shit.” Shane glanced behind him to look for Jasmine, but she was long gone. He surveyed the area, but didn’t see her.

  Turning back to the shocked threesome, he attempted a smile of apology. “Hi, Walter. How are you?” he asked as he groped for the blanket and covered himself.

  Walter’s bushy eyebrows shot up. “I’m okay. A bit surprised to see you, son. These are my friends, Allison and Patricia.”

  The shorter lady, introduced as Patricia, looked like she tried her best to contain her laughter but was failing.

  “Nice to meet you ladies. Come here often?” Shawn attempted to lighten the tension.

  “No, but I most certainly will now,” said Patricia with a snicker.

  Allison nudged Patricia. “Patty…”

  Walter chuckled and asked, “Will you be stopping up at the house for dinner?”

  “I don’t want to impose,” Shawn said.

  Walter shook his head. “No imposition. Take your time and enjoy the sun, but please remember there is a dress code for dinner, Spider.” Walter had always called Shawn and Shane Spider. That was because he could never tell the boys apart. This brought more laughter from the women. At least they could find humor in the situation. “Come, ladies. Let’s give the man some privacy.”

  After the three had gone, he heard Jasmine’s chortle before she finally reappeared from wherever she had hidden.

  “Where did you go?” Shawn shot her a questioning look as he sat back down.

  Still laughing, she clutched her shirt to her naked beauty. He slipped his heated gaze down her long, lean legs to the tips of her red painted toes. “I found a rock to hide behind. I’ve never seen something so funny. And Spider? Some name.”

  “Funny? You call that funny? I could have easily given one of those women a heart attack.” He shook his head. “Spider is a nickname. It’s silly but who am I to tell the old man to stop.”

  She joined him on the rock. “I enjoyed how you handled it.” Her laughter echoed. “Do you come here often?” She mocked his deep voice.

  Attempting to bite back a smile, he couldn’t control it. “I’m glad you find this hilarious. Real glad.” He reached over and lightly swatted her pale white behind.

  “Ouch,” she said, patting the wounded area.

  “Bad girls deserve a spanking,” he teased.

  “What do naughty men get?” She looked up at him through a thick veil of dark lashes. Her skin was flushed from the sun. “After all, you were the one who said no one comes here to this untouched beauty.”

  “In my defense, it’s not like I’ve been here naked before.” He grabbed her and tugged her against his chest.

  “I thought the one woman debated jumping into the water, swimming here and joining you.” She snuggled closer to him.

  “That would have taught you a lesson. How dare you leave your man and run for the hills.”

  Her eyes widened, and her mouth opened slightly. “My man?”

  Yeah, he’d said it. In one moment of vulnerability, he proclaimed himself to be hers. He didn’t know where to go from that slip-up. “We did just have sex, didn’t we?” He threw up a brow for show. Her lips twisted into a frown and he felt a stab in his gut. Damn, were his words cruel? A man didn’t bring a beautiful woman to a romantic spot and not expect that emotions would come to a head…among other things.

  “Yes, I guess we did.” Something edged her tone. The evening sun didn’t warm the cool aloofness that fell between them.

  “Jasmine…” He reached out for her hand, but she was too quick.

  She pulled away and picked up her clothes.

  “That came out the wrong way.”

  Shrugging, she kept her back turned. “I’m okay, Shane. I wear big girl panties. I can handle the truth. Having sex doesn’t constitute a relationship.”

  He sighed. This was not how he’d planned to spend the evening with her. “Damn!”

  She shot him a look over shoulder. He wasn’t sure if he saw disappointment or anger in her expression. “Damn is right.” She pulled her shirt over her head and tugged it down on her waist. “Our future is as co-parents.”

  “I’d say that is a huge future.” Silence. He watched her slip on one shoe, then the other. Pushing off the rocks, he grabbed his clothes, and slid them on with force. Several threads ripped as he dragged them on.

  Moments passed, she finally said, “I guess the idea of a future has many different descriptions. You said so yourself.” She raised a thin brow. “What do you have to offer?”

  Her words were meant to sting; he understood that. He deserved it, he guessed. “Go ahead. You can criticize me. But before you get all high and mighty on me, let me remind you I didn’t have a one-night stand in Florida.” Realizing what he’d said, he made haste in correcting himself. “I wasn’t the only one who had a one-night stand. You’re not innocent in all this.” As he slammed his foot into one boot, then the other, anger coursed through him. He wanted nothing more than to bring the truth to light at that moment, but doing anything in an angry rush only led to bigger issues. “Maybe you should have thought twice before you slept with my…me.”

  Her breath snapped from her lips like a gun firing. “Are you suggesting that I have one-night stands and I am getting what I deserve?”

  He stepped closer to her. Her eyes glinted in the sunlight. “I barely know you. How could I make that call? This wouldn’t be the first time a woman allowed herself to get into trouble and blamed the man.”

  By the look on her face, he’d triggered a minefield. Oh hell, this headed south with the pace of a bullet from an M16. He knew he should shut up, but the words just seemed to spiral out of his mouth.

  Her eyes misted and that threw him for a loop. Shit! She was going to cry. He was supposed to be a tough guy, but when it came to Jasmine his softer side ruled. There must be something he could do. When he reached out to touch her arm, she jerked away. “Let me inform you of something, Shane Conner. Any woman with half a brain would have taken one look at you and walked–no, run the other direction. You are the classic sign of career bachelor. I’ll take credit for the fact that I never once said no when it came to having sex with you. But you don’t have to worry about it any longer. From this point on, we can concentrate on what is best for the baby.”

  He was tired–of everything. He’d been holding on tightly to every aspect of his life and he was losing grip. His situation was hell bound. “That’s fine by me, sweetheart.”

  With a look that cut through him, she turned and stomped off. He rubbed the area between his eyes and blew out a long exhale through his teeth. He’d admit he was an ass. His communication skills ranked right with a toddler’s. On top of that, his emotions were as whacked as a teenage boy hitting puberty. One would think he was pregnant too, with the way his hormones raced.

  If his brother hadn’t been gone, he’d have kicked his ass to reality and back. He found it harder and harder to figure out why he was being honorable to save the ass of a man who never gave a shit about anyone but himself in his entire thirty-nine years.

  Shawn knew he was fucked, because no matter what he did now Jasmine would never forgive him.

  * * * *

  Jasmine sat in the cozy living room of Shane’s friend, Walter. At first she hadn’t wanted to have dinner with Shane and the older man, but two hours later with her belly full of fresh fish, asparagus and the best apple pie she’d ever tasted, she was glad she’d said yes.

  Walter was a delight. He’
d shared stories with her about his past life as a pilot and his love life with his late wife, Jane. The man had fifty years of marriage under his belt, not to mention a challenging career that he’d retired from twenty years ago.

  “More coffee, Jasmine?” Walter asked from his chair by the fireplace.

  “No, thank you. Dinner was delicious and the company even better.” Shane’s gaze was on her from where he sat on the couch, but she didn’t acknowledge at him. She’d barely said two words to him since they’d left the waterfall. Her anger toward him had turned to hurt. Once again, it seemed they’d taken a step forward only to fall backward. Reality was, she and the baby weren’t a bundle package. Biologically, he was the father and could be a great one. Something kept him from giving in to his emotions. She just had no idea what the barrier could be, but he wasn’t cut out for a committed relationship.

  “So, Spider, when’s your brother coming in again? I haven’t seen him in ages,” Walter said.

  Jasmine jerked her head around and looked at Shane. He never talked about his brother.

  Shane’s gaze met hers. “Walter, we’d better be heading back now. Jasmine isn’t a frequent flyer and I’d hate to run into that storm heading our direction.”

  “Aww, it’s okay, young lady.” Walter chuckled. “This man should have been born a bird. He has built-in wings. Him and his brother both.”

  “Is that right?” Jasmine didn’t remove her stare from Shane. “Walter, why don’t you tell me about Shane’s brother. I’d love to hear any stories you have from the past.” Did she see Shane’s jaw muscle twitch? She’d guess his heart pounded a hole in his chest too.

  “Yeah, do I have the stories… The twins practically grew up with my son Frank. My family and I owned the farm next to the Conners’. We called our boys the three musketeers.”

  “Twins, huh?” This got juicier by the minute.

  Shane moved forward in the chair. “I wish we had more time to chit-chat about the past, but Jasmine and I have some flying to do.”

  She’d have prolonged the exit, but Shane was at the door and Walter had followed. That was her cue that the conversation had ended, whether she liked it or not.

  Walter drove them to the plane and they said their goodbyes. He invited Jasmine back. When she was tucked into her seat, she looked over at Shane, who interestingly enough had his eyes glued to the window. “That was rude,” she said.

  “What?” He kept his gaze forward.

  “Walter wanted to reminisce and you practically shut him off. I think you’re hiding something. You didn’t tell me you and your brother are twins. Isn’t that something that most people share?”

  He turned to her. His face blank of emotion. In a calm voice, he said, “I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but I don’t have time for this.”

  “What? How would I not take that the ‘wrong’ way?”

  Flipping a switch, the blades of the plane came alive. “I’d rather concentrate on getting us up and going and away from that,” he said.

  “Away from what?”

  He leaned over and pointed out her window. Following the direction, she saw a streak of lightening flash across the darkening sky. “The choice is yours. Stay here and talk, or get the hell in the sky?”

  “Fly, Shane.”

  Jasmine clenched her hands tightly in her lap and felt a sense of penetrating relief when they’d finally landed at the airfield. They’d both been quite during the trip. She’d respected the fact that he’d needed to keep his total concentration on his flying, but she planned to interrogate him at the first opportunity. Land awaiting her, she climbed out of the plane. Shane didn’t even glance at her. Tightness climbed her throat. She could feel the frustration radiating off him. There must be something she could say, not wanting to leave it like this between them.

  “Shane?” She stopped as they reached the parking lot.

  He turned his gaze toward her, one hand on the door of the building.

  “Thank you for a wonderful evening. I do mean that.”

  “Don’t mention it.”

  “I’ll wait here for you,” she said.

  “Sure.”

  Jasmine sucked back her irritation. Would she ever understand this man?

  Chapter 13

  Shawn woke up from a deep sleep. Hearing a knock on the front door, he’d rolled over and tossed a glance at the digital clock on the nightstand. Eight-thirty AM. He wasn’t sure who the hell would be visiting him at this hour, but he wasn’t interested. He’d gotten in that morning from out-of-town training and he’d been down for the count in exhaustion. Jasmine had already left. He guessed to work.

  Whoever knocked would go away.

  Burrowing back into the pillow, he closed his eyes, on the brink of sleep again when another knock sounded, louder this time.

  “Oh fuck!”

  Sliding from the mattress, he looked around for something to use as cover. He dragged the blanket from the bed and wrapped it low around his hips. At the same time, his cell rang from the pants pocket of his ABU pants strung across the back of the chair.

  He grabbed the phone on the way to the door.

  Stomping down the hallway, into the living room, he almost fell over the corner of the cover before he reached the door. He flung it open, at the same time clicking Answer on his cell.

  Seeing who stood on his doorstep made every muscle in his body tense. “Denise? What the hell?”

  Her kohl-lined eyes narrowed and her red painted lips curved downward. “Is that the welcome you give to an old friend?” she asked saucily.

  Damn. He’d gotten out of bed for this? “I’m sleeping, Denise.” He practically groaned the words. He’d have shut the door in finality, if she hadn’t crossed the threshold.

  From his view about six inches higher than her, he got an eyeful of uplifted breasts encased like a sausage in a too-tight bra. She purred like a satisfied kitten as she scooted her glance down his naked torso. A few years back he may have gotten a hard-on from hell with that promise of hot sex, but now all he felt was a roiling of disinterest.

  This was his brother’s lust interest, not his.

  “Oh my, my, my…you do get better with age, Shane Conner.” Her wide smile reminded him of the cat who ate the mouse. Her heated gaze skewered him like a chicken kabob as she took a slow visual stroll back up his body and settled on his lips.

  He stepped back, creating distance between them. “To what do I owe this visit?” For a second he wanted to blow his cover and tell her he had different tastes than his brother had. She wasn’t worth it.

  “After seeing you the other day, I realized we have some unfinished business.”

  “Have you ever heard of calling? I would have saved you a drive.”

  There wasn’t any sign that she noticed his offensive attitude. “You always did play hard to get. I don’t mind. I enjoy the chase, as long as I get rewarded at the end.” Her hand swept out and she twirled her nail around his nipple.

  Damn, he was amazed. Still no response in the nether region. Jasmine had a hold on him. He could get a stiffy with her from a mere glance. That made him laugh.

  Denise must have taken it as a welcome sign, because she pulled her shirt off, scooted closer to him and rubbed her chest against his. Placing his palms on her shoulders, he held her steady, as he looked down at her, “Go home. I’m not interested.”

  “Is this because of the chick I saw you with at the restaurant?” Her lip curled. “She’s not your type. I am.” Denise stood on tiptoe and brought her mouth to his.

  A loud gasp cracked like thunder. But it wasn’t from a storm; at least not in the sky. Shawn popped his head up and his gaze connected with a pissed-off Jasmine. “Oh shit!” he cursed.

  Jasmine stood on the doorstep, mouth agape.

  Denise stepped back, holding her shirt to her chest, looking from Shawn to Jasmine with fear in her eyes. She darted past Jasmine, down the steps and disappeared, leaving a silenced Shawn shaking his head. />
  “I called, but you didn’t answer.” Jasmine stayed on the step.

  Shawn felt his ass pucker. A man knew when he was in deep shit and right now he knew no explanation in the world, not even the blatant truth, would take away the hurt he saw in her expression. He tried anyway. “This is not what you think,” he muttered.

  “Not what I think?” One thin brow curved questionably. “What am I thinking, Shane?”

  “You’re thinking I invited her here.”

  “I interrupted something very cozy.” Her voice was cold, indifferent.

  “I thought you were at work.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry that you weren’t expecting me home and I ruined your plans. Should I ask for forgiveness?” She brushed past him.

  “Hell. You know that’s not what I meant.”

  “No worries. I’d have to care–and I don’t.”

  “What you saw wasn’t what it appeared to be.”

  “None of my business.” She jetted off down the hall and into her bedroom.

  Taking a deep breath, he followed her. “Let’s discuss this.”

  “There is nothing to discuss. She seems like a…” There came a slight pause. “Lovely young woman.”

  Jasmine definitely had him in her clutches. He’d never chased after any woman before.

  He darted a quick glance down her green Woodstock tee and tight dark denims like a fix to a druggie. His body came alive. As inappropriate as that was at the moment, he couldn’t control himself. Three days had passed since they’d made love at the waterfall and his body had been edgy. He didn’t just want a tumble in the sheets, but to talk to her. He wanted to hear her laughter and see her smile.

  “There is nothing between Denise and myself. You know this.” His voice sounded harsher than he meant it to.