by Em Petrova
On the other hand, he was fourteen, a kid from a not-so-great background, as far as she could tell. He often came to school looking exhausted as if he hadn’t slept in days. His clothes weren’t that clean, and he sometimes was made fun of for the way he smelled. But none of those were reasons to point a finger at him.
Except what he said was cause enough.
Something distracted the boys, and the topic turned to a video game tournament at Heath’s house that weekend. Jordan said he probably couldn’t come.
She listened another minute or two, but the talk of the bomb had ended.
A tingling dread came over her as she approached Jason. She told him she needed to speak with the principal and could he keep her watch as well? He answered that he could, and she walked quickly down the hallway to the office.
Principal Riggs was deep in a phone call, but he took a look at her face and ended it. “Arielle. I hope there wasn’t another fistfight in the lunchroom.” He attempted a lighthearted smile, which faded as she dropped into the seat before his desk.
After sharing what she’d overheard, a stern look crossed his features as well. She held her breath, waiting to hear that she was overreacting, that it was just talk.
But Principal Riggs pressed a button to the receptionist. She answered right away. “Send Jordan Williams and Heath Thompson to my office right away. Also, get their parents here and the police as well.”
Her heart sank. Gripping the edge of the desk, Arielle said, “Is that all necessary?”
He leveled a look at her and sighed. “You know it is, Arielle. We have to take the steps to investigate.”
“But I don’t really think these kids are capable of anything. Heath didn’t seem to be involved at all.”
He nodded. “Yes, but if Jordan is, then Heath might know more. You did the right thing, even if it doesn’t feel that way.”
Her insides were like jelly. If the words were all talk, the boys were in deep trouble—at school, at home and with the law. She wished like hell she’d gotten a chance to sit and talk to the boys before coming to the principal. Yet… deep down, she knew Principal Riggs was right.
In situations like this, was there ever a feel-good moment? The answer was a big fat no. All she could do was cling to the idea she might have saved hundreds of lives if Jordan was in fact involved or knew somebody who was and was taking credit.
Minutes later, the bell rang and she went to the faculty lounge for her own lunch. She wasn’t feeling a bit like eating, especially when she heard the whispers that the police had arrived.
Suddenly, it struck her.
Cav.
Why hadn’t she thought to contact him right away? She pulled out her phone and went to the private restroom again to make her call. He answered quickly, to her relief, and she conveyed everything to him.
“But I don’t think he’s capable of such a thing, Cav. I’d bet everything I have that he’s just blowing off. That it’s big-man talk to fit into his reputation.”
Cav sighed. “I’m coming to talk to him.”
Somehow, without realizing it, that was exactly what she wanted to hear. Cav knew what to do—could handle anything, and one young boy wasn’t going to fool him. Also, if Jordan really wasn’t responsible, Cav could likely lessen his punishment with the school and police. What the boy faced at home was completely out of their control.
But it would be all right. If Jordan was responsible, then they were all safer with him in appropriate hands. And if he wasn’t, perhaps he knew enough to help Ranger Ops discover who was to blame.
Arielle’s insides still felt wobbly as she finished out her day. When she walked to the parking lot, there was no sign of the police or Cav. Here was one of those instances she hadn’t been looking forward to—when she was in the dark, left out of the loop, at least for the time being.
For a woman who loved a military man, the waiting game was the worst.
* * * * *
Cav, Sully, Jess and two men from OFFSUS who held impressive titles but seemed to have little field experience had a fourteen-year-old shitting his pants. The interrogation went on for hours, with the same questions being asked over and over. A child psychologist and a woman from child protective services were present to watch out for him.
But that didn’t make things any easier on the kid.
And Cav would bet his sidearm and the knife in his boot that Jordan was not a bomb maker. In fact, he didn’t seem to know jack about what went into making a bomb. In another room, the rest of the Ranger Ops and several more OFFSUS higherups were drilling the kids’ families. Beyond parents and into cousins, aunts and uncles, they had their work cut out for them.
It was going to take all night too, by Cav’s guess. The hour was already past seven, and Arielle had long since been home. What would she be doing right now? Definitely something to keep her mind off what was happening.
The thought that she’d been sharing a classroom with a kid who claimed to be responsible for trying to take out his entire school made Cav’s blood boil. She shouldn’t be in danger for trying to fill young minds with learning. And all those innocent kids…
He leaned against the wall, arms folded, watching Jordan for signs he was lying, as he’d been doing for hours now. It was all the same.
At Cav’s side, Sully shook his head. “The kid’s not responsible.”
“No.” Cav didn’t look away from the boy.
“I think we need to call an end to this. Keep him in custody overnight and let him rest.” Sully pulled away from the wall and left the room.
A minute later, he returned, and the interrogation was concluded. Before Jordan left the room, though, Cav told him to stay and have a chat with him.
“Cav?”
Cav nodded to his captain. “I just need a minute with him.”
Sully gave a small nod and left them alone.
Jordan wouldn’t look at him but kept his stare on the tabletop. His face was red from crying so much.
“You know I believe you, that you’re not to blame for this mess. But trying to act big, and giving big talk like that results in big consequences. You understand, son?” Cav dug into the depths of his own memories of being Jordan’s age.
Continuing on, he said, “You talk big to your friends or to a girl. But it’s not always true, right?”
“I didn’t do it. I was just showing off,” he said almost inaudibly, not for the first time.
“I believe you. I also see you might not have the best situation at home. And you might struggle to do well in school.”
Jordan glanced up and then down again. He nodded.
“Those things don’t need to limit you, Jordan. You can rise above. Many men rise above what they came from and do great things.”
His shoulders slumped in defeat. “How? I’ll be stuck in Rose forever, probably be a janitor or wash dishes in a restaurant. I’ll never be anything, just like my parents aren’t.” His throat worked with fresh emotion he struggled to hold back.
Cav reached out and grasped his shoulder. He felt bony and burdened with the weight of what he’d done and why he’d done it.
“Look, there’s a way out.”
He laughed without humor. “How?”
“You keep your nose clean and do the best you can in school. And when you graduate, you go to the armed forces, the Marines or Army or Navy or Air Force. You get skills there, skills to be a real man. And then you find what it is you enjoy doing and you’re given those chances if you work hard enough. You don’t have to be stuck doing janitor work if you don’t want that, Jordan. You understand?”
A gleam of hope lit his eyes. “Is that what you did?”
He nodded. “It’s where I started. I worked my way up from there. Now that you understand that you’re not trapped, that you can make something more of yourself, do you think you might want that?”
Jordan nodded.
Cav squeezed his shoulder before letting go. “We’re going to give you a place to
sleep and talk to you again in the morning. But for tonight, I want you to rest and to let yourself hope for better moments to come for you. All right?”
Jordan swallowed hard and met his gaze full-on. “Yes, sir.”
“Good man. And good luck.”
As Cav left the building and got into his truck, he took a moment to scrub a hand over his face. Dammit, he hated to see what he just had in Jordan’s eyes. That lack of hope and despair was enough to crush a man, let alone a boy.
But hopefully what Cav had told him would leave an impression.
Sighing to shake the day off, he pulled out his cell phone and brought it to his ear.
“Cav.” Arielle’s relief sounded in her sweet voice.
“I’m finished here. Can I come over?”
“You don’t even have to ask. I’ve been waiting for you and I’ve got food, though it might be dried out after warming in the oven all this time.”
“I don’t need anything but you.” It was true—the thought of her in his arms was all he needed for the rest of his days.
“Well, I’m here.” A smile leaked into her tone, and he felt his own lips tugging upward as he looked to better times too.
“I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
“I can’t wait to see you.”
“I can’t either. And Arielle?”
“Yes, Cav?”
“I’m gonna marry you.”
* * * * *
Now this was familiar.
Pacing in front of the front door, a tangle of excitement and apprehension as she waited to greet her man. She’d done this each time she expected Darren home on leave. Would he look different—would he be different? A man who did the things he did would have scars that weren’t visible to the eyes. Then he’d step through those doors and she’d embrace him and everything would be fine again… at least till next time.
Even knowing where Cav had spent his day, she couldn’t help but picture wounds, broken bones or other violent effects of combat.
She bit down on her lip and parted the curtains to see out to the street. No sign of his truck. She resumed pacing.
Dinner was grilled salmon, which was probably a dried up sheet of cardboard by now in the warming oven. Who cared? She would whip up some eggs if they were hungry, which she wasn’t.
All she wanted was to set eyes on Cav.
The stress of the day had taken a toll on her, and she’d come home and tried to soak her cares away in a hot bath, but she’d been too restless to sit in the water for very long. Then she’d laid on her bed in her bathrobe and tried to read, usually a decadent pleasure for her.
But after trying to read the same page several times, she’d given up and closed the book. That only left cleaning or watching TV, and after doing some laundry and sweeping the floors, she’d collapsed on the sofa with the remote, but she couldn’t remember anything about the shows she’d watched.
She peeked outside again, just in time to spot the headlights moving down her street. Her heart squeezed like a fist had clamped around it.
Was she really willing to live like this, always so keyed up over the man she loved?
Yes, for Cav, she was. She’d made up her mind, and she wished her misgivings would stop seeping in.
Sure enough the truck stopped along the street and parked. She went to the door and opened it, standing there waiting for him.
He climbed out quickly, but she found herself checking him over for injuries. He was walking fine, with no limp or stagger.
As he reached the sidewalk, he shot her a crooked grin. Relief pulsed to her fingertips, leaving her feeling drained and excited at once.
“Hey, baby.” He stepped up to her and kissed her, just a warm peck but a caress she felt to the tips of her toes.
She gripped his shirt front and looked up into his eyes. “I’m glad you’re back.”
“Let’s go inside so I can kiss you properly without scandalizing the neighborhood. Because once I lay my hands on you, I won’t stop.”
A shiver of desire coursed down her spine. Somehow, she managed to make her feet cooperate enough to move to the door. He came in and closed it behind him, twisting the lock. He faced her.
She searched his face for signs of… well, anything.
“What happened with Jordan?” She couldn’t hold back from knowing another minute.
He caught her hand and pulled her into the living room. Then he took a seat and pulled her down across his knees. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and studied his expression, which was giving nothing away. Damn these military men and their ability to mask their feelings so well, while she was an open book.
“Well?” she asked, losing her patience.
Cav sighed. “He’s okay. A little battered from such a long interrogation but not locked away or harmed at all. In fact, it’s likely he will be released tomorrow.”
Her shoulders slumped and she dropped her head. “Thank God. I didn’t think he’d done it. I’m assuming that’s what you figured out too? The situation was all big talk?”
He nodded. “He’s still got some deep trouble to face—you can’t lie about shit like that. He knows it now, but he’ll probably be made to do community service and maybe get expelled from school for a while.”
Pressing her lips together, she nodded. “And his parents? Are they responsible?”
He shook his head. “Doesn’t look that way. The bomb squad searched their homes and found nothing. It really does look as if Jordan was just spouting off to impress a friend.”
“And Heath’s not involved at all?”
“No. Caught in the storm. Anyway, you did the right thing in bringing this to our attention, Arielle. You can never be too careful.”
“I feel terrible about what I did to him, turning him in and causing so much trouble.”
“You can’t think that way, and he has no idea who overheard the conversation. The teachers move around the lunchroom and kids pay little attention to who’s near them.”
Reluctantly, she nodded. “What happens next?”
“We’ll continue the investigation, which we were doing anyway.”
Smoothing a hand down his chest just to touch him, she said, “They’re considering putting the museum trip back on. I heard the news today.”
“A good sign that things have calmed down.”
“Hopefully, even after this.” She ran a fingertip over his hard jaw. “Are you hungry?”
“I’m starved. Lunch was sandwiches some assistant ran out for, and they were prissy food.”
She laughed at the crinkle between his brows. “Prissy food? What is that?”
“You know, avocado and bean sprouts, the crap health food nutters eat.”
“And you wanted what—a triple-meat with extra cheese and mayo?”
“Quadruple meat would be good, and I wouldn’t mind a little lettuce and tomato, but yeah. Whatcha got in the oven?” Instead of sniffing the air, he leaned in to bury his nose against her throat and inhale deeply.
Under her bottom, she felt his erection growing and wiggled against him.
“Damn, woman, you smell delicious. Is that vanilla?”
She nodded, gasping as his tongue met her throat. “I had a bath.”
“Without me? I’ll have to remedy that—right after I eat. C’mon.” He tipped her off his lap and stood. Together, they went into her kitchen and while he grabbed some drinks for them, she pulled the food from the oven.
“Mmm, I love salmon.”
“Might be dried out.”
“It’s fine. And potatoes too. You know how to spoil a man.”
A warmth seeped through her at the many ways she could spoil him later in bed.
She must have worn all this on her face, because he stopped dead and looked at her. A low growl left his throat.
“Keep looking at me that way and we won’t make it to the bedroom.” His heavy gaze pinned her in place and heated her even further.
“Better eat first. This meal w
on’t keep much longer.”
Before taking a seat at the table, he grabbed her and laid a kiss on her that pulled her onto the tips of her curled toes. Her nipples hardened into stiff peaks, and she wondered if she’d ever stop feeling this driving need to have him between her legs.
He was staring at her again. “What are you thinking?”
She shook her head. “I’ll show you later.”
“Mmm.” He rumbled again through another deep, tongue-swooping kiss before sitting down and digging into the meal.
It was difficult to pull her attention from the hunk of a man seated across from her, but she managed to bring her fork to her mouth without dropping crumbs into her lap. “Oh, it’s not as dried out as I feared.” She chewed and swallowed another bite. Soon she realized she was hungrier than she’d thought—so much energy had been burned through today.
And she still had a whole week of work ahead of her. With luck, that was the end of the upsets and things would run on an even keel.
When they finished eating, Cav’s gaze met hers across the table. “About that bath…”
“Shower,” she said, jolting to her feet. “Forget about the dishes—we’ll do them later. Right now…”
“Right now, I want you naked, wet, slippery and screaming.” He took over where she left off, stepping close enough to bring her aching breasts against his hard form.
A shudder of need ran over her. “Yes. That.”
He grabbed her by the waist, and she hooked her arms around his neck. When he started toward the bathroom with her in his arms, she captured his mouth in a kiss.
Chapter Ten
Arielle was worn out and it was only Thursday. The crisis with Jordan on Monday and getting back into a routine in school without him sitting in her classroom should have been enough for one week, but then Cav was called out with Ranger Ops.
She had to admit he did make her evenings less dark and lonely… and she missed him. Making a gourmet meal without him just wasn’t as much fun. And she wasn’t satisfied with scrapbooking, knitting or reading all night anymore.
