by Terry Spear
Jack smiled. “She only called me that when she was mad at me.”
Emily smiled and patted him on the chest. “Make her fall in love with you. Be your charming self with her like you are with me. And don’t, whatever you do, screw this up. I know I said she doesn’t need anyone in her life. I know, for me, if I had you in my life, I’d be all set.”
That was one hell of a tall order if Dottie didn’t even want to see Jack when she arrived at the airport Wednesday afternoon. He couldn’t wait to see her and the kids too.
“Do you want me to pick her up?” He wanted to. He wanted to see her right away. He only had two and a half weeks to make this happen.
“She’d probably feel she was hoodwinked into coming here. But yeah, we might as well show her we mean business.” She washed her hands. “And don’t mention her ex-husband. That’s a sore subject!”
“Do you have pictures of the twins?”
“Oh, of course. Tons of them.” Emily wiped her hands on the kitchen towel. “I’ll be right back.”
As soon as she returned with a photo album full of pictures and started showing them to him, he smiled. “Hell, Jeff looks just like me when I was that age. And Trish has Dottie’s smile.”
“That’s what I was thinking. Well, I haven’t seen your pictures as a child. I could still see your expression when he’s concentrating on something, or laughing.”
Hell, Jack wasn’t going to sleep a wink until he saw her again. Two kids? Twins? He was sure they were his. He hadn’t foreseen that coming. It was all the more reason to convince her this could work out between them. He sure hoped they could make it work.
2
Dottie was excited about seeing her aunt, getting away from work, and taking her kids to the Renaissance fair and theme park. Trish and Jeff were too. They were so tired after she had to get them up so early, they fell asleep on the plane right away.
She knew the kids would love her aunt, just as much as she did. Emily had always made things fun for her while she was growing up. A fun-filled adventure. The twins hadn’t stopped talking about the trip, except getting them up this morning had been a different story. She hadn’t stopped thinking about the vacation either, and was just as excited to be going home for a visit.
Emily had even bought them first class tickets so they’d have the royal treatment. Jeff and Trish had worn their pint-sized cowboy hats and worn western boots, just like they always did.
When they finally arrived at the airport, Trish and Jeff pulled their own wheeled, pint-sized luggage. Jeff’s was covered in horses and cowboys; Trish’s in ballerinas in purple tutus. They were already hungry, and still a little sleepy, as they made their way to the elevator so they could reach the baggage claim at the lower level. Dottie expected Emily to be waiting down there. What she didn’t expect was to see her old boyfriend, Jack Barrington, holding up a sign that said: VIP Dottie Hamilton and Kids, Adventure Tours of a Lifetime!
Completely shocked, she stopped dead in her tracks, raised her brows at seeing Jack standing there, still referring to her maiden name on the sign, like anyone in town would who knew her by her maiden name. If Jack was here, and he obviously already knew she had kids, he had to know that Hamilton was no longer her name and her dear, sweet Aunt Emily had set this whole thing up.
She tried not to feel the quiver in her belly, or the headiness she felt at seeing him. It was like she was single again, in college, and seeing him for the first time. He was smiling a little, a dimple showing in one cheek, his blue eyes twinkling with merriment. He appeared excited to see her, but was waiting also to see her reaction to his being here.
She took a steadying breath and walked toward him, her legs a little wobbly, knowing now why her aunt had been so insistent that Dottie come right this minute and not delay. Most likely because Jack had a plane to catch soon, to whatever army assignment he had now. She couldn’t believe her aunt had orchestrated this whole thing without letting her know what she was up to. Then again, Aunt Emily had always wanted her to marry him. Which meant, he had to be single, at the least. Did he have kids? An ex?
Jack’s smile broadened, and that warm and generous smile made her heartbeat thump even harder. He smiled at the kids too, like he really liked kids. And in that instant, she saw Jeff’s expression reflected in Jack’s.
She suspected Emily told him to put on his best showmanship if he was going to win her over. She hadn’t changed her mind about wanting to be a military wife and being dragged all over the world and back. If he was thinking of settling down…maybe they had a chance with each other.
Now, more than ever, she needed a safe place for her kids to grow up. So she didn’t want to leave the safety of Yuma Town. She hadn’t changed her mind about him either—at least not from a physical standpoint. He was as gorgeous as ever—tanned, muscled, and beautiful.
And her first and only genuine love. The guy she’d been dating before she met Jack hadn’t even compared.
So much had happened since they were in college together and there was no going back to those carefree days. She imagined he’d changed too after all the war experiences he’d had over the past five years.
“Kids, this is Jack Barrington. A good friend of mine when I went to college here. Jack, this is Trish, and Jeff.”
“What a lovely name,” Jack said, crouching to get to eye level with her and offering his hand to shake hers. After shaking her hand, he turned to Jeff. “And this wrangler is Jeff?”
Jeff stuck out his hand like all the guys taught him to greet a stranger or a friend with a good, sturdy handshake, though for four years old, he still didn’t have a really good grip.
Jack laughed. “That’s a mighty fine handshake, young man.”
Jeff beamed at him.
Jack rose to his feet and leaned over to give Dottie a kiss on the cheek, sweet, a getting-to-know-you-all-over kiss. She fought throwing her arms around him and giving him a kiss that said she wanted more with him.
“I take it you’re here on leave for two and a half weeks?” she asked, hoping he was and that was the reason Emily had wanted them to stay as long as that.
“A month, actually. Emily was afraid asking you to come any longer than two and a half weeks was pushing it.”
Dottie let out her breath and shook her head. “I was married, so I no longer use my maiden name, Hamilton.”
“You will always be a Hamilton to me, Dottie. That’s all Aunt Emily calls you too, you know.”
She still couldn’t believe how sneaky her aunt had been. What else was Emily hoping to do to get them back together? “So where is Aunt Emily?”
“She was going to come. She was afraid to leave the turkey in the oven cooking if she came to the airport. She’s in the middle of preparing a big feast for you, just like it was Christmas. She has been so excited about seeing you and the kids.”
Dottie smiled. That sounded like her aunt. The last time she visited when the babies were just a year old, her aunt had made it feel like Christmas then too. “What are you doing here?”
“I have a month of vacation saved up and promised to see my family. Of course, anytime I come here, I try to see your aunt.”
“So you’re still in the army.” She was hoping he could take an early release from the army, if there was any such thing. “Not that I’m surprised. I kind of was keeping track of the approximate time when you’d be getting out, if you got out.” She probably shouldn’t have mentioned that part, giving him the notion she’d been thinking about him a lot and counting the days until he was free of the army, even if she had been.
His mouth curved up again as he took her carry-on bags and offered to take the kids’ too. They loved pulling them just like adults, so they hung onto their handles and shook their heads. “Yep. I have another three and a half month’s service obligation back at Fort Hood. After that? We’ll see.”
He held the door open for the elevator and gave her a look like he knew she felt something for him, like he did for her.<
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“I thought you had always wanted to make a career of it.”
“If I had no better offer.”
After riding in the elevator, they reached the luggage carousal. Trish said she needed to go to the bathroom.
“Do you need to go?” Dottie asked her son.
He shook his head.
“He can stay with me and help look for the bags.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah, we’ll be fine.”
“Okay, thanks.” She took Trish to the bathroom, surprised Jack wasn’t turned off by kids. He’d never really talked about having any. Of course, they’d never really gotten that far in their relationship either. Then again, if he was here, knowing she had them, that was an indication he was willing to see how this played out. She imagined it would be a big shock to him as far as dealing with kids went. Then she wondered, had her aunt believed the kids were his? Had she told him? She ground her teeth.
She really wished his service obligation was over. She understood how he’d just continue on with his army career, if they couldn’t make a connection in the next couple of weeks.
When she and Trish were done at the restroom, they headed back to join Jack and her son.
The bags were going around on the carousal now and Jeff had pointed out several that looked like theirs. Jack smiled when he saw her coming with Trish, holding her hand.
“Didn’t find them yet?” Dottie asked.
“They all look alike.”
“There’s one!” Dottie said, and immediately Jack hurried forth to get the bag. For the most part, she was used to doing everything for herself, so she appreciated the help. “And that one.”
“So, you disappeared and I couldn’t say goodbye,” he said, hauling the bags to them.
She’d felt bad that she hadn’t bandaged his wounds that day. She had just been angry that Jack hadn’t told her how volatile Hellion was, though she suspected afterward he hadn’t known either. And she’d been scared that Hellion would come after her next once Jack was long gone.
“I went to your graduation ceremony, and watched you raise your hand to take the oath to serve in the military.” In his uniform, he’d been so dashing, and she’d cried then, wishing she hadn’t felt the way she had about him going into the service. It was a good thing she hadn’t joined him when she learned she was having twins. She couldn’t imagine living in post housing and dealing with being a cougar shifter with twins. “I closed up my apartment, lived with Aunt Emily for a short while, then returned home.”
“Why didn’t you come to see me?” Then he dropped the subject. “You didn’t finish your degree?”
She shook her head, and rubbed Jeff’s back, a silent statement that said she’d had to deal with more important business—like being single and pregnant with cougar shifter babies on the way. “I returned to Yuma Town and met Jeffrey when he was passing through. I didn’t want to worry about Hellion coming after me. I was afraid that if I stayed and he learned I was pregnant…”
“He might have assumed the babies were mine.” Jack studied her for a moment and she was certain he realized then, if he didn’t know before, the kids were his. “I understand completely. Hellion came after me the next day, armed with a gun.”
Her jaw dropped.
“I took him down and the police arrested him. Luckily, the movers were there and witnessed the whole situation. I had friends who kept an eye on him, just in case he ever tried to come after you, until he went to jail. He had robbed a quick stop before he came to see me. He’s been in jail the last five years—theft, aggravated assault, armed robbery, though he plea bargained and he received a reduced sentence. From what I understand, he’s had no issues with his shifting at the jailhouse, thankfully. I was glad you’d left that day, or you might have been involved in the altercation. He shot a bullet through my apartment window even.”
“I…I didn’t know. I haven’t been here in quite a while. I really thought my aunt wanted to see me and the kids,” she said as he carried her bags to his Jeep. She was glad Jack hadn’t mentioned the issue of the kids. She needed to talk to him first about it before she said anything to Jeff and Trish. “I never expected her to be so sneaky.”
Jack smiled. “I came over to visit her and as soon as she learned I was going to be here a while, she called you up, thinking this was the right time for your visit. She can’t wait to see you and the kids. She just had an added incentive to encourage you to come, right this minute.”
“I swear if she wasn’t your mother’s age, she’d marry you on the spot.”
He laughed. “I don’t have an aunt, so I adopted her. I always visit her when I return to see my family. She never told me you had married or had kids.”
Dottie had forgotten how close he was to his family and would be visiting them periodically. She appreciated that. That was one of the reasons she liked him. Family meant everything to her. Even her friends back in Yuma Town that were like family to her.
“I imagine she didn’t want to chase you off in the event you still might leave the service and get back together with me.”
“I agree. Aunt Emily said you might be tired and after the feast, everyone can lie down. I want to return and take you to the movies tonight.”
“With the kids?” She didn’t mean to sound so surprised. She just hadn’t envisioned him jumping in to do things with her and the kids too.
“Sure and with Aunt Emily.”
She smiled at him. “This isn’t a devious way to get my aunt out on a date, is it?”
He laughed. “We’ll all have fun.”
Jack had enjoyed the feast with Aunt Emily, Dottie, and the kids, as if they were sitting down to a Thanksgiving dinner. Then he let them rest and returned later to pick them up to take them to the movies. Aunt Emily had eagerly asked if they wanted her to take the kids to see an animated feature while Jack and Dottie saw something else.
Jack wanted to see the animated film with the family. If he was going to learn how to be a daddy, this was the only way to go. If any of his army buddies had asked him what he was going to do when he arrived home, this would have been the furthest thing from his mind.
He was certain that Dottie hadn’t made the slip about being pregnant before she left town and that’s why she hadn’t finished college, plus the concern about Hellion. He assumed she wanted to talk to him about the kids when they were alone.
“Let’s all go together.” He wondered then if Dottie would tell the kids that he was really their father. Maybe it would be too confusing if she decided she didn’t want to marry him. If he was their father, he did want to tell them when she thought it would be the best time for it.
At the movie, he had a blast with the kids. He had his arm around Dottie the whole time as if they were on a date, because as far as he was concerned they were and every hour counted. Even if they had two kids and her aunt on the date. The kids were really cute, fascinated with the animated feature, watching it as if everything that was happening was real. He’d forgotten what being that young was like.
They’d had popcorn and sodas and hotdogs even. And after they put Trish and Jeff to bed that night, Aunt Emily said, “Go. Run. I’ll undress the kids so you can shift and they can sleep as cougar cubs until you return.”
He didn’t wait for Dottie to agree. “Do you have a spare room for me to change in?”
“You don’t have to be all modest for me,” her aunt said.
The way Dottie’s cheeks blushed, he figured her aunt had embarrassed her. He was used to her aunt joking with him like that though.
He smiled and went to the room Emily pointed out. He wouldn’t ever forget the last time he’d gone running with Dottie as cougars and the trouble that had led to. With Hellion in jail, it shouldn’t be an issue this time. Jack wanted to run with the kids too while they were visiting. That should be a real experience and a half. He couldn’t wait.
That night with the full moon shining down on the shadowy woods, Jack had a
lovely time running through the trees, stopping with Dottie to drink from a pond, and enjoying each other’s company. He was trying not to think about the kids, or how much they looked like him. Or how much he was certain they were his. What if she’d been with another guy after he’d left and they really hadn’t been his? That her aunt and he had it all wrong? Yet, he thought the kids looked too much like him to believe someone else was the father.
He was having a hard time refraining from bringing up the issue about the ex-husband also, wondering exactly what had happened concerning him—how, when, and why he was killed. Aunt Emily didn’t know the details, and she had reminded him not to mention it to Dottie unless he wanted to create problems between them. If Dottie wanted to bring up the subject at this point, it was up to her.
He was trying to envision being with Dottie as a husband and father, something he’d never anticipated. A husband, yes. Not both all at once. He’d imagined in a few years after they were married, they’d have a couple of kids, if it ever came to that. Nothing like coming home to four-year-old twins.
So why hadn’t she told him? Because she thought he’d insist they get married, and she didn’t want to be an army wife? Or maybe she was worried they couldn’t resolve where they were going to live and she was afraid he’d want custody.
He was already thinking of cutting his vacation short, just leave it at two and a half weeks so he could visit with Dottie, the kids, and her aunt for the whole time, then return to his post and take the one and half weeks of accumulated leave at the end of his obligation, so he could get out earlier.
After they returned to the house, they shifted and dressed. Dottie dressed the kids in their pajamas, and then he and she went outside to sit on the porch swing.
