His Reason to Stay: In the Line of Duty, Book 6

by Cathryn Fox

  He kicked a small pebble and watched it bounce. “Maybe I should go.”

  “No, don’t go,” she said quickly. “It’s…it’s good to see you.”

  “It’s good to see you too. It’s been too long.” Wanting to make things right between them and find a common ground so they could forge some kind of friendship while he was home—hell it was well past time he got to know his niece—he held his arms out.

  She looked at his outstretched arms, and after a moment of hesitation, she leaned in to him. He went to give her a kiss on the cheek, but she turned, and their lips touched. They both stilled, and she sucked in a breath.

  “Sorry. I…” he began, barely able to keep a coherent thought as the sweetness of her mouth, the softness of her lips took him right back to the day they’d made love.

  “Chalk!” Ava squealed, breaking the tension between them.

  “How nice.” Rachel clapped her hands and stepped back from him.

  Kyle shook his head to clear it, and tried for casual. “I hope it’s okay. I had no idea what to get a four-year-old girl. My buddy, Cole, has a daughter Ava’s age and suggested chalk.” He grinned and nudged Rachel with his shoulder. “Good thing too, I probably would have bought her a train.”

  Rachel laughed. “Chalk is perfect. She loves to draw. As you can tell she’s kind of a girly girl and wouldn’t know what to do with a train.”

  “Like her mom,” Kyle said.

  She put her hands on her hips and seemed to take offense. “I wasn’t a girly girl.”

  “Sure you were.” He rolled a shoulder. “But there’s nothing wrong with that, as long as you have the skills to hold your own. You never had to worry about that though.” He nudged her playfully. “James and I always had your back.”

  At the mention of James they both seemed to stop breathing, their eyes locking.

  “Mommy, can I draw?” Ava said.

  “Sure.” Rachel sounded breathless as she turned away from him to ruffle Ava’s hair. “Let’s head home and you can draw on the driveway.” She grabbed Ava’s hand and started for the gate. Kyle hung back, his gut tightening as they walked away. He was about to head back to his motorcycle, to go numb himself with a few beers at Sky Bar, when Rachel cast a glance over her shoulder. “Aren’t you coming?” she asked.

  “I wasn’t… I didn’t…”

  She checked her watch then arched a brow. “Have you had lunch?”

  “No.”

  “Then come on. I’ll make you something to eat.” Her gaze moved down his body, a leisurely stroll that had his muscles tightening. Jesus, when she looked at him like that, it was all he could do not to drag her back into his arms and give her a proper kiss. “You look like you’ve been living off rations for too long.”

  He laughed, the tension easing between them. “And I don’t think I’ll be stopping anytime soon. I’ve tasted your cooking, remember?” he teased.

  She put her hand on her hip and feigned offense. “I’ve come a long way since I burnt those grilled cheese sandwiches, you know.”

  He caught up to them and slowed his pace as they walked the short distance to her small house. Ava chatted on endlessly as she skipped along. He shot a glance around the neighborhood. It was a nice place, filled with kids and families, but it was a far cry from the house she and James had moved into after getting married—a wedding gift from his parents. Even though the newlyweds had just been starting out, living in the wrong part of town with a baby on the way was out of the question for his folks.

  “How long have you been home?” They moved down the sidewalk, Ava singing some song at the top of her lungs.

  “This morning.”

  “You just got in?”

  Her arm brushed his and he tried not to react, but being close to her was messing with his mind. “Yeah.”

  She looked a little hesitant when she asked, “Have you seen your parents yet?”

  He inched away and put his hands into his pockets. “No.”

  She nodded and went quiet, staring at her flip-flops as she walked. “Where are you staying?”

  “My buddy, Jack, has a room above his motorcycle shop.”

  She gave a slow shake of her head. “Your parents aren’t going to like that.”

  “You know we don’t exactly get along.”

  “I know,” she said, her voice soft.

  Of course she knew, because she didn’t get along with them either. James might not have been able to see it, but his folks weren’t very nice to Rachel. They were too worried about appearances and couldn’t see beyond what they deemed her lower class stature. He fisted his hands inside his pockets, hating how judgmental they were. Rachel was sweet, kind, the nicest girl he knew. Now that James was gone, did she have any kind of relationship with his parents?

  He looked at Ava climbing the stairs to the front door, the back bow on her little pink princess dress flopping behind her. He wasn’t sure how to bring it up, so he bluntly asked, “Do they see Ava?”

  She smiled and started up the stairs behind her daughter. “They do, and they spoil her like crazy.”

  Kyle grabbed the rail, which wobbled in his hand as he took the stairs two at a time. “Good.”

  She fished her key from her pocket and tried to open the door. She leaned into it, giving it a good hard shove with her shoulder. “It sticks.”

  The door banged open and hit the wall with a thud. Kyle followed her in and looked at the hole in the wall where the knob had smashed through numerous times. “You need to get this fixed.” He examined the door, checking the seal and hinges.

  “I just…I haven’t had a chance to call anyone in. I’m not home in the day, and nights I’m busy with Ava.”

  Ava skipped down the hall. “Mommy, can we have chicken nuggets?”

  “No. We’re having turkey wraps and veggies, remember?”

  Kyle followed her into the kitchen and glanced around. Her home was warm and cozy, toys strewn about and things out of order, so different from the home he’d grown up in. It reminded him of her first apartment, and he liked it. He liked it a lot.

  “Ava, can you please grab the wraps from the fridge.” Rachel opened the cupboard, held up by one squeaky hinge, and removed three plates and three water glasses.

  Ava pulled the fridge open and gripped a plate with tiny hands. She wobbled a little as she carried it to the table.

  “Whoa. Here, let me help.” Kyle reached for the plate.

  She twisted so he couldn’t help. “I can do it,” she said lifting her chin as she awkwardly set it down.

  Kyle bit back a grin and held his hands up, palms out. “Sorry.”

  Rachel laughed. “She might be Princess Ava, but she’s very independent.”

  “I can see that.”

  She gestured toward the fridge. “Can you grab the juice?”

  “Sure.” Kyle opened the fridge and pulled out the container of apple juice. He filled the three glasses and leaned around Rachel to put the empty jug on the counter near the sink. She turned, and all of a sudden her mouth was right there, inches from his. Heat flooded him, and he breathed in the sweet scent of her skin, the floral fragrance of her shampoo. Raspberries. She always smelled like fresh-picked raspberries. His cock thickened, his heart hammered and it was all he could do not to help himself to another taste of her.

  “Oh, sorry.” She ducked under his arm.

  She moved around him and under the guise of securing the container on the counter, he stood with his back to her and took a moment to compose himself. Christ, when it came to her he was weak—a fucking greedy bastard. Common sense dictated he leave, run in the opposite direction and stay as far away from her as possible. He’d taken advantage of her once, and no way in hell was he going to do it again. But Ava was his niece, and James would have wanted him to get to know her, so he had to get his shit together and be the man they all needed him to be.

  After gaining a modicum of control, he turned, folded his arms across his chest and leaned agai
nst the counter. With her back to him, Rachel divvied up the sandwiches and filled each plate with carrots, celery and a small bowl of dip.

  Ava stood by the garden door off the kitchen, twisting the lock. “Mommy, can we eat at the picnic table?”

  Rachel shot her daughter a look, then glanced at Kyle. “I’m not sure Uncle Kyle can fit.”

  Was she serious? He smoothed his hand over his stomach. He might have missed a few workouts while traveling, but he wasn’t in that bad of shape. “Make up your mind, Rach. Earlier you said I looked like I was living off rations, and now you’re saying I’m too big for a picnic table. I’m pretty sure I can fit.”

  Rachel laughed with him. “Okay, let’s go see then.” She balanced her plate, picked up her juice and opened the back door. The hinges moaned like a wounded animal. The place was homey but it was missing a man around the place, someone to help with all the repairs. He’d only been in the hall and kitchen and so far there were a lot of them.

  Ava rushed out ahead of them, carrying her plate and drink. “Slow down, Ava,” Rachel warned as she hurried down the stairs leading to the small backyard.

  Kyle followed them out, and laughed when he saw Ava take a seat at the small, pink and white children’s picnic table. Son of a bitch. So this is what she meant. Rachel was grinning at him but he was determined to fit. He went down the stairs ahead of her, put his plate on the table, and scratched the back of his head. He had no idea how he was going to get his legs into that small opening, only that he was damn well going to do it.

  “We can sit here.” Rachel pointed toward the two lawn chairs.

  “Nope, if Ava wants to eat at the picnic table, I’m going to eat at the picnic table.”

  “As stubborn as ever, I see.”

  He put one leg through and contorted his body. Stubborn or stupid. It was a fine line.

  Ava squealed, her eyes wide. “Uncle Kyle,” she said, her drink nearly spilling as the table slid on the grass. “You’re too big!”

  “No I’m not. Look.” With one leg through the hole he straddled the bench seat and bit into his sandwich like it was the most comfortable position in the world. It wasn’t.

  Rachel dropped down next to Ava. The smile on her pretty face as she rolled her eyes at him was worth the pain. It was good to see her happy. They all dug into their food and he looked around the yard. She had a small shed, and a few toys were scattered throughout. His gaze followed the clothesline from the house to a thick tree trunk, but that towering oak screamed for a tree house. He’d always wanted one growing up, but his mother said it was too much of an eye sore and didn’t fit in with their professionally designed garden.

  Off in the distance a dog barked, and Ava pouted. “Mommy…” she whined, but Rachel shook her finger.

  “Ava, you know it’s not fair to a dog to be locked in the house all day while I’m at work.”

  Ava dipped her carrot into the dressing, took a big bite and said, “But I can take him to Miss Tammy’s when I go.”

  Rachel looked at Kyle. “Miss Tammy is her sitter.” She turned back to Ava. “Miss Tammy is not able to take care of a dog while she’s taking care of all the children she watches.”

  He could almost hear the wheels in the girl’s head spinning. “Lindsay has a daddy, and she doesn’t have to go to a daycare. If I had a daddy, then you could stay home like Lindsay’s mom and we could get a puppy.”

  Rachel dropped the carrot stick she was about to take a bite of. She looked down at her plate, hurt and sadness registering in her eyes. “Ava,” she began, her voice a bit shaky.

  “How about this,” Kyle piped in. “My good friend, Gemma, runs a dog shelter. I’ll take you there to play with the dogs any time you want.” Ava squealed and he said, “I’ll even do one better. Some of the guys train those dogs out at the old compound. I can take you with me.” He looked at Rachel, who was staring at him like he’d grown a second head. “If your mom says it’s okay, of course.”

  “Mommy, can I? Can I? Please, please, can I?”

  “You…you would do that?” Her brow furrowed, her lashes blinking rapidly.

  “Absolutely. I want to spend some time with her anyway. This is perfect.”

  “Is it safe? I mean are the dogs friendly?”

  Protectiveness moved through him, for mother and daughter. He picked up his juice and took a swig, swallowing down the bevy of emotions he had no idea how to handle. “I wouldn’t take her if they weren’t, Rach. I’d never put Ava in any kind of danger. You know that, don’t you?”

  “Yeah, I do,” she said quietly. They exchanged a long look, then she flicked Ava a glance. “I guess it’s okay, then.”

  Ava jumped from the table, went down on her hands and knees and pretending she was a dog started barking. Rachel shook her head.

  “Are you sure about this? She has a lot of energy.”

  He put his glass back down on the plastic table. “I’m sure.”

  “Okay. Ava sit back down and finish your lunch, then you can use your chalk.”

  She climbed back in beside her mother and started talking endlessly about the dogs as they finished eating. They cleaned their plates, took the dishes inside and stepped back out front so Ava could use her chalk on the driveway.

  Kyle took a seat on the steps and Rachel sank down beside him as Ava sat on the pavement and tore into her box of chalk. Kyle smiled as he watched her. Rachel was doing a great job with her daughter. It couldn’t be easy to single handedly raise a child while working full time. Honestly, she didn’t have to work, not with the insurance money she received after losing James. But Rachel had always been independent, and had always worked for everything she owned. Perhaps she needed to prove she could stand on her own two feet because his mother thought she was a gold digger. Rachel prided herself on her independence and was worthy on her own merits.

  “This is a nice neighborhood,” he said.

  “Your parents weren’t all that happy with me moving out of the house they bought us. But after…well, it was just too big for the two of us.” She gave a sad laugh. “That’s not entirely true. I never liked it anyway, and wanted to be somewhere where there were kids around for Ava.”

  Kyle looked up and down the street. The houses were close together, lots of kids playing in their yards, and the neighborhood playground and pool was within walking distance. This community had Rachel written all over it but James would have wanted the big mansion and the fancy cars to keep up appearances—and keep his mother happy. Rachel would have hated all of that.

  His next thought hit like a grenade. She’d loved his brother, of that he had no doubt, but had she been happy? As he chewed on that, they both went quiet, lost in their own thoughts.

  Her leg bumped his, and he angled his head to see her. She watched her daughter with love in her eyes, but those big brown eyes also held the strain of shouldering so much responsibility. She was strong and independent, yes, but the loss of a loved one had been hard on her in so many ways. The need to help out while he was home pulled at him. He wasn’t about to take over where his brother had left off, but James would have wanted him to help her. He was sure of it. Would she accept his assistance if he offered it? Or would having him around remind her too much of her loss?

  “What?” she asked, as he gazed at her.

  He shook his head. He’d been so lost in thought he hadn’t realized she was staring back. “Nothing.”

  She was about to press when her phone rang. “I’ll be right back.” She jumped up, then hesitated. “Can you keep an eye on Ava for me?”

  “Sure.”

  Rachel disappeared inside and he pushed off the steps to look over the flowers and rainbows Ava was drawing. He grinned. Oh yeah, she was a real girly girl, like her mother. But with no father in the picture, no one needed a man’s influence more than her. While he was in town, he planned to give it to her.

  He dropped down beside her. “Have you ever played hopscotch?”

  She crinkled her nose, a
familiar habit of her mother’s.

  “Nope,” she said.

  “Want me to teach you?”

  “Okay.”

  He pointed to the sidewalk. “You go find us two small rocks, but don’t go on the road.”

  Kyle grabbed the chalk and drew the hopscotch grid. Ava came back with two rocks, and Kyle positioned her in front of the first box. He went down on one knee and started to explain the game, but Rachel came from the house, her brow furrowed, her mouth turned down in a frown.

  Unease tightened his gut and he stood. “What’s wrong?”

  “The sitter called. Her two kids have chicken pox. I have to find a replacement before Monday.” She tapped her phone on her chin, and looked down in thought. “I don’t really have anyone.” Her hair fell over her back when she lifted her head and met his glance. She pinched her lips together, then said, “I suppose I could ask your mother. It would only be for a few days.”

  “I’ll do it.”

  “What? No. You just got back and don’t need—”

  “I want to.” This would be the perfect opportunity to fix some things around her house and give Ava some lessons on life. Back in the day, Rachel had the two Nelson brothers to take care of her, but with no man around the house, Ava would need to learn to stand up for herself, and kick some bully’s ass if need be. He looked at Ava. “What do you say, Ava? How about we get you in a pair of coveralls and build a tree house out back?”

  Her eyes went saucer wide and she clapped. “Mommy, can I have a tree house?”

  “A tree house?”

  “Every kid should have a tree house. And you have the perfect tree for it.”

  Rachel angled her head and narrowed her eyes. “Is this tree house for Ava or for you?”

  He grinned. She knew him too well. “Maybe a little bit of both.”

  “I don’t know, Kyle. Tree houses can be dangerous.”

  “Mommy, please…”

  “I can make it low and safe.” She continued to hesitate so he tried to seal the deal with, “Maybe that will take her mind off getting a puppy?”