SEALs of Summer 2: A Military Romance Superbundle

by S. M. Butler

  “What are you looking at, Lottie?” The woman turned around, saw him and smiled. “I knew she had made a friend. Lottie’s the most determined flirt I ever met.”

  “She doesn’t eat hamburgers, does she?” Ben asked as the line inched forward.

  “Oh, heavens, no.” The woman laughed at him. “Not for another few months, I’d think. I’m Ellie by the way. Ellie Donaldson. I own the bridal store in town.”

  “Nice to meet you. I’m Ben Warren. I’m afraid I don’t know much about babies’ feeding habits.”

  “That’s all right; someday you’ll have your own and then you’ll learn. Won’t he, Lottie?” She gave the little girl a kiss and bounced her gently in her arms.

  “First I’ll need a wife. I can’t even manage to get a date for the Harvest Dance.” He figured Ellie knew lots of women in her line of work. Maybe she’d know a potential partner for him.

  A gleam kindled in Ellie’s eyes. “If you’re looking for a date, I know the perfect person. Caitlyn, you don’t have a date for the dance, do you?” She nudged the woman ahead of her in line, who so far had shown no inkling that she’d been listening to the conversation. As she turned his way, Ben’s interest grew. She wore a tailored skirt and jacket and classic pumps, a far more formal get up than most people in the restaurant. But it wasn’t her clothes that caught his attention; it was Caitlyn’s delicate beauty. She had wide eyes, a tumble of chestnut hair and fair skin that flushed under his gaze.

  “I already told you, Ellie. I’m not going to that dance. I have better things to do. Nothing personal,” she added to Ben.

  A minute ago he hadn’t wanted to go, either. Now he’d changed his mind. “What’s so important that you have to do?”

  “I don’t know… laundry. Shopping. Washing my car.”

  “Caitlyn.” Ellie tsked. “Excuse my niece. She doesn’t get out much these days.”

  “I can see why. Her evenings are packed with excitement as it is,” he teased.

  Caitlyn looked annoyed. “It’s none of your business how I spend my evenings.” Her flush deepened.

  “I just don’t see why you’d turn me down.” He meant it as a joke, but he must have gotten it wrong, because Caitlyn’s temper flared.

  “Why? Because you think I’m that desperate?”

  His good humor vanished in an instant. She didn’t need to remind him it would take a desperate woman to be attracted to him. “I guess you looked desperate enough I thought I’d try my luck.” He turned on his heel and walked away as quickly as he could.

  Unfortunately, that wasn’t very fast.

  “Your mama raised you better than to make fun of an injured man,” Ellie said.

  Caitlyn watched Ben retreat in horror. She hadn’t realized the handsome stranger was lame until he’d walked away. He must think she’d been taunting him deliberately. With his good looks and confidence she’d assumed he was the one taunting her. What a stupid mistake.

  Not that he deserved her sympathy; not after his crack about her being desperate. Just because she was a single mom didn’t mean she was there for just any man’s taking.

  “I didn’t mean it like that. You know it.”

  “Then go say you’re sorry.”

  “It’ll just make it worse.”

  Ben passed through the door, which swung shut behind him. Ellie frowned and shifted Lottie to her other hip. “You might be right. Next time think before you speak, though.”

  “There won’t be a next time. Besides, he was just as rude.” But regret coursed through her at the thought he’d never want to talk to her again. She didn’t meet men like Ben very often these days. He’d been handsome in a rugged, sexy way that immediately put her on alert. Had he really been interested in her? It seemed unlikely.

  “You should have said yes. That young man had the guts to ask you out—”

  “No, he didn’t. You did!”

  Ellie humphed. “You’ll get what you deserve when you’re home alone on Saturday night.”

  Caitlyn watched Ben through the plate glass window. As he made his way along the street outside of the restaurant, she thought her aunt might be right. Ben’s limp gave a slightly dangerous air to his already compelling looks. He was powerfully built and moved like a man who knew his mind. If only he hadn’t insulted her.

  If only she hadn’t insulted him back.

  Chapter Four

  ‡

  “Where’s lunch?” Mason asked when Ben met up with him empty handed.

  “Forget lunch. Let’s go fix that tractor.” He wanted to get out of here before he punched something and broke his fist, too.

  “Not on an empty stomach.”

  “Then let’s go somewhere else.” Ben kept going toward Mason’s truck.

  “What happened in there?”

  “Met a woman.”

  “Really?” Mason brightened.

  “She didn’t like my looks.”

  “Oh.” After a moment Mason followed him to the truck. “Well, that’s her loss.”

  “No, I think it’s mine actually.” He opened the door and climbed in the passenger side. Mason entered the truck and turned the key in the ignition. “She was beautiful. I probably shouldn’t have snapped at her.”

  “Probably not.”

  “She snapped first, though.”

  “She got a name?”

  “Caitlyn. Her aunt’s name is Ellie Donaldson.”

  “Got it. I heard Caitlyn was working with her aunt this summer. She has a degree in business. The women were talking about her and how the bridal shop might be a little tame for her abilities.” Mason pulled out onto the main drag and drove a few blocks. “Let’s try DelMonaco’s. It’ll take longer but that’s okay. Did you meet her kid? It must be hard to be so young and on her own with a child.”

  “Child?” He closed his eyes. The baby in Ellie’s arms. Of course she must have been Caitlyn’s child. “I guess I did. I just didn’t realized it was hers.” He replayed their conversation in his mind, stalling out on the part where she’d gone from pleasant to angry. Something he’d said must have triggered that. Did she think he’d called her desperate because she was a single mother?

  “Would you hold that against her? That she has a kid?”

  “No.” He was surprised to find it was true. “I wouldn’t mind that. Although, I think she might hold it against me.”

  “Not sure I follow.”

  “A mother would think twice about dating me.”

  “Man, you’ve got to knock that chip right off your shoulder. You’re healthy, strong, smart. What’s a little limp?”

  “You saw what happened this morning.”

  “When you saved Aaron? You got there faster than I did.”

  “I got lucky.” They arrived at DelMonaco’s in a matter of minutes. Ben sighed when it was time to get out of the truck again. His ankle was beginning to throb, but there was nothing for it but to keep going. He took hold of the door’s handle. “Caitlyn wanted nothing to do with me.” Which was a shame because she pushed all the right buttons for him.

  “You sure about that?”

  “She came right out and said it. That a woman would have to be desperate to want me.” He pushed open the door and got out.

  “Seriously?” Mason got out too.

  “Seriously.”

  “Then she’s not worth a minute of your time.”

  “Oops—your daughter is about to eat that sand!”

  Caitlyn looked up from her phone in time to see Lottie lift a fistful of playground sand into her mouth. “Lottie, no!” Caitlyn shoved the phone in her pocket and scooped Lottie up, intercepting her hand before it reached its destination. She felt her cheeks heat as she faced the other mother, a petite brunette with straight dark, waist length hair pulled up into a high ponytail. “Thank you for warning me. I was just checking in about work.”

  “No problem. Pamela loves to eat sand, too.” She pointed to a sturdy toddler playing near the slide. “I’m Mia, by the way.
Mia Matheson. I think you were a couple of years ahead of me in school. Aren’t you Ellie Donaldson’s niece?”

  “I am. I’m working with her at the bridal shop. My name’s Caitlyn.” Mia did look familiar, but they hadn’t run in the same crowd. Back in school Caitlyn had been eager to hang out with the older kids. She hadn’t paid much attention to the younger ones.

  “Then we’ll get to be good friends. I run a wedding planning business and Ellie and I work together all the time.”

  Caitlyn made the connection. Ellie had mentioned Mia before, but without a face to put to the name it had slipped her mind. “I guess we will. How old is Pamela?”

  “Eighteen months. What about your daughter?”

  “Lottie is seven months.”

  “She’s adorable.” When Pamela began to bang on the slide with her open palm, Mia crossed to her and helped her up to the top. She came around to stand at the bottom as Pamela slid down, and caught her up in her arms. “You’re on your own, right?”

  Once again the speed of gossip in this town surprised Caitlyn when it really shouldn’t have. “That’s right.”

  “I was too, you know. I picked a real winner when I decided to date Pamela’s father. He was married, for one thing, and not interested in getting divorced. I was so embarrassed when I found out I was pregnant.”

  Surprised at this confession, Caitlyn put Lottie down again, but kept a close eye on the little girl to make sure she didn’t try another go at the sand. “But you married one of the Mathesons?”

  “Luke. He’s such a good father to Pam.”

  Caitlyn tried to do the calculations in her head without being obvious, but she couldn’t help being curious. “Had you dated him before? Or…”

  “We got together while I was pregnant.” Mia laughed. “I know; I was as shocked as you look.”

  “I’m not shocked.” But she was. She didn’t think a man could find a woman attractive if she was pregnant with another man’s child. She’d always thought of Lottie as a barrier to finding another boyfriend. Maybe she was wrong. “Luke doesn’t hold it against you?”

  “That I had Pam? No. We had some issues about me keeping secrets, though. I was afraid he wouldn’t like me anymore if he knew what I’d done, so I hid my pregnancy from everyone for as long as I could. Once I spilled the secret and he got used to the idea he jumped right in to be Pam’s daddy. And my husband.” The smile on her face told Caitlyn theirs was a happy marriage.

  A jolt of jealousy shot through her. Mia was so beautiful—what man wouldn’t want her? Caitlyn was afraid a plain Jane like her wouldn’t have the same luck.

  “Do you have many friends in Chance Creek?” Mia asked.

  Caitlyn shook her head. “Most of them moved away.” Or had dropped her when their lives diverged.

  “There are so many new mothers around. We have a playgroup every other Saturday morning right here. You and Lottie should join us.”

  “I’d like that.” Caitlyn perked up. If she couldn’t date, at least she could make new friends who shared her interests.

  “We won’t have one this weekend because of the Harvest Festival, but next weekend we’ll meet up again. Unless it rains or snows; then we meet at someone’s house. Give me your phone number and I’ll add you to the list.” Mia held out her phone and Caitlyn put her information into Mia’s contacts. She passed her phone to Mia who did the same. “Are you going to the dance Saturday night?”

  “No.”

  “Why not?”

  “I don’t have a boyfriend.” She indicated Lottie with a shrug.

  Mia frowned. “You don’t have to have a boyfriend. All of my friends are going as a group. You have to come with us. By the end of the night I’ll bet at least five men will have asked for your number.”

  “I doubt that.”

  “Why? Because of Lottie?” Mia’s expression told her the woman thought she was crazy.

  “It doesn’t matter. I don’t want to be a fifth wheel. You’ll be with your husband. I bet all your friends will be with theirs, too.”

  “You won’t be a fifth wheel. I won’t take no for an answer, Caitlyn. You have to come! You can’t let the bastards win, you know that, right? If some guy left you high and dry you need to put on your boots and get out on the dance floor again!”

  “Is it that obvious?” Caitlyn sighed to think that everyone thought she’d been dumped. Lottie’s father had come and gone too quickly to do any dumping.

  “It’s obvious you think you have to pay some kind of penance for being a single mom.” Mia handed back her phone. “It’s not like that at all. There’s a man out there for you if you want him. All you have to do is show up.”

  Caitlyn wavered. She’d love the chance to wear her new dress, and going out with a group sounded great. “I’ll need to find a sitter for Lottie.”

  “Would Ellie help?”

  “In a heartbeat. She loves spending time with Lottie,” Caitlyn admitted. She began to get excited. “Thank you!”

  “It’s nothing. Now what are you going to wear?”

  Chapter Five

  ‡

  From Navy SEAL to babysitter, Ben thought with exasperation as he parked Mason’s truck, climbed out and began to extract Aaron from his car seat in back. This wasn’t what he had in mind when he’d accepted Dan and Mason’s invitation to the ranch, but he had to admit that Aaron could be fun, and he felt a certain sense of pride in the fact Regan felt comfortable enough to ask him to take the baby for an hour. She had gone to help another woman in town write a business plan. Regan had worked for years in the loan department of a bank and knew exactly what a loan officer would want to see. Mason’s brothers’ wives had all dispersed to various activities and when Mason expressed a need to catch up on paperwork, Ben told Regan he’d be happy to baby-sit Aaron.

  Still, it galled him that watching babies seemed to be his most helpful skill these days. He had spent an hour with Dan earlier in the afternoon brainstorming better ways to teach shooting skills to participants in his training programs, and the task had interested him enough that he’d forgotten his circumstances for a while, but he couldn’t help feel Dan had made up the task to give him something to do. After all, Dan had been a Navy SEAL, too. He knew how to shoot.

  Ben settled Aaron in the crook of his arm, shut the door and made his way to the park, where a half-dozen women stood chatting with each other while they watched over their kids.

  Ben stifled a curse and the urge to head straight back to the truck when he caught sight of an all too familiar face. Caitlyn—the woman who’d taken one look at him and written him off. Stiffening his spine he made himself walk forward instead, doing his best to minimize his limp. He wouldn’t let her prejudice scare him away from the park.

  Besides, he was enjoying the view. Even in jeans and a casual top, she looked far too sexy to be single. Lottie’s father had made a big mistake when he let Caitlyn go—unless she was always as cranky as she’d been yesterday at lunch.

  He approached the small playground—just a square of sand with swings, a slide and a climbing structure—and debated what to do with Aaron. Judging by the way the boy squirmed, he wanted to get down and play, so Ben leaned on his cane and set him down carefully.

  “Who’s the hottie?”

  Ben froze when he overheard the hissed question. It had come from his left where Caitlyn and another young woman stood talking near the slide. He braced himself for Caitlyn’s scathing reply. Her friend might have missed the fact he was lame but Caitlyn would soon set her straight.

  “I met him in town yesterday but I don’t know his name.” Was that regret in Caitlyn’s voice? Ben stood up and caught them both looking at him.

  “Hello.” He wouldn’t pretend not to have heard them. It wasn’t like they’d been circumspect.

  Instead of being embarrassed, the dark-haired young woman stepped over to him and boldly stuck out her hand. “Hi, I’m Mia Matheson. I don’t think I’ve seen you here before.”

&
nbsp; “I just came to town. I’m Ben Warren.”

  “Hey, that’s Aaron!” Mia bent down to smile at the baby. “Are you staying with the Halls?” She was pretty, but all of Ben’s attention was fixed on Caitlyn as he answered.

  “That’s right. I know Mason and Dan from the service.”

  “Really?” Mia shot a look at Caitlyn he couldn’t determine. “Are you a Navy SEAL, too?”

  “I was.” He gestured to his ankle. “I’ve been sidelined.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that. Well, the Navy’s loss is Chance Creek’s gain. Are you going to stay long?”

  Caitlyn’s gaze flicked up to meet his as if she too was curious about that answer. He meant to say not long at all but the words stuck in his throat. “Maybe.”

  “Oh, Pamela! Excuse me.” Mia rushed off to rescue her baby from the grip of an overly friendly toddler across the playground. Ben looked down to check on Aaron’s progress and was surprised to find that he and Lottie were sitting side by side. The babies eyed each other, their expressions serious.

  He chuckled. “I wonder what they’re thinking?”

  “Maybe they’re wishing they could apologize for their prior behavior,” Caitlyn said softly. “I’m sorry if I was rude yesterday. I was embarrassed.”

  He hadn’t expected that admission. “Why?”

  A flush spread over her cheeks like it had the day before and she pressed a hand to her face as if she could feel it. “Because of Lottie. That’s awful, isn’t it? Being ashamed of your own child?” Her color deepened. “Not that I’m ashamed of Lottie—I’m just ashamed… of me, I guess. When my aunt tried to make you ask me out I wanted to disappear. Why would someone like you want to date me?”