“You wanna see my picture?” Sophie’s brown pigtails swung around as she hurled herself into Jackson’s lap.
He wrapped an arm around the little girl and peeked at the crumpled piece of blue construction paper in her hands.
“What exactly am I lookin’ at, darlin’?” he asked with a laugh.
She pointed to the little stick figures. “Well, that’s me ’n Jase—see, Jase is wearing his baseball hat. And that’s Mommy in a pretty pink leotard. And that’s Daddy over here. I gave him red eyes because he was really mad this morning because we woke him up by jumping on his head, but I don’t know why he got mad because it was almost noon and nobody should sleep ’til noon—that’s what Mommy always says.”
“Mom always says that,” Jason piped up, nodding vigorously.
Seth made an irritated noise. “I slept until noon because somebody kept me up all night. Maybe you guys should tell Mommy that binge-watching crappy TV shows isn’t a productive pastime.”
“I wouldn’t have to binge-watch it if they didn’t end every episode on a cliffhanger!” Miranda objected. She turned to Jackson and added, “I’m watching Lost. And yes, I know I’m several years too late but I never had time to watch it when it was on.”
“She stayed up until five a.m.,” Seth grumbled. “I’m lying there trying to sleep and every five minutes she wakes me up to tell me how Sawyer is soooooo hot.”
Miranda smirked. “I can’t help it. I like bad boys.”
Jackson had to laugh. There was no arguing that Miranda had landed herself the biggest bad boy of them all. With his scruffy face, tattoos and smartass attitude, Seth was definitely rough around the edges. But he’d definitely grown up a lot since marrying Miranda and becoming a father to her kids.
“Anyway, I should check on dinner,” Miranda said, sliding off Seth’s lap. She glanced at the twins. “Do you guys want to help?”
“Ya!” both kids declared, and then they were gone, scrambling after their mother into the house.
“Soph called you ‘Daddy’,” Jackson remarked when he and Seth were alone. “When did that start?”
“A few days ago. Jase introduced me as his dad at his last Little League game, and the rugrats have been calling me that ever since.”
To Jackson’s surprise, Seth looked vaguely embarrassed.
“You totally like it,” Jackson accused, grinning broadly.
His buddy shifted awkwardly, a faint blush on his cheeks. “Kinda.”
If someone had told Jackson two years ago that Seth Masterson, the wiseass he’d met during Hell Week, would marry a single mom with a good head on her shoulders and take on the task of raising her kids, he would’ve laughed in their faces. But life was funny like that.
“So, you really hit it off with that gardener, huh?” As usual, Seth changed the subject the moment the conversation got too squirmy for his liking.
Jackson sighed. “I did. But she shot me down.”
“You think she’s playing hard to get or just not interested?”
“Nah, she was interested. I know when a girl’s into me.”
Seth snickered. “Maybe you’ll come home tonight and find her in your bed wearing nothing but a cowboy hat.”
“And a gun holster,” he said with a frustrated breath. “Don’t forget the holster.”
Now his friend was laughing in earnest. “Fuck, I would have paid to see that. I can’t believe you drew your gun on her.”
“I thought she was a frickin’ burglar.”
“Jesus. That’s pure gold, man.” Seth grinned. “Well, fingers crossed that this gardener you’ve got a hard-on for isn’t bat-shit crazy too. Though I still think you’re nuts for hiring her to do our yard just so you can talk to her again.” There was a pause. “Does that make her a hooker, you think?”
“I’m not paying to sleep with her, asshole. I just want another shot at asking her out.”
Seth arched a dark brow. “Potato, potahto.”
Jackson rolled his eyes and raised his beer to his lips. Fine, so maybe hiring Mia was going a little too far, but he didn’t know how else to get her alone. She’d sped off without giving him her number—all he had was the name of the gardening company she worked for.
But come Monday, he was going to have something else.
A date.
2
“Danny, time to wake up!” Mia pounded her fist on her brother’s door a few times before hurrying down the narrow corridor while raking a hairbrush through her knotted hair.
They were running late, as per usual. Seemed like their mornings always involved a lot of running around like chickens with their heads cut off. It didn’t help that Danny slept like a rock and was impossible to rouse once he was REM-deep. Luckily, after two years on their own she’d finally mastered the difficult feat of waking him up. Meaning he had five more minutes of snooze time before she dumped a glass of cold water on his face.
She burst into the apartment’s tiny kitchen, dropped the hairbrush on the linoleum counter and hopped onto a plastic stepladder so she could reach the top cupboards. God, being short sucked. At sixteen, her little brother already towered over her.
Kind of like Jackson…
Sighing, she pushed all thoughts of her clients’ sexy neighbor from her head and focused on grabbing a box of cereal from the cupboard.
“Danny!” she yelled again.
There was no response. Apparently her brother was determined to sleep until the last possible second.
Normally she wouldn’t care, but her boss was sending her to a new client today, and she couldn’t afford to be late. Gillian had called last night and told her the client had specifically requested Mia over the other three gardeners who worked for Color Your Yard. Which meant she needed to make a good first impression, especially now that she was in the running to take Gillian’s place once the boss opened up the Anaheim branch next spring. If she took over for Gillian in San Diego, she could quit her second job and live a stress-free life for a change.
“Danny!” she called out. “I’m standing in front of the sink about to pour some water into a glass!”
There was a beat, followed by a muffled groan that echoed through the apartment. “Coming!”
Grinning, she fixed herself a bowl of cereal and leaned against the counter to eat it. She was wearing her trademark landscaping “uniform”—denim shorts, a tank top, sneakers and a baseball cap—and she had to admit, she loved having a job that allowed for such a casual get-up. She couldn’t imagine working somewhere that required her to wear pantsuits and high heels. That sounded like pure torture to her.
She was just rinsing her bowl and spoon in the sink when Danny stumbled into the kitchen with a loud yawn. His green T-shirt was the same shade as his eyes and revealed his defined biceps.
Somehow, in the span of two years, Danny had transformed from a scrawny kid to a well-built young man. He was fourteen when he’d moved in with her, a lost, skinny boy who was dying to stay at one school long enough for him to play football. Now he was a sixteen-year-old heartbreaker, a junior at Madison High who’d just landed the coveted starting varsity quarterback position. He was over the moon about it, and Mia was thrilled for him. If anyone deserved to live his dreams, it was her baby brother.
“Eat your breakfast and make it snappy,” she told him. “We’re late.”
“We’re always late,” he answered as he dumped a monstrous amount of cereal into his bowl.
“Yeah, and whose fault is that?”
“Yours.” He smirked. “If you were a more responsible guardian, you wouldn’t set your alarm for twenty minutes before we have to leave.”
He had a point, but she refused to give him the satisfaction of admitting he was right. Instead, she stuck out her tongue and said, “If I’m such a bad guardian, go ahead and emancipate yourself. You wouldn’t survive a day without me, bud.”
Danny swallowed before offering a rueful smile. “You’re totes right about that. I don’t even wanna think
about doing my own laundry.”
Five minutes later, the two of them hurried out the door and descended the three flights of stairs to the small lobby of their building. Tenant parking was in the back, and Mia’s work truck awaited them when they emerged into the early-morning sunshine.
They were on the road a minute later, carrying out their usual morning battle over the radio dial. Eventually she gave up and let Danny listen to his shitty hip-hop station. She’d only have to endure it for ten minutes, anyway.
“The season opener is this Friday,” Danny said.
“Yes, Daniel, I’m well aware of that. You’ve only told me like a gazillion times.” She clicked the right-turn signal and changed lanes, keeping her eyes on the road.
“You’re coming, right?”
“Of course. I wouldn’t miss it.”
A sidelong look revealed the pleased expression on his face. No matter how much they bickered—and how many times he accused her of being annoying—she knew her brother loved her and desperately craved her approval.
Since he’d come to live with her, Mia had made an effort to be the parental role model he’d been lacking all his life. She helped him with homework, attended all his games, went to every parent-teacher conference. She was twenty-six years old, way too young to be the mother of a teenager, but she’d accepted her situation. You had to play the cards life dealt you, and she didn’t regret taking on the mom role. If anyone deserved to live a normal life, it was her brother.
“So listen…”
Danny’s hesitant voice instantly raised her hackles. When she glanced over and saw the cautious expression on his face, she grew even more uneasy.
“What’s up?” she said.
“I just wanted to tell you this so you won’t be blindsided if she actually shows up, but…”
Mia’s shoulders stiffened. Shit. She knew exactly where this was going.
“Um…” Danny cleared his throat. “But yeah, I emailed Mom yesterday to tell her about the game. You know, just in case she’s in town or something and wants to…um…you know…come see us.”
A sigh the size of California lodged in Mia’s throat. Along with visible discomfort, there was a flicker of hope in her brother’s eyes. Fucking hope.
God. That woman deserved to rot in hell for everything she’d done to this kid.
“I see,” Mia said in a guarded tone. “Well…look…I understand why you…I mean, I know you want to…” She finally released the sigh, at a loss for words. “I don’t want you to get your hopes up, hon. She’s…”
Not going to come, her internal voice finished.
Danny gave one of those teenage I-don’t-care-about-anything shrugs. “I know she won’t show. I just wanted her to know about the game, okay?”
Mia nodded. “Okay.”
With that, her brother leaned forward and twisted the volume dial. A rap track blared out of the speakers, with a baseline so heavy it caused the entire truck to vibrate, but Mia didn’t make a fuss about it. The mood had turned somber, a common occurrence whenever they spoke about their absentee mother.
Madison High came into view and Mia pulled up at the curb in front of the school. She stopped the truck, turning to Danny with a pained smile.
“Have a good day, kiddo. You’ve got work after practice, right?”
“Yup. Lates, Mia.”
He hopped out and slung the strap of his backpack over one shoulder, then dashed across the lawn toward the front steps of the brick building. As she watched him disappear through the doors, a wave of sorrow washed over her. He was such a good kid. Smart, sweet, talented.
Their mother was a damn fool for abandoning him.
Swallowing her resentment, Mia sped away from the school. She had exactly twenty minutes to get to the new jobsite, but traffic was surprisingly light as she headed across the bridge into Coronado.
The idyllic island was so small that it took no time at all to reach her destination. She was even five minutes early as she killed the engine in front of a pretty white house with an unkempt front lawn and a four-door sedan parked in the driveway.
All her gear was in the back, but she left it in the truck and headed for the front door instead of unloading. No point in lugging any equipment until she knew for sure what the clients wanted from her.
She was raising her hand to ring the bell when the door swung open to reveal a pretty brunette clad in black leggings and a bright pink T-shirt.
“Hi!” the woman said, sounding breathless. “Are you Mia?”
She nodded and stuck out her hand. “Sure am. And you must be Miranda?”
“Yep.”
As they shook hands, two children appeared at Miranda’s feet and peeked up at Mia.
She couldn’t help but smile when she saw them. The kids were utterly adorable, carbon copies of their mother with dark hair and big brown eyes.
“Are you gonna make our garden pretty?” the little girl exclaimed.
“I’m going to try,” Mia answered cheerfully.
“Can you put a baseball diamond in the backyard?” the boy chimed in, equally thrilled.
She fought a laugh. “I don’t think so, kiddo. Not unless your yard is the size of Yankee Stadium.”
The boy heaved out a big sigh. “It’s not.”
“Then I’m afraid we’re outta luck.”
The children’s mother seemed to be fighting a laugh of her own. “Let me just take these guys to the car. I’ll be right back.”
The trio headed for the sedan, and after Miranda got the kids settled inside of it, she hurried back to the front stoop. There was a funny look on her face as she studied Mia.
For so long that Mia started to feel uncomfortable.
“You’re a lot prettier than I expected,” Miranda remarked.
Um.
Okay.
She tried to mask her confusion, but failed. “Thanks? So are you?”
The brunette laughed. “Sorry, I just realized how creepy that sounded. But you really are pretty. You’ve got great eyes.”
O. Kay.
Mia snuck a peek at Miranda’s left hand and instantly spotted the wedding ring, which made the entire conversation even more baffling. She didn’t get the sense that Miranda was hitting on her, but women didn’t normally tell other women they were pretty and had “great eyes”.
Did they?
Jeez, maybe she really was out of touch with the world.
“Anyway, let’s go around back quick-fast so I can show you what I’d like to do in the yard,” Miranda said, seemingly oblivious to Mia’s train of thought. “Oh, and my husband should be home around noon, so don’t be startled if a big, scruffy guy shows up. And you might also see—”
When Miranda stopped abruptly, Mia raised her eyebrows. “I might also see…?”
After a beat, the brunette shrugged, a strange expression in her eyes. “Nothing. Don’t worry about it.”
All right, there was something weird about this entire situation. Mia had no clue what it was, but she couldn’t fight the feeling that she was being…being what? Duped? Hit on? Lured into a sexual encounter with a hot brunette while her husband watched?
Stop being paranoid. They hired you to garden for them.
The reminder was only about ninety percent reassuring.
The other ten percent maintained that a lesbian seduction in front of Miranda’s “big, scruffy” husband wasn’t entirely out of the realm of possibility.
* * *
After a long morning of underwater demolition training that started at four a.m., Jackson was dying to leave the base. He changed into his street clothes in record time, and was just about to march out of the locker room when his commanding officer stepped inside.
Lieutenant Commander Thomas Becker was as intimidating now as he’d been when Jackson first laid eyes on him three years ago. Built like an action star, the man had close-cropped brown hair and a pair of intense eyes that never failed to make a guy feel like he’d been caught with his hand
in the cookie jar. Then again, when it came to Jackson and his teammates, Beck was probably right to remain eternally suspicious. He’d had to bail them out of more than one jam since they’d been assigned to his team.
“Hold up,” Becker barked, jabbing a finger at Jackson.
Jackson experienced a flicker of unease, until he realized Beck wasn’t singling him out—Seth, Dylan and Cash were also on the visual radar. The four men exchanged a wary look as their CO crossed his arms over his bulky chest and scowled at each of them.
“I just wanted to give you the heads-up that we’ve got Team Eight coming in next week,” Becker announced.
“What for?” Dylan asked.
Jackson shared his teammate’s curiosity. It was rare for the West Coast SEAL teams to interact with the East Coast teams.
“Special Operations wants us to conduct some joint training missions,” Becker replied. “I’ll let you know the details when I’ve got ’em, but just be prepared to run a few ops with some new faces. They’ll be staying in the barracks here, so none of you boneheads get any ideas about letting them crash at your places.”
Seth hooted. “Are you ordering us to deny our fellow servicemen hospitality?”
Becker glowered. “They don’t need your kind of hospitality, smartass. And from what I’ve heard, Team Eight is the East Coast equivalent of you troublemakers, so don’t go inviting them to your swinging parties or whatnot.”
“How dare you,” Seth said in mock outrage. “I am a married man, sir.”
“Swinging parties?” Cash echoed. “None of us are swingers.”
“Trust me, I’ve got enough lovers to deal with at home,” Dylan said wryly.
Their CO just scowled again. “I mean it. No partying with Team Eight. I’m not in the mood to bail anyone out of jail again. Understood?”
“Understood,” they chorused.
After Becker stalked out of the room, Seth turned to the others and grinned. “Let’s throw the Eighters a welcome orgy.”
“Pass,” Dylan answered. “Claire and Aidan would kill me if I touched anyone else.”
“So would Jen,” Cash said ruefully.
Out of Uniform Box Set: Books 4-6 plus 2 Bonus Novellas Page 60
