Finally Home (Home Series)

by Vaughn, Ann

  Mike glanced over at Lainey. Photographic memory. Why hadn't she mentioned that?

  "Is it possible that her memory is failing her?" Coop asked. "I've heard that eidetic memories fade as we get older."

  Riley shrugged. "Anything is possible. This is a high stress situation. Maybe that's keeping her from remembering. Who knows?"

  "I'll see what I can get out of her tomorrow," Mike said.

  Whit and Coop gathered up their things.

  "We'll be in the van across the street," Coop said, heading toward the elevator.

  Mike tossed Colt a set of keys. "Take the sedan."

  "Thanks."

  Riley also handed Colt a set of keys. "You can crash at Jack's. Remember how to get there?"

  "Yeah. Thanks. I'm gonna go check in on Tess and then crash for the night."

  "Thank you," Riley said, holding his hand out for Colt to shake.

  Colt took his hand then pulled Riley into a quick backslapping hug.

  "No problem, man. See you tomorrow."

  He got in the elevator with Whit and Coop, leaving Mike and Riley alone.

  "Honeymoon, good?"

  Riley smiled. "It was great. Jenna is...I don't have the words."

  "I'm happy for you, and I hate that had to cut it all short."

  Riley again glanced toward Lainey. "Jenna knew I couldn't stay away."

  "We need to talk about Lainey, and not about what is going on with her right now."

  Riley rubbed the back of his neck. "I get that...but..."

  "All these years, you talked about her all the time, but aside from that one time at the end of the Founders Day Ball, you never introduced us. I got the feeling you didn't want her involved with any of your friends...and I got that while we were active duty. None of us wanted to put someone through what Melissa went through with Zig. But now...what are you thinking? Any of us could be in here with her and she would be perfectly safe."

  Riley took a deep breath. "My Aunt Lisa and Uncle Gavin had a really hard time getting pregnant. When Lainey came along, she was a miracle for them, and my mom was always close to her brother, so Lainey was more like my little sister. You know all that. As she got older, even though she was tiny, she attracted a lot of male attention, and being good big brother-types, we chased them all away. Anyway, one time we were, hell, I don't remember exactly where we were, but we were all sitting around a fire and talking about our dream woman. We were all throwing out some pretty sexist, chauvinist shit...except you. I never forgot what you said."

  Mike shook his head. "Hell, Stanton, we were drunk."

  "You weren't. When it was your turn, you said, 'I want someone I can worship'. We all cracked up and Colt said some kind of smartass, typical Colt remark, but you said you were serious. You said you didn't want some brainless little piece of fluff who would go along with anything and everything you said. You wanted someone you could have an intelligent conversation with...I started thinking then that you were who I wanted for Lainey. I remembered how you reacted when you saw her at that last Founders Day Ball we went to when she was just seventeen. I didn't talk to you about her much after that because...you're my best friend and you were my team leader and there isn't anyone else in this world who is good enough for her."

  Mike found himself struck speechless. "I don't..."

  "I know what you went through and I know it's been hard on you. Lainey can help you, if you let her; and I really hope you do let her, because this is eating away at you. I'll see you tomorrow."

  Mike watched Riley walk to the elevator and leave. He sat on the edge of the desk, eyes on Lainey as she slept. She looked so small and vulnerable. He remembered that night Riley was talking about. They were in Afghanistan. He hadn't been drunk but he'd been relaxed for the first time in a while. They were getting ready to head home after a two year deployment and were all talking about what they would do at home, what kind of women they would meet. He rarely participated in those types of talks but for whatever reason, on that night he had; and it brought him to now, with Riley's blessing.

  Chapter Eight

  Mike worked for several hours after the guys left, going through invoices from previous jobs, signing the things Melissa had overnighted him, thinking he had to get her here to streamline operations. He checked the security cameras from outside Lainey's office building and outside her house, making sure all was quiet. Colt's ID was showing as logged on so he knew Colt was monitoring the cameras as well. Finally, after he'd closed down the books for the evening and was satisfied with the cameras, he shut the main computer off and got up, crossing into the living area.

  For several moments, he stood looking down at Lainey, debating on whether to wake her up or just pick her up. In the end, he decided he wanted to have his hands on her, so, just as he'd done the night before, he gathered her into his arms, she murmured something he couldn't quite make out and snuggled into his chest. He carried her up the stairs to his room and just stood next to the bed for a minute, enjoying the feel of her in his arms. She was so tiny; she barely weighed anything. Because he was a glutton for punishment, he dipped his head down and pressed his face to the side of her head, inhaling the sweet scent of her hair. Lainey sighed and snuggled closer to him and he knew he had to put her down or risk doing something he'd regret. As carefully as he could, he flipped the covers back with the hand that was under her legs, then gently laid her down on the bed. Just as before, as he was pulling back from her, her hands tightened in his shirt, holding him in place.

  "Don't leave me," she said sleepily, her eyes still closed.

  "Go to sleep, cara mia," he said, keeping his voice low and soft. He again tried to pull away, but her grip in his shirt tightened. "Lainey," he cautioned.

  "Stay with me, Mike. I'll never get any sleep if I know you are still up. Just...lie here with me like you did last night. You have to be just as tired as I am."

  He sighed, realizing defeat. "I'll stay, but only if you'll let go of my shirt."

  She smiled and released his shirt. He stood and turned to walk away, making her frown.

  "Where are you going?"

  "Your suitcase is downstairs. I'll go get it so you can change."

  "Just give me one of your shirts. We can get my stuff up here tomorrow."

  He stared at her a moment, then crossed to his closet and came out with a grey Navy T-shirt and tossed it to her. Without speaking, he went into his bathroom and shut the door. Lainey scrambled out of the bed and out of her clothes, pulling his T-shirt on and folding her clothes to place them on the chair in the corner. She couldn't believe she'd gotten him to agree to stay with her again but she was glad he did. Crawling back into bed, she pulled the covers up to her chin against the chill she'd gotten by changing clothes. After a few moments, he came out of the bathroom and went into his closet to change. When he came out, she saw he was wearing a similar Navy T-shirt and navy blue warm-up pants. He stood at the side of the bed for a moment, and she heard him mutter, 'I must be crazy' low in Italian just before he got into bed next to her.

  They were facing each other, but in his King-size bed, there was plenty of empty space between them. Mike folded his arms across his chest, just as he'd done the night before. Lainey suspected he did this to keep himself in check, which secretly thrilled her.

  "You aren't sleeping," he said, and she could hear the humor in his tone.

  "No, I'm not. Tell me something about you."

  "You pretty much know all there is to know about me."

  "I know the basics. You went to private school but met Riley at a summer camp and y'all stayed close. You didn't want to go to Yale alone so you got your parents to foot the bill for Riley to go with you. Thank you for that, by the way. He never would have gotten to do that without you. After law school you were supposed to go into the family law firm but you shocked them all by deciding to join the Navy with Riley, then shocked them even further by becoming a SEAL. I know you rose through the ranks quickly, became team leader and formed the
Orion Task Force made up of hand-picked members of the SEALS, Naval Intelligence, the Army Rangers and Marine Recon. And I know that on your final mission, things went horribly wrong, one team member was killed, Riley was shot and, in order for the others to save Riley and recover the body of the member you lost, you allowed yourself to be captured. And I know that it took Riley and the others twelve hours to find and rescue you."

  "Then you know pretty much everything," he said.

  "Why didn't you join the family law firm?"

  "Law is boring."

  "Chandler, Casiano and Associates is the most exclusive law firm in the state. They handle all of Adtkisson Enterprises affairs."

  "And I have plenty of siblings and cousins who can handle all of that just fine without me."

  "Riley said your family was really upset about it."

  "They were. They got over it."

  "Did they?"

  "Yes."

  "Did you?"

  He frowned at her. "What do you mean?"

  "Your family, the people who are supposed to love you the most, didn't support you in your decision to join the Navy. I'm sure that bothered you."

  He shrugged. "It didn't matter. I made my decision and I don't regret it."

  "OK. What about women?"

  He closed his eyes and rolled to his back for a moment, pinching the bridge of his nose as if to ward off a headache.

  "What about them?"

  "Well, you know that I used to date Kevin Adtkisson. Who did you used to date?"

  "No one."

  "No one? Come on, handsome guy like you, you must have a slew of broken hearts in your wake."

  He turned back on his side and she felt the full impact of that icy gaze locking on her.

  "Why did you date Kevin Adtkisson, of all people?" he asked, turning the tables on her.

  She knew he was deflecting and decided to let him think he'd succeeded, at least for the moment.

  "Kacee and I have been best friends since Kindergarten. I practically lived at her house and vice versa. Kevin was always good to me, but with him being older than Kacee, he wasn't around much when we were kids."

  "Is he the only boyfriend you've ever had?"

  "Yes. I dated here and there but Kevin was the only relationship I've been in."

  "And he cheated on you?"

  "He'd been out of town. I wanted to get to his condo before he got home and surprise him. Guess I was the one who was surprised."

  "Merda," Mike cursed. "Always knew he was a damn idiot."

  She shrugged. "It just wasn't meant to be. And, even though I walked in on him, I wasn't even that upset. I certainly never shed any tears over him, and we were able to remain friends. So, I guess that means we never really loved each other. Not the way we should have."

  He reached out and caught one of her curls between his thumb and forefinger, letting it curl around his finger. Lainey held her breath, afraid to move or do anything to break the contact.

  "When was this? How many years ago?" he asked quietly.

  "Not long after I moved back here from college."

  "So, when you were dating him, you were off at college and he was here?"

  She nodded. "And I know what you're thinking. That he was probably cheating on me the whole time. It's possible, but he promises me that he wasn't."

  He let the curl slip through his fingers and again crossed his arms over his chest.

  "And you believe him?"

  "It doesn't really matter. Even one time was enough. It hurt, but it didn't cripple me. What about you? What's your story?"

  For several long moments, he didn't speak. She could see that he was trying to decide whether to share or not and she'd just about decided that he wasn't going to when he heard him take a deep breath.

  "Her name was Carolina," he began. Lainey couldn't suppress a surge of instant jealousy at the way he pronounced the name, his Italian accent showing as he said Caro-leena. "I met her at the start of my last year at Yale. We'd been dating about two months when I took her home with me for Thanksgiving. And then she met my brother, Nick."

  Lainey gasped. "She left you for your brother?"

  "A real Shakespearean twist, huh?" he said, a smirk on his face.

  "That's awful, Mike! How could your brother...?"

  "Carolina was...is, unique. She's what my grandmother calls a sensitive. She sees people's auras, that sort of thing. She took one look at Nick and I knew she was lost to me. We'd only been together for a couple of months. It wasn't like we were engaged or anything. They got married right after graduation. I went, was even in the wedding, but I knew I couldn't stick around and see them together day in and day out. I'd been considering going into the Navy with Riley; the thing with Nick and Carolina just sealed the deal...it wasn't the only reason I decided to go, contrary to my family's opinions; it was just the kick in the pants I needed to be sure."

  "I'm so sorry, Mike," she said softly. "How could your own brother do that?"

  He shook his head. "Again, doesn't matter. He didn't plan to fall for her. It just happened."

  "Have you been in a relationship since then?"

  "No. After Riley and I made the decision to go into the SEALs, I was just too busy for anything more than a casual thing, and I knew I didn't want that. Zig, our team member who was killed on that last mission, was the only one on the team who was married. We all saw what it did to his wife, Melissa, every time we deployed. None of the rest of us wanted to put a woman through that."

  "Women do it every day, Commander. It's part of being a military wife."

  "I know. I just didn't want that for my figurative wife."

  She offered him a soft smile. "That's very sweet of you." He didn't speak, his eyes roaming her face, studying her. She felt her cheeks flushing under the intensity of his gaze. He reached out and brushed the backs of his fingers along her cheek. She was afraid to even breathe for fear of breaking the spell.

  "So soft," he whispered.

  She slowly reached up and placed her hand over his when he cupped her cheek in his hand. It almost seemed as if time stood still while they lay facing each other. She could see indecision in his eyes and knew that it wasn't a feeling he was accustomed to.

  "Mike," she whispered when he started to withdraw his hand.

  "Go to sleep, cara mia," he said, sliding his hand away.

  For some reason, his withdrawal had tears stinging her eyes. Not for herself, but for him. This man, who all those powerful men she was around tonight looked up to and followed without question, was wounded in spirit as much as his body had been wounded.

  "How does your arm feel?" she asked, trying to distract herself from her tears.

  "Fine."

  "You don't need anything for the pain?"

  She watched a small smile touch the corner of his lips and felt her heart flutter at the sight. He really was too handsome for words.

  "I don't even feel it, to be honest. I've been hurt a lot worse than this."

  "When you were captured?"

  He sighed. "Riley has a big mouth."

  "He's worried about you. All your guys are."

  "No need to be."

  "When you were taken, did you think you were going to die?"

  "Yes."

  She felt her stomach clench and she placed her hand on his forearm, just because she had to touch him. It broke her heart when he tensed and pulled slightly back from her.

  "It's just me," she said softly.

  "I know. Old habits."

  She ran her hand over his arm, feeling the ridges of his scars as well as his muscles. He was still tense, but he stopped pulling away. Emboldened, Lainey scooted slightly closer to him and ran her hand up to his shoulder.

  "Relax, it's OK," she whispered, keeping her eyes on his as she caressed him. After several moments, he took a deep breath and closed his eyes. She let her hand travel up his shoulder to his neck and into his hair. Keeping watch on his face, she continued combing her fingers through his
hair, hoping that it was helping him to relax.

  "Lainey," he said after several moments, surprising her.

  "Yes?"

  "You really should go to sleep," he said, reaching up and removing her hand from his hair.

  "So should you."

  "Sleep is over-rated. I don't need sleep to clear my mind."

  "No, but you do need it to heal."

  "I can't go to sleep if keep talking to me, you know," he said, making her smile.

  "OK. I'll leave you alone...if you promise to stay here in this bed with me and try to get some sleep."

  "I don't make promises I can't keep," he said.

  "Mike..."

  "Dreams wake me up sometimes," he said, "you saw that last night. When that happens, I have to get up and move around."

  She reached out and took his hand and laced her fingers with his and pulled his hand close to her chin.

  "Then we'll just have to make sure to keep the dreams at bay."

  "Lainey..." he began then stopped when she scooted even closer to him and snuggled up against his chest.

  "So, don't think about the dreams. Think about being here in this bed with me."

  "Dio," he swore, then because he couldn't help it, wrapped his arm around her head and rested his chin on the top of her head. "I don't know if you're an angel or the devil."

  "Go to sleep, Commander," she said, smiling. "I'll keep your demons away."

  With her snuggled up against him, Mike didn't think he'd ever go to sleep. She was so small in his arms, but he was very much aware that she was all woman. Her hand was on his sternum, keeping her breasts from being fully crushed against him, but he was well aware of the places they did touch. Desire coursed through his veins like wildfire. It had been so long since he'd been this close to a woman; not since Carolina all those years ago. After her betrayal, he'd sworn women off completely. Riley had been the only one of his friends who fully understood. The others had all tried to get him to hook up with someone when they were on leave at one time or another. Melissa had tried and tried to set him up with various different women. He'd indulged her and had gone out on a couple of the arranged dates but none of them sparked his interest and eventually Melissa had stopped trying. Since coming home, his mother had paraded one eligible debutante after another in front of him, but again, none of those caught his eye, either.