Steele Family Romance Collection
Cami Checketts
Copyright
Steele Family Romance Collection
Copyright © 2019 by Cami Checketts
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Cover art by Valerie Bybee Photography.
Dedication
To my sweet niece, Lexi Lynn. Thank you for being an inspiration and delight. We love you!
Contents
Free Book
Her Dream Date Boss
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
The Stranded Patriot
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Epilogue
The Committed Warrior
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Epilogue
Extreme Devotion
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Epilogue
About the Author
Excerpt - Her Prince Charming Boss
Excerpt - The Pursued Patriot
Also by Cami Checketts
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Her Dream Date Boss
Chapter One
Mae Delaney refastened her long, dark hair into its standard ponytail, pushed her large glasses firmly into place, smoothed down one of her favorite T-shirts, and made sure the screen angle didn’t show she was in yoga pants at two p.m. She ran some pineapple lip gloss over her lips and practiced her smile in the mirror. “Look at you, you stinking hottie. You’re going to slaughter him.” The self-talk helped a tiny bit. She was the furthest thing from hot, and her thick glasses made it impossible to see her dark eyes, which her best friend, Kit, reassured her were her best feature.
Her stomach fluttering, she pushed the button on video chat to call Slade Steele: the most charming and handsome man on the planet, owner of Steele Wholesale Lending, and her boss.
Slade’s perfectly sculpted face filled the screen, complemented by his deep brown eyes with lashes longer than her own and a trimmed beard that only served to highlight his intriguing lips. He was gorgeous but so down-to-earth and kind. She scoured the internet nightly for Slade Steele sightings. Over the last few months, she’d seen him on humanitarian trips with his church, helping a child who’d lost his mom at a hockey game, taking his beautiful little sister who had Down syndrome to the premiere of a chick flick, and playing rugby with teenage boys at the park. In one of the rugby pictures, he’d had his shirt off. She sighed inadvertently.
“Hi, Mae. How are you today?”
“If I was any better, I’d be exalted already,” she said.
He chuckled. “Well, lucky for me, you’re still on this planet.”
“Lucky, lucky you. Do you ever stop and thank the good Lord that you get the blessing of talking to me most days of the week?”
He grinned. “Yes, ma’am, I do.” His eyes trailed over her T-shirt, and he read it out loud. “People in sleeping bags … are the soft tacos of the bear world.” Chuckling, he said, “Does that mean you have an aversion to tacos?”
“No, sir. I like tacos. I just don’t want to be a taco.”
He grinned. “Good to know.”
All of Mae’s nerves settled, replaced with a deep longing to track him down, throw herself against his well-formed chest, kiss him good and long, and tell him she’d loved him for almost two years now. Then maybe they could go for tacos. But thinking about his well-formed chest … Could she touch it at their first meeting, or would that be an inappropriate action for a good Christian girl? She’d never really dated, so she had no idea. Hmm. It might be worth it. She might not get exalted as quickly, but she could repent later.
“Mae. Mae?”
“What? What just happened? Is it hot in here?” She fanned her face.
Slade laughed. “I’m not sure what your weather is like in Sausalito, so I have no idea. It’s steamy hot in Boston.”
Steamy hot? Oh, my. She wanted him to say those words again. Even better, maybe he could say them after they kissed the first time. Focus, Mae. “Dang man reminding me of the sad state of my life.”
“What’s that?”
“Never being where you are.”
Slade’s cheek twitched as if he was holding back laughter. “Can we get back to that state in a moment? I need some help from my best account rep.”
“Of course you do. It’s the only reason you ever call me.” Of course he’d never call her for any reason but work. He was the perfect male model who dated the perfect female models. He lived in a different world than she did. At least she had these short conversations most days of the week, and she could dream of him.
“Must I remind you that you called me?” He winked, and Mae had to fan herself again.
“Stop flirting with me and tell me what the problem is.”
Slade smiled, probably thinking he’d never flirt with the likes of her, but he was too classy to say that. He began listing for her which branches were having issues she needed to resolve. She was the liaison between his lending companies and the local mortgage companies. Mae typed away into her computer as he spoke.
“You know you could email me most of this?” Mae said, though she immediately regretted it.
“Don’t say that. Then I would miss out on my daily dose of Mae humor.”
“I’m actually funnier with my fingertips.”
He blinked at her. “Hmm. Maybe I’ll try email tomorrow.”
“Please don’t. I like seeing your handsome face.” Her neck was burning, and she prayed that he wouldn’t call her out or fire her for inappropriate talking in the workplace. But she worked remotely and he was the owner, so hopefully her blatant flirtations were okay.
“You’re the one that suggested email.”
“Forgive me. My brain vacates its lovely home when I stare into those deep brown eyes.”
“Ah, Mae.” He gifted her with his earth-moving smile. “You’re good for the self-esteem. Hey, I’ve gotta run. I’m actually flying into San Francisco in a few hours. Do you want to get together for lunch or dinner tomorrow? I’ll come across the bay to Sausalito.”
Mae froze. Her stomach was swirling like it was full of butterflies, and her mouth and throat were so dry she couldn’t even swallow. Slade Steele was coming to San Francisco, and he wanted to go to lunch or dinner with her?
Oh my goodness! Oh my goodness!
What should she do? Her brain whirled—play it cool, get a drink of water, find a firefighter to drench her with his hose, or call her sassy best friend Kit and have her come answer him? That would take too long, though, and he was staring at her, awaiting her answer. Mae tried to squeak out a yes, but nothing came out.
“Maybe not the best idea?” Slade asked, his dark eyes filling with concern.
If Mae missed this opportunity, Kit would sentence her to a year of walking lunges or some other exercise torture. Kit forced her to attend her boot camp class each morning, and it never got easier for Mae.
Slade waited, one perfect eyebrow arched up. “It’s all right, Mae—”
“I’ll go to dinner with you!” she yelled. “Yes!” Hallelujah. Praise every saintly ancestor she didn’t even know and her beloved family watching from up above. She’d finally found her tongue and answered affirmatively, if a bit too eagerly.
Slade smiled. “All right. Text me where and when.”
“B-but I don’t know what you like to eat.” Or how fancy he wanted to go or how intimate she could get away with. She’d said she liked tacos, but had he ever said he liked them also? Should she really force him to come over to Sausalito, or should she get brave and go into the city? She wasn’t a recluse; she simply enjoyed the more quiet side of the bay. Okay, truthfully, she was petrified to drive across the Golden Gate Bridge.
“It’s your city,” he said, “so you’re the expert, and I like everything. Talk to you tomorrow.”
He ended the call like he did everything—decisive, in control, and so stinking sexy. When his handsome face disappeared, Mae leaned back and all of the oxygen fled her body. She was going to dinner with Slade! She wanted to dance around, call Kit, drink a Diet Coke, and then go for a walk through her beautiful town.
Instead, Mae sat there, staring at her computer’s background of a gorgeous waterfall with thick greenery surrounding it. The only waterfall she’d ever been to was in Mill Valley, up the road from her hometown of Sausalito. She hadn’t traveled outside of northern California since she was fourteen, but that was all right. Her home was a beautiful spot.
She glanced around her family home. As the only surviving member of her family, she’d inherited the house when she turned eighteen. Luckily Kit’s parents had been her guardians when her family was killed. Living with them the last three years of high school had been good. She’d overheard Kit’s mom once telling a friend on the phone how tragic it was that Mae refused to drive a car or go to the city, but Mae knew that she’d said it out of concern. Kit’s family had been nothing but kind to her, and she loved them. Mae knew she was strange and probably hard to deal with. She feared the bridge and most kinds of traveling. She didn’t know how to conquer those fears, and thankfully Kit and her family hadn’t ever forced her. Even Kit’s older brothers, who loved to tease her and Kit about everything, had left her alone about it.
As Mae focused on a picture of her and her younger sisters standing with their bikes on the trail that continued to Mill Valley, she felt a pang of loneliness. She loved living in this house. She loved the view of the bay out her large windows and the open layout of the house. She loved the memories. She didn’t love being alone.
Sighing, she forced herself to focus on the work Slade had just given her. It’d take a few hours, but she’d be done in time to meet Kit for an early dinner at Napa Valley Burger Company. Her stomach rumbled as she concentrated on her computer, but food could wait. She wouldn’t let Slade down, and tomorrow she was going to finally meet him in person, go to dinner with the man of her dreams. Oh my goodness, she was so happy right now—and so terrified.
Chapter Two
Slade Steele thanked his pilot and stewardess as he exited his airplane. A car was waiting to take him to his San Francisco offices. He regularly visited his fourteen branches spread throughout the U.S., but his home base was Boston. He hadn’t been to San Francisco in over a year. It was a beautiful and diverse city, and he liked that it was right on the water like his hometown.
As Slade stared out the window, appreciating the view of the Golden Gate Bridge and the bay, he made a rash decision. “Can you take me across to Sausalito?” It was after five, and most of his employees would be gone for the day. He’d go walk the quaint streets of Sausalito and eat dinner there. He could meet with everyone he needed to tomorrow and then cap off his quick trip with dinner with Mae.
He smiled. Mae was hilarious and definitely not the type of woman he’d ever dated. He had never gotten a clear glimpse of her face or eyes because of the huge, thick glasses she wore. She was always in an oversized T-shirt with a funny saying on it, and she wore her hair pulled back in a ponytail.
Because of his own success and his family name, he was sought after by wealthy, powerful, and polished women. He’d dated his fair share, but he had yet to find someone who didn’t take herself too seriously yet had enough substance to settle down with. He wanted a woman like his mama: fun, elegant, and independent, yet still able to lean on her husband and complement him.
They crossed the Golden Gate Bridge and drove through the thick trees on both sides of the road and down into Sausalito. He liked this area better than San Francisco; in his mind, it was quieter and had more character. He shouldn’t second-guess why he was coming here. It wasn’t as if he was going to find Mae. He could access employee records and show up at her door, but that might come across wrong. He wasn’t looking for a romantic relationship with anyone right now; he was too focused on growing his business and being there for his little sister, Lottie, when he could. Lottie had started her own charity, Lottie’s Loves, and it was his favorite pastime to work with her on it. But he really enjoyed teasing with Mae on their video chats, and there was something beautiful and graceful in the refined lines of her jawline and neck. Her lips were full and shiny whenever he talked to her. If only he could see her eyes, get the full picture of her face.
The driver pulled onto the quaint main street of Sausalito, the bay on the right-hand side. “Where to, sir?”
“Where’s the best place for dinner?”
“Well, you have your fancy spots like Spinnaker, or there’s a sushi place I’ve heard great things about, but you really can’t go wrong with Napa Valley Burgers. Just depends what you’re in the mood for, sir.”
“A hamburger sounds perfect. Thanks.”
“Of course.”
They pulled up to a crowded restaurant with an open-air front and tables inside and out. The driver rushed around to get his door, and Slade palmed him a twenty. He was already paid a high hourly rate, but Slade liked to tip extra.
“Thank you, sir. Please text me if you need a ride back to your hotel later.”
“I will. Thank you.”
Slade strode into the restaurant, scanning the crowd for a dark ponytail, a frumpy T-shirt, and big glasses, but he didn’t see her and knew he was being presumptuous. Mae had told him before that she was a hermit and rarely left her house. He was grateful she’d agreed to meet him for dinner tomorrow night. He had some silly visions of taking her glasses off, pulling her hair out of the ponytail, and finding in her deep brown eyes—well, he thought they’d be deep brown—the woman he’d always dreamed of.
Smiling, he realized he’d watched one too many chick flicks to humor sweet Lottie. It was ludicrous to fancy yourself in deep like with a person who you only knew through video chats.
“You want a table?” a teenage boy asked.
<
br /> “Yes, thank you.”
“This way.”
He followed the young man through the restaurant, discarding his visions of tomorrow night. It would be a fun dinner with a friend and nothing more. He was too successful and driven to have time for anything else.
Mae adjusted her glasses, then tugged at her T-shirt. She’d showered and put on a clean T-shirt and a black cotton skirt. By her standards, she was dressed to kill. Still, she knew Kit would give her a hard time about her wardrobe. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to be attractive. Okay, maybe it was. She’d gotten a lot of attention from boys in middle school, but then her family had been killed and she’d hidden behind her thick glasses and frumpiness. It was easier and less risky to only let Kit in.
“‘Bring me a Diet Coke and tell me I’m pretty’?” Kit strode up to her and rolled her eyes, pulling her in for a hug. “Has anyone ever done it?”
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