Daddy Next Door - The Complete Series Box Set (A Single Dad Navy SEAL Romance)

by Claire Adams

  It was obvious to me as we watched the game that all the girls in the crowd on our team’s side of the stadium were into Johnny. He was the star of the team apart from the goalie; Georgia made a point of explaining why the goalie was always one of the most important and valued players on the team. But the goalie for our team was not nearly as hot as Johnny; no one in the entire school was, and no one combined that mixture of hotness and confidence and charm that Johnny had.

  During one of the breaks, I looked around the stands, just people-watching, trying to get a feel for the kinds of fans hockey attracted. I saw some guys who I was sure I’d seen at the frat house party—though whether they were members of Phi Kappa or just people at a party, I didn’t know for certain. I did see one of the guys who’d been in a toga—so I assumed that he at least was a member of the fraternity. I saw way more girls than I thought I would have seen at a game of any kind; some of them were waving banners or homemade posters, with the school colors on them. Some of them were wearing jerseys with different players’ names (most of them wearing Steel jerseys, I noted with a little bit of a creepy-crawly feeling in my stomach). I thought to myself that it might be worthwhile to get a jersey of my own—and then show up in Johnny’s room wearing nothing but that.

  As I was looking around, though, I noticed the girl from the dining hall; she was sitting in the front row section a few yards away from us, cheering her head off, and I thought bitterly to myself what a hypocrite she was. She had warned me off of Johnny with a hint that he was a player and that he had somehow driven a girl to suicide—and even though I knew better, it was gross to think that the only reason she had done it was because she wanted to be with him. If he’s such a player, why are you into him? I thought in her direction.

  The teams went back out onto the ice and the second half of the game started. The girl was screaming almost more than I was, calling out Johnny’s name. As he came past our section, giving me a little glance and a wink, she somehow managed to get his attention, smacking at the Plexiglas with her hands until he looked up. I watched in horror and revulsion as she lifted her shirt up—and her bra with it—and pressed her breasts against the plexi. The crowd went wild, screaming and cheering, and I felt my stomach turn over. I was relieved to see that Johnny didn’t look the slightest bit interested; in fact, I saw his expression transform from curiosity to disgust at the sight.

  After that, Johnny finally seemed to get his head in the game and I sat down, feeling irritated and jealous. I knew I shouldn’t be—but the fact that so many girls, and especially that one, were throwing themselves at him made me feel a little insecure. Georgia rolled her eyes at me when I whined. “Dude, Johnny is hot enough that even if he wasn’t the star player every girl on campus would be after him. You gotta chill.” I grumbled.

  “Yeah, but it’s disrespectful to me for other girls to do shit like that.”

  “What do you care if they respect you? They don’t have Johnny—you do. He’s crazy about you! He’s been messing up plays all night because he keeps looking at you. He’s going to meet your parents. So just chill.” I nodded, realizing I was being silly; as long as Johnny was into me and only me, what did it matter what other girls did? If anyone did anything particularly gross in front of me while I was with him, I’d just have to handle it then. And if I started acting all jealous and possessive, that would drive Johnny away more surely than any pair of boobs pressed against a shield possibly could.

  I cheered myself up, remembering all the little things Johnny had said about me in our texts back and forth, the way he grinned at me, and the way he couldn’t seem to take his eyes off of me for more than a few minutes at a time whenever we were together. That was enough to keep the possessiveness at bay. I started to get into the game again, ignoring the other girls who flashed the players and just focusing on Johnny’s playing. The team managed to make a comeback from a few points behind, and as Johnny kept his attention on the game instead of on me, he made more and more inroads on the scoreboard. By the end of the game, we had managed to eke out a win, though the other team tried to keep us from gaining a lead. Johnny was just too good, as was our goalie.

  Georgia and I waited behind at the locker rooms, and I was relieved all over again when Johnny came straight to me after he finished showering and changing, kissing me in front of everyone and holding me at his side while he answered questions from the local and school newspapers. I didn’t even glare at the girls screaming for him, but simply ignored them, happy to be at his side, happy that I was the only girl he wanted. It was more than enough for me, for now, and nothing that that nasty girl could possibly do could ever make me doubt that Johnny was interested in me. I decided that I was going to put the name Claire White out of my head forever, and never think of her again in my life.

  Chapter Nine

  I tried not to fidget in the passenger seat of Johnny’s car as he drove us away from campus and down towards where my parents’ country club was. I had made an excuse not to be at their place for the whole weekend, but when Johnny had been so willing to meet them and to go to dinner with them; I hadn’t had any excuse to avoid the dinner. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to spend time with my parents; it was that I was somehow certain that they would both find reasons why I shouldn’t be with Johnny, and express their disappointment in me.

  Johnny wasn’t at all like the guys that my parents were constantly trying to set me up with. I had no idea even what his family was like, really. I didn’t know whether he’d grown up middle class or poor, or wealthy. I didn’t know if he was disgusted by wealthy people. What I didn’t know about him suddenly seemed much greater than what I did know about him, and I couldn’t help feeling a little panic; differently from when he had driven us into the woods, but nonetheless a kind of deep, thrumming dread that filled me up from head to toe.

  I had decided to wear a nice, comfortable dress—not anything super fancy, but good enough for the club, with a gray sweater over it, and a pair of low heels. When Johnny had come to the dorms to pick me up, I was surprised by how cleaned up he was; he was wearing a suit, and it fit him just perfectly, and his hair was brushed down smooth, his face was shaved, he was every inch just what he should be. Climbing up into the truck, I thought that at least my parents couldn’t fault him for looking good, or for dressing appropriately. “I didn’t even know you owned a suit,” I’d said, kissing him lightly on the lips.

  “For special occasions. I think this one I originally got for my cousin’s wedding, and fortunately it still fits. I couldn’t show up to meet your parents in a jersey, you know.”

  As we got closer and closer to my hometown, closer to the club where my parents would be waiting for us, I felt my heart beating faster and faster. “So,” I said, my throat and mouth dry. “I have to confess something to you.” Johnny grinned.

  “Your parents didn’t actually invite me and you’re springing me on them with no notice?” I laughed in spite of how terrified I was.

  “No, actually; my mom absolutely insisted that I invite you as soon as I mentioned I was seeing a guy.” Johnny grinned again.

  “And as soon as you told her I was the hottest guy you’ve ever been with?” I blushed.

  “I might have told her about some of your… sterling qualities.” I cleared my throat. “But no, that’s not what I have to confess. My parents are rich.” I paused, shaking my head at how baldly that had come out.

  “Well they belong to a country club; I definitely didn’t think they were on welfare or something.” I smiled nervously.

  “Well yeah; obviously…” I licked my lips. “But I mean like, they’re really wealthy. If I had wanted to go to like, Yale or something, they would have done whatever it took to make that happen. They were really disappointed that I went to a small in-state college instead of an ivy league.”

  “Are we talking like Bill Gates money here?” I shrugged.

  “Not quite that bad, but they’re definitely aware of their status. They tried to
set me up with a bunch of guys from the club in high school. Mostly it just annoys me.”

  “Did you go on any super expensive dates?” Johnny grinned. “Could’ve been fun to get them to spend all that money on you and then stonewall them when you got to the end of the night.” I giggled.

  “No, I just didn’t date anyone at all for my last year in high school. Hence why I was in the top 5% of my class.” I fidgeted with the skirt of my dress, smoothing it over my knees. “It just gets on my nerves sometimes, is all. And I wanted you to be ready for the fact that they can kind of be jerks about it.”

  “Makes sense. I don’t think I’d like you as much as I do if you were the type to go along with the whole pompous money thing.” I smiled, relaxing a little bit.

  “Well, it sort of embarrasses me, and I plan on making my own way after college. Becoming a teacher. I guess it’s the typical ‘poor little rich girl’ thing to do, but I don’t want to get a job in a big office because my dad knows someone, you know?” Johnny nodded slowly.

  “I do think you should take advantage of it while you can. Make ‘em pay for everything. Take a trip to Cancun for Spring Break—or France!” I laughed.

  “I’ve been to France,” I said. “I could see about getting them to pay for a trip to Amsterdam. That could be fun.” We joked about it the rest of the way, and I started to feel better about introducing Johnny to my parents. At least, I thought, my dad couldn’t have much bad to say about him; he had been in a frat in college, and I had a vague notion that he liked sports, though I’d never paid enough attention to know which ones in particular.

  When we arrived at the country club, I saw the valet take one look at the truck and his eyes widened as Johnny hopped out, coming around to forestall the shocked man’s move to open my door for me. He lifted me out of the cab and carefully put me on my feet, steadying me and leaning in for a quick kiss before he turned to the valet, who was still looking at the enormous, tricked-out truck with surprise. “Just park it wherever you have room,” Johnny said graciously. He handed the valet his keys and a five, and I beamed to myself. Johnny might or might not have grown up with money like I had—but he definitely had good enough manners.

  The truck, which had seemed gaudy and too masculine to me before was now cemented as one of my favorite things about dating Johnny. Seeing it next to the sleek BMWs, Ferraris, and Maseratis in the parking lot gave me a little thrill. It was as if I had proudly proclaimed to everyone at the club that I didn’t care what their standards were—I liked Johnny and that was that.

  We went into the club, and I could see the people inside glancing at us as we made our way through the lobby to the dining area; everyone had to notice that Johnny was incredibly hot, and the fact that he was dressed for the occasion made it even better. I smiled all around, leading Johnny to where my parents had said they would meet us, at the entryway into the dining room. Mom was dressed to the nines, while Dad was in a simple sport coat and slacks, not even wearing a tie. I felt my nervousness boosting up inside of me again as we came up to them; what would they say?

  “Mom, Dad, this is Johnny,” I said, keeping my voice barely under control. Mom’s eyes widened and I watched her take in how good Johnny looked, saw the approving glint in her eye. That’s right, I thought triumphantly. He’s hot, and he’s talented and smart and definitely good enough for me, no matter how much his family makes. Johnny shook hands with my dad and hugged my mom.

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you both,” Johnny said, all smiles, looking as confident as he did anywhere else. “I can see where Becky gets her good taste and beauty,” he added, nodding at my mom slightly. Mom blushed—grinning at the compliment. Dad gave me a look that told me that at least for now, with nothing else to go on, he approved.

  “I heard that you’re a Greek man,” Dad said, while we waited for the hostess to seat us. Johnny nodded.

  “Phi Kappa Alpha, pledged my freshman year.” Dad grinned.

  “If the Phi Kappa guys are anything like what they were when I was in school, I’m surprised you’ve got the time to come to dinner with us.” Johnny laughed.

  “I got special dispensation; after all, with someone as great as Becky, how could I possibly put a party over anything she wanted me to do?”

  The hostess came back and led us to my parents’ preferred table, and I felt only the slightest of flutters deep down as we all sat down. Would Johnny know the right moves? He took the napkin and unfolded it, placing it immediately in his lap even as he listened to something Dad was saying about his favorite prank that he had pulled. I kept having little flickers of concern, but Johnny was more than polite, he was totally charming, and I started to relax as the waiter came and took our orders; Johnny knew what he wanted from the menu, knew how to order it.

  For the special occasion, my parents insisted that Johnny and I should have wine—at least a glass—even though I was underage. No one at the club really cared; as long as I wasn’t getting drunk and driving as an underage adult, there would never be any consequences, and Johnny was of age. Johnny said he’d rather not take any chances, and I tried not to beam at the right answer that left him so easily. I tried not to jump in and answer for him, but Johnny seemed to have a handle on the conversation; Dad mentioned that he loved hockey—something that shocked me. I had never known that Dad even had any interest in hockey at all. I fleetingly wished that he could have given me at least a little education on the sport; it would have done me good in dating Johnny. I saw Mom frown. “It’s such a violent sport, and so many of the players seem so—so ill-bred.” I closed my eyes, embarrassed.

  “I’ve always been passionate about hockey,” Johnny said, reaching under the table to give my hand a squeeze. He barely glanced at me, a look of reassurance in his eyes. “It kept me on the straight and narrow through high school, and even more importantly, it brought me a scholarship to college.” I smiled, relieved at the fact that Johnny was able to express himself so well, that he was able to keep up his politeness even when Mom was being a jerk to him.

  The food came in courses, and Johnny ate cleanly and politely, answering questions about the frat life, about his position on the team, about his studies. I managed to chime in from time to time, keeping up my end of the conversation, but I knew that the real point of the evening was for my parents to get to know Johnny and to make their judgments about him. I smiled over and over again, looking at Dad and Mom, looking at Johnny, looking around the room. It was obvious to me that Dad at least was in favor of Johnny.

  Before dessert, I stood and excused myself; I didn’t really have to go to the restroom, but I needed a moment to myself. Mom raised an eyebrow, but by that point I was confident that Johnny could handle anything that they threw his way. I walked away from the table and towards the bathroom I knew almost as well as my bathroom at home.

  I used the facilities and washed my hands, blotting at my makeup and reapplying my lipstick. I was so glad that Johnny was doing so well with my parents; even if my mom was being rude to him, she had to admit that he had good manners, and that he was gorgeous to look at. I took a deep breath and stole a few more moments of relative quiet; no one was in the restroom, and I knew that I’d have to put on my best smile as soon as I walked out of there. I thought about Johnny’s big truck out there in the parking lot, about the way he handled himself; I hadn’t had to tell him about which fork to use, or what to do with his utensils when he was done. He hadn’t made the mistake of looking irresponsible by drinking and driving, he had hit all the right notes with my dad, and everything was right with the world around me.

  I stepped out of the bathroom finally and saw Johnny standing a few feet away, a mischievous gleam in his eyes. “I told them that I actually needed to use the facilities too,” he said, coming towards me quickly. There was no one in the hallway, and as he moved in to kiss me, I felt my heart beating faster. One of the waiters, one of the club members, could come along at any moment and see Johnny with his arms wrapped around me,
his lips sealed to mine. He deepened the kiss, his hands starting to wander along my curves—nothing that he wouldn’t do in the middle of the quad on campus, but enough to make my body heat up all over.

  He broke away from my lips, both of us breathing heavy. “Where can we go?” Johnny asked me, his voice low, tense with desire. I looked around. There was a coatroom nearby; I had actually worked it as my first summer job when I was 15—I knew there would be no one in there. I took Johnny by the hand and led him through the hall quickly. If anyone who worked at the club saw us, they’d know what we were up to immediately, and they’d probably throw us out.

  As soon as Johnny saw the sign on the half-open door, he grinned. “Perfect.” He pulled me in with him and I shut the door behind us, tingling all over at the naughtiness of what I knew we were going to do. I’d known a couple of boys who brought girls into the cloakroom before; most of them had gotten caught, and their parents had been shamed for weeks for the fact that their sons couldn’t manage proper decorum. It was even worse for the girls who let themselves be talked into going in there—they were labeled as sluts, shunned by the hoity-toity club members.

  Johnny pushed me up against the door, pressing his hips against mine, pinning me there as he kissed me again, touching me all over. “I’ve been distracted all night, seeing you in that dress, thinking about what you look like underneath it,” he murmured against my lips. He cupped my breasts, giving them a squeeze through the fabric, and I moaned, my pussy already starting to get wet as he dipped his head to kiss and nip along the column of my throat.

  “My—my parents love you,” I said, my breath hitching in my chest as Johnny nuzzled against the tops of my breasts, kissing along my cleavage. It wasn’t a very revealing dress—I knew my parents would have been appalled if I had chosen something that was too short, or with a neckline too low—but it was enough that Johnny could slip one hand down the front and tease my nipple with his fingers, or reach up underneath the hem and start stroking me through my panties.