“I’ll be back soon. Get dressed just in case Aubrey comes back.”
She left the room and he didn’t move for a while. Aubrey thought they were getting married. In hindsight it might not have been such a smart thing to say in front of the little girl, but he couldn’t change it now.
He didn’t know why he had said it. Or what had possessed him to. He had come here today to use his former rank and family connections to bully the Scotts into backing off. But being her fiancé made more sense. It made them think that he would be permanently attached to her, that he would be there to help provide the stable two parent home the Scotts thought she needed.
And maybe Aubrey would benefit from having a father around. But she was a good kid and Daisy was doing a hell of a job with her and he couldn’t stand by and just let anyone come here and try to take what mattered the most away from her.
He got out of bed and put on his clothes. He could go home and enjoy the rest of his day off, but he didn’t want to leave Daisy yet and he couldn’t find a reason why he should. He liked her. There was something about her he trusted and it had been a long time since he had trusted anyone except his sister.
He heard the shower turn off and a few minutes later Daisy emerged dressed again with a bottle of lotion in her hands. “You want to stay for dinner? I think we should grill tonight. I’ve got some wild boar and apple sausage that I’ve been dying to try.”
“Wild boar?”
“Yes. I can pickle some red onions to go on top. You haven’t lived until you’ve had pickled red onions on fresh sausage.”
“What happened to plain old pork, chicken and beef? Normal people grill hamburgers and hotdogs. You roll out the wild game.”
“I was planning on throwing on some burgers too. You don’t have to try it.”
“I’m going to try it.” He cupped the back of her neck and pulled her in for a kiss. “This is why I like you. You always do something unexpected.”
“Clayton Calhoun!” they heard from a distance. “I know you’re home. Get your fanny out here.”
The yell was accompanied by banging and Daisy looked up at him. “If you tell me that’s your estranged wife looking for you, I’m going to kick you in your man parts.”
“No.” It was worse than that. “It’s my mother.”
“She sounds mad.”
“You’re telling me.” He had been kind of blowing her off these past few days. She wanted him to come over for dinner, but he always made an excuse. He didn’t think she would get mad enough to pound his door down though.
He walked out to Daisy’s porch to see that it wasn’t just his mother there. His father was there too. And his sister. His entire family was back together it seemed for the sole purpose of kicking his behind.
“Is that your dad?” Daisy asked from behind him.
“Yeah.”
“You’re his clone,” she said sounding kind of awed.
“Don’t remind me.” He stepped off the porch, warily making his way to his family. “I’m here, Mom. What’s up?”
“Don’t you what’s up me, mister. Is it true?”
“Is what true?”
“Are you engaged? And if you lie to me, I’ll know. And trust me you’re not too old to put over my knee.”
Shit.
How the hell did she find out? He knew she didn’t know the Scotts and he was pretty sure she wasn’t tech savvy enough to have Daisy’s place bugged. “Uh, where did you hear that?”
“Your sister.”
“How the hell did you hear that?”
“Belinda told me that she overhead her daughter talking to one of the girls she goes to school with. She said, ‘Mr. Calhoun is going to marry my mommy. But he told me to call him Clay.’ I know there is only one Clayton Calhoun in this town and it’s you and who the hell are you marrying? And holy crap you shaved!” Maggie stumble backwards as the realization sunk in. “And you’ve cut your hair. I’m going to cry again.”
“No!” That was the last thing he needed.
“Don’t cry, honey.” His father caught Maggie and wrapped a supportive arm around her. “Just because he looks like your old man again, doesn’t mean it’s a cause for tears. I think I’m much better looking than him anyway.”
“So it’s true,” his mother said. “You aren’t denying it, so it must be true.”
He looked back at Daisy who was standing silently on her porch.
“It’s Daisy, isn’t it?” Maggie gasped. “I knew it! I knew you had something going on.”
“Daisy?” His mother followed his eyes. “Is that her? You come here right now, young lady.”
Daisy stepped off her porch bare foot, and looking frightened. He didn’t blame her. He had been to war, been shot at and blown up, but his mother still managed to scare the shit out of him.
Clayton grabbed her hand and squeezed, not sure how the hell they were going to get out of this one. “Mom, Dad this is Daisy.”
His mother surprised them all by letting out a happy scream and jumping up and down. She threw her arms around Daisy and kissed her cheeks. “Hello, beautiful girl. Welcome to the family!”
“You’re going to welcome me? Just like that? You don’t even know me. I could be a horrible bitch.”
“But you got him to get a haircut and shave and that’s all a mother could ask for.”
Daisy laughed. “You’re not hard to please.”
“She’s a stunner, son,” his father said smiling. “An absolute stunner. Congratulations.”
“I’m so happy. I love her.” Maggie started to weep again and for a moment Clay got caught up. His chest swelled with pride and he was happy that his family was so pleased with his choice in a bride. But then he remember that he wasn’t going to get married, that Daisy wasn’t his bride.
He looked over at her and realized that she was probably going to kill him.
*
“You beat me here,” Loretta said when she walked into the shop the next morning.
Daisy purposefully came early after dropping Aubrey with her grandparents for breakfast. “I have forty-five things to tell you.” She hopped up from her seat. “I take a couple of days off to be with my kid and my life explodes.”
“What?”
“Remember how Jane got pregnant and never told me who the father was? Well, that father turned out to be the son of a senator. He died and on his deathbed he asked his parents to take care of Aubrey and give her a horse.”
“A horse?”
“A horse! And they showed up at my house talking about that time I got arrested in college and Danny dying and about taking her away because I couldn’t give her a stable two parent home and I melted down a little bit and told Clayton. And then Clayton came over and told them they were going to have a fight on their hands because his grandfather was a general and he knew the vice president and he told them that he was going to marry me to get them to back off.”
“What?”
“And they bought it. Only they didn’t back off all the way. They rented a house and are staying here this summer to see Aubrey and Clay and I were going to pretend to be fake engaged for them, but Aubrey told her friend from school, and the girl’s mother found out and told Maggie and Maggie told Clay’s parents and they all showed up last night and neither one of us told them the truth and now we’re fake engaged.”
“Fake engaged?”
“Fake engaged! And you’re the only one who knows.” She ran out of steam then and rested her head on Loretta’s shoulder.
“Okay,” Loretta said slowly as she rubbed Daisy’s back. “I’m no dumb bunny, but I think you might have to explain that to me again.”
She explained it all again, but slower this time. Loretta didn’t say much. Just nodded and continued to rub her back.
“Sounds like he was just trying to be your knight in shining armor.”
“He was and I appreciate that. But his family thinks we’re getting married and they were so happy. And so nice. His mothe
r must have hugged me ten times yesterday. And then there is Aubrey. She likes him Loretta. She’s happy about this and I feel like shit because none of it’s real. I don’t want anyone getting hurt over this.”
“I get it, honey. But what’s the other option? Tell everyone you lied? Do you think that would be any better?”
“So what do you think I should do?”
“Let it ride for now. Worry about it when the time comes.”
“Don’t worry?” she asked as she walked to her station, ready to work on today’s arrangements. “I’m not sure that’s possible.”
Clayton walked through the door then, and she was surprised to see him. It was as if her thoughts had conjured him up.
“Hey. Good morning, Loretta,” he nodded his greeting before he turned his attention back to Daisy. “I stopped by your house this morning, but you weren’t there.” He was in his work clothes today. In a well-worn pair of jeans that hugged his powerful lower body just right. She had slept with him, seen him naked, kissed and touched his body, but seeing him there in her shop gave her a little rush, made her stomach go fluttery.
That was another reason why this fake engagement worried her. She didn’t want to end up with her heart broken when it all ended.
“I dropped Aubrey off with her grandparents for breakfast and came straight here.”
“Oh. I thought you might have been avoiding me.”
“Why would I avoid you, Clayton? It wouldn’t change anything.”
“Clayton!” Loretta threw her hands up. “You’re the big hot bearded guy that Daisy is sleeping with? How the hell did you morph into a more beautiful man?”
“Magic, ma’am. And an industrial electric razor.” He turned his icy blue eyes back to Daisy and stepped around the counter so that he stood face to face with her. “I thought you might be pissed at me. I would be pissed at me.” He flashed her a quick grin that made his eyes crinkle in the corners. “I would have taken my damn head off.”
“I’m not mad. You were doing this to help me.”
“We can back out.” He cupped her cheek and looked deeply into her eyes. “Just say the word and I’ll call my family and let them know.”
“No, don’t,” slipped out of her mouth before she could think. She could have said yes. It would have been for the best. Feelings would be stung, but in the end it would be less messy.
“Okay.” He nodded. He took his hand from her face and reached into his pocket where he pulled out a perfect diamond ring.
She lost her breath for a moment, her stomach doing somersaults. A ring that looked like a rose. One round diamond placed in a setting sprinkled with smaller diamonds in the shape of petals. There were even delicate little leaves on the band resembling a stem.
“My sister was asking me about the ring. I thought you might like this one.”
She did. She felt ridiculously close to tears. She more than liked it. She loved it. It was better than anything she could have imagined. “Clay…”
She didn’t know what to say to him. It was fake. It must be fake. This whole arrangement was fake, but as he slipped the ring on her finger, it felt kind of real. “Will you be my fiancé for the summer?”
“Oh… I’m not sure I have any other choice.”
“Just what every man wants to hear.” He took her face in his hands and kissed her. It wasn’t a casual kiss, but a deep one, a slow one. A kiss that she felt from the end of her hair to the tips of her toes. And if her arms weren’t wrapped around him and her body pressed against his, her knees would have given out.
He broke the kiss and looked down into her eyes. She recognized that look. It was the look he gave her when he was turned on. It was the look he gave her when she was naked before him. A girl could get used to a man looking at her like that.
“Don’t kiss me at work like that. And don’t look at me like that either. I can see every dirty thought in your head.”
“Don’t wear tight black jeans.” He gifted her with a wicked grin. “Seeing you in them does things to me.”
“I’ll wear a potato sack next time I see you.”
“That won’t work. All I need to see is you,” he lowered his voice, “and a thousand dirty images flood my mind.”
“Clay…” Her cheeks burned with pleasure.
“When can you sneak away today?”
“I’m not sure,” she said as he set his lips on hers and kissed her again, this time shorter and hotter. Her brain turned to mush.
“Lunch time.” He trailed kisses across her cheek. “Meet me at the Sanna offices at lunch.”
“Okay,” she breathed as he buried his face in her neck and kissed her there.
“Good. I’ll see you then.” He backed away from her, walking out of the store. “You have a good day, ma’am,” he said to Loretta.
“Oh, honey.” She fanned herself. “I sure will.” She waited until he was out of the store before she came rushing towards Daisy. “That was the most romantic thing that’s ever happened to me and it didn’t even happen to me. The way he kissed you. Oh my God! And let me see this ring.”
Daisy had forgotten all about Loretta there. But that was the problem with dealing with a man like Clayton Calhoun. He made her forget herself. He made her forget the world.
“This ring,” Loretta gasped. “It’s you.” She looked up at Daisy. “Fake engagement or not. I don’t think you should let this man go.”
*
Clayton had all but forgotten about the plans he had with his father until he called that afternoon to ask him if he’d rather go to the new burger place in town or eat at the old seafood joint.
It had been easy to forget with everything that had gone down in the past two days. Even now he could barely concentrate on what his father was saying to him. His mind was on Daisy, on the two times he had seen her today. She had met him for lunch and they had traveled to that little secluded swimming hole and had slow lazy sex by the water. He remembered the sun on his back, and her smiling up at him and the way she felt clenched around him. That alone made him want to keep going back to her for more.
But it was what had happened earlier that morning that really stuck in his mind. He had given her a ring. He had seen it before he had even known her. Took note of it when he went to the jewelers to get his great grandfather’s pocket watch fixed. The ring had shouted Daisy, only he hadn’t known her then.
But he knew her now, and the look on her face when he slipped the ring on her finger… He couldn’t describe it, but he knew how he felt. Funny. In his chest. Nervous when he gave it to her, which was weird because none of this was real. He wasn’t marrying her, but with the way she looked at him and the way his chest swelled when she agreed made it feel real.
It made it feel scary real.
He didn’t want to get tangled up in her. A widow with a kid. She had attachments. She had baggage. She was the last thing he needed right now and yet he had wrapped himself up in all of that. He did it. He couldn’t blame her if he wanted to, because he simply couldn’t stay away.
“So then I took my flying elephant on a trip to Sweden and got all types of pissed when I realized that he took me there instead of Switzerland, because that’s where they make all the good chocolate.”
“What?” Clayton snapped back to attention.
His father leaned back in his seat and folded his hands over his stomach. “I was eight minutes into that story. I was wondering how long it would take for you to pay attention.”
“Sorry.”
“Nah. Don’t be. You’re not usually a sparkling conversationalist and I know you’d rather have your toe nails pulled out than spend unnecessary time with me, but you’re distracted.”
“I’ve never said that I didn’t want to spend time with you.”
“You don’t have to say it, Clayton. I know. Your disdain for me rolls off you like a subtle stench, but unlike your sister who just lets me have it and refused to talk to me, you agree to do things with me that you don’t want to d
o just so you can torture me.”
“I don’t. Trust me. I don’t think about you enough to. I don’t care that much.”
“Ouch.” He touched his chest. “That stinger came barbed. I know you only do this out of respect. It makes me feel even shittier.”
“Maybe you should feel shitty. Maybe you deserve to live the rest of your life feeling that way.”
“Maybe I do. I can understand why you would hate me, but what I don’t understand is why you are so angry with your mother.”
“I’m not angry with her.”
“You are. We talk about it. She feels close to Maggie, but not to you. You’re here in Durant, but you’re not here with us. You might as well be back in the service, because we feel just as close to you as when you were in Afghanistan.”
“What do you want me to say to that?” He could feel himself tense. This was a topic he never liked to broach with his parents. There would be no use, because it wouldn’t change the past.
“Is that why you’re going back overseas? Iraq this time, is it? They want you to train their private forces and serve as some big wig’s personal body guard when he leaves his walled compound.”
“What?”
“You didn’t think I knew about that? You think I’m not still connected? You think I haven’t been offered jobs like that? It’s good money, son. I can see why you would take it, but you’ve got that pretty fiancé now who has already buried one husband, not to mention a kid who is going to depend on you the moment you say I do. Do you think it’s fair for them to bury another man they love?”
“You sound so sure I’m going to die over there.”
“You might not, but if you go I’m going to have to prepare myself for the day they call me to tell me they are shipping your body back in a bag.”
“You spent half my damn life away and the half you were around being a dick to my mother. What gives you the right to say anything to me?”
“You’re my son, damn it!” The nicer gentler father he had come to know had faded away and he was faced with the hardnosed disciplinarian he knew as a child. For some reason he was more comfortable with this man. “I will always have the right to say something to you. Think of your mother. Think of your sister and those babies that she’s carrying. Think of Daisy. Does she deserve a half marriage?”
A Curvy Girl for the Cadet: A Perfect Fit Novella Page 12
