Hot SEAL, Cold Feet (SEALs in Paradise)

by Becca Jameson

  Feltner turned to head for the door.

  Tuck gave Jodi a squeeze and then followed the officer to let him out.

  Feltner turned toward Tuck at the door, glanced over his shoulder, and spoke in a soft voice. “I know I’m totally overstepping here, but for what it’s worth, that woman over there is a much better choice than Katia.”

  “I’m beyond clear on that. I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t say anything about what you saw. I have not cheated on Katia, at least not with my body.”

  Feltner smiled. “The mind is a powerful tool we can’t control though, isn’t it?”

  “For sure.”

  “I won’t breathe a word. Not even to my nosy wife.”

  “Thank you.” Tuck breathed out a sigh of relief he wished he didn’t need to feel. Hiding his relationship with Jodi was driving him to the edge of sanity.

  After he shut the door, he turned to face the room. He was exhausted, and he knew instinctively the night wasn’t over. He was in for a wild ride when he arrived at the apartment.

  Jodi must have sensed his predicament because she didn’t even encourage him to stay. She made her way to him, leaned into his body, and hugged him close. “Go,” she murmured against his chest. “Before it gets even worse than I’m sure it already is.”

  He ran his hands up and down her back, needing the contact, furious with himself and the world that he didn’t have the right to take her to her room and curl up with her. He’d sleep like a log if he could just do it with Jodi.

  She lifted her gaze and smiled. “Just think, the insanity might be worse than usual for a few days, but you’re now down to two days and three nights.”

  “Let’s pray it speeds by because I’m losing my patience.” He kissed her forehead and turned to hurry from the building before he could lose his self-control and take her lips. God, he couldn’t wait to kiss her properly.

  Soon, he reminded himself as he climbed into his car. Like she said, two days and three nights. He could handle anything for two days and three nights, right?

  Chapter 16

  The bar was packed, which made Tuck nervous. Saturday nights had been like this for a while. According to the staff, business had never been this good until Tuck joined them and word slowly spread that the groom from Cold Feet was working at Bridgman’s Bar.

  On the one hand, Tuck felt bad for being the reason squealing women came in all the time wanting pictures with him. They fawned over him incessantly some nights, which made him worry he was going to miss something. He’d been hired to catch a drug dealer, not set up a photo booth for his growing, unwanted fan club.

  On the other hand, Tuck could clearly tell that business was booming, and Jodi and Bill seemed pleased to be bringing in more revenue. He hoped they could continue to grow as a business even after he was gone.

  He needed to face an important fact, if Roxie somehow led them to the dealer and Tuck managed to put an end to Bridgman’s problems tonight, he would no longer be needed. It wasn’t as if they could afford to keep paying him anyway. And besides, he had every intention of spending every possible moment with Jodi starting at noon on Monday. It wouldn’t be appropriate to expect Bill to keep him on the payroll while he was dating the man’s daughter.

  As much as Tuck hated to admit it, maybe his unwanted celebrity status would help him get another job somewhere nearby. Granted, it would need to be evenings so that his schedule matched Jodi’s.

  First things first. He intended to put an end to Bridgman’s problems by the time the bar closed. Tomorrow he needed to spend time with his mother. That would eat part of the day and keep him from counting the seconds trapped in a small space with Katia. Monday, he would be home free.

  The crowd continued to grow as the hours ticked by. Tuck knew someone in the room was an undercover cop, but he hadn’t been told who, and she was good because he couldn’t spot her.

  He kept his eyes peeled, one of them on Roxie’s every movement and one of them on every male patron in the place. Roxie might be the one dropping the drugs into women’s purses, but she wasn’t the voice on the phone. She was someone’s minion. A middleman, or woman in this case.

  There was a good chance her supplier wasn’t at the bar. Perhaps he never had been. But Tuck kept an eye out all the same. The best-case scenario would be if the undercover agent caught Roxie, arrested her, and then made a plea deal to get the bigger fish.

  Tuck’s heart raced as he watched Roxie work the room, taking orders and delivering them. This wasn’t the kind of bar where each of the wait staff had a section. If so, Roxie would have a harder time making her drop. Instead, she and Jacob and Liz covered the entire bar at random.

  Roxie was friendly and flirty with every customer. Before tonight, Tuck had never paid attention to the fact that she didn’t have a large personal space. She got very close to people. That made her drops easier. It also drove Tuck nuts because he had no idea if she’d already made her drop or not. She could have made a dozen by now.

  Jodi was nervous too. Tuck had seen her drop more than one glass, the shattering drawing people’s attention. She laughed it off, saying she was clumsy tonight.

  Bill spent most of the evening sitting at the end of the bar with one of his usual customers, talking. Tuck had encouraged him to play it cool and stay put so he wouldn’t get caught up in anything.

  Tuck had likewise insisted Jodi remain behind the bar for the same reason. He’d pressured her a half an hour before opening and before Roxie’s arrival. She had glared at him defiantly, but in the end, consented. At the time, he’d visualized a future where he wiped that contrary look of hers right off her face by taking her in his arms and kissing her senseless until she melted.

  Two days. Not even. More like thirty-eight hours.

  Tuck moved his head back and forth as if scanning the entire room, but he kept his gaze directed at Roxie, watching as she leaned a hip against a table and laughed with a customer.

  Suddenly, the woman grabbed Roxie’s wrist, jumped to her feet, and leaned into Roxie’s face.

  Tuck stopped moving. Showtime.

  From the side view, he could see Roxie turning pale, saying something to the woman, and then glancing around, her gaze ending up on Tuck’s. He wondered how often he’d mistaken her attention toward him for flirting when really she was checking to see if he was paying attention. He hated that he’d missed the signs, spending the last month looking for a man. Not a woman. Rookie mistake. A stupid one.

  Tuck finally moved forward, making his way through the crowd while Roxie jerked her wrist, frantically whispering to the woman.

  When Tuck reached the quiet skirmish, the brunette was still gripping Roxie’s wrist, and much to Tuck’s satisfaction, Roxie was still holding something in her fist. Even better.

  The brunette hissed. “I suggest you go quietly to the back office with me right now, ma’am, or risk causing a scene. I won’t hesitate to arrest you and cuff you right in the middle of the bar if you want to fight me.”

  “Okay, okay, fine.” Roxie shot a glare at Tuck and turned to walk through the crowd. On her way, she dropped the contents of her hand semi-discreetly in a trash can.

  Tuck nearly laughed as he followed them, stopping to yank the entire bag of trash out of the can and carry it with him.

  When they reached the office, the undercover agent wasted no time. “You want to explain to me why you were dropping pills in my purse?”

  Roxie cocked a hip and rolled her eyes.

  Tuck couldn’t even imagine how someone could be that cavalier.

  The brunette glanced at Tuck and nodded once. “Officer Pierce.” She flashed a badge.

  “Tucker Lawler.”

  Pierce shifted her attention to Roxie. “Start talking.”

  “Don’t you have to read me my rights or something?”

  “I can do that if you want. You’re going to the station with me no matter what. It’ll be easier on you if you cooperate.”

  “Seriously?�
� Roxie’s voice rose and she fisted her hands at her sides. “You’re gonna arrest me for having some diet pills?”

  “I’m going to arrest you for selling illegal diet pills,” Pierce pointed out. “But it would be nice if you told us who your supplier is. It would make things easier on you.”

  Roxie smirked.

  Tuck heard movement behind him and turned around to find Jodi in the doorway. Her eyes were wide. He shook his head. He didn’t want her anywhere near Roxie if the woman decided to fight them. She was volatile. Anything was possible.

  For once, Jodi nodded and backed off. Her father was behind her, and he took her shoulders and spun her back toward the front of the bar.

  Roxie’s demeanor switched to frantic. “I don’t have to tell you anything.”

  “True. You don’t have to tell me a thing if you don’t want. But the judge who arraigns you in the morning is not going to be too pleased to find out you’ve been uncooperative. The man is tough on drug dealers. The bail will be high.”

  Tuck doubted Pierce even knew who would be presiding tomorrow. Hell, it’d probably be Monday morning before Roxie was arraigned. Nothing she said or did right now was going to change anything, but it might help Pierce go easier on her for the next several hours.

  “I’m not a fucking drug dealer,” Roxie exclaimed.

  Pierce narrowed her gaze. “Ma’am, selling and distributing illegal pharmaceuticals is the definition of a drug dealer.”

  “They’re diet pills,” she shouted.

  Pierce sighed. “Just tell me where you get them.”

  Roxie threw her arms up. “I don’t know, okay. Happy? Someone drops off my shipments and I move ’em.”

  “Move them? Is move a synonym for sell?” Pierce asked.

  “Whatever.”

  “How do you communicate with the guy above you?”

  “Texts on a burner phone,” she admitted softly.

  “He gives you the descriptions of the people you’re supposed to distribute to each night?” Pierce questioned.

  Roxie scrunched up her face. “Yes.”

  “So this guy answers the phone to make the initial contact and arrangements?”

  Roxie’s shoulders fell. “Yes.”

  Pierce nodded toward the door as she pulled out her cuffs. “Let’s go. You can make your statement at the station.”

  Roxie stared at her a moment, and then the tears started. “Can’t you just give me a warning or something?”

  “Ma’am, you were here when the cops came in to question everyone multiple times about this issue. You knew perfectly well you were breaking the law.” Pierce pointed at Tuck. “A man was hired to catch you. Don’t try to act like you didn’t know this was a big deal. Now, I’m going to cuff you. Are you going to follow me out to the squad car without incident?”

  Roxie shot Tuck the angriest glare he’d ever received as she passed by him and followed Pierce out the rear exit. And that was saying something considering the woman Tuck had been living with for the last three months. If looks could hurt him, he would have died weeks ago.

  Chapter 17

  Jodi looked like she was barely holding it together the last two hours the bar was open. Tuck had taken each employee aside one at a time and suggested they keep working as if nothing happened. Few patrons had noticed the interaction or the arrest. It would be most beneficial to the bar for them to keep quiet and continue working.

  Her hands were still shaking, however, when Tuck finally locked the door and turned to face her. He hauled her into his embrace and held her tight. “You did fantastic,” he murmured against the top of her head, wishing for all the world he could say something that would calm her. “I’m so proud of you.”

  Her entire body trembled.

  He didn’t release her as Bill spoke from behind her. “What happens now?”

  “I’m sure the police will want to take statements from everyone in the next few days, but chances are your problems are over. She may or may not be able to give up her supplier, but it is incredibly unlikely the guy will use this location for his transactions anymore. He’ll find a new place. He needed the inside contact. He doesn’t have it now.”

  “Well, that’s good.” Bill sounded relieved.

  Jodi took a breath and turned partially in Tuck’s arms to look at her dad. “I can’t believe she fooled me like that.”

  “She fooled all of us, sweetie,” Bill responded. “Not your fault.”

  “I guess, but it’s still unnerving to think all this time Roxie was the one we were looking for.” The shivering continued, making Tuck’s chest tighten.

  “You want us to stick around a while?” Stan asked, approaching from the bar with Jacob and Liz.

  “No.” Bill shook his head. “You all can go. Be prepared to speak to the police when they call.”

  “Of course.” Liz gave Jodi’s hand a squeeze and smiled. “It’ll be okay. Promise.”

  Jodi nodded, her face blank. The world wouldn’t end, but Tuck feared Jodi would be less trusting for a while. And that broken trust might even affect how she felt about him. After all, why should she trust him? He had given her nothing. Not even a kiss. Just a pile of promises that started on Monday at noon.

  After the three of them left, Bill excused himself and went upstairs. Tuck turned Jodi in his arms and cupped her face. “You did great.”

  “I feel like I’m going to vomit.”

  He smiled. “I know, but it’s over. After a full night’s sleep, you’ll feel better.”

  “I wish you could stay and sleep next to me.”

  “I know.” He kissed her forehead. He wanted that so badly himself. “We’re so close.” He hated to say too much right now. It would only make things harder for the next day. He could say everything that needed to be said after his contract ended.

  “I won’t see you before Monday at noon.”

  “No. You won’t.” The bar wasn’t open on Sundays anyway, and Tuck intended to visit his mom tomorrow. It wasn’t his usual day, but he was worried about her. Besides, he needed someone to talk to, even if she couldn’t respond. He needed his mom. He needed to tell her all about the woman he’d fallen for, what she was like, how her smile lit up a room, how she melted his soul. He needed his mom to know he would be okay, that she could leave him and he would make it in this world.

  For most of his life it had been just the two of them. A huge hole would tear into his heart when she passed, but in a way, she was already gone. All that was left was her body. He knew that deep inside, but he still felt closer to her when he visited.

  He wished he could bring Jodi with him tomorrow. His mom would have loved Jodi, but he didn’t want Jodi to see her that way. He wanted to be able to show Jodi pictures from all the good times and paint the memories in a better light.

  Maybe in a few weeks, after things settled down, after Tuck and Jodi were an item and had talked for a hundred hours and fallen asleep in each other’s arms night after night… Maybe then he would bring her to visit his mom, but not yet.

  He would need to compartmentalize for a while. Visiting his mom was so grim and filled him with so much sorrow. He didn’t want that to be the way he and Jodi made their first memories together. He could manage. After all, he’d managed to star on a reality TV show, play house in a make-believe marriage, work ten hours a day at a bar in a serious security detail role, visit his dying mother, and fall in love all at the same time. Life would be so much easier when he only had to juggle visiting his mom and spending time with Jodi. He was officially unemployed again as of tonight, and his stupid reality show would end with the final episode airing tomorrow night.

  The thought of that episode made him nearly groan. “Don’t suppose I could convince you to not watch Cold Feet tomorrow night?”

  She grinned at him wanly. “Fat chance. I wouldn’t want to miss all the drama as Katia tries to sabotage your life.”

  He cringed. Of all the things that had happened to him in the last month, the fact
that Jodi had seen so much footage of his sham of a marriage was what hurt the most. He would give anything to erase that any of it ever happened, especially that she saw it and it would forever be burned in her mind.

  “I wouldn’t put anything past her.”

  He met and held Jodi’s gaze, staring into her deep brown eyes for the longest time. He knew he had a goofy grin on his face. He’d give anything to tell her how he felt about her, but he wouldn’t. He’d waited this long. He could wait until Monday. He felt confident she knew. Words would only confirm what he wanted her to know. All he could do was pray she didn’t doubt him while she watched the final live episode.

  He finally drew in a breath. “I’ll see you Monday. Noon. We have a date.”

  She smiled. “Yep. It’s going to be spectacular. How about if we agree not to discuss Cold Feet at all. Put it in the past. Let it go.”

  “It hasn’t even happened yet, and already you want to let it go?” God, he adored this woman.

  “Yep. What’s there to say really? I get it. We don’t need to hash out the particulars. It’ll all be over when you get here. Done. I’d much rather spend our time together naked.”

  His cock stiffened. “What about lunch?” he teased.

  “I’ll eat a late breakfast. Who needs food?”

  “Don’t you want me to get a reservation at a nice restaurant? It’s our first date. Didn’t anyone ever tell you not to sleep with a man on the first date?” He loved this banter so much. He hoped they could keep it up for a lifetime because even though he didn’t want to scare the hell out of her by telling her that’s how long he intended to be with her, he knew. He’d known for weeks. Perhaps since the day she first walked into the room, cocked her hip out, and read him the riot act for being such a jackass reality television star. That seemed like a lifetime ago.

  She giggled, a sound that also went to his cock. “I’ll take my chances. I have a good feeling about this guy. I think it’ll be okay if I sleep with him on the first date. I’m pretty sure he won’t think I’m some sort of floozy afterward.”