The Strong Family Romance Collection

by Cami Checketts

  “Right, bro?” Nick asked.

  “Don’t embarrass Kari,” Gavin grunted.

  “Somehow I don’t think it’s Kari who’s embarrassed.” Nick gave her a wink that she imagined had made more than one woman weak in the knees.

  “I am pretty tough to embarrass,” Kari admitted. Her brother had teased her for as long as she could remember; she was pretty immune to it.

  Gavin raised his eyebrows and muttered, “Maybe we should just go to dinner at the lodge.”

  “Come on, bro.” Nick laughed. “I’ll keep the family from teasing you too much.”

  Gavin rolled his eyes. “Yeah, right.”

  Nick shrugged. “He’s right. It’s going to be a hailstorm in there. You up for it, Kari Love?”

  She was up for anything if she could be with Gavin. Yet unease stirred in her gut. If Gavin got uncomfortable with his family teasing him about her, would he push her away, ditch her? She’d rather take his hand and run somewhere alone if that was going to happen. They were just developing a relationship. She didn’t want anything to disrupt the tender, beautiful feelings.

  She looked to Gavin. He met her gaze and then gave her an almost imperceptible nod. He could handle this if she could. Squaring her shoulders, she looked back to Nick. “I’m tougher than I look,” she said.

  Nick laughed. “Good for you.”

  He gestured toward the house, and the three of them fell into step. Kari wasn’t sure what to expect, but she loved being shoulder to shoulder with these two tough men. She knew they were going into a safe, happy environment, but she felt like these two would protect her no matter what they faced. If only Gavin would take her hand again.

  Gavin flexed and released his fingers a few times as he, Kari, and Nick walked toward Mama’s front porch. He wanted to take her hand again. It had felt natural and exciting to hold her hand during the drive here, but he worried what signal he might be sending to his family. Most of his siblings hardly remembered Janielle and had never seen him holding a beautiful woman’s hand. Would they freak out and embarrass him? Kari had said she didn’t embarrass easily, and she was probably telling the truth. He didn’t want to be selfish, and he also didn’t want to mess up the best thing that had happened to him since Austin, so as Nick swung the door wide, Gavin wrapped his hand around hers before he could let himself chicken out.

  Kari’s gaze darted to his as her warm palm slid against his and she laced their fingers together. She gave him the sweetest smile, lighting up her beguiling blue eyes. The words he’d said to her earlier were the sappiest he’d ever said in his life. Heck, he’d never even thought words like that. It didn’t come out as smooth or charming as he’d intended, and he couldn’t believe he’d said the word “cute,” but she hadn’t seemed to mind.

  He’d been reading Kari’s books every spare minute over the past two weeks. They were definitely not his normal read, and he couldn’t say that he’d ever choose to read them if he hadn’t met Kari, but he was impressed with her talent and storytelling ability. She really made the characters come to life. More importantly, he’d learned a thing or two about how a hero should act in Kari Love’s world. He was praying he could get it right.

  The living room was deserted, but various voices were competing in the kitchen and dining area, and the house smelled like Mama’s roast beef and homemade rolls. Gavin’s stomach growled.

  Kari smiled at him. “It smells good.”

  He sidled in closer, squeezed her hand, and said, “Not nearly as good as you.”

  A becoming blush stole over her cheeks, and Gavin mentally patted himself on the back. He was doing pretty good.

  Nick strode ahead of them into the kitchen, announcing as they cleared the doorway, “The mighty oak has fallen, and I give to you the beautiful woman responsible: Kari Love.” He made a grandiose gesture toward Kari and Gavin.

  Gavin froze like a deer in the headlights. He clung to Kari’s hand for support. His brother was such an idiot. Gavin and Kari weren’t even officially dating. He liked her and wanted to progress the relationship, but they lived in different states and no matter how much he wanted to be the man for her, he had too many responsibilities to go chasing after her like one of her romance heroes would.

  Kari … laughed. She waved her free hand, looking so beautiful and confident that he wanted to fall down to his knees and proclaim his devotion. Of course, Gavin would never do something like that, and it worried him that he had such desperate thoughts. He could probably blame all the romance novels he’d been shoving down his own throat, but as Kari gave him a conspiratorial gaze and squeezed his hand, he realized Nick was right: he had fallen. He didn’t particularly care what his family said; if he could simply stay close to her. There had to be a way to make this work.

  “Hey, everybody,” Kari greeted them, not disputing or referencing Nick’s words.

  Ella, Cassie, and Hazel rushed forward first, giving her impulsive hugs and welcoming her as if it was their duty as women to make sure she felt accepted. Mama was next, then Trey, Stetson, Heath, and Jed. Papa wheeled over as Jed finished introducing himself, and Kari bent down to hug him. Papa winked at Gavin. The entire time Kari got acquainted with everyone, Austin was bouncing around telling whoever would listen about how he’d met her first, how he knew she was the right one for Gavin, and how he’d watched them kiss earlier today.

  Gavin’s neck got hotter the more Austin prattled on, but he didn’t want to reprimand him and reveal how embarrassed he was about Austin not only revealing that they’d kissed but also that he thought they were “meant for each other.” Yikes. Gavin thought it might be true, and that scared him almost as much as losing her. He had to just take this one day at a time. Maybe then he wouldn’t come unglued and mess this up—or worse, run from the most impressive woman he’d ever met.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Kari spent the next twenty-four hours being happier than she could ever remember. Real people were such fun, and the incredible and irresistible Gavin Strong was so much more than fun. She loved being around Gavin’s family; they made her feel comfortable and included. All her fears of being socially awkward disappeared faster than Mama’s hot rolls coming out of the oven.

  They’d all had dinner together Thursday night, then stayed up late playing games and chatting. Gavin had given her a gentle kiss when he dropped her off at her gorgeous two-story suite on the sixth floor of his lodge, but he hadn’t said much besides thanking her for coming back. It seemed like he was making a concerted effort to say sweet things to her. She liked it. Sometimes it didn’t quite fit his personality, which made it even more endearing that he was trying so hard.

  On Friday, they spent the morning on the slopes and the afternoon and evening working with the lodge employees, and a professional decorating company, to decorate everything from the restaurant, conference rooms, and open areas of the main two floors of the lodge.

  “How many people are you planning on?” Kari asked Mama at one point.

  She smiled sweetly. “About a thousand.”

  “What?” All this wedding prep and talk had her fantasizing about marrying Gavin, but she’d be more comfortable with about fifty guests.

  Mama nodded. “Lots of family, everyone from town, and all the employees and guests of the lodge are invited.”

  Heath, Hazel, and Nick each drove a sport utility to Vail to pick up Hazel’s family, for whom Heath had chartered a jet from London. Jed and Cassie drove to Denver to pick up his surrogate parents and a couple of friends from Park City.

  Kari and Cassie had had some time earlier this afternoon to chat while they assembled a small bag of thank-you gifts for each of Cassie and Hazel’s wedding guests, and Cassie told her about how she and Jed met, how she’d changed her plans from doing humanitarian missions full time to running a progressive shelter out of Denver, and how she hoped to adopt two children after their honeymoon: a twelve-year-old boy from Park City who was currently in foster care, and a four-year-old girl fro
m Cozumel who lived in an orphanage there. Kari thought Cassie was absolutely incredible. Kari donated part of her earnings each month to an organization that helped homeless people become self-reliant through work skills and education, but to meet somebody who actually lived the life of a Good Samaritan was inspiring, and of course it gave her a few book ideas.

  Now she was helping Ella tie huge ribbons in bows around the chairs at the lodge, and Ella was filling her in on how she’d loved the extreme sports expert Trey Nelson from the time she was a preteen. When he’d returned home for a visit last fall, he’d been smacked upside the head by how incredible she was. She said this with a teasing lilt to her voice and a wink.

  “I love this story!” Kari exclaimed. “Tell me more.”

  Ella laughed. “Will you write about us?”

  Kari smiled. “I would love to, but that’s not quite how it works for me.”

  Ella tilted her head and her brow furrowed. “What do you mean, how does it work?”

  “I get ideas, inspiration, and sometimes even dialogue from real life, but for the most part, my friends in my head reveal their stories to me as I type it out. I try to direct the story sometimes, but I can ruin everything if I get too heavy-handed with them.”

  Ella’s dark eyes were full of questions. “So you honestly have people talking to you?”

  Kari shrugged, afraid to admit it and have Ella think she was insane. “Sometimes when I’m out running, I’ll have full-on conversations with them, but mostly it’s just as I write their story they’re on my mind all the time, and their characterization, story, and theme are revealed to me piece by piece as I type it out.” She warmed up to her subject as she tied another bow and moved to the next chair. “It’s so incredible. Sometimes I’ll just be typing along and include a detail that I don’t really think is significant, but it came out of my fingertips, so I keep it. Later on, it’ll be a piece to a character’s personality, or the theme or plot, that I hadn’t even realized would be crucial.”

  Ella nodded. “So you’re discovering the story just like a reader would?”

  “Most of the time. Like I said, I try to guide my characters and I’ll insert stuff into the dialogue or their heads during later rounds of edits, but the first draft is all pretty authentic to whatever story I see playing out in my head.” Her hands froze on a bow, and the worries surfaced as she knew she’d said too much. Her mom was very supportive, but she also cautioned her that people just wanted a quick answer when they asked about her writing. “You probably think I’m nuts.”

  Ella shook her head and tied another bow. “No, I think it’s really great. My mind is business and math-oriented, so I love hearing about how your creative process works.”

  “Thanks.” Kari kept her head down and her fingers busy to hide how relieved she was. She didn’t want Gavin’s family thinking she was a schizophrenic head case and warning him about red flags to their relationship. Not that they really had a relationship yet, but she certainly hoped they were progressing that direction.

  Gavin came out of his office across the wide open main floor, and Kari straightened, her heart immediately picking up its beat. He gave her a warm half smile and strode their direction. He didn’t pull her in tight when he reached her, but his smile grew close to full and his gaze ran appreciatively over her face. “You two about done?” he asked.

  “Yes. Do you need my co-worker?” Ella grinned at Kari.

  “Yes, please,” Gavin said in a husky voice that did funny things to Kari’s insides. He was focused on Kari. “Trey and Ella offered to entertain Austin at my house.” He paused to nod his thanks to his sister. “Would you be interested in going to dinner with me?”

  “Yes!” She probably sounded far too eager, but she didn’t care. She wanted Gavin to know that she was interested—more than interested, invested. She loved having Austin around, but being alone with Gavin sounded like heaven.

  “Would you prefer dressing up or going casual?” Gavin asked.

  “Ooh, let’s dress up.” She’d seen him in a shirt and tie for church, and it had been a splendid sight. Plus, she loved the idea of an intimate dinner.

  “Sounds good. I’ll be back in about fifteen minutes.”

  Before he could turn away, Kari impulsively threw her arms around his neck and gave him a quick kiss. “Thank you! This will be amazing.”

  He chuckled and said, “Anything with you is amazing.” Then he wrapped her up tight, bent low, and gave her a lingering kiss that had her tingling from head to foot.

  “I’m still here,” Ella sang out.

  Gavin pulled back slightly, still focused on Kari. “I’ve watched her and Trey kiss more times than Trey has risked his life. I think she’ll survive.”

  “Good,” Kari murmured, “because I didn’t quite get enough.”

  Gavin’s half smile appeared, and he bent close again. “Neither did I.”

  Kari laughed happily. He cut it off by pressing his lips to hers.

  Gavin sat next to Kari at a small table at the exclusive Terra Bistro in Vail. They’d chatted mostly about the family, the weddings, and the funny things Austin said as they drove to Vail and ate a fabulous meal. A few weeks ago, he couldn’t have imagined he’d be so comfortable with a model-gorgeous, impetuous, and smart woman; now, he hated the thought of her leaving again on Monday. He was definitely getting more comfortable with physical touch. If he wanted to admit the truth, he craved being close to and touching Kari. He didn’t even care if his family saw how smitten he was with her, and surprisingly, the teasing had been minimal. They all seemed happy and relieved that he’d finally fallen, and had each told him how impressed they were with Kari. He was also getting more comfortable saying sweet things to Kari, phrases that he was sure his siblings and their significant others said to each other but would’ve made him cringe and squirm a few weeks ago.

  He ate his last bite of the green beef curry. It was delicious, and the honey BBQ salmon Kari had offered him a bite of was every bit as good. The price tag on this restaurant was insane, but it was well worth it for the food and atmosphere. He’d eaten lunch here for a few business dinners but had never pictured himself bringing an incredible woman here for a dinner date.

  She sat back and pushed her plate away, looking beautiful in a floor-length floral dress that had a blue band around the middle to emphasize her waist and a V-neck that flattered her incredible shape. “That was delicious. Thank you, Gavin.”

  “Sure.”

  “I was able to hear pretty much everybody’s story today, except for Nick’s.”

  Gavin’s forehead wrinkled. “What do you want to know about Nick?”

  He was still a little sensitive remembering how Austin had originally thought Kari should go for Nick. Luckily, neither Nick nor Kari had seemed inclined to the other, and he’d been watching closely. He was tempted to tell her that Nick had been secretly in love with Mary Coulter in high school, and call up Mary and beg her to move back from Boston and capture Nick again. It was actually Gavin’s fault they’d never gotten together. He’d been so bitter about Janielle’s betrayal he’d strongly cautioned his younger brother against a high school relationship. He’d wondered over the years if he’d given his brother bad advice and now it meant he couldn’t follow up on his idea of insuring Nick would stay away from Kari. Yet he knew Nick would never steal his girl.

  “I just love to hear stories. You know me.”

  He liked that he did know her. “Okay.”

  “So.” She leaned slightly forward. “How did he get the scars?”

  Gavin smiled slightly. With anyone else, that line might feel a little pushy. With Kari, it was just cute, and he knew she simply wanted to hear the story, not pry into gruesome details. Gavin’s smile fell away quickly as he thought of his brother being disfigured, and almost a lot worse. “An IED,” he said.

  Her face filled with concern. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to … pry.”

  “It’s okay. It just happened a month ago
. Hopefully, the scars will fade with time.” He wondered if his brother had internal scars, as he knew he’d had friends killed by the explosion and he’d heard him scream out in his sleep sometimes, but Nick still seemed like his teasing, easygoing self. He’d shown Gavin his right shoulder, chest, and arm. They weren’t pretty anymore with puckered, angry red skin.

  “I’ll pray he doesn’t have internal scars too,” she said.

  “Thank you.” Gavin appreciated the faith that was apparent in Kari’s life. Just another thing that drew him to her.

  The waiter brought the dessert menu. Kari ordered the molten chocolate cake, and he got the caramel pot de crème.

  She leaned forward, and he thought that flirty V-neck of her dress was just about perfect. It didn’t show cleavage or anything, but it did have him dreaming of trailing his lips down her neck and …

  “I haven’t heard your story either,” she said in a quiet but determined voice.

  “What?” Gavin’s gaze snapped up to hers. Her blue eyes lured him in, but they also made him wary. What part of his story did she want?

  She didn’t clarify, just stared steadily at him, patiently waiting for him to spill his guts.

  His throat got dry and his palms got sweaty. “Well, you know my story. After Papa broke his back, I gave up my football scholarship to stay here and help Mama manage the resort and take care of everyone.” The timeline was a little off. Papa breaking his back had changed everything for their family, but it wasn’t until Gavin saw Austin that summer as a newborn that he gave up his scholarship without any hesitation. “Then a few years ago I started buying Mama and Papa out, and now my life’s pretty much ideal.” He forced a smile. “Living in the best valley on earth and spending all my free time with Austin.”