“What are you thinking so hard about?” Ben asked as the little boy wiped the milk mustache from his upper lip.
“Well, if we’re now a quintet but you and Mom have a baby, what will we be?”
The silence only lasted a few seconds but it was deafening.
“A sextet,” Lily answered easily, looking down as she pushed the last of her peas around her plate, seemingly unaware of the wide-eyed expressions on the adult faces.
Ben shot a glance toward his grandmother, who was barely able to contain the smile spreading over her face, before looking to the side to see a dropped-jaw, speechless Violet staring at her children.
Before he had a chance to form a response, his babcia stood and reached for the cobbler on the counter. “Quintet, sextet… whatever word you choose, I think family is the nicest,” she said, much to the obvious delight of Charlie and Lily as they nodded their enthusiastic agreement.
After dinner and a family movie in the den, everyone seemed exhausted and ready for bed. Ben made sure his grandmother was settled and double-checked the doors and locks before going upstairs. By then, Violet had the kids bathed and in their beds. He stopped by Lily’s room and accepted the hug she offered.
“Goodnight, Princess Lily,” he said, loving the smile on her face as she squirmed under the covers. He moved to Charlie’s room just as Violet was kissing her son goodnight. Charlie looked over his mom’s shoulder and called to Ben.
Walking into the room, he bent low over the bed, placing one hand on Violet’s back and the other on the covers. “Whatcha need, Charlie-boy?”
“Do you think being here will keep the bad man away?”
He felt Violet’s back go ramrod stiff and kept his hand gentle as he smoothed it over her tight muscles. Patting Charlie’s leg with his other hand, he nodded. “You are completely safe here. And tomorrow, I’m going to set up some security cameras, and we’ll have a chance to see what’s going on.”
“Like spy cameras?” Charlie’s excitement was barely contained.
Grinning at the boy’s ability to change moods so quickly, he nodded. “Yeah, kind of like spy cameras.”
The click of toenails on the wooden floor drew their attention to Bounder as he walked into the room. He sniffed Charlie’s shoes next to the dresser and then curled up on the rug next to the bed. Charlie grinned and flopped back on the mattress. “With Ben and Bounder… we’ll be safe.”
With that simple assurance, Violet tucked her son in again and they walked to the door. As Ben flipped off the light, he turned and whispered, “Good dreams, Charlie-boy.”
He walked her to the main bedroom and stopped at the door. She looked over her shoulder and tilted her head to the side. “You can come in. After all, it’s your house.”
“That may be, but for now, this is your space.”
She reached out and snagged his hand, pulling him into the room. They walked toward the bed and sat side by side, fingers still linked.
“I realize I’m stating the obvious, but you’re exhausted,” he said, his thumb gently rubbing over her hand.
Nodding slowly, she agreed. “Yeah, I am.”
“Why don’t you take a hot bath? You’ve got a big bathroom all to yourself and can relax. The kids are fine. We’re all safe. And I’ll be right across the hall.”
“Is this too much for you?” she blurted.
He jerked his head back slightly, not taking his eyes off her. Shifting their positions, he faced her, wanting to hold her gaze. “Too much?”
“This,” she exclaimed, her free hand sweeping out toward the room and hallway. “The three of us here, invading your home. The kids talking about a quintet… comparing us to a family.”
“What about you? Is it too much for you?”
“I asked you first,” she mumbled, then pressed her lips together.
It wasn’t enough to quell her smile, and he chuckled. “That sounded like something Lily would say.”
Her shoulders shook with her gentle laughter. “You’re right.” She heaved a sigh. “I’m just afraid that right when you and I were starting to be the us you talk about, we suddenly end up living in your house, and… honestly? I don’t want it to chase you away.”
“Violet, I don’t get chased away. I was a SEAL. I ran straight into danger and never thought twice about it. This? This is easy, sweetheart.” She continued to stare, and he didn’t want to leave anything unsaid that might cause her to worry. “Yes, I want you and the kids safe. Yes, I want to be able to have you close while I figure out who that man was and what he was doing. And no, having you here doesn’t feel like too much at all. Quite the contrary. I love having you here.”
She licked her lips, a nervous action that caused his mind to shift to her mouth and what he wanted to do with her mouth. Blowing out a breath, he said, “I’d better get out of here and let you get to bed. If I don’t leave now, I might not make it to my room.”
“That’d be okay with me,” she said, leaning closer until their lips were a whisper apart.
Not one to walk away from that offer, he angled his head and sealed their mouths together. Just like always, he felt the jolt throughout his body and his cock responded. She maneuvered around so that she straddled his lap and her hot core nestled directly against his swollen cock.
His tongue swept through her warm mouth, her unique taste like a drug he couldn’t get enough of. Sliding his hands to the top of her ass, one hand slipped under her shirt to delight in the feel of her soft skin and the other moved lower to grip her firm ass cheeks. With her breasts crushed against his chest, he fell backward onto the mattress, taking her with him.
For a long moment, they kissed while his hands roamed, and she ground her hips against his. When he was afraid he’d come in his pants, he called upon all his past training to push her back gently, sitting up before assisting her off his lap. Her mewl of discontent was almost his undoing.
With his forehead pressed against hers, he tried to catch his breath and regain his senses. “Damn, babe. You are hard to resist.”
She slid from his lap and stood, nodding slowly as one hand lifted to her kiss-swollen lips. “I think maybe I should take that bath you suggested earlier.”
He stood and walked to the door before stopping and looking over his shoulder. “You asked if this was all too much for me.” He caught her immediate attention as she held his gaze. Shaking his head slowly, he said, “This is the us I’ve been referring to. You, me, the kids, Babciu. All together. Maybe the circumstances pushed that forward, and there’s no doubt we find ourselves in an unusual situation, but we’re still heading in the direction I wanted us to go.”
She bit her lip as moisture filled her eyes. A small smile escaped, and she said, “It’s where I’d like us to go, too.” She glanced toward the bed. “I’d ask you to stay, but I’m afraid the kids might need me this first night here.”
“We’ve got all the time in the world, babe,” he assured, his heart lighter as she nodded.
22
Ben had made a late-night call to two of his former SEAL team members, Zig and Bear, just to get their take on the best security camera and system to install. Wanting to know what the hell was going on, he filled them in on the situation. Gaining their expertise, he headed to a local business that specialized in the equipment he needed. Once he made his extensive purchases, he headed home and got to work.