Page 25

T he end of the workday always left Rhae’s desk littered with scribbled notes and manila folders. She tried her best to keep it tidy, but today had been especially busy. Her office door hadn’t quit swinging all day.

She jotted one last line down before snapping the folder closed and filing it under the appropriate name in the filing cabinet. She hummed quietly as she worked, a tune that helped Navy fall asleep.

She slipped each file into its place and closed the drawers with a satisfying click.

She turned, brushing a stray strand of hair behind her ear, and saw him there.

Denver.

Heart jogging in her chest, she looked him over.

He stood there like a storm had pitched up in her doorway and settled into calm. Late afternoon sunlight highlighted the hard planes of his face and caught the dark stubble on his jaw.

His face was tender, his gaze warm. He looked at her as if she were the only thing keeping him in this moment.

“Hey,” she said, feet moving automatically toward him.

“Hey yourself.” He stepped inside the office, the door whispering shut behind him.

“What’s up this afternoon?” Something was different about his energy. As if he wore determination like a worn work jacket.

Casting a look around the room, he closed the gap between them. “Where’s Navy?”

His interest in the baby made her heart twist in the most delicious way.

“With Auntie Layne. She asked to take her for a little photoshoot. Apparently she has a flower crown and the most perfect basket for her.”

His lips turned upward…and stole her heart all over again.

They stared at each other, inches away but not touching.

“I spoke to Dutch.”

She blinked in surprise. “You did?”

Nodding, he slipped his hands in his jeans pockets. “I had to clear the air.”

Heat rushed through her. There was something wildly sexy about a man who didn’t just protect with his fists, but could face his emotional demons too.

“That’s…” She floundered for the right words. “That’s a big deal.”

He dipped his head in a nod. “I needed him to know that I understand now…how important Navy is to all of the guys.”

Her mind wandered to Justin and how uneasy it made her that he didn’t like the baby, even though her unease made no sense.

What made people so amazing were their differences.

Besides, she didn’t know his story yet. After the busy day she had, there wasn’t time to dig into his past as she’d planned to.

Her conclusion was simply that Justin didn’t need to enjoy time with Navy to receive treatment or find a path toward healing.

Denver took a step closer, bringing a flood of his heat over her body. A sizzle of desire flickered through her.

“It felt like the right thing to do. For you. For Navy.” He lifted his hand, stroking the rogue strand of hair behind her ear, rough fingers lingering on her cheek.

Her breath caught, and her pulse tripped faster.

“I love you, Rhae.”

His words slammed into her like a warm wave—deep, throbbing. Powerful.

Then he was sweeping her off her feet and turning for the office door. Their lips crashed together as he carried her down the corridor toward her quarters.

He navigated the building like he carried a map of it in his mind. Not surprising from a SEAL. Her SEAL.

Her past, present…her future.

They reached the room, and she reached out automatically to punch in her security code.

Denver kicked the door closed behind them and strode to the bedroom, his mouth finding hers again before her back even touched the bed.

She melted into him, heart thundering, arms clinging tight to his broad shoulders as he laid her down. His kiss was warm and firm, filled with hunger but laced with something deeper. Something charged.

The same special sensation she got the last time they were together before they went their separate ways eighteen months before.

“You feel how much I love you?” he rasped against her mouth.

“Yes,” she breathed, fisting the back of his shirt, dragging him closer. “But I want to feel all of it.”

That tore a low growl from his chest, and he answered by easing her top up and over her head, baring her to the cool air and his hot gaze.

“Beautiful,” he murmured, trailing a hand down the curve of her side. “God, Rhae, you’re everything.”

She arched into his touch, the soft brush of his palm sending a shiver through her. He kissed down her throat, across her collarbone, taking his time, worshipping every inch of her with his lips and hands.

Her body lit up under him, every nerve attuned to his, like her skin remembered this dance even if her brain couldn’t keep up.

He stripped off her top and plucked at the clasp of her bra, releasing it in one go. The heat of his stare on her breasts made her nipples pucker before he ducked his head and captured one in his mouth.

She issued a sharp cry—she could make noise now that Navy wasn’t sleeping mere feet away. Arching upward, she threaded her fingers into his hair, twisting as he drew on her nipple with more force. Then more.

A whimper was followed by a gasp as he lightly grazed her sensitive flesh. Her mind spun.

When he finally peeled off her pants and underwear, he paused, looking down at her like he was trying to sear this moment into his memory.

“I missed too much of your life.” His voice was a husky rasp. “Too much of her life. I’m not missing a damn second more.”

She reached for him, curling her fingers into the collar of his shirt, catching the chain of his dog tags and making them rattle. “Then stop talking and show me.”

That broke the dam.

Denver stripped quickly, and her breath caught when he settled over her, skin to skin. Heat pulsed between them, but deeper than that was the aching rightness of this—of him, of them.

His mouth found hers again, slower this time. A kiss that spoke of promises kept and futures imagined. He slid into her in one smooth, perfect thrust, and Rhae gasped, her arms tightening around him.

He groaned against her neck. “You feel like home.”

She pressed her lips to his shoulder, overwhelmed by the truth in his voice. Every word she longed to hear all those long months apart crashed over her now.

Her eyes slipped shut at the sound of them. “So do you.”

They moved together in a rhythm as old as time, the world narrowing to the warmth of his body, the scent of his skin, the deep, primal connection between them. Each stroke went deeper, not just physically, but emotionally—undoing her piece by piece and rebuilding a them.

Her fingers tangled in his hair, her hips meeting his thrusts with equal urgency. The room filled with their sounds—gasps, moans, whispered “I love you” that bled into kisses.

Without Navy in the next room, they didn’t have to hold back. And Denver didn’t. He made love to her with raw, aching passion, murmuring her name like a prayer between kisses.

When the pleasure crested, it stole her breath. The tight coil inside her snapped, and a gush of liquid heat flooded over his cock even as an explosion of stars arced behind her eyelids.

She didn’t bother to muffle her cry. “Denver!”

His shoulders tensed. His hips jerked out of rhythm. Then suddenly, he thrust deeper. He thrust home.

Letting go, he followed her into ecstasy, her name a groan on his lips. Shuddering hard in her arms.

Holding her like he might never let go.

* * * * *

The fading rays of the sunset poured through the windows, casting a golden haze over Rhae’s little sitting room. Toys were scattered across the rug like confetti, a patchwork of soft blocks, teething rings and the rubber cow that Navy liked to chomp on.

Denver sat cross-legged on the floor, his back against the couch, while Navy climbed all over him like a jungle gym.

Rhae lounged nearby, leaning against a pile of cushions, her long legs stretched out and her hair loose but tangled from earlier…

activities. She looked relaxed in a way that melted his damn heart.

This—this right here—was everything.

“You’re gonna be a climber, huh?” he said as Navy crawled onto his thigh, then tried to hoist herself up by gripping his shirt.

“She’s part monkey.” Rhae laughed, rolling a little stuffed fox toward their daughter. “Definitely gets that from your side of the family.”

“Hey.” Denver feigned offense. “We Malones are just adventurous.”

He just hoped Navy didn’t follow in his footsteps by falling out of trees and being kicked by horses—the two head injuries that had made him susceptible to more and more throughout his career as a SEAL.

But he couldn’t regret any of it. After all, it had placed him right where he wanted to be.

Navy shrieked happily, wobbling off his lap and heading toward the coffee table with that clumsy determination only babies had. She reached upward, catching hold of the support bar. She slapped one hand down, then the other, fingers gripping the edge.

Denver’s breath hitched as she hauled herself up—knees locking, belly out, wide stance like a little sumo wrestler. As they looked on, Navy began to move down the edge of the coffee table, holding on to the bar.

“Look at her,” Rhae whispered, sitting up straighter.

“Whoa,” Denver murmured. “Is she—?”

“She’s going to be walking before we know it!” Rhae’s voice was gentle with awe. “And she’s only nine months!”

“Smart like her mama.” Denver’s voice was thick, the pride swelling in his chest too big to contain.

Rhae turned to look at him, her mouth curving in an emotional smile. “And strong like her daddy.”

He met her gaze, the quiet bond passing between them like a spark. Yeah. They’d made this little miracle—this fierce, determined, gummy-smiling girl.

Navy let go of the table.

Time stopped.

One chubby foot shifted sideways.

Then—plop. She dropped straight onto her diapered bottom with a little grunt.

For a heartbeat, no one moved. Navy’s brows knitted together. Her mouth wobbled.

Oh no.

“Wait for it,” Rhae whispered. Both of them sat frozen.

Navy’s lip pushed out, her face contorting into the very beginnings of a storm.

“Aw, hell no. I’m not watching my baby cry.” Denver lunged forward. He scooped her under the arms and blew a loud raspberry against her belly, tickling her sides with his fingers.

She squealed. Laughed.

Crisis averted.

He sat back with her in his lap, heart pounding but light. “That’s right, baby girl. Nothing gets you down.”

Rhae exhaled a small laugh, her hand over her heart. “You’re a lifesaver.”

“I’m a…” his throat worked, “a dad.” The admission struck his heartstrings.

He settled Navy against his chest and pressed a kiss to her round head. “I think that means I’m officially qualified for emergency giggle duty.”

Rhae crawled over to join them, her head landing against his shoulder, her hand resting on Navy’s tiny back. “Oh, Denver…you’re the best dad Navy could ever ask for. And the best partner I could ever ask for.”

The room was quiet for a beat, full of that rare kind of peace that seeped into their bones.

This was what he wanted. What he’d never let himself dream about before—because it had seemed too good, too fragile.

Now it was real. He could feel it in the weight of Navy’s head on his chest, in the way Rhae’s fingers threaded through his.

And still…something lurked beneath the joy. A shadow under the light.

“Rhae…” he said quietly.

She turned her face to look up at him. “Hmm?”

“I don’t want to ruin the moment, but I need to say it.”

She didn’t move, just waited.

“I know this feels like peace. Like we’re safe. And we are , for now. But Ravencroft’s still out there. And I’m getting closer. I’ve been working angles, getting intel.”

Her expression changed—still soft, but watchful now.

“I’m gonna bring him down.” Denver’s voice roughened on the promise. “I’ll bring him to his knees and have him begging for mercy before he ever gets near you or Navy again.”

Rhae’s hand moved over his, squeezing.

“I’ll be the shield between you and that bastard. You won’t ever set eyes on him again. I’ll make sure of it.”

Rhae nodded slowly, tears shining in her eyes, but they didn’t fall.

They didn’t need to. He saw everything in her face.

Gratitude.

Fear.

Love.

He leaned over and kissed her temple, breathing in the sweet scent of her shampoo and feeling the steel underneath her softness. She’d been through hell, but he’d walk through the flames to keep them from swallowing her.