Page 31 of Trapped (Sheppard & Sons Investigations #6)

Nathan

I woke up early and checked the video feeds. Then I took a cold shower to rinse away the dreams of Ashley. Not that I hadn’t enjoyed them, but I couldn’t walk around with a raging hard-on.

Enjoying the quiet, I sipped my coffee while waiting for the sun to rise. There was something hypnotic about the world in those last moments before the sun signaled the start of the day.

When Gran joined me shortly after the sun peaked over the horizon, I poured her a cup.

“Cream and sugar?” I asked.

“Yes, please.”

“Thank you.” The spoon clattered against ceramic as she doctored her coffee.

“My pleasure.” Prince’s demanding meows caught me off guard. How did one small animal make so much noise? “Is he okay?”

“He wants breakfast. Would you be a dear and feed him?”

I’d do anything to make him shut up. “Where’s his food?”

Gran pointed to the tall cabinet beside the white refrigerator.

Anyone wanting to practice the skills necessary to be a SEAL should try feeding Prince. That damn cat used his voice, his body, and his claws to demand my attention. The little fur ball clearly blamed me for starving him, when it was his actions delaying the outcome he so desperately wanted.

“Is he always like that?” I asked after successfully completing my mission with only a few minor injuries.

“No, he must like you.”

“I’d hate to see how he acts with people he doesn’t like.” I shook my head and poured myself another cup of coffee.

Violet pulled a one-eighty and asked, “How’d things go with Ashley last night?” I rushed to cover my mouth so I wouldn’t spit out my coffee.

How do I answer that? Our relationship was complex, and her grandmother didn’t know our history. Nor did she need to.

What she knew was that I was crazy about her granddaughter.

I answered carefully, “We sat on the couch and talked late into the night.” I removed any chance she’d ask about physical activities.

Or so I thought.

“Do I need to have it cleaned?”

My hand didn’t move fast enough. It was my fault. I shouldn’t have taken a sip after answering.

“Violet!” I grabbed a napkin to wipe up the coffee I’d spewed across the table.

“What’d she do now?” Ashley’s sleepy voice sounded weary.

“Nothing,” I answered.

When she reached for the coffeepot, I offered to brew a fresh pot. “Fresh is always better.” I winked. After emptying the pot into my mug, I brewed half a pot of decaf.

She nodded and plopped down next to her grandmother.

The dark circles under her eyes didn’t detract from her beauty. The hint of pink in her cheeks made me think about how she’d flushed when I kissed her.

I didn’t miss her eyes darting below my beltline just before I turned.

I needed to take Ashley away for a few hours or I’d have the worst case of blue balls in the history of forever.

Knowing we needed groceries. Or rather, I needed to add to their food supply because I ate more than the two of them combined. Shopping was the perfect excuse.

Maybe I could take Ashley to my hotel room before we went shopping.

Or maybe not. Asking her to my hotel felt slimy, no matter how nice the room was. Once again, I was foiled by my desire to deliver on my promise—to rock her world on our first night together—and my need to be the romantic hero she deserved.

“Ashley and I need to go grocery shopping later today. Do you need anything?”

“We need more tuna,” Violet answered.

“No, we don’t. You’ll make Prince fat if you insist on feeding him tuna all the time.”

“Nonsense. He’s a cat. It’s part of his natural diet,” Violet argued.

“Yes, but in the wild, he’d have to hunt for it.”

Prince chimed in with what I assumed was a vote for more tuna, making us all laugh.

When I called SSI, John volunteered to stay with Violet.

When I announced John had arrived, she rushed towards the door to greet him.

Safety be damned. When I told her I’d answer the door, she scoffed. “You just said it’s John.”

“Yes, but I intend to verify that before I open the door.”

She muttered under her breath as she waited.

“John.”

“Nathan.” He nodded in greeting before turning. “It’s good to see you, Violet. How’s the hip?”

“Still slow, but I’m healing. Nathan, don’t just stand there, invite our guest in.”

I didn’t miss her use of ‘our’, nor did John. It was useless to argue, so I followed her orders and invited him in.

His uneven grin reminded me of his sons as he accepted. It struck me again how much Jack looked like his father. They had the same wavy brown hair and amber eyes. If they were the same age, they could be mistaken for twins.

After handing John my laptop, I said, “We won’t be long.”

“Take your time. I have this handsome young man to keep me company.”

Ashley rolled her eyes and mouthed “I’m sorry” to John.

“Have fun, kids,” John said with a smile and a wave.

With my hand on her back, I walked Ashley to my truck and opened her door. I pretended not to see Violet and John watching from the window with matching smiles on their faces.

“Poor John,” Ashley said as soon as I closed my door.

I glanced at the now-empty window. “I think he’ll be just fine.” John didn’t strike me as a matchmaker, but I didn’t doubt for a second he’d listen to Violet as she rambled on about Ashley and me. I could only imagine what she’d tell him about us staying up late last night.

Christ . I ran my hand down my face as I imagined what the next lecture he gave me might sound like.

At the store, Ashley suggested we split up so we could finish faster.

“That’s not going to happen, Slick.” I wouldn’t let Ashley out of my sight. I wouldn’t even let her out of my reach in an environment as chaotic as a grocery store.

Huffing and rolling her eyes, she squinted at me and crossed her arms over her chest, but there was no bark to her bite when she said, “Fine.”

In the canned goods aisle, she set her purse in the kid seat and turned to browse the tuna selection. The little liar pretended to be the voice of reason but was just as inclined to spoil the demon cat as her grandmother.

“Ashley, you shouldn’t leave your purse unattended in the cart.”

Seriously, how did a woman, whose two best friends had PI/bodyguards for husbands, have no sense of self-preservation?

“It’s not unattended. You’re right there,” she said, not bothering to turn and verify if I was there or not.

“What if I’d turned my back? It’d only take a second for someone to steal it when you aren’t looking.”

“Fine.” She turned, reached over and grabbed it, then made a big show out of slinging it over her shoulder. “Happy now?”

“Blissfully. Let’s go.”

In Vegas, Ashley had told me she ate out a lot. I assumed she knew how to cook but didn’t want to. An assumption she corrected when she started filling the cart with pre-packaged and frozen meals.

“Do you know how to cook?”

“I do, sort of. It seemed senseless when it was just me.”

“But you cook for your grandmother.”

“I do, but I cheat.” She turned back towards the cart to see me removing the frozen meals. “What are you doing?”

“I’m not eating frozen or overly processed food at every meal.”

“I make breakfast with fresh eggs.” She defended herself.

“Good to know.” I smirked.

“Let me guess, you know how to cook.” She was laying the sass on pretty thick for someone who’d be enjoying the fruits of my labor.

Steering us to the end of the store with fresh ingredients, I answered, “I know my way around the kitchen.” Wanting to open up more, and thinking this was a safe topic, I shared more about my childhood.

“I had to learn how to cook in foster care and ended up liking it. I’m not a gourmet or anything, but I can follow a recipe.

” Wanting to surprise her, I understated my abilities.

“Had to?” she asked softly.

“Sadly, some of my foster parents thought fostering kids equaled free labor and assigned us chores. After getting an ass-whipping for burning a meal, I made it my mission to learn how.”

“I’m sorry you went through that.” She hooked her arm through mine as I pushed the cart.

“Thanks. It wasn’t all bad. And the experience taught me discipline and responsibility. When I wanted to take martial arts so I wouldn’t get bullied anymore, I didn’t think twice about working to pay for it.”

“It’s hard to imagine anyone bullying you.”

“I wasn’t always built like this.” I flexed the arm under her hand. “And sadly, foster kids have always been easy targets.” Not just in our lifetime, but pretty much forever.

“I’m sorry.” She moved closer, wrapping me in an envelope of calm compassion and the delicious scent of her fruity shampoo.

“Thanks.”

“Do you remember your parents?”

“No, I was too young. You?”

“Gran and Grandpa told me about them, so I feel like I remember them.”

“You’re lucky.”

“I am,” Ashley said before picking up a dragon fruit. “What the hell is this?”

It was exactly the distraction we needed. After having some fun making fun of exotic fruits, we finished our shopping in the dairy aisle, then got in line to pay.

Ashley tried to offer me money when it was time to check out but lost the argument.

No way would I let her or her grandmother pay for my groceries.

I didn’t care that I’d bought far more than necessary.

Or that Ashley added six cans of tuna and two tubs of ice cream to the cart.

They were on a tight budget, and I had money to spare. Paying was the right thing to do.

On the drive home, Ashley asked me what kind of jobs I’d done before joining the Navy.

“Mostly odd jobs—mowing lawns, raking leaves, the type of thing people are willing to pay young teens to do. During high school, I did construction work in the summers. You?”

“I did the typical teenage girl thing and babysat. When I was old enough, I worked at Grannie’s.”

“Have you always wanted to write?”

She groaned, causing my head to turn at the sound. Once again, I thought dirty thoughts, and once again I reined them in. Though it didn’t stop me from appreciating how cute she looked as she tried to hide her face behind her hands.

“I can’t believe I told you that. I haven’t even told Emily I’m writing a book.”

“Why not?” I didn’t know Emily well, but from what I’d seen there was no doubt she’d support Ashley.

“I don’t know. We’ve joked about writing one together with Meg, but it’s just that. A joke.”

“So tell me again why you’re afraid to tell them.” I wanted to understand, but she was making zero sense.

She laughed. “I don’t know.”

“Would you write full time if you could afford to?”

“Maybe,” she answered quickly, then changed her mind. “Probably. Being creative was my favorite part of my job, and writing is nothing if not creative.”

Back at the house, I let her carry in the bag of tuna, because she refused to get out of the truck unless I let her help. It was easier than carrying her in.

The thought of carrying her, holding her close to my body, had the same effect as actually having her that close. I had to think about Gran and John waiting inside to get rid of the bulge in my pants.

Thankfully, John called Ashley into the kitchen to ask her about her grandmother’s habit of cheating at cards, which kept her occupied while I carried in the rest of the groceries.

To justify buying the tuna, after insisting they didn’t need it, Ashley made tuna salad sandwiches for lunch. When she invited John, he declined.

But Violet insisted, so John ate lunch with us.

We talked for a few minutes in the living room while Ashley made lunch and Gran spoiled Prince.

“Violet said you’re a pleasure to have around.”

“Thank you.” It probably sounded more like a question because the statement came out of nowhere.

“She likes you.” He glanced at the kitchen. “And thinks you’re good for Ashley.”

If I were a peacock, I would have strutted around showing off my tail feathers. Somehow, hearing it from John meant more than Violet shamelessly trying to pair us up. Maybe because all her attempts were based on physical attraction, but this went deeper.

“How serious is it?”

“We’re talking things out.” And I’m dying to drag her off like a fucking heathen and claim her .

“Good.”

“No warning about mixing business with pleasure? No telling me you have a rule against sleeping with a client?”

John laughed. “Would it do any good?”

I smiled while giving a single slow shake of my head.

“Will you be careless with her safety because you’re in love with her?”

There’s that word again . “Hell no.”

“Lastly, do you think I’d dare incur the wrath of Violet York by telling you to stay away?”

It was my turn to laugh.