Chapter 3
“Let me get out to open the door and we’ll stash your car in the garage,” Caden urged when they arrived at his house. He’d already called his team to request that the guys drive his car over for him from the base. They’d agreed without asking questions.
Her body vibrated with nervous energy. Caden couldn’t imagine her stress level after months of Brent’s targeting.
The military had equipped him with skills to handle the impact of enemy attacks.
Caden could endure a lot, but he wasn’t under a constant threat.
And he had his team backing him up. Brooklyn was alone and vulnerable.
He kept his explanations calm and simple, trying to soothe her.
He would need to reinforce that his intentions were supportive to reassure Brooklyn that she was safe with him.
Guessing that her safety required always having an escape plan, he pointed to a glowing white box on the wall and told her, “The control for the automatic garage opener is there by the door into the house.”
She nodded and whispered, “Thanks.” Her rigid posture softened slightly.
After pulling slowly into the garage, Caden turned off the engine and popped open his door. She stepped out as well and studied his meticulously clean and organized garage.
“Wow. I think you could eat off the floor out here.”
“Military training at its finest. Come inside. I’ll show you the guest room, and you can decide what you’d like to bring in.” The guys had packed her things in the trunk alone. She hadn’t had much—a suitcase of clothes, a set of sheets, a few boxes, and some cleaning supplies.
“I guess we could have brought my food over instead of tossing the fruit and stuff,” she told him, looking around as he led her into the house. “Good heavens. Dust doesn’t stand a chance here, does it?”
Caden chuckled. “Thinking you’ve moved in with a clean freak?” he asked. “Don’t worry. I don’t expect anyone else to follow my routine. When I moved in, I set up different tasks for different days. Monday is mop day. On Tuesdays, I clean the bathrooms. And so on.”
“I can help with that. And I’m a pretty good cook,” she rushed to tell him.
“Little girls don’t cook in my house, Brooklyn. Your room is down the hall here.”
He stopped at a closed door and met her gaze. “Whatever you don’t like, we can change, Brooklyn.” He turned the doorknob and caught himself holding his breath. Would she like it?
Brooklyn stepped into the middle of the room and turned in a circle as she wrapped her arms around her chest. He watched her gaze rest on different items in the room: the adult-size crib, the changing table with the padded top, the rocker, the toy chest, and the colorful decorations.
When she stopped, facing him, she whispered, “You are a daddy.”
“I am. I put this room together a few months ago when I thought I’d found my little girl. She was a neighbor of one of my teammate’s Little. We went out on three dates, but we both agreed almost immediately that she wasn’t mine and I wasn’t right for her.”
“I’m sorry. You put this room together for her, and she left?”
“She never saw this room, Brooklyn,” Caden told her. “I was confident I’d find the right little girl some time. Turns out she raced into my life without warning. Good thing I was ready for you.”
“Are you sure you want me to stay in here? I could sleep on the couch.”
“It would make me happy for you to enjoy this room. Shall we bring your things in here?” he suggested and saw her emotions flash across her face. Would she take a chance?
“Maybe my suitcase?”
“Let’s grab it. I think there was a small case from your bathroom. Would you like that as well?”
“Oh, yeah. I have my body wash and my cosmetics in there. I haven’t worn makeup for a while since no one saw me. I can spruce myself up.”
“I haven’t worn makeup for a while either,” he teased. “I think you are perfect, just as you are. Let’s see if we can find everything in your trunk.”
She paused in the doorway to glance back at the bedroom one more time.
When she turned with a big smile, Caden knew she loved the room.
“Come on, little girl,” he invited and held out his hand.
To his delight, she linked her fingers with his and almost skipped next to him as they returned to the garage.
A few minutes later, Caden had pulled out her two cases. When he put a hand on the lid of the trunk to close it, she blurted, “There’s one more thing I need.”
“Of course. We can take everything inside if you’d like.”
“Let me grab…” When Brooklyn leaned into the trunk, Caden attempted not to focus on her gently rounded bottom and failed. His little girl attracted not only his protective side, but his desire as well.
Her derriere wiggled as she slid things around to grab a pillowcase wedged in the back. “Oh, no! It’s stuck.” Brooklyn stood, her face drawn with worry. “I can’t get it out.”
“Let’s clear a path,” Caden told her. He started pulling her things out of the trunk and stacking the small parcels to the side. “Good thing you had these boxes ready to pack.”
“I keep them handy. It’s hard to find one that I can carry,” she explained.
Caden turned back toward the car to remove the next box and barely shook his head. No one should have to live planning to flee at a moment’s notice. He fought down his anger at her ex, not wishing to scare Brooklyn. He vowed to make sure that this danger stopped now. One way or another.
As he moved the carton, the pillowcase popped free. A small, fuzzy paw emerged through the opening. Her stuffie. Caden grabbed the material and lifted it from the small space it had occupied. “Here you go, sweetheart.”
“Thank you, Caden!” Brooklyn wrapped her arms around the bundle and hugged it close. To his absolute delight, she seemed to drift into Little space. Her body softened and relaxed as she twisted gently to rock her stuffie.
“Would you introduce me to your friend?”
Her cheeks turned rosy pink as her gaze focused on her ragged sneakers. She enchanted him as she stubbed her toe on the concrete while considering his request. “He’s really shy.”
“I promise I’ll be nice and won’t scare him. Could you vouch for me?”
Brooklyn studied him for a moment before ducking her head to whisper, “It’s okay, Fluffikins. Caden kept me safe from You Know Who. I think we can trust him.”
She reached inside and pulled out an adorable caramel-colored bunny with long floppy ears with a tattered pink ribbon around its neck. Caden guessed immediately that Brooklyn had loved this stuffie for many years. He smiled at the picture they created together as she hugged her bunny to her chest.
“Hi, Fluffikins. I’m very glad to meet you. I bet you’ll love bouncing around the nursery.”
“Caden’s going to let us stay with him for a while. Isn’t that nice of him?” Brooklyn said in a bubbly voice.
“You carry Fluffikins inside. I’ll bring the boring stuff,” Caden told her.
“I could help.”
“You are very sweet, but a daddy would never let a little girl carry something heavy. You lead the way and show your stuffie around.”
Brooklyn nodded eagerly and walked back into the house. She gave Fluffikins a tour of the open family room and kitchen area before heading down the hallway. “In here is our room. It’s so pretty.”
Her luggage was incredibly light. Caden guessed she had the bare minimum of clothing and possessions. He hadn’t seen the contents of all the boxes in her trunk, but he suspected most were shelf-stable foods, household staples like toilet paper, and some cleaning supplies.
He set her bags inside the door. “Would you like help unpacking?” he asked.
“Oh, I can leave everything in there. I’ll pull out what I need.”
“Unpack, little girl. I plan to keep you.”
She stared at him for several seconds. “You mean like forever?”
“I like the sound of that. Perhaps you’ve run for long enough. Maybe it’s time to find a place to call home.”
Brooklyn’s eyes filled with tears. Quickly, they cascaded down her cheeks. Caden’s heart lurched in his chest. He hadn’t meant to upset her. Moving toward her, he wrapped his arms around her torso and pulled her close.
“Hey, sweetheart,” he started, not sure what to say to comfort Brooklyn.
He hugged her tighter when she rested her cheek on his chest and leaned against him.
Her sobs continued. Caden swept an arm under her legs and picked Brooklyn up.
She wrapped her arms around his neck, holding on like she was afraid he would disappear or drop her. Neither of those things would happen.
Caden sat in the rocker he’d put together a few months ago and cradled Brooklyn on his lap. Her free hand grabbed a fistful of his T-shirt and held on for dear life. Slowly, he rocked her. “Oh, Brookie. You are so upset. What did I say?”
She hid her face on his chest and didn’t answer. Caden pressed a kiss to the top of her head, holding the delectable little girl close. He considered what he had said to her just before the tears started. “Did hearing the word home upset you?”
Brooklyn nodded with her nose still pressed to his chest.
“Do you miss your parents?” he asked, trying to guess what had made her so sad.
She nodded again.
“Are you crying because you haven’t seen them for a while?”
She shook her head.
As Caden considered what he should ask next, Brooklyn whispered, “I miss having a home.”
“Their house or your own?” he asked. Had Brooklyn always lived with her parents?
“I had a really nice apartment. It was small, but I painted the walls blue and hung up a few pictures I rescued from someone’s garbage. It was mine.”
“That sounds amazing, little girl. I bet you loved living there.” Caden stroked her back. To his delight, as he reassured Brooklyn, her breathing settled as her sobs eased.
“It was my happy place.”
“And then you met Brent?” he guessed.
“The worst day ever. I was so stupid,” she told him.