Chapter 2
chapter
two
Flynn
Goddamn, it’s about time this woman was here and in my arms. Temple Thorne, the one woman I have no right wanting, considering she’s my kid sister’s best friend. Not to mention she’s from the better side of the tracks than me.
She’s been my one constant thought since I returned stateside several months ago. And yeah, she’s my wife, but up until that kiss on my doorstep, I’d been under the assumption this marriage was in name only. But maybe she’s been thinking about me the way I’ve been thinking about her.
Her bluebonnet-blue eyes look up at me. I catalog the rest of her. The smattering of freckles across her cheeks and the bridge of her nose. Her dark, curly hair pulled up into a messy bun on the top of her head. The V-neck of her shirt that accents not only her ample cleavage, but the gold chain with the solitaire diamond pendant that dips just between the tops of her breasts. The expanse of pale creamy skin on display makes my mouth water. I want to kiss her again.
“Thanks for playing along out there,” she says.
I register her words, but they don’t make sense.
“I don’t know how many guys my cousin has following me, but I’ve seen at least one tailing me since I left Houston.”
I nod, but still her meaning is lost on me. But I venture a quick question. “So why are you here, Temple? Are you in some kind of trouble?”
That, at least, would make sense. I’m that guy. The one everyone goes to when they have a problem. Not really sure why that’s my role but it’s been that way for as long as I can remember. Even the other guys on my team come to me for help. I don’t even mind. It means I’m useful. That I matter.
“Trouble?” she echoes, then tilts her head. “I guess you could call it trouble.” She inhales slowly. “My cousin is contesting the legitimacy of our marriage, and we need to make everything look as real as possible. So I need to live with you, and you need to come home with me this weekend for Grandmother’s birthday party.” She gives me a forced smile. “Please.”
The only thing I hear for certain is that she has not, in fact, been thinking about me the way I’ve been thinking about her. Of course not. I am her husband for a very specific reason, and desire and affection are not on that list.
I glance at my watch, relieved to see the reminder that I am scheduled to meet up with the guys in fifteen minutes.
“We’re going to have to discuss this later. I have a meeting I need to get to.” I point at her. “Don’t go anywhere until I can properly assess the threat level.”
Her big blue eyes widen, but she nods.
I’ve met her cousin before. He seemed harmless enough at the time. Nothing but a kiss ass and spineless pussy. Didn’t mean he couldn’t pay other people to do things to Temple.That was something I simply wouldn’t allow.
“But you’ll be back?” she asks.
“Yeah. Meeting shouldn’t take too long.” I glance around the small cabin. “Just, uh, make yourself at home.”
“Oh, I almost forgot.” She reaches into her bra—yeah, you heard that right—and pulls something out. Then she holds her palm out to me. “Here.” She holds up the ring.
“What the hell am I supposed to do with that?”
“Wear it. You are my husband.”
My cock jerks at her words. Traitorous fucker.
I grab the ring and slide it on my left ring finger. Then look down.“This a woman’s ring,” I ask, noting the diamond deep set into the silver metal.
“No, it is very much a man’s ring. Art Nouveau. It’s a family heirloom,” she explains.“Will you wear it? For me? At least for now. We can buy you something you like better later.”
One hit of those bright blue eyes and I know I’ve lost the battle.
Awesome.
Hopefully the guys wouldn’t notice.
“Of course I’ll wear it.” I grab my keys and glasses off the small coffee table. “I meant what I said, Temple, stay put.”
She gives me a nod, then I turn and leave before I do something really stupid. Like kiss her again.
Maybe I shouldn’t be leaving her alone when she just showed up, but I need some time to wrap my brain around everything that happened in the past ten minutes. Besides, I really do have a meeting I have to attend for work.
Ten minutes later, I pull up outside the new VFW hall out on the loop. I never saw the old hall, since this new one was already up and running by the time I moved here two months ago. I have no idea if this post is nicer than most—though I suspect it is—because I never joined a VFW while I was still serving.
I know from what Dane has told me that the rebuild of this post was funded by donations collected during the annual Bluebonnet Festival. Which might seem silly, but based on the number of tourists I’ve seen in town since bluebonnets started popping up along the highway, I’m guessing it’s a pretty big tourist draw.
The hall is a nice mix of functional and clean. It’s not fancy, but it’s well-lit and smoke-free. I wave at a table of old-timers playing poker and at the cluster of guys playing darts towards the back before making my way to the canteen to order a beer.
Yeah, I know it sounds suspicious. A “work meeting” at the VFW hall over beers at six-thirty on a weeknight? If I was married (to a wife I lived with), it would sound like nothing more than an excuse to get out of the house.
But when I left active service, I took a job working for Great Dane’s Dog Sanctuary, a non-profit focused on rescuing shelter dogs from around Texas. Everyone who works for Great Dane’s is former military.
When my buddy Dane Whitmore first started it about a year ago, he never imagined how quickly it would grow. He just wanted a place for dogs no one wanted and retired soldiers who didn’t know what to do next. It started with a couple hundred acres and thirty-five dogs. Then Dane fell in love with his wife Shelby. She started doing social media for the sanctuary in her spare time. Some videos went viral, and donations and grants started rolling in.
Now, Great Danes employs seven of us. I was brought on to help with construction of the new buildings, since I served in the Army Corps of Engineers. All the guys at tonight’s meeting help with some aspect of running the sanctuary.
We started holding “board meetings” here for two reasons: first off, we all like supporting the local post and, secondly, now that Dane is a bit of an internet celebrity, it’s nice to meet some place out of the way where he won’t be recognized by “fans.”
By the time I get there, the guys are already there and shooting the shit. These meetings are partly for work, since during the workday, we’re all scattered all over the sanctuary getting shit done, and partly social. I’ve only just settled into my chair at the table when I catch Beau, our class clown, giving me the side-eye.
“Seriously, is no one else going to ask?” Beau asks.
No one responds, which frankly isn’t all that unusual when it comes to Beau’s outbursts. We can never guess what he’s thinking; his ADHD makes it nearly impossible to follow his train of thought.
“Fine,” Beau says. “I’ll do it. Hey Flynn.”
Oh shit.
“What’s with the big diamond ring on your finger?”
The rest of the guys’ eyes lock on me.
Liam’s brows raise. “Care to share with the class?”
I rub at the back of my neck. “So, I’m married,” I say. As if those three words explain everything.
“What?” Dane asks. “Since when?”
“Almost two years, actually.”
“Paperwork, exchanging of vows, all of that?” Beau asks.
Evan stares at me. “Did you forget to mention it or were you just not planning to tell us?”
“Yes, it’s legal. No, I didn’t forget to tell you. I just didn’t think it would matter once I got stateside,” I say.
“Two fucking years,” Cruz says. “You’re going to have to back up and explain this.”
“Did she leave you or something? Hook up with another guy while you were gone?” Jack asks.
Everyone knows how his ex did him dirty while he was on duty. Thankfully he found Lucy when he moved here and now he’s engaged. I’ve never seen the guy happier.
“It’s a legal marriage, but not really a real marriage,” I say. “A marriage of convenience for her to secure her inheritance.”
“How long do you have to pretend? Two years seems long enough for an inheritance to go through probate court and anything else,” Liam says.
“Inheritance hasn’t happened yet. Grandmother is still alive.” I pinch the bridge of my nose. “It’s complicated. The whole Thorne family is complicated. In any case, we thought the union itself would be enough but evidently her cousin is questioning the legitimacy of our marriage and causing all kinds of problems.”
“What are you going to do?” Cruz asks.
“She showed up at my cabin right before I came here. Said we need to live together for the time being and make things look real.”
Beau makes a woo-hoo noise. “So your fake wife just strolled back into town and wants to play house? Buddy, this is better than anything on reality television.”
“Thanks for the support, Beau,” I deadpan.
“I still don’t understand why you didn’t tell us,” Evan says. “We’re family. Even if it wasn’t going to be real when you got home. Two damn years, Flynn.”
Evan is the youngest of us and the most sensitive. Comes with being a medic. He’s got a big heart.
“I’m sorry, kid. I wasn’t trying to leave you out. I just didn’t think it was going to impact anything.”
“And instead, it looks like it’s impacting everything,” Liam says. “What do you know about the level of threat from the cousin?”
“I’ve met him. He’s not the kind to get his own hands dirty. He’d definitely pay someone else to do that. Temple said she thought someone had been following her from Houston,” I say.
“And you left her alone in your cabin?” Cruz asks. “Is that wise?”
“Maybe not, but I think anyone following her now is just doing recon. I don’t think her cousin is dangerous, just a greedy motherfucker.”
“How much of an inheritance are we talking about?” Dane asks.
“Honestly, I don’t even know. It’s a lot. They’re one of the oldest prominent families in Houston society. Several zeroes is what I’m guessing.”
“Pretending to be in love with a hot chick shouldn’t be a problem, even for you,” Beau says. “But if you need some pointers, I’m always here.”
I flip him the bird. “Wait, I never said she was hot.”
“I’m just guessing you wouldn’t have married her if you thought she was a troll,” Beau says with a shrug.
“She’s my kid sister’s best friend,” I say, as way of explaining.
“I think what you’re not saying says plenty,” Liam says.
“Exactly,” Cruz says. “You’re obviously attracted to her.”
I do not deny nor confirm.
“A few public kisses and embraces should be enough to prove to her cousin that y’all are the real deal,” Beau says.
I didn’t know if I could survive any more of Temple’s kisses. It would only make me want a lot more than she was willing to give.
Cruz stands. “I’m going to go to your cabin with you to help you do a threat analysis. The sooner we know about what this cousin is up to, the better.”
If anyone was going to do it, Cruz was the best choice. He would also give me the least amount of shit about Temple. At least, I think.
So we leave the hall and make our way—thankfully it’s a short drive—to the row of cabins.
We both scan our surroundings as we walk up to my front door.
“Nondescript sedan parked across the street in front of the elementary school,” Cruz says.
“Yeah, I saw him. That fucker better not have someone tailing her.”
We step into my living room, and at first I think maybe I opened the wrong cabin. There’s so much color everywhere it looks like a bag of Skittles exploded in here. Bright pieces of clothing drape over nearly every piece of furniture and there are decorative pillows tossed onto the sofa. Pieces of pink luxury luggage sit like frosted little soldiers guarding the space.
But then I see the red silk hammock-like thing hanging from the main center beam in my living room. Temple is there, somehow entwined in the fabric, upside down in what might be an inverted warrior pose.
“So either Cirque du Soleil is training in your house, or should I just assume that’s the little missus?” Cruz says.
Temple moves to another position, seemingly unaware of our intrusion. Then she does a spin and lands on her feet. She smiles broadly, then walks towards us… wearing nothing but skintight leggings and a sports bra.
Fuck my life.
“I’m Cruz,” my buddy says, holding his hand out.
“Oh, is this one of your friends?” Temple asks me.
I nod, still unable to put anything into words. The urge to cover her body so Cruz can’t see every one of her thick curves is so strong I have to clench my hands into fists.
Then suddenly there’s yipping at my feet. I look down to find some sort of dog. At least I think it’s a dog, from the noises it’s making. But the large bat-like ears make it look comical. As does the little hop his body makes with every yip.
She scoops him up. “Piglet, you are a terrible guard dog. They could have already murdered me, and you’re just now letting me know they’re here. Silly boy.” She ruffles the thin wispy hairs between his ears. He gives her another yip, then his tongue lolls out to the side.
“Why don’t you go check into our friend down the street,” Cruz says. “I’ll keep an eye on your wife.”
I nod.
Cruz follows me to the door. “She’s trouble.”
“She’s temporary,” I say.
“Obviously. Why else would you look like you swallowed your tongue when she untangled herself from all that silk?”
“Shut up.”
Cruz just chuckles as I walk out the front door.