Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
Lucky lost herself in the Marked Men: Rule + Shaw movie on one of the many streaming services Hawk’s TV was set up for.
She loved the movie just as much as the book by her favorite author.
It was the perfect distraction and guaranteed a happy ending, one she never thought she’d get herself, until Hawk saved her.
The determination and caring she saw in his eyes every time he looked at her let her know that he truly, deeply wanted her.
Can my luck finally be changing?
She hoped so, because it had been a long time, if ever, that she’d felt this kind of happiness.
She glanced at the clock on her phone.
He’s late.
He probably got caught up at the office.
Rule and Shaw were kissing on screen and it was hot and passionate, reminding her of the steamy kiss Hawk laid on her when she tried to leave.
He’d made it perfectly clear that he wanted her to stay.
And he simply wanted her. It still seemed so amazing and surreal to get what she’d wanted after so long.
Her heart didn’t know what to do with all the emotions being with Hawk stirred up.
Love. Joy. Acceptance. Hope for the future.
That was certainly a new one for her.
Instead of endless days working and wishing, now she dreamed of a life with a man who truly knew her in a way no one else did. They could be a family, not like the one she’d lost, but the one she craved.
Did he want children?
He’d be an amazing father.
She wanted to be a mother. She would love her child with everything she had. They would never fear her or think she was mean. Not the way her father had been cruel. She’d build her children up instead of tearing down their self-esteem, turning their love to hate.
She knew she wouldn’t be perfect, but she’d try. She’d dole out hugs and kisses and praise with smiles and gratitude to be a part of a family who cared about each other and raised each other up, instead of tearing them down.
The doorbell rang just as she noticed a text from Hawk, making her heart race.
Who would come over when Hawk was at work?
It took some effort to get herself off the couch. Once she’d settled in, her body simply wanted to rest. Her sore muscles protested being asked to carry her to the door.
Maybe she’d try out the soaker tub in Hawk’s amazing bathroom once her stitches came out.
She checked through the peephole and frowned.
“Open up, or I’ll huff and puff and bang on the door until you…Let. Me. In.” Those words were punctuated by more knocks.
Lucky punched in the alarm code and opened the door. Standing in the opening, staring at Desiree, she wondered why she was so reluctant to let her in Hawk’s house, or near her.
The instinct confused her and made her wary.
Is it because I don’t want anything to burst the bubble of contentment I’ve felt since arriving here? Do I fear Desiree somehow belittling or sabotaging what Hawk and I are just starting to build together?
I’m being ridiculous.
Desiree was her best friend. She wanted Lucky to be happy.
“Aren’t you going to invite me in?”
She didn’t answer verbally, just opened the door wider, her gut tightening with apprehension.
Desiree stepped into the open living room and kitchen area, turning as she took in the cozy but spacious space. “Damn, girl, you hit the jackpot. This place is amazing.”
Lucky closed the door and wrapped her free arm around her waist, her other arm was strapped in the brace that kept her shoulder from moving too much.
“Hawk has incredible taste.” The room was somehow elegant but comfortable with the light gray sectional anchored by a beautiful and plush sky blue rug.
Brushed nickel glass-topped end tables and a coffee table filled out the space.
The end tables had beautiful lamps, their bases had stacked four inch balls of blue glass with pristine white shades on top.
Family photos in silver frames lined the gorgeous redwood fireplace mantel.
The TV hung over a dark wood cabinet across from the sofa.
Two glass and black metal lanterns sat on either side with a tall, fat candle in each.
In between was a lovely green plant that matched the one sitting in the middle of the coffee table.
She didn’t know plants that well, but she loved their variegated leaves of green and almost white.
A terrarium filled with different kinds of moss sat on the dining room table.
The drapes on the huge windows and sliding glass door to the back deck matched the blue glass on the lamps.
The kitchen bar was in the same blue with white quartz countertops. The cabinets along the back wall were dark wood that matched the bar stools.
The place was perfect. Lovely. Not too masculine and dark, but a balance. A few colorful throw pillows, maybe a blanket, some fresh flowers would give it a feminine touch.
Then again, the lavender blanket she’d brought from home complimented his couch and other décor rather well.
“You like it here,” Desiree announced, bringing her out of her fresh look at Hawk’s place as she tried to see it as not just Hawk’s place but theirs.
“It was very nice of Hawk to let me stay while I recover. He’s been really sweet about taking care of me.”
Desiree’s eyes lit up. “Oh, I bet he has.” She glanced at the paused TV screen. “Speaking of Marked Men, does Hawk have tattoos? I’ve never seen any on him, but I bet you got an up close and full naked view of him by now.”
A blush swept up her neck and face. “Just the one across the inside of his bicep that says, If you want it, go after it Gunns blazing.” And a lot of scars and yummy sculpted muscles.
Desiree’s smile widened. “You dirty girl. You hit that, didn’t you?”
She didn’t want to talk about it. What happened between her and Hawk was…private. Precious. Meaningful. Hers.
It wasn’t some hookup.
It was real and deep and theirs.
“Hawk and I have grown closer.”
Desiree rolled her eyes. “Come on. Details. That man is hot. I bet he’s a beast in bed.”
He was passionate. Attentive. Considerate because of her injuries. Even though he was holding back, the feelings and intent behind every kiss, caress, lick, and orgasm were focused on bringing as much pleasure as both of them could give and take.
“Hawk takes very good care of me. That’s all I’m going to say.” She glanced at the time again. “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be at work?”
Desiree worked as an administrative assistant at the courthouse, a job her father had gotten her when Krystal started preschool, giving Desiree a few hours each day to work and earn some money of her own.
Lucky thought about that wad of cash Desiree had flashed in the bar. Had she made all of that at work? Maybe she had a side gig she hadn’t mentioned. Or maybe she was just frugal and saving everything she made for Krystal.
When Desiree got pregnant in high school, two months before Lucky’s family had been killed, Desiree had kept it a secret until she couldn’t hide it anymore. She refused to name the father. To this day, it was a secret Desiree hadn’t shared with anyone, including her best friend.
It made Lucky feel like Desiree didn’t trust her, or that she felt like Lucky would judge her for whoever she’d slept with.
It didn’t matter to Lucky. She loved Krystal.
And she knew Desiree could be reckless sometimes and impulsive—she often wondered if Desiree hadn’t gone after some older, married man.
Lucky wouldn’t put it past her. She liked to cross boundaries.
It gave her some kind of thrill to be doing something she shouldn’t.
While Lucky was her best friend, her father’s punishments were enough of a deterrent to keep her on the straight and narrow. It often caused friction between her and Desiree, but their friendship somehow survived Lucky not giving in to every one of Desiree’s whims and wild schemes.
“You’re not going to give me any dirty details. Come on. This is the first guy you’ve been into since—”
“Don’t say his name. I don’t want to hear it. Not in this house. He’s dead to me. And if he's the one doing this stuff to me, I hope they put him back in jail.” She fumed, her hands shaking.
Desiree’s eyes narrowed. “Whoa, girl. Take a chill pill.”
“No. I’m sick of this! All this shit happening all the time. Maybe I should just confront his ass. Take a stand, because this can’t go on. What the fuck did I ever do to him to deserve this?” Lucky waved her hand down her body, indicating all the bruises, bumps, scrapes, stitches, and sore muscles.
“It got you the guy you wanted.” The way Desiree said it didn’t sound like she was happy for Lucky.
Then again, Desiree preferred being the center of attention. She liked it best when she had everything someone else wanted.
“Hawk and I were inevitable. It was going to happen one way or another. We’d been circling each other for a long time.
One of us would have finally made a move.
” She had a feeling it would have been her.
Some grand gesture to get his attention.
Or maybe simply finding the courage to ask him on a date.
Maybe he’d finally follow that urge to come home while she was here and start up a real conversation.
Didn’t matter now.
“Inevitable? Wow. You really think that.” Desiree sneered at such a notion.
I know it. “You don’t know what we’ve shared the last two years.”
“Maybe he’s just caught up being the guy who rescued you, you know? Like now that you’re safe all the urgency and emotions will settle and you’ll just go back to being the girl who cleans his house.”
“Thanks for the support and understanding and thinking that he could really love me.” It hurt with an ache in her heart to hear her friend not believe that someone like Hawk could really care about her.
“That’s not what I mean at all. I just don’t want you to get your hopes up too high when everything is so new between you two.”
“That’s just it. You haven’t seen the way he treats me. It’s…special. It’s like we’ve known each other forever.”
“I think you’ve watched too many Hallmark movies and read too many books where everything ends in a happy ever after.”
“What’s wrong with that? It happens. There are happy couples out there, who are in love and care about each other and build a relationship on trust. I met Hawk’s cousin Mason and his wife Lyric.
They were so in love and in tune with each other.
They never stopped looking at each other with so much love in their eyes.
I could tell how much he cherished her, adored her.
The way he touched her baby bump with reverence and a kiss for her to let her know he loved that she was growing their baby, protecting and nurturing it. I want that.”
“You can have that and more.” Hawk’s deep voice and words soothed her like nothing else.
She turned to him. “You’re home.”
He walked toward her. “Miss me?”
“Yes,” she managed to get out before he wrapped her gently in his arms and kissed her, long and slow, his lips pressed to hers, his hand on her face, thumb brushing against her cheek.
He broke the kiss and looked deep into her eyes. “You’re supposed to be on the couch resting.”
“I was, until Desiree showed up a few minutes ago.”
Hawk turned to her friend without letting her go. “Nice to see you again. Thanks for checking on my girl.”
Desiree planted her hand on her cocked hip. “She was mine long before she was yours.”
Hawk’s gaze sharpened. “Guess I didn’t get the best friend stamp of approval.”
Desiree gave him a flirty smile. “Oh, I don’t know. You’re certainly handsome enough. You’ve got the whole badass vibe. You fly helicopters and save people.”
“Saving Lucky didn’t win me enough brownie points?” He eyed Desiree like he was trying to figure her out.
Good luck. Lucky had been friends with her forever and still couldn’t keep up with the way Desiree ran hot and cold all the time.
Desiree’s smile slipped. “Lucky deserves the best. I want to be sure she gets it.”
“I think we’re off to a good start.” Hawk fixed his gorgeous hazel gaze on her. “Don’t you think, sweetheart?”
“I seem to remember you and me starting off the morning with a bang.”
The heat in his eyes matched her own. “Happy to repeat it every day for the rest of our lives.”
Desiree fanned her face. “I didn’t think you had it in you.”
The comment stung. Lucky had kept most everyone, men especially, at arm’s length.
But that didn’t mean she didn’t want intimacy and sex, or couldn’t enjoy it and let loose with the right person.
“I need to use the restroom. I’ll be back in a minute.
” Before she stepped away, Hawk pulled her into another kiss.
“I’ll make you something to eat when you get back.”
“There’s Tuscan chicken and vegetables in the crock pot. It will be ready in an hour.”
Hawk’s smile made her heart float. “Is that the amazing smell?”
“I thought you might be hungry after work.”
He brushed some loose strands of her long hair behind her ear. “I’m supposed to be taking care of you.”
“I literally dumped everything into the crock pot and turned it on. No big deal.”
“It is. And I appreciate it. You’re an amazing cook.”
“Thank you.” This time, she initiated the kiss and saw in Hawk’s surprised eyes how much he liked it.
“That’s better.”
She knew what he meant. He wanted her to feel comfortable enough to touch and kiss him without hesitation.
It felt right. It felt good. Really, really good to have the connection and trust between them.
It made it so easy to just be herself, the one she was with him.
The woman she had always wanted to be. The one she got to be with him.