Chapter 22
Tanner’s body hummed with need and anticipation as he devoured the mouth of the woman in his arms. He’d wanted her since the moment he’d laid eyes on her at Madigan’s, but he’d always felt she was holding back.
He hadn’t pushed, not wanting to scare her away.
He was happy taking it slow and steady. But as she moaned in his arms, with his back pressed up against a large tree, Tanner wanted to whoop with joy that whatever reservations she had before about their relationship were not about him, but rather about protecting Violet.
Well, she didn’t have to worry about that ever again.
From this moment on, they were both his.
His to cherish. His to protect. His to worry about.
April had worried about that little girl long enough, and Violet had been scared and forced to do things she didn’t want to do for longer than any child ever should.
He was taking over, and he was going to make sure both of them had everything they needed, and wanted, even if it killed him.
Ned Dynam might be Violet’s legal guardian, but what Violet needed was a dad.
Tanner might not know much about being a father, but watching his sister be an amazing mother to Sienna, and having lived with his niece and tucked her in, read stories to her, and comforted her when she skinned her knees, Tanner knew he would do a hell of a lot better than Ned ever could.
“You’re thinking too much,” April said into his mouth, not taking her lips off his.
She was right. He hadn’t even realized he was doing it. “I just love that you’re here. You and Violet. And I want you to know that I’m going to do everything in my power to protect you. Both of you. You’re safe here, and I can’t wait to see where whatever this is between us goes.”
April cocked her head, looking at him with those big blue eyes that sparkled in the glow of the moonlight even more than the water behind her. “You’re a romantic,” she said, gifting him a beautiful smile.
Tanner chuckled. “No one’s ever accused me of that, but I find that when I’m with you, I’m a lot of things I didn’t used to be.”
“Like what?” She asked, meeting his gaze like his eyes held all the secrets of the universe.
“Brave,” he said, without giving it much thought. “People think I’m naturally brave because I’m in law enforcement, but this, opening up to someone, trusting someone, falling in love, becoming a father, that’s what true bravery really is.”
The way April’s eyes widened for a moment before her gaze shifted, told him that he’d said too much. Maybe he shouldn’t have thrown in the “L” word, but it was too late now. The last thing he wanted to do was scare her, but he’d also wanted to be crystal clear about how he felt about her.
“What’s that?” She asked, glancing over her shoulder, clearly in a hurry to change the subject.
Tanner smiled, pressing a soft kiss to her hair before turning to see what she was talking about.
He couldn’t deny the tinge of disappointment that had started to surface, but he’d never do anything to make April uncomfortable.
If she wasn’t ready, he wouldn’t push. “It’s the rope my siblings and I used to swing into the water when we were kids.
Well, teenagers too, I guess.” He smirked, since it was just last week that he, Faith, and Sienna took turns swinging on that thing. “And last week,” he added.
He didn’t think it was possible, but April’s eyes grew even wider and suddenly she was stripping out of her shirt, pants and shoes, and placing her glasses inside one of her sneakers for safe keeping.
Tanner was momentarily struck by the beauty and smoothness of her skin, the creaminess of it against her lacy black bra and boy shorts. He sighed at the sight of her beautiful body, even as she was on the move.
“Come on!” She called, running toward the rope, not even realizing how affected he was by her.
With his jaw slack both from arousal and disbelief at what he had a feeling she was about to do, he immediately kicked off his shoes. She grabbed a hold of the rope and swung out over the water, dropping straight down into the icy deep blue lake with a gasping shriek.
“Did I forget to mention it was cold?” He called out, hurrying to relieve himself of his own clothes, leaving only his boxer briefs on. Then he grabbed hold of the rope and joined her with a splash.
“Oh my God!” She screamed. “That was the most fun I’ve had in a very long time.
” She was laughing so hard that Tanner wasn’t sure how she could breathe at the same time.
He swam up to her and pulled her close. She wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms rested on his shoulders.
Her hair was slick against her head, the ends floating on the surface.
But it was her smile that took his breath away, and almost had him forgetting about his balls that were about two point three seconds away from being frozen solid in the frigid water.
“You’re a daredevil,” Tanner accused with a huge smile on his face. Because who needed balls when he had her in his arms, wrapped around him, pressed against him.
“I used to be,” she said, brushing a strand of wet hair from her face.
“Things changed after Casey died and then I started working at DynaTech.” She shrugged, as if it was no big deal, but Tanner felt the weight of her words and knew it was a huge deal.
He loved the April he’d gotten to know, but if this was another side of her that she’d been keeping at bay, he was excited to get to know this part, too.
There wasn’t a single thing about this woman he didn’t want to know, nurture, cherish, protect and love. Yes, love.
This was one of those moments that Tanner knew he’d never forget. The moment he knew that he was completely and madly in love with April Hornby.
“This is going to sound so corny, but I swear when I’m with you Tanner Rhodes, it’s like I’m flying and I never want to land.”
Tanner wasn’t sure what he’d wanted April to say when he’d told her that he’d been falling in love with her, but whatever it was, this was so much better.
It was real. Honest. Her. And he couldn’t have asked for more.
He leaned in for a kiss, only this one was soft and tender.
He savored every caress and little moan, surrendering to the moment.
When he pulled back, her gaze met his, like she was drinking him in, and he couldn’t help but want her even more. “I like your brand of corny, April Hornby, and for the record, I like watching you soar. I’ll be damned if anyone ever clips your wings again.”
She slammed her mouth to his, tightening her hold on him like she never wanted to let go. And he was more than happy with that. Losing himself in her mouth, the sweetness of her taste, and the little moans she gave off, Tanner couldn’t believe he’d finally met a woman as amazing as April.
He let her take control of the kiss, and when she pulled back, she rested her head on his shoulder. There was a mockingbird calling somewhere in the distance and the lapping sounds of the lake around them. Despite the cold water, Tanner couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt this at peace.
They stayed in the water a few more minutes until they were both freezing and ready to get out.
As soon as they were back on dry land, April was shivering so hard her teeth were chattering.
Tanner immediately unfolded the blanket he’d brought with them to sit on, and wrapped it around her. “Better?”
“Much” she said, her teeth still chattering.
Tanner rubbed her shoulders and arms, spreading the heat throughout her body as quickly as he could. “It might not smell all that great, but it’ll keep you warm until we get you out of your wet garments.”
“Thanks. That was the most fun I’ve had in a while,” she said, wringing out her curls. “I can’t believe I did that,” she laughed. “Why didn’t you warn me how cold the water was?”
“I tried,” Tanner said, pulling on his jeans and t-shirt. Not that they’d provide much warmth against his wet skin, but it was something. Then he pulled her into his arms, blanket and all. “Something tells me when you set your mind to something, there’s no stopping you.”
“Something like that.” April shrugged and nibbled her bottom lip.
She was so cute, but when she bit that bottom lip, all Tanner could think about was getting a taste of it himself.
He used his thumb to free it and she gave him a beautiful smile.
“Let’s get you home -” He started to say, but the sound of a snapping twig behind him caught their attention.
Tanner spun on his heels, putting April behind him.
Zeus wasn’t far away, and Tanner had brought his gun with them just in case.
He was kicking himself for leaving it with the horse.
It would take mere seconds for him to get to the satchel he’d put it in, but if whoever was approaching was a real threat, every second counted, and they were far too exposed for his liking.
“What is it?” April asked in a half whisper, her fingers brushing against his shoulder blade.
Even through the material of his shirt, it sent warm tingles down his spine.
He craved more of her touch, and was probably overreacting to the sound.
Just when he thought maybe he was hearing things, another twig snapped.
Whatever was out there was a hell of a lot bigger than a squirrel.
He grabbed April’s clothes off the ground, took her hand, and made a beeline to Zeus who was grazing about thirty feet away from them.
“It’s probably a wild critter, but just in case, I want you to stay with Zeus,” he ordered, shoving her clothes at her and pulling out his weapon.
“I thought you said we’d be safe here. If Ned’s found us already, I need to get back to the main house and get to Violet.”