5. Sterling
STERLING
Even though I loved visiting my family at Redford Ranch, I’m committed to serving my country as a Marine Raider. The specialty training I’m here in Virginia Beach for is rigorous.
I’m going on several top-secret missions overseas. I’ll be undercover, unable to communicate with anyone back home for months at a time or even tell them where I am.
After my first day of training, I’m physically exhausted. I walk into my house, my nostrils flaring when the scent of freshly baked bread hits me.
I almost moan out loud. It smells so damn good. I’m sweaty from the last workout, my muscles straining. I kick my boots off by the door, walking toward the kitchen in my camouflage cargo pants and standard-issue gray T-shirt.
Eden is humming while she bends over the counter, kneading a loaf of bread. She’s wearing the T-shirt and a pair of the black leggings I got her. Her long hair is back in a braid.
“Hey, Sunshine.”
She jumps, shrieking. “Oh my, you scared me.” She turns around, grinning at me.
A smudge of flour is on her cheek. I lean forward, using my thumb to dust it off. She blushes, but doesn’t pull away.
A little flirtation goes a long way with Eden.
“How was your day? Something smells good.”
“Bread. I made a loaf with what limited flour I could find. These are going to be biscuits for breakfast. I hope they turn out. You don’t have very many ingredients.”
“I usually eat TV dinners.”
“Not while I’m here you don’t.”
I smirk, loving how I’m starting to see more of her personality. “Let’s sit down and put in a grocery order for tomorrow. You can tell me what you need after I shower.”
I back away, walking toward the bathroom. I peel my sweaty shirt off once I’m out of sight.
After a quick shower, I put on a pair of sweatpants and walk back into the kitchen. Eden’s eyes bug out of her head when she sees me shirtless. A bruise is starting to form on my lower abdomen from training.
“Don’t worry about it. I’m gonna be looking worse over the next few weeks.”
She wets her lips, seeming to be stuck in a trance as her gaze licks over my chest and abs. I step closer to her, my hand bracing against the countertop behind her.
The air feels thick. I’ve thought she was beautiful since I first laid eyes on her, but now that we’re in my house and I see her baking and am close enough to count her freckles, heat is starting to trickle through my veins.
“I like you being here, in my kitchen.”
Her blush deepens, goose bumps prickling her arm. The thought enters my mind that I’d really enjoy kissing her right now, but after what she’s been through and the still-visible bruises on her neck, I don’t want her to think that’s why I asked her to stay.
It’s not why. I want to help her, even if she has no interest in me.
My eyes drift over her lips. She inhales, her body completely still. Finally, I pull back from her, walking around to the refrigerator.
“I bet there’s some chicken in the freezer we could have with this bread.”
After a few silent moments, she speaks, slightly breathless. “There was. I thawed it out. It’s marinating. You had a can of green beans too.”
I see the chicken in a bowl inside the fridge. “I’ll grill it.”
After we eat dinner, I collapse on the sofa, my legs screaming for a break after all the miles I sprinted today.
Eden joins me after piddling around in the kitchen we cleaned together. I couldn’t stop complimenting the bread. I have no idea how she pulled it off with so few ingredients.
She sits in the middle, leaving two feet of space between us.
I hate to admit it to myself, but I thought about her for most of the day.
I wondered what she was doing, worrying that she was feeling sick and trying to do something crazy, like mow my lawn.
I reach into my pocket and pull out the cheap phone I stopped to get on my way home.
“I got you this today. I just figured if there was some kind of an emergency while I was gone, you’d need a phone. I programmed my number in.”
She stares at it for a few long seconds before tentatively reaching out to take it. “Thank you.” Her voice is hoarse.
I had a lot of time to think today while doing pull-ups and obstacle courses, questioning all my life choices.
“Have you seen a doctor yet? When my sister-in-law Rosie was pregnant, she had to go all the time.”
She shakes her head. “No, I haven’t.” Her hand is resting on her flat belly, the other clasping the phone tightly.
“Well, you should probably go. We could find you someone here.” I pull out my phone, typing in the search bar for local ob-gyns.
“I need to find a job first, hopefully something with insurance.”
I blink at her, another wild thought entering my brain.
You’re gonna scare the shit out of her if you suggest that right now. You met her three days ago.
I flip through the movie options on the screen. “What do you want to watch? I might fall asleep.”
“I liked that Star Wars movie.”
“Really? Okay, we need to go back and start at number one.”
I flip through until I find it and press play.
“I haven’t seen many movies. We weren’t allowed to have a TV, so unless it was playing in the grocery store, I wouldn’t have seen it.”
“Well, we’ll have to start catching you up. Were you sick at all today?” I left before she woke up.
“Only a little bit.”
An ad for diapers pops up on the screen. The woman is lying in a hospital bed, smiling, as her husband changes the baby’s diaper.
I clear my throat, turning toward her. “Look, Eden, I know we just met, and you don’t know me that well, but I think you should be realistic about what it’s going to look like when you have this baby.
Even if you are able to find a job soon with great insurance, there will be a co-pay.
Then you’ll have to take time off to give birth, and you’ll need to find childcare. ”
She blinks at me, her eyes growing watery. Her full lower lip quivers. “I know that. It’s … it’s a lot. I never planned on being in this position. I’ve never even applied for a job before. Maybe you should just drop me off at the local women’s shelter. I’m sure they could help me.”
Her green eyes are pooling with tears, jerking on my heartstrings. I reach out, taking her small hand in mine.
Drop her off at a women’s shelter? No way.
I know it was my suggestion, but that was before I knew anything about her story. Now that I do, it’s not an option.
“Listen, I have an idea that might sound crazy. It’s not uncommon for military members to get married for the benefits.
Even existing pregnancies are fully covered for spouses.
It doesn’t have to mean anything. I’ll be shipped out soon anyway, and if I knew someone was here, taking care of my house, it would give me peace of mind. You’d be doing me a favor.”
Her jaw drops open. She’s truly stunned by my suggestion. Her fingers curl around my hand, a flush spreading over her neck.
“I don’t … I don’t even know how to respond to that. You’ve done too much already, Sterling. I’m a total stranger.”
I scoot closer to her, interlacing my fingers with hers.
“You don’t feel like a stranger to me. I know it’s only been a few days, but I feel like I’ve known you a lot longer than that.
I’m not at liberty to say what exactly I do, but I’m in the Special Forces.
When I leave in two months, I’ll go completely dark, off the grid for months.
I don’t have any family in this area, and you need a place to stay.
Knowing your baby and the delivery will be covered is just a bonus, really.
I’ve been racking my brain, wondering who I could hire to watch my house for me, knowing they couldn’t even contact me.
I’d even pay you to do it, just like I would if it were someone else.
Plus, I would get an increase in housing allowance. It’s a win-win for both of us.”
I do need someone to take care of my house while I’m gone and off the grid. Convincing Eden this is more for my benefit than hers feels like my only chance at getting her to agree to it. She has every right to resist the idea.
Her eyes widen. “Absolutely not. I refuse to accept any money from you.”
“Last time I was gone for four months, and I came back to mold all over the bathroom because the toilet had leaked. You’d be saving me money.”
She groans, shaking her head. “If you have a fake wife living in your house, aren’t you worried you’d be missing out on a real relationship with a woman who isn’t homeless and knocked up? Don’t you want to date someone and fall in love?”
I shake my head. “I wouldn’t put a woman through being with me right now. It wouldn’t be fair to her with what I do. We can officially divorce after you have the baby and you’re back on your feet. I’ll worry about dating then.”
“Just answer me this, Sterling. Why? Why are you doing this for me?”
Her eyes are wide and focused on my face, unblinking.
“You’re a friend, Eden. I would do this for any friend in need. But we have to pretend it’s real. Obviously, it’s frowned upon to get married for the benefits. You can’t tell anyone.”
She slowly nods, sinking farther back into the couch.
I smile. “Is that a yes?”
I’ll find a way to get her to accept some money—at least enough for food. Or I’ll just set up some continual grocery delivery service once a week while I’m gone. I can’t let her starve.
She purses her lips, closing her eyes as she exhales. “I can’t believe I’m agreeing to this. But at least I wouldn’t be living with you out of wedlock.”
A weight lifts off my shoulders. I didn’t even realize how stressed out I was about taking care of her and helping her figure out how she was going to afford this baby until now.
“Let’s go to the courthouse tomorrow on my lunch break.”
Her head snaps toward me. “Tomorrow?!”
“You need to get to the doctor and make sure everything’s okay with the little guy. How far along are you?”
“Ten weeks, give or take. I can’t believe you don’t want to think about this for a little bit longer. Maybe celebrate a week of knowing each other first? Make sure I don’t rob you blind in the middle of the night?”
I chuckle, shaking my head. “Once I make my mind up, I don’t usually change it. Especially about people. I’m never wrong about people.”
I turn to face her, catching her eyes on my bare chest. Her gaze jumps back up to my face, crimson flooding her cheeks.
“And I like you, Eden. I liked you the first minute I saw you.”