Page 50 of Fighting His Fate
“Oh, yeah. Just some male humor. You wouldn’t understand.”
He’d really been missing out by not having kids, and he was struck by the realization that everything was going to be all right. He didn’t know how to be a father, but he would learn, and the three of them would be okay—whether Grace was with them or not.
His smile faded at the thought. Was that what he wanted? For Grace to stay with them? What would happen when life returned to normal? Would she go back to being just his next-door neighbor? It seemed impossible, yet the alternative was equally hard to imagine.
You can keep her in your life.
It was Joni’s voice, damn her, and he sighed.
A relationship. He couldn’t believe he was considering it, even for a moment.
He wasn’t alone by accident. He’d had a wife who couldn’t understand his demons. He’d sworn never to make that mistake again—a deliberate choice he had no intention of altering. But he hadn’t planned on a woman like Grace being in the picture, hadn’t planned on walking away from someone who made him believe he could be a good man. And didn’t his sons need that from him? Need him to believe in himself again? To model that kind of strength and help foster it in them?
He pushed the thoughts away. It was too far a leap to consider, too big of an ask. A week ago, he’d been unwilling to care about anyone but himself. A woman like Grace deserved better than that. She deserved better than him.
His thought turned to the mission at hand. In less than an hour, they would infiltrate Lamont Scientific, and he and HERO Force needed to protect the twins—once and for all.
27
You’ve done it now,Gracie girl.
She squeezed her eyes shut, a tear slipping down her temple and onto her pillow. She should be sleeping, but the moment she’d woken up, regret had been waiting to whisper in her ear. Brett was in the bathtub with Toby, leaving her to wallow in regret and self-recrimination.
You just had to do it.
You just had to sleep with him.
And now she was hooked, as surely as a fish on a line. Brett would be able to walk away from her in a heartbeat, but she was not so easily distanced. What they’d shared had been profound, touching her heartstrings far more than she’d bargained for.
It was bad enough he was a decent human being. Worse still that he was wonderful with the boys. But when he gazed into her eyes and brought her to the height of passion, that was a mistake of epic proportions.
Every brain cell she had was screaming for her to leave, protect herself and get out of Dodge, but there was nowhere to go, no way to escape. Any minute now, he’d come out of that bathroom smelling like Adonis, muscles gleaming and chubby baby cradled in his arms like a Hallmark ad for Father’s Day.
And she wasn’t supposed to care.
“Damn it all to hell!” She threw the covers back and went in search of her clothing, the slightest barrier to separate herself from him. Why did she have to get a rental with only one bed instead of two? How had she walked so blindly through a minefield, unconcerned with getting safely back out?
She found her thin cotton T-shirt and pulled it over her head, then scanned the room for her underwear. It was on the floor between the bathroom and bed, and she crossed to it with a muttered curse.
The bathroom door opened and she lunged for the bed, scurrying to cover herself with the blankets.
“Hey,” he said.
She poked her head out. He looked exactly as she’d feared he would, with the addition of a low-slung towel around his waist. “Hey, yourself. Good bath?”
“Toby loved it.” He moved to the bed and put the infant beside her, wrapped in his own towel. “I’ll get him some clothes.”
She sat up. “You’re living dangerously. Throw me a diaper before he wets the bed.” He tossed her one and she put it on him, dropping the towel to the floor as she cuddled the baby against her chest and covered them both with the blankets.
Toby felt so good against her, a warm glow seeming to overtake her whenever she held one of the boys. How was she going to let them go? It wasn’t just Brett who was on temporary loan. These children were important to her, yet she had no place in their lives. As soon as HERO Force figured out what had happened to Joni and Luke, she wouldn’t be needed anymore. Toby, Theo, and Brett would be out of her life in an instant.
The thought was gut-wrenching, and the situation was bound to get worse with each passing day. Her attachment to the boys and their father was growing exponentially. What if she and Brett made love again? What if they did it more than once? She couldn’t handle that. She knew she couldn’t.
I wish I could leave right now.
The thought settled in her brain like a seed in fertile soil. Could she do that? Leave Brett to deal with the boys on his own? He would have to learn how to manage as soon as they got home, anyway.
She blew out air. She couldn’t just abandon him, not when he had leads to investigate and a killer on the loose. No, she needed to stay here, no matter her misgivings. Her eyes went to Brett, standing before the window with his back to her.
