Chapter 14

B rittany raced into her bedroom, laughing and giggling. She wasn't even sure how she ended up as the seducer this time, but she was damn glad she did. She flung herself onto her bed, her arms and legs akimbo, and when he came through the bedroom door just shaking his head, she was posing. "What's the matter, am I scary?"

"You're damn scary," he replied, with a big grin on his face, "but I think I can handle it."

"In that case," she teased, as she opened her arms wide, "get down here."

"Oh, will you be gentle with me?" he asked in mock horror. "What if I haven't done this in a while?"

"That'll make two of us." He climbed onto the bed beside her, one eyebrow raised. She nodded. "Not since the breakup at my wedding."

"I'm sorry," he muttered.

She shrugged. "No, it's okay. I just decided that I didn't like what was going on in my world and the people I was hanging out with. I didn't want to have sex, just for the sake of sex. I didn't care for it on those terms. For me, it always needed to be about my heart."

"Well, I'm glad that something to do with your heart includes me," he whispered, as he rolled over onto his back and pulled her with him.

She smiled down at him. "Will we really have a relationship with all these dogs and puppies?"

"Why not?" he asked. "I think your life was a little empty and a little safe before, wasn't it?"

She winced. "Wow, it didn't take you very long to pick up on that."

He smiled. "It didn't take long to pick up on it because I understood it. Once you've been hurt, it's hard to step out of that safe comfort zone you create for yourself, and it's hard to go into a place where you're opening yourself back up again."

"That's one of the reasons I didn't have another relationship," she admitted. "I didn't feel as if I could trust my own judgment."

He raised up and kissed her. "Well, I hope you consider your judgment decent now."

"Oh, maybe," she teased, chuckling, "but you still must prove it to me."

"We don't have to prove anything," he said, with a headshake.

She nodded. "You're right. I'm a little rusty."

"No," he countered, "you're not rusty at all. You're coming from the heart, and you're a little nervous, but I don't want you scared."

"I'm not scared of you," she stated, and then shook her head. "It's just the whole opening myself up again , which is supposed to be so easy."

"Who said that?" he asked her. "I don't think anything is easy about opening yourself up because it makes you vulnerable."

She nodded. "That's not an easy place to be."

"But, with you, somehow it feels normal, and it feels right."

She smiled. "I'm not in any way afraid of you."

"Good," he whispered.

"So, you really worked undercover?"

"Let's just say that I've been involved in this for a very long time, and certain people realized where I was from. So, considering that they still wanted to pick up the other players involved in this theft, it was something I was asked to look into."

She rolled her eyes. "I think you forgot to mention that part to me."

"I didn't make a whole lot of noise when I came to town, did I? I was a local, in a sense. So nobody raised any suspicions. I've been around here for years," he added, "and I have seen you around."

"Ah, but you just weren't interested in me."

"It wasn't that I wasn't interested in you. I wasn't interested in anything permanent. Then I got injured, and I figured nobody would want me, at least for a while there," he shared. "Over time I've gotten to the point where it was like my injury didn't matter. My injury didn't change who I was. I would go forward with my life, and, if I could solve this investigation, while spending time with my family, then it was all good."

"I'm so sorry about your brother."

"Me too," he muttered, with a sigh. "But he died doing what he loved, and I'm very grateful that, although he may have been pushed into the heart attack, the Galloway gang didn't kill him."

"You're right about that, and he may well have been pushed into a heart attack. That Bennie guy and his partner were pretty damn scary." He smiled, nodding. "But then again," she added, tapping him on the chin, "so are you. I think we should go for a swim."

He looked at her. "So a swim first, then a nap?"

She giggled.

"And where on earth will we go for a swim?"

"I know a little private spot."

He nodded. "In that case, let's go." She hesitated, and he raised an eyebrow.

"What about your leg?"

"What about it?" he asked and then shrugged. "Depending on how hard it is to get to your private spot, my leg isn't waterproof. I'm supposed to be getting a model that would allow me that, but it isn't ready yet," he shared, "so I'll find a way to make it work."

"But then you would only have one leg."

"Hell, I only have one whole leg now," he pointed out in exasperation, "and it's not the end of the world. This is all about what I can do, not what I might do."

She smiled and nodded. "In that case, let's go. A dock is right along the edge."

"Perfect," he replied. "I can leave my prosthetic on the dock, and we can go for a swim."

She hopped off the bed and raced to get a bathing suit. Then she stopped and turned to look at him. "We don't really need a bathing suit, but I'll bring one… just in case."

"You bring one just in case," he agreed, "and I'll go with my shorts because I don't have one."

"Okay," she murmured. Then she stepped into her bathroom and changed into her bathing suit and a cover-up. Then, laughing like crazy, they headed downstairs. She looked at the dogs, and he patted Kingston.

Baron shrugged. "If we take one, we would have to take all of them."

"Fine, we're leaving them all behind then," she decided. "This is just for us."

In the truck, she gave him directions on how to get to the lake, and as they pulled into a private driveway, he asked, "Whose place is this?"

She looked over at him and smiled. "It's mine."

His eyebrows shot up. "Seriously?"

"Yes."

"What waterway is this?" She explained it to him, and he nodded. "So, this is fresh water?"

"Yes, it's not so much a lake as a tributary, but I own the land. I always thought I would build here someday."

"Well, you've got one hell of a view," he noted, as he got out and looked around. The ocean was right there. "Now look who has secrets."

She nodded. "I bought it a long time ago, after my engagement broke up. We had dated a while and even been engaged for a while, so I'd been saving for a place. Then I realized just how fickle life was, so I decided to create it for myself."

"I like that," he said, turning to smile at her. "It's a great idea."

She shrugged. "It's something I've always wanted to do."

"I can definitely get behind your dreams, so don't let others, not even me, talk you out of it."

She nodded. "That's why I'm telling you," she declared, with a smile. "You have plans, and you're capable of making plans happen, and I like that."

He smiled. "So,… down to the dock then?"

She nodded and led the way. The ground was a little bit on the rough side, but, as they reached the dock, it was long and wide. "I've been meaning to come and check on the state of the dock anyway," she shared. "It's a little more protected here, and I'm glad to see it's completely unscathed by the hurricane." She sat here for a moment, her eyelids closed, her face turned up to the sun.

His tone, thick and soft, he whispered, "Beautiful."

She turned and looked at him, then realized he was staring at her. She smiled. "Not quite as beautiful as Mother Nature," she conceded, with a smile. "It truly is beautiful here."

"And you," he stated firmly, "are stunning. The beauty that starts from the inside is always the best kind on the outside, and don't you ever forget it."

He quickly shucked off his shirt and then his jeans. He looked at her and asked, "Are you okay that it's boxers?"

"I'm totally okay that it's boxers," she said, with a laugh.

She watched with interest as he slowly took off his prosthetic and noted that he had most of his leg, including the knee and some shin beyond that. "Can you walk like that?"

He nodded. "I can put weight on it but emergencies only. Still it does give me an option, if I have to."

"That sounds like something you are managing then."

"It is what it is," he replied, with a smile at her direction. "I'm very much… think of it this way. You make do with what you've got and live with the rest."

"I like that too," she murmured, as she studied him. "I sure hope you know how to swim." And, with that, she dropped her cover-up and made a running jump and dove off the end of the peer. He followed suit from where he stood on the deck, jumping into the water, then he quickly swam up to where she was.

"I guess if you were in the military, you probably know how to swim."

"I do know how to swim," he confirmed, with a cheeky grin, "even with only one leg."

"Oh my, I didn't even think of that."

"And you don't need to think of it either," he stated firmly. "It's amazing what we can do when we put our minds to it."

She looped her arms around his neck. "But can you tread water and hug me?"

He pulled her in for a deep soul-searing kiss and whispered, "Of course I can."

And when she realized that he was standing in the water and holding her close, she burst out laughing. "I didn't realize it was so shallow right here."

"It is." He grinned, as he looked around. "How private is it here?"

"Very private. It's one of the things I love about it."

"I had no idea this was here."

"Well, it is," she murmured, "and it's definitely a place where I want to spend more time."

"Absolutely," he murmured, as he looked around. "It's beautiful, and you are blessed to have it."

"I haven't even told my grandmother about it."

He looked at her. "Why not?"

"I don't know," she admitted, pulling back her hair. "I think because… it was just after being left at the altar, and I felt as if everybody knew so much about me, with the eating disorder thing too. So it just seemed like nothing in my life was private," she explained. "This was something I could keep just for me."

"You don't need to feel guilty about it," he murmured. "Your grandmother would be happy for you."

"I know. She definitely would be. I think it was just… I don't know. I think I just needed something that was just mine."

"And you've got it," he said, as he kissed her again.

She threw her arms around him and murmured, "It's a perfect place."

"It is. Maybe you should build yourself a house out here. Meanwhile, your grandmother stays with Camille for the short term, as you find out what retirement home options are out there. Wait to see how much the insurance company will give you for your grandma's house. Even if the house is a goner, your grandmother could still take the insurance payout and then sell the land, setting that aside for the retirement home. For that matter, you could rent or buy an old doublewide trailer and set it on the property specifically for your grandmother. That is, if the zoning laws allow for it. Then there is always the option that your grandmother lives with you at your current place for a bit, before you build your new house. Then you live there and let Grandma live in your old house, maybe paying you some nominal rent." When her eyes grew huge, he added, "Just suggestions. Nothing that you have to do. Certainly nothing you must decide right now. After all, we've got swimming to do. Plus that nap you mentioned earlier."

"I'm game, as long as you don't drown me," she said, laughing.

It wasn't very long before she had her arms and legs wrapped around him, and she realized that they still had too many clothes on. She separated herself from him and quickly pulled off her bathing suit, only to find that it was already three-quarters off. She raised one eyebrow and shared in a sassy tone, "I see you were working on something here."

"I was," he admitted, "but you're making life a lot easier for me."

She shook her head as she tossed it onto the dock, and then his boxers hit the dock right beside her top. She laughed and swam back to him.

He quickly caught her in his arms and held her against him, skin to skin, chest to chest, hips to hips, tightly against him, his hands wrapping all the way around and holding her firmly. "I wasn't expecting this," he murmured. "It wasn't even on my radar."

"Nor on mine," she muttered, as she stroked his face.

"I'm really glad that sometimes good things happen to good people."

"Your brother was one of those good people."

"Well, I hope you never did this with him," he shared in mock distress.

She burst out in peals of laughter. "No, I never did," she murmured, "but he was still good people."

"He was, and I know he's happy for us."

With that, he lowered his head and started dropping kisses across her face and around her wet hair. She tilted her head up higher, giving him better access. He shifted until she wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist, while he stood deep in the lake water.

"My God," she whispered, when she finally came up for air after his kisses. "I can't believe how freeing it is to be out here like this."

"Most people don't do the nudist thing," he murmured, his lips busy against her throat.

"I've never done it before either," she whispered, "but it's definitely a unique experience."

"As long as we're private and not intruding on anybody else's world," he said, "I'm all for it." Then he lowered his head again, kissing her deeply. When they came up for air again, she was gasping, shivering in his arms. "Are you cold?" he asked, his tone sharp and concerned.

"No," she whispered, "just needy."

He smiled. "I think I can take care of that."

Before she realized it, he slid deep inside her and held her tight, pinned hip to hip. She shuddered at his possession, the water, the silky sensation, the complete freedom, and damn if her body didn't erupt in joy. He held her through it all and then slowly began to move.

She had to laugh at the splashing of the water up and around both of them. Finally she tightened her hips against his and suggested, "You stay still, and I'll move."

And, with that, she pumped against him, hard and deep, until he groaned and grabbed her hips, holding her tight and grinding up against her. When he exploded, it sent off tremors again, as a second orgasm ripped through her.

She moaned softly as he just held on to her. "Oh my God," she muttered, "why did I wait for so long?"

His laughter rippled across the lake. "I don't know," he whispered, "but I can't say I'm against it. It's nice to know you were waiting for me."

"Well, I didn't know I was waiting for you," she corrected. "But now that I do know, I'm really happy it was you." He blinked at that, and she laughed. "Don't worry about it. I was just working my way through that preamble."

He smiled. "As long as you worked your way through it,… I'm good." He slowly walked her back toward the dock. "I don't think I've ever done that before," Baron shared.

She nodded. "I know I haven't."

"It was great," he added, "and I've spent a lot of time in the water."

She smiled. "Sounds like a new one for both of us."

He got her back to the dock and then settled down on it, drying out in the warm sunshine. She stretched out beside him, on the warm decking. "It is absolutely beautiful here," she murmured.

"It sounds like this is really where your heart is."

"In a way it is," she said. "I mean, I love being down at grandma's house too, but it was always so exposed, and mine is too. It works, but I've always wanted something a little more private."

"You found it," he declared, "and this is truly a gift for you."

She reached out her hand, and, with their fingers laced together, he remained stretched out beside her. She asked him, "Are you okay to not have your prosthetic on?"

"I am," he muttered. "For some people it becomes something they can't handle or are uncomfortable with," he explained, "but I worked hard to find a level of comfort with mine. I want to be capable and independent, both with and without it." Now that he was mostly dried off, he put on his boxers and his shirt. He kept his prosthetic and his pants nearby.

She rolled her head to the side, loving the strong cast to his features, and that whole can do, will do, take charge attitude. "And you'll keep Kingston?" she asked, now donning her bathing suit again.

He grinned and turned to her and asked, "What do you think?"

She nodded. "I think you'll keep Kingston, and you'll keep Lucky, and, if we aren't careful, you'll also keep the puppies."

He burst out laughing at that. "I don't know yet. We'll see. Maybe we'll try to find good homes for the puppies, when it's time. Lucky needs to heal first, but, when she is able, we'll get her fixed, then see if she has any training. If not, I'll have somebody I can work with right away." He sighed. "This is a perfect end to a very long week."

"I couldn't agree more," she whispered, once more beside him.

He settled on the dock again, rolled his head back, stared up at the sun, and closed his eyelids, their fingers linked again.

"Personally I'm okay if this is the start of the rest of my life."

"It absolutely is," he confirmed, "and that's what todays always are. Tomorrows never come, and, every time you wake up, it's the start of a whole new wave of what you want."

"All I want is you."

"Sounds good to me," he whispered, "because all I want is you."

Then, closing their eyes, they both napped in the sun, happy and content, knowing they had started something good for the both of them.