Before Sunrise (42 page)

“
Kid, huh? I’ll show you how
much a woman I am, Eric Drake.”

***

Kennedy found it strange. A house that
hasn’t been rented or lived in at the edge of a cul-de-sac was
decorated with Christmas lights? There was no car in the drive. The
garage door was down. But the place looked lived-in, cozy. A
plastic Santa and his reindeer welcomed her from the lawn. Beyond
the picture window she could see the lights of what looked to be a
Christmas tree. Why would Eric decorate this way? It wasn’t like
him. Why leave all these lights on if he’d been deployed to God
knows where? Maybe he had intended to stay here for the holidays.
Maybe the lights were on an automatic timer and she had to shut
them off for him. Eric was a practical man, so these answers seemed
plausible. Still Kennedy double-checked her GPS one more time. It
would be embarrassing to walk into someone else’s house. The
address checked out. Strange.

Kennedy opened her car door against the push
of the night wind. She stepped out in her suede jacket and knee
boots, shivering a bit. The declining temperature made it thirty
degrees out. A quick glance around and she noticed how quiet and
serene the neighborhood was. Harper didn’t stay far from here, and
the first house she and Liam had owned was a couple of
neighborhoods away. She always liked Spring Lake. It reminded her
of him. The day had come and gone with so much drama she hadn’t had
time to think of Liam and her baby. Liam should have called her by
now to update her on Mackenzie. It was almost eight.

Kennedy hurried up the walk thinking she
would call home and make sure they had made it in. Mackenzie never
spent this much time away from her.

She fumbled the key. Her hands and fingers
were ice cold. Her gloves were stuffed in the dash of the car.
Winter had come early and seemed much harsher this season. A smile
played over her lips. This holiday would be spent with lots of
snuggling. She couldn’t wait to wake up next to Liam on Christmas
morning. Turning the lock, she pushed the door open, but her head
was down and she tried to remove the key.

“
Surprise!”

Kennedy gasped, startled. Her eyes stretched
wide. Mackenzie stood next to her daddy in a Santa hat. Liam wore
the same. For a minute she couldn’t process the whys, the hows.

“
Surprise! Surprise!
Surprise, mommy!” Mackenzie bounced like a jumping bean, clapping
and laughing. “We surprised you, didn’t we!”

Kennedy came through the door smiling; her
heart was pounding in her chest. The place seemed so festive. They
even had a tree. “What’s this?”

“
Close the door Kay, it’s
cold.” Liam sighed.

Kennedy hadn’t realized she stood with the
door flung open. She closed the door and Mackenzie rushed her legs,
hugging them and grinning. She had missed her baby all day. She
picked her up and kissed her. “Hey, sweetie. How was your day?”

“
Good. Look at it, mommy.
Daddy and I did it. Look.”

Mackenzie squirmed to be put down on her
feet. She was so hyper in her excitement, Kennedy knew that sugar
had to be the fuel her daughter was running on. But she didn’t ask.
If she were honest, Liam had gone way above the call of duty. The
place looked as if Wal-Mart’s Christmas department had exploded
inside the house. Ceiling fan blades hung green, red, and silver
garland with shiny silver tinsel. Frosty, Santa, and Rudolph
cutouts were taped to the wall. A very obvious mistletoe dropped
from a tiny ceiling hook a few feet from the front door. Lights
were strung up along the tops of doors and around the room. The
tree was huge. It reached the ceiling, and spread out at least
three feet on ever side. It was the most wonderfully tacky
decorating she’d ever seen.

“
Do you like it, mommy? We
did it for you.”

“
I…um, yes, baby, it’s
beautiful. Mommy loves it.” She looked at Liam, confused. “What’s
going on, Liam? You set this up?”

Liam just stared at her. She saw a lot of
reasons behind the ‘why.’ This was done for her benefit. Enough to
make her want to rush him and shower him with kisses.

“
Mommy. You’re standing
under the mistletoe. Daddy said every time you stand under it you
have to give us a kiss. Me first.” Mackenzie pulled her hand.
Kennedy laughed and kissed her daughter’s tiny lips. “Okay now
daddy. Come on, daddy. Give mommy a kiss. She under the mistletoe.
Remember, we said she would.”

Liam walked over to Kennedy. She suddenly
felt nervous energy tingling over her at his approach. His eyes
never left hers.

“
Hi,” he said.

“
Hello.”

“
Mac’s right. You are under
the mistletoe. I know you’re angry with me because of the fight,
and all, but we don’t want to disappoint her.” He looked down at
Mackenzie and winked.

“
Well, I certainly wouldn’t
want to disappoint Mac,” Kennedy said, taking a step toward
him.

“
Do it! Give her a kiss,”
Mackenzie said, pushing at her father’s legs.

Kennedy stifled another laugh. “I think you
better hurry up and kiss me.” She smiled.

“
My pleasure.” Liam cupped
the left side of her face and drew her under his lips, covering her
mouth with his. She melted on the spot. Her hands traced up and
down his chest the way they used to when he kissed her in greeting.
His tongue gently eased inside her mouth and once more, she was
swept up in the passion between them. Time, distance,
heartbreak…nothing could separate them when they connected like
this.

Liam’s tongue moved over hers, slow and
apologetic and gentle. He was forgiven, though she couldn’t recall
his offense. Both of his hands went to her face, his thumbs
caressed her cheekbones, and the kiss deepened. She lifted her
hands shakily at first, then gripped his hips. She could kiss him
forever.

“
Ew, stop…stop.” Mackenzie
pushed between them until they separated. “C’mon, mommy, I cooked
dinner. Time to eat.”

Kennedy, half-dazed half-awake, nearly
groaned over their parting. Mackenzie pulled her with one hand.
Liam caught the other, wanting her to stay, needing more. She had
to let his hand go, leaving him with a hungry look in his eyes. Oh
how she desperately wanted to satisfy that burn he had, because she
carried it too.

“
C’mon, mommy, come
now.”

Mackenzie pulled her out of the living room
area. They walked past the stairwell then turned left to the small
kitchen and dining room. More surprises awaited her. A large black
and white checkered picnic blanket was spread on the hardwood
floor. There were three plates set with peanut butter and jelly
sandwiches and a side dish of Chee-tos and gummy bears. For the
drink, each plate had a CapriSun.

“
See, mommy. I fixed
dinner.”

Kennedy’s eyes welled with tears. “Did you
do this for mommy, baby?”

“
Yes, me and daddy. But I
did it the most. Daddy just helped me with the knife. See. All your
favorites.”

Kennedy laughed. “Actually, sweetie, these
are your favorites.”

“
Same thing.” Mackenzie
shrugged. She went and plopped down in front of her
plate.

Liam came behind Kennedy. His arm circled
her waist, his mouth hovering close to her ear. “I’m sorry for
yesterday. Stay and have dinner with us. Let’s make up.”

Kennedy nodded. Liam wanted to make up. He
had no idea how exciting and tempting the mere thought was. She
couldn’t speak with his arm around her waist and the hard frame of
him pressed into her backside. Her heart had lodged in her throat.
He kissed her cheek and then released her. Kennedy sat on the
blanket. She watched Liam make his way to his area and how he
lowered to the blanket with his leg extended. She felt a sharp pang
of sympathy but tried to discard it.

“
Oh no, daddy! We forgot the
music,” Mackenzie whined.

Liam nodded. He reached
behind him and pulled over a portable CD player. He turned
on
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
and Mackenzie began to sway, singing along. Her
red Santa hat flopped from one side of her head to the other.
Kennedy reached over and adjusted it, to keep it from dropping too
low on her brow. “So Eric let you borrow this place for the party?
Helped you set me up?” she asked Liam.

Liam bit off half his sandwich and spoke
while he chewed. “It’s our place.”

Kennedy choked on her small bite. She hit
her chest to swallow. Mackenzie got up and started hitting her on
the back. “I’m okay sweetheart, go ahead and sit down. Mama’s
okay.”

She looked to Liam and he
was grinning so wide, she had to smile too. Eric had been his
co-conspirator, but a house? That was fast, and the most unexpected
thing Liam could have done. Especially since she struggled to
figure out how to put them all under the same roof again. “Are you
serious? What exactly do you mean when you say
our place
?”

“
I got it for us. I haven’t
decorated yet. Not good at that stuff, will let you do it. But
yeah, it’s where um, I’m going to stay, then I’m hoping we can
stay. If you want to.”

“
I got my own room, mommy.
It’s big.” Mackenzie nodded. “Daddy said we gone paint, after I get
my dog.”

“
Dog?” Kennedy
frowned.

“
Long story.” Liam gave a
wink.

Kennedy didn’t know what to say. The house
took on new meaning. She looked around her and envisioned her life
under this roof. She feared starting over, or starting from
scratch. She and Liam had so little when they married. She could
remember a place smaller than this one with a busted heater. She
had so much love for it that she cried when he found a bigger place
and they had to move. This was to be their do-over and she needed
to be ready. The house had two levels so she imagined the bedrooms
were upstairs.

“
I will get us a bigger
place when I get on my feet,.” Liam added, as if he thought she
might resist the modest arrangement. “I have some ideas of what I
want to do. To make money and take care of us. I’m getting out of
the service.”

“
You are?”

“
Yep. Got a meeting with
Alexa tomorrow.” He paused, gave her a serious look. “Be honest.
What do you think, Kay?”

“
It’s perfect,” she said
over her child singing
Jingle Bells
the best way she could. “I love it the way it is.
I can’t wait to move in.”

“
Really?” Liam
asked.

Kennedy nodded. “Really.”

Frosty the Snowman
began to play out of the tiny speakers. Kennedy
stretched out on the blanket and tickled her daughter. Mackenzie,
her mouth ringed with orange Chee-tos powder, laughed. Together
they sang along with the radio. She saw Liam watching her, smiling
at her, and felt an even greater sense of relief.

***

Eric relaxed back in his leather recliner,
his beer in one hand and his phone in the other. Every light except
the lamp next to him left was off. He liked the dark, felt safe in
it. Maybe because most of his escapes out of some really shitty
situations in combat required he blend with the shadows.

“
Yes, sir, Mr. Vice
President, I’m here. I certainly understand. I thank you, sir. If
you can do anything, anything to assist I would appreciate it.
Certainly, these are serious times. Yes, sir. I will await your
decision.”

He hung up. Eric groaned deep in his throat.
Alexa had covered all her bases. Her tentacles reached all the way
to the White House. Everywhere he turned was another brick wall.
The vice president had been his last option. And he held out little
hope there. His reassignment would have him living in Jakarta for a
year at least.

“
Fuck!” he shouted to the
empty house. He downed the last of his beer and let his lids drift
shut. It was his fifth. He needed one more to completely waste out.
He wouldn’t be drunk. Just numb. Numb was good. Tomorrow, if the
call didn’t come, he would have to have pack for a very fucking
long journey. Just as he settled into numbness a flash of light
swept over him. He blinked awake. He knew he hadn’t imagined it. A
quick look to the window he saw he headlights of a car in his drive
just before they switched off. “Who in the hell?”

Eric set the bottle down. He reached into
the side cushion of his recliner and removed his Smith and Wesson.
Rising, he steered clear of the windows. He had intelligence that
the threat from Amir Sarkhir extended to several brother operators.
Though they were keeping Liam and his family under watches both
seen and unseen, Eric usually flew solo. He could take care of his
own fucking self, and if he didn’t, well he had no real family who
would care.

He shook off the fog in his head and tried
to focus. Who the fuck would arrive at his house this hour? He
listened. A car door closed. The soft sound of clicking heels on
the sidewalk approached. A woman. Probably Alexa. The bitch wasn’t
beyond a night call. He’d fucked her a few times back in the day.
You couldn’t hate someone as much as he hated her without being a
little turned on. She was just as controlling under the sheets as
she was on her feet. Thankfully, their messing around never led
anywhere. She had one love jones and it definitely wasn’t for his
cock.

Eric stepped closer to the blinds. He didn’t
disturb them. Instead, he focused his line of vision through the
horizontal blades and released the safety on his gun. He got a look
at his visitor when she knocked on the door. His brows rose in
surprise. Resetting the safety he slipped the gun to the back of
his pants and walked to the door and opened it. “What are you doing
here sweetheart?”