Craving a Hero: St. John Sibling Series, book 3 (8 page)

"The baby full of entitlement?"

"Yeah, something like that."

"Then Renn would surprise you, too," he said. "He's an old soul who'll readily give you the shirt off his back, if not his heart. Not that he isn't into having his share of self-serving fun," he added, fanning out his cards.

"Renn." She drew the name out. "Interesting name. And then there's yours, Dane. You two named after someone special?"

Dane chuckled. "Not exactly."

"Then what exactly?"

He shook his head. "I really shouldn't tell you how we were named."

She folded her cards and leaned across the table toward him. "Well, now, you're going to have to tell me. You've piqued my interest."

He smiled, not because he'd aroused her curiosity, but because she'd shortened the distance between them. And the closer she got to him, the better he liked it.

"Okay, but you have to promise not to tell anyone," he said.

"Promise," she said.

He chuckled again. "A few Christmases ago, us kids pooled our resources and had all the old family movies transferred to DVDs. So, here we are, the whole family watching one of those DVDs. It was endless images of Rennes, France. Us kids were bored silly.

But mom and dad sat there on the loveseat, their heads together, holding hands. Mom kept saying how beautiful the place was. Dad would point out something now and then and the two of them would giggle.
Giggle
. My parents were giggling and we're just watching scenery. Then Mom says, 'It was the perfect place to create our baby boy.'"

"Well, we all turned to Renn, whose full name is Rennes. He's sputtering away about our parents naming him after the place where he was conceived. The rest of us are teasing the hell out of him."

Kelly raised that dubious eyebrow at him, the one she raised way too often at him. He was going to have to do something about it. Unfortunately, what he had to confess wasn't going to help convince her he basically told truths.

"Okay, I was doing most of the teasing…which led to Mom turning to me and saying, 'What do you think is so funny about Renn being named after where he was conceived? You were conceived in Denmark.'"

Kelly slapped her hand over her mouth. "Dane, as in Denmark."

"You got it. Then Roman jumps up, sputtering about our parents' honeymooning in Rome."

"Hence Roman," Kelly said.

"Yup."

"And Dixie, what's with her name? Don't they know where in the south they conceived her?"

"Actually, the night they conceived Dixie, so the story goes, my parents stayed in a little town that straddled the Mason Dixon line."

"That's wild."

"If she'd been born a boy, they said they'd have named her Mason."

"So, where does Jake's name fit into this tradition?"

"Jake's actually our half-brother. Mom's first husband, Jake's dad, was military. He was killed while on a mission."

She eased back on the bench, a shadow darkening her clear eyes. "I'm sorry. It's tough for a kid to grow up not knowing his or her father."

"Dad has always considered Jake his son. Jake even took the St. John name."

"But there's always something about your real father that a kid can't let go of," she said, fanning out her cards and staring at them in a way that made him think she was seeing something beyond suits and numbers.

Empathy
. That's what he was reading off her. But where did a girl who had a father find such empathy for a kid who'd lost his? Or was he reading too much into Kelly's simple compassion. Maybe her relating to Jake was for an entirely different reason.

He shrugged. "You might be right. Jake did follow his dad's path—joined the military. Guess you'd understand better than I would the allure of following in your dad's footsteps."

She grimaced, a strange tightness to her acknowledging, "Yeah."

CHAPTER FIVE

Dane didn't point out it was Saturday and they'd been working every day since Monday…at least
Kelly
had been. He'd spent Thursday lollygagging at camp, recuperating from his wasp attack. The rest of the time, he'd pretty much been along for the ride. And neither of them had brought up his returning to his motel room, other than the night they swung by the place in the wee hours so he could pack a few essentials. Fine by him. He wanted as much time with Kelly as he could get.

He didn't press further about her family, either, yesterday or today. But here they were, a full morning and half an afternoon of checking boaters behind them, turning onto the street where she lived.

"I'll just run in and get Max," she said. "You wait in the truck."

"Yes, ma'am," he said, wondering if she didn't want her family to meet him or if she didn't want him meeting her family.

When they pulled up in front of a two-story craftsman style house with a big front porch occupied by three people and Max, she cursed.

"Wait here," she reiterated as she unbuckled and hopped out of the truck.

He watched her sprint across the narrow front lawn and up the front steps, all the more curious why she didn't want him and her family to meet.

"Hey, Carrie," Dane heard her call as she crossed the porch.

A young blond woman sitting on the porch swing next to an older man gave Kelly a finger wave. Kelly gave the woman in the rocker on the far side of the door a quick peck on the cheek.

"Came to pick up Max," she said, reaching for the door. "I'll just run in and get his leash."

She disappeared into the house, the screen door banging shut behind her, the trio on the porch looking at each other and shrugging. Then Max spotted him and came bounding off the porch.

"No," the older woman in the rocker shouted.

"Max, no," the man commanded, struggling to stand with the aid of a cane.

"Max, come," the young blond called, standing and crossing the porch to the steps.

But Max was already leaping at Dane's open window. Dane stepped out of the truck and caught Max by the collar, not that the dog seemed intent on running any further. But the family on the porch seemed concerned about the dog running loose in the front yard.

Dane led Max back to the porch steps from the top of which the blond he'd guessed to be Kelly's sister smiled down at him. "Thanks. He's not supposed to leave the front porch. He knows that."

The man he'd pegged as her father, now standing between cane and porch railing, growled out, "The kids drive by here like the street's a racetrack."

Dane glanced back at the narrow residential street, not a moving car in sight at present.

"Max, here," the father commanded and Dane released the dog to go to his master.

But, when he looked up at the man, he found him studying him through narrowed eyes. "My dog seems to know you."

"Oh Frank," the older woman who had to be Kelly's mom said from her rocker, snapping the ends of fresh beans and dropping them into the bowl in her lap. "You know how Goldens are. Everybody's a friend."

She lifted a smile at Dane. "You must be the fellow who's job shadowing our Kelly."

He nodded. "Dane St. John."

"That's how I know you," the petite blond atop of the steps said. "You're the movie star."

"Guilty as charged, ma'am."

"Isn't he a polite one," the mother said.

"Come join us," Kelly's sister added, stepping aside from the top step and motioning him forward.

He thought of how adamant Kelly had been about him waiting in the truck as he strode up the steps to the porch…and her prickly reaction to his questions about the sister who now invited him closer. But it would be rude not to accept such a direct invitation.

The blond was the first to extend a hand and introduce herself. "I'm Carrie, Kelly's sister."

"Nice to meet you," he said, shaking her hand.

"And this is our mom, Alma," Carrie said, indicating Kelly's mother who was trying to disengage herself from her beans and bowls.

"Don't get up," he said, stepping toward her and taking her hand in his.

She lifted a soft, pleasant face at him that seemed accustomed to smiling, then nodded across the porch. "And that cussed old man is Kelly's father, Frank."

Dane turned and stuck out his hand. Frank wasn't as quick to offer his hand in friendship. But when he took Dane's hand, his grip was Alpha strong. Max took advantage of his master's distraction to jump on Dane, tail wagging and tongue lapping.

Frank frowned. "Max, down."

Dane turned his head to avoid a swipe of Max's big tongue and laughed. "I'm afraid it's my fault he's lost his manners. I'm not much of a disciplinarian."

"So," Frank said, drawing out his words. "My dog
does
know you."

"We've met."

"Not here," Frank said.

Max dropped back to all fours, no doubt feeling the tension in his master's voice. "No. I didn't meet him here. He was with Kelly."

"She took him to camp with her day before yesterday. Is that where you met him?"

The old man was interrogating him. For himself, he didn't mind so much. But what would Kelly want him to answer? Fortunately, he didn't have to wonder for long. The screen door creaked open and she stepped out onto the porch.

"Yes, Dad. I took Max
and
Dane to Camp." Her gaze met his. "Sorry it took so long. Someone didn't hang up Max's leash in its usual spot."

"That would be me," Carrie said. "Took him for a walk this morning. Sorry."

"Let's get going," Kelly said and started down the steps, but her father's words stopped her.

"Your sister is spending her day off visiting us."

Dane glanced from a dour Frank to a frozen in mid-step Kelly. It didn't take a rocket scientist to know Frank had all but ordered his oldest daughter to stay and visit with her younger sister. This was a different family dynamic than his, and all his curiosity about her avoiding to talk about her family came back to him double-fold.

Kelly peered over her shoulder at her dad. "Sure. I'll just drive Dane back to his place first."

"Dane's welcome to stay," her mother said. "I've got a pot roast in the oven and green beans fresh from the garden. You like green beans, Dane?"

"Yes, ma'am."

She looked at Kelly. "You and your young man should stay for supper."

"He's not
my
young man, Mom."

Not
my
young man?
Funny how her emphasizing that fact bothered him, goading from him a "Thank you, Alma. I'd love to stay for supper."

Which netted him a glare from Kelly.

#

Dane quickly dispersed with the usual questions about his career. He wanted to know about Kelly's family. But he still had to wade through a barrage of questions about his family and upbringing, Kelly remaining silent through it all. When Carrie and Alma excused themselves to the kitchen to finish preparing supper, he noticed Kelly stayed on the porch with him and Frank.

Almost instantly, the topic of conversation turned to hunting, fishing, and being a CO. It was as if the ladies absence signaled it was time for guy talk…except Kelly wasn't a guy. Yet she seemed to loosen up, adding a comment here and there as her father related tales of a lifetime working and playing in the woods. No wonder Kelly had followed in his footsteps.

And Frank's understanding of the woods was such that it made him want to learn from the man. As had his daughter, no doubt.

The stories continued into supper, leaving Dane wondering if he'd been wrong to think anything amiss with her family dynamics until…

"How you liking the beans, Dane?" Frank asked from the head of the table.

"They're good," he answered, taken aback by the sudden subject change. "Excellent, actually."

Frank smiled broadly. "My Carrie cooked them. Said she had some new recipe that would make them healthier."

"Just made them with a butter alternative, Dad," Carrie said, glancing around the table. "Reducing the cholesterol."

Kelly shifted in her seat beside Dane.

"Carrie's a nurse," Frank said, beaming.

"Not quite yet, Dad," Carrie said, glancing across the table at Kelly, who intently cut into her beef roast. "Still doing my student nursing."

"Going to catch herself one of those rich doctors and marry him."

Carrie's cheeks reddened. "That's not why I want to be a nurse, Daddy."

Frank reached across the corner of the table and patted his younger daughter's hand. "I know you're a smart girl, Baby."

Was this Kelly's issue, that her father favored his youngest daughter over his oldest? He wanted to shout that Kelly was smart, too. That she knew her way around the woods as well as any CO. Before he gave it further thought, he blurted out, "Kelly tracked a poacher yesterday morning. It was amazing, the way she read the trail the guy left."

Her head snapped in his direction, drawing his attention to the panic in her widening eyes. Damn. Maybe he wasn't doing her any favors by bringing up the events of the previous morning.

"Did she catch him?" Frank asked.

"She did," Dane answered cautiously, looking from daughter to father.

Frank looked past him to Kelly. "Did you bring him in, or just ticket him?"

She stirred her fork through her mashed potatoes, not looking up—not answering.

"Don't tell me you went soft on the guy," Frank said.

"Your daughter did what was right," Dane said. "You should be proud of her. I was."

#

Dane spent the bulk of their drive toward camp fending off Max's exuberant anticipation of a run in the woods until Kelly ordered Max into the cargo area behind the bench seat. The dog finally settled, and Dane turned his attention fully to Kelly.

"I'm sorry I brought up the poaching incident."

"You didn't know any better," she said, her gaze fixed on the road.

"It's just the way your dad kept going on about your sister while saying nothing about your accomplishments."

"It's okay."

"No, it's not. He should be as proud of you as he is of her."

"He is, in his own way," she said, a hint of longing in her voice.

"Dammit, Kelly! You followed the same career path he did. For that alone any father would be proud of his child."

"And he is proud of my becoming a CO. It's just that it's a tough job, and he knows what I'm up against. He knows that me being a woman, I've got to be especially tough."

"And he thinks withholding praise will toughen you up?"

She expelled a heavy breath. "You don't understand."

"Then explain it to me."

"My father's black and white where the law is concerned."

He studied her. "You saying he'd have thrown the book at that destitute family over one dead rabbit?"

"He'd have given them a break. Just not as much of a break as I gave them."

"I don't think they had money enough to pay for gas. How the hell would they have paid a fine?"

Keeping her eyes straight ahead, she said, "Dad sees enforcing conservation laws as protecting the forest and everything in it. To do less makes being a CO just a job. And to him, it was never
just
a job. It was an avocation."

"And what is it to you, Kel?"

"I believe in protecting the forest, in conserving the wilderness."

"You can't do that and be compassionate at the same time?"

"Sure, but COs are law enforcement. I went through the police academy—had the same training as any Michigan State Police officer."

"I get it. I'm impressed. But your father should be, too."

She steered the truck off the highway and onto the county road toward camp. "It isn't about whether he's impressed or not. It's that he knows all the pitfalls—all the danger a CO faces. We confront more people with guns on them than just about any other police force." Her eyes glistened with unshed tears. "Toughening me up is just his way of protecting me."

He understood why she defended her dad. But Dane understood something else as well, something equally fundamental that the woman in the driver's seat wanted.

"But you still want—need him—to be proud of you, don't you?"

She shot him a look so wounded, he knew he'd hit the bulls-eye.

They rode the rest of the way in silence. But, when she braked to a halt in front of the cabin, she stayed behind the wheel, staring straight ahead.

He had opened his door but closed it when he realized she wasn't moving. The silence stretched and he offered, "You want me to leave you alone?"

Her shoulders sagged. "Frank's not my biological father."

He recalled her reaction to learning Jake was his half-brother, and her questions about how he got along with their father, his adopted father. It put a new twist on why her interest in Jack and why Frank was hard on her.