Holiday at Magnolia Bay (Southern Born Christmas Book 1) (11 page)

“Pfft.” She shook her head as she carefully placed a carved Santa Claus riding a seahorse into a box at her feet. “A few dips in the ocean doesn’t give a man that look.”

Drew found himself wondering how his spinster godmother knew about ‘that look’ before deciding there were some things he really didn’t want to know. “What’s with Christmas in August?” he asked instead. “Don’t tell me you’re going with a Santa Claus theme for your low country boil.”

Aunt Evie laughed. “You always could deflect the conversation away from yourself. I guess that’s what makes you so good at your job.” She directed a pointed look at him. “I’m just glad to see you’re finally able to relax. You know, if you gave up that crazy life of yours when your tour is up at the end of the year, you could
relax
like this all the time.”

He knew exactly what she meant when she emphasized the word ‘relax’, and he tried not to squirm in his chair at the older woman’s smile. From the moment Drew had shown up at the door of her beach house the week before, his godmother hadn’t been subtle in her meddling—or her efforts to throw him and Jenna together. Like the rest of his family, she didn’t like the risks he took as a Navy SEAL. His father and brother just wanted him to be safe, but Aunt Evie’s agenda definitely included Jenna. Despite his best efforts, he was going to break a woman’s heart when he returned to duty next week. Fortunately, his godmother’s ticker had survived worse in her eighty-eight years.

“The Christmas decorations, Aunt Evie?” Drew knew better than to encourage her so he tried again to redirect her.

She heaved a sigh and tossed a plastic reindeer into another box. “I have more than I’ll ever need so I’m giving them to Jenna to use at the turtle center for the Christmas Flotilla and Fishing Tournament.”

“Don’t you think you’re rushing things? The holidays are months off.”

“Typical man,” she mumbled and Drew gave her a satisfied smile. “There’s a lot of planning that goes into an event like this. Jenna will be very busy with the hatchery project, but the gala needs to be extra spectacular and come off without a hitch if the turtle center is to meet its fundraising goals for the year.”

Drew leaned forward, draping his forearms on his thighs. “Speaking of fundraising, why does Jenna think you’re giving her a million dollars for her turtle hatchery?”

Aunt Evie pursed her lips as she silently stroked Zarah’s back.

“Sweetheart,” he said gently. “You can’t give Jenna money you don’t have. I talked to Jack yesterday. He let me in on the secret that your fortune was lost, which, by the way, shouldn’t have been a secret. My next mission is to hunt down the asshole who stole it from you and string him up by the family jewels.” He sighed at the pinched look on Aunt Evie’s face. “This house and everything in it is tied up in the company. You know that, right?”

She remained silent, her stoicism making Drew feel like a dick for bringing the subject up. His godmother had lived on the largess of the Lanham family for over a decade now. According to Drew’s brother, Jack, a Ponzi scheme orchestrated by a thieving business manager had left her nearly broke before their father had stepped in and saved the Magnolia Bay home for her. She lived a comfortable life with a staff to keep her safe. No one in town was the wiser. Drew never gave a thought as to whether the situation bothered her. It was obvious from the dampness of her eyes that it did.

“I want to leave a legacy,” she whispered. “To preserve something in this world that gave me happiness. The sea turtles give me happiness. Jenna brings me happiness. This project is what connects her and me. She has no one to believe in her. No one to support her. And, until Jenna, I had no one to carry on my dream.” As if sensing her owner’s distress, Zarah shifted closer and Aunt Evie clutched the cat to her chest. “And without the hatchery, Jenna will eventually have to move on to a research center somewhere else. She’s never had a real home. Magnolia Bay is her home now. I want to make it so she never has to leave it. Or me.”

He muttered an obscenity. Drew had never seen his godmother look so frail. He was suddenly picturing her approaching the end of her life. Alone here in Magnolia Bay. This wasn’t only about a damn turtle fertility clinic; it was about keeping Jenna close. Something he was beginning to see the logic in. “Hell, Aunt Evie, if I had the money, I’d give it to you.”

Her damp eyes met his. “But you do have the money, Drew. Your brother, Jack, will give it to you if you ask.”

A tightening began in Drew’s chest forcing him to spring out of the chair. He was unable to endure the look on his godmother’s now delicate face. His brother, Jack, had taken over their father’s company six years ago. The last four of those years he’d spent pleading with Drew to join him at the helm of Union Hardware, the nationwide chain of box hardware stores that had grown out of the little garden center in Delaware Shamus Lanham founded fifty years ago. Jack was a bean counter, a CEO with all the trappings—MBA, designer suits, expensive watches, a country club membership. Drew wasn’t. And he never would be.

He raked his fingers through his hair then gave his head a squeeze as he paced in front of the long windows overlooking the beach. The choppers were beginning to whir in the back of his brain. Jack didn’t necessarily want his help running the company. His brother just wanted to ease their father’s mind, to ensure Drew’s safety. They’d already lost their mother. She’d died in Drew’s arms one spring afternoon, succumbing to a bee sting she never knew she was allergic to. The world was already a confusing place for a fourteen-year-old boy, but the incident had only made it worse for Drew. He swam his way to the state record books, the Naval Academy and, after that, to a career as a Navy SEAL. If he couldn’t save his mother, he’d make a life saving others.

Except I couldn’t save Atkins.

The sound of propellers was getting louder and Drew had difficulty swallowing. “You don’t know what you’re asking,” he choked out, keeping his back to her.

“I know that trying to be the hero to everyone is taking its toll on you—your body and your mind. It’s been sixteen years, haven’t you beaten yourself up enough for not being able to save her?”

Her words were like antiseptic in an open wound—they stung like shit. Drew closed his eyes but Atkins was there waiting, lying in the desert sand. He needed to get out, to torture himself in the Atlantic. Better yet, to bury himself in Jenna.

Jenna.

She’d been his crack this past week, an addicting stress reliever that he couldn’t seem to get enough of. When he was with her, the flashbacks quieted. Everything quieted inside him except the burning hunger for her. But if the turtle hatchery wasn’t funded, she’d be as disappointed as Aunt Evie. Was that how he paid her back?

“You’re not the machine you believe you are, Drew. You can’t keep your heart locked up forever.”

“I can’t think about this right now, Aunt Evie,” he said already striding toward the doors to the beach. The flashbacks were flickering behind his eyes making his head ache. Drew made a beeline for the surf.

‡

A
s Jenna climbed
the wide, wooden steps to Miss Evie’s guest house she reminded herself that her relationship with Drew wasn’t technically a relationship at all. So she really shouldn’t feel piqued that he hadn’t come by the beach house earlier. Or texted. Or called. This was supposed to be a sex with no strings attached fling. People her age did it all the time. At least that’s what she’d read in
Cosmo
.

The only reason she was invading Drew’s privacy at nine o’clock at night was because she was worried about him. And Miss Evie. When Addison, had called earlier to cancel Jenna’s weekly dinner with Drew’s godmother, she had become concerned that something was wrong with the older woman. Drew going AWOL made her anxiety worse. She certainly wasn’t knocking on his door because she craved his touch or his kiss. That would be pathetic, and she’d already done pathetic. Twice.

The light of the full moon danced upon the ocean and Jenna drew in a fortifying breath of the sea air that always calmed her. While Miss Evie’s house was dark against the shoreline, a single light burned at the back of the guest house. Jenna knocked quickly before shoving her hands into the pockets of her shorts. All the better to keep her fingers from sinking into Drew if and when he opened the door, she told herself. A few minutes passed and she was ready to turn on her heel and head off into the night when the door finally opened. Dressed in pair of jeans slung low over his hips and nothing else, Drew exuded alpha male. The scent of his freshly showered skin invaded her nostrils and Jenna clamped her teeth together to keep the moan of arousal that had formed deep within her belly from escaping her lips.

Drew sighed as he leaned a shoulder against the doorframe. “Jenna.” He crossed his arms over his broad chest while she tried not to read too much into his resigned tone.
This is a casual relationship where no one gets hurt,
she reminded herself.
He’s leaving Magnolia Bay soon. He’s leaving me soon.
Something fluttered inside her at the thought, but she stoically refused to acknowledge it.

Instead, Jenna quickly surveyed Drew’s face. His eyes lacked the tell-tale glassiness that would indicate he’d been drinking, but there were other clues lingering in their depths: wariness, pain and something that looked a lot like anger. Jenna could deal with the first two, but the anger confused her. Had she done something wrong? He’d seemed happy enough when he left her bed this morning. Her instincts told her to leave, he was obviously not in any danger. But her concern for Miss Evie trumped her flight reflex.

“Hey,” she said. “I just wanted to make sure everything was okay.”

Drew’s mouth grew tight. “Just peachy.”

Jenna pulled in a deep breath. The vibe he was giving off confused her even more. “We—I was supposed to have dinner with Miss Evie, but Addison called and cancelled. Is she all right?”

He hesitated briefly, as though choosing his words carefully. “She’s just feeling her age today.” The sadness in his voice made her stomach clench.

She took a tentative step forward before the warrior mask on his face stopped her in her tracks. Jenna wrapped her arms around her middle. “Miss Evie is the youngest person I know,” she whispered. Except the old woman wasn’t. At some point she’d no longer be there for Jenna, and the thought suddenly brought tears to her eyes. “She has to be okay.”

Drew swore before he reached out and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against his warm skin. “Jenna,” he said. Her name came out of his throat like a hoarse plea making her shiver. Her body settled a bit as it melted into his now familiar one. “She’s fine,” he murmured while his lips traced her hairline. “Remarkable even for a woman her age.”

One of his hands slipped inside her shorts, tracing the lace of her panties. Jenna allowed her own hands to skim the muscles on his back while her lips cruised over his chest. “I don’t understand what’s happening,” she cried.

His mouth found the sensitive part of her neck, the spot that never failed to make her knees buckle. She dug her fingers into his shoulders in order to stay upright. “I can’t give you what you want,” he said before nipping at her shoulder blade. “I can’t give anyone what they want.”

Jenna’s head was spinning with equal parts passion and confusion. The frustration in his voice was palpable and she didn’t understand it one bit. For the past few days, he’d been giving her exactly what she wanted. Multiple times each night. They’d both decided this was just a fling that would play out for as long as he was in Magnolia Bay. Why would he think she suddenly wanted more?

Because I do.

Those all-knowing eyes of his had picked up on her feelings before Jenna acknowledged them herself. In her heart, she knew it had never been about just sex. She just wasn’t hardwired that way. Without some sort of connection to Drew, she never would have slept with him. The lie she’d been telling herself about their relationship burned in her chest.

His lips pressed against the corner of her mouth. “I’m a Navy SEAL, Jenna. Everything you don’t want in life. You need to remember that. I’m leaving soon. I can’t be who my godmother wants me to be. Who she wants me to be for you.”

She arched her hips. A growl rumbled deep in his chest beneath her ear. His fingers and mouth continued their exploration of her body and Jenna was having trouble concentrating on his words. Something about Miss Evie wanting Drew and Jenna together. He was afraid of breaking both their hearts. It was too late for Jenna’s, but she would make sure Miss Evie survived unscathed.

Jenna’s hands moved to his lower back, angling his hips, and his erection, toward her own. “I’ll explain it to her. She won’t be angry at you.”

He pulled back to look at her, his jaw unyielding and his eyes dark with passion. “This can’t be solved with—”

Putting her hand over his mouth, Jenna cut him off. “It’ll work out, Drew. But if I’m only going to have you for a short time, I’d rather not waste it standing in the doorway talking all night.” She pulled his head down for a kiss and Drew didn’t disappoint her.