INEVITABLE: An Alpha Bad Boy Contemporary Romance Book (6 page)

              The Bennett’s are good people, but Charlie’s father was a city maintenance worker and his mother a kindergarten teacher. They didn’t have strong roots in Louisiana like we did. His father was born and raised in Texas and his mother in Minnesota. They settled in Louisiana right after Charlie was born. It all sounds superficial when put out there like that, but I knew my dad and I also knew that he would definitely not approve of me dating a cop, or a Marine... Or a sinfully hot former Marine, now cop called Charlie Bennett.

              On Friday night as I got dressed I tried to concentrate on how excited I was to spend the evening with Charlie and not on how Daddy would react. I bought a new dress. It’s a deep red color that looks good with my hair and skin. It’s country style with long bell sleeves with embroidered accents and a soft neckline. It only comes to the tops of my thighs and I’m wearing peep toe heels I was just touching up my lip gloss when I heard the bell ring. I grabbed my bag and literally ran down the stairs. I was too late. Daddy was standing at the door looking at Charlie, the air growing thick around them.

              “You’re here for what?” I heard him ask.

              “He’s here for me, Daddy.”

              My dad turned and looked at me frowning. After taking in my outfit he turned back to Charlie , his voice hard. “I don’t think so.”

Charlie looked like he was trying to keep a straight face as he said,               “I’m sorry sir but I don’t believe that’s up to you. As far as I know, your daughter wants to go out with me and I’d be happy to.”

Charlie looked up at me then and smiled and my heart swooned. He looked so handsome and built, framed in the doorway. His button down blue shirt wrapped around his thick muscles and I had to clench my fingers in anticipation of feeling his arms around me. The fantasies I’d had about this man!

I saw my father take a step forward and I called out to him. He ignored me. “This is my house, she is my daughter and I will always have a say in who is good enough for her to associate with and who is not. You’re a cop is that correct? I know what you make because I sat on the city council two years in a row. It’s not enough for her.”

              Charlie’s jaw hardened. “I think we should let Jackie make her own decisions.” He looked up at me again, his eyes catching the light…but then Daddy turned and looked up at me too. His icy stare froze what was left of my heart and I felt myself crumbling in its wake. Oh no, oh no...

              Suddenly my throat thickened and I blinked back the words to defend Charlie. I thought about the past few days and how nice it had been for him to finally respect me…I was still trying to croak out words when Charlie turned around and walked out.

              My heart broke. I ran down the stairs then and when I got to the landing my father put his hand on my arm and stopped me. The door was still open and I saw Charlie’s pickup flying out of the drive-way. What have I done?

***

              “You’ve got enough problems, Jacqueline. You don’t need his kind…”

              I totally lost it, finally finding the words that I had buried for so long. I jerked away from my father and spun to face him.

              “Hi
s
kin
d
? Are you kidding me? My ex is from one of Orange County’s oldest and wealthiest families. Good, respectable people huh? Well he cheated on me over and over again with people who were close to me…and now he’s trying to say it was me to save his reputation. Charlie’s parents have been married for forty years. He’s risked his life for this country and he does so every day! He’s sweet and kind and he actuall
y
care
s
about me. How could you insult him like that?!”

              “Enough! You’ll stay away from him and that’s final.”

              “I will not.” My voice didn’t even shake. “What difference does it make anyways? Nothing I do is good enough for you. Nothing I do matters. For some reason you want me to screw up. Maybe it makes you feel like a big man when you can come to my rescue.”

              “You need to watch how you’re speaking to me, young lady!”

              “No Daddy! I’m done watching what I say and walking on eggshells around you. I’m a grown woman. I’m finished letting you make me feel like a little girl just because you’re a hateful, miserable man who is unhappy with how his own life turned out.”

              He did something then that shocked me worse than anything he’d ever done before. The crack of his palm sounded and I jerked against the hard sting on my face. In almost twenty-four years of life, my father had never laid a hand on me no matter how angry he was. I could see the shock on his own face. He reached out for me and I flinched. The shock turned to pain and he turned around and walked away, leaving me standing there wondering where the hell we were going to go from here.

I went up to my room and lay across my bed and cried for two hours before I could finally stop sobbing. I wasn’t sure what I was crying for…was it my terrible relationship with my dad? Was it Charlie? The past week I’d been lighter somehow... That kiss we shared that night in the field still burned on my lips.

I got up and reluctantly slipped off my dress as I reached for my pajamas. I quickly climbed under the covers and tucked myself into the far corner. I laid there for another two hours listening to the skies open up and dump another hellacious load of rain down on top of us. Every few moments the lightning outside my window would light up the room. Once I’d glanced at myself in the mirror on the dresser across from the bed. I didn’t like what I saw and I turned away. I saw a coward. I saw a woman who prided herself on her success and independence hiding in her father’s house underneath a comforter her mother bought for her when she was sixteen years old.

Impulsively I threw the comforter and the quilt both off my legs and swung my feet over the side of the bed, groaning at the crack in my back. So much for de-stressing. I got up and put on my boots and raincoat. I sat the old, faded fedora on top of my head and I left the house. I had to find Charlie…I had to let him know how I felt and how sorry I was for allowing my father to talk to him that way.

I drove first to the police station. We live in such a small town that at night there are only a few officer son duty and one dispatcher at the desk. I got lucky. The dispatcher that night was a lady named Brenda that I babysat for when I was a kid.

“Well I’ll be…Jackie Manning? Honey what in blazes are you doing out in this weather at this hour? Is everything okay over at your house?”

I stepped closer to her window. The quicker I got what I needed, the quicker I could leave. Besides I’m sure she’d be annoyed with me dripping all over the lobby floor. “We’re all fine, Brenda. I’m sorry to bother you but I need a really big favor.”

“What’s that honey?”

“I need to know where Officer Charlie Bennett lives.”

She raised an eyebrow. “That’s kind of an unusual request…did you call him?”

I shook my head. “This is something I need to do in person. I promise you, I don’t want to hurt Charlie in any way. I actually need to apologize to him for something and I can’t do that on the phone.”

Brenda smiled. “Charlie’s a good man you know...”

“I know,” I said with a small smile. She wrote something down on a piece of paper and handed it to me. I looked at it and saw that it was an address not too far from the station. “Thank you, Brenda.”

As I walked back to the Mustang I had to admit there were definitely some advantages to small town life. I took the Old River Road out to the cut off that led to the woods where Charlie’s place was . The rain came down harshly causing me to grip my wheel more cautiously. I drove carefully down the long, muddy road and I breathed a sigh of relief when a little cabin came into view. It looked like it was built out of logs…and maybe even by hand. There were flowers planted around the front porch and several geraniums and leafy green plants hung in pots across the front porch. It was a homey, happy looking little place. I loved it instantly.

I got out of the car and started quickly towards the stairs, shielding myself against the sheet of rain. Dark and rainy
.
Another brilliant idea, Jackie. What if he’s not even...

Charlie pulled open the door before I got to the porch. I stopped, standing there in the rain in my silly outfit as I stared at his looming frame against the hallway light. He looked like he was only wearing a pair of boxers and his naked chest and arms were a thing of beauty. Was there a tattoo?.... “Get in here, you’re getting soaked,” he said roughly. I followed him in and he left me standing there while he went in the other room. The place was tiny but it was clean and it had a warm lived-in feeling to it. It felt safe and personal.

He came back a minute later with a fluffy towel and handed it to me. I slipped off my raincoat and boots and I saw him stifle a smile when he got a look of my bunny pajamas. I only wear them when I’m home. There’s something about them that make me feel safe like I did when I was a kid.

As I dried my hair he stood nearby watching me silently but I couldn’t bring myself to meet his eyes. There most certainly was a tattoo across his heart. An eagle flocked a massive globe as latin text twined around the countries. Men in arms were shielded by the eagle’s wings, their faces etched with strength and honor. It was beautiful and dangerous. My eyes traveled further. God... This man was perfect. Hard planes of muscles corded together under a dusting of dark hair. I wanted to.... My eyes glanced up at him. His gaze was hooded and unreadable and I found myself licking my lips...

“Thank you,” I said. Was tha
t
m
y
voice that sounded so breathless?

“You want some coffee?” His voice was dark and thick, offering me the comfort I so craved.

I nodded. “Please.”

“Have a seat.” I went over and sat on the little couch in the living area. I could see him in the tiny kitchen from where I sat. I watched him pour two cups of coffee and I realized he must have still been up too. He handed me one and sat on the chair across from me. I was disappointed. I wanted him close to me. I took a sip of the warm coffee and then I swallowed hard. He leaned back in the chair, clueless as to how it highlighted his abs. He watched me, obviously waiting for me to start. I swallowed again.

“I uhm, I came to apologize.”

“For what?” He wasn’t going to make this easy.

“For what my father said….”

“I don’t want an apology from you fo
r
him
.
He’s his own man, he can apologize for himself…or not.”

“Well then, I want to apologize for freezing up and doing nothing…until you left.”

His face softened subtly. “You did something when I left?”

I released a breath I didn’t know I was holding. “I told him off.”

“And this was about me?”

“Not all. He has always had a problem with me wanting to be an artist. He doesn’t think it’s a respectable craft. So I told him off for that too. But I told him that you’re a good man…and that I want to be with you.”

“You want to be with me, how?” A dark flame danced in his eyes and threatened to overwhelm me.

“I - I want to go out with you. I want to kiss you again. I want you to…” I shied away, looking down at my cup.

“Say it,” he spoke in a low voice. “Tell me what you want.” His directness was slightly disconcerting to my senses.

“I want you, Charlie. I want all of you. I want you to make love to me and I want to fall asleep in your arms and wake up in them in the morning…” I dared to look at him and he hadn’t move. His golden eyes were deep with an emotion I couldn’t read.

“And then leave me to go back to L.A.?”

“I - I don’t know if I’m going back.”

“Why?”

“Because things are so messed up there and I just don’t want to deal with it.”

“So you’re going to stay here not for me…but t
o
hid
e
?”

“Charlie…”

“Listen to me, Jackie. I want you more than I’ve ever wanted anything in my life. I’ve wanted you since the sixth grade for God’s sake…” He leaned forward, a smile hinting across his lips.

“Why didn’t you ever tell me?”

He smiled and dipped his head. “You saw tonight why. I wouldn’t have been any mor
e
good enoug
h
for you then than I am now. Not i
n
hi
s
eyes anyway.”

“I’m sorry. I used to have such a crush on you.”

He chuckled darkly and met my eyes. What I saw there took my breath away. “Well Jackie-o mine wasn’t a crush. I fell head over heels with you in high school and I’ve wanted you ever since.”

I felt new tears welling up in my eyes again. I couldn’t believe he never said anything…and then I remembered my father’s face tonight and it was easy to see why. Nobody wants to be told they’re not good enough.

His beautiful eyes trailed my face. “I’ve waited this long, I can wait longer if I have to. I want you to be here because you want to be wit
h
m
e
and not because you’re hiding from something…or running from it.”