Tender Is The Night (25 page)

But as she studied the hard profile of Devin's face, the strength of his jaw, the sexy grizzle of his shadowy beard, the firm lips that could both tease and tantalize, she knew that this man was not just any man.

He was Devin.

He knew her. He understood her. He didn't try to change her.

Not yet anyway
.

No, he wouldn't try to change her. Just as he wouldn't try to change himself.

She'd gotten past his defenses last night, but they'd be back up today, probably as soon as he woke up. He'd been guarding his heart since his parents split up, since his dad died, and even more so since Sam was killed.

He'd been hurt many times, and she wanted so badly to take some of his pain away. She'd been able to do that for a while last night, but she was too smart not to know that sex wasn't a long-term answer to Devin's pain. He might not think he needed anyone, but he did. He'd been alone too long. He needed love in his life. He needed someone who cared about him.

But she couldn't be that person.

Devin's eyelids fluttered, and for a moment she thought he was waking up, but then he let out a little sigh.

This was her chance to escape. She could shower, get dressed, put her game face back on before Devin woke up. She could be at work on the computer while he was catching a few more minutes of sleep.

So why the hell wasn't she moving?

She took a deep breath and forced herself to move, but then Devin's arm came down heavy on her waist.

"Where are you going?" he asked sleepily, his brown eyes now open and on hers.

"Time to get back to work."

His gaze moved to the clock on the bedside table. "It's early."

"We have to go to my parents' house this morning. We should work before then."

"We will. We'll start here—in bed."

The teasing smile on his lips melted her heart and her resistance. "How are we going to work here?"

"You're going to show me again how helpful you can be."

He shifted his body and she felt his arousal. "I don't think you need any help," she said with a laugh.

"Oh, but I do. I need you, Kate Callaway."

She knew he was only talking about a sexual need, but she had the craziest feeling that she wanted the words to mean so much more.

He followed his words with a kiss and whatever lingering protest she'd thought to make completely vanished—because she needed him as much as he needed her.

Eighteen

They left Devin's apartment at eleven, and Kate felt a little breathless and rushed as she got into the car. They'd lost all track of time and had finally gotten out of bed and grabbed a quick shower before heading out of the apartment. Her hair was still damp, and she was quite sure that if her mother saw her now, she'd know exactly what her daughter had been doing for the last several hours.

"You okay?" Devin asked as she made a quick stop at a rapidly changing light.

"Sorry, yes, I'm fine." She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Just wishing we hadn't agreed to this."

"It will be fine. I won't chew with my mouth open or talk about how great you are in bed."

She glanced over at his teasing smile. "You're in a good mood."

"And you're responsible for that. The question is—why aren't you in a good mood?"

"I am. I'm just…I don't know." She couldn't find the right words, and the words that came to mind she couldn't say.

"Well, I think this is the first time you don't know what to say," he said, giving her a thoughtful look. "Let's talk about your family. Is Emma going to be there today?"

She was grateful to have a question she could answer.

"I don't know for sure. Everyone in the extended family is always invited, but we never know who's coming in advance. We have the brunches every Sunday after Mass. It rotates from house to house. It's a massive potluck. If you come, you bring something."

"Maybe we should stop and get something."

"My mom will have us covered. I'm pretty sure at least a few of my siblings will be there, Mom and Dad, of course, maybe my grandparents. My grandmother Eleanor Callaway has Alzheimer's, so if you see a pretty and elderly blonde woman with somewhat vacant blue eyes, you'll know why."

"Sorry. That must be rough."

"It is. She has good days but not as many as we'd like. My grandfather is devoted to her. He has become quite the caregiver, which surprised everyone a little. He's a gruff, brusque man and he doesn't show much affection for people, but he has a deep and abiding love for her. They've been married sixty-five years now."

Devin whistled under his breath. "That's a long time."

"They've had some trouble over the years, but my grandmother told me once that there has never been a moment in her life when her love faltered or that she considered breaking her vows. She married for life." She paused, realizing that Devin's profile had grown a little tense. "Sorry, I'm rambling, and I'm not being very sensitive. I just remembered that your parents split up when you were little."

"They definitely got over the idea of breaking their vows. In fact, I don't think they gave it a second thought."

"I can't imagine what you went through, Devin. As much as my parents make me crazy, I really liked having both of them around when I was growing up."

"What's your dad like? He seemed pretty relaxed at the bookstore. He let your mom do the talking."

"He's definitely quieter than she is. He's a rock. He's brave and confident, intensely loyal. He's the kind of man you want around when things are tough." As she said the words, she realized that she was describing Devin, too. They would both go to the ends of the earth for a friend. She glanced at Devin. "What was your dad like? He was an agent, so I'm thinking he had some good qualities."

Devin nodded. "He was a solid guy. He was strict. He had a lot of rules, and there wasn't much gray area for him. I think that's partly why my mother fell out of love with him. He was rigid. And, of course, he put his job first. He believed that he was working for the greater good."

"He could definitely make that case," she said tentatively, not sure her opinion would be welcome.

"He could, and he did—many times. I'm sure it was true. But maybe he shouldn't have gotten married, shouldn't have had a kid."

"Well, I'm glad he had a kid," she said, giving him a smile, and wishing she hadn't brought up his father, because she'd definitely put a dent in Devin's good mood.

But her words did bring a smile to his face. "Glad to hear it," he said. "So getting back to you. Are we going to the house you grew up in?"

"Yes. It's off the Great Highway and across the street from the ocean."

"You grew up at the beach?"

"I did. My brothers did a lot of surfing when they were teenagers, but I preferred to look at the water from the sand."

"I've never been a fan of surfing, either—all that waiting-in-between time. And around here the ocean is cold."

"Exactly. Hawaii, I might get on a board. San Francisco, you need a wet suit and a tolerance for gray skies and really cold water." She paused. "I think we should talk about how we're going to play our relationship."

"What's to talk about? I can handle a few questions from your family."

"You have no idea what you're getting into. They're going to ask how we met, our first date, what you like about me, what I like about you."

"We'll say we met through the Bureau—mutual friends. I like your golden blonde hair and your sparkling blue eyes, your competitive spirit, and you have just enough snark in you to keep things interesting."

She glanced over at him, wondering if that was really what he liked about her or if he was making it up.

"Think they'll believe that?" he asked.

"That I have snark—yes."

He grinned. "I can go into more detail and tell them how much I like kissing you, how passionate you are, how great you look naked in my bed."

She flushed and said, "We're not trying to give anyone a heart attack."

"So what are you going to tell them you like about me?"

She thought for a moment. "I like that you're sharp—a quick thinker. You're competitive and you never let me win, which makes me try harder. Mostly, you're a good guy. You have more heart than you admit to, and I know you'd take a bullet before letting someone else get hurt."

She looked over at him as she stopped at a light. As their gazes met, something deeper and more serious passed between them, as if they both had suddenly realized just how much they did like each other.

A car horn blared, and she realized the light had turned green. She put her foot on the gas and gave her attention back to the road. "Don't be surprised if my mom wants you to come to the wedding and all the other events next week. I think it's better if we just vaguely go along with her rather than say we won't be there together."

"Fine. Let's get through brunch and we'll worry about the rest later."

A few minutes later, she parked down the street from her parents' house. There were already a lot of cars, so she suspected most of her family was already inside. As they walked down the sidewalk, she saw two of her cousins and their wives get out of a car.

"That's Drew on the left in the sunglasses," she told Devin. "He was in the Navy and is now a pilot for the Coast Guard. The dark blonde is his wife, Ria. The brunette next to her is Sara and her husband Aiden. Aiden and Drew are two of Emma's brothers."

"What does Aiden do?"

"He used to be a smokejumper. Now, he does construction with my uncle."

"Smokejumper?" Devin muttered. "You do come from a family of thrill seekers."

"Aiden is one of the leaders in that department. So is my brother, Hunter. He's never met a mountain he didn't want to climb or jump off of." She slipped her hand into Devin's. "Ready to be my boyfriend? My babe? My snickerdoodle?"

He laughed. "Boyfriend, yes. If you call me snickerdoodle, I will have to blow your cover."

"Fine. Then just smile and pretend you love me, because it's show time."

* * *

It wasn't difficult to pretend he was in love with Kate, Devin realized as she introduced him to her relatives and friends of the family. The two-story house was filled to the brim with all ages of people—from the elderly to babies in arms, and everything in between.

The kitchen counters and dining room table were filled with dishes of food, and it was clear the cooks had made a real effort. There were no bags of chips and store-bought appetizers but casseroles, veggie wraps, gourmet sandwiches, salads, and meat skewers that were hot off the barbecue.

He couldn't imagine what it had been like to grow up in this big, boisterous family. There was so much love, so much laughter, so much of everything. He felt a little jealous. Even when his parents had been together, life had been a lot quieter than this. And neither of his parents had many relatives, so even extended family had been hard to come by.

"Are you okay?" Kate asked, grabbing two beers off a side table in the dining room as they made their way toward the back of the house.

"I'm great."

"You look a little dazed."

"It's a lot to take in," he said, taking a swig of beer. "This happens every Sunday?"

She nodded with a smile. "Not always here, but somewhere. Family gatherings are very important to everyone. No birthday, no holiday, goes by without appropriate celebration. Here comes Mom and Dad."

She slipped her hand into his, and he tightened his fingers around hers, thinking that he was enjoying being her fake boyfriend a little too much.

"Kate, you came," Sharon said with delight. "And you brought Devin. I was afraid you were going to make me chase you down."

"I wouldn't do that." She let go of Devin's hand to hug her mother.

Devin shook Tim's hand, seeing the quiet regard in the older man's eyes. "It's nice to see you both again," he said.

"You, too," Sharon said, giving him a speculative look. "So tell us a little about you, Devin. Did Kate say you were in the FBI?"

"I used to be. Now I'm a private investigator."

"Why did you leave the Bureau?" Sharon asked.

"A lot of reasons," he said vaguely. "I like being my own boss, so it's a good move for me."

"Do you investigate for anyone in particular?" Tim asked.

"I'm an equal opportunity investigator," he said lightly.

"How did you two meet?" Sharon asked.

"Through mutual friends," he said.

"FBI friends," Kate added. "We should get something to eat."

"So you live here in the city," Sharon said, ignoring her daughter's comment. "Are you and Kate going to do long-distance?"

"It looks that way," he said lightly.

"I told you, Mom, this is all new," Kate said.

"It can't be that new if you came back early to spend time with Devin, and you didn't want anyone in the family to know you were in town."

Devin smiled seeing the discomfort on Kate's face. She might be a skilled agent, but when it came to her mother, she was definitely out of her league. "That's my fault," he said. "I wanted to spend some time with Kate before she was busy with the wedding."

"You should come to the wedding," Sharon said. "In fact, I insist. I'm sure you want to spend as much time together as possible. You're welcome at all the events. I'm quite certain that Mia would love to meet Devin." Sharon looked at Kate. "Does Mia know about your new relationship?"

"Not yet," Kate said.

"Tim, Sharon," a man said loudly as he approached the group.

As Devin stepped back, he saw Jack Callaway approaching, an attractive blonde at his side, who was probably his wife.

When Jack saw him in the group, he stopped abruptly, his gaze darkening. "Agent Scott? What the hell are you doing here?"

"He's with me," Kate said quickly.

"Why is he with you?" Jack demanded, his hard gaze swinging to Devin. "Are you using my niece to get to me?"

"No," he said shortly.

"We're dating," Kate said.

"Since when?" Jack asked suspiciously.

"Awhile," Kate said.

"What's going on?" Tim interjected, his gaze growing concerned as the tension grew within the group.