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  She just hoped he never regretted being there with her. “I do love you. A great deal,” she said as they got started. She didn’t say anything else as they drove back to their home. She just relaxed there with him and soaked up the pure comfort she received being at his side.

  Chapter Nine

  “Good morning.” Martin’s voice pulled her from the last dregs of sleep. The scent of coffee, though, encouraged Athena to crack open her eyelids. “Are you planning on waking up today at any point? I’ve already gotten all that we need to fix your wall, sweetheart. But I am going to need another hand to do this properly. I’ll even give you twenty minutes to drink your coffee and have your breakfast.”

  She sat up and accepted the coffee from him. “You are so good to me,” she told him with a smile. “Thank you for getting the stuff to fix the wall.” She took a sip of her coffee. “But when did you have the time to go and get it?”

  “While the coffee was brewing, I went over to get the supplies. Then I popped into the store to grab some goodies for breakfast, hit the bakery for the croissants, and buns for our lunch later. Came back here, checked on you, and made breakfast before waking you up. I’m highly efficient when I put my mind to it, sweetheart.”

  “Oh you are so good.” She couldn’t believe that she had slept that long. She was actually more than a little surprised. “I can’t believe that I slept through all of that. Typically, I don’t sleep that heavily.” Then again, she had been sleeping with him, so there was that, too.

  “Babe, I hate to tell you this, but I could have dropped a nuclear bomb in this room earlier and I’m pretty sure you would have only pulled the sheets over your head. You were tired,” he teased. “Course I did wear you out rather well last night. And I’m naturally a morning person, which was a huge plus on the ranch. It’s odd really, Joshua’s the one that loves the ranch the most, stayed put to look after it, and yet he’s a night owl. He is one hombre you don’t want to have to get up before the crack of dawn. At least not without a loaded twelve-gauge in hand. He is fucking mean without his six hours of beauty sleep. Not saying he can’t be pleasant in the morning, he can, but he definitely needs the six hours of rest.”

  “Fabulous. Well, I will keep that in mind, although I don’t ever really have to deal with Joshua, so that’s good. I see Ali from time to time.” She was one of Athena’s patients, after all. “And when I do see Joshua, he’s had his coffee and has already been out on the range, so that’s a good thing. Right?”

  “Yup, definitely a good thing. By that point, he’s only obnoxious. Not cranky and obnoxious. I have no clue how Mama used to pry him out of bed when he was a kid. But she’s definitely my hero for putting up with all of us. Between the age differences, the mood swings, and the various stages of anarchy, the fact she didn’t run off to the nearest padded room tells me that woman has more than an iron spine. She’s got a big old pair of titanium balls somewhere.”

  That had her snickering. “Theresa Carver is certainly a woman that every mother wants to be. She’s always had everything together, and that’s incredible to me. Your mom is one of a kind. I hope one day when we have kids, I’m half the mother that she was. Seriously, she’s incredible.”

  “I think you’ll hold your own just fine. You should talk to her at some point. I could share all her dirty little secrets, or at least the ones I know about, but where’s the fun in that? Get some time with her, get her a glass of something good, and she’ll tell you all our dirty little secrets, and a few of her own on how she handled us. She’s one lucky woman child services really wasn’t a thing back in the day.” He was grinning, though, teasing her to some degree.

  Athena laughed. “Well, I’m sure that you guys gave her reason to be so grumbly. You know, I remember when Joshua was shot many years ago. Your poor mom, God love her, I don’t think she slept for weeks. Between her and Ali, Joshua was never alone.”

  “I remember that, it was right after I left for school. I found out about it two weeks later when I finally got to a phone to call home. He was awake by then, talking, told me to stay put. It’s one of the few times I’ve been torn about coming back here. I hated all that had happened, and I had no clue. He could have died, and I’d never have known because I insisted on driving across the country on some lazy ass path to school. God, I was such a selfish asshole.”

  “Honey, no one blames you. At all. You needed that time, they all knew that. You never were one that wanted to be in this town. There was never enough happening for you.” Which she understood. “You needed time to grow into the man that you are today, that’s what’s important.”

  He shot her a look and wrinkled up his nose. “You are way too smart for my peace of mind woman. I can see why you do so well with these folks. You lay it out as it is, and no bullshit. I also like the fact you threw in a sideways compliment there, too.” Grinning, he pressed a kiss to her cheek. “Drink your coffee,” he ordered. Moving slightly, he collected the tray she hadn’t even noticed and set it over her lap. With a flourish, he whipped off the bowl he’d used to keep the food warm to reveal bacon, eggs, and fluffy-looking pancakes.

  “Oh God, you made me breakfast in bed, too?” She looked up at him with wide eyes. “Wow, I’m… Seriously? What did I do to deserve this from you? I love it. Thank you so much.” She was gobsmacked that he had done this for her.

  “My mama taught me to always treat the woman I love with respect, and to occasionally treat her with the little things in life. I think her theory is when I go overboard, and I will—it’s who I am after all—maybe you won’t pass out from the shock. Besides, I know you’ve been having a shitty week, and I wanted to do something nice for you.”

  “Thank you.” She reached out for him and clasped his hand with hers. “I am very happy that you are here with me. I’m happy that you got the assignment to watch out for me. I don’t think that I could have trusted anyone else the way that I do you.”

  “Pretty sure my director had the same thought. Then again, I may or may not have bared my soul to the man one very drunken night. The man has a memory like no one I’ve ever met. I swear to God, if he’s seen it or heard it, he never forgets it. Son of a bitch,” he muttered. “He played me. I am so kicking his ass the next time he calls me up for poker night. I don’t care if he is my boss, he’s going down.”

  “Wait, what do you mean?” Played him? What the hell? “Do you think that he’s behind this?” She wasn’t certain what he meant by that, so she was just jumping at the first conclusion that she came to. “I don’t understand what you telling him anything has to do with what happened, unless he’s the one behind it?”

  “God no, he’s not behind this. But he knew you were the one person I’d run back here to protect because of what I told him. He was so casual about handing me that file. Said he wanted my take on the agents he’d selected as possibilities since I knew the town best. But he knew the moment I saw your name he had me hook, line, and sinker. Motherfucker played me into coming back here. Not that I regret it for an instant. I could never regret seeing you again and reconnecting with you. He will pay for this, though. I can’t believe I let him play me,” he said with a hearty groan.

  “Personally, I think that you should thank him,” Athena said as she ate her food. “Because if not for him doing that, you would never have come back.” And she would have died a crazy cat lady and knew it. She trusted Martin to keep her safe, not anyone else.

  “I’d have come back,” he said. At her look, he nodded. “I’ve been thinking about it off and on for the last few months. Mainly because everyone’s coming home to roost, in a manner of speaking. It was different when we were all spread out over the world. It didn’t feel nearly as lonely out there, even though I rarely saw any of them. Knowing they were all settling back here for good…” He sighed and shook his head. “I’m glad this came up when it did. Not to say I ever want anything but happiness in your life. But if it hadn’t, I may have roamed around for a while longer before givin
g in to what I knew I should do. I’d have missed out on these days with you. And who knows, you might not have let me in if I’d come back any later.”

  “Then I’m glad it all happened when it did as well. I’m glad that I have you, and I’m glad that you are a part of my life now. No more thinking about the time before you came home, though. Right now, we focus on our future?” Otherwise, she would what-if herself to death.

  “Damn straight. A nice, long, and very happy future. One where we are blissfully in love, and we have a couple little Athenas to run around making my life interesting. Where we make love every single night, and never go to bed angry. Which I just realized is sort of a contradiction, because I doubt we’d be making love if we were angry, but you get where I’m coming from, right?”

  She giggled—of all things—but nodded. “Yes, I get it. I know what you mean. I fully approve of your way of thinking, too. This is good. And I would like to have a couple of little Martins as well.”

  “How about one of each? I’m not sure I can handle more than a couple. Definitely not as many as Mama and Pops had. God, that’s a scary thought. As much as I love my family, all of them, no way in hell am I prepared to have that many kids.”

  “Thank God because I know that I wouldn’t be able to survive that many kids. Your mom is a total champ for having all the kids she had. I think that just two would be perfect. One of each would be ideal.”

  “Well then, that’ll be our goal. Though no matter whether we have boys or little girls, as long as they are happy and healthy, that’s truly all that matters. Everything else is just icing on the cake. Now, eat up. We have a wall to repair.”

  “Sounds perfect,” she agreed, and ate the food that he gave her. “Oh, this is so good.” She continued to eat until the tray was empty. Once she was finished, she leaned back again and watched him. “So, what is on our agenda today?”

  “We need to get the wall done, mostly anyway. We’ll cut out the chunk, check the wood underneath for any rot or issues. If it’s all good, or only needs a surface sand to keep this from happening again, we’ll put up the new drywall. Then we will tape and put on the first layer of mudding. Tomorrow, we’ll do layer two, and figure out if we need a third layer or not. Day after, if we don’t need the third layer, we can prime, and then paint. But we need to do the bulk of the wall today. And we also need to get some intel from Frank’s overseas contacts on where our mob friends are at. We’ll go through a series of plans, and backup plans as well, with a shit load of contingencies until you know them inside and out.”

  “I didn’t think about mold. Crapballs, I seriously hope that’s not it,” she said as she chewed over the information he gave her. She didn’t want to think about the troubles with the mob that she had. Really didn’t like that at all. “Plans are very good. I need to be able to know what to do in all sorts of different situations.”

  “I know, love. You’re a planner. I fully support that since I am to a degree as well. Though you should know I’m also the sort that will throw the plan out the window and go way off script. Sorry, but there it is. I am fully able to be a by-the-seat-of-my-pants sort of man. Still love me?”

  “Just make sure that you keep me in the loop if a plan is tossed out of the window.” She did grin, however, at his question. Tilting her head to the side, she watched him. “I dunno, what do you have for me if I still love you for tossing plans out the window?” Kisses, hugs, love, anything? She would accept anything, mostly because she was teasing him.

  Taking the tray from her lap, he set it on the nightstand. “Well, I don’t know. Kind of depends how annoyed you are with me for going off book around you, I suppose. What sort of bribe would you accept should I toss anything we’ve discussed out the window? And what would it take to get back in your good graces if I didn’t warn you first?”

  “Well, I’m a fairly carnal woman, I’m finding.” She reclined, her arms around his neck pulling him toward her. “I think that a couple of orgasms might get you back into my good graces. What do you say about getting naked with me?” Since she was still in bed, she was naked. Martin, however, wasn’t.

  “What do you say about getting into some grungy clothing first? We need to deal with the wall, babe. After we get that first layer of mud on, then we’ll have a nice, long, and very hot shower. We’ll practice for having babies while in there, and continue it in our bed afterwards.”

  “I love how you think.” Athena got out of the bed and winked at him. “How about you loan me one of your shirts?” She wanted to smell like him, wanted to feel the heat of his shirt against her bare skin.

  Cocking a brow, he climbed off the bed and yanked his shirt off over his head. He tossed it to her with a grin before moving to collect another one for himself. “How’s that work for you?” he asked, walking toward her.

  “Works damn good for me.” Goodness gracious, her language seriously was taking a toll by looking at his hard and hot body. “I mean your body, no wait. Crap.” She grabbed his shirt and tugged it on. “Oh goodness, it’s still warm and smells like you. Thank you.”

  He laughed while pulling the other shirt over his head. “You’re welcome,” he said. “I may need to look into expanding my wardrobe slightly since I’m staying put. I have a feeling my seven shirts and two pairs of jeans aren’t going to cut it around here for long. Especially if you’ve taken a liking to stealing my shirts.”

  “Yes, you should look into expanding your wardrobe.” She grinned and nodded happily because she would get to share this with him. “I think that’s a good thing, don’t you? Sharing like this?”

  “Somehow, I’m not seeing this going both ways, though, sweetheart. Mainly because I can’t fit into anything you own. I think I’m getting shafted here,” he said. He was smiling, though. Wrapping his hand in the front of the shirt covering her body, he tugged her in close. “I do have to say, though, you look fucking sexy wearing my shirt and nothing else. But put on some pants. No need to get drywall dust or anything else from that wall up into your unmentionable bits.”

  “Ah yes, that would be bad,” she agreed. “And as for what you can get into of mine…” She pulled out a pair of panties and pulled them on. “You fit inside of me perfectly. Just sayin’ is all, babe.”

  His lips twitched, and he shook his head. “Not quite what I meant, but your point is valid. So I’ll give you this one.” Pressing a kiss to her lips, he smacked her ass. Martin picked up the tray and her cup. “Meet me in the kitchen when you’re dressed. I’ve got a few other things for you to wear to keep you as clean as we can manage.”

  “Thank you,” she said smugly, and winked at him before she followed. Once she was in the kitchen, she said, “You have a beautiful body. I think I should start to work out with you so that I know just what you do to keep yourself in shape.”

  “Most of it was from the long hours of working on the ranch. Then when I left, I actually had to use a gym. Not the same thing in the least, I should mention. Eventually, I’ll have to get some equipment, I think. I’ve always hated the gym—never knowing if everyone followed the rules to wipe down the equipment, never sure about that smudge in the grout of the shower, and never sure about who might be watching me. Plus the fact I couldn’t crank my music to the deafening levels I prefer when working out.”

  She wrinkled her nose. “I hadn’t ever thought about that, but I could see that being an issue. The music does make it easier to work out. I know that when I run, I have to have my earbuds in and the music loud. I don’t want to hear anything around me, just lose myself in the music.”

  “Then we’ll get along well, I think,” he teased. Turning to her, he held out a mask, goggles, and gloves. “You need to wear this, bare minimum. I have some light, disposable painters outfits too if this is worse than I’m thinking. But we’ll go slow, keep the dust to a minimum, and we should be fine.”

  “Sounds good to me. It shouldn’t be too bad.” It was simply a spot on the wall that wouldn’t come off for some reas
on. She hoped that it wasn’t a sign of a more serious issue because that would be very bad indeed.

  “I’m the cautious sort.” He glared at her when she made a noise. Okay, it was more of a snort. “I am. I prefer to come out of situations alive. Besides, this house has been here a few years. Who knows what is lurking behind the walls. Suit up, sweetheart. Let’s get this show on the road.” He pulled on his own gloves, mask, and stuck the goggles on the top of his head. Grabbing up a spray bottle, he headed for the other room.

  She watched him as he walked out and grinned. Suiting up, as he called it, she followed him into the room with the spot from hell on it.

  Chapter Ten

  Martin handed her a glass of iced tea then sat down next to her on the sofa. “I think we’ll get away with only one more layer of mudding. You’re pretty damn handy with a trowel, lady.” Giving her a wink, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “Now, I know you don’t want to talk about this stuff, but we have to. You need to know this stuff, and we need to make plans for any contingencies that could crop up. Really, your part is super easy.”

  “Okay.” She took a drink of the tea he handed her. “I guess that since I really should know this, I’m as ready as I’m going to get. Talk to me, Martin. What is happening that I need to know about? What’s the plan to get me out of the clutches of these assholes?” Now that her dad was safe, they could figure out how to get her safe.

  “Got an update from Frank. The bad guys are on a plane. They took a chartered flight out to London. From there, best they can guess they will be flying commercial to this side of the pond. We don’t know where to yet, but Interpol has a few people hanging around at the terminal to watch for them when they land. They also have a few folks hanging out at some of the smaller airports around England, just in case these guys change plans mid-flight. Once they are on their next leg, we’ll get another update. But what you and I need to discuss is what we’re going to do when they arrive. This is pretty much the part I know you’re really not going to like.”