The Marine Makes His Match Read online

  She got behind the wheel of her car to avoid what was beginning to feel like some kind of gravitational field that kept sucking her closer to him and remembered suddenly and out of nowhere that there was something else she should have been focused on.

  “Maybe tomorrow we can talk about the Camdens, too. And what you’re going to do to uphold your end of our deal.”

  He nodded slowly, his expression blank. Probably to conceal that he wasn’t eager for that.

  But if he thought she wouldn’t hold him to it, he was mistaken.

  And tomorrow she’d make sure she kept her own goal at the forefront so she didn’t spend so much time going gaga over him!

  “’Night,” she said, angry with herself for having let her goal go so completely by the wayside today. So completely that she hadn’t even realized it until now.

  “Drive safe,” he advised, closing her door for her.

  Unlike the night before when she’d looked up to find his belly button in view, tonight when she glanced out her side window he was returning to the house. Providing her with the sight of one of the finest rear ends she’d ever seen.

  And yes, there she was, hating herself for just how much she appreciated the absolute perfection of his prime derriere.

  She sighed heavily and started her engine to back out of his drive.

  Then she took herself to task the whole way to her apartment, recommitting herself to ignoring how hellishly handsome Sutter Knightlinger was, and to refocusing on getting herself access to the Camdens.

  Who would fill her life again and put her in the right state of mind to find a man, to get married and have a family of her own.

  A man who would be so much better for her, so much more suitable, than Sutter Knightlinger ever could be.

  Chapter Four

  “Is there going to be a quiz later?”

  “Huh?” Sutter responded to his cousin Beau’s question.

  Beau had called after Kinsey left on Friday night to invite Sutter to the Saturday morning workout he was hosting for family members. Sutter had seen a few opportunities in that invitation.

  It would give him the chance to do some light work on his body as a whole and that appealed to him.

  He could bring Kinsey along for her medical advice and begin to keep up his part of their deal by putting her in a room with several of the Camdens she claimed were her half siblings.

  And most importantly of all, maybe whatever they did at Beau’s gym would count as his physical therapy today so he could avoid her doing it later, when they were alone.

  Like last night when the feel of her hands on him had broken through his defenses and his damn body had reacted like he was a hormonal teenager. Maybe if they worked on his shoulder in the company of other people he could have a little more control over himself.

  So he’d texted her to ask if she wanted to go to Beau’s and she’d readily agreed.

  Which was how this morning had come about. And after doing his physical therapy and instructing him on the recommended dos and don’ts for the weights and lifts and exercise, she’d gone across the room to do the same for Beau’s cousin—and potentially her half sister—Livi Camden. Livi was pregnant and wanted to know what kind of workout was acceptable to help keep in shape during the pregnancy.

  And now Beau was asking if there was a quiz? What the hell was he talking about?

  “You haven’t taken your eyes off Kinsey since you got here,” said his cousin, answering his huh. “Are you trying to memorize how she looks or what?”

  “Assessing her skills,” Sutter said curtly, as if there was nothing personal in it.

  Beau laughed. They’d known each other too long for him to buy it. “Yeah, right,” he countered. “You have a little thing for your nurse?”

  Okay, yes, he did. There. He’d admitted it to himself. What else could he call it when he couldn’t stop thinking about her? What else could he call it when the image of her was in his head when he closed his eyes to sleep at night? When he woke up thinking about her? When she touched him and he responded instantly?

  A little thing—yeah, he guessed he might have a little thing for her.

  But there was no way he was going to talk about it when she was just across the room.

  So he said, “Nah.”

  Beau just laughed again. “I don’t know who you think you’re kidding—me or you.” Then he left Sutter to his squats.

  Squats he was doing with Kinsey directly in his line of vision so how could he not be looking at her?

  Dressed in a pair of just-snug-enough jeans that made her rear end look fantastic.

  Dressed in a red T-shirt that had sleeves to her elbows and a neckline cut at a weird angle like a lopsided V, and that fit her also just snug enough for him to get to see how just-right she was built.

  Wearing that shiny, silky hair of hers in a ponytail that bared her small, perfect ears and a thin neck that he wanted to kiss...

  Cut it out! he silently shouted, assigning himself twenty-five more squats to punish himself.

  Too long without female companionship—that’s what was wrong with him.

  Maybe he should take it as a sign that he was on the mend, he thought. If he was having urges for Kinsey now maybe that was just an indication that he was close enough to full recovery for things to be percolating again. And that was good.

  Well, not good exactly. Mostly embarrassing, really. But maybe it was a positive sign of good health.

  And kind of torturous, too...

  But like the pain in his shoulder when he’d refused any more pain medication, he was just going to have to tough out whatever this little thing was with Kinsey, he told himself. He wasn’t a kid and he knew better than to indulge in something that was tantamount to a summer camp fling.

  Which was all anything with her would be, since he wouldn’t be staying in Denver for long. And she wasn’t even a base secretary or another female officer or a reporter—the women he’d been involved with in the past. Women with the same mindset he had—away from home, family and friends, from anything with any permanence, and just looking for company and fun and relaxation for a while.

  Kinsey wanted family, wanted connections—wanted to dig in roots somewhere and feel like she belonged. And that kind of permanent relationship was something he couldn’t offer. Long, long ago he’d seen enough to convince him that, for him, it was either marriage to a woman or marriage to the military, but not both. And he’d chosen the military.

  So it was just better not to mess with anything—or anyone—that could cause complications. Especially when he had enough of those to contend with thanks to the colonel.

  But damn, look at her...he thought as he watched Kinsey smile at something Livi said.

  And he found himself fighting the same reaction to her that he’d had the night before.

  * * *

  Pleased with the healthy dose of Camdens that Sutter exposed her to on Saturday morning, Kinsey returned with Sutter to his house and the colonel afterward.

  Cleaning and lawn maintenance crews spent the day tackling the job of whipping the place into shape. Sutter oversaw the work and gave orders while Kinsey wrangled Jack and distracted the colonel.

  Not responding to the colonel’s grumbling, Kinsey instead enlisted her to do some training with Jack. The terrier loved the attention, activities, praise and treats. And being cooperative and a fast learner helped him make a few strides toward winning over the colonel.

  Enough so that the colonel allowed the puppy to nap next to her on the overstuffed chair where she sat to play cards with Kinsey when the training ended.

  The colonel won most of their games and ungraciously rubbed it in. But the older woman’s revelry at winning only made Kinsey laugh and concede to the colonel’s superior card skills
. That boosted the colonel’s spirits and caused her to commend Kinsey for being a good sport.

  In order to vacate the older woman’s bedroom so the cleaning crew could work in there, Kinsey persuaded her to go for one of the short walks recommended by the cardiologist.

  Taking Jack along wasn’t easy but, recalling Todd’s advice on the subject, Kinsey decided it should be done. He was not as amenable to the leash as he was to learning about sitting and staying. All his pulling and tugging and yanking amused the colonel who observed that it was Jack that was walking Kinsey rather than the other way around.

  When the cleaning and lawn maintenance continued into the late afternoon, Kinsey volunteered to do the grocery shopping on her own. By the time she returned both crews were gone and Sutter and the colonel were on the back porch assessing the yard work that even the colonel agreed was an improvement.

  Leaving them to it, Kinsey put away the groceries. Just as she finished the doorbell rang. She answered it to find an elderly, dapper-looking gentleman with a full head of wavy white hair standing on the landing, a plate of cupcakes in hand.

  “Hi,” she greeted him.

  “I’m Sol Landrum from next door,” he introduced himself. “My daughter brought me more of these things than I’ll ever be able to eat and I thought the colonel might enjoy them—I saw the two of you out walking today and I just saw her in the back again now—looks like she’s doing better and maybe could stand a visit?” He craned to look around Kinsey into the house, making it clear he wanted to be invited in.

  So that’s what Kinsey did.

  No sooner had she closed the door after admitting him than the colonel’s voice came from behind her.

  “Army, what’re you doing here?” the older woman said bluntly.

  “Colonel,” Sol countered before he went on to repeat the cupcake story, then added, “And I wanted to see how you’re doing.”

  “Takes more than a measly heart attack to get me,” the colonel grumbled because—as Kinsey had learned—any mention of her ill health aggravated her.

  Sutter joined them then and, as he exchanged amenities with their neighbor, Kinsey tried to pay more attention to what was being said than to the way Sutter looked.

  After Sutter’s morning workout and physical therapy he’d come home, showered and dressed in a pair of jeans and another of those skin-tight crewneck T-shirts—this one crisp white with long sleeves that he’d pushed up to his elbows before adding the sling for his injured arm. All day long she hadn’t been able to keep from staring when he wasn’t looking.

  “Colonel, why don’t you and Sol sit down and have a visit while Sutter and I get dinner started?” Kinsey suggested. Then, to the older man she added, “You’re welcome to stay if you don’t have other plans, Sol—we’re just having pasta, salad and bread. And your cupcakes for dessert.”

  Kinsey was the recipient of two shocked and displeased looks from the Knightlinger mother and son, but she pretended not to see them.

  “I’d love to stay!” the neighbor said, jumping at the opportunity. “I’m alone, too, you know, and now that you’re well enough for visits, I’d be happy for the company for dinners or a movie or even if you just want a comrade in arms to do something with—doctors’ appointments, outings, whatever. I play a mean game of backgammon and I’m fair to middlin’ at chess, and if something happens over here—one shout and I can come running.”

  “How nice,” Kinsey said while both Knightlingers just stood there tongue-tied. After asking what the colonel and Sol would like to drink she said, “Now you two go in and chat—I bought some crackers you can munch on while the pasta cooks. I’ll be right back with everything.” Then to Sutter who was now frowning, she said, “To the kitchen—remember, you’re getting cooking lessons.”

  She had the impression that Sutter was reluctant to leave his mother alone with Sol because there was a distinct hesitation before he followed her. But he did finally come along as the colonel and her gentleman caller moved into the living room.

  “Why’d you invite him to dinner?” Sutter demanded the minute they were out of earshot in the kitchen.

  “To be polite,” Kinsey said. “Why? Don’t you like Sol? Is he the Hatfield to your McCoys or something?”

  “He’s a nice enough old geezer. He and my dad were friends. He was at the memorial service. But I think he’s hitting on my mother!”

  “I think so, too,” Kinsey said with amusement.

  “And you just gave him a free ticket.”

  Kinsey put the promised crackers and drinks on a tray and handed it to him. “Here, take these out to them and see how it’s going. And remember, you wanted her to socialize and have a network of people in her life that she can depend on and turn to when you leave. Who better than a next-door neighbor? And if sparks fly? Then she’d have companionship—also what you wanted.”

  “I didn’t think that meant getting her a boyfriend!”

  “Let’s call him a special friend,” Kinsey suggested before pointing an index finger in the direction of the living room to send him to deliver the crackers.

  Sutter wasn’t much help in the kitchen after that. He was too intent on finding excuses to check on the elderly couple every five minutes. Kinsey indulged it, hoping that the more he saw, the more comfortable he might get.

  During dinner it was mainly Kinsey, Sol and the colonel who talked, with Sutter barely interjecting a word here and there.

  A considerate guest, Sol stayed only about half an hour after dessert and coffee, then thanked them for the meal and said he’d go so the colonel could get some rest.

  Kinsey and the Knightlingers went to the front door with the older man so they all heard when he told the colonel that he’d check back with her and then said good-night.

  “Well, that wasn’t so bad,” the elderly woman observed once the door was closed and before she added, “But I’m worn out.”

  Kinsey glanced at Sutter to see his response to that. He looked baffled and unnerved. Enough to make her smile as she jabbed a thumb toward the kitchen and said with some humor, “You can get started with cleanup now that you don’t have to be on patrol. I’ll be back after I help the colonel get settled.”

  Sutter didn’t balk. He merely said good-night to his mother before he did as instructed.

  He was only partway through the job when Kinsey got back to him. Before either of them said anything, Jack came in the doggy door from outside, covered in mud.

  “No, no, no!” Kinsey exclaimed at first glimpse of the puppy, catching him by the collar before he got too far inside.

  “The yard guys worked on the sprinkler system before they closed it up for winter,” Sutter said with a groan, explaining where the terrier had found mud.

  “He’s going to have to have a bath.” No sooner were the words out of her mouth than Kinsey realized she was the only one in the house capable of doing that.

  Apparently Sutter realized it at the same time because he slightly raised his arm and sling at once to point out the predicament. And now it was his turn to smile.

  “Yeah, I know—you can’t do it with one arm,” Kinsey interpreted.

  “And it’s too late to get him to a groomer,” he said. Then, the smile turning devilish—and devilishly handsome—he added, “Maybe you can get helpful Sol back over...”

  “You do realize this isn’t in my job description and I could just let go of Jack to track mud all over your just-cleaned house, right?” she countered.

  He laughed but skipped any more jibes and said, “Let’s get him into the laundry tub.”

  Glad that Jack was small, Kinsey picked him up, holding him away from her to take him into the laundry room connected to the kitchen.

  Once she’d set him in the washbasin he immediately tried to scale the side with scurrying hind legs. Kinsey had to s
lide him back down and keep him from another escape attempt by hanging on to him.

  “Dog shampoo?” she asked.

  “I didn’t think of that. Can we use the dish soap?”

  “I’ve seen it used in commercials to wash oil off ducks, so maybe.”

  Sutter went back into the kitchen and returned with the bottle of dish soap, setting it on the washing machine beside the tub and then stepping out of harm’s way.

  “Oh, no, you can’t!” Kinsey said. “I’m not doing this alone. You have one good hand to hold him with while I do everything else.”

  “It was worth a try,” Sutter muttered as he went to stand on the free side of the washtub.

  He restrained the puppy while Kinsey removed Jack’s collar and started the water. She got it to the right temperature and then rinsed Jack before soaping him up and rinsing him again. He squirmed and splashed, but Kinsey had known better than to expect to get out of this completely dry. And anyway, Sutter did a good job of holding him mostly in place.

  When she was finished she turned off the water and said, “We need a towel,” leaving to get one from the linen closet and returning in a hurry.

  But in the time between Sutter releasing Jack and Kinsey trying to reach him with the unfolded towel, Jack shook with abandon.

  Kinsey had the towel between her and the puppy so she didn’t catch any of the spray. But Sutter’s white T-shirt took the brunt of it.

  Tight, white and now a bit wet to cling almost transparently to the side of those pecs and abs not blocked by his sling.

  She had no choice but to laugh at him, both to cover up her uninvited appreciation of the sight and because in fact his recoil was funny.

  “Oh, he really isn’t Reggie...” Sutter lamented, referring to the veteran service dog as he pulled on the bottom of his T-shirt to peel it away from his skin.

  Kinsey’s mind took it even further, mentally peeling the wet shirt completely off to expose his entire upper half and give her the full-on view she’d had the night she’d removed his stitches...

  Until she forced herself out of that bit of daydream.