Operation Family (12 page)

“Why does that very comment send uncertainties rushing through my mind?”

“
Amore,
that’s because you are a worrier, where I’m the planner and will work us out of any situation we find ourselves in. So have no qualms.” He opened the door and the heat from the house welcomed them. “I could start a fire.”

“I believe you’re stalling.” She raised her eyebrow, waiting for him to spill whatever had prompted his silence. “Let’s sit down and you can tell me what’s on your mind.” With her hand in his, she strolled through the entryway and into the living room toward the sofa. “Now out with it.”

“So demanding.” He smirked and pulled her onto his lap, surprising her. But she didn’t pull away. “The cabinet Dad refinished is beautiful. It will take the place of the counter in the downstairs bathroom. He’s got the hole cut out for the sink already and—”

Biting back a sigh, she interrupted him. “This isn’t what I meant, but we can take the long way around to you telling me what’s gotten you worked up. Though I’ll warn you, now that the girls have returned to sleeping through the night, I had considered other adventures for this evening.”

“Now that sounds promising.” He ran his hand up her thigh, slipping under the edge of the long sleeve shirt.

“Not until you confide in me.” She pressed her hand over his, stopping his movements.

“Dad thinks I should retire. Twins are twice as demanding, so it’s time to settle down and be a proper family man.”

Not wanting him to jump to any conclusion, she stilled. “What do you want?”

“I was just about to ask you that, after all you’d be the one stuck with the girls if I’m deployed. You’d be alone, without any help, since you are against me hiring a nanny.” He reminded her of the earlier conversation and let his head fall back against the edge of the sofa.

“I can handle the girls. If I need help, we can get a nanny, or there are always your parents and occasionally babysitters. Don’t worry about that, you need to do what’s right for you, what you actually want.”

He lifted his head back up until their gazes met. “What about you? It’s not just about me anymore. I need to consider you, Gabriella, and Sophia.”

“Mac, if it was about your career I wouldn’t have come to Virginia. I would have fought you for the girls and kept them in Texas. I wouldn’t have agreed to this, and I wouldn’t be here with you now, opening up my heart to you. I would never ask you to be other than what you are, and your career adds to who you are. If you want to retire then do it, if you want to continue know that I’ll support you.”

To some, it might have been empty words, but to her it wasn’t. His career was important to him and she understood that. Hell, she respected it. What he did was an amazing thing. There would be times when he was gone more than he was home, there would be stress and uphill battles, but she realized she was in this for the long haul. It might have started out for the girls, but she was falling in love with him. It scared her that it was happening so quickly, and it made her want to put her heels in the sand, but it was also empowering. She never knew love could make her feel so free.

“Thank you.” He leaned forward and claimed her lips for the first time. It was tender at first, just a light peck, but she leaned into him and it grew deeper as he sucked her bottom lip into his mouth before letting it go again. She released a soft moan as he slid his tongue into her mouth. Then he pressed one last kiss on her lips before pulling back.

Damn, that man is good.

Before she could gather her thoughts, he dove back into the conversation. “I don’t want to give it up. Retirement wouldn’t suit me; I’m not one to do nothing. I know you and the girls would keep me busy, but I need the rush I get from my job.”

“You don’t need to defend your decision to me. I know everything will work out fine. When you’re home we’ll make the moments count. I only ask one thing.”

“If it’s joint custody of the twins, you have it. I’ll calling Mr. Batty tomorrow to have him draw up the paperwork right away. I don’t want to take the chance that I could be called up on a mission before the paperwork is signed.”

She shook her head. “It’s not that. I want you to promise me you’ll do everything in your power to come home to us.” Swallowing her tears, she watched how his eyes glaze over as if he was thinking about the men he’d lost, the men who would never make it back home to their families.

“I will,
amore
, I will.”

The last few days had flown by, leaving just over a week until Christmas, and there was still so much Mac wanted to get done. They had only been in Virginia a short time but Nicole and the twins had settled in comfortably and everything was going smoothly. Even their shopping expedition had gone over without a hitch, and he despised shopping. Thanks to his parents, it was a day they were able to spend completely alone together, and it gave them time to get to know each other better. He had tried to take things slow, but he wasn’t sure how much longer he could hold off his desires to have her in the most intimate way possible.

He pulled the last box of Christmas decorations from one of the guest bedroom closets where he had stored it and glanced out the window for the hundredth time. The package from Mr. Batty with the custody papers and Nicole’s Christmas gift had been overnighted, now all he had to do was wait for them. Instead of stalking the mailman, he decided to gather the Christmas ornaments, so that evening they could decorate the tree. This year he had decided on a real Christmas tree, one he had gone out hours before to cut down himself. It would be the first real tree since he had lived with his parents. Most years he had been too busy to consider decorating and last year his team volunteered for a mission around the holidays, so they hadn’t even been home.

This Christmas was going to be the first memorable one since he was a child. He’d make it special for his new family. The girls wouldn’t remember it but they’d have a picture album to look back on, and even if they didn’t it was something he and Nicole would always cherish. Their first Christmas together, the four of them.
Look at me, I’m turning into a family man
.

Tires crunching on the gravel driveway had him setting the box aside and going back to the window just in time to see Angelo’s truck making its way toward the house. What could he want at this time of the day? He should be in his office preparing or in court prosecuting the next big case. Angelo didn’t have the highest conviction rate in the JAG core without putting in endless hours. It was unlike him to leave his office while there was still sunlight.

With only one way to find out, he turned and headed downstairs to the front door. He stepped into the hallway just as Nicole came out of the nursery with Gabriella and Sophia on each hip. “Someone’s coming up the drive, are you expecting anyone?”

“It’s Angelo.” As she neared her, he reached over and plucked Sophia from Nicole’s arms. “How’s my sweet pea?”

“It seems when you’re around no one wants me.” Nicole bounced Gabriella up on her hip and shook her head at the girls. “Somehow I went from being their whole world, to second place.”

“You want Mommy, too, don’t you?” He glanced down at Sophia, who only giggled in response. “See I told you. Does the fact that
I
want you make up for it?” He slid his hand up her arm, teasing his finger along the lines of her freckles.

“Maybe you’ll have to show me just how much you want me,” she teased.

A truck door shut, reminding him time was short before Angelo would be ringing the doorbell. “Soon,
amore
, soon.” Not having time to show her just how much how he wanted her, he headed downstairs. He had been waiting to take things further but was respecting that she might need time. Everything in her life had changed so quickly he didn’t want to rush her.

“Mac…” The concern in her voice made him pause halfway down the steps and turn back to her. “As much as I like the sound of Mommy, are you sure it’s the best idea?”

“We agreed we’d raise the girls as our own. Mommy, Daddy, that’s who we are to them. When they’re older we’ll tell them about their parents, but for now this is the best way. Our little girls are blessed with two sets of parents, one watching over them and us.” The doorbell rang and he was forced to put his worries for their future aside. He bounced Sophia on his hip. “Let’s find out what my brother wants.”

“Mac, I know you’re in there. Open up.” Angelo yelled through the closed door.

“Wait.” On the last step, Nicole stopped him with a brief touch on his shoulder. “Give me Sophia and I’ll take the girls back upstairs. You might need to be alone.”

“I doubt it’s anything like that but whatever he’s here for can be said in front of you. Remember, no secrets. We’re a team now, we face any issue together.” Keeping Sophia in his arms, Mac pulled open the door. “I was just checking to see if Hell had frozen over, you never leave work at this time of day.”

“Which one are you, little one?” Angelo asked the baby in Mac’s arms as if he thought she’d answer.

“Sophia.” Mac tipped his head. “Gabriella is over there.”

“How do you keep them straight?”

“Sophia’s hair in two shades lighter than Gabriella’s and her temperament is a little different. She’s more easy-going and is the snuggle bug of the two.” Nicole came to stand next to Mac. “She’s also a little smaller in size.”

“Women notice those things. Men would need shirts to tell them apart.” Angelo pulled his finger back from Sophia. “Are you going to invite me in? Or leave us all stand in the cold until we’re sick? That’s fine with me but I don’t think you want two sick babies on your hands with the holidays.”

“Come in.” Mac stepped back allowing his brother to enter, then shut the door and strolled toward the living room.

“Can I get you some coffee or anything, Angelo?”

“No thank you.” He smiled at Nicole. “I’ve got to be back in court shortly, so I only have a few minutes.”

“Are you going to tell me what brings you here or shall I start guessing?” He sat Sophia down in the playpen.

“Can we have a minute alone?”

“Just…” Mac started to tell Angelo just to tell him whatever it was but Nicole cut him off.

“Go ahead, I’ve got the girls.” She sat Gabriella down next to Sophia and looked between the men. “It’s fine.”

Mac caught Nicole’s hand and tipped his head toward the library. “I’ll be just down the hall.”

“It’s only going to take a minute,” Angelo said from behind them.

Mac shared one last took with Nicole before forcing himself to step away and stroll down the hallway. Inside the library, he shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans and waited. Whatever Angelo wanted to talk to him about alone had better be important, because in that moment he had just wanted to be with Nicole and the girls. They were supposed to be spending the day getting the house ready for Christmas and enjoying the normalcy of life when he wasn’t on Navy duty.

Angelo shut the door behind him and cut to the chase. “I spoke with Dad this morning. He mentioned he suggested you retire.”

“If you’re here to try to convince me to retire, you’re wasting your time.”

“Actually I’m here to tell you to think twice before you jump into a decision. The military is something we’ve wanted our whole lives. Could you see yourself living the dull life that others lead, leaving behind the excitement? This isn’t something you can change your mind about once the paperwork is started. You know our parents have always wanted us to be happy and have supported our careers. You’ve just thrown Dad for a loop, making him a granddad without any warning.”

Mac rolled his shoulders and tried to force the tension away. “I’ve already spoken to Nicole about it, I’m not retiring.”

“Nicole? How serious are things between you two?”

“Serious enough that she has a say.” Mac had always been superstitious and didn’t want to say she was the one he’d been waiting for all these years, but it was what he was thinking.

“Seems like things are progressing between you two rather quickly. Have you thought this through?”

“I have. She’s not one of those flag-chasing women who hang around the bars military personnel frequent. Nicole is unlike any woman I’ve met, and we’re going to raise the twins together.”
More than that if I have my say.

“Mom might be right. She said you had fallen for Nicole, but I didn’t believe her. I didn’t think a woman could ever tame my big brother.” Angelo let out a light laugh.

“Tame…not the word I would have used, but whatever it is, it isn’t so bad. Maybe you should consider it. You know there’s more to life than just the next big case.” As the words left Mac’s lips he wondered when he’d started thinking about more than just the latest mission.
When Nicole entered my life, that’s when.

“They’ve already been telling me it’s time for me to think of the same thing. That I could have a successful legal practice outside of the military, that I need to find a wife of my own.” With a distant look in his eyes, Angelo slipped his hand into the pocket of his Marine dress uniform. “Can you really see a woman settling for a workaholic like me?”

“You’d be surprised. Look at Nicole.”

“Women like her are hard to come by, especially in your line of work.” Angelo’s shoulders slumped just enough to make Mac wonder if his brother had been searching for a serious relationship.

Even though Mac had been adopted, while Angelo had been born to their parents a few years later, they were still two peas from the same pod. They were close, sharing the same goals and dreams most of their lives. Even now, he could see Angelo wanted what he had, he wanted a woman he could come home to when the days were done. What their mother called the big old Italian heart. They were protective of women, even strangers, and they both wanted to stand up for what was right.

“I’ve got to get back to the base. I’ll see you at Mom and Dad’s for Christmas dinner, right? I have plans to mark my nieces so I can tell them apart.” Angelo broke the silence that had settled over them.

“Nothing permanent,” Mac warned, then nodded. “We’ll be there. Nicole and I have decided to incorporate traditions into the Christmas celebration for the girls. Just like we always went out with Dad to cut down our own Christmas tree, we’re going to do that once the girls are older. Christmas dinner with everyone is one we’re not going to lose, though Nicole mentioned doing it here next year to take some of the burden off Mom, but we’ll see what the year brings.”

“Good, then I’ll see everyone on Christmas.”

This was the first Christmas since Mac was a boy that he was actually looking forward to Christmas. For the first time in a long time, there seemed to be something to celebrate. He had two beautiful daughters and a woman he wanted in his life for years to come. Everything was perfect.