Uniform Desires (Make Mine Military Romance) (63 page)

One time in the past ten years he’d gone home. When he walked in the door it was as if he’d entered a twilight zone. His mother sat in the same chair, smoke curling around her head, high-ball glass in her left hand. She’d cracked a cunning smile when he’d walked in and fed him a sob story about his father dying and leaving her broke. Basically, she needed money.

He’d had two hundred bucks in his wallet. He’d dropped it onto the table and walked out, more disgusted with himself this time because he’d still been looking for something that wasn’t there.

Did he even have the ability to create a different kind of life for his child? He made good money from LNF, and other than a few toys he’d just let it accumulate. The apartment in Denver would probably not work though. He’d have to get a house with a yard or something, so the kid could play.

Anxiety gnawed at his stomach. He ached for a drink.

First he needed to decide what to do with Kendall.
 

The woman made his blood run hot. Without a doubt she was the sexiest woman he knew. She’d been in a couple of movies years ago, but her ads for the lingerie company were the ones he remembered. Sultry and too beguiling for her own good. It was a real challenge to correlate that woman with the one in the bedroom now, cold and hard-edged.
 

It made him wonder which was the real Kendall.

Chapter 3

Grif straightened the lapels of his suit jacket and fought to keep from fiddling as the housekeeper walked him through Herrington House. Although that wasn’t exactly the right word for the type of dwelling they were in. When he thought of “house”, a two bedroom split-level came to mind. Not this overblown cabin. Even “cabin” did not carry the weight that the massive log mansion deserved, though.
 

The best of Herrington Lumber had been used to build one of the most palatial retreats in Vail. The house was three stories tall, eighteen rooms, with huge soaring windows on all sides to capture as much of the pristine view as possible. The honeyed patina of the logs and the custom stonework, warmed of course, made the house feel rustic and inviting and he genuinely enjoyed working on the premises when Kendall met with her father. The windows were difficult to guard, but the mansion itself hung on an overlook with one meandering driveway up the side of the mountain. Easy to watch. Closed circuit cameras recorded the mountainous surroundings. Several more were strategically placed inside, easing the burden on the four man security team always on site.

Grif tipped his chin to the small bubble camera in the foyer, knowing that Chuck would be watching and reporting.
 

He had a sneaking suspicion the camera followed him as far as it could. Goodrich, head of security here at the house, didn’t appreciate outside talent coming onto his territory and he’d made it clear that the LNF contingent could leave at any time.

Luckily, the choice wasn’t up to him. It was up to the man grinning at him from the cushy chair in front of the fireplace in the den.
 

“Grif. Thank you for coming on such short notice.”
 

The older man made a move to get up, but Grif waved him back down. “Don’t get up, sir.”

Frank relaxed into the chair and motioned to the one beside him. “Sit down with me.”

Grif tried to keep his curiosity in check. He’d gotten a message from one of Frank’s many assistants at the company saying that he needed to meet for lunch the next day at the house. Grif had never been there when not watching Kendall, so it seemed a little strange to have the man’s attention focused on him.

The housekeeper, a kind, older woman by the name of Emily, brought in a tray with a long neck beer and an iced bottle of water on it. She handed the beer to Frank and him the water. Grif tossed her a wink, knowing it would make her blush.
 

She held the tray to her side as she addressed Frank. “Is there anything else, Frank?”

He shook his head and smiled at her as she walked through the doorway, pulling it shut behind her. “You know, that woman has been with me for the better part of thirty years. Longer than either of my marriages. She’s the best employee I’ve ever had, and I consider her a friend.”

It looked like there was maybe more to the relationship than that, but he didn’t say it out loud.

Frank watched him carefully, grinning at Grif’s cool expression. “Not fooling you, am I? Yes, we’ve been involved for many years. But Emily prefers to keep it quiet. I knew you would spot that.”

Grif snorted. “And what does the current Mrs. Herrington think?”

Frank shrugged. “Well, Emily is a good woman and won’t be involved with me when I’m with another woman. Deedra knows something is there, but she’s not sure what, exactly. She’s already demanded I get rid of Emily.”

“And are you?”

“Hell, no!” Frank laughed until he fell into a coughing spell. “Emily will be around long after Deedra is gone.”

He shook his head at the older man’s reasoning. “Why did you marry Deedra then, if you didn’t expect her to be around long and she’s rocking the boat?”

Frank sighed, staring at the fire flickering in the stone fireplace. “Well, sometimes mortality starts to creep up on you and you look for things that make you feel alive. For a while, Deedra made me feel alive. Now I think she’s trying to kill me.”

Grif looked sharply at the older man, but he was waved off. “I don’t mean literally. Anyway, that’s not what I called you here for. What do you think of Kendall’s chances with the board?”

He narrowed his eyes at the older man. “Well, it’s not my forte, but I don’t think she’s doing too bad. She has good ideas, it’s just convincing the board to implement them.”

Frank nodded. “Yes, they’re pretty old fashioned when it comes to certain things and Kendall is definitely innovative. I think they would be more open to her suggestions if she were more settled. The modeling thing kind of hurt her.”

Grif shook his head. “How can they hold her successful career against her? She worked her ass off to get where she did, then gave it up to work with you. I would think that would speak to her dedication.”

“Well, I can see it, but they’ll always think I’m pulling for her because she’s my daughter, not necessarily because she’s the right person for the job.”

Frank was right.
 

God, what would they do when they found out she was pregnant?

Take the company from the Herringtons and give it to that asshat Hunter.

“It would help solidify her position if she were married.”

Frank watched the flames dance in the fireplace, but Grif felt like he was under a microscope.

He wasn’t normally a sentimental person, but the thought of marrying Kendall didn’t send him into a panic mode. It actually gave him kind of a warm feeling in his stomach. There were hidden depths to her he was dying to delve into. Desire wouldn’t be a problem. The one time they’d given in and slept together had only fed his need for her.
 

Did she feel the same? He seriously doubted it. She’d made it perfectly clear he was an employee, no more.

“It would,” he agreed slowly. “Although I don’t believe she has any prospects.”

Frank cocked an eyebrow and regarded him carefully. “No?”

Grif didn’t like feeling on the defensive, so he kept his mouth shut.
 

“Well,” Frank continued, “if there were, I think her chances for being voted in to the CEO position would be secure.”

Narrowing his eyes, he turned more toward the older man. “Speak your mind, Frank. What are you trying to get at?”

The good old boy attitude fell away and Frank crossed his hands over his stomach. “I think Kendall is going to be heartbroken when the board votes against her, which they’re going to do because they don’t think she’s done her time for this position. I’m willing to do anything for my little girl, even if it means arranging for an option she would never think of to secure her future. You’re the first man to come into our lives who I thought would be a good match for her.”

Grif sat back in the chair, shocked that he’d actually laid it out on the table like that. “So you want me to marry your daughter in the hopes that a married woman is more appealing than a single woman?”

Kendall’s father waved a hand. “Exactly. Hunter is single as well, but you know as well as I do that it’s different for men than women.”

Granted, but would they be perpetuating the incongruity if they seriously entertained this idea?
 

Then too, Kendall was a phenomenal woman, but could he actually live with her twenty-four hours a day? Yes, she intrigued him and turned him on physically, but emotionally they didn’t seem to have much in common. She was the pampered daughter of a very powerful man, while he was the hard-scrabble kid from the wrong side of the tracks with no father.

Grif didn’t know that he would suit anybody emotionally.

“So, have you talked to her about this?”

Frank laughed out loud and ran a hand over his gray hair. “Hell, no, are you kidding? She’d fry me and throw me off the mountain if she knew.”

“So, how do you expect me to do this?”

The older man grinned and shrugged again. “You’re a resourceful kind of guy. You’ll think of something. I would make it worth your while to give up a couple years to stay here in Vail.”

Grif didn’t like the direction the conversation had taken. He didn’t mind working for his money, but that sounded a little shady to him. And disrespectful of Kendall. “If I did decide to marry your daughter, it wouldn’t be for you. It would be because we’d decided we’d be stronger together.”

Frank raised his brows as Grif wished him a good day and headed for the door.

He left Herrington House more shaken than when he arrived. He climbed into his SUV and made his way back down the mountain to Kendall’s condominium, his mind racing. If they got married…fuck, was he really thinking this? He’d gone thirty-four years dodging bullets, but he felt like he was in a kill box with half a dozen scopes trained on him.
 

He glanced in the rearview mirror and cringed. His control was shot. Sleep had been elusive last night, and he had a feeling it would be even more so tonight.
 

Chapter 4

As soon as the suite door opened, she knew who it was. If she were honest with herself, she’d admit that she’d been listening for him to come in all day. A new guy with an eye patch, Hispanic, had shown up for Parks’ shift and she’d been ready to scream with disappointment. Ortiz seemed nice enough, but he wasn’t the one she wanted.

Not that she wanted Parks there. She just…hell, she didn’t know. Even if she didn’t let him into her troubles, she wanted to know he would be nearby in case she did. Spoiled? Maybe.
 

She’d taken all three pregnancy tests, and all three had told her the same thing. Pregnant. First time in four years she’d had sex, and she got pregnant. Even though Parks had worn a condom.
 

Just her luck. Trying to land the job of her life and Murphy’s Law had to step in to ruin it.

Well, not necessarily ruin her life. Maybe just seriously complicate. She’d always wanted a family. Just not right now.
 

Dragging the chenille throw higher up her chest, she listened for movement from the other room. Her breath caught when she heard the distinctive sound of logs being settled into the fireplace, then the crackle of sap burning. The fireplace in the living room was the only one that burned actual wood; the rest were gas.
 

Parks liked the smell of the wood smoke; she knew because he lit the fire every chance he got. She didn’t mind as long as he tended it.

There was a swift knock at her sitting room door.

“Yes?”

“Can you come out? We need to talk.”

Kendall debated telling him no, but that wouldn’t get them anywhere. They needed to discuss what was going on; she just didn’t know if she wanted to hear the answers to the questions swirling in her heart.

“Just a minute.”

She flung the throw over the back of the settee and crossed to the bathroom. She’d let her hair down for the night and changed into yoga pants and a forest green cable-knit sweater. Not very fashionable, but comfortable. Pulling an elastic from the drawer beneath the sink, she bundled her hair into a ponytail at the base of her neck. Her makeup had disappeared from yesterday and she honestly didn’t feel like reapplying it.
 

He would get her just the way she was.

She flushed as she imagined him taking her any way he could get her. Parks had been very clear that he’d wanted to continue their dalliance, but Kendall couldn’t sacrifice her pride to do that. It had been a momentary lapse when she’d given in. She’d been raised better than to be an easy lay and he hadn’t hinted at anything more. Being that cold about a relationship just wasn’t in her make-up.

Taking a deep breath, she crossed to the sitting room door and twisted the knob.

Parks stood up when she entered the room and Kendall struggled not to bobble. He was one of the best looking men she’d ever seen, which said a lot considering her background. Grif himself didn’t seem to care, though women fawned over him. Kendall thought his eyes drew them in. The shattered, multi-colored look of his irises always caught her off guard. They were so unique.