Page 32 of SEAL's Secret

“Um, wow.” She blinked, feeling overwhelmed.

“Shit. Come sit down,” he said, taking her hand and guiding her into his kitchen. “I stocked up on saltines and ginger ale for you.”

Layton sank down into a chair as Hudson got her some food. The entire scene felt so damn domestic. “What do your teammates think of my temporarily moving in here?”

Hudson shrugged. “They weren’t too surprised. I mean—we are having a kid together.”

“When did you tell them I was pregnant?”

“Well, I’m ashamed to say that Aaron told the guys. I was—well, it took me a bit to get used to the idea. Hey. Why the tears?” he asked, coming to crouch beside her.

“I don’t like feeling like I was your dirty little secret—like you didn’t want to acknowledge that we’d slept together.”

“Princess,” he said, shushing her. “I would shout from the rooftops that I’d been with you. You’re fucking amazing. Perfect,” he assured her. “I’m not really the kind of guy to kiss and tell, so they were surprised we’d even been together that way.”

She nodded, swiping away a tear. “Emersyn, too,” she admitted. “She had no idea anything between us had happened.”

Hudson looked at the clock on the stove and then back at her. “Why don’t we go over a few things now while it’s quiet. Caroline’s a cute kid, but I’m guessing we can’t discuss everything in front of her. Does she know about the baby?”

“Yes, but she doesn’t totally understand. It’ll seem more real when I’m further along.”

Hudson’s gaze ran over her, taking in the swell of her breasts. The dress flowed over her belly, but there was no bump yet. His eyes grew hot as he looked at her. “What?” she asked, flushing.

“You’re beautiful,” he said. He caught her hand in his, his thumb lightly caressing her skin. Hudson cleared his throat and stood, trying to get his mind on the task at hand. “How about we go over that stuff now.”

Chapter 18

Two weeks later, Layton pulled up to a newly listed home in her rented vehicle, her clients in the back seat. “I think you’ll love the layout of this property,” she told the young couple. “The patio doors open to a beautiful pool and stunning backyard. It’s private and so lovely.”

“We can’t wait to see it,” the woman eagerly said. “Everything is so expensive here, but we’re ready to purchase our first home.”

“I’ll find you the right one,” Layton assured them.

They got out of the car, and Layton didn’t miss the diamond ring gleaming in the sunlight on the woman’s finger. The couple were newly engaged and eager to start their life together. She walked to the lockbox on the front door as they trailed behind her, already excitedly discussing the home’s features. Layton wistfully glanced back at them before typing in the code. She’d been young and in love once, too. She’d ended up with a beautiful daughter and sham of a marriage.

Now she was carrying the baby of another man, and she had no idea what the future would bring. Her shipping containers were finally due to arrive next week, so she and Caroline would be out of Hudson’s way. They’d generally behaved as roommates during her brief stay, the situation new but still in flux. Hudson hadn’t touched her since the night she’d moved in, but Layton didn’t miss the way he looked at her sometimes. Layton felt it, too, the inexplicable connection between them. They weren’t dating. They weren’t together. They’d made a baby during a night of wild love, and the emotions churning through her were too complicated to even begin to name.

Layton gasped as she opened the front door, seeing the house she was about to show had been ransacked. “Holy crap,” she said, stepping back without entering. The couple behind her stopped talking and gawked in surprise. “I’m calling the police,” Layton said, immediately dialing 911.

While she was new to the Hawaiian real estate business, the use of lockboxes came with a risk. Unauthorized people could become privy to the code and gain access. There’d even been instances when potential buyers saw the agent type in the code and then returned to rob the property.

“We’re going to have to wait for the police to arrive,” she told the couple. Layton glanced at the time on the phone. She needed to pick up her daughter from daycare in just over an hour. Hudson was training on the water today with his teammates—not that Caroline was his responsibility.

She huffed out a sigh. Life would be even more complicated with two kids. Even if Hudson was involved with raising the baby, he had an unpredictable schedule. Perhaps she needed to look into hiring a nanny. Layton had a flexible schedule, but she’d often need to operate outside of normal daycare hours.

Sirens wailed in the distance, and she frowned. She needed to call this in to her office as well. As the police cars pulled up, she was relaying the information over the phone. Not exactly how she wanted to start her first week of showings, but she’d deal with this and then find some other properties for the young couple.

***

“What? That’s awful!” Emersyn declared over dinner that night.

Layton had gotten stuck at the scene for over an hour. She’d called a new mom friend she’d recently met at daycare, and Caroline was currently having a playdate and dinner with their family. It amazed Layton how quickly her daughter had adapted and made new friends here in Honolulu. Layton would owe the mom a night out as well by reciprocating on the babysitting. As soon as she had furniture in her home, that is. She could hardly bring another kid over to Hudson’s home. Things were slightly awkward there as it was.

“It is awful. The home was beautiful,” Layton told her. “It was burglarized and completely ransacked, but whoever broke in also vandalized the property. The police don’t know if it was some type of vendetta against the homeowners or just a senseless, random crime. I feel bad for the property owners and the potential buyers.”

“Well, what about you?” Emersyn asked worriedly. “What if you’d walked in on the criminals?”

Layton swallowed. “The thought did cross my mind. It’s not likely a crime such as that would’ve occurred in broad daylight.”

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