Page 41 of SEAL's Secret

“Almost done. They’re putting in luxury vinyl tiles throughout, so it’s taking slightly longer than it would’ve to replace carpet, but the end result will be worth it. I wasn’t exactly planning to deal with a flooded kitchen in my rental, but at least my own things weren’t damaged. I think Aaron will be sad to see me go,” she added.

“I hear you. Funny how we each ended up temporarily living with our guys. I loved finally getting my own furniture and belongings shipped over, but it was weird to leave Hudson’s place. He’s already talking about living together when the baby arrives. It’ll probably happen before then. Things are going well, and I know the closer it gets to my due date, he’ll be worried about my going into labor.”

“Look at you,” Em joked. “Moving to Hawaii and starting your own new family. Tiny Dick would be shocked.”

Layton snorted. “Yeah, I never even told him I’m pregnant. He’ll find out eventually.”

“But speaking of baby,” Emersyn said, growing more excited, “you’ll find out in a few weeks if it’s a boy or a girl, right?”

Layton smiled. “Yep. I can’t believe it’s going so quickly. Hudson’s going to come to the big ultrasound appointment with me. I’m kind of nervous.”

Emersyn looked at her quizzically.

“Well, it’ll just be different with him there. I’ve been going myself to my OBGYN because it’s just routine stuff. It feels like a big deal having Hudson there at my side.”

“Won’t he be there for the delivery?” Emersyn asked in confusion.

“He will, so I’m going to have to get used to him seeing me in a hospital gown with my feet up in stirrups.”

Emersyn wrinkled her nose. “Now I get the issue.”

Layton laughed, nudging her playfully. “Someday it’ll be your turn, sis. I’ve seen the way Aaron looks at you. You two will probably have a houseful of kids.”

Caroline ran into the kitchen just then, bouncing up and down. “My show is over! Can you turn it on again, Mommy? It doesn’t work right.”

“We’re about to eat, baby, so no. Go wash your hands for dinner.”

“Awww,” Caroline pouted quietly but went to wash her hands anyway.

“How’d your showings go today?” Emersyn asked, grabbing three plates from the cupboard and scooping spaghetti noodles onto them. Steam rose from the noodles, and Layton’s stomach rumbled. She hadn’t realized how hungry she was.

“I don’t know,” Layton admitted. “Something seemed a bit off about it. My client asked a lot of questions about how manyvisitors that side of the island gets, how private it is, that sort of thing.”

“Maybe he doesn’t like people, Mommy,” Caroline said from the kitchen sink.

Layton exchanged a look with her sister.

“Tell me his name,” Emersyn said. “If he’s in our database, I’ll be able to look him up. He could have ties to the drug trade here,” she added quietly.

“Possibly,” Layton mused. “I actually got the impression he didn’t like the drug runners,” she said in a low voice. “They draw a lot of attention from the local police and DEA. He was complaining about that.”

“All in a day’s work,” Emersyn joked, dusting off her hands. As an analyst, she was directly involved in the spotlight that had been put on the drug-trafficking criminals. “He’s not wrong. The increased drug trade on the island has brought a lot of unwanted attention to the cartels. I know that better than anyone,” she said as Layton shuddered, recalling her sister’s kidnapping ordeal. “Still, I’ll check him out just to be sure. Send me his name later on.”

“Yeah. It’s probably nothing,” Layton assured her. “People have their quirks. Maybe he just likes the quiet.”

The women sat down to dinner, changing topics. By the time Layton got Caroline home and into bed, Hudson still wasn’t out of his briefing. She missed him. He’d always have his busy career, but she probably wouldn’t get to see him at all tonight if he was that tied up with work. Briefly, her hand landed on her stomach. Hudson had been thrilled at the way her body was changing. He eagerly undressed her every night they were together, caressing the tiny swell of her bump and then showing her how badly he wanted her.

Life was good. Not perfect, because she was starting to want him here all the time, but their relationship was moving at a nice pace. It was good they’d pulled back after she’d gotten pregnant, not immediately rushing to get married or something. While people did that sometimes, marrying someone they basically didn’t know, she and Hudson learned more about each other every day. She saw how he cared for her and Caroline. She loved him. Layton hadn’t told him yet, but she couldn’t deny it was the truth. She’d fallen for Hudson Brown, and since the very first moment she’d met him, her life hadn’t been the same.

Chapter 24

The salty breeze blew in Hudson’s face as he jogged on the beach with his teammates bright and early Saturday morning. Normally, they did PT during the week, but the men had been putting in some extra hours of training. Their briefing Friday had run late into the night, and the team had agreed to run first thing in the morning and then enjoy the rest of the weekend to themselves. There was a good chance they’d get called up the following week, deploying to the Middle East. Hudson wasn’t sure how long they’d be gone, and he was looking forward to seeing his girl later that afternoon.

“I saw Layton this morning,” Aaron commented as he jogged beside Hudson.

Hudson frowned. They’d been on base so late last night, he hadn’t gone to Layton’s house afterward, because he knew she’d be fast asleep. They didn’t live together. There was no need for him to wake her up in the dead middle of the night when he’d see her today, less than twenty-four hours later. Still, knowing his buddy had gotten to see her burned. “Oh yeah?” he asked, adrenaline coursing through him.

“Yep. I dropped Em off at her house. She’s watching Caroline for a couple of hours while Layton does an open house today.”

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