Page 13 of Unexpected Christmas with the SEAL

Cal rolled his eyes and finished his wine glass. “I’d be lying if I said you weren’t beautiful and I wasn’t attracted to you. But we don’thaveto be anything more. I’m an adult and I can be friends with another adult of the opposite sex. Nothing needs to happen between us.”

“Why aren’t you married?”

This woman switched gears faster than a Formula One driver.

“Because I was married to my work. I had a girlfriend in high school, another one while I was in flight school, then it’s just been—”

“Casual hookups since then?” she asked, finishing his sentence.

He shrugged. “Something like that. Not really fair to a person to be in a relationship with a man who is never around and always in danger.”

“No, I suppose not.”

“What about you? Why don’t you have a boyfriend?”

If she was going to ask the personal questions, that meant he could, too, right?

She huffed a derisive laugh and glanced away from him while taking a sip of her wine. “I’ve been told—by more than one guy I dated—thatI amtoo much.”

What the fuck did that mean? And who the fuck were these small-dicked pricks?

“What did they mean by that?” Cal asked, unable to completely hide the irritation in his tone.

Her smile was thin and brittle as she shook her head. “I don’t know. That I’m a big personality? I know I’m not everyone’s cup of tea. And I’m fine with that. I don’t have much of a filter. I call a spade a spade and I stand up for myself. Apparently, men don’t like that. I’mtoomuch.”

“Or they’re not enough,” he replied, his belly hot, and free hand bunching into a fist on his lap.

Her gaze dropped to his fist, then quickly lifted to his face. The sadness that had been there before was gone. What burned back at him was something brighter and more beautiful than an eclipse. His words were sinking in and she was finally seeing those assholes who said that to her, for what they really were. It wasn’t that she wastoo much. It was that theyweren’tenough.

They weren’t man enough, strong enough, or confident enough to be with such a powerful, independent, and opinionated woman.

Well, their fucking loss.

“You’re really not here because my uncles asked you to be?” she asked, her voice breathy and full of emotion. Her eyes glittered like two pieces of amber in the sunshine.

“I came by to check on you yesterday because they asked me to. But I knew you’d have everything under control. Asher asked me to pop by, but I knew I didn’t have to. I came because Iwantedto. Because I like you.”

She swallowed and her bottom lip wobbled. “I really didn’t want to be alone for Christmas.”

He smiled. “Me either.”

“I’m sorry I was such a bitch before. Pushing you away. I just hate people thinking I can’t do something. It’s confusing, you know. Being calledtoo much. But then people not thinking you’re enough at the exact same time. Like I’m not capable enough here. Or … or that I wouldn’t have a good time tagging along with my brothers and their families to Hawaii. I mean, yeah, I probably wouldn’t enjoy myself with either sets of my parents, but I wasn’t even considered. I’mtoo much, but alsonot enough.”

All he wanted to do right now was pull her against his chest, and hug her hard enough for her to realize that she was absolutely enough. She wasn’t too much. She was just right. And fuck everyone else.

Fuck her parents. Fuck her brothers. And fuck Asher and Nate for making her feel like they didn’t believe in her.

“Just because youcando something yourself doesn’t mean youhaveto,” he said gently. “If you have a team, call on them. Don’t be afraid to ask a friend, or a teammate to help you shoulder the load. To help you do it easier, better, faster. Or just because, two hands make the job less lonely.”

“I’ve never really been part of ateam. I always did solo stuff like piano and tennis. I’m the third child, the only girl and my brothers are seven and five years older than me. We were never ateam. It was always them versus me.”

Well, that was fucked up. Big brothers were supposed to look out for their little sisters, not team up against them.

He held out his hand for her to shake. “Well, meet your first teammate. Name’s Pete Callahan. But my friends call me Cal. And wearefriends now, right?”

She took his hand in her small, delicate one. “Right.”

Then, before he could let go, she pulled his hand, which propelled his body forward and crushed her mouth to his.

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