Page 36 of Callahan's Haven

Too soon she pulled her mouth away and rested her cheek on his, her warm breath puffing close to his ear, whispering, “Has anyone ever told you you’re a good kisser?”

He nuzzled into her hair and grinned. “Not lately.”

She didn’t respond right away but finally whispered back, “Good,” before patting his shoulders. “I better get inside. I’m sure they’re waiting for me.”

“I’m sure you’re right,” he said, letting her slide down his body while he mentally cursed the amount of fabric between them. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Good,” she said again. He waited while she ran up the walk and opened the door, the warmth in his chest spreading when she turned to wave before going inside.

* * *

“I’ve got something for you,” Garrett said the next morning after Declan and Solace had left the van. He handed Cal a braided blue leather bracelet wrapped with thick silver beads and several charms dangling from it.

“Aw, you shouldn’t have.” Cal took the piece of jewelry and turned it in his hand before grinning at his friend. “I don’t think it’s gonna fit my wrist.”

“Well, as much as I like you, I’m not at the stage of giving you jewelry yet,” he said with a wink. “It’s for Haven.”

Cal’s brows snapped together. “And you’re making jewelry—I’m assuming you made this—for my girl, why?”

“Yes, I’ve been working on it for a couple of days,” he said taking it from Cal’s unresisting fingers. “Hold on.”

Cal waited while Garrett flipped on a small monitor, the screen blank. “Now, watch.” He fiddled with the clasp and a red dot appeared. “See this blip right here?”

“Yes.” The stationary red blip sat on a GPS map with coordinates beside it. “That’s us.”

“No,” Garrett said. “Well, yes,” he qualified when Cal frowned at him. “But it’s coming from this.” He held up the bracelet.

Garrett still surprised him sometimes. “You, my friend, are a genius.”

“I know,” he answered with a smirk. “Be sure to let Declan and Solace know.”

* * *

Cal sat in his vehicle and watched Haven leave her last class of the day and make her way to the quad with Solace not far behind her. The Colonel’s meeting was in just over twenty-four hours, meaning he could legitimately be in Haven’s life for maybe two more days—counting Saturday when they dismantled everything.

At this point, that wasn’t acceptable.

And Haven? Well, she was attracted to him, sure. He wasn’t stupid. But maybe, just maybe, there was something more.

He toyed with the bracelet Garrett had made. He was supposed to meet with her in a couple of hours at her dorm room. She wanted him to come up for supper. He grinned. Maybe he could have her for dessert.

He checked the time on his dash—almost four o’clock. That gave him plenty of time to get to his hotel, shower, change, and get back with a few minutes to spare—maybe take some time to calm the fuck down. He didn’t expect Hope and Destiny to be there, so he and Haven would be alone—truly alone—for the first time.

“Garrett, I’m heading back to the hotel to take care of some things, so go ahead and disconnect me. I’m leaving the comm in my room and will call you if I need you.”

“Gotcha.”

Almost exactly two hours later, Cal knocked on Haven’s door with the jacket he’d taken off slung over his shoulder. He ignored the appreciative looks from some of the ladies in residence, but scowled when he overheard, “Lucky bitch,” coming from the one entering her room across the hall.

Cal relaxed his face and smiled as the door opened but frowned with Haven’s harried appearance. “Is everything okay.” He didn’t really need to ask. The smell of scorchedsomethingwas pretty strong.

“No, it’s not.” She pushed her hair behind her ears and wiped the sweat from her brow. “Come in. If you dare.”

“The smoke’s not that bad,” he said, stepping inside her suite and shutting the door.

“You should’ve been here twenty minutes ago.” She grabbed his hand and pulled him behind her to the kitchen, and then dropped it to point at something he was sure had been edible at one point. “Cal, meet Stouffer’s Lasagna.”

Oh, so that’s what it was. “Hmm…” He laid his jacket on the back of a dinette chair. “Maybe we can salvage something from the middle?”

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