Page 48 of Single Mom's Navy Seals
Eli has already started seeking that from Jax, Liam, and Cole. He watches them with wide, admiring eyes, seeking their approval, copying their mannerisms. It’s simultaneously heartwarming and heartbreaking. I know when they eventually leave us, it will devastate Eli. He’s already attached, and honestly, so am I.
I exhale shakily, pacing across the dusty yard as I wait for Eli’s return. The air is thick with heat, my wet clothes drying, sticking uncomfortably to my skin. I stare blankly out at the pasture, watching the horses graze lazily, their movements slow and peaceful. It’s such a contrast to the turmoil roiling inside my mind.
What can I possibly do to mediate Eli’s attachment? I can’t put physical distance between him and the men without causing more harm than good. We’re all stuck here together in this cabin, the isolation ensuring constant proximity. Even if I manage to keep myself distant, I can’t keep Eli away without raising questions and causing hurt.
My mind drifts back to Jax’s confident, cocky smile, to the gentle warmth in Cole’s steady gaze, to Liam’s intense, protective eyes. Could there ever be a scenario where things work out differently? Jax seemed sure last night, confident enough to speak openly with Eli about feelings. But as much as I wish that were true, I know better. They have their own lives, their own responsibilities. Morales gave them this job temporarily, and they’ve already been with us for a week. It can’t be much longer now before they will have to return to their own lives, and we’ll have to face the threat alone.
It’s unavoidable, and it’s going to hurt like a bitch.
Before my thoughts spiral further, Eli bursts back through the door, water guns dripping, and his face lit up with excitement. Liam follows close behind, lugging two large buckets of water. He sets them down on the porch without so much as a glance in my direction.
“Thanks, Liam!” Eli beams up at him, grinning widely.
Liam gives Eli a gentle smile, the softness of his expression something I rarely see. “Anytime, buddy.”
Then he turns abruptly, walking back inside without acknowledging me. The blatant avoidance stings, even though it shouldn’t. Liam doesn’t speak to me anymore and barely looks at me. I try to tell myself that that kind of coldness and distance between us is best. Doesn’t mean my heart doesn’t feel hollow every time Liam ignores me. I push the hurt down, focusing instead on Eli’s happiness.
“Liam had the best idea,” Eli announces, gesturing to the buckets on the porch. “Now we can refill a lot! He’s so smart.”
“He is,” I agree, unable to keep a small smile from forming despite myself.
Eli’s grin widens mischievously, and before I can react, a cold jet of water hits my stomach, soaking me all over again. I gasp, laughing despite myself, and retaliate, spraying Eli until he shrieks with laughter and takes off running.
“Gotcha back!” I shout playfully, chasing him around the yard again.
“Not for long, Mama!” he squeals, ducking behind a cactus and squirting me from behind its spiny arms.
I dodge his attack, my laughter joining his as we sprint through the yard, the previous heaviness of my thoughts temporarily fading into the background.
20
COLE
Istare down at the worn pages of the Jane Austen novel in my hands, trying for the fifth time to read the same damn paragraph. My eyes slide uselessly over the words without absorbing anything, and frustration starts to bubble under my skin. With a sigh, I close the book and toss it onto the small table beside the old armchair I dragged to face the bedroom window.
The view isn’t exactly postcard-worthy, but I don’t mind. Endless stretches of desert sand sprawl beneath a merciless sun, broken occasionally by jagged rocks and shrubs browned by the relentless heat. A single large, knobby tree stands resiliently in the center of it all, its prickly leaves casting a sizable shadow despite the harsh conditions. Just beyond that tree, the metal fencing stretches into the distance, marking off the expansive territory where the wild horses roam free.
Normally, I’d find peace in this quiet isolation, but right now, my thoughts are a tangled mess. It’s been a week since Jax dropped the bombshell about kissing Ava. A week since he boldly declared he was staying with her, beyond the extent of the job. A week since I agreed, unable to deny my own growingattachment to Ava and Eli. Since then, the three of us have basically pretended the conversation never happened.
And I just can’t deny my attraction to Ava. There’s something about her quiet strength, the way she shields her pain with sarcasm and determination. I didn’t expect to notice every shift in her mood, every smile she doesn’t mean to show me. But I do. I notice all of it.
The tension is palpable, though. Liam’s avoidance of Ava has reached new extremes. He’s distant, short-tempered, and constantly busying himself with meaningless tasks around the cabin. It doesn’t take a genius to realize Liam’s need for control is clashing hard against the chaos Ava brings into his structured life. He’s running from feelings he doesn’t want to acknowledge.
Ava herself hasn’t exactly made things easier. She’s been avoiding Jax openly since their kiss, maneuvering through the house with careful precision to never find herself alone with him. With me, she’s less obvious, but I feel her hesitance, the way she keeps conversations short and superficial, always just a step out of reach. She hasn’t mentioned that moment in the grass. Hasn’t looked at me quite the same since. But I haven’t stopped thinking about the way she felt in my arms—how natural it was to hold her, how badly I wanted to brush my lips over hers, just once.
The only one unaffected by the tension crackling through the cabin is Eli. That little boy moves through the rooms blissfully unaware of the undercurrent of emotions swirling around him. He’s a bright spot of joy and laughter in a place filled with unspoken thoughts and masked desires. Watching him interact with Ava, Jax, and even Liam has become one of my favorite things.
Eli has been the happiest surprise for me in all of this. He’s sweet and sharp, curious and endlessly energetic. The way he loves Ava fiercely, without reservation, makes my chest ache softly every time I see it. He looks at us with wide, adoring eyes that make me want to be someone worthy of his hero worship.
I never imagined myself in this role, never allowed myself to consider fatherhood seriously. Growing up without my own mother, abandoned on my father’s doorstep as a baby, I never fully understood what it meant to have a complete family. My father raised me alone on our farm, stoic and reserved, never speaking about my mother or his feelings. I’d assumed that path would be mine too—solitary, unattached.
But Eli changed all that in mere days. I catch myself imagining what it would be like to have a son of my own—to have someone look up to me with that same unwavering trust. I didn’t think I’d ever want something like that, yet here I am, craving it with a fierceness that unsettles me deeply.
A flash of movement through the window draws my gaze outward again. As if my thoughts brought them, I watch as Eli runs gleefully around the yard, Ava trailing behind him, her smile bright and carefree. The joy on her face is stunning, softening her features into something even more beautiful than usual. My pulse quickens as I watch her, my mind wandering to places I shouldn’t let it.
I still feel her pressed against me—soaked, laughing, her body tangled with mine as we fell into the grass. I don’t think she realizes how close I came to kissing her. Or maybe she does, and that’s why she’s keeping her distance. But God, that moment… it felt like the beginning of something I didn’t know I’d been waiting for.
Since that first day at the motel, Ava has unexpectedly carved a place in my heart. She’s strong and brave, fighting fiercely for Eli’s safety even through her own fear. The connection between us has only grown deeper, despite her best attempts to keep her distance. That kiss with Jax changed things, made the emotions we’ve all been avoiding impossible to ignore.
