Page 107 of Dangerous Games (Tempting SEALs 2)

"Do you know I love you?" She had to tell him. "How sorry I am that I ran from you for so long?"

"I'll spank you again for that later. How does that sound?" The forced teasing in his tone had a smile trembling on her lips.

"Promise?"

"Always, baby. Forever. You sure you're okay, Raven? You're crying." His voice was tight, and though he was holding back, she could hear the dread in his tone.

"I've been at Mother's." Not "Mom's." Never "Mom" again.

"Yeah. I knew that. Did you argue?"

"No."

"Are you hurt?"

 

; "Not physically."

His muttered curse was filled with regret.

"Just come get me, Reno." Her breathing hitched as she entered the thankfully nearly deserted deli. "I just want to go home."

She wanted to lie beside him, feel the warmth of his arms holding her, and let her tears fall. She needed to cry, not just for herself or the shattered image of the father she had loved, but for Clint.

At least she had known the fantasy of a loving parent. Her mother had always been cool, disinterested, but her father-She breathed in jerkily. She had thought he was a hero. Clint had never been given the chance to know the love of either parent, and it was breaking her heart.

She just wanted to go home, find solace in her husband's arms, then kick her brother's ass for keeping such secrets from her. That was, if Morganna didn't kick his ass first just for being a stubborn male.

Chapter 29

CLINT SLIPPED INTO MORGANNA'S HOUSE several days later using the spare key that had been kept hidden at the bottom of the mailbox. She was mad, steaming mad, but clearing up the mess of the date rape drug hadn't been easy. He had no more left his mother's home than Joe Merino called. Jenna had talked, and they had the location of the lab.

Clint had been damned surprised to learn that Morganna wasn't a part of breaking down the lab. Even more surprised to find out that she had accepted a position training to work in the local intelligence-gathering office.

Yeah, she would be good at that. She was as nosy as a damned cat. And it would keep her out of the line of fire for the next two years at least. Until he could retire. Until he could devote himself to her and maybe raising a kid or two.

The sound of the shower running upstairs caught his attention as he closed the door carefully and relocked it. He had been five days returning to her. Five days of hell. Sleeping wasn't an option; all he thought of was Morganna. He missed the warmth of her, missed the sound of her laughter, her smart-assed comments. Hell, he craved the sound of her whispered moans, the feel of her lips beneath his. Her presence.

He shook his head as he walked into the living room, drawn to the pictures Morganna kept on the light wood shelves. Unlike the pictures his mother kept, these were filled with laughter, with family. And even some who weren't family. There were several small frames of Rory Chavez with his son, Reno, and with Clint. Rory was between the two boys, his arms around both of them.

There were similar pictures of Lisa with Morganna and Raven. Pictures of both parents with their children, as well as the two Chavez children.

Rory Chavez had been a good man, and Lisa, God she had loved her kids. They had birthday parties every year, went to the beach on summer weekends, and damn, would Lisa chase after them all while they were around the water. She never let her kids out of her sight, and if the kids brought company, then they were as cherished and well loved as the Chavez kids were.

What the hell had he done with his life?

As he stared at the pictures, he thought of Lisa and Rory, their strength, their love for each other, their children, and even children who weren't their own. They had taught him more than he had realized. Too bad he had forgotten it in his determination to run from the only person he couldn't defend himself against.

Morganna.

As the sound of the shower shut off, his head lifted, turning toward the staircase at the entryway. Just that quickly his body hardened, his erection filling his jeans with a sudden, intense demand.

Clint grimaced at the hunger that spiked through his body. Damn her. In a matter of days she had anchored herself inside his soul tighter than she had ever been. Why?

His lips quirked as he turned on his heel, moving silently through the living room as he headed for the entryway and the stairs.

She was more than he had ever imagined. For so many years he had allowed his mother's actions to taint his view of women. Morganna loved to look pretty, to dance, to laugh and enjoy people, just as his mother had when she was younger.

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