Page 10 of The Cold Ride
Rory still took my breath away.
She was as stunning as ever with strawberry blonde hair that she had fashioned into a long braid that fell over a slim shoulder. She wore no makeup. But she had flawless, smooth golden skin with thick, inky eyelashes that didn’t need makeup.
But the woman I remembered had never shown any fear. But I spied it in her eyes, the pale green a turbulent sea of emotions.
She winced and jerked her arm from my grasp. “James—”
Jesus Christ. Simply hearing my name in her throaty alto brought that night back. I’d touched the heavens only to plummet into the darkest hell afterward. My body hummed being near her again, and even my dick twitched. Stupid bastard. But I would never give in to her quixotic pull again.
And my fury knew no bounds. She’d fucked me, only to screw me even worse once the ardor had cooled. I didn’t hold back my fury one bit and chewed out. “Don’t try to deny that she’s my daughter, Rory. She looks like the spitting image of my mother at that age. And I want to know why the fuck you didn’t contact me? I had a right to know she existed. I cannot believe you kept me in the dark all these years.”
“I wasn’t going to deny that she’s your daughter. But explanations will have to wait until later.” She drew herself up, her spine straightening, and stared me down without a hint of emotions.
How could she be so fucking cold?
“No. You need to explain right now. You’ve had ten years to contact me and inform me that we have a kid,” I shouted, sounding unhinged. My voice boomed in the lobby.
But I didn’t give a fuck. My hands flexed. I should take her over my knee and turn her ass red for what she did. When I think of all I missed out on—the first steps, her first words, her first day of school, when she lost her first tooth and experienced her first heartbreak. Every minute of the last decade. My fury knew no bounds.
A hand gripped my shoulder. I shot a furious glare over my shoulder at Lucas.
But he calmly said, “I know you’re upset, and you have every right to be, dude. But it’s not just about you. There’s a little girl in this house who doesn’t know who you are to her, and you don’t want to upset her by having her overhear you shouting at her mother. Take a deep breath.”
Instead of ripping him a new one, I sucked in a breath like he suggested. And then another to calm myself and rein my fury under control. Once I was reasonably sure I wouldn’t rip her damn head off, I directed my attention back to Rory. “Tonight, once she’s sleeping, we need to have a chat. And don’t try and dodge it. If you don’t come to me, I will come to you. Understood?”
“Yes.” She nodded curtly and glanced at Lucas with thanks in her eyes. And then she rushed down the hallway like the hounds of hell were after her. Maybe they were. Our unit hadn’t been dubbed the Night Terrors without just cause.
I shrugged Lucas off, left him in the lobby, and climbed the stairs two at a time. Strode to my room and went inside, slamming the door behind me. I didn’t give a shit if I upset people with my direct questions. I was fucking pissed. And I had every right to be.
And I sat on the bed as the thought hit me. Fuck, I had no idea how to be a dad. Would Amelia even want me as her father?
5
10 years ago
Virginia Beach near Little Creek
Fuck, it felt good to be home. Even if I found some of the antics of those in attendance rather childish. But then, I always had a hard time the first few weeks after I returned stateside from deployment.
A lot of guys drank to forget their time overseas. But for me, drinking made the memories worse. Not that I didn’t plan on kicking back a few tonight, because I sure as shit was, but I didn’t need it.
Although, sometimes, like now, I realize I should have avoided the party altogether. But I didn’t want to seem standoffish with my new unit. And yeah, we’d served the past six months together overseas. But this was different. I’d become friends with them.
And I was trying to integrate and be part of the team. Even though I was still working through all the shit that went down with my last unit. Only a handful of us made it home. And I’d struggled with survivor’s guilt. Because I didn’t know why I made it back when they didn’t.
But for a reason I couldn’t begin to fathom, I had survived.
Grabbing four beers out of a massive bucket filled with ice, I headed down the beach for a breather, away from the bonfires and the drinking contests and stupid shit. I simply wasn’t in the mood for that type of theatrics.
I walked a ways down the beach. The sun had begun setting in the west, and evening turned into a gray twilight before full night descended. There was a full moon rising on the horizon. It hung low over the Atlantic. Its bright light reflected on the black water.
When I was far enough away from the bonfires that they looked small, I was about to take a seat on the beach and drink when I spied her. Slender, with legs for days, she was curled on a small, colorfully striped blanket hidden by a massive piece of driftwood. Something about her essence, beyond her knockout form, drew me.
Shifting my direction, I walked toward her. Maybe tonight wouldn’t be a total waste. “Hey.”
“Hey, yourself. Did you bring those extra for me?” She nodded toward the beers in my hand with a hopeful smile. The flash of straight white teeth biting her lush bottom lip reeled me in further like a fish on a hook.
I hadn’t, but found myself nodding, liking her daring. “Possibly. It depends, though.”
