Protecting Melissa (Holiday Cove 4)

My cheeks warmed at the idea of being wrapped in his arms and I squirmed at the flood of heat throughout the rest of my body as one thought led to another. Chase carrying me downstairs to bed.

But instead of settling me next to my son, he kissed my neck and traced his fingers over my curves. Then his hands would disappear underneath my sweater and do all kinds of things to me…

“Mama?”

The small, sleepy voice nearly made me jump out of my skin. I flushed as I stared down at my small son, humiliated that I’d been having such…vivid thoughts…all while inches away from my five-year-old. That mother of the year trophy is gonna be all mine. Skipping school, running away with a stranger, and now fantasizing about said stranger. Yeah…excellent parenting.

“Yes, sweetheart?” I brushed away the lock of hair across his forehead.

“Am I going to school now?” Jackson asked, his voice unsure.

I shook my head. “Not today, baby.”

To my surprise, a huge smile brightened his face. “We’re staying here? On the boat? All day?”

I laughed softly and nodded. “I think so. We’ll ask Chase.”

“Yay!”

“Shh!” I put my fingers to my lips. “Chase might be sleeping. Let’s be respectful.”

Even as I said it, I wondered if he’d even gone to bed last night. In my quick search of the boat the evening before, I’d found two small bedroom quarters, a bathroom, and a small kitchen that included a small table like you’d find in an RV.

Again, Matt’s taste for the simpler things in life shown through. His boat was immaculate and looked just like it probably had the day he’d selected it from a showroom. Still, nothing was over the top and in comparison to Henry’s yacht that had a pool, Jacuzzi, and seven bedrooms and a gourmet kitchen, it was a little on the plain side.

Oddly enough, even in the one afternoon we’d spent aboard, it felt homier to me than the yacht ever had.

I had a sneaking suspicion that had more to do with my company than the physical place. There was something about Chase that relaxed me and his quiet but strong presence was exactly what I needed to keep me from completely losing my grip on my emotions and sanity in the middle of the chaos that swirled around me.

“Tell you what, I’m going to go make some breakfast. Do you want to help? I’ll let you put the blueberries in the pancakes before I flip them.”

Jackson bolted out of bed. “Can I flip one? Please, please!”

I nodded. “Sure, baby. But remember, quietly, okay?”

We freshened up and rotated through the bathroom before going to the kitchen. I noticed the door to the second bedroom was closed and assumed Chase was sleeping inside. The kitchen was in the main room, not too far from the bedrooms, so I made sure to work as quietly as possible as Jackson and I got everything ready.

“Mmm, what smells so good?”

I jumped—experiencing my second miniature heart attack of the morning—at the sound of Chase’s voice from the stairs that dropped down from the top deck. He finished his descent and smiled at Jackson and me from the bottom of the stairs. He was wearing a different shirt, but what looked to be the same pair of jeans from the day before. His jaw was freshly shaved and his hair looked damp from a shower. I didn’t know how I hadn’t heard the shower turn on as it was right next to the bedroom Jackson and I shared.

Apparently, Chase was some kind of shower ninja. I added that to the list of things I knew about him.

“We’re making pancakes!” Jackson bellowed, hoisting up a tin of frozen blueberries I’d spotted in the freezer the day before. “With these!” The hint of wonder in his small voice made it seem as though the tin contained flecks of gold or some other type of treasure.

Chase smiled. “Sounds good to me. You think you can load one up for me?”

Jackson nodded and I smiled at the easy camaraderie that had cropped up between them. As the house staff was so distant, Jackson usually took a little bit of time to open up to strangers. He loved to play with other kids, but around adults, he was shy. However, with Chase, he was bright and vibrant as though they’d known each other all their lives.

“How did you sleep?” Chase asked, coming around to the other side of the counter.

I glanced at him as he started putting a pot of coffee on. “I should be asking you that question.”

“How you slept? Can’t say I’d know…” he smirked.

Was he flirting with me? His smile—and the twinkle in his eye—said yes.

“I meant you, silly goose,” I said.

“Silly goose!” Jackson echoed.

Chase chuckled and scooped a few berries off the top of Jackson’s pile when he was busy plopping them in a perfect circle on the pancake batter I’d spread on the griddle. “I slept just fine. Thank you, ma’am.”