Dangerous Abduction (O'Connor Brothers Book 2) (2 page)

“Shoot.” James leaned against the doorjamb, shoved his hands into his front pockets and met her eyes. Even that was hot. She was so pathetic.

“What did you mean when you said, Danny called like you and John told him?” When his face flushed, Marina couldn’t help but smile.

“So... Well... okay here it is. Stephanie was worried about you being in the house alone with Danny. Nobody really knows for sure if Marc is still on the mainland,” James pulled his hands out his pockets and walked farther into the house. Closer to her. So her sister was responsible for this.

“That still doesn’t explain how Danny called you.” Marina tried hard to keep her voice steady but when James was around she was mush.

“John and I taught him my phone number because I live the closest to you.” James stared down at the floor like a little boy caught with his hand in the cookie jar. It was adorable.

“Why is Stephanie so worried?” Was there something going on she didn’t know about? Had Marc been in touch with one of her family?

“She’s just worried he’ll come back. She doesn’t trust him.” James glanced up and met her eyes again. His gaze scared her and turned her on at the same time.

“Marc was pretty clear he wasn’t going to bother us again.” Her ex-husband had written a letter to tell her he wouldn’t be in touch with her again and dissolved his parental rights.

“She’s just worried, but at least we know Danny remembered what we taught him.” It seemed her son was keeping secrets from her and he wasn’t the only one. Stephanie would be getting a phone call in the morning.

“Wait! Who’s with Mason?”

James was a widower and his son was a few months older than Danny. James would’ve had to get a babysitter to come check on her because she knew he wouldn’t leave his son at home all alone.

“Ian is staying with me for a few days.” Ian, another of the seven O’Connor brothers. “Besides, if he wasn’t there, I would’ve taken Mason with me.”

“Thank you, James. I’m sorry Danny made you come out for no reason.” Marina was grateful but the attraction to him scared her senseless.

“It wasn’t for no reason. Danny was scared, so a thank-you isn’t necessary. Its what family does.” It seemed the whole O’Connor clan had taken her in as part of the family.

“I didn’t mean to scare him.” It wasn’t as if she could control the nightmares but if it wasn’t the nightmares about Marc, it was dreams about James and although they were scary they would disturb her in a whole different way.

“You want to talk about the dream?” His concern was sweet, but he really needed to get out before she jumped the man.

“Not really, but thanks.”

His gaze locked with hers and for the thousandth time she wished she’d met James under different circumstances.

“Okay, I’m going to go, but if you need anything, call.”

Marina nodded as he disappeared though the front door. She closed it quickly and leaned against it as she took a couple of deep breaths to will her pounding heart back to a normal beat. He always did this to her and he didn’t even know it. What was she going to do?

J
ames jogged back to his house and tried to tame down the erection straining his zipper. All he could picture was her in those damn shorts that showed her firm thighs and hips that were built to grip while he pounded into her. Then there was that top clinging to her full breasts and giving him a perfect view at the outline of her nipples.
Jesus
. It was getting worse. If that was even possible. He couldn’t even be in her company for more than five minutes and his dick had a mind of its own.

“God damn it.” James slammed the front door when he entered his house.

“Whoa there, bro. Are you trying to wake Mason?” Ian sauntered out of the kitchen.

“No,” James snapped and headed straight to the fridge. Ian chuckled but when James glanced at him, Ian was texting. “What’s so funny?”

“Sandy.” Ian’s face flushed as he shoved his phone into his back pocket.

“Why the hell don’t you just ask her out?” James asked.

Ian and Sandy had been dancing around each other since they met, but Ian was gun-shy. Who could blame him? Ian’s long-time girlfriend left him six years ago without a reason. Ian had been devastated and didn’t date much since.

“I could ask you the same question.” Ian raised an eyebrow.

“Sandy isn’t my type.” James pushed Ian’s shoulder as he ambled past him on the way to the living room. He needed to find something to take his mind off Marina and her sexy nighttime attire.

“Very funny.” Ian followed him. “I’m talking about Sandy’s cute neighbor, or we could call her John’s sister-in-law, or Stephanie’s sister, or the woman you’ve been drooling over for the last four years.”

James pointed his index finger at his brother. “One, I don’t drool over anyone, and two... well, there’s no two, but I don’t drool.” James flopped down on the sofa and propped his feet up on the coffee table. He leaned his head back against the back of the couch and scanned the room. Anything to distract him from thinking about her. His dark blue plush couch and loveseat complimented the beige walls. Across from the couch was a stone fireplace that he’d refurbished when he and Sarah had first moved in the house and above it hung a series of photos of his son. From the day Mason was born up to his recent fifth birthday.

“Bro, you may not drool, but you do look and who could blame you? Marina Kelly’s hot.” Ian plopped down next to him. “I’m not the only one to notice. A.J. and Nick couldn’t keep their eyes off of her at John and Stephanie’s wedding.”

“They better keep their fucking eyes and hands to themselves. Marina doesn’t need their kind of shit,” James grumbled.

“Maybe she does.” Ian nudged him and without a second thought James grabbed his brother by the front of his shirt.

“I swear to God, Ian, if you don’t shut it now, I’m gonna pound the piss out of you.” James clenched his fist as if he was ready to do that very thing.

“I’d love to see you try, bro.” Ian narrowed his eyes and James let go of Ian’s shirt with a shove. James could hold his own, but Ian could definitely kick his ass. With a third degree black belt in Karate and a wall of solid muscle, Ian was probably the most ripped doctor anyone had ever seen.

“Go text Sandy.” James snatched the remote from the coffee table and flicked through the channels. When Ian started to laugh on his way out of the room, James clenched his teeth.

He was wound so tight it wasn’t even funny. Between drooling over Marina, and yes, he did drool over her whether he was going to admit it or not, and dreaming about her, he was so sexually aroused all the time it was as if he was an over-sexed teenager. Marina had him in a spin and she didn’t even know it.

Marina was the first woman to turn his head since Sarah died and if the sexual frustration wasn’t enough he was weighed down with feelings of guilt. Sarah had been gone almost four years, and Sarah made him promise that he would not close himself off to finding love again. Of course he made that promise when they found out she was going to lose her battle with breast cancer and he would have said anything to make her happy. He just didn’t know if he could keep that promise. At least not until he met Marina Kelly, but she had her own demons. Her ex-husband was a drug-addicted asshole who hurt her both physically and mentally. James wasn’t sure if anyone could ever get over that kind of thing.

As a police officer he’d arrested men like Marc O’Reilly on a daily basis. Some of the conditions the victims would be left in would make James sick to his stomach. It took every ounce of strength to keep himself from pounding the assholes into the ground. He and his six brothers couldn’t stand men like Marc because their father had always told them women should be treated with nothing but love and reverence.

Marina’s sister, Stephanie, was married to his twin brother John. Stephanie was always setting up dinners to give James and Marina a chance to get to know each other. Stephanie would say it was because she wanted the families to be close but John had given him the real reason after the first meal she’d invited him to. The only problem was, Marina always seemed to keep her distance. Proof she was nowhere near ready to get close to anyone and if he was being honest, he didn’t know if he was ready. If only his dick felt the same way.

“I’m hitting the hay for the night,” Ian pulled James out of his head.

“Yeah...Okay...Night.” James mumbled.

“Ask the woman out, for Christ sake.” Ian was not one to be making suggestions.

“I could say the same to you, bro.” James shot back and Ian held up his hands in defense. It made James chuckle because he and Ian were quite a pair. Neither of them had the guts to ask out the two women they wanted. The only place James could ask Marina out was in his dreams. Except in his dreams he and Marina were doing a lot more than just dating.
Fuck!

James woke hunched over on the couch. He didn’t remember what time he closed his eyes, but it was way after midnight. Falling asleep on the couch had become the norm for him. He couldn’t even remember the last time he slept in his bed. He avoided sleeping in the bed because for some reason he tended to dream more when he slept in it and that meant dreaming of Marina.

He glanced at his watch.  “Fuck it,” he groaned. It was a just before six in the morning and knowing his son, he would be up any minute. Mason rarely slept in.

At least he had the day off and he could drop Mason at school and spend some extra time with him. Hopefully he’d get the errands done that he’d been putting off all week. There never seemed to be enough time for anything these days. His work schedule was typical for a police officer. Three twelve-hour shifts and then three days off. If it wasn’t for his family, he didn’t know what he’d do. Thank God he had no more overnight shifts. James had a feeling his Uncle Kurt had something to do with his permanent schedule change. 

After Sarah died, working overnight shifts were difficult since he couldn’t spend much time with Mason. Then Sarah’s parents moved to Alberta with Sarah’s brother, which meant James had to depend on his own family even more. He’d put in a request for a leave of absence until Mason was old enough to enter daycare but when he got called into the office, Uncle Kurt, who was also his boss, told him his schedule had changed to day shifts. It was a huge blessing and made life easier. Now that Mason was five years old, he was in kindergarten and part-time daycare. Things were certainly easier than when he was a baby

Maybe it’s why he felt such a connection with Marina——she was also a single parent. At least she had Stephanie and her parents to help, and now that Stephanie was married to his twin brother, Marina had the O’Connors for support. If only she would accept it.

“Daddy, can I have a cookie?” Mason stood at the bottom of the stairs in his underwear and his hair totally out of control. His son may have Sarah’s beautiful dark brown hair but the poor kid had inherited the wavy locks of the O’Connor clan.

“Do you think cookies are a good thing to have for breakfast?” James always tried to give Mason the choice to make right decisions. It was something he and his brothers were taught as children. His mother always said most of the time kids made the right choice and when they didn’t you guided them towards the right one.

“No.” Mason sighed, plopped down on the bottom step and rested his chin in his hands.

“So what do you think we should have for breakfast?” James stood up and went to the kitchen.

“Waffles?” Mason followed him.

“Okay, big guy, waffles it is.” James pulled out the waffle-maker and the ingredients. Sure there were easier ways to make them, but Mason enjoyed the homemade ones and nobody could beat his waffles.

“Can I help, Daddy?” Mason was already pulling a chair over to the counter.

“I think you should probably go put on the clothes I laid out on your chair last night and then you can help. I’ll wait for you.” Mason was out of the kitchen and up over the stairs in seconds. Chances were when he came back down something would be inside out or backwards.

“Coffee, lots and lots of hot coffee.” Ian walked into the kitchen rubbing his hands together as he blew on them. No doubt he’d been out on his daily run by the redness of his cheeks and nose. The man was up at five every morning and ran for an hour. James was all for keeping in shape, but jogging in October was not on his list of workouts. He’d stick with his treadmill and weights until the warmer weather started.

“Good run?” James filled two cups and held one out for Ian.

“It’s fucking freezing outside.” Ian pulled off his hooded sweatshirt and hung it over the chair.

“Nanny’s gonna put pepper on your tongue for saying bad words, Unca Ian.” Mason ran into the kitchen and James chuckled as Ian rolled his eyes. Kathleen O’Connor obviously kept the same rules with her grandson as she did with her sons. Growing up, if they used what she called bad words, Kathleen would put pepper on their tongues and they’d have to keep it there for as many minutes as their age. It burned like hell.

“Yeah, Uncle Ian.” James helped Mason stand on the chair while they mixed up the waffle batter.

“I’m sorry.” Ian gave an exaggerated sigh.

“I won’t tell, but don’t say it no more.” Mason stirred the batter and James turned his head to hide his grin.

“I won’t, buddy.” Ian held the cup in front of his mouth probably to hide a smile as well.

“Daddy, when are you going on a date with Danny’s mommy?” Mason turned to James after he jumped down off the chair. The bowl of batter James held tipped and some spilled onto the counter. James heard Ian choke back a laugh and he wanted to whip the bowl at his head.

“Why would I go on a date with Danny’s mommy?” James wiped up the spill without turning to look at Mason or Ian. He really didn’t want to turn around since he knew Ian was waiting for him to answer Mason’s question probably with a huge grin.

“Auntie Cora said you and Auntie Marina were gonna go on a date.” James should’ve known where that came from. His aunt, also known as ‘Cora the Cupid’ by his family, had been on his back since she met Marina. The story was she knew when people were meant to be together and as far as he knew, she was never wrong. According to Cora, he and Marina were meant to be together.