FBI Agent's Reluctant Lover (8 page)

Rachel had gone to sleep with thoughts of Chance on her mind, and awakened to the same. Her desire for him had been banked, but was on a slow boil by the time they arrived back home. He had backed off to give her time, but she wasn’t willing to wait any longer.

“Would you mind playing with the boys while I take a quick shower?” she asked after they arrived home and fed the boys their dinner.

“Sure. Take your time. The guys and I are going sit here and catch whatever game’s on.” Chance was pleased to see that backing off the night before had paid off. Rachel seemed more relaxed around him, except when he touched her. Then her muscles vibrated with energy and her pulse would pick up. He was stirring her desire in small doses to a point where she would have to make a decision soon or drive herself crazy trying to ignore her body’s needs.

Rachel hurried through her shower and then stood in front of her closet trying to decide what to wear. She didn’t want it to be too obvious that she was wanting to continue where they had left off last night, but she definitely wanted to give him the green light.
Should she just put on normal clothes and then let her body language speak for itself? Should she dress up a little in something sexy? Ugh! She had never worried about these types of things with Sam. He had seen her at her worst and best – she never worried about enticing him.

Finally settling on a pajama set Chelsea had given her for Christmas, she pulled on the silky black pants glad to see that her baby weight didn’t show overly much. As she buttoned up the short sleeved top, the feel of the silky material against her palms had her anxious to feel Chance’s hands on her once again.

She brushed her hair until it flowed down her back and was shining and then applied the tiniest bit of lip gloss. Her cheeks had a healthy glow to them from the sunshine they had received earlier and she gave herself an appraising look in the mirror.
She looked happy! She felt happy! Chance was good for her.

Re-entering the living room she saw that all three boys had fallen asleep on the floor. Shaking her head, she gently picked up one baby at a time and carried them to their crib. She moved on silent feet and managed to get both boys settled in their cribs without waking them up. As she turned to leave the nursery, she saw Chance leaning against the doorjamb.

His eyes made a leisurely path down her body and then back up, a smile tipping the corner of his mouth up in a sexy grin.

She returned his grin, slowly walking towards him. He backed out of the doorway, allowing her to close the door softly. Reaching up, he ran a hand down her hair and then down her arm, fingering the silky material as he went. “Did you have fun today?” he asked softly.

Rachel nodded, “Yes. Thanks for taking us.”

Chance nodded once, he eyes straying to the buttons of her shirt. His fingers itched to undo them one at a time, revealing the smooth skin and curves hidden beneath. He brought one hand up and played with the top button while looking deep into her eyes. Slowly, he slid the button free and let his fingertips graze the flesh newly revealed.

Rachel gasped at the first contact of his hand against her bare skin. She needed more. She wanted to feel him touching all of her body. Taking his hand, she pulled him towards her bedroom.

Chance followed her, knowing that before things went too far they needed to talk. When she pulled him to the side of the bed and then went to pull his t-shirt from his waistband, he grabbed her hands in his and held her firm.

“Rachel, we need to talk.”

“I don’t want to talk.”

“But we need to. I wasn’t kidding around last night when I told you I wanted a future with you. Today only confirmed that to me. And as much as I want to lay you down on this bed right now, I won’t unless you can tell me you feel the same way.”

Rachel looked at him and sighed, “I want to be honest with you. I’ve never felt this way before. But today showed me that I don’t have to be alone.”

Chance nodded, “You have a wonderful life waiting for you and the boys.”

“But I don’t want to share that life with just anyone. I can’t explain it, but I feel connected to you in ways I never did with Sam.”

“And, does that still bother you?” Chance asked, watching her face to see if she was being honest with herself.

“It did. Earlier. But you asked me if Sam would want me to stay single, and the answer is ‘No’. He cared too much about my happiness to be that selfish. He would want me to move on with my life and find someone to not only share myself with, but our beautiful boys.”

Rachel looked at him, wondering if she should ask the most pressing question in her mind. Seeing that Chance was open to her, she asked, “Could you ever see yourself becoming a dad to someone else’s kids?”

Chance had known this conversation would have to take place and he only hoped that he hadn’t misjudged her. Pulling her to sit on the bed next to him, he took her hands in his, “Rachel, I can’t have kids of my own. I was sick when I was younger and ran a really high fever. That and the infection rendered me sterile.”

Rachel watched him with compassion, “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I came to terms with that a long time ago. But it’s important to me that you know I can’t ever give you another child.”

“Chance, I know this probably sounds rash, but I really don’t see myself ever wanting to have any other children. My pregnancy with the twins was hard, and frankly, I’m not dealing very well with them at the moment. I don’t see that I would ever want to have more kids.”

Chance looked at her and once again was reminded how perfect she was for him. “Then, to answer your question – I adore your boys already. I love kids, but those two little guys have already stolen a piece of my heart. If you gave me the chance, I would love to be a part of their lives as they grow up.”

“That’s good to know.” Rachel was silent as she wondered for the umpteenth time how she had gotten so lucky to have this man come into their lives.

“I’m not saying that we need to get married right away, or anything, but I would definitely want that discussion on the table sometime in the future if things continued like they have been.”

“I would be open to that discussion down the road.” Rachel let her eyes wander down to his mouth and remembered the feel of it against her own. Not taking her eyes from his lips, she asked, “Was that everything we needed to discuss?”

Chance chuckled, seeing where her attention had drifted, “Yes.”

“Good. Then shut up and kiss me again,” she demanded.

“With pleasure.” Chance took advantage of their position on the bed and gingerly leaned her back until she was laying on the mattress. Leaning over her, he placed his lips upon hers, kissing her with gentle sips and flicks of his tongue against her closed lips.

“Open up and let me in,” he whispered to her. When she complied, the kiss exploded into a mesh of teeth and tongues and lips. Her moans spoke of her rising pleasure and he let his hands roam across her body, learning her curves more intimately as he unfastened the remaining buttons of her shirt.

Rachel pulled his t-shirt from his waistband, loosing herself in the feel of his smooth muscles against her palms. Pulling at the shirt, she was pleased when he pulled away from her briefly and yanked the shirt over his head. He took a few seconds to separate the folds of her unbuttoned top and the feel of his chest, with the crisp hair and hard muscles, against her sensitive nipples had her arching towards him.

Scooting her backwards on the bed, he gently removed the pajama buttons, letting his hands learn the contours of her legs and feet. Making room for himself between her thighs, he used one hand to hold her head still and his other hand to mold and learn her body.

Rachel was so close to falling off the edge, when Chance finally touched her center she arched off the bed with a cry. He gentled her with slow caresses that only served to drive her passion higher.

“Chance… please…”

“What do you need baby?” he asked, running his hand through her hair, enjoying the silky texture of it.

“You. Please…I just need you.”

Hearing the need in her voice, he quickly shed his jeans before returning to the bed. Raising himself up on his elbows, he gently guided himself into her, loving the sighs and moans of pleasure she used to encourage him. Once he had them completely joined, he held still, absorbing the feeling of her wrapped around him. She had raised her thighs and held his hips tightly, while her nails were lightly scratching their way down his back. When he began to move, she moved with him and soon they were both flying over the edge of the cliff.

He leaned his forehead against her, trying to keep his weight off her, but the sheer ecstasy of being with her had his arms shaking so badly he was afraid of crushing her. After many minutes, he found the energy to lift himself away from her. He wandered into the bathroom to clean himself up, returning moments later with a warm washcloth for her.

Tossing the used cloth towards the hamper, he lifted her up and placed her beneath the covers, climbing in behind her and pulling her against him. “Are you okay?” he asked, resting his chin on her head.

“Never better. I didn’t know it could be like that,” she told him softly, wonder still evident in her voice.

“It’s not always like that. Only when it’s right.”

“So you’ve never felt…”

“…like that. Never. You are the only one who’s ever made me feel like that,” he assured her.

“Good,” she said, the smile in her voice evidence of her pleasure and satisfaction.

They drifted to sleep in each other’s arms, waking once during the night to the sounds of fretful cries, which were soon soothed with dry diapers and warm bottles. Chance embraced the opportunity to be a part of her life, even the middle of the night duties.

His last thought as he drifted to sleep was that he had definitely been a really good boy for fate to have placed him into Rachel’s life. He would make sure he didn’t abuse it.

      
      
      
      
      
*****

Two days later, Seth called early in the morning, “Hey, bro. Chelsea and I decided to fly back today so we’ll just meet you at Trent and Brianna’s, okay?”

Chance replied, “That’s fine. I’m bringing Rachel and the twins with me. That ought to make Chelsea happy.”

“So, things are going well between you two?”

“Yeah. I’m not kidding myself that there are going to be some roadblocks that come up, but we’ve both agreed to talk about them and figure out a solution.”

“That’s awesome. I’m happy for you man.”

“What about you and Chelsea? Things still going well on that front?”

“Yeah. But I’ll tell you all about it when I see you.”

“Sounds good. See you there.”

Chance hung up and went in search of Rachel and the boys. The trip to the zoo had taught him that one needed to allow lots of extra time when bringing two babies along on any outing. They were supposed to be at the Coldwell’s in an hour and it was a thirty-minute drive across town. He couldn’t wait to see Seth and introduce him to the woman he hoped was going to make him happy for the rest of his life.

What had started out as a tragedy, what Marco had intended for evil, had turned into the best thing to ever happen in his life. He knew there would be struggles ahead, but together, he and Rachel would handle them and prevail. After all, they had two little boys that would be watching them.

Trent opened the door to see both Seth and Shawn pulling into his driveway. Tristan and Maria had already arrived and if he hadn’t missed the signs, would be heading for the hospital before the afternoon was finished. Maria was having lots of contractions that she kept passing off as Braxton-Hicks and nothing more. Tristan had looked dubious at that assessment and Trent tended to agree.

He chuckled as he was reminded of a day not so long ago when his lovely wife had made the same assumption. She had ended up in the hospital on the way home from the office, giving birth to their precious little girl – Faith Coldwell. The memory was broken by a knock at the door.

“Seth. Chelsea. Welcome to our home. Everyone’s out back so please make yourself comfortable.”

“Thanks man. Come on sugar, let’s go see the baby.”

“Trent, is Maria here? I see Tristan’s truck parked out there,” Janet asked as she came through the doorway, giving her cousin a hug.

“Yeah.”

“That girl! I told her she’s in labor, but she just blamed her aching back on Braxton-Hicks contractions. It’s a good thing Chelsea’s here. She might have to deliver the baby this afternoon.”

Seeing her husband turn white with that comment, she patted him on the back, “Don’t worry honey. If that happens, I’ll make sure all of the men are warned in enough time to hide in the den.”

Shawn blushed and smiled at his wife, “Thanks. There’s just something about childbirth…”

“You don’t have to say anymore. Watching Brianna go through a C-section was bad enough. I don’t know that I could handle her having to go through labor.”

Janet walked off, both men sure they heard her mutter “Wimps” beneath her breath. Chuckling, Trent started to close the door when the sound of another vehicle pulling up stopped him.

Opening the door, he saw Chance’s SUV pull up and a gorgeous woman exit the vehicle. Then, much to his surprise, they both opened the passenger doors and pulled a car seat from the vehicle. Twins? This must be Chelsea’s sister – Rachel.

He started down the sidewalk at the same time he heard Shawn’s cell phone ring. “Greetings. You must be Rachel.”

Rachel smiled and replied, “Hi. It’s nice to meet you. You have a gorgeous house.”

“Thanks. Chance, glad you could all make it. Who are these little guys?”

“This is Tony,” said Chance, indicating the car seat he held, “And that little guy is David.”

“The women are going to love you. So far they’ve managed to refrain from fighting over who gets to hold Faith, and these two little guys should help immensely.”