Blurb:
Kindergarten teacher Anne Walker dreams of a family of her own. She’s been on lots of dates but no one has met her teenage criteria of the perfect man—someone who is trustworthy, intelligent, protective, wants kids, loves cats, has a good sense of humor, and is sexy as hell.
When Anne foils a child abduction from the school yard, her life is threatened. KnightGuard Security assigns Killian Caswell to protect her.
Killian left the military, with memories of his abusive father and long-suffering mother. No long-term commitments for him. Anne challenges everything he believes about himself.
He doesn’t want kids, hates cats, and doesn’t have a sense of humor, but he is protective, trustworthy, intelligent and easy on the eyes. Is that enough for her?
As they dance around each other, an unknown figure threatens their relationship. Can they overcome these obstacles and find happiness?
Chapter 1
Six years ago
Could my life get any worse?
Anne Walker’s hand trembled as she swiped at the tears streaming down her cheeks. She pushed back her damp hair clinging tenaciously to her face and sank back on her pillow—her now very soggy pillow.
How did she ever get into this position?
That was a stupid question. She thought she was in looove.
Anne didn’t sleep a wink last night because of the knots in her stomach, besides the inability to turn her mind off her problems. She tossed and turned and woke up feeling drained.
Dawn was fast approaching, and she needed to get up soon for class—a class she didn’t want to attend today.
What difference would it make if she missed her early childhood development class? Or, for that matter, any of her classes? She just wanted to lie in bed and wallow in self-pity.
“Jason, please don’t leave.”
Anne’s pleas fell on deaf ears. She had been so happy last night. Jason came over for dinner. She presented her joyful news. It didn’t go over well.
The painful memory of her boyfriend, the father of her unborn child flipping her the bird before slamming the door closed, getting into his car, then driving out of her life, played on repeat in her head like a bad movie. The pain of abandonment pierced her heart. He left her crying in the parking lot.
He had been upset at first because she accused him of cheating on her. Sure, she accused him, but only because two of her friends confirmed they saw him cozying up with another woman. Anne hoped he would deny it.
Sure, she claimed her pregnancy hormones were going a little crazy, but he couldn’t deny he got her pregnant, or so she thought.
Jason’s once warm blue eyes turned cold and hard. “I knew you were a conniving bitch, always talking about marriage,” he sneered. “Did you really think I want to be tied down at my age, especially with a little brat?”
Anne’s stomach roiled. Had Jason dated her so she would pay for things, or was it just for the sex?
He stabbed his finger at her. “You said you were on birth control.”
“Jason,” she reached out for him and pleaded. “I didn’t lie about that. You’ve got to …..”
“Liar.”
Yeah, as if being on birth control guaranteed someone would never get pregnant. Jason stood as still as a statue, his nostrils flaring, his breathing loud, shaking his head like she was the stupidest person alive.
“We used condoms. Remember?” Jason added.
Anne shook her head and sighed. This conversation was going nowhere.
“Remember that one time?” she reminded him, referring to that one time a couple of months ago when Anne noticed his condom leaking.
Jason’s answer for the leaky condom—she poked holes in it.
“I would never do something so awful,” she angrily replied.
Then he accused her of trying to trick him into marrying her. Riiight. As if she now wanted the lying, cheating bastard after showing her his true colors.
And Jason, the scumbag, turned and walked away, abandoning her when she needed him most.
“You’re just leaving? You don’t feel any responsibility for me or the baby?” Her voice rose in anger.
Although they’d dated for a year, they never discussed a future together. Anne always assumed marriage was a given. Instead, Jason cheated and lied, and now the douchebag left her pregnant.
The coup de grâce was when Jason stared her in the eyes and coldly told her to get an abortion.
The tightness in Anne’s chest cut off her oxygen. Her vision blurred. The parking lot began to spin. She braced herself against the building wall. Did Jason really said that? Get an abortion?
What was she thinking? Did she really expect Jason to embrace fatherhood with welcome arms?
In retrospect, there had been too many red flags.
Jason didn’t have a full-time job or his own apartment. He was a mama’s boy, living off his parents in their basement.
She overlooked it initially because he claimed to be saving money—for them. Now she knew why she split the bill with him when they went out. Ha! What a crock. He lied. Anne saw that now.
What did trusting him say about her?
Was she too willing to give up on what she considered the perfect man just to say she had a boyfriend?
Apparently, yes.
Jason MacIntire was a cowardly, irresponsible, disloyal, disgusting human being.
Having a child out of wedlock hadn’t been anything that ever crossed her mind.
Anne’s stomach lurched. She ran to the bathroom and hurled last night’s dinner. With nothing left in her stomach, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. What was she going to do now? She didn’t want to burden her parents, who scrimped and saved to send her to college. Sure, they would be disappointed, but they’d never disown her.
Even with grants and her work, she barely made enough to cover her tuition, board and books. Money would be tight. With a baby coming, she’d have to find a full-time job. Her part-time employment with the little convenience store down the street wouldn’t cover her expenses, let alone the hospital bill, a bigger apartment, daycare, diapers, or, or…
Oh God. Anne’s stomach churned, and she vomited again. Getting pregnant before she graduated was not part of her long-term plan. Hell, it wasn’t even part of her short-term plan. She dreamed of finishing her master’s degree and teaching kindergarten here in Florida. She was at a loss whether she could achieve it.
Anne stared at her disheveled reflection in the mirror. Her blond hair looked stringy and unkempt. The dark circles under her eyes made her look like a raccoon. Nothing could be done about that. She splashed her face with water, gargled with mouthwash, and got back in bed, all the while crying big, ugly crocodile tears.
She wondered why she ended up with men who only wanted a good time.
It was her fault for being too trusting.
Anne trusted Jason when he told her he worked nights and weekends. She trusted him when he called to say something came up and he cancelled dates.
She trusted the wrong man again.
Never again. She vowed to be wiser about men in the future.
Jason was now in the column of losers she dated.
Maybe she was a sucker for a good pick-up line and a cute guy. However, she wanted what her mother and sister had. A loyal man. A man she could trust. Someone who put her first and could make her laugh. Was that too much to ask?
Anne took a deep breath. Her life plan needed a major adjustment. She would have this baby. She would secure her teacher’s certificate, find a job, save a little money, and eventually marry the right guy who loved her and wanted children—someone she could trust.
The sun shone through her window and heated her face. Anne groaned. Why was the day bright and cheery? Shouldn’t it be gray and raining? Shouldn’t thunder and lightning shake the ground, promising hell and damnation and maybe shriveling Jason’s dick so this never happened to another woman?
One could only hope.
The room she’d lovingly decorated now looked garish and sad—not unlike the way she felt. An eerie silence replaced echoes of laughter. She glanced at a picture of her parents holding her on their second anniversary. Their smiles and looks of love told a story—a story of love and trust, one she’d never have now.
Anne reached out with trembling hands to grab the last Kleenex. She stared at the empty box—empty like her life—and tossed it on the ground. She blew her nose and was repulsed by the sounds of wet snot. Flinging the disgusting tissue into the waste basket along with the thousand other tissues, she wiped the tears away and looked at her watch.
Great. Now she’d be late for class—no more time to feel sorry for herself.
Anne groaned as she dragged herself up for another trip to the bathroom, this time to shower, brush her teeth, and get dressed. She pulled on her favorite black leggings and a blue-striped top. The outfit always made her think cheery thoughts. However, the outfit wouldn’t fit her in another couple of months. Anne added new clothes to her growing list of future needs.
She piled her hair into a messy bun and added a touch of mascara and lip gloss, then fingered the antique ruby necklace her mother given her for graduating college.
Anne’s grandmother had given it to her mother when she graduated and became a teacher. Her mother claimed it was for luck and good fortune.
Anne sighed. Not today.
Taking a deep breath, she rubbed her belly and stared in the mirror. “You’re safe, little one,” she whispered. “Having you now is not the end of the world. We’ll get through this. Your mom is strong.”
Mom? Anne closed her eyes and hugged her chest. Her heart raced. Oh God! She was going to be a mother. She rocked back and forth on her heels, then gave herself a mental slap. Suck it up, buttercup. This was now her life.
“Oh,” she huffed. She couldn’t forget she needed to have a conversation with her parents before too long, no sense surprising them in seven months with a baby in her arms. Gah. Anne was not looking forward to having that conversation.
Class was in a half-hour.
The good news was she didn’t have to make any decisions today—or even this week.
Although the way her luck was going, Anne figured next week could bring worse news. Despite the setback, she was determined to move forward, prepare a good life for her baby, and hopefully, the next time, be wiser if or when she dated again and not take any crap from a man.