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“I’ll take you over my knee until you listen to me.”
He didnotjust threaten to spank her.
The enormity of the situation coupled with his outrageous threat was the drop of water that broke her emotional dam. Hysterical laughter flooded from her mouth as tears poured from her eyes.
Shane stood there, staring at her, his mouth half-open. It was clear he had no idea how to respond to the dramatic mess unfolding. She tried to say as much, but only gargled sounds came out.
His grip on her arm eased as he turned her into his arms. At first, she fought, her fist striking against his chest, but he tightened his hold, pulling her even closer, forcing her hands to flatten against him, so her face was pressed sideways into his chest.
“Shhhh, calm down.”
“Calm down?” The words irritated her, struck a nerve deep inside. “Don’t tell me to calm down,” she growled. Men! Talk about the wrong thing to say to an already upset woman.
“Shhh, sweetheart. Relax.” He ran a hand over her back.
“Relax?” Was that really the word he wanted to use to replace ‘calm down?’
“Look, I obviously don’t have the right vocabulary to help at the moment. How about we’re both quiet, and you let me hold you until the storm passes?”
“There’s only one problem with that. Right now, I am the fucking storm, and I don’t think you’re going to let me pass.”
“Nah, but life has taught me how to maneuver in storms just fine.”
CHAPTER 5
Shane
He’d fucked up. He should have told her sooner. Holding her, he tightened his arms when she tried to fight away from him. He wanted to comfort her, and truth be told, he wanted the comfort from holding her. After a minute, her body relaxed, but he held her, longer than maybe he should have, before putting her at arm’s length and looking at her.
She would need time to grieve. This was a serious trauma she was enduring. His grieving would have to come later. They were at war, and she was a target. Her safety had to come first. Once he saw her safe and took care of those who killed their family, then and only then would he have time to mourn alongside her. His grief had to wait.
Tears flowed down her sweet cheeks, and he wanted to kiss each one away. Shaking himself against those ridiculous thoughts, he cleared his throat.
“Francesca, I know this is hard, but right now, we don’t have time to mourn. I promise you will have time to grieve. Right now, whoever killed our families wants to wipe us off the map. They made a grave miscalculation by not making sure we were all inside when they attacked. Once they figure out they’re twobodies short, they will come after us to finish the job. I can’t allow that to happen.”
“That is what you meant all day?”
“Yes.”
“I wish you had told me sooner,” she said, wiping her tears away.
“I should have. I…” He scrubbed his hand over his face. “I was waiting for the right time. I see now there wasn’t a right time.”
“You think?”
“Alright, enough with the sarcasm. I fucked up. I’m sorry. We have to focus now on what is going to happen next.”
“You’ve already decided that?”
“I have. We’re going to get married.”
“I’m sorry, what?”
“That is the best way to protect you.”
“I don’t want to marry you. That’s just asinine. Marrying you isn’t going to—”
“Yes, it will. Marrying me makes you a SEAL wife, offering you the protection of the brotherhood. I promised my ma I would marry you. Then I will find these bastards and eliminate them.”
