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Category: Erotica/Multicultural-Interracial Erotica
Description: The small boy trotted up to him with a crumpled piece of paper in his hand while his mother stood patiently and watched. As the child spoke, Captain Caine McIntosh fell in love with the curly-haired tot who asked for a dad to help protect him and his mom. When his soft-spoken mother came to grab him, Caine was instantly attracted to the wide-eyed beauty with ebony skin. He vowed to show her that she didn't have to be strong all by herself and to have her love. Danika Lionel didn't know what to think when the sexy solider showed up at her door bearing gifts. The neighborhood in Far Rockaway where she lived was not her first choice to live with her son. But being a single mom she took what she could get until she had the opportunity to do better. Caine offered her and Ryan a chance to spend Christmas without worrying about gun shots in the street, and she accepted. She barely put the pieces of her heart back together four years ago when Ryan was born. For his sake, she had to be strong. Did she dare give Caine a chance and let this new love in?
eBook Publisher: Sugar and Spice Press, 2011
eBookwise Release Date: January 2011

17 Reader Ratings:

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Available eBook Formats: OEBFF Format (IMP) [77 KB]
Words: 17298
Reading time: 49-69 min.

"Let's go get some dinner. I made my mama's chicken and dumplings," Caine said with a grin.

"Where is your mommy?" Joshua asked with childlike innocence as they walked out of the room.

Danika noted a hint of sadness in his eyes before he smiled down at Joshua. "She and my dad are in heaven. They went there a long time ago, and my uncle raised me and helps take care of my ranch now."

"I hope I get to see your uncle and your ranch. Remember you said you would teach me to ride a horse," Joshua said as they settled in the kitchen.

His eyes met hers, and she all of a sudden she felt breathless under his gaze. "I hope so too, buddy."

They ate with the constant chatter of Joshua in the background. It was a wonderful atmosphere, and Danika found herself laughing more than once. After dinner they went back to the living room where Joshua began to play with the soldiers, and by nine while they talked she noticed his droopy lids. She winked at Caine and pointed in the direction of Joshua before getting up and lifting him in her arms. Her son didn't protest when she walked back to the bed room with him.

"Mommy, this is the best time ever, isn't it?" he asked sleepily while she dressed him in his pajamas.

"Yes, it is," she agreed gently with a smile and tucked him into bed with a kiss on his warm soft cheek. "Now go to sleep, angel. Sweet dreams."

He was asleep before she even left the room, a small bundled mass beneath thick blankets in the middle of the bed. She walked back out into the living room with a sense of nervousness that settled into her belly. She was now completely alone with Caine. Joshua had been the cute barrier that kept them from being alone and intimate, but now with him sleeping soundly she felt exposed. She sat next to Caine on the sofa while he flicked channels casually, going from the laughter of a sitcom to the news.

"You don't have to sit there like I'm going to pounce." He turned to her with a devilish grin. "I won't bite unless you want me to."

She laughed. "Is it that obvious?"

"Honey, it's rolling off you in waves." He patted the cushion next to him. "Come over here."

Danika moved beside him, and he wrapped his arm around her pulling her so she was nestled to his side. His deep voice murmured in her ear. "I like holding you."

"I like being held by you," she admitted honestly. "You make me feel safe. This whole being with a guy thing is new to me. I haven't even dated since Joshua's father."

"What went wrong there?" he asked.

Danika rested her head in the crook of his shoulder so he wouldn't see her sad smile. "He turned out to be everything I never thought he would be. I met him on campus where I was taking accounting classes. It was a tossup between that and web design, so I decided to do both. He came from this well to do family who promptly hated me because of course a girl from Brooklyn only wanted his money." She gave a soft laugh. "Anyway at twenty-five and going back to school they didn't see me as someone for their son, even though he was thirty and still trying to get a college degree as well. But we didn't care, or at least so I thought until I ended up pregnant. When I told him he acted like I was this piece of scrap he picked up off the streets. He wanted to pay for an abortion, but being the daughter of a minister my answer was no. I had Joshua and never put his name on the birth certificate. I scraped together the money to get a lawyer. He drew up papers so I could get full parental rights in case he or his parents ever demanded a paternity test or wanted custody. For a few months he acted like he wouldn't sign, but when I threatened to go to the papers, oh he signed real quick."

"That's a man who I would love to meet one night and teach a lesson or three." Caine's voice darkened with anger. "How could anyone look at that gorgeous boy and not want him in their life?"

"I thought the same thing when they put him in my arms," Danika said.

"Where was your family in all this?" Caine asked.

She could hear the bitterness in her voice when she spoke. Danika thought she was over this a long time ago, but some old wounds never seemed to fully heal. "My family, the righteous Lionels, put me out of their lives when they found out I was pregnant. First off I was pregnant by a white guy when they had me slated for marriage to some guy in the church, a no-no in my father's book. Then I was offered a choice, still marry this guy when I knew he liked to use his hands to make a point to women and he would pretend the child was his. Or I would be kicked out of the house and the family."

"That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard," Caine said.

"Isn't it? Seriously warped, and I knew me and Joshua would never be safe, so I refused. Dad told me to leave and never come back, and no one in the family was allowed to speak to me again. They all followed his rule to the letter. My sister sent me one last letter telling me how sorry she was, and they were acting like I was dead. So I did for me and Joshie the best I could, and I always put him first."

"I'm sorry you had no one to lean on, Danika. That was so unfair." Caine hugged her tight, and that action alone made tears settle in her eyes.

"Life's unfair, but I swore I would protect my son and give him a good life," Danika said with conviction. "I'll do anything for him, and I'll work my ass off to get us out of that neighborhood."

"I know you will. I promise to be here for you too, always." He took her by the shoulders, and she met his stare. "I promise."

"You don't have to pity us, Caine. I don't want pity," she pleaded.

He gave an incredulous laugh. "Honey, this isn't pity. This is me wanting you, wanting to be in your life and Joshua's. I have never felt like this before. I've seen the harshest things that life could throw at me and seen how people can be so callous with each other. I saw men use children as shields...." He broke off his words. "I saw you, and knew this was a road I wanted to travel on. I was meant to take it with both of you."

Danika was moved by his words, unsure of how one man could make her feel so much and wondered if she should trust it. Old wounds could fill her heart with doubts so easily, but it was undeniable what she felt for Caine. Impulsively, she moved in and this time initiated the kiss, one that felt so right. He groaned low in his throat and pulled her onto his lap. This was not just a kiss. Lips fused, melded and merged into one until she could only hold on in the storm of emotion that flooded her. Desire fueled her every touch as she reached for the edge of his shirt and lifted it over his head. The heat of his skin over contoured muscled shoulders caused her to press herself against him wanting to feel more. His fingers found the small pearl buttons of her sweater and deftly undid each one. Caine found the front clasp of her bra, and it opened under his fingertips. He filled his hands with her breasts, and she moaned under his heated touch. Caine's hands were so big, and she could feel the calluses of a hard-working man. The sensation was electric as he played with her breasts. She wanted more, and Danika felt the wanton lust of a woman who longed to be loved surge within her.

"Damn, you feel amazing. Your skin is like satin," he whispered harshly.

He was filled with an intensity that left her breathless. His touch held a hint of roughness that excited her. Unrestrained he would take her hard, and she would be giddy under the onslaught. Caine bent her back so her breasts were in easy reach of his hungry lips. He took the tight nipple between his lips and sucked it deep into his hot mouth. She almost died from the pleasure of it all.

He put her away from him suddenly. He sat up on the sofa seat and rose to walk away. Caine put distance between them before he turned his heated gaze back to her. Danika could see the desire in his eyes, the way the color deepened to a dark blue.

"Go to bed, Danika, please." His voice was gruff but gentle.

"But--but why? I thought you wanted me." Danika felt a sting to her pride. He soon assuaged her fears.

"Danika, honey, if I want you anymore I'm going to explode. In fact if I get any closer to you right now, I'm liable to take you on the couch," Caine said. "I want you to be ready for this not because you feel like you're obligated or that this is how things are supposed to go. You're still so innocent in a way, and I want you to be sure. You're going to come to me when you're ready and not before, ok?"

She gave him a tentative smile. "But you want to make love to me, right?"

"Darling, I'm aching to have you," Caine admitted. "Now go to bed before I eat you up."

"I don't think that's a threat," Danika teased.

"It isn't," he replied.

"Just one more kiss before I go," she asked, feeling sexy and powerful knowing that he really wanted her.

He strode over to her and pulled her to her feet swooping in for a kiss that left her gasping and wanting more.

"Good night, Danika," he whispered huskily.

"Night," she said in return.

Danika literally ran up the stairs and went into the bedroom and closed the door. Leaning against the cool wood, she felt a smile on her face. Tell me something good. Tell me that you like it. The song flashed into her head as she danced her way to the bathroom giggling as she got ready for bed. She'd found someone good, a true blue honorable soldier with a cowboy's touch. Christmas was going to be perfect.