Hailey kissed Brady with a hunger she hadn’t known she possessed. He returned it with an urgency she loved, even though it semi-terrified her. She knew she should pull away. Heck, she never should have even started this, but the only way she was stopping was if a tornado ripped the house apart.

Brady lifted her off her feet and spun around, pressing her up into the wall and deepening the kiss. Hailey felt a jolt of fear but excitement as well. This was Brady, and if she couldn’t trust him, she really would never be ready to love anyone. Instead of giving into her fears, she wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his broad shoulders and enjoyed every second of the kiss and every movement of his hands. She was hot from head to toe. She kept trying to grasp rational thoughts, but they were gone. All she knew was she had to keep kissing Brady and touching him.

Brady trailed kisses down her neck and then came back up to capture her mouth again. Hailey trembled from the sheer pleasure of it all, but there was more there, much more. Brady didn’t want to consume her. He wanted to savor her.

He broke from the kiss and stared at her. “Hailey. Please. I need you. I love you. I need to understand why you keep shutting me out. What you’re scared of.”

Her breath came in fast pants. Hailey buried her face in the warm skin of his chest and clung to him. Brady pushed away from the wall and carried her easily up the stairs to his suite. Her heart thudded out of control. She wanted to break from his embrace and run away. She had to keep reminding herself this was Brady. He was gentle and kind, and he cared about her. His kisses in the hallway hadn’t been gentle though. They’d been urgent and full of passion that could consume and hurt her.

He set her on the couch in his sitting area and said, “I’ll be right back.” Then he disappeared into his closet.

Hailey’s heart was racing out of control, partially from the excitement and thrill of his kiss, but growing stronger and stronger were her ever-present fears.

She stood, needing to run. Why had she begged him to kiss her and responded the way she had and then let him carry her up here? She knew the mixed signals she was giving him weren’t fair, but she wasn’t ready for intimacy, and she was terrified. Hurrying toward the bedroom door, she stopped short when he came out of his closet wearing a t-shirt and golf shorts.

Hailey stared at him. If he wanted to get her into bed, wouldn’t he have undressed rather than dressed? She felt her heart and breathing calm as he approached her. “You okay?”

Releasing a ragged breath, she could only nod. He extended his hand, and she placed hers in it. Squeezing her hand, he led her back to the love seat. They sank down as one, and Brady asked quietly, “Can you talk to me about … everything?”

Hailey blinked up at him. “See, this is what I’m talking about.”

Brady shook his head, his brow wrinkling. “This?”

“I thought you carried me up to your suite to …” She swallowed hard. “Why didn’t you just keep kissing me and try to do more?” Had she really just asked him that?

Brady reclined into the couch and stared at her. “Hailey.” He pushed a hand through his short hair. “Of course, I want more. I mean, if you could see yourself, see how I see you …” His voice trailed off. “But you’re not ready for that. I know you’re not. What kind of a man would I be if I forced myself on you?”

Hailey just stared at him. He wanted her, but he wouldn’t force her. He was the best kind of man. Hot tears slid from her eyes and down her cheeks. Brady gently brushed at her left cheek. “I didn’t mean to make you cry.”

“You’re the best man I’ve ever met.” She sputtered, the tears in her throat making it hard to speak. She didn’t know it was possible to find a man as good as her daddy, but she was pretty sure she had with Brady.

“No, I’m not.” He shook his head. “But I am a man who loves you and wants what’s best for you.”

Hailey leaned into him. He wrapped his arm around her waist and held her close. “Thank you.” For the first time in her life, she wanted to share what had happened to her, share it with this man who cared so much. She wished she could tell Brady how much she loved him first, but it was too fast, and after she told him about her sordid past, he might want nothing to do with her. Even super heroes had their limits. It would hurt too much if he realized how broken she was and backed slowly away from her. She couldn’t share both her story and her love with him.

The doorbell rang. Hailey jolted in surprise. Brady frowned. “Let’s just ignore them. They’ll go away.”

Hailey was tempted to agree, though she was also relieved that she might have a little longer before she had to dump her dirty laundry in Brady’s lap.

The doorbell came again. Brady stood with a sigh and went to a screen by his bed that showed different camera angles. “It’s X and Izzy,” he said. Hailey couldn’t tell if he was happy about that or not.

She hurried out of his room and down the two flights of stairs, flinging the front door open. X held a cooler and a blow-up shark that was almost as big as him. Izzy had towels and a beach bag.

“What are you two doing?” She half-laughed. Brady arrived in the foyer, and she glanced up at him. His jaw was tight as he lifted a hand in greeting. She had a feeling the conversation that had been interrupted would be restarted as soon as X and Izzy left.

X rolled his eyes, but he was grinning. “Izzy thinks you two need a break from the stress. Since we knew you didn’t want to leave the house, we brought the party to you.”

“What’s the party?” Hailey asked. Brady’s arm came around her waist, and she sucked in a breath. She loved when he touched her.

“Go get your suits on,” Izzy insisted. “We’re going to see which of us can stay on the shark the longest, eat treats, and basically act like we’re a bunch of ten-year olds.” Izzy’s dark eyes flashed with excitement. Hailey loved how happy her sister was and how X brought out the fun in her.

“Sounds great.” Brady’s voice wasn’t quite as enthusiastic as his words, but Hailey decided Izzy was right. They did need a break, and Izzy didn’t even know about the real stress that was consuming them.

Hailey turned and sprinted for the stairs. “Meet you at the pool,” she called back to them.

Brady’s chuckle followed her up the stairs.

“How do you keep up with her?” She heard X ask.

Hailey paused by her bedroom door, straining to listen. “I don’t,” Brady said. “I just hope she never leaves me behind for good.”

Hailey slipped into her room, her heart aching. She didn’t want to leave Brady, ever. Yet was it fair to tie down the most amazing man she knew to a woman who might never get over her fears and issues?

* * *

Brady climbed onto the inflatable shark and straddled it. This was easy.

“You have to stand up,” Hailey said.

He glanced over at his wife, and his breath caught. She sat next to Izzy on the edge of the pool, her blonde hair darker with water and trailing over her shapely shoulder. She looked incredible in a one-piece floral swimsuit. He just wanted to get her alone again, talk through everything she was willing to share with him, reassure her of his love and devotion, and then kiss her for the rest of the day.

“All right.” He pushed his palms flat on the shark’s back and made it to his knees. The shark wobbled, but he felt pretty stable. Slowly, he lifted his leg and planted one foot on the shark’s back. The inflatable toy was shaking as he planted his other foot and stood, arms out wide for balance. He wobbled there for almost a full second before the shark flipped out from under him and he plunged into the water.

Rising up to the surface, he blinked the water from his eyes and saw X holding onto the shark and grinning. “Sorry, bro, couldn’t let you show me up.”

“No fair!” Hailey protested. “My husband was rocking the shark, and you cheated.”

Brady’s chest seemed to swell. My husband. Did Hailey think of him as her husband now? He couldn’t imagine anything making him happier.

X just kept grinning. Then he inclined his head toward their wives. “Shall we get them?”

“For sure.” Brady liked the camaraderie he’d built with his brother-in-law over the past few weeks. He didn’t want this marriage to end for any reason. If only Hailey would confide in him when they had a chance to be alone again.

X swam quickly toward Hailey and Izzy. Brady followed suit. The women were both talking and laughing and noticed too late when X grabbed Izzy’s ankle and tugged her into the pool with a splash.

Hailey stood quickly, evading Brady’s reach. He grabbed the edge of the concrete and launched himself out of the pool. Hailey turned to run, but Brady rushed her like he would a running back. He wrapped his arms around her and easily plucked her off her feet.

Her breath came in shallow pants as she looked down at his chest and then back up at him. “In case I forgot to tell you, you rock a swimming suit,” she said.

Brady chuckled. “I probably already told you, but you’re the most gorgeous swimsuit wearer I’ve ever seen.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck, suspended in the air as he held her. “But you’re still going to throw me in.”

“No.”

“No?” She arched an eyebrow.

Brady loved having her in his arms. He grinned. “We’re going in together.” Then he leapt into the pool.

Hailey’s laughter was cut off as they plunged under water. They surfaced, and he was still holding her close. He could hear Izzy and X laughing, but he only had eyes for Hailey.

Hailey laughed too, pushing her hair back out of her face and swiping the water out of her eyes. “Good one. What’s your plan next?”

He leaned close and whispered, “Get rid of those two and kiss you for a few hours.”

Hailey wrapped her arms around his neck and winked. “Kiss me right now. I’ve watched them do it enough.”

Brady didn’t need another invitation. He pressed his lips to hers, and the world lit up with joy and passion. He was pretty sure X and Izzy were protesting loudly, but he ignored them and savored each second with Hailey in his arms.