“Thank you for having me over for dinner, Mrs. Helm. I truly appreciate it,” Mav said to break the tension.

“I’m glad you’re here, Maverick. Lindsey told me all about you the other day on the phone and of the fun adventures the two of you are having. I will have to correct you, though, because I don’t like being called Mrs. Helm. You just call me Ma or Leila. Your choice. All the kids’ friends have always called me Ma ’cause I think I fed an army while they were growing up.”

Maverick instantly liked the woman. His manners wouldn’t allow him to call her by her first name, though, and he was a bit too uncomfortable to call her Ma, so he just tilted his imaginary hat at her and didn’t call her anything.

“I’m Darren, this clan’s dad. It’s a pleasure to have you over, son. This here is Brett, Kellan, Dante, Erik, and Seth in order of ages,” the man said as he pointed to each of the boys, all of whom were looking at Maverick with suspicion despite Lindsey remaining plastered to his side.

“Why don’t we go inside and get something to drink?” Leila said. Maverick was grateful for the invitation. Standing on the large porch being eyeballed wasn’t exactly the most comfortable thing, though he was sure it wasn’t going to get much better inside.

Then again, it was rare for Mav to ever meet someone he couldn’t get along with. Lindsey’s family was just being protective of her. As soon as they figured out he meant her no harm, they’d be his new best friends, he was sure.

“Want a beer or something harder?” her father asked as they made their way into a large family room with ample seating and a burning fireplace.

“A beer would be great,” Mav told him. “I rarely break into the whiskey.”

“I like a good bourbon myself, but I usually only have one on Friday nights these days. The wife doesn’t like too much drinking.”

“No I don’t,” she said with a smile. She sat down next to her husband after getting him and Mav a beer.

“I do have some excellent cigars if you’re up for one after dinner,” Darren said. Mav wasn’t sure if this was a test or not. “A man who didn’t appreciate a good cigar just wasn’t trustworthy” was something his own father used to say.

“That sounds like a pretty dang good dessert to me, sir,” Mav told him.

And just like that, most of the tension left the room. Lindsey stayed by his side for the first half hour, but eventually she got up and went somewhere with her mother. He was left alone with all the guys. He was sure they’d been waiting for just this moment.

Though Lindsey was back to showing physical affection with her mother, and a little bit with her father, he’d noticed she hadn’t touched her brothers. Maybe it was just harder with guys. Why she was so much more open with him, he didn’t understand.

It wasn’t something he was going to question, though. He wanted her to feel comfortable with him. He wanted her to feel a lot with him, if he were honest.

“I’ve noticed Lindsey seems to be clinging an awful lot to you,” her father said, pulling Maverick from his thoughts. The words weren’t exactly spoken with malice, but there was a trace of suspicion in the protective father’s voice.

“I care about Lindsey. I think she understands that . . .” He stopped. He wasn’t sure what to say to her family about their touching—innocent and not so innocent.

“I’m glad to see she’s trusting someone. I sure as hell hope you don’t hurt her.” Now there was the threat he’d been waiting for.

“She’s not a plaything,” her oldest brother, Brett said, but he’d toned down the alpha-male routine.

“I know that. I respect her. I’ve been through some of my own stuff during the war and I just want to . . . to help her,” Mav told them as sincerely as he could.

“From what I’ve seen in the past hour, it appears you’re doing just that. That makes you a pretty hell of a guy in my book,” Darren said.

With the approval of their father, the five brothers relaxed. The final bit of tension that had been left in the room evaporated, thankfully.

“Dinner is ready,” Leila called.

Maverick walked into the massive dining room with Darren and Lindsey’s brothers. He took a seat next to Lindsey and the sweet smile she sent him made his heart race.

“What do you do for a living, Maverick?” Leila asked.

“I fly F-18s for the Air Force,” he told her.

“Dang! That is cool,” Lindsey’s youngest brother Seth said from the other side of the table.

“I thought so, too, which was why I decided to make the military a career instead of a hobby,” Maverick told him.

“I bet you’ve been to some great places,” her next to oldest brother, Kellan, said as he wolfed down enough food for three.

“Yeah, I’ve been on tour twice. I pretty much stay at home base now teaching the new recruits. I’m lucky that I’m based near my family. I was away for several years when I first joined,” Maverick told them. “I might be retiring soon.”

“You’re pretty young to retire,” Brett told him. They had to be close to the same age.

“I’ve made some smart decisions in life. It might just be time to focus on other things.”

Lindsey squeezed his hand. He watched her brothers look at each other. It was obvious they were trying to analyze him. Maverick wasn’t going to bring up his wealth. It was no one’s business, but he also could understand how her family wouldn’t want her with a man not willing to take care of her.