Christmas With The Marine

The screeching reached an all-time high, but he forced a smile and walked to the end of the stage. His eyes found Ainsley, and his smile widened.

More screeching, but he wasn’t really listening anymore. She was smiling back, and then she winked at him and mouthed something. He had no idea what she’d said, but he nodded as if he did.

Then she made a motion to pull his shirt open a little and to turn around in a circle. She was doing a twirly thing with her fingers.

It’s for charity. He kept repeating the mantra to himself.

“Oh, my, we did not disappoint. Look at those abs, ladies. Those are scrumptious! And that tattoo. Does anyone have a fan? Now, can I get—” The announcer was interrupted.

“Two thousand,” a woman shouted. Ben ripped his eyes away from Ainsley and gave the woman a little wave.

Whew. At least he wouldn’t be some loser who didn’t bring in any cash.

“Thirty-five hundred,” another woman said.

All right, then. Things were looking up. Ben shook his head and laughed, then gave that lady an even bigger wave.

And so it went on. A few seconds later they were up to six thousand.

“Everyone wants to take home a Marine. We hear they never let a woman down.”

“Ten thousand dollars,” a woman at Ainsley’s table shouted, as she stood up and waved her paddle. She was probably in her late thirties.

There was a huge gasp. Then clapping.

Ben wasn’t sure he heard her right.

“That’s ten thousand going once, twice and sold! That’s table one, paddle thirty-five. And that’s it, ladies. The table monitors will be by to take your checks and credit cards. Please don’t forget to visit our silent auction next door. If you didn’t get some time with your favorite bachelor, bid on that trip to Fiji. A tropical vacation will get your mind off your troubles. And those raffle tickets for the Audi are still available. That thing is definitely going home with one of you tonight.”

Ben exited to the left, where the rest of the bachelors had gone.

“You put us all to shame,” one of them said. He was a doctor or something like that, and had been one of the first guys to be bid on.

“Nah,” Ben told him. “They’d just had more to drink by the time they came to me.”

The guys laughed.

“Speaking of our bachelors—gentleman, can you come back out onto the stage?” the announcer asked.

“Hey, guys, I need you to line up on stage again,” Megan said.

There was some groaning, but they did what she asked. Ben buttoned his shirt and tucked it back in. Megan handed him his jacket. “Thanks for what you did,” she said as he followed the other men.

They were back on stage, the lights beating down on them. “Gentleman, we could not have done this without you. Let’s give them a hand!”

There was a lot of clapping and plenty of wolf whistles.

“Take a bow, bachelors.”

They all gave awkward bows and then high-fived each other.

“Okay, ladies. Once you’ve paid for your bachelor, an escort will bring him to your table. Don’t forget our silent auction, it closes in an hour. I know I said that, but the hunkiness on the stage makes us all forget our own names. We’ll be announcing the winners in only two hours.”

“Whew. Glad that part’s over,” Ben said.

“Me, too. Did you see who bid on me?” Jake asked.

“Nah. Wasn’t watching.”

“It was the CO’s daughter-slash-niece’s table.”

“Clarissa?”

“Yep,” Jake said.

Ben couldn’t help but laugh. He’d had to take Clarissa to a couple of events for the CO. She was a wild one. They’d actually become pretty good friends because he didn’t put up with her drama. The CO thought she was a handful, but the truth was, she was confused about what was important in life. All she really wanted was to find the right guy. Even, as she’d told him, if she had to date a couple of hundred to find him.

She might have something there. There weren’t many people who could get along with someone like her. He wasn’t attracted to her, which was probably why the CO had stuck him on babysitting duty for a few weeks.

“Good luck with that,” Ben said.

Everyone knew the CO’s daughter-slash-niece was way off-limits. That was unless you wanted to be stationed in Antarctica.

“Hey, handsome,” Ainsley said from behind him. “You were fantastic up there.”

He turned and nearly bumped into her, she was so close. His hands rested on her forearms to steady himself. Her soft skin made him think of touching more of her and...

Focus.

“Thanks for getting that woman to bid for me, but that was a lot of money.”

She laughed, the sound sending heat through his body. “We actually bid on you as a table. So you don’t have one date tonight, you have ten.”

Wow. “How does that work? I thought I was supposed to take someone on a date or something.”

“Sorry, Megan and I should have clarified it for you sooner. Actually, the dates should happen tonight, here at the event. Takes the pressure off the guys having to plan something else. The bachelor basically dines with the lady that bid on him, dances a bit and that’s it.

“But some of the higher bidders did it as a table. So the guy, like you, has to hang out at the table, dance a little, if you want to with us, and then you’re done.”

Well, that was a relief. He’d been worried about taking some woman he didn’t know out on a date, especially someone from this crowd where money didn’t seem to be a problem for a lot of them. He’d been wondering if Ainsley might come from money, given the fancy gown she wore and the fact that her sister was covered in diamonds. At least, they sparkled like real diamonds. Maybe it was costume jewelry. But then, he’d remembered how Ainsley had been dressed at the toy store, and even her casual look at the craft fair was pretty classy.

“Is it the same way with my table?” Jake asked.

“Yes, they also bid as a table.”

Jake blew out a deep breath. “Saved.”

The guys shared a look.

“What is that about?” Ainsley asked.

Ben shrugged. “Our boss’s daughter is the one who was doing all the bidding. She can be a, um, handful.”

“You said it, brother,” Jake said. “So she has to share. That’s a good thing. What I do not need right now is the CO ridin’ my butt. You guys have fun.”

“So, let’s get you to the table. I’m your official escort.” She tucked her arm through his. “Oh.” She stopped and opened her hand. “I tracked down your tie. I promised Sandy—she caught it—that you’d dance with her later.”

“Thanks.”

A few minutes after that, Ainsley made the introductions. “And this is my mom, Carol. She’s the one who jumped up to bid on you.”

“Mom?” He frowned. “You can’t be old enough to have a daughter of Ainsley’s age and Megan’s.”

Her mom’s hand fluttered against her chest. “From the look on your face, I almost believe you mean that,” she said. “Either way, you made my night. Maybe even my month.” The women all whooped.

“I do mean it,” he said seriously. “I thought you might be late thirties when you were bidding. Now I see where Ainsley gets her beauty from. It’s very nice to meet you, ma’am.”

He shook her hand.

“Yes, you are something special,” her mother said. “Thank you for helping out Megan tonight. You and your friend were kind to show up at the last minute like that.”

“You’re welcome. That was a lot of money, though.”

She waved a hand. “Oh, hon, don’t worry about it. The women at this table were more than willing to keep you out of Steph Montgomery’s hands. That was the table that kept trying to outbid us. I couldn’t let that happen. She and her mother, well, it’s tacky but they weren’t winning this round.”

“That’s right,” Megan chimed in. She’d come up behind her mother and was giving her a hug. “Thank you. We doubled what they did last year. I know you had a lot to do with that. You and your friends. And they’re telling me that the bids on the auction items are already so high that we may even triple.”

Her mother turned to kiss her daughter’s cheek. “Our pleasure, dear. By the time that video finished, we were all in tears. That was brilliant of you, showing it at the beginning of the fund-raiser to get those purse strings loose.”

Megan squeezed her mom. “I learned from the best.”

Mother and daughter shared a smile. They must have done a lot of charity events together. All the women seemed very comfortable with one another. And he hadn’t lied about Ainsley’s mom—she was a beauty. The diamonds around her neck sparkled brilliantly. He was betting the necklace could pay for a house, or maybe two. Once again it hit him that Ainsley came from all of this. And here, he didn’t even have a couch.

“We should probably feed him so he has the energy to dance,” Ainsley suggested. “They’ve set up a buffet so we can grab some food before the music begins.”

Crud. The dancing. “Uh, just so you ladies know, I’m not exactly the world’s best dancer. I haven’t actually broken any toes, but I’ve come close,” he admitted honestly.

“You’ll be fine,” Ainsley assured him. Then she stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. “You really are amazing for doing this,” she whispered.

For that he would have done anything. The kiss was like a slow burn on his cheek, spreading through his nerves like wildfire. All the anxiety he’d felt earlier in the night fled.

“Anything for—” He’d almost said you. Would that scare her off altogether? She’d said more than once she didn’t want anything serious. In fact, neither did he, so it was best if he kept this light. “The kids. Anything for the kids.”

“Such a good guy,” Ainsley said. “Let’s get some food in you. You’re going to need all your energy tonight.”

It was how she said it that made him do a double take.

They were a few steps ahead of the others.

She smiled but didn’t look at him. “Those abs were impressive. I might like a little alone time with them.”

“So are you saying you want to touch them?” He’d always been direct and wasn’t into games.

“Yep, all over.”

He laughed. “Well, at least you’re honest. What happened to not wanting to date?”

“I didn’t say anything about a date. I just want to run my hands across those abs more than I want to breathe.”

He nearly tripped.

“It’s bad for me to objectify you,” she said. “But those abs mixed with that big heart of yours is kind of my kryptonite. Just sayin’.”

“Ainsley, you can objectify me all you want. Over and over again.”

She sucked in a breath and fanned herself. “Marine, you cannot say things like that. I might melt into a puddle at your feet.”

His mind flashed to her down on her knees in front of him. No. No. No. He had to get that out of his head. She was just flirting and having some fun.

“Hey, Ainsley, stop hogging the Marine,” Megan called to them.

“Yeah,” a chorus said behind them.

Then there were gales of laughter.

“Your ladies await,” Ainsley told him and made a show of curtseying. Then she waved her arm in a regal manner to the rest of the women from the table.

He’d play the gentleman and make them all feel like they’d gotten their money’s worth.

But there was only one lady he was interested in.

And he couldn’t wait for her to touch his abs.

4

AINSLEY HAD WAITED patiently for more than two hours for her turn to dance with the Marine. Her mother’s friends had helped pay for the privilege to have him at their table, but they were all a bit too handsy for her comfort.

Not that she should in any way feel possessive.

But she did.

Right now he was dancing with Sara Reyes, who was batting her eyelashes at him. The woman was her mother’s age.

“If looks could murder,” Megan said beside her.

“Shut it.”

Megan laughed. “I thought you’d just met him.”

“I did. I told you, at the toy store.”

“Yep, but I’ve never seen you look at a guy like that. Ever. Not even Joe What’s-His-Name when you were twelve and Mom took you to his concert.”

Joe What’s-His-Name had nothing on Ben. She hadn’t been lying about his abs. When he came out from that curtain with his shirt unbuttoned, she’d squirmed in her seat along with every other woman in the place. Ripped. That’s what he was. And there was a tattoo over his heart she was dying to explore.

Her body warmed again just thinking about it.

Fingers snapped in front of her face. “You do have it bad,” Megan said.

Her sister had the most annoying habit of interrupting her fantasies tonight. First, on the way to dinner, and now this.

“What? I was thinking about work.”

Her sister snorted. “Maybe workin’ it. But that face...” She did a dismissive finger wave, clearly to tease Ainsley. “It’s most definitely not thinking about work. He’s so thoughtful. And one of the most gorgeous creatures I’ve ever seen. He keeps stealing glances at you like he wants to eat you up. I say go for it. Have a good time.”

That’s all it could be. She was sticking to her guns when it came to men, especially right now. While her parents might want her to marry and settle down, that wasn’t a part of her plan. Not for a long time. It didn’t matter how many men they paraded in front of her, or forced her to sit with at dinner. Their manipulation wouldn’t work. They thought they were doing what was right—finding her a man who could take care of her—but she could take care of herself.

“I’m not interested. I keep telling you that,” Ainsley said resolutely. “My business takes up my days, nights and weekends. We’re doing really well. He’s a nice guy who did us a big favor tonight. Leave it alone, okay?”

Then she gave her sister the glare. The one that said if you push any harder, I’ll tell Mom and Dad on you.

Her sister held up her hands in surrender. “Fine. Fine. But just be straight with him. Tell him that you want to hang out, nothing serious. I bet he’d go for it. And from what he said about teaching and being a helicopter pilot, it sounds like he’s kind of busy, too.

“He was saying they sometimes leave at a moment’s notice for training exercises all over the world. This could be great. You don’t have to marry the guy, although I’d love to see Dad’s face with that one. Can you imagine? He’d probably have a coronary. I’ll be honest. If you aren’t interested in that Marine, I am. I’d be all over him like—”

“Megan!”

“Yeah, you aren’t possessive at all,” her sister teased.

“What’s so funny?” Ben asked, approaching them.

“Girl stuff,” Megan replied quickly. Ainsley was grateful for her sister’s vague answer. She prayed he hadn’t heard their conversation.

“Would you like to dance?” he said to Ainsley. The poor guy had been on his feet for two hours straight, wobbling through two-steps and waltzes, and a few fast dances with the other women at the table. He always seemed attentive and incredibly kind.

The way he treated others, it was like an aphrodisiac to her. Who needed oysters when Ben was in the house?

He was one heck of a hot guy. “Absolutely, but why don’t you sit down for a little bit and rest. We’ve kept you running all night.”

“I’m good. Besides, this kind of running is a lot easier than the obstacle courses on base. Afraid I’ll step on your toes?” He moved by her mother’s chair so she didn’t have to twist around. And then he held out his hand.

“Not at all. I’ve been watching you all night. I’ve danced with a lot worse.” She took his hand and then stood.

It was a slow number, thankfully.

As they hit the dance floor, he pulled her close and she put her arms around his neck. His went around her waist. With everyone else, he’d been quite formal. She liked that he treated her differently. Special.

“Been waiting for this since I got here tonight,” he said. “Holding you like this.”

She tipped back her head so she could see his eyes. She was five-seven and he had at least a good six inches on her.

“I said it earlier, but you’ve been such a champ. Every woman at that table has a thing for you, including my own mother. She keeps talking about you to her friends, about how you saved the day.”

He chuckled. “How about you? Do you have a thing for me?”

She shook her head and he frowned.

“No. I mean, I do,” she answered. “I mean... Oh, I’m making a mess of this. I told you what my life is like. I don’t have time to have a thing for anyone. My schedule is insane. Crazy busy.”

He shrugged. “This is how you let guys like me down easy, right? I get it. You’re out of my league. It’s okay.”

“No, you’re not. If anything, the opposite is true. I just don’t want to lead you on or set up some kind of expectation. And so we’re clear, I want you. I just probably shouldn’t.”

“I told you before, I’m okay with getting to know each other. No pressure.”

She smiled. “Guys always say that, and then they wonder why I’m not available twenty-four seven. I mean, I know I’m projecting. But the last couple of guys I dated—you’re nothing like them. I get it. But I don’t want to set up any false expectations. I pretty much live for my next appointment. Tonight is a luxury I don’t normally allow myself. But it’s for a good cause, and I’ve made some excellent networking contacts. Plus, we helped the kids, so it’s all good.”

“Uh, I don’t have any expectations,” he said. His brows drew together. “I simply want to spend some time with you. Maybe where we aren’t in a store, or in a fancy ballroom with two hundred very loud women.”

She’d noticed that he’d rub his temples now and then. Did he have a headache? Was the noise getting to him?

“Are you okay?” She was worried that maybe he’d been suffering all night and she hadn’t been aware.

“What? Why would you ask that?”

“You were rubbing your head earlier. And Megan told me she was worried you were having a panic attack before you came out, but then you strutted down that catwalk like you owned the place, so she figured that maybe you were just preparing.”

He pulled her tighter, and she liked feeling him pressing into her. She liked it a lot. “I’m fine. Sometimes noise gets to me a little. It’s not that big of a deal. Though, I could have used some ibuprofen a couple of hours ago.”

Oh, no. He didn’t feel well.

The noise, between the music and the chatter, had been deafening most of the night. Poor guy. And he’d acted like it wasn’t an issue.

“Would you like to take a break? I know somewhere we could go and it’s quiet.”

He raised an eyebrow. “What about your mom and her friends?”

“The party is dying down. They’ll be fine.” She hadn’t lied. Most of the attendees were gathering their things. “If it makes you feel better, we can go say a quick goodbye. I’ll tell them I’m the one with the headache and you’re taking me home. What they don’t know is home is a lot closer than they think. In less than five minutes, it will be superquiet and I also have something for your head.”

He let go of her immediately. “Really? A couple of aspirin or something and even twenty minutes of quiet and I’ll be good as new. That’s a great plan. Let’s do that.”

This time she was the one who chuckled.

They said their goodbyes quickly, although she felt like her mom might have held on a little too long when she’d hugged Ben, but soon after they were headed out of the ballroom.

He started to lead her to the front of the lobby, but she grabbed his hand.

“This way,” she said, pulling him to the elevator.

He frowned again. “I thought we were leaving.”

“No, I said I wanted you to take me home and I promised you quiet. I always get a room the night of this event in case I drink a little too much. So tonight, home is on the top floor of this hotel. Come on. We can raid the minibar. Dinner seems like a million years ago and I’m starving.”

She had no idea what she was doing or why she was taking him up to her hotel room.

Right. You have no idea. Okay, so alone time didn’t sound like the worst idea in the world. And maybe her sister’s words about having a good time were sinking it. This guy wasn’t like anyone she’d ever dated. He’d even told her that he had no expectations.

And I really want to know more about that tattoo on his chest.

“You’re okay with this, right? Going up to my room?”

He didn’t argue, just followed her onto the elevator. A couple women joined them and gave her knowing looks. She didn’t care.

She was taking her sister’s advice and was about to get happy with a hot Marine, or at the very least, kiss one.

The warmth coursing through her body didn’t lie, though. It was looking forward to so much more.

5

THE ROOM HAD floor-to-ceiling windows that looked out on the beach. Ben walked onto the balcony to listen to the calming waves. He was curious if he’d missed some kind of signal because Ainsley was all over the place with them. One minute she was talking about touching his abs—which he was, for the record, perfectly fine with—and the next she was telling him how she didn’t want to get involved with anyone. That she didn’t have time to date.

And then she’d invited him to her room. So he could have some peace and quiet and raid the minibar.

Ben was more than a little confused. Usually he kept things pretty simple with women. They had a good time, slept together and then that was that.

With Ainsley, well, it was complicated.

But he did welcome the quiet. He was embarrassed that Megan had told her about his breathing exercises backstage. That was something no one, except some of his closest friends, knew about. The waves were a lot more relaxing than the sounds in the ballroom and his shoulders felt like they’d dropped at least an inch, maybe two.

Inhaling the salty air, he closed his eyes.

Heaven. This thing with Ainsley, whatever it was—he’d let her lead the way. Maybe she was just as confused as he was. Given how she’d acted in the elevator, he had a feeling she wasn’t in the habit of asking guys to her room.

He heard the faucet in the bathroom turn on. She’d gathered some clothes and gone into the bathroom to change.

He remembered he was supposed to be finding them drinks in the minibar, which was better stocked than most of his friends’ kitchens.

Certainly better stocked that his. He’d moved into his apartment right before Thanksgiving. Then they’d been sent to Germany for a training mission. And since he was hardly ever at home, except to sleep, he hadn’t done anything with it, or bought much food. It was the first place of his own. For years he’d been living on base, or military housing, but he’d always had roommates. He preferred sending his money home to help out.

But last year, his mom had finished her nursing degree and had a great job. She refused to take his money, though she allowed him to contribute to his sister’s college fund. She was also paying him back for the house he’d bought them a few years ago.

He didn’t need the money, so he put it in savings with the hope that some day he might settle down and get a place of his own. But that was a few years away. He had his eyes on making colonel, so he had to focus on the Marine Corps for now.

“You were drinking champagne—do you want that or something else?” he asked Ainsley, who was still in the bathroom.

“What do you want?”

You. But he didn’t want to sound cheesy or scare her off. Maybe she really was just being nice and giving him some peace and quiet before he headed out.

“I was going to stick with water since I have to drive home in a bit.” He’d already had a couple of whiskeys. That was his rule. Two drinks and done. He never had liked the feeling of being drunk or out of control. Plus, he had enough trouble with headaches, so the last thing he needed was a hangover.

“Oh, uh...” She sounded unsure about something.

“What?”

She opened the door and stepped forward. She was wearing little flannel shorts and a long-sleeve pink T-shirt that came down to her hips. He turned around and headed back to the minibar, pretending to be interested in the contents.