Racing to Love: Eli's Honor (11 page)

Molly’s comments and fears came rushing back to him. Glad that he had pointed
Dallas down the stairs to the finished basement where his spare rooms were, he took the quiet moment to hold her. When she didn’t pull away, he gambled and closed the distance between them. He tucked her head to his chest and took a deep breath.

Eli had no intentions of making Honor feel anything but pampered. He was so excited about taking care of her for the time she was staying with him,
and longer
, that he never once gave a thought about how overwhelming it might be for her. How the pride that Molly had been afraid would get in the way, would actually stop her from accepting what he was offering. Or, at the very least, it would make her feel guilty about it.

He rubbed her back with one hand, keeping her close to him, the other still cradled her face. A lone tear escaped, and he felt it run along his thumb, still resting against her cheek. Eli swallowed hard and rested his cheek on her head. Fumbling around, he tried to come up with the right words to explain his feelings, but he kept coming up short. He wanted to sit down, have her cuddle up to him and talk, tell him what was going through her mind. Fear stopped him. Not that he was afraid of what she’d say, but fear that she would retreat to the safety of the bedroom he’d made warm and cozy for her.

Instead, he held her tighter.

He felt her take a fortifying breath, steeling herself. When she straightened, he loosened his hold but didn’t let go.

“I’m sorry,” she said, her words quick and embarrassed, swiping at the moisture on her cheek.

He could tell she was ready to hide, to escape the closeness he wanted to offer her.

“Don’t ever be sorry, Honor. Please.”

The corner of her mouth turned up. It was an honest try, but the smile didn’t come.

“Can I get you anything?”

It was a courtesy offer, but he had meant it as more. He really did want to fix whatever made her sad. She didn’t seem the type to cry over anything minor, or to become emotional at the drop of a hat. Something major had upset her, something that had to do with him, and that sent a jagged pain through his chest.

“I need to check on Dallas, please?”

“Sure, anything you want. Let me show you to your room and put your bags in there then I’ll take you downstairs. I have it setup for any of the kids who end up needing to bunk here.” Eli smiled. “I’ve got it pretty well stocked with every motocross magazine subscription, a couple of different game systems, and a pool table. So, he should be happy down there.”

The sweet smile danced across her face, finding joy in her son’s happiness.

“I’m sure he’ll be in heaven, thank you.”

Once again, he held her bags and nodded for her to follow him. Now, instead of hoping she’d be thrilled about the effort he’d gone to for her, he was scared he’d done too much, tried too hard. Walking into the room across from his, he flipped on the light switch with his elbow and turned, afraid of her reaction. He set her bags by the armoire and waited.

Her violet eyes took in everything around her. He watched as she slowly walked to the dresser where he had placed the lilacs. Running a gentle finger over the purple petals, she bent to smell the sweet fragrance and turned to him.

“You did this…for…me?”

The question was so quiet, so unsure, that Eli just stared. Of course, they were for her. She almost acted as if she were more than surprised at the gesture it was as if she’d never received a simple token like
flowers
before.

Oh, the things he could give her. The things he wanted to do for her. Give her things she probably had never been given. The need swelled in him. The desire for her and to take care of her came rushing over him like a wave.

The smile came easily to his mouth. He hoped she could feel his restraint. He gripped on to his control tightly, hanging on with his entire being. The need to step in and shower her in affection bubbled up inside him.

The need to kiss her was driving him mad.

Patience.

“Yes, sweetheart.” He was afraid to say more, afraid to lay his feelings out so early in the game. He knew he’d scare the shit out of her if he revealed his soul tonight. Then she’d probably have him committed. It was crazy. He was crazy to fall so fast for a woman that he’d spent barely any time with, a woman he had never even kissed. It didn’t matter. She was the woman he knew, without a doubt, was the missing piece of him, his other half.

Her eyes lowered, almost as if she were ashamed to enjoy the gift and turned to feel the fragile flowers again.

“Thank you, Eli.” She said shyly, her fingertips still gracefully brushing against the small petals.

“You’re very welcome. Do you want to go check on Dallas now?” He made a conscious effort to lighten his voice and bring them back to a subject he felt she could safely handle.

Her son.

A lightness came over her face at the boy’s name, as if she recalled the reason they were in Pennsylvania and why they were here in his home.

It was a true testament to a mother’s love and how far she’d go for her child, how much discomfort she’d endure to make sure her child was taken care of. Eli knew his mother would have gone to the ends of the earth for him, as well. He had just never seen such black and white proof right before his eyes. That was a new level of love he’d never felt before.

What might have made another man run—or maybe the flipside, become jealous—it only made him want Honor more.

****

Eli yawned and rubbed his hands over his face. He didn’t even bother to lift his head from his pillow to see what time it was. He knew he couldn’t read the numbers on the clock from where he was. It still had to be early. Neither the alarm across the room, nor the one on his phone next to him had gone off yet. One look to the curtains indicated the sun was up and trying to peek through the heavy fabric. It wasn’t time to get up yet, and no one had called his cell needing him.

He pulled in a long breath through his nose, smelling something unfamiliar. No not unfamiliar. He sniffed again. Uncommon.

Even though his bed was warm, his stomach demanded he investigate the smells coming from the kitchen.

After throwing on a pair of pajama bottoms over his boxers and brushing his teeth, he padded down the cold wooden planks toward the kitchen.

Thank God, no one else was in the room. When he saw Honor standing at his stovetop, in his kitchen, using his pots and pans, helping herself to his
space to make breakfast, Eli almost embarrassed himself. He hadn’t had a reaction to a woman like that since he was in seventh grade and a sister of another rider at one of the tracks smiled at him, braces and all, then told him she’d been cheering for him.

Eli leaned against the cool stucco of the framed entryway to the kitchen, watching her with a sense of relief. He smiled. He had hoped once she got some sleep last night she’d feel better about staying with him. However, he was fully prepared to offer to take her to a hotel, logistics be damned, if it made her more comfortable.

But here she was. Cooking.

“Hi, Eli.”
Dallas said casually as he came up from the finished basement.

Honor spun on her heel, obviously unaware that he was there. Eli grinned wider at her surprise.

“Good morning.” She blinked, spatula in hand, riveted to her spot.

It was easy to see by her dropped jaw that she didn’t know how he was going to react to her being in his space, and making herself at home. Eli sauntered over to the stove to confirm what his nose told him.

“Yum. Looks good.” He said, eyeing a piece of bacon. God, how long had it been since he’d bothered to make a real breakfast for himself? The woman had no idea what she was doing to him. The rumble in his stomach wasn’t the only hunger raging through him.

“I hope you don’t mind.” She spat out.

“Mind? Are you kidding? I feel bad. You’re supposed to be my guest and here you are cooking.”

At that, she turned. “I like to.” Her voice quiet and unsure.

“I appreciate it, and it smells delicious.” He rubbed up and down her arm as she stood at the stove.

Honor froze under his touch. Knowing her son was behind him, Eli squeezed once, then let go and headed toward his saving graces—the
coffee maker and the bottle of medicine beside it.

He felt Honor’s eyes on him when he popped the lid on the over-the-counter help he relied on daily. He had been refusing the doctor’s offers of stronger pain pills for a long while, but that didn’t mean he was pain free. He just didn’t want to walk around in a daze. Plus his students needed him to be coherent. Eli pulled in a long sniff of the aroma floating from his coffee mug. The smell was almost as good as what Honor was making. Finally, he glanced at her worried face. He knew he’d scared her in
Tennessee. This was just part of his life. There was nothing more he could do to ease the pain he still lived with.

“Are you okay, Eli?”

The ring of the house phone saved him from explaining.

“I’m fine, sweetheart. No worries,” he said as he walked across the kitchen to the built-in desk. He stood smiling at Honor as he answered. “Hello?”

The beautiful girl on the other end of the line made Eli’s face light up. “Morning baby, how’s my favorite girl?”

He winked at Honor, and if he wasn’t mistaken, her shoulders physically slumped. Was it from disappointment? He continued his call but Honor quickly turned and busied herself at the stove. Part of him wanted to rush to her and explain. The other caveman part of him was excited. She was jealous. No other way to describe it.

The little voice on the other end asked, “Is Dallas up yet?”

“Excuse me? Is who awake?” He asked, his voice a little sing-songy. Eli laughed, teasing the caller. “Does your daddy know you’re calling?”

Eli watched as Honor’s head tilted and turned a bit as if she was subtly trying to decide if it was another woman on the line or not. He grabbed his cell out of his pajama pants as he walked to Dallas with the cordless phone. The boy’s eyes went wide for a second before his face scrunched.

“Hey, ah,
Dallas, you’ve got a phone call, son.”

The boy leaned back on the bar stool like the phone in Eli’s hand would burn him if he accepted it. Eli nodded that it was fine.

Hesitantly, Dallas accepted it. “Um…hello?” he answered with a question, the voice of a shy boy, not a proud male who had a girl calling for him already.

Eli quickly dialed on his cell. “Hey.” Years of phone calls and being as close as brothers had long done away with formalities. “You need to go listen to your daughter.”

“I’m afraid to ask why,” Carter said with a groan, drawing out the last word.

He laughed. “I didn’t think you knew she called me. And actually, she didn’t call me. Go listen.”

Waiting for the reaction on the other end of the line, Eli glanced between Dallas and Honor. She was apparently clueless as to what was going on. He walked closer to her and whispered that Dallas had an admirer. When her brow furrowed in concern, he leaned in closer to her, knowing the father on the other end would be loud enough she could hear him as well.

“Alexandra Noland Sterling. What do you think you’re doing and just
who are you talking to?”

Eli was right. Carter was loud enough that Honor could hear. Without saying anything else, he disconnected the call as she slapped her hand over her mouth and looked at
Dallas with the phone still to his ear.

Pointing discreetly at her son, she whispered, “Is it little Alex who called here, and did she call…for
Dallas?”

Eli nodded, barely hiding his amusement. Although he hadn’t been around him a great deal yet, he knew
Dallas well enough to know that the boy was going to be mortified, and it was definitely not something to tease him about. But it was still funny as all hell.

Now that Honor wasn’t worried about Eli having a woman call him, another emotion spilled over her face. Cringing, she bit her lip watching
Dallas on the phone with a girl for the first time. A very little girl, but the future was slamming into her. Eli squeezed her shoulder.

Honor glanced up at Eli. “Is she always like that with the students here?”

Eli shook his head. “No. Never. She has been around some of our conversations about him and has seen some of the video we have on him. From day one, she’s been curious and asks about him all the time. She couldn’t wait for him to get here yesterday. But no, normally she walks around like the other kids aren’t even here.”

“Well, I guess I am okay with his first girlfriend being someone that has a very protective daddy and uncle.” Honor grinned. “And her age is still in the lower single digits.”

It would have to stay an inside joke between them about Dallas and Alex, one they could laugh about when Dallas wasn’t in the room, but at least Honor was laughing and not pissed about another woman. Eli grinned.

“Oh, just wait. When her Uncle Jesse finds out about this, he’ll be after her. You met him last night.”

Her brow furrowed, true worry deepening the creases across her forehead. “But…he seems like a teddy bear.”