SEALs Love Curves Book 6: Family

Nicole

Nicole looked at the man she saw in her son’s face every day and drew a breath. He was in everything Sly did. She hadn’t known Rocky long or well, but she knew him intimately. She knew him in ways she hadn’t known any other man before or since. And those little pieces of domesticity she saw when they spent a weekend together years ago were in her daily life with her son.

Sly was her world. When she found out she was pregnant, she was scared, but every decision she made since then was for him. Right up to and including telling Rocky her son was his.

“How is this possible?” Rocky asked, staring at Sly from across the room. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

She stared at him for a long moment, letting the reality sink in. She knew Rocky wasn’t his real name, that it was a nickname given to him by the SEALs. It didn’t bother her at the time because there was no reason she’d see him again, or need to. She only told him her first name, never a last name. They agreed to keep things anonymous. She had no way to find him once she found out she was pregnant.

“You didn’t know my name,” he said after a moment. “Shit, Nikki, I’m sorry. I… I’m sorry. How is he?” He shook his head. “Stupid question. What happened?”

Nicole shrugged. “The doctors aren’t completely sure. They said it could be hereditary, especially since I didn’t know your medical history. He also fell when he was little and could have damaged something that went unnoticed. It’s been tough, but I haven’t spent a lot of time looking for reasons why. I’ve been more focused on helping him feel better. I’ve done everything I could, but his doctor said a transplant is his only hope for a long life. Without it, he has a year at the most. Dialysis has been hard on him.”

Rocky ran a hand down his face and leaned forward. He stared across the room at Sly. Nicole tried not to be jealous of how longingly Rocky looked at her son. She hadn’t had a man look at her like that since she last saw him, either. He was her last lover, and the memory of their weekend together got her through some rough days and nights.

When Sly was little, she imagined life with Rocky by her side. Helping her with midnight feedings and diaper changes, kissing scraped knees and elbows, and holding and loving her all night long. But Rocky was a figment of her imagination. Just like the hope they would find a donor had been.

Hope that sent her looking at other options. Options that would cost everything she had, except her son.

“How are you? This can’t have been easy on you. Are you okay?” Rocky asked, turning to her suddenly.

Nicole took a minute to soak him in, all those memories of dreams she had, of him coming home after a long day and asking exactly that, fogged her brain and made it hard for her to think straight as she sat next to the man she never thought she’d see again.

Nicole took a breath and said the same thing she said to everyone else. “I’m fine. It’s not easy, but Sly’s a great kid. I wouldn’t change anything in our lives because we’re together.”

Rocky held her gaze for a long moment, as if he could see the lies buried beneath the surface. She cried herself to sleep most nights of his life. She used him as her crutch. She spent every spare moment and every spare dollar on him, and she loved him, but a part of her resented Rocky for it. Not Sly, because he couldn’t help being sick, but Rocky for not being there. Even though he didn’t know, Nicole resented him.

“You must hate me,” Rocky said, as though reading her secret thoughts. “I wish I’d been here for you. For both of you.”

Nicole pulled herself together while Rocky stared at their son. He’d gotten older in the years since she’d seen him. He was still as lean and strong as ever. She had memories of outlining his muscles with her tongue, of tasting every inch of him. He did the same for her, something she wasn’t sure about at the time. He loved her curves, and he wasn’t afraid to tell her and show her how much. Years later, with a son and not enough money for both of them to eat healthy, she had even more curves hidden beneath her oversized sweatshirt and jeans.

Not that it mattered. Rocky wouldn’t see her naked again. Ever.

“I did the best I could,” Nicole finally said.

Rocky’s dark gaze snapped back to hers. “I know you did. He looks happy and you’ve done everything to make sure he’s healthy. I’m not trying to say you didn’t do everything. I just wish you weren’t going through all of this alone. Well, I mean, maybe you’re not. I’m sorry to assume.”

The question in his gaze almost made her laugh. Nicole had been alone since she walked out of his hotel room in the middle of the night, leaving behind the only man she was ever willing to be her full, true self with. But he wasn’t supposed to be hers.

Nicole shook her head. “No, I’m alone.”

Was that relief or heat in his eyes? It didn’t matter. Nicole was both too tired and too over men to even think about getting involved with someone. Maybe if Sly got better… No. She couldn’t think about that. Her son was her priority. Her only priority.

“Mommy,” Sly said, running over to her. He held up a toy he’d grabbed from the play area. It was a humvee, his favorite vehicle. “Look, Mommy!”

“I see, sweetheart. That’s really cool.”

“Can I get one?” Sly asked, his brown eyes hopeful. That was the thing with Sly, he was full of hope and faith. He never gave up on it. He trusted he would get better and be able to have a full life. He trusted their situation would improve and he would have all the toys he wanted. He trusted everything would work out all the time.

Nicole didn’t have the same levels of hope or faith. She didn’t trust anyone or anything. If something was going to happen, she had to make it happen.

“We’ll see, honey,” Nicole said, giving him a sad smile. She’d looked at something similar for him as a gift for getting through surgery, but she couldn’t afford it. Not when the hospital bills were going to cost her thousands. She had insurance, but it wasn’t great insurance. She had a tiny bit of savings, too, but she was going to use that for a new car since hers was barely holding on.

Now that she didn’t need that money to buy her son a kidney.

“Okay, Mommy,” Sly said, his smile only fading a little. He knew he’d never have one of his own, and instead of getting upset about it, he went back to playing with it, soaking up as much fun with the truck as he could get while it was in his hands.

He raced back across the room to the play area and zoomed the truck around the mat on the floor. Nicole watched him, smiling at the one person who’d never let her down.

“Wow,” Rocky breathed, startling Nicole. She’d forgotten he was there for a minute.

“What?”

“He’s… He reminds me of my dad.”

Nicole smiled. She wasn’t going to tell him she reminded her of him.

“Even the way he talks and how happy he is. It’s like a piece of my dad is here again.”

“Your dad is…”

Rocky looked at her. For a second, she could see that he was somewhere else, but then he snapped back to reality. “He died a long time ago.”

“I’m sorry,” Nicole said. It didn’t matter that she never met the man, she could see the pain it caused Rocky.

He nodded. “He was a great man. The kind of father and husband I always hoped I would be.”

Nicole glanced at his hands, panic rising up. “You’re married with kids?”

He shook his head. “No. I just always wanted them.”

“Ever been married?”

“Nope. How about you?”

Nicole shook her head.

“Any other kids?”

Nicole shook her head again.

“Boyfriends, girlfriends?”

“No one. It’s just been Sly and me since I last saw you.”

Rocky took a breath and leaned forward again. His gaze was zeroed in on Sly. “Does he know who I am? That I’m his father?”

Nicole shook her head. “I didn’t know it was going to be you until I saw you today. He has a rare blood type, one I assumed he got from you. I figured there was a chance you would be the donor, but I also thought it was just as likely to be a stranger.”

“So, he doesn’t know anything about me?”

“He knows his father was a SEAL and that if you knew about him, you would be a part of his life.”

“You told him that?”

She shrugged. “I figured you would never know so I’d never have to tell him I was wrong.”

Rocky held her gaze, then drifted back to watching Sly. “You weren’t wrong. I want to know him, Nikki. If it’s okay with you, I’d like to get to know our son.”

* * *

Rocky

Rocky watched Nikki as she processed his words. He wondered if she knew how much she telegraphed her thoughts in her eyes. She didn’t trust him, and she wasn’t sure if she wanted him around her son.

He didn’t really understand it. It wasn’t like he walked away from them, or even from her. When he woke up the morning he had to leave, she was already gone. She snuck out during the night. He had always been a light sleeper, so Rocky had no idea how she’d gotten out of the room without him knowing, but she did. She didn’t leave a note for him. She just vanished.

For a while, he was pissed off about it, but Dex convinced him it was for the best. Rocky didn’t plan to keep in touch with her, so what difference did it make that she left without a word?

But it bothered him, and until that moment, when he was sitting next to her in the waiting room, getting ready to donate a kidney to their son, did he realize why it bothered him so much.

Because he didn’t want it to be over.

“I’m sure he’d like that,” Nikki finally said.

Rocky could barely remember what they were talking about. Oh, yeah, getting to know Sly. That was honest. He did want to know his kid. He just wanted to know Sly’s mom, too. But he wouldn’t use Sly to get to Nikki. If things worked out with them, that would be great, but if not, Rocky still wanted to know his son.

“So, Nik—”

“Adrian Malone,” a nurse called from the open doorway.

Rocky stopped and looked up. He lifted his hand and stood so the nurse knew he heard her. He turned back to Nikki.

“Your name is Adrian Malone?” she asked with a laugh.

He raised an eyebrow.

“No wonder they call you Rocky.”

He grinned at her laugh and remembered the first time he heard it. She was across the bar, and he had to know where it was coming from. She was like a siren, calling to him, and she still was.

“Mr. Malone,” the nurse said again.

“Nikki, please come find me. Okay? Don’t vanish on me again. Please.”

She stopped laughing and sucked in a shaky breath. She looked up at him and nodded, her eyes locked on his.

Rocky took half a step toward her and stopped. He couldn’t kiss her. She wasn’t his. He couldn’t even hug her. But he wanted to do both.

“I’ll see you soon.”

She nodded again.

He held her gaze for another second, then followed the nurse through the security door. She verified his identity and took his vitals before showing him to a room.

“Your procedure will be first thing in the morning. You won’t be able to eat after nine o’clock, but we can have dinner delivered to your room if you’d like. There is a menu on the table next to the bed and instructions on how to order are on the back. Please change into the gown so we can monitor you overnight. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

Rocky nodded at the nurse. When she left the room, he changed and packed his clothes into his bag. He pulled out his phone and charger and set them on the table. He had a few missed texts from the team, but nothing that couldn’t wait.

The nurse hooked him up to machines and left again. Since he wasn’t really a patient yet, he figured they’d mostly leave him alone.

He replied to the texts and debated filling them all in on everything that happened. Dex was the only one who really knew about Nikki, but he might not remember her. Besides that, Rocky wanted a little time to process what happened and everything he learned before telling anyone else.

He ordered dinner and spent some time looking through his emails. He turned on the TV and stared at the screen, his mind and body screaming at him to do something. He wasn’t used to sitting around.

He picked up the phone to call the nurse’s station. Maybe if he found out what room Nikki and Sly were in, he could go visit them.

“Can I help you, Mr. Malone?”

“Yeah, can you tell me what room Sylvester… um, shit. I don’t know his last name.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Malone, but I can’t give out patient information.”

“But his mom… he’s… Okay. I understand. Thank you.”

“Is there anything else, Mr. Malone?”

“No.”

Rocky hung up and stared at the four walls surrounding him. It was going to be a long, boring month.

* * *

Nicole fluffed the pillow behind Sly’s head and smiled at him. “Are you feeling okay?”

He nodded. “Who was that man you were talking to, Mommy?”

Nicole took a breath and avoided looking at her son. She assumed he would notice and ask her, but she thought she could tell him Rocky was just another patient. She didn’t expect him to want to be involved in their lives.

“He’s donating a kidney tomorrow,” Nicole said.

“I’m getting a kidney tomorrow,” Sly said with a grin. “Is he giving me a kidney?”

She sat on the bed and took her son’s hands. She forced a smile for him. “He is. He came here to give you one of his kidneys.”

“That was really nice of him. He’s a nice man. Did you tell him thank you?”

She smiled. “I… don’t remember. But you can tell him. After tomorrow.”

“I will? I’ll be able to meet him and tell him thank you?”

She nodded and took the plunge. “You will. Because he wants to get to know you. Honey, he’s—”

“Hello, everyone!” Dr. Andrews said, bursting into the room.

Nicole chose him as Sly’s surgeon because of his reputation as a top pediatric specialist. She liked him because he was always bright and happy and positive. He made everything seem possible, even the impossible.

“Hi, Dr. Andrews!” Sly shouted. He loved the man, too.

“Well, now, Sylvester, what are you here for? Is it a nose transplant?”

Sly giggled. “No.”

“Oh, I know, a funny bone transplant.”

Sly laughed harder and shook his head.

“It has to be an armpit transplant,” he said, tickling Sly.

Sly giggled and struggled to get away. “No, Dr. Andrews, it’s my kidney.”

“Oh, kidney!” He slapped his forehead. “Silly me. I should have known that. How is everyone feeling tonight?”

He looked at Nicole even though he was really asking how Sly was.

“I’m great. Mommy met the man who’s giving me a kidney. She said I can meet him later and thank him.”

Dr. Andrews gave Nicole a funny look. She wasn’t supposed to know who was donating, but it wasn’t an issue if she found out. She knew he was going to ask.

“Well, that sounds great,” Dr. Andrews told Sly. “How about you let me check you out real quick, and we’ll get all ready for the morning.”

Sly nodded and stretched out on the bed. He did as Dr. Andrews told him and smiled when the report was good.

Dr. Andrews talked a few more minutes, then asked Nicole to speak to him in the hall. She knew what was coming.

“How did you figure out who the donor was?” Dr. Andrews asked.

Nicole took a breath and admitted, “He’s Sly’s father.”

“Really?” Dr. Andrews asked with a grin. “Well, that’s great news. I thought this was a registry match?” He flipped through Sly’s chart.

“It is. His father hasn’t been a part of our lives. I didn’t know how to contact him,” Nicole said.

Dr. Andrews nodded like he understood. “Well, whatever the reason, I’m happy to see things are going well and that Sly will be healthy. How are you, Nicole? Are you getting enough rest? The next month or two is going to be tough on you.”

“I’ll be fine, Dr. Andrews. As long as Sly’s okay, I will be.”

Dr. Andrews smiled at her and put his hand on her shoulder. “Tomorrow is going to be a good day.” He squeezed, a grandfatherly gesture from a man who really cared about his patients. Dr. Andrews was well into his fifties and shared with Nicole that he had grandkids close to Sly’s age. He said he enjoyed working with kids because they make the world a better place. She was sure he saw more than his fair share of heartache, but he still dealt with every child as though they were his favorites and they all had a great chance of recovery.

“Thank you, Dr. Andrews.”

“Do you want me to check up on the father? Make sure he’s good?”

Nicole smiled and shook her head. “He’s a good man. He didn’t run out on us. He never knew about Sly. I didn’t know how to reach him once I found out I was pregnant. But he said he wants to get to know Sly.”

Dr. Andrews nodded. “Well, if you change your mind, let me know. Try to get some sleep tonight, Nicole. I’ll see you both early in the morning.”

“Thanks, Dr. Andrews. See you tomorrow.”

Nicole went back into the room where a nurse was talking to Sly. She was showing him the options for dinner and flipping through the channels on the TV. Cable TV was a luxury they didn’t have at home, so Sly was in heaven.

“Hi, Mom,” the nurse said. “We’re talking about dinner. He’s hungry. He wants pizza and a cheeseburger and fries and a cookie and ice cream.”

Nicole crossed her arms and gave Sly a look that said not a chance. “Maybe about half of all that.”

The nurse grinned and winked at her. “That’s probably for the best.” She handed Nicole the menu. “I’m Shelly. I’ll be here until he goes into surgery tomorrow, but I’ll be back for nights through the weekend. Dinner for you is included, too, Mom, so order whatever you want. I’ll pull the chair out for you whenever you’re ready. And let me know if there is anything else you need.”

Nicole nodded. Shelly started to walk out when Nicole remembered Rocky. “Is it possible to tell me what room another patient is in?”

“It depends. Is the patient family?”

Nicole smiled and lowered her voice. She glanced back at Sly, but he was focused on the TV. “He’s my son’s donor, but he’s also his biological father.”

Shelly nodded and smiled. “What’s his name?”

“Adrian Malone.”

Shelly tapped the screen of her tablet a few times, then said, “Room 412.”

“Thank you.”

Shelly nodded. “Good luck.”

Nicole smiled. She was going to need more than just luck.