Dare to Believe

He smiled at her, filled with love at the sight of the beautiful woman she’d grown to be over the last few years. “Hi, Moira.”

“Leo.” She looked him up and down, her eyes full of mischief. “You’ve certainly filled out. A lot.”

Leo grimaced. He could feel himself beginning to blush. “Moira, this is Ruby Halloway. Ruby—”

Moira stepped forward with an easy smile, her hands held out. “Moira Dunne, his— ” she pointed a finger abruptly at Leo, “—little sister.” She shook her head, her lip curled up, amused. “How did Leo wind up with you? You’re not at all the bimbo-y type he usually—”

Before she could finish that sentence Leo had her in a headlock, one hand firmly clasped over her lips, his face beet red with, Ruby thought, embarrassment. “Ignore everything that comes out of her mouth, okay?” He shot his sister a warning glance. The last thing he needed was for Moira to tell Ruby who, and what, they were before he had the chance to.

Ruby raised one eyebrow, aware of the underlying tension in every move the Dunnes were making. If horsing around was how Moira chose to deal with it, Ruby wouldn’t step in the way. She noticed that Aileen, far from being upset, had calmly taken her daughter’s place at the stove, serenely stirring the stew.

She left brother and sister wrestling amiably and stepped over to Aileen. “Is there anything I can do to help?” She still felt awkward, but the Dunnes were pretty relaxed considering the circumstances. They were treating her like they’d known her for ages. Almost like one of the family.

Aileen smiled at her. This close, the faint lines of strain around her eyes were more noticeable. She wondered if there was anything she could do to take some of the burden off the older woman. Sean had come into the kitchen and whispered something in Leo’s ear and Leo had nodded in response, his expression pleased. Sean had then moved to his wife, placing a small kiss on the side of her neck before pulling plates from the cupboards.

“That’s sweet of you, Ruby, but no.” Aileen raised her voice only slightly and the wrestling near the kitchen table came to an abrupt end. “Moira and I have things under control.”

“I’ll show Ruby to our room, then, Mom. I think we could both use a shower before we eat.” Leo stepped forward, his hair deliciously rumpled, his shirt half out of his pants. Ruby had to tamp down the totally inappropriate spate of lust that gripped her. For God’s sake, girl, get a grip! His mom is standing right there!

Did he just say our bedroom? She looked over at Aileen, wondering how the woman felt about that.

“Dinner in one hour, Leo.” His mom didn’t even lift her gaze from the stew pot she was stirring.

He took Ruby’s hand and began leading her from the room. “We’ll be ready.”

“Leo?”

“Hmm?”

“Where’s your parents’ bedroom?”

“Two doors down from ours.”

“Oh, hell no.”

She pulled against his hand and he stopped with a frown. “What’s the problem, kitten?”

“Leo, we can’t sleep together with your parents right down the hall!” Her horrified whisper was more of a hiss. He opened the door to their bedroom.

Their bedroom. The shaft of joy and satisfaction that shot through him at that thought would have had him grinning except for one thing. Leo had fully expected an argument from his little kitten when she realized his parents had put them in the same bedroom. He wasn’t disappointed, unfortunately. He’d just known she was going to be difficult about this. He led her to the upstairs bedroom his father had put their suitcases in. “It’s all right, Ruby. If my parents had a problem with it, Dad would have put our suitcases in separate rooms.”

Ruby dug her heels in. He had to drag her the rest of the way into their room. He’d have picked her up and thrown her over his shoulder if she’d offered any serious resistance. He’d had a hard enough day without adding a fight with her into the mix.

He began unpacking his suitcase, ignoring the fact that she hadn’t moved from where he’d left her.

“Unpack, sweetheart, we’ve got enough time for a quick shower before dinner if you hurry.”

She stirred, a frown on her face. She opened her mouth to say something, but bit her lip and looked away instead.

He stopped, a shirt dangling from his fingers. She looked…odd. Like she’d swallowed something sour. “What is it, kitten?”

She shrugged, a small smile chasing away her frown. “Nothing.” She began to unpack.

Leo had been around enough women to know that nothing usually meant something. And nothing said in that particular way usually meant everything.

He put the shirt down on the bed and went to her, wrapping his arms around her. He inhaled her sweet scent and his cock hardened immediately. “When a woman says nothing the way you just said nothing, I start worrying. Out with it, kitten.”

She shrugged again, obviously embarrassed. “It’s nothing, really.”

“Now you’re beginning to terrify me.” He bent down and nuzzled her neck through her hair, wallowing in the silky feel of her skin. He felt her shudder when he stroked her earlobe with his tongue and teeth. Suddenly, it had been way too long since he’d been inside her. “C’mon, kitten. Tell me.”

“It’s stupid.”

He licked his way from her earlobe to the top of her shoulder. “Mm-hmm.” He’d totally lost track of the conversation, his only goal now to get her out of her clothes and on her knees. Or on the bed. Or anywhere, so long as it involved a lot of naked.

“It’s just…you’ll think I’m just being whiney.”

Danger! Red alert! Red alert!

She jerked in his arms. “Did you just hear a siren?”

He pulled up abruptly, pulling his powers back around him like a cloak. “Um, no, what did it sound like?”

She frowned up at him, confused. “Like the red alert signal from Star Trek.”

“Oh. Uh, maybe Moira’s watching TV.”

She relaxed, and he held back a sigh of relief. “Oh. That makes sense. I suppose.”

“Now. What’s the problem?” No way were the words “stupid” or “whiney” going to pass his lips. He had some sense of self preservation, after all. He tried to get her to relax by stroking her back soothingly.

“This is so juvenile.”

Hell. “Spit it out, kitten, you’ve chewed it enough. What is it?”

She took a deep breath and visibly braced herself. “It’s just…well, I mean, your parents are down the hall. Aren’t they going to, you know, hear us?” That last was a furious whisper, her face beet red. She glared up at him.

He stared at her. How exactly do I want to answer that?

She rolled her eyes before he could come up with a response. “Never mind. God, I feel like such an idiot for even asking.”

“Oh, no, let’s get that one settled right now.” He forcibly walked her over to the bed and sat down, pulling her down onto his knee. He wrapped his arms securely around her waist. “Care to repeat that question?”

She punched him, hard enough to earn a grunt. “Leo! What if they hear us? ”

“First of all, I’m not twelve years old.”

She mumbled something under her breath, but he decided to let it pass.

“Second of all, you’re not twelve years old.”

She glared up at him through her bangs, looking mutinous.

“Kitten, if it bothered them, Dad would have put us in separate rooms. Do I hear an echo in here?

Ow.” Leo rubbed the sore spot that was rapidly developing on his chest. I have got to find a