Love in the Light (Hearts in Darkness, #2)(7)

Makenna brought her contributions to dinner in and sat them on the counter. The rustic white cabinets, honey-colored granite counters, and warm wooden floors had always made this her favorite room in the house. But man, if she didn’t like the room even better with Caden there. “I’ll get it,” Makenna said, grinning to herself as she leaned into the fridge. Everything was better with Caden.

Her dad engaged them in small talk about the traffic and the nice weather they were having and how much longer the turkey still had to cook, and Makenna could see the tension draining out of Caden’s shoulder. She covered his hand with hers where it rested against the countertop.

Her dad took casual notice of the gesture but otherwise didn’t react. Though she’d told her father all about Caden, she’d never brought a man home before, so it was new ground for both of them. “So, Caden, Makenna tells me you’re a paramedic. What’s that like?”

“It’s…” Caden’s brow furrowed for a long moment. “It’s different every day depending on the calls we get. Sometimes it’s long hours of hanging out at the station, but most days you can hardly catch your breath for running between calls. Depending on how critical the situation is, it can be hard and stressful, but mostly it’s an amazing privilege to be there to help someone in a moment when they desperately need it.”

Makenna’s heart swelled at the passion in his voice. Despite all he’d been through—not just the accident and the loss of his mom and brother, but the life-long PTSD and having a father who hadn’t been there for him, too—Caden was such a sweet, good man. Two months ago, he’d held the elevator door for her when nothing else in her day had gone right, and she’d called him her Good Samaritan. Then, she hadn’t known the half of it.

Her father nodded as he pulled a big dish down from a cabinet, and Makenna could see that the thoughtfulness of Caden’s response had impressed him. “I have a lot of respect for first responders. You’re out there on the front lines.”

“When you’ve had a stranger show up to help you during your darkest hour, the least you can do is be there for someone else during theirs,” Caden said in a quiet voice. “I’ve always felt that I had to pay it forward.”

Makenna slipped her arm around Caden’s waist. Part of her couldn’t believe he’d offered that up, because she knew he didn’t like to talk about himself. And it made her so proud of him that it took everything she had not to pull his face down for a kiss. But maybe it was better not to freak her father out fifteen minutes after arriving.

“Makenna told me about the accident,” her dad said, taking a drink from a bottle of beer. “I was sorry to hear it. That’s a lot for a kid to go through. But I’d say you’re doing your family proud.”

Caden gave a tight nod and looked down, suddenly very interested in his can of Coke.

She squeezed him tighter, because her dad was right. But Makenna changed the topic because she knew the attention—and the compliment—probably made him uncomfortable. “Where are the guys?” she asked, moving to fill a glass with sangria. Full of apples, cinnamon, and spice, it was fall in a cup. Delicious.

“Downstairs in the rec room,” her dad said, peering into the oven to check the turkey. “Watching football, I think.”

After her mother had died of breast cancer when Makenna was three, her dad took over everything her mother used to do—including the cooking. And he was good at it, too. Not that she remembered much of her mother. Of any of them, Patrick had the most memories because he’d been ten when they lost her. But even his memories were mostly faint and indistinct. Which explained why she and her brothers worshipped her dad. He’d been everything to them.

“Oh, and you’re not the only one who brought a date home.” Dad grinned, loving knowing something she didn’t.

“Who else brought someone?” she asked. Patrick was married to the police department, so she knew it wasn’t him, and she hadn’t heard about Ian or Collin dating anyone. What the heck?

“Wanna guess?” her father asked as he pulled two cookie sheets of appetizers out of the second oven. He settled them on the counter.

“No!” Makenna said. “Spill already.”

Her dad smiled and scooped the southwest egg rolls, pigs in a blanket, and spinach-artichoke pockets onto a platter. “Collin.”

Her little brother brought a date? Holy crap. “Someone from grad school?” Makenna asked.

Her dad nodded. “Shima. She’s a real sweetheart. You should go make sure she’s surviving your brothers and introduce Caden.” He took a cautious bite of one of the egg rolls. “And take these down for me?” he asked, tapping the edge of the dish.

Makenna grabbed a stack of paper plates and napkins. “Did you know she was coming?”

“Nope. It was a surprise.” Her dad shrugged. “The more the merrier at the holidays, though.”

Nodding, Makenna reached for the appetizers.

“I got it,” Caden said.

“Great to meet you, Caden,” her dad said. “Mi casa es su casa. So while you’re here, make yourself completely at home.” Makenna gave her dad a grateful smile for welcoming Caden, not that she’d doubted he would.

“Appreciate that, Mike,” Caden said, following Makenna across the room and into a hallway.