Free Her Christmas SEAL (When SEALs Come Home Book 7) by Anne Marsh Page A

hour between kittens, so she could be just getting started.
    Jacks got in and started the engine, guiding the truck carefully past the fire trucks. It looked like Lucky was getting checked out by the EMTs. I’d bet seeing his farm go up in flames had just about given the man a heart attack. Of course, the universe had pretty much pooped on my head too. I stared at the flames as Jacks drove us away.
    “It’s like running for the train and watching the doors slam shut in your face, only to discover that the station’s pigeons had used your head for a target.”
    A lopsided grin tugged at the corner of his mouth. “That happen to you?”
    “Once.” Heading for a Motel 6 topped my want list at the moment, but Strong didn’t have one of those. It had a cute little B&B where a single night would eat up next month’s paycheck. And since I didn’t possess a working credit card at the moment, I’d have to wait until next month anyhow before I could step through the door. Motel 6 was fifty miles down the road, which made for a hell of a long walk.
    I tapped my fingers on the side of Frances’s box. Maybe I could get arrested. Maybe the sheriff would take pity on me and let me spend the night at the jail. Frances meeped, and a second kitten made its bedraggled appearance. Or not. The jail probably had an anti-pet policy.
    “Stop worrying,” Jacks said, his voice rough. “Let me get this.”
    “Can you take me to Motel 6?” I hated asking, but I was out of options. Limited cash meant limited choices.
    He didn’t take his eyes off the road. “You could let me take care of it.”
    “I’ve—”
    “Got this,” he finished for me. “You’ve made that clear.”
    God. Delayed reaction from the fire swept over me. We’d had sex. We’d fought. Then the whole place had gone up in flames—or it felt like it—and I strongly suspected I wasn’t going to have a job tomorrow. I was homeless, and even if it was almost Christmas, I had zero desire to reenact the Christmas story and sleep in a barn. Leaning my head against the cool glass of the window, I tried to come up with a plan that didn’t involve camping in my car. I’d done it before, right after I’d broken down in Strong, and it had been both uncomfortable and scary. I’d lain awake half the night, wondering who could come out of the dark and spot me in the backseat of the car. I really, really didn’t want to do that again, which was why I’d decided to stay put in Strong until I had some cash and a plan.
    Jacks slowed and flipped on the blinker. Seconds later, he was pulling into a long, dark driveway. A slightly ramshackle farmhouse sat at the end. The truck’s headlights picked out the peeling paint on the front—and the new wood in the porch where someone had replaced old boards. It looked comfortable and kind of like a work in progress. I liked it, and hey, it wasn’t on fire or smoking, which was another plus.
    “Where are we?”
    “My place.” He threw the truck in park. I looked down at my lap. Frances appeared to be working industriously on kitten number three. Probably best not to disturb her.
    “Kidnapping is a felony,” I pointed out.
    He turned and leaned on the wheel. He looked big and comforting, but looks could be deceptive. “You need a place to stay.”
    Sometimes the truth sucked. While I chewed on that, the cat continued to give birth.
    Jacks winked and looked down into the box. “You don’t want to be a single mother, do you?”
    Frances meeped something that sounded a whole lot like cat for no fucking way. Frances was practical, and Jacks was the solution to all our current woes. I just didn’t like it—which meant I could practically feel the universe howling with laughter.
    “Look,” he said, handing me a key. “I’ll make this easy. There’s the house. It’s all yours. I’ll leave like you asked.”
    I really had no idea what to say. Which was probably why five minutes later, I was standing in the living room alone