Operation Family Read online

  Nicole Ryan bounced one of the twins on her lap while gently rocking the baby bouncer seat with her foot. The poor sweet girls had no idea what was going on but they could feel the turmoil of the situation, and that was enough to make for a long sleepless night again. She had been the caregiver since the girls were born, but Shawn had always been there when she needed him, when things got harder. Now she was alone, so alone, with these two little lives depending on her at least until their guardian arrived.

  Damn it, Shawn! How could you leave the girls to someone else when I’ve been there since the day you brought them home? I never even heard of this Mac García, and he’s never even visited his grandnieces. How is he a suitable guardian?

  Knowing she was going to lose these two precious girls in a matter of days broke her heart. She wouldn’t even be able to see them often; they’d be across the country in Virginia. Mac would dash in and take the girls away to their new life, while she was expected to pick up the pieces and forget them. She had been there every day for six months, day and night, like a mother to the girls.

  She was only the nanny. It’s not as if she could really love the girls. The neighbor’s rude comment at Shawn’s funeral cut through her like broken glass. No one understood how she felt about the girls. How could they? They hadn’t moved in to help after their mother had died in childbirth. There was no way Shawn could have managed twins without assistance.

  If she had to blame someone for the pain she was suffering, she’d blame Shawn. He brought her into his home, let her take the place of mother to the girls, and then expected her to give them up to someone they’d never even met. She hadn’t even heard of Mac until the will was read. How was he supposed to deal with twin girls when he was a bachelor and in the military?

  “I’m not giving up on you girls without a fight.” She pressed her lips to Gabriella’s head, breathing in the baby scent mixed with the sweet lavender from the earlier bath. “You’re all that’s left of Shawn and he wanted so much for both of you.”

  With Sophia nearly asleep and Gabriella’s eyes fluttering shut, she rose from the nursery rocker and stepped closer to the crib. “Come, my sweet child. Let’s put you to bed.” She laid the little girl in the crib, making sure to leave enough room to place Sophia next to her.

  They had just begun separating the twins, forcing them into their own cribs since they were six months old and space was starting to become an issue. Since Shawn’s death, they needed the comfort of being close. It had been the only way she’d been able to get them to sleep more than a short period. She had given in, seeing no other option. The girls needed each other. When things calmed down, she’d hoped to return them to their own cribs—at least she’d planned it that way until the will was read. Now it was Mac’s problem.

  She lifted Sophia from the bouncing seat, and the sleeping child’s eyelids sprang open. “It’s all right, sweetie. I’m going to put you to bed with your sister.” Instead of placing her directly into the crib, she took a brief moment to snuggle the little girl tight against her chest. The children could be a handful at times but they were adorable, with their dark brown hair and sea green eyes that seemed to look directly into her soul.

  With newfound determination, she swallowed the lump that had formed and laid Sophia down next to her sister. “Sleep tight, darlings. I’m going to make a call and try to keep us together.” As if approving of the idea, Sophia let out a little giggle before snuggling next to Gabriella and letting her eyes close again.

  Shawn, how you could have thought anyone could love these girls more than me, I’ll never understand. She padded down the hall toward his office where she knew she’d find the number for Mr. Batty, the lawyer who handled Shawn’s will. He would know if she had any ground to stand on when it came to retaining custody of the twins, or at the very least having visitations so she wouldn’t lose contact with them.

  The office still held the scent of Shawn, his crisp, fresh cologne mixing with the lingering stench of coffee. She never understood how he had managed to drink so much of it, when the smell alone churned her stomach. The large oak desk that dominated the room was where he’d spent the majority of his time when he wasn’t with the girls. It was the one room she had only been in occasionally, and now that he was gone, it felt like she was invading his privacy.

  Not wanting to linger, she made her way to the desk, where the leather bound planner and address book sat. She sank down on the expensive leather chair, quickly turning the pages in the book to find Mr. Batty in the address section, before her gaze moved to the papers that still cluttered his desk.

  I should go through this before Mac arrives and finish getting the house ready for him, for whatever he decides to do. She had serious doubt he’d want to keep it. What use would he have for a house in a small town in Texas, when he lived in Virginia Beach? She brought the phone to her ear and dialed Mr. Batty’s cell number, since it was too late to catch him in the office on a Friday.

  On the second ring, he answered. “Evening, Nicole. Is everything okay?”

  She couldn’t keep the smile off her face. One of the best things about living in a small town was the closeness of the residents. “I need legal advice.”

  “I figured you’d call me when you were ready. You want to fight for the girls, don’t you?”

  The way he asked it, she could almost picture the older man behind his desk, surrounded by briefs, law books, and paperwork. “Do I have any grounds? I’ve been a part of their lives since they came home from the hospital. To hand them over to someone I didn’t even know existed seems wrong with all they’ve been through. Shawn never even mentioned he had an uncle. Can he even take care of the girls with his career? Is it really what’s best for them?”

  “The law normally sides with blood relations, but they will take into consideration whatever is best for the children. In order for the uncle to maintain his career and have custody of the girls he will need to make arrangements for their care when he’s on duty or deployed.” She heard a glass clink against wood in the background. “All I can tell you is he’ll be notified when he arrives back from the training session, and that he should be in touch with us by Monday or Tuesday. How about I come out to the house Monday morning to discuss your options? Gaining custody of the children will not give you the finances or the house. Those will still be willed to Lieutenant Commander García. You’ll need to see if you have the means to raise the children on your own.”

  “I don’t care about the money, though I admit it would be nice not to have to find a new place and shake up the girls’ lives more. Still, we’d deal with it. Thank you, Mr. Batty. I’ll see you on Monday.”

  “If it’s any consolation, Shawn had the will prepared days after the girls were born. There was no one else he could have granted custody to at the time, and that will work for us. We’ll see what we can do to keep the twins right here in Texas,” Mr. Batty vowed before hanging up the phone.

  She had a chance. That should have lifted the weight and tension, but it only made sadness join the rest of her issues. Mac might have been a good guy, one who could have been a good father to the girls…when he was home. She wouldn’t deny the girls needed a father, but she couldn’t give them up without a fight. She needed to at least try to give them the stable home they deserved, without more changes.

  With the girls sleeping, she knew she should be doing the same. Instead, she powered on Shawn’s laptop to look at the wanted ads. Before she took the job as the twins’ nanny, she had been an accountant, burned out from the long hours and stressful clients. Surely she could find some accountant jobs she could do from home in between caring for the twins if she was able to get custody of them. The locals who needed accounting done could come here, or wherever she ended up living. Things were going to work out; she’d see to it. The girls were depending on her.

  It was just after two in the morning when the twins’ wails pulled Nicole from the first decent sleep she’d had in days, and the first dream s
he’d had that wasn’t wrapped around Shawn’s death. She slipped out of bed, grabbing her robe as she quickly made her way to the adjoining nursery. When she took the nanny position, Shawn had insisted she take the master bedroom since the nursery was closest to it, while he took another room farther down the hall by his office. It allowed her to be easily available anytime the twins needed her. Practical as it might have been, it was also sweet of him. In his own house he had taken a smaller room, and that, like so many other things, showed what a good person he was.

  She’d make sure the girls knew their father was an outstanding man. He’d always been willing to drop everything at a moment’s notice for someone in need, or give the shirt off his back to a friend. Shawn was an honorable man, one she grieved for every moment of the day. She grieved for herself and for the twins, who were orphans now.

  She should be the one raising the girls to teach them of their father, even what little she knew about their mother. Mac knew nothing of the girls parents. How could they grow up knowing their parents loved them if they were raised by someone who didn’t even know them? It sickened her, the hand life had dealt them at only six months of age. It was horrible.

  “What’s wrong, my beautiful girls?” She reached in and plucked out Sophia, who had most likely started the wailing, as she normally did each night. The middle of the night was when Shawn usually snuck in for a quick cuddle with the girls if they woke; it was the one time he was with them when he didn’t have to worry about his cell phone ringing with some business transaction that needed his attention.

  “You miss Daddy’s visits, don’t you?” As if in answer, Sophia’s cries grew louder. “I know, my sweet girl. I miss him too. Your mommy and daddy are in Heaven watching over you.” She smoothed her hand over the girl’s back, trying to get her cries to subside. Gabriella had already lain back down, looking up at Nicole with her big green eyes.

  “We’re going to get through this,” she promised, bouncing Sophia gently as the child cuddled against her chest.

  She tried to convince herself that whatever happened with the custody issue, it would all work out best for them. Maybe Mac would at least allow visitation with the girls. She could be the cool aunt who popped in to visit and spoil them rotten without having to worry about being the disciplinarian. Only time would tell how things would turn out. At least she had this weekend before Mac took the girls away. Cherish the time you have.

  The late hour had the airport nearly still as Mac made his way down the terminal toward the exit. Passing the lit Christmas trees that lined the hallway, he saw embracing couples which had him speeding his pace. He needed fresh air to clear his mind and a good night’s sleep to get his game back. Spending part of his journey with Shelly and her children had given him an insight he didn’t have before, one that made him wonder if he had been missing something in life by not having someone to come home to. He had never planned to marry or have children of his own, not with his duties taking all of his time, but Shelly had made him wonder if he was depriving himself of something truly amazing.

  Even with her unease over her husband and her questioning his career, the love was clear when she spoke about him. Hopefully, Helen would be able to help her deal with her newfound fears, but he was sure they’d make it through as long as they continued to work together and communicate. When he parted with Shelly and the children at baggage claim where her brother had met her, he could tell something had changed in her since Christopher had brought them together.

  If there was one thing he knew, it was nothing ever happened without a reason. Their meeting wasn’t a chance encounter; they were brought together for a purpose. Maybe something he said would help her through the trying times ahead while her husband healed. All he knew for sure was things had changed in the short time they’d spent together.

  “Lieutenant Commander Mac García?”

  He had been watching a family reunion and didn’t notice the young Navy chaplain in his dress uniform approach him until his name was called. “Yes, Chaplain? What can I do for you?” His thoughts ran away with him as he wondered what would bring the chaplain out at such a late hour to find him. He had no family left other than his parents and brother, and he’d spoken to his father only a few hours before. Everyone was fine. That could only mean something had happened with one of his men or their families.

  “Could we have a seat?” He nodded toward small seating area off to the side, and without waiting for Mac he headed to it.

  “It’s been a long day. If you need me to come with you on a notification, let’s just go, and you can explain on the way.”

  The chaplain took a seat and waited for Mac to do the same. “Commander García, Thursday evening, your nephew Shawn García passed away, leaving you the custody of his twin daughters.”

  “Dead? Custody?” None of this could be happening. Shawn was only in his twenties, he couldn’t be dead. Mac didn’t even know his nephew had kids.

  “The girls are six months old and their mother died in childbirth. You’re the only family they have.”

  “Who’s caring for them now?”

  “A nanny, Nicole Ryan. She’s been with the girls since they came home from the hospital.”

  It had been fifteen years since he’d seen Shawn, with only the occasional phone call shared between the two of them. Whatever possessed him to leave the children to Mac was beyond his imagination. He was a SEAL. He wasn’t father material. There had to be someone more suitable. Mac liked children, but he didn’t know anything about raising them. They might have been the only family Shawn and he had left, but didn’t the children’s mother have family who would have been more suitable to raise them?

  Sink or swim, that’s what the Navy taught me. Adjust and do what needs to be done.

  “Commander?” The chaplain waved his hand in front of Mac’s face.

  “Sorry. I’m just blown away by all this. I haven’t talked to Shawn in so long, I…I didn’t realize his wife had…died. Jesus. She passed away in childbirth?”

  “Yes.”

  “Poor Shawn. I apologize. What were you saying?”

  “The girls are being cared for by the nanny until you arrive. Your C.O. has already cleared you of your duties while you deal with this, and there’s a flight at zero six hundred hours. All you need to do is purchase a ticket and you’ll have sixty days to take care of the family care plan. Is there anything else I can do for you?”

  He looked at the chaplain, wanting to say would you like a list but he kept his mouth shut. The chaplain had to tell families their loved ones had died, and that was a duty Mac wouldn’t wish on anyone. “Thank you. I better see about that ticket.”

  The chaplain reached into his pocket and pulled out a business card. “Here’s my number if you find you need someone to confide in.”

  “I appreciate that, but religion has never been my scene.”

  “Commander, I’m more than just a religious adviser. Take the card in case.” He held the card closer until Mac relented.

  “I do appreciate you coming out here at this time of night to let me know.” He glanced up at the clock. After midnight. “If it wasn’t for the weather delays I would have been here earlier and I could have gotten a flight out before morning.”

  “The girls are in good hands until you arrive.” The chaplain stood. “Safe travels.”

  Mac sat there long after the chaplain left, still trying to digest the news that he was now the guardian of twins. At only six months old, they would require many hours of hands-on care. How was he going to provide that? His parents were already in their sixties, so he couldn’t ask for their help, and he certainly wouldn’t be able to attend to them while he was on duty. How would he comply with the Family Ready Act? Retirement might be the only logical answer, and the very thought of it made him ill. What would he do with himself? Even if he retired from the military, it might be more than he could handle.

  With a plane ticket to Texas in hand and hours to kill, Mac stretched
out on the floor next to the window by his gate. He had slept in worse places over the years, so the dirty floor at the airport didn’t bother him in the least. Something he hadn’t thought about in years was eating away at him. Religion.

  After growing up in a devoted Catholic family, he’d spread his wings at eighteen and never looked back. He believed in God, and some of the other ideas taught in church, while other things he questioned. How could a loving God send you to Hell for sex before marriage, for divorce, for suicide, and so many other so-called sins he didn’t want to think about?

  The way he saw it, the only people who deserved to be there were child molesters, rapists, and murderers. According to some, he was no better than a killer himself, but he didn’t do it for sport or for the joy of the kill. He killed in the line of duty, for his country, when it was kill or be killed.

  Over the years, he had heard plenty of hateful things about what he had done, but he refused to let any of it bother him. Now Shawn’s death had brought it all to the forefront of his mind. Was he going to Hell because he chose to stand up and fight for his country, for the things he believed in? The idea of it turned his stomach. He killed to protect himself, his men, the people back home, and their way of life. To him that wasn’t the same as killing in cold blood.

  Maybe the old saying two wrongs don’t make a right was correct. Killing to protect others might come with a cost, but it was one he was willing to pay. Hadn’t he done his time in Hell already? Seeing what he’d seen, doing the things he had done in the name of his country. Hadn’t he paid enough?

  If there really was an afterlife or Heaven, he thought he should be welcomed with open arms. He’d made great sacrifices to protect the citizens of his homeland, and he’d do it again if he had to. But—

  Religion.

  Mac still wasn’t sure how he felt about that.