Her Marine Next Door - Aliyah Burke Page 0,55

around her and padded to stand before the mirror.

Cullen had been sleeping when they returned, and she didn’t like not saying goodbye to him at night, but she was too emotional to deal with Gemma.

Too exposed.

Even hours later, his calling her “Mama” ripped her raw. As she stared at her reflection, tears welled before slipping down her cheeks. She gripped the edges of the counter so hard she didn’t doubt there would be marks on her palms.

“I never thought I’d be called ‘Mama’ again. And for it to be done by Cullen…”

She exhaled sharply and squared her shoulders.

“I can do this. So what if I’m nothing more than a glorified babysitter with benefits. Amazing benefits.” She touched her index fingers to the corners of her eyes, dismissing the lingering liquid drops.

I have to get myself under control, because Parker will be back. And he’s too observant to hide anything from.

Thunder rolled as she stepped from the bathroom and made her way to her bedroom. Storms. She loved them.

After tugging on her orchid lace hipster panties, she drew on her lounge pants of off-white fuzziness, covered in blue and gray owls. Her oversize pale lemon-yellow shirt had nothing on it, but hung off one shoulder. She retreated to the front and let Alpin out to take care of his needs before the storm arrived.

Once he was back in and on his bed, she turned on some cello music and picked up her crossword puzzle book. Opening it to her latest, she got to work. She hadn’t taken down the hair she’d gathered off her neck for the shower.

Losing herself in what was her downtime, she paused when her skin peppered with goose bumps, and she looked up. Parker stood there, by the door, arms and legs crossed, watching her with an unblinking familiarity.

“When did you come in? I didn’t hear you.” Alpin wasn’t any help—he remained crashed on his bed.

“A bit ago. God, Skylar, I could watch you all day. You’re so fucking beautiful.”

His words sailed through her on liquid heat. She gave a small shake of her head and was about to tell him to stop pushing compliments when they were alone, but she noticed something about him.

The man before her wasn’t the confident man she’d come to know, and dare she say it, care about. Perhaps even love. She saw something else in him he didn’t show the world. Out in public he was one way, but here, with her or with her and Cullen, he was different. He watched her, and it wasn’t just in a sexual way. Like he didn’t want to miss something, and if he looked away, he was afraid he might.

“What’s going on?” She put her pencil in the book and closed it, giving him her undivided attention.

“Results are back.”

Heart thundering in her chest, Skylar rose and walked to him, took his hand in hers, and led him back to the couch, stopping on the way to lower the volume of the music she’d been playing, Sheku Kanneh-Mason.

Here it was, the reason for this entire sham. Why he was in her house.

This was the end of what they had. Right?

“Do you want to tell me what it said?”

He pulled the letter from his back pocket. “Haven’t opened it yet.”

She canted her head to the right. “And you don’t want to?”

“Not alone.”

“I’m not going anywhere unless you tell me to leave.”

He wound his fingers around hers and gave a squeeze.

“Can I ask you something before you open it?”

Those amazing green-blue eyes of his latched onto her. “What?”

“Do the results matter? Will it change how much you love Cullen?”

“No. I won’t love him any less.”

“And will you suddenly stop being there for him?”

He glared at her. “Never. I will always be there for him.”

She brought his hand to her mouth and kissed it. “There you go, then. It doesn’t matter what it says. Your decision is made.” She refused to make this about her and where it would put her in the grand scheme of things. This was her time to be there for Parker. He needed her support, not her pain and fears.

“Gemma could take him from me.”

Skylar weighed how best to say what she wanted to convey. These were dangerous waters she treaded through.

“Gemma could have kept him from you completely. She didn’t. Whatever that paper says, Parker, try to think she does want what’s best for Cullen.” Even she had a hard time swallowing that, but reminded herself this wasn’t about her.

“I thought