Redeeming Jenna

by Kaely Steel

  “I found her,” Hart said, guiding me to the ladder.

  The others gathered around, hands extended to help me to the pool deck where Wulff tenderly wrapped me in a large fluffy towel. My feet were warmed by the heated tile floor while my heart was warmed by their presence. They were back safe and their first thought, their first actions, had been about me.

  They formed a loose, protective circle around me as I approached them one by one to thank them with a kiss, to thank them for caring. I touched each of them with greedy hands, their faces, their shoulders, their pecs. They were mine, all mine. And I wanted them all, hot and tired, overflowing with adrenalin. I could smell their recent victory.

  “We need to celebrate,” I said. A sad little part of me knew that while it would be a celebration for them, it would also be a good-bye party for me. I wanted to make sure none of them forgot me.

  WULFF

  Jenna was amazing. I could tell she had wrestled with her own darkness while we were gone. Her time here was drawing to an end and rather than think of herself, she thought only of us. A victory party. I preferred to find my own way to celebrate quietly. Alone. But tonight, with Jenna, things would be different. I would be different.

  I kissed her long and deep, letting her know I had missed her, I loved her, and that I would miss her more in the days ahead. She had changed me with her love. I felt more whole, more complete. She leaned into me, kissed me hard, then rubbed her cheek softly against my beard, her eyes closed in bliss, her breath soft and even as she absorbed my essence. The well inside me felt refilled, renewed, and I wanted nothing more than to give back to her.

  JENNA

  My men were back and my heart was full, overwhelmed by what each of them had come to mean to me, and the many ways they had touched my soul.

  I showered and dried my hair before I joined them downstairs where the victory party was in full swing. Music filled the air from hidden speakers, but hard to hear over the rumble of jubilant masculine voices. I paused on the landing so I could observe them without being seen.

  Ledger, my blond Viking, dominated the kitchen, assigning chores to the others in that divine accent of his. Pierce, burnt sugar hair gleaming beneath the pot lights, had picked up sous-chef duty. Dare looked adorable as he pushed his glasses up his nose and frowned seriously at the open cookbook on the counter in front of him. Hart was in the dish pit, emitting good-natured grumbles and blowing soap bubbles at the others. Wulff was setting the table, a comfortable distance between him and the others. They were a closely-knit unit, yet all clearly needed their space.

  I pasted a party smile on my face and stepped into the fracas. Sadness about my imminent departure was tucked away for another time.

  Ledger spotted me first. “Here she is! Our guest of honor!”

  He met me at the bottom of the steps and danced me across the floor in time to the music. Final twirl complete, I rested my hands on his shoulders for stability. Our eyes locked. His hands went to my waist and we were swaying together to the music as my breasts brushed the hard wall of his chest and my fingertips thrilled to the solid warmth of his muscled shoulders beneath my touch. Our breath mingled seconds before his lips captured mine. Firm. Warm. Seeking.

  “Chef you’re needed over here!” Pierce’s voice interrupted us and Ledger pulled back with reluctance.

  “Duty calls.”

  His place was immediately pre-empted by Pierce, green eyes alight with mischief as he swung me into his arms. I tilted my head back to meet his gaze. “What was that about?”

  “It was about my turn.” He dance-stepped me away from the others, leaned down and spoke directly into my ear. “We’re all yours, Jenna. Can you handle it?”

  “How does this work?”

  “Any way you want. It’s your party.”

  We were interrupted by the pop of a Champagne cork, followed by cheers and laughter. Pierce took my hand and led me to the kitchen island. The party hub.

  Ledger filled the champagne flutes which Hart passed around. When we all had a glass in hand we raised them together.

  “To Jenna.” The murmur went around the island. “To Jenna.”

  “Wait,” I said. “I have a toast. To my special G Force Five. I love you guys.” My gaze touched each of them in turn. “I mean that. My life had been empty of love until I met you. Each of you has loved and lost; yet despite everything you found the capacity to love again. You inspire me. Thank you for being you.”

  I hadn’t realized that my eyes had welled up with tears until Hart stepped forward and wiped them away with the pad of his thumb. “Don’t be sad, Jenna. We love you. We want to make you happy.”

  I blew out a breath. Had I ever been happy? “I don’t think I know how.”

  Dare spoke up. “You have the capacity within. We’re here to help you find it. Let us help you as you have helped us.”

  “I thought your mission was to keep me safe. To take care of any unpleasantness that might try to find me.”

  “You can’t be truly safe until you believe in yourself. Self-belief is the well-spring of happiness.” Wulff spoke with such sincerity, I didn’t have it in me to disappoint him.

  How could I possibly believe in myself when no one had ever believed in me? Or was that the crux of it? If I believed, others would as well? “Show me.”

  What followed was like a dream.

  I was ushered to a fluffy skin rug before the fire. Piece by piece my clothing was removed. Every inch of my skin was kissed and adored. My scalp was massaged, my feet rubbed with scented lotion. My sensuality was inhaled, revered, celebrated.

  I raised my arms, hands hungry for them, my fingers grazing a bicep here, a six-pack there. Firelight flickered on shadowy limbs, one indistinguishable from the rest. I was surrounded, cherished, redeemed.

  One by one they lay with me, loved me, filled me. And when I was truly satisfied, they nested with me, and kept me safe within their love. As a victory party, the victory was all mine.

  Chapter 11

  PIERCE

  Tenderly I laid a blanket over Jenna and smoothed back a tangle of honey brown hair.

  She’d got to me. She’d got to all of us with her generous, loving nature. A bitter sweetness filled my throat. She had given so much; this night had been for her. Soon she would be on her way. Back to making a new life for herself. Freed from the past.

  She stirred. Intelligent, whisky-colored eyes slowly opened and focused on me.

  “How are you feeling?” I asked.

  She sat up. “Starving,” she said. “Did I miss dinner?”

  I laughed and helped her to her feet, then tossed her clothes toward her. “We were waiting for you.”

  JENNA

  It was the most amazing experience; to move from a glut of love-making to a glut of eating. I looked around the table at my lovers, amazed that I felt no awkwardness, no embarrassment. Instead I felt a re-awakening, a rediscovery of self. As my eyes touched each of them in turn, they smiled back at me with loving approval. Except Pierce. Pierce looked unaccountably sad. I wondered if he was remembering the family he had lost.

  Ledger had outdone himself, not only with me earlier, but in the kitchen where he had created a feast of fresh trout, roasted chicken and a medley of roasted vegetables alongside mashed potatoes and gravy. I devoured everything as if I hadn’t eaten for weeks.

  “What happens now?” I asked. I expected my men had been through this before. They must know the routine.

  They all looked anyplace but at me, as if no one wanted to be the one to tell me.

  Finally, Wulff spoke up. Dear, dear Wulff. He had been my first introduction to this place and these wonderful men.

  “Before long a car will come for you. The driver will take you anyplace you want to go.”

  Hmmm. I rolled a scoop of mashed potatoes thoughtfully around in my mouth. Where did a penniless former party-girl go to start her life over? Any so-called friends would have long moved on to the next party. And that life
wasn’t for me any more even if I wanted it.

  “What do you think?” I asked flippantly. It was hard to pretend I wasn’t just a little bit scared, which was dumb. After all, I’d been on my own my entire life. “Should I just flip a coin?”

  Dare spoke up. “You’ll do great, wherever you go.”

  “Yeah,” Ledger said. “There’s a lot to be said for starting over.”

  He was right. I’d never really started, let alone started over. I just kept following the same going-nowhere pattern that had been my norm.

  A sudden rush of exhilaration flowed through me. I was free. I was whole. I could do anything. Most important, I was worth everything I chose to invest in myself.

  It seemed all too soon before the leaving-car was in the driveway. My men shuffled around me in a loose half-circle as if they could protect me from the unknown of the future, and I loved them all the more for the gesture. I would miss them so much.

  One by one, I stepped up for a last hug and kiss good-bye. They felt so safe, so familiar.

  Wulff with his serious expression and soft, short beard gave me a gentle, loving kiss good-bye.

  Dare held onto my ass while he kissed me.

  Ledger gave my breasts a good-bye squeeze.

  Hart’s kiss was as intense and all-consuming as he was.

  I didn’t know why I waited to say good-bye to Pierce last. I ran my hands through his silky brown hair, took a good long look to memorize his features, then went in for the most soul-shattering kiss of my twenty-two years. It took my breath, left me weak in the knees.

  Then it was time to go. I got into the car and didn’t let myself look back, knowing it would hurt too much. Knowing I’d never loved and been loved before my time with the G Force. Wondering if I’d ever love and be loved again.

  I chose San Diego as my destination because it was the right size and had the right west coast vibe. Being a naval base meant there were always newcomers posted there, so the locals were used to new faces as part of the scene.

  I decided it was time to do something with my life, and so I hooked up with a not-for-profit organization that helped underprivileged kids and families faced with a variety of challenges. It didn’t pay much, but the satisfaction I got from my job made me feel like the richest woman in the world.

  I recognized the same lost soul that had been me in my childhood in so many of these kids, struggling to fit in and be recognized, despite disabilities or difficult home lives. I liked to think my work with them was making a difference.

  I parked the company van in the parking lot outside the office and got out. I had started to heft a kayak off the rack on top, when a shadow fell across me.

  “Need a hand?” A strong pair of masculine hands joined mine to help lighten the load.

  I turned to see Pierce, close enough to touch. His brown-sugar hair was shorter, his eyes still as green as polished emeralds, his expression impossible to read.

  For all the nights he’d invaded my dreams, I wanted to pinch myself. Make sure I was really awake, not just imagining him.

  “I got it,” I said.

  “I don’t mind helping.”

  Together we moved the kayaks, one-by-one into the nearby storage shed.

  Back near the van we faced off. If I had been tempted to throw myself into his arms with a cry of welcome, that moment had long passed. “Are the others around here somewhere?”

  “Nope. Just me. Is that okay?”

  I saw the shadow behind his eyes and heard what he wasn’t saying aloud. Was he enough? This from the man who had lost his fortune, lost his wife and young children through no fault of his own. And still he soldiered on.

  I blew out a breath.

  Was it okay?

  It sure as hell was.

  “It’s good to see you, Pierce.” I gave him a quick hug.

  I’d never seen him like this, unsure of himself. I hugged him again, longer this time, and felt his breath stir my hair as his arms closed around me. “How did you know where to find me?”

  My scalp tingled from the warmth of his breath. Was that his lips I felt brushing the top of my head?

  “Dare can find anyone. Besides, it’s not like you were trying to stay hidden.”

  I nodded. “True enough. Nothing to hide from. Nothing to hide.”

  He stepped back, stuffed his hands into the front pockets of his jeans and glanced around the company yard. “It looks like you did a good job of reinventing yourself.”

  “It feels good to make a difference. Something I learned from all of you.” I was drowning in the raw vulnerability in his eyes. Words abandoned me. I had learned from my short time with the G Force. Love. Self-worth. Inner-strength.

  Eventually I found my voice. “How are the others?’

  “Same.”

  I didn’t ask about their work. How many other women had found safety and solace in their presence. In their arms.

  I looked at him, so close and yet worlds away. “What are you doing here, Pierce?’

  “I couldn’t stop thinking about you.”

  Oh, my! My heart gave a crazy little hiccup.

  “That’s never happened before. It’s not supposed to happen. We don’t get emotionally invested. The fact that I did made me,” he paused, “less useful to the team. A liability in fact. So I was cut.”

  “Cut?” My eyes widened.

  “Tour of duty officially ended. New identity. New chance to start over.”

  “Wow!” I didn’t know what to say. I’d thought the G Force were all lifers, devoted to nothing except the cause. “Any plans?” I tried to keep my voice casual.

  “I guess that depends on you.” He cocked his head to one side. A smile started to play with his mouth, slowly at first, then widening into that well-remembered grin that had been haunting my dreams. “What do you say we invent a life together?”

  I started to smile. “I thought you’d never ask.”

  I flung myself into his arms. He felt so real, so good and solid and safe as he held me close. I could feel his heart pounding erratically in his chest as his mouth found mine. I’d never be alone again.

  Dear Reader:

  Please don’t hate me for sneaking in a happy ending on this one. I thought these two deserved it. I also needed Pierce to move along in order to make room for black and beautiful, bad-ass Kiernan to join G Force.

  Back at G Force Headquarters

  Our newest member arrived as expected, delivered to the ranch by The Group’s driver. A tall, African American with closely-cropped black hair, he stepped boldly onto the gravel driveway where we waited, glancing around as if he owned the place. “I’m Kiernan.”

  Just then a string of curses erupted from inside the vehicle. A red-headed woman catapulted out, crouched low, still cursing a blue streak. “And this is Bree.”

  Don’t miss Book Two of the G Force Five, PROTECTING BREE, now available at Amazon and in KU.

  Dear Reader,

  I hope you shared my enthusiasm at meeting the G Force Harem.

  If you enjoyed this book, please let others know by leaving a short, honest review. One or two lines is perfect.

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  ABOUT KAELY STEEL

  Kaely Steel admits to a serious character flaw; she loves men!

  Her lucky husband doesn’t mind her indulging her many fantasies through writing about them, and is happy to reap the rewards of being used for researc
h.

  Her hobbies include skinny-dipping and wine-tasting, sometimes, but not always at the same time.

  BOOKS BY KAELY STEEL

  REDEEMING JENNA

  G Force Five Book 1

  PROTECTING BREE

  G Force Five Book 2

  SERVING FALLON

  G Force Five Book 3