“Make love to me,” Tessa whispered, sliding her hand up the front of his shirt until her soft fingertips met his neck. He closed his eyes and prayed for strength, not wanting to take advantage of her while she was in this state. “Please.”
“You had a really bad scare today, Tessa,” Derek consoled, pressing his hand tenderly against hers. He leaned up on his elbow, causing her to roll on her back and look up at him with those blue eyes full of earnest. She was going to be the death of him. “Let’s try to figure out who—”
“Whoever he is, he’s proven that he’s not going away,” Tessa said with a bite of anger. She apparently didn’t want to talk about what had taken place this morning, for she leaned into him so quickly he had no choice but to use her momentum for both their sakes. Her hair fell around the two of them, isolating them from the afternoon sunshine coming in through the blinds. “I need you inside of me, Derek. Please don’t make me beg.”
He didn’t hesitate. How could he? He rolled her back so that he had room to undress, which also gave her access to the nightstand. She had ripped the foil and had the condom ready before he even got his pants off his legs. Her sweet voice professing her need made him hard as a rock, but he wasn’t the type to fuck without properly working both of them up to the point where nothing would satisfy them except each other. She had other plans and it was all he could do to remain leveraged above her while she rolled on the latex.
“What you do to me…”
Derek didn’t even bother finishing that sentence. Tessa had already wrapped her long legs around him, ready and waiting for him to take her. He thrust forward and stopped, needing a moment to adjust to the overwhelming pleasure. Damn, but she took his breath away.
“Don’t stop, Derek,” Tessa murmured in his ear before she nipped at his lobe. She had no idea what she was asking. He could literally lose himself in her, and it was all he could do to hang on to some semblance of sanity. “Fuck me hard like you want me.”
Whether it was the plea that fell from her lips or the fact that she’d sunk her fingernails into his back, he didn’t know. But he gave her what she wanted.
Derek pulled back and lunged forward hard enough that the bedframe slammed against the wall. There would be one hell of an indention in the drywall, because he didn’t stop. Her warm sheath was wet with her cream, and his cock couldn’t have fit better if they’d been made for one another. He drove into her over and over, hearing his name fall from her lips before her pussy contracted around his shaft.
He wasn’t even close to being done. He used his knees as leverage as he continued to thrust inside of her, leaning down to take her nipple in between his lips. She arched her back to make it easier, exposing her neck in the process. He eventually bit her shoulder lightly after he’d had his fill, once again feeling her legs tighten around his waist indicating she was starting to come.
Tessa’s reaction reminded him of when he’d bring her to pleasure with his mouth, and she couldn’t help but close her thighs around him until she could relax her muscles. It was an endearing trait and one that was specific enough to her. Just thinking about her uninhabited reaction to his touch had him driving his cock into her and holding still, finally savoring his explosive release.
“What you do to me…” Derek trailed off, repeating what he’d said before. It was the truth. He gradually pulled out of her, disregarding her attempt at keeping him on top of her. His weight would eventually become too much. “Come here.”
Tessa didn’t argue, but instead went willingly into his arms. She nestled against him and no more than five minutes passed before he sensed her muscles relaxing. Eventually, her breathing evened out, and she fell into a deep sleep. This time, it wasn’t so restless.
Derek stared at the ceiling in futility. All his carefully laid out plans had vanished like a puff of smoke. He’d warned himself early on that this brief relationship had to come to an end before his emergency leave ended. It had to. Only he couldn’t bring himself to disengage in a manner that would be in both their best interests. The truth of the matter was that he didn’t want to end things here.
There was still so much more between them to be explored. Tessa had come to mean so much to him in such a short amount of time. But how could they sustain any semblance of what they’d managed to create this past week? He accepted the blame, and he would have to deal with the consequences come Sunday. The military didn’t give a pass just because he’d let his guard down and fallen for a woman who lived thousands of miles away from where he would be stationed.
Derek held her for close to twenty minutes before he reluctantly untangled himself from her arms, tucking her in nice and tight so she didn’t lose that secure feeling. He quickly snatched his clothes up off the floor and then cleaned himself up in the bathroom. He checked on her one more time before forcing himself to return downstairs to finish going over the list of names he’d been given.
It was time to end this reign of terror that had descended upon Tessa. He didn’t have a choice but to be on that flight out to New Bern and then a short drive down to MCAS Cherry Point, where he would catch a resupply transport out to Dubai, but he did have the ability to put this scumbag out of business and make sure he was apprehended and put behind bars.
* * * *
“Your husband is just fine, Mrs. Spencer,” Tessa reassured Helen, covering the older woman’s hand. Derek’s mother had called them at nine o’clock this evening to say that she was taking his father to the emergency room. It had turned out to be nothing more than gas pains from the amount of greens she’d introduced into Ben’s diet, but it had been a scare nonetheless. “They’re getting his release papers ready now.”
“Oh, please call me Helen,” she murmured, leaning into Tessa. “I can’t thank you enough for how kind you’ve been this evening.”
Tessa gave the older woman a hug while looking over to where Derek was standing next to his father’s stationary gurney. It was as if he’d known her eyes were on him, for he immediately glanced up and met her gaze. His expression was unreadable. Was he regretting bringing her with him to the hospital? He’d mentioned that it wasn’t safe to leave her at home, but that wasn’t the reason she wanted to be here. She just hadn’t had the courage to tell him that little tidbit.
“I heard that multiple victims were brought in from a car accident, so it could be a while before those release papers are signed. Why don’t I go and get us some tea? I happen to know a nurse’s lounge who has the best Earl Grey Tea this side of Abilene.” Tessa loved the soothing drink herself and always made sure she had some on hand during her shift on the cardiac floor. “Do you take cream?”
“Oh, that sounds lovely,” Helen exclaimed, patting Tessa’s hand in appreciation. Derek’s mother seemed more stressed by tonight’s events than she had upon her husband’s surgery. That was to be expected, especially considering she’d had time to think about what her life would be like without Ben. They’d been married over thirty years. Losing that type of love was unthinkable. “Thank you, Tessa.”
She quietly slipped out of the room, leaving her purse behind. There was no need for it where she was going—her home away from home. She spent more hours here at the hospital than she did at home, and she figured it would become even more so given the fact that Derek would be leaving soon.
All of a sudden, it was as if Tessa couldn’t get enough oxygen. She stopped in the long hallway and leaned against the wall to catch her breath. Derek was leaving, and she most likely wouldn’t see him again for a very long time, if ever. He was going back into combat. The physical ache was unexpected, and she was glad she hadn’t been in the room when it hit.
Derek had been nothing if not honest about where he stood in regards to what he’d wanted out of this week, and she more than agreed to his terms. It had been what she’d wanted as well. Now? He’d come to mean more to her than any casual fling.
The sound of the elevator chiming grabbed her attention, forcing her to finally move fro
m where she’d been frozen. She pressed a hand against her chest, hoping it would ease the tightness that had coiled inside of her. Numerous ways of how Sunday could go flashed in her mind, each one with the same ending.
She would be left alone.
Tessa forced her legs to move and carry her forward until she eventually stood in front of the elevator doors. She pressed the button that would take her up to the cardiac wing, grateful she had some time to herself. She had no choice but to accept the fact that Derek was heading back to his deployment overseas, and it was up to her to ensure that their friendship stayed intact. She wouldn’t cry, she wouldn’t break down, and she certainly wouldn’t ask for more than Derek could give her. She would somehow find the courage to say goodbye.
CHAPTER TWELVE
“Mom, did Tessa say she was going to the restroom?” Derek asked, walking around his father’s bed to the set of chairs that were positioned up against the wall. Spending hours in the emergency room hadn’t been the way he’d planned to pass this evening, but he wouldn’t be anywhere else. His parents had needed him, and he was just grateful that he was still here to be a support system for his mother. He hadn’t thought twice about bringing Tessa, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t worried about being in a building that most likely held the person responsible for her troubles. “I told her she shouldn’t go far, especially considering the police haven’t been able to close her case.”
“Tessa went to get me a cup of tea,” Helen said, her sparkling brown eyes telling him that she had something more she wanted to say. She stood and placed her hands on his arms, just like she used to do when he was little and she wanted his attention. “Derek, she is just lovely. I knew the moment I set the two of you up to attend the reunion that there would be a connection. She is—”
“Mom, don’t do this right now,” Derek cautioned, shaking his head upon hearing his mother’s advice. “It isn’t the time.”
“And when will that time ever come?” Helen asked, sharing a look with Ben, who was listening intently to what his wife had to say. He didn’t appear so inclined to disagree with her either, leaving Derek in somewhat of a difficult place. “Will it be next year when you finally decide to come home? Or will you reenlist with the Marines for another four or five years? Honey, we are so proud that you’ve served your country, but you aren’t in a field that would afford you a life outside of your profession. You’re always on deployment, your focus is always on your current mission and your fellow Marines, and your life is always in harm’s way. When do you make time for yourself?”
Derek ran a hand through his hair in frustration, taking a step back from his mother. He needed the space. What he didn’t need was his mother telling himself something he didn’t already know. He had many choices ahead of him. Yes, some of those even needing to be addressed before he flew out on Sunday, but not right this minute.
“Tessa shouldn’t be going anywhere in this hospital alone, not even to go get tea,” Derek said, sidestepping his mother’s lecture. The only thing that mattered right now was keeping Tessa within his line of sight. He hadn’t been able to make one connection between the high school graduates of 2007 who had been at the reunion and the list of hospital employees. That didn’t mean there weren’t a lot of staff who had been graduates of Catfish Creek High School. There were, and quite a few at that. It didn’t change the fact that none of them would have been invited to the masquerade ball unless he or she were invited by a classmate who graduated with them, and that alone opened up a whole spectrum of possibilities. “You stay here with Dad. I’ll be back in a moment.”
Derek opened the heavy door, immediately noting that Tessa wasn’t in the hallway. He gritted his teeth together in frustration, knowing full well she wasn’t safe in these corridors. Someone had made it his or her mission to threaten Tessa to the point of police involvement. The initial ante had already been raised, so what made her think she was safe wandering around inside of this building?
She would have used the elevator versus the stairs considering the cardiac unit was on the tenth floor. It was the only place that he knew of where she would go to get tea, unless she went to the cafeteria. She’d mentioned numerous times that she kept a stash of Earl Grey Tea in the nurse’s lounge, so Derek gambled and headed toward the elevator banks. Maybe he could catch her before she ran into any trouble.
Unfortunately, Tessa was nowhere to be found. Derek jabbed the button with the arrow pointing upward a little harder than necessary, but he didn’t like that time was running out and there was nothing he could do to slow it down.
Derek also didn’t like the fact that his father had spent the evening in the emergency room. That frantic phone call from his mother hadn’t been expected, and all his thoughts had centered on the possibility that this could be the end of a life…one who wasn’t done living. It was like whiplash to see his father clutching his chest in pain, only to be laughing at something the nurses said an hour later. All that told Derek was that life was fleeting. Luck could change on a dime, so maybe it was time for him to cash in his chips with the Corps.
The elevator doors swooshed open, though Derek had to wait to enter as a family of four exited. It didn’t take long to reach the tenth floor, though he wasn’t quite certain of the location of the nurse’s lounge.
“Excuse me,” Derek said, interrupting two nurses who were on duty. He recognized the older woman from his father’s time here, though she’d never been assigned to Ben’s room. The other nurse must be the one who was filling in for Tessa this evening. “Have you seen Tessa? She’s getting tea for my mother.”
“No,” Margaret said, shaking her head after confirming with the other nurse that she hadn’t seen Tessa either. “I haven’t seen her since last night.”
“She must have gone to the cafeteria then,” Derek mused, nodding his head in appreciation. “If you do happen to see her, would you please send her down to the emergency room? My father’s about to be released, and we’re going to be heading out soon.”
“Of course,” Margaret replied with a smile, though it faded slightly when she rested her hand on the tall counter in concern. “How is she after last night? We couldn’t believe what had happened, especially after her being so excited to be formally offered the position.”
“I’m sorry?” Derek must have missed something. Tessa hadn’t said anything about being offered a position, though he was aware that Margaret was talking about the nursing director position. Tessa had mentioned the opportunity a few times, but she hadn’t known when a decision was going to be made. Of course, last night’s events had taken the spotlight off such a remarkable announcement. “Are you saying Tessa was awarded the position?”
“Yes, she was told at the beginning of her shift yesterday.” Margaret turned to another nurse who had called out to her. It appeared her small break was over and that Derek would have to get more information from Tessa about such a momentous career incentive. “It’s a shame we were all too busy yesterday to celebrate. I’ll have to get the girls together for a small celebration at The Grange.”
“I’m sure Tessa would love that,” Derek replied, already turning on his boot to head back to the elevator bank. He called back over his shoulder, “Thanks, Margaret.”
It took at least another five minutes before Derek had entered the cafeteria. That was more than enough time for Tessa to have gotten a tea for his mother and returned to the emergency department. Sure enough, she was nowhere in sight. He would have called his mother before coming this far, but she was one of those people who followed the rules. He’d literally seen her take her cell phone and shut it down so that she couldn’t receive any calls…just as the sign had instructed.
“Hey,” Derek greeted upon entering his father’s room. His dad was already dressed and sitting sideways on the bed with a somewhat tired smile in place. Helen was standing next to him, reading the very fine print of his release papers. Unfortunately, Tessa wasn’t in attendance. “Did Tessa not come back? Sh
e wasn’t up on the cardiac floor, and I just came from the cafeteria.”
Helen and Ben exchanged worried glances, both of them shaking their heads in response.
“No, son,” Ben replied with concern, automatically reaching for his wallet that had been set on the rolling tray. Helen didn’t object in the least, quickly folding the papers she’d been given and shoving them inside her purse. “Could you have missed her? Are you sure she wasn’t up in the nurse’s lounge?”
No, he wasn’t sure, because he’d taken Margaret’s word for it that Tessa hadn’t been by the nurse’s station. Damn it. Derek turned back to the door, pulling on the handle and waiting for his mother and father to join him before giving them specific instructions.
“Would you please go back to the cafeteria? Ask any personnel you run into if they’ve seen Tessa.” Derek joined them out in the hall, all three of them heading in the same direction. “I’ll go back upstairs. Mom, turn your phone back on in case I need to reach you. Call me with updates, and I’ll do the same.”
Derek veered off once more at the elevator bank, slamming the button so that it lit up. He’d known the second Tessa had left his father’s room that something wasn’t right. He should have immediately called out to her, but he’d thought her intention was to use the restroom across the hall.
“Come on, come on,” Derek muttered, watching the lighted display above the doors in earnest. Had Tessa’s stalker finally made his move? Was she in danger, or was he making something out of nothing? Maybe she was simply making his mother a cup of tea. The knot in his stomach told him otherwise, and his instincts had never steered him wrong. The doors finally drifted open and he found himself once again ascending in his search for Tessa. “I’m coming, sweetheart. Just hold on.”
Honor (Bad Boy Homecoming Book 4) Page 9