Code Name: Kayla's Fire (A Warrior's Challenge)

by Natasza Waters

  She gawked. The hard-assed warrior with piercing eyes was nowhere to be found. “Nina asked me yesterday whether or not I’ve fallen in love with you.” Thane’s attention shot up to hers. She twisted a sprig of grass, wrapping it tightly around her index finger, concentrating on it instead of him. Thane unraveled it, and restrung it around her ring finger, then twined their hands together.

  “And?” he said quietly.

  “You keep your mind on your work, and do what you have to do to come home,” she said in a rush of words. Thane’s massive, but tender strength wrapped around her. She released the resistance she wore like a cape, and rested her head against his chest.

  “I know you love me in your own very guarded way, Kayla. You’re probably the only woman I know who doesn’t want to share her feelings.”

  That shocked her. “I—” She did show her feelings, at least she thought she did.

  “No, you don’t,” he said. “You never have. You’re as resolute as you are beautiful, but I also understand why.”

  Aw, dammit. The tears sprouted in her eyes again, and she tried to turn away, but he wouldn’t let her.

  “Tell me once,” his voice hushed. His brow buckled, and he held her tighter. “Break the curse.”

  She swallowed deeply, and her stupid chin began to tremble, feeling a horrible tearing inside her. If she said it, something terrible was going to happen. She knew it as well as she knew the sky was blue.

  “I’m a patient man.”

  “No, you’re not,” she argued weakly.

  He chuckled. “You are such a hard-ass.”

  “I am not. I’m all weepy and stupid, and your daughter is responsible.”

  “Our daughter, Kayla—and when we made her, we loved each other.”

  Doh, she couldn’t fight with him when he was like this. Three moves, and he had her cornered. “Yes, I love you. How the hell could I not fall in love with you? This is all your fault. Don’t you dare die on me.”

  Passion always stood ready to deploy between them, and when she said those words, Thane went crazy on her. Clothing flew, and in seconds they were naked and coiled in each other’s arms. His sharp blue gaze penetrated her, as he gently seated himself deep inside her, rocking his hips. Always aware of his size compared to her, he kept his muscled strength from crushing her. His fingers brushed a tendril of hair from her cheek. “Even like this I’m not close enough.”

  He drew her nipple into his mouth, flicking his tongue against the tender tip. She thrust her hips to drive him deeper, squeezing his thickness inside. Thane’s hands followed the curve at her waist and around her backside, holding her captive, swaying with a slow seductive rhythm. He filled her, stretched her, took command of her, every time he made love to her.

  “No man has a right to feel this good or be this happy,” he whispered against her ear.

  “You do,” she said, finally losing herself to emotion. His hand drew delicious circles around her sex, sending her pulse soaring, her heart hanging on to the meteor-like tail it left behind. Her deepest fears percolated to the surface. “You’re going to be taken from me.”

  “No. Kayla, open your eyes. See me.” He stopped the sweet movement of his hips, buried to the hilt inside her.

  The intensity of his thoughts radiated on his rugged features. The man and the warrior had merged into someone she’d never seen before.

  Searching her eyes, his deep timbre rumbled through her, “There isn’t a moment more perfect than now. When we’re apart, remember it. Hold on to it, and I’ll be home soon.” His long, slow, deep thrust seared a mark inside her.

  Thane’s sensual power obliterated everything in its path. “I’ll remember.” She watched him explode in an orgasm that gripped her hard, and pushed her into a blinding kind of forever—with him.

  * * * *

  The bonfire licked high into the night as everyone gathered round, folding chairs and blankets held cuddling couples. The conversations mingled with the crackle of flames and snapped with bursts of laughter. Thane leaned against one of the logs surrounding the fire, and Kayla sat between his legs. He rested his hand gently against her stomach to let his daughter know he was there.

  Barry and Gord had arrived an hour ago, and Barry found Nina before finding a beer. Mace wasn’t far away and kept darting looks in Nina’s direction. The other members of the squad and their families were sprinkled among the gathering.

  A shout went up and heads turned. The SEAL named Dickerson, whose band often played at Breakers, came strolling into the circle, a guitar clutched in his hands. Everyone shimmied to make room.

  “Hey, Snow White,” he called over. “What d’ya say?”

  She nodded and scrambled to her feet. “I’m not going it alone, and she stretched her hand out. Nina jumped over a few bodies and wrapped an arm around her waist. “Well?”

  “How about Perfect, by Pink,” Nina said, with a huge smile.

  Thane leaned back, content. A warm syrupy feeling had taken over inside him, hearing Kayla admit she loved him. He’d turned into a big sap. Nervous energy coalesced in his gut, the mission... Kayla had instinctively known it was dangerous. Damn dangerous, starting with a HALO jump. High Altitude Low Opening, and it would get tougher from there. This one was going to take longer, and draw on every skill the men had, including his own. Coming home to Kayla would drive him hard, and in turn, he’d drive the men harder. He was going to make it home to his girls, no matter God’s plan.

  Kayla began singing a cappella. Dickerson began strumming the guitar with the third line, but what blew everyone’s doors off was when Nina joined her, and both women sounded like an entire musical chorus. It was incredible. They finished with a powerful ending, and his heart shuddered in resonance with them.

  Nina worked her way back through the crowd, and nestled down beside Mace. Barry looked annoyed, but Mace wore a cocksure grin. Sealing the deal, he palmed Nina’s cheeks, and berthed his lips against hers like a ship alongside a dock, snug and tight.

  Thane pushed himself to his feet, placing his arms around Kayla and drew her to his chest. With a quick kiss on her cheek, he said, “Ready for the world to shatter?” She turned her widening eyes up to him. He held his hand up to quiet the crowd.

  “I have an announcement, and looking around I’m glad so many of you came this weekend. Doing what we do, these moments are important. They’re the ones we hang onto when things get tough, and they remind us why we fight for God and country.”

  A few whistles and hooyah’s broke the night air, but otherwise the crowd settled down to listen.

  “Fighting with you men at my side has always been number one on my list.” He was taking a big chance, a huge one, but she was worth it. Their relationship was going to cause a huge shit storm. He’d already caught looks from Carrie, and the woman was as vengeful as they came. She was going to be the pipeline to the brass. Kayla had been right. He’d gotten the internal investigation back a couple days ago. Ms. Watson’s family tree was in Slovakia, not the Dakotas. To save her ass and barter it, she would sell him and Kayla out. Ironic thing was—Carrie was the type of woman he would have spent the night with before Kayla came.

  Marriage and family had never cluttered his radar until Kayla became a huge blip on the screen, one he wanted to beach himself on and never leave.

  “I used to think fighting for my country was the most important thing to me.” The crowd stared up at him. “I’m being selfish, but after twenty years of service, I’ve earned the chance to have normal, and this woman I’m holding in my arms has given it to me in spades.” He felt Kayla tense, but he squeezed her to let her know he wasn’t stopping. “She’s made me feel every warm, loving, peaceful emotion I’ve been missing in my life, and nothing is going to take that away from me.”

  “Tell her why, Frog.” Cobbs shouted out. Marg threw her arms around Pat’s shoulders and kissed his cheek, a huge grin bloomed on her face as she leaned her head against his.

  He chuckled. “That�
��s easy,” turning a trembling Kayla in his arms. “Because I’ve fallen in love with her. Out of control, mind numbing, forever love with Snow White.”

  “Finally,” the team groaned together, and that included Red.

  Kayla’s lips parted with shock.

  “I must have looked liked a walking neon billboard.”

  “He did kinda look like that—but what do I know?” Fox shouted out.

  “Does that make you Prince Charming, Captain?” Tony called out.

  He shot a look over her shoulder. “Have you bloody bastards got it all out of your system, yet?”

  “Nope. Nuh-uh. Not really,” they all voiced together.

  He waited until they were done.

  Looking like she wanted to bolt meant he had to start talking and quick. He grasped her slender shoulders. “We’ve earned the right to be Thane and Kayla. Please, walk beside me. Challenge me. The Ghost and Snow White have done their share, now it’s time for Thane and Kayla to get on with life.” He was turning into a one-celled wonder again, but this time it was nerves eating him up.

  She cocked her head at him. “Are you asking me to go steady, Captain?”

  A gust of nervous laughter erupted from him. “Yes, Ms. Banks.” He picked her off the ground by her ass and swung her around. “I love you, Snow White.” He didn’t wait for an answer, because it was in her eyes. It’s where he’d always looked to see the truth. A warmth he’d never known engulfed him. It made him strong, made him tremble, but he knew for sure in that second, she was his. He kissed her, and she didn’t let go of him while the wolf whistles rose from the crowd.

  “The next mission,”—he said loudly—“will be my last in the field. I’m going to join the ranks of the pencil-pushing captains, since the Navy has decided to promote me, and warm some chair behind a desk. Coming home to this woman every night is a helluva lot better than eating MREs with you frogs.”

  “You’re crazy,” Kayla said, laying her palms against his chest.

  “You make me that way, Ms. Banks.” He tried to kiss her again but Nina, Marg, and the rest of the squad not far behind, accosted them.

  Dickerson began to strum a lazy-sounding Caribbean beat. It was perfect. He’d run the race, more challenged than BUD/S for what was at stake. With live fire, he’d walked through the smoke and mirrors of her demons and resistance to the end of the line, and found her standing there. He’d never rung the damn bell in BUD/S, though two hundred other men had, and thousands since. He was a warrior, battle-torn but alive. It was time to turn for home and claim his heart.

  He drew Kayla into the darkness and away from their friends. “Captain, why did you do that in front of everyone?”

  “Ya think you can call me Thane, since I just admitted my undying love for you in front of every man, woman and child we know?”

  She burst into a laugh. “Fine, Thane, what the hell are you thinking?”

  He leaned over and whisked her into his arms. “I’m thinking there’s a lot of women forking over twenty dollar bills tonight to the ones who were smart enough to put their money on you.”

  “You’ve completely lost your mind. There’s a policy in place. You know we can’t work together and…”

  “Yup,” he drawled, but grinned down at her as he strode toward the porch, headed for crisp sheets and the warm skin of the woman beside him. “Since the first day you graced my doorstep—lady, you’ve been nothing but a pain in my ass. I’ll take the disciplinary action, but you are going to pay dearly for infiltrating my heart.” When they reached the front door, she pushed it open, and he carried her over the threshold.

  “You can’t carry me up the stairs,” she said, trying to palm the wall to stop him.

  “Oh woman, you have such little faith, don’t you?”

  “No, I just don’t want a broken neck.” She squirmed to get free, but he broke into a run when he hit the winding staircase.

  “Oh, shit,” she squealed, and buried her head in his neck. He laughed all the way down the hall and bumped the door to their room open. Pinning her on the bed, he stared down at her, into the deepest eyes he’d ever seen. “There’s a lot of single SEALs down there wishing they were me, because they know we’re not leaving this room for the next two days.”

  “Thane, we need to eat.”

  “No, we don’t. You’re all I need to feed my hunger,” and he leaned over her for a toe-sizzling kiss, showing her how much he loved her. He wasn’t kidding about the next two days.

  * * * *

  The group huddling at the hangar was intimate, the space quiet at zero four thirty hours. Marg—Cobbs’ wife, Kate—Fox’s wife, Shelly—Clay’s fiancé, and Naomi—Caleb’s wife, holding their baby in her arms, took a minute to pray. The other children hung onto their parents, having been here many times. Nina was there as well, and worry crowned her features as she stood in front of Mace.

  “Hey, why so worried?” Mace asked, cocking his head and giving Nina a slow smile.

  “Why do you think, you stupid ass,” she retorted, but her fiery response dulled. “You’re going to be careful, right? As much as a SEAL can be.”

  “Always try to keep this,” he said pointing at his head. “I’m more concerned about you. Don’t do anything brave. Keep close to Kayla.”

  “Why, what’s it to you?” she said quietly. Everyone was standing close enough to hear, but trying not to pry, except of course for her, Kayla was all ears.

  Mace’s gaze heated. “Because when this mission is over, I’ll be getting some leave.” He took a step closer. “I’ve never been to Victoria, thought you might want to show me around. You know, introduce me to your daughter, maybe. I’d like to meet her.”

  Nina suddenly took in a deer in the headlights look Mace had. “You would?”

  “Yeah, I would.”

  “All right,” she stuttered, “Maybe, we’ll see.”

  She didn’t move when Mace took another step to bring him within striking distance, and he didn’t wait, threading his fingers through her red curls. “Can’t wait for lesson number two.” He kissed her with too much heat for anyone to keep staring at them. It was almost indecent.

  “Pheww.” Kayla turned to see Thane smiling at her. “What?”

  “You think we look any different, baby.” He grabbed her, and laid a heart-stopping kiss on her lips, and then the kids were groaning as all the adults said their goodbyes.

  Kayla heard Kate say to Fox, “You know where you belong.”

  “Beside you, darlin’,” Fox said, folding her in his arms.

  Marg and Cobbs shared an intense moment, before Marg said, “Forever, and ever.”

  Cobbs laid his forehead to hers. “Amen,” he said and kissed her again.

  It registered what she was hearing. They were talismans, in the form of words. Whether real or not, their warriors had come home in the past, and the verbal charms were said each time they had to say goodbye.

  “I want to look in your eyes again, Kayla,” Thane breathed on her lips. “Please be here. I can’t go unless you promise me.”

  “You know what direction points home.”

  “Always to you, no matter how dark it gets, I’ll always find you.” He kissed her hard. “This is the last time we say goodbye.”

  She nodded and squeezed him tight. “Last time.” He gently separated them.

  “The squad’s going dark the entire mission. Not even you will know where we are.” He scanned the men, then knelt on one knee. “Lil’ one, I can’t wait to see you.” Thane kissed her stomach and returned to his feet, staring down at her, worry crisscrossing his expression. “Sweetheart, we both have a reason to fight hard to live. I’m coming home. I promise.”

  She swallowed, knowing he would do everything in his power to keep it. “We’ll be here.” It wasn’t a lie, just a small untruth to make sure he got on the plane with his men.

  “It’s time,” he declared, his voice terse. He planted one last kiss on her lips. “I love you, Kayla, always reme
mber that.” He grazed his finger over the trident hanging around her neck. “A part of me is always with you.”

  The women closed ranks. Arm in arm they watched the squad give a final wave as they walked out the doors. Only the cool morning air lingered, and their memories. The room felt so empty, even with all of them standing there, clutching each other.

  Kate had told her earlier how lucky they were to have this opportunity, but it was hard hiding her fear from Fox. It was the worst catch-twenty-two for everyone; service members keeping their country safe, but being men also meant falling in love, having a family, then trying to juggle both. It was like playing the slot machine of life, but you prayed with all your might fate didn’t line up and take away the one you loved.

  Thane couldn’t protect her any more. Openly asking him to stop hadn’t worked. In fact, it made him more stubborn. She’d put on the performance of her life at Marg and Cobbs’, reminding him of his duty to his men, and adding a little guilt to drive it home. Reality sat heavy in her chest because somehow she knew one of them wouldn’t survive the weeks to come.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Over two months of eating the same food can make anyone nauseous. Being pregnant made it worse, being bunkmates with a thirty-year-old—near impossible. She and Nina were under guard in Mace’s small apartment. The constrictive routine of getting up, eating, and then being escorted to Base Command, was driving them both insane. John trained Nina at the Command Center, while she took up the slack. SEALs from Team Three escorted them back to the apartment at the end of their shift, and then they were locked down for the night.

  “You’re not making coffee at this hour?” Nina asked tightly, looking up at the clock. “It’s almost time for bed, and you’ve been drinking too much for being preggers.”

  “No, I’m making tea. Want some?”

  “I want to get the hell out of here before I go stark raving mad,” Nina said slamming a mug down beside hers. “Are you nauseous again?”

  “When aren’t I?” She slipped one bag into each cup. “If you wanna make a break for it, you just have to get past the two guys stationed on every floor between here and the lobby.”