“We’ll be leaving soon, Annie. You should have a nap.” And with that, Drew Castle tipped his head back and closed his eyes.
They stopped briefly in New Orleans to drop off their travel companion, refueled, then took off again. Drew made a mental note to thank Rik for helping him avoid a ten hour car ride with the disapproving woman next to him. It was bound to happen, the crash of adrenaline and reality of what was happening to her setting in. But he didn’t think that was the real reason she was mad.
It was him. Annie didn’t want him.
And he didn’t mean sexually, although he probably didn’t have a chance in hell of scoring with her, either, but she didn’t want him to be her hero in an emergency. He was a poor stand-in for Kevin. That he was a stand-in at all, that she didn’t have anyone else…he’d be pissed off in her shoes as well.
It wasn’t fair that she was all alone in this.
But life wasn’t fair. Drew had learned that lesson early on, and as a result, committed himself to never needing anyone. Kevin had been the closest thing to family he had. His mother had left when he was seven. His dad drank himself to death sometime during Drew’s basic training. He’d been on his own for twenty years and he’d never minded the solitude. It made leaving easy, and he left all the time. His life was based in San Diego but he lived around the world, in helicopters and sand pits. On constant stand-by.
Her crack about fuck buddies had landed with unnerving accuracy. He loved women, and he was clear on his limitations up front, but there was no denying that sex changed things. Added complications, even in the early stages of flirting. An uncommon feeling of guilt wormed its way into his head.
You’re not feeling badly about Dana.
No. Maybe he should, but he hadn’t been lying the night before. Dana had only reacted badly because she thought Annie was competition. The prize could have been anyone, and he wouldn’t be surprised to find out she’d found another bed to warm.
But Annie…Jesus, he shouldn’t have suggested they pretend to be lovers in the cab. What the fuck had that been? There was no need, except his desperate desire to hold her against his body, feel the lean stretch of her in his arms and smell the sweet scent of her skin as she pressed her lips to his. And now he was paying the price. Guilt, desire and confusion warred inside him for the first leg of their trip, and he couldn’t work out why.
What did he care?
When it came to affection, Drew could take it or leave it. He wasn’t dead inside—he enjoyed an evening spent with a woman as much as the next man. More than most when everything clicked. But despite what Annie thought of him, it wasn’t an everyday occurrence.
And he was fine with weeks, even months, of solitude. Would trade that for any inkling of possession or emotional entanglement, because he couldn’t return it in kind. Particularly in the last six months. Since Kevin’s death, he’d been adrift, but not once had he thought the solution lay in the arms of a woman. Dana had helped him scratch an itch, and he’d returned the favour, but she didn’t smooth over the ache in his heart. Nothing could.
Except the last fourteen hours, he hadn’t felt alone, not once. Not even with Annie closed off and grumpy beside him on the plane, unable to say anything further because of their companion three rows back. The truth was, he’d spent the flight worrying about how to reconnect with her rather than how to escape her needy clutches.
And Kevin had been completely silent, which unsettled him more than he’d like to admit.
He needed that voice of conscience telling him to back off, or he might not.
Who was he kidding? They were heading to paradise with nothing to do but fight and make up. Over and over again. There would be no backing off, not until it was too late. And for the first time ever, Drew was walking straight into an entanglement with eyes wide open.
“What are you thinking about?” Annie muttered under her breath.
“Your brother.” It wasn’t a complete lie.
“I miss him,” she sighed. “I listened to the message over and over again on the drive to your place, even though I knew it wasn’t real.”
“I hear his voice all the time,” he admitted. “He’s become my…moral compass.”
She laughed. “I’d love that…for a day or two. I can’t imagine it’s easy to constantly have another opinion rattling around in your head.”
Especially when your thoughts are running dirty with regard to his sister. “It’s unusual for me, that’s for sure. Took some getting used to.”
“And then I leap into your life…Martins making you crazy all over the place, huh?” She twisted slightly in her seat and glanced toward him under her lashes. Shy and brave at the same time. “I’m sorry about what I said earlier. It’s none of my business.”
His response stuck on the first try, and he cleared his throat. “I told you last night. It played out in front of you, it’s your business. But for what it’s worth, the video games…yeah, that’s me. The girl in the trench coat is a bit more unusual.”
“Okay.” Her tone sounded like she still wasn’t sure of that, but then it softened. “I wasn’t judging, I just didn’t want to talk about…” Her jaw clenched as she swallowed back the rest of the sentence, and he couldn’t resist turning fully toward her and stroking that spot of tension on her face. Her lips parted ever so slightly, and he slowly drifted his thumb to the corner of her mouth.
“I’m sorry I asked. I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.” Her skin was soft to the touch, and he wanted his turn to press kisses there. Taste her as she’d tasted him, however briefly.
“Not uncomfortable. Weak.” Her voice wafted between them on a thready whisper, and he shook his head.
“You’re so strong, Annie. More than most, I promise you.”
“You’re just saying that because you’re saddled with me until this gets resolved.”
He jerked his head back. Had he really given her that impression? “Hell no. The thought of you being yanked between power players, not knowing what’s going on, maybe getting hurt…sugar, that kills me.” He stroked his palm down her neck and along her arm, finding her fingers. “We’re in this together, got it?”
She glanced down at their entwined hands, then back up at him, the shock on her face feeling very familiar. “Together?”
One word, loaded with meaning.
A word he’d always avoided in the past, but this was different. And it wasn’t because he wanted her, although he did, something fierce. This was different. They were bonded together, he and Annie, and she wasn’t a burden. Her problems were his problems, no questions asked.
She tipped her head back, feelings tripping across her face as she processed her thoughts. He waited, letting her have a moment. The tug of arousal was hard to ignore, but she had to want it too. Her clear gaze when she faced him again, promising a matching response if he did something, decimated any lingering restraint. He reached between them and unbuckled her seat belt, the rub of his knuckles against her abdomen eliciting a hungry noise he wanted to hear again and again. “You and me, sugar,” he whispered as he elbowed the armrest between them out of the way and hauled her into his lap.
Chapter Five
‡
“What are you doing?” A stupid question, given the glassy look in Drew’s eyes as he stared at her mouth. She should know better than to like it. Should. Totally didn’t. At his touch, her heart leapt into her throat, and instead of worrying about who he’d touched before, and when the affection would be taken away again, she just wanted to revel in it. Let the thrill of being wanted wash away the fear.
“You kissed me earlier.” The rough need in his voice worked its way into her chest and blossomed into an itchy heat.
“You told me to,” she whispered, not trusting her voice to hold. “And then you laughed.”
“You took me by surprise.” His unexpected admission made her squirm. “I’m happy to clarify my position on you kissing me. I’m a fan.”
“And what if I d
on’t plan to kiss you again?”
His heavy-lidded gaze jerked up, finding her eyes. Searching for permission, which, damn him, she’d give. Soon. “Then I’d want to kiss you.”
“And you think I’d let you?” Like the fact she was vibrating against him wasn’t proof of that.
“You shouldn’t.”
“Maybe I won’t.” Their faces were close enough now that her breath puffed off his skin, warming the small space left between them.
Instead of closing the gap and taking her mouth, he wove his hand deeper into her hair and tugged gently. “This isn’t the time or place, is it?”
Confusion and sadness traced through her veins and landed heavy in her chest. She contemplated throwing good sense out the window and pushing herself on him, but if he didn’t want her… “Probably not.”
His other hand crossed her lap and squeezed her hip. “I’m not sure what’s going to happen when we land.”
“I’ll be cool,” she promised with what felt like an unconvincing nod.
“Just follow my lead, okay?” That she could agree to with more assuredness. They were in this together.
That word again. Together. It was for the best if they didn’t entertain the new spark of attraction between them. Barely a taste and she was ascribing feelings and values to it that didn’t belong. She nodded one last time, with firm resolution, and shifted her legs to get off his lap. His grip on her hip tightened and the fingers in her hair slowly pulsed against her scalp.
“Annie…” Her name dripped like honey off his tongue, the single word warming her from the inside out. “If things were different…”
She smiled weakly, willing herself to look cool and unaffected. “We probably would have never met. It’s fine, Drew, don’t worry about it.”
A moment later the pilot’s voice crackled over the intercom, advising them they would soon begin their descent, and she scrambled into her seat.
Drew watched her buckle up, then stood and grabbed his backpack before sitting again.
“Give me that shopping bag,” he muttered gruffly, and consolidated the results of her discount shopping spree into his bag. He paused almost imperceptibly when he reached the three-pack of black bikini panties, and she willed herself not to blush. Everyone wears underwear. Which of course sent her thoughts in the direction of wondering what Drew looked like without his cargo pants. Maybe not everyone. A girl could dream.
The pressure change in the cabin as the plane dipped back toward earth snapped her back to reality. As far as she knew, there was no record of their cross-country adventure, but she was quickly learning that ordinary people were incredibly transparent to those keeping an eye on the unsuspecting population. A shiver wracked her as she once again considered the horrifying invasion of privacy—someone had hacked her phone. Watched her through it as she drove to San Diego, listening to the fake Kevin message over and over again. As she told Drew what she knew and then slept in his bed. Bile rose in her throat, not for the first time, as she processed just how stupid she’d been.
Until Drew took over. Now she wasn’t with an ordinary person, and once they got wherever the hell they were going, she’d be able to get some answers.
When Kevin had been alive, she’d kept his secret because it was his choice to make. She didn’t understand why he felt he couldn’t be a father, but that was his call to make, not his teenage sister’s. Guilt gnawed at her gut as it had from time to time that her parents never knew their grandchild. No, not their grandchild. Kevin had essentially given his child up for adoption. Annie had to accept that—and she had, until Drew put a name in her head.
She closed her eyes as the small jet made quick work of the landing. When Drew squeezed her hand, she cracked her eyelids just a slit, heart thumping, and watched as they taxied toward a waiting black SUV.
After what felt like a lifetime as the lights flickered and the engine noises cut out, the pilot came out of the cockpit, nodded to them and opened the door. A ground crew was waiting with a mobile set of stairs, but Drew didn’t move to the exit, he just stood there, arms casually braced against the seat, watching the vehicle. Waiting. When the door opened, and a blond man stepped out, Drew cracked a wide smile. “Come on, sugar, let’s go.”
They met in the middle of the tarmac, two Greek gods reuniting in common purpose. A rough handshake turned into a back-slapping hug, but their expressions remained stony.
“Annie, this is Rik. Man, I wasn’t expecting you to personally meet us here.”
“I was already in the city last night. My wife, Calli, likes to dance.” Their host turned his gaze toward Annie, his eyes softening. A soft accent cut into his fluent English. “Come, we must hurry. But it’s lovely to meet you, Ms. Martin.”
“Annie, please,” she murmured as he guided her to the car.
Drew shifted closer, his hand in her back. “She’ll ride in the back with me.”
Rik nodded. “Of course.”
They didn’t talk as they sped away from the airport. It wasn’t until they pulled into a marina that Annie asked about their destination.
“It’s…well, I’ll let Calli explain.” The other man parked, then twisted in his seat to glance at them. “Ready?”
Hell no, Annie thought, but she’d come this far. What was a little adventure at sea?
Rik led them down a wooden dock, past sailboats and small yachts, stopping in front of a smaller power boat. Small being relative, she realized as they stepped down the thin walkway alongside the motor craft. At the back, there was seating for at least eight, and in the middle of the gleaming white and polished wood space stood a beautiful woman with mahogany hair and a beaming smile.
“You found them!” she exclaimed, clapping her hands.
“Calli, I’d like to introduce you to Drew Castle and Annie Martin.” Rik offered his hand to Annie as she stepped into the boat.
The heels of her boots clattered on the deck, and she winced. “Nice to meet you, Calli. I’m sorry I’m not dressed appropriately.”
The other woman shushed her and pointed to the small cabin door beside her. “Don’t worry about it. I’ve got some things laid out for you in there, if you’d like to change.”
Annie glanced at Drew who nodded. Not like she needed his permission to get dressed, but just to check in. He offered her a quick half-smile. “Go ahead. I’ll help Rik push off.”
She ducked below, again surprised to find more space than she was expecting. A small kitchen space, a bathroom and cozy sleeping nook. Hanging on a hook was a long sundress that wrapped around in the middle—and would easily fit most women, a thoughtful touch from her hostess. On the shelf beside that was a basket overflowing with flip flops of varying colors and sizes. Annie shucked her boots, jeans, and blouse, stacked them in a neat pile, and pulled on the lighter outfit. She felt the engine fire up, then a bit of a jerk as they slipped away from the dock. A turn, then they picked up speed. Bracing herself on the bathroom counter, she freshened up, and as she re-emerged onto the open deck, they were pulling out into the open sea.
She paused, breathing in the salty air. Hard to wrap her head around hurtling into the Atlantic Ocean when just last night she’d been driving south along the Pacific. And she hadn’t needed to buy a ticket on Expedia or pack a suitcase…any minute now she was going to wake up and go to work. She wiggled her shoulders, trying to shake her disquiet. Kevin had gotten all the adventurous genes.
“You okay, sugar?” Drew’s voice slid over her skin at the same moment his body pressed into hers and one hand wrapped around her waist. She wanted to melt into him, but she couldn’t walk that same line he could. Be all touchy-feely without wanting more. She could feel the hot branding of his palm on her hip. One of his fingers rested on the elastic edge of her underwear, easily felt through the lightweight fabric of the dress, and that hot, itchy feeling returned.
“We’re heading out to sea,” she whispered.
“Rik has an island.” His voice was thick and rough, an
d she wondered if it was fatigue. Or if his mind drifted to the same place hers did. Would a few hot Caribbean nights lead to more of what almost happened on the plane? She’d never done anything like that before, and the thrill of a time-limited affair made all her nerve endings stand up and take notice.
On the other hand, Drew probably slept with all the damsels in distress he rescued. Maybe this air of resistance was part of his playbook. She didn’t really believe either of those thoughts, but layered on top of her innate wariness they spilled enough doubt into her otherwise molten core to give her the strength to push away. “Right. Calli was going to tell us about that.” Without looking over her shoulder, she wiggled out of his grasp and carefully moved across the open space to join the other woman on one of the bench seats.
“Annie,” Calli reached out and touched her hand. “I understand this is an unexpected trip for you.”
She didn’t know how much to share, so she simply nodded and smiled politely. “Thank you so much for the dress.”
“I’m sure I can scrounge up anything else you need once we get home.”
“Which is where, exactly?”
Calli laughed, a rich peal that Annie couldn’t help but find infectious. “I call it Camo Cay, although that’s not its original name. Rik claims to have retired, but we have enough hulking men around most of the time for it to be confused with a military base.” She took a sobering breath. “It’s a private island on the far side of the Bahamas. Well protected and completely anonymous.”
“And you just come and go like this? What about Customs?”
“We sometimes go through the official channels. Today isn’t one of those days.”
Because of her. “If I get you in trouble…”
“Oh honey, have you seen my husband? There won’t be any trouble.” Calli tipped her head back, soaking up the late-afternoon sun. “And your shadow looks pretty formidable as well.”
“He’s not my…I just showed up on his doorstep last night and made my problems his problems.”
SEALs of Summer: Military Romance Superbundle - Navy SEAL Style Page 54