Finally Home (Home Series)

by Vaughn, Ann

  His arms wrapped tightly around her and he leaned down to bury his face in her neck as she rode him. She felt him take several deep, steadying breaths, his hands beginning to stroke and massage her back, almost as if he were checking her skin for something.

  "Mike," she said, placing her hands on his cheeks. "Look at me."

  He slowly raised his head and the look she saw in those icy, haunted eyes nearly broke her heart. She leaned forward to kiss him, desperate to erase that look from his eyes. His hands slid from her back to cup her face in them as he deepened the kiss, then one slid into her hair, as he began to push her down to the bed, tucking her beneath him. He made love to her with infinite care, taking her with tenderness. Every touch was gentle, sweet; he handled her as if she were made of glass, building their climax slowly. When she shattered, he held her close, tenderly kissing her through it, bringing fresh tears to her eyes. How could a man such as he was make love so softly?

  "You're the most important person in the world to me, cara mia," he whispered, holding her close, "I couldn't stand it if anything were to ever happen to you."

  She looked up at him, smoothing her hand over his cheek.

  "Was it the same dream again? Where they brought me into it?" His hand clenched on her back where he'd been idly rubbing her. "Talk to me, Mike. Let me help you."

  He swallowed hard and licked his lips. "It was the same, only this time, they were using a whip on my back and when they moved to use it on my front...you threw yourself on me and the whip cut into your back," he said, running his hand over her smooth back.

  She placed her hand over his heart, feeling its strong beat beneath her palm. "I would protect you if I could, Commander."

  "That's my job," he said automatically.

  "It's not weakness to need help, Mike."

  "I don't..." he began but stopped and took a deep breath. "I've had that dream ever since I came home. Always the same. Abdul taunting me. The whip lashing against me. I know it's a dream and I can handle it...but this...drawing you in," he said, brushing her hair from her face. "It's too much."

  "You have given everything to take care of everyone else. You were willing to lay your life down for Riley and the others. You thought that was what you were doing. It's time you let someone else take care of you."

  "Easier said than done," he admitted, sliding out of bed.

  "Where are you going?" she asked, holding the sheet to her breasts.

  "Too edgy to sleep. Need to -"

  "Come back to bed and relax," she cut in.

  He shook his head, reaching into a drawer for a pair of shorts.

  "Now that the Founders Day Ball is over, I need to put my effort into tracking Conroy."

  She got up and went to him, seeing that he was close to losing it. When she reached for him he stiffened and tried to step away but she didn't let him, stepping into his path.

  "Lainey," he warned.

  "Don't fight me, Commander, please. You said earlier that what happened between us tonight would change everything, give you rights...well, it goes both ways, my friend. Come back to bed."

  "I need to -"

  "NOW, Sailor." She saw his eyes narrow and that muscle in his jaw tick. "Do I really need to remind you that I'm standing here totally bare? Wouldn't you rather have your hands on me than a keyboard?"

  He actually smiled at that, and laughed just a little. Lainey smiled and took his hand. His head was shaking, but he gave up the fight and allowed her to lead him back to the bed. When he got in, she snuggled up to him, trailing her lips over the underside of his jaw before laying her hands on his cheeks to kiss him. She didn't rush it; she took her time, savoring him, relaxing him. She didn't want to ignite the flames, so to speak, but keep them at an ember. His body was tense against her at first, but he slowly began to relax, his fingers burying themselves in her hair.

  He whispered something in Italian when he pulled back and placed a kiss to her brow. She snuggled closer against him, resting her hand over his heart, the fingers of her other hand gently massaging his neck near his hairline. It wasn't long before she felt the tension leave his body and she was confident he'd fallen asleep again. Only then did she allow herself to go back to sleep, but it wasn't a deep sleep; she woke any time he moved. At one point, she was sure the nightmare was trying to claim him again, but she began stroking his hair and lightly humming and he relaxed again. She needed to get him to talk about all his fears and anxieties so that he could begin the healing process.

  Lainey knew before she opened her eyes that she was in bed alone. She got up and went to the door, opening it just a crack. Just as she suspected, she heard several male voices below; the guys were all here. Sighing, she grabbed clothes to change into and went into the bathroom, then froze when she saw her reflection in the mirror. Putting her clothes down, she looked at her wrists where Mike had held her down last night, seeing a few fingermark bruises. With Riley amongst those downstairs, she realized she needed to find a long-sleeve shirt to wear. Dressing quickly, she went back into the bedroom and went into Mike's closet to find a shirt. She chose a long-sleeve black t-shirt and pulled it on, knotting it at her hip because it was so long. She had to roll the sleeves up several times to get them so go over her hands but was satisfied with the end result.

  Slipping on a pair of Toms shoes, she left the room and then froze on the landing, looking down into the main room. The guys were gathered around the ring, watching Mike and Colt fighting, and both were shirtless. She watched for a while from the landing, but when Mike succeeded in taking Colt down to his back on the mat, she went downstairs.

  Riley turned to look at her when she approached, and she knew, from the look on his face that he understood what the significance was of Mike being shirtless and knowing that she could come downstairs at any moment. Mike didn't care because she'd already seen his scars. She felt her cousin's gaze on her and offered him a bright smile.

  "Good morning," she said, stopping to stand beside him, her eyes on Mike.

  "Morning," Riley said, arms folded across his chest. "Everything OK with you today?"

  "Why wouldn't it be?" she asked and realized she was more than a little miffed that he and the others seemed to have been mad at her last night over the Kevin incident.

  Riley nodded toward the ring. "He was pretty pissed when y'all left last night."

  She shrugged, wincing when Colt got a good jab in on Mike's ribs.

  "He got over it."

  Riley was quiet a moment, watching them wrestle. Mike had Colt face down on the mat, both on their knees, Mike's arms around Colt's ribs, head turned away to dodge the blows Colt was landing to his head. She could tell they were both pulling their punches, not trying to seriously hurt, just score points.

  "I guess you've seen his scars?" he asked, not so subtly.

  She busted out laughing, distracting Mike and letting Colt get free shot in on him, bloodying Mike's nose.

  "You've done it now," Riley said quietly, chuckling.

  Colt was apologizing to Mike as he they got to their feet. She grabbed a towel and hopped up to the ring, going to him. He took the towel from her, holding it to his nose.

  "Keep saying, Boss, no women during training," Whit chuckled.

  "Says the man with no woman," Colt said.

  "I got a woman," Whit said grudgingly.

  "Is it broken?" Lainey asked Mike, tuning out the banter between Colt and Whit.

  "No," he replied, "nothing wounded but my pride."

  She smiled, reaching up to stroke her hand over his cheek.

  "I'm sorry," she giggled, "I didn't mean to distract you."

  He took the towel away. "Still bleeding?"

  She shook her head. "No."

  "Good," he said, leaning down to kiss her.

  She smiled against his lips, noting that the guys had gotten really quiet behind them. Mike's hand came up to cup the back of her head, tilting her face up even more as he pulled back.

  "Good morning," he sa
id, making her smile even more.

  "Good morning," she echoed, "are you OK?"

  "Yeah, I'm fine."

  "OK, I'll let you get back to your workout. You guys eat yet?" she asked the room at large as she climbed out of the ring.

  "Nope. Starving," Colt answered.

  She narrowed her eyes at him. "I should let you starve, bloodying his nose like that."

  "Not my fault he got distracted," Colt replied with a wink, making her laugh.

  She went into the kitchen, feeling lighter than she had since all of this began. Riley's phone rang, which normally wouldn't have drawn her attention, but his tone when he answered had her stopping to look over at him, as well as everyone else. He'd answered with just his last name, his tone sharp, which was unusual for him. After listening for a few moments, his head turned and he met her gaze and she could tell that whatever he was hearing wasn't good news. She glanced nervously over to Mike, who had stepped out of the ring and was walking toward her. Most of Riley's end of the conversation was short and clipped, military speak, but she could tell from the guys' reactions that whatever it was, wasn't good. Mike confirmed her suspicions when he came to her and put his arm around her, kissing the top of her head.

  "What is it?" she whispered, afraid to look away from Riley's face. "Is it one of my cousins?"

  "He's getting an incident report," Mike said, "so, yes, cara, it means it involves one of his brothers."

  Lainey's heart began pounding, her heart in her throat, eyes locked on Riley's face. He looked grim, his eyes locked on hers. Tears were stinging her eyes and she saw in her peripheral vision, the rest of the guys closing in around them. They all knew. They knew it was bad.

  "Mike," she whispered, reaching for his hand. He took hers in his and kissed her knuckles, giving her hand a reassuring squeeze as they waited for Riley to end his call.

  "Thank you, sir. Yes. I'll be there as soon as I can. Yes, sir."

  He ended his call then stepped closer to her.

  "What is it?" she asked, her voice a strangled whisper.

  Riley took a deep breath and cleared his throat.

  "It's Trevor. I can't give you all the details, but he's in critical condition and there is fear that he may lose his leg below the knee."

  "Oh, no!!" she gasped, stepping into Riley's arms, crying.

  Mike stepped forward, placing his hand on Lainey's back to let her know he was there, but kept his eyes on Riley.

  "Is he in Germany?" he asked.

  "Yes. Jack is en route."

  "Let me make some calls, I'll get you there," Mike said, starting to walk away.

  "I want to be there," Lainey said.

  "You can't, Tink," Riley said, "they won't even let Mom and Dad go right now."

  She nodded, stepping back from him to wipe tears from her cheeks. Trevor was two years older than her. He was the thickest of all her cousins and the most vivacious of the four brothers. Mike and Riley were both on their phones, setting up Riley's travel plans. Colt came up to her and leaned down to kiss the side of her head and gave her a quick hug.

  "Come on," he said, keeping his arm around her, "let's whip up some breakfast. Help take your mind off things," he said, leading her into the kitchen.

  She took a deep breath and looked up into Colt's warm brown eyes, leaning on his strength.

  "Good idea," she said softly, "thank you, Colt."

  He winked at her again. "No problem, Princess."

  At that, she laughed. "Princess?"

  He inclined his head. "I figure it must take someone of near royalty to capture the Boss' attention."

  She stood on her toes and pulled Colt down so she could kiss his cheek. "I don't care what Riley says, you're a good man, Colt Harris."

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Lainey went through the rest of that day pretty much on auto-pilot. Coming from a military family, she'd always known that something like this could happen, but the reality of it was something she was having a hard time handling. She knew now that Riley had been shot and hurt during his service, but he'd chosen not to alert his family and cause them to worry. She assumed that Trevor either hadn't made that request, or since Riley was still connected to many of his friends on active duty, they informed him anyway. All she knew was, the reality of knowing that someone she loved was hurt and in critical condition was awful. She'd never felt more helpless in her life.

  After Riley left, Mike spent time with the guys planning out their next steps in locating Charles. Her dad came over to update them on the police's efforts to find him and to hear their plans. Lainey barely paid attention. She sat wrapped in a blanket on the couch most of the day, staring sightlessly into the fire. She wanted to go with Riley, to see Trevor and let him know she was there and that she loved him. Her thoughts drifted to Mike. When he'd been recovering from his ordeal, he'd only had his team there to visit him and support him because he hadn't wanted his family notified unless he died. She didn't understand that mentality at all...she wanted to be there for Trevor...she wished she had been there for Mike.

  "Hey," her dad said, pulling her from her thoughts. He sat beside her and pulled her into his arms, giving her a tight squeeze. "Trevor is a fighter, you know that. He's going to be OK."

  "I know. I just hate thinking about him all alone over there."

  "Jack and Riley are both en route."

  "But what about Aunt Paige and Uncle Brody?"

  Gavin nodded toward the office area. "Mike pulled some strings. They're going with Riley."

  She glanced past her dad to where Mike sat at his desk. He'd done that for her family. A surge of love swelled up inside her. There he was, giving to all around him again; taking care of everyone.

  "Things with the two of you have changed, haven't they?" Gavin observed.

  Her eyes shifted back to him. "Yes."

  "I was afraid of that, with you staying with him twenty-four/seven."

  That statement combined with the look on his face made her laugh. "Relax, Daddy, everything's OK."

  "I don't know a single father in the world who would be happy with his daughter living with a guy like this, baby," he grumbled. "But, I know we need him with this Conroy out there on the loose."

  "He's a good man," she assured him, "and he means...a lot to me."

  Gavin nodded. "I can see that, and I do like knowing that someone so strong is with you," he rubbed the back of his neck, "I just don't like knowing that someone is with you. You're still my baby."

  "He's not Kevin. He would never cheat on me. That would be beneath him."

  His two-way sounded. He paused to listen to the report then responded that he was on his way. Lifting her hand in his, he placed a kiss to the back of hers then stood up.

  "I'll see you later, baby. I love you."

  "I love you too, Daddy."

  He walked back over to the guys, had a few words, shook Mike's hand and then left. She supposed if they were shaking hands then her dad wasn't too upset over her relationship with Mike. It wasn't long after he left that the others left as well, leaving just her and Mike in the loft.

  Mike was still working at his desk so she got up to make dinner for them, needing something to take her mind off of her cousin. She knew she would have to talk to Mike about going back to her practice soon. Her patients needed to be able to come back to her; she couldn't let Conroy keep her from her job indefinitely like this.

  She heard Mike on the phone, his soft, deep voice soothing her as she pulled out ingredients for dinner. Keeping her mind clear, she let the routine of cooking and the sound of his voice relax her. There would come a time, hopefully soon, when the threat of Conroy wouldn't be hanging over them, when they could go out on an actual date; do mundane things like go to the store together...normal, everyday things. She would go to her office and he would go to his and they would come home and...

  Her head came up. Come home. Where? Here? Her house? She glanced over at him. Everything was happening so fast. They hadn't really talk
ed about anything beyond the Founders Day Ball or finding Conroy. She knew that for her, there was no one else, nor did she want there to be. He was it. He was her now, and her future. She was fairly certain that he felt the same, but they hadn't discussed it. When this was all over, would she go back to her house while he stayed here, or again with his mother because she wanted him near?

  What was that line from a movie she'd seen? Relationships that start under extreme circumstances were doomed to fail? Her heart hurt just thinking about that. True, he drove her absolutely insane at times. He was arrogant. He was controlling. He was stubborn. At the same time, though, he could be gentle and caring. He had more honor and integrity than anyone she'd ever known. And he could be so incredibly sweet and thoughtful, like making sure Trevor's parents could be with him in the hospital; pulling strings to bring all her cousins home when it he saw that things with Riley and Jenna were progressing so that Riley could have his whole family with him for his wedding. That was the most...

  "Cara," he said, drawing attention to the fact that he'd walked up behind her again. She knew she would never get used to how silently he moved. "Don't cry," he said, wiping a tear from her cheek.

  She turned from the stove to face him, wrapping her arms around him, closing her eyes and resting her cheek against his chest. He held her tight for a moment, then pulled back and cupped her chin in his hand to tilt her head up so he could see her eyes.

  "What's going on?"

  "My dad said you made some calls and fixed it so that my aunt and uncle could go with Riley to see Trevor."

  "I just made a phone call," he said simply, his eyes searching her face.

  "Don't fluff this off, Mike. What you did...that's a big deal to me."

  "I can see that," he said, again wiping tears from her cheeks with his thumbs.

  "Thank you," she whispered, standing on her toes to kiss him. She meant it to be brief contact, but his arms slid around her so she deepened the kiss, taking his mouth to show him how grateful she was for what he'd done. Mike lifted her and settled her on the counter, gently pushing her knees wide so he could get closer to her.