Freedom_A Captivating and consuming contemporary romance

by J Grayland

  Mike straightened himself up and puffed out his chest like a bullfrog, his hand's fisting. “What is wrong with you ?” he asked in his little snooty accent.

  “Nothing now,” I growled. He took a step towards me and I took a bigger one towards him, "Go on you little fuck take your best shot and I will be scraping you off my boot like a dog turd in about 10 seconds." I was so wishing for him to take that first swing, so I could put my fist right in the middle of that smug face of his. After a minute of the weak staredown he had aimed at me, he turned his head, gave a little huff sound and went into his room.

  When I turned towards Casey she was standing just inside her room with her mouth slightly open and her eyes wide. “What...what did you just do?” she stammered. Looking at her I put my hands up in surrender. “Oh, I'm sorry was I interrupting something here? Because it looked to me like you were trying to push him out the door, or did I see wrong? Were you actually trying to pull him in?” I asked with a sarcastic sting.

  “No...I” she stammered out again.

  “You what? Did you invite him back here?”

  “NO” she almost yelled out “We just finished in surgery and he wanted to come in, what are you doing here anyway? Were you spying on me?” she said, and her voice actually sounded angry now. I looked down at the floor and shook my head “You have got to be kidding me right? That jumped up snooty little ass hat just tried to push his way into your room and if I hadn't been here he would have been nailing you to that bed right now, and all you can ask is was I spying on you? How about a thank you Nate for saving my pretty ass.” She sat down on her bed and pinched the bridge of her nose between two fingers.

  “I'm sorry, thank you, Nate, now why were you spying on me?”

  “I wasn't spying, I was waiting for you to come back to your room because we need to talk, well more like I talk and you listen.” Her head shot up fast and her eyes pinned me like a note to a cork board.

  “Is that right?”

  I pinned her back with my own stare “That's right Ms. Tyler, no more kid gloves I've tried to talk to you calmly but it seems to be getting me nowhere so now I'm just going to get to the bottom line. You have three days to pack your stuff. This place is not safe for you and I am taking you back to Portland with me until I can figure out what the hell is going on. The plane leaves at 1900hrs Friday so be ready.” She stood up and placed her hands on her hips in a defiant manner.

  “What the…?” She sputtered out.

  “You heard me the first time,” I told her.

  “I am not going anywhere. For one I still have a contract to fulfill and two, when I leave here I will be going home to Australia and not with you.”

  “Well I just canceled your contract and you will be leaving with me, on Friday.”

  “No, I’m not.” She said shaking her head.

  “Yes, you are,” I said nodding mine.

  “What are you going to do force me?” She snorted.

  “If that’s what I have to do then, yes”

  “Then I will contact the embassy and call my lawyer. You cannot force me to go anywhere with you Nate.” I moved up closer to her, my voice low and close to her ear as I say “try me.” Then leaving her with her mouth hanging open with, for once, nothing to say, I left and went back to the tent and fell back onto my cot.

  “She ain't gonna go that easy Nate,” Jax said smugly from where he was laying on his own cot.

  “She doesn’t have a choice in it Jax,” I said my jaw starting to ache from all the tension in it.

  “I don't think you're gonna be able to steamroll this one, she's smart, you’re gonna have to come up with something to outsmart her,” Jax said tapping a finger to his temple.

  “I don't care if I have to pick her up and carry her on that damn plane myself, it will be happening.” I sat up on the edge of the cot and leaned my elbows on my thighs.“ She already threatened to get the embassy and a lawyer involved” I said pulling a cigarette out of its crumpled packet, I stuck it in my mouth and lit it, drawing the smoke back hard into my body. I was hoping the nicotine fix would calm me down enough to think clearly Jax sat up to face me.

  “Why don't you tell her the planes going back to Australia? Have a word with the pilot and get him to keep his mouth shut; it will be dark when you leave; just don't tell her where you’re going and once you get there, well at least you’re halfway to solving the problem at least you will have her in the States.”

  “And then what Jax? Keep her tied up to the desk in my office?”

  “Hell, I don't know Nate, you will just have to think of something once you get there, although the tying her to the desk sounds pretty hot.” He smirked.

  Tossing the cigarette out the tent doorway onto the gravel outside, I lay back on the cot and pushed my hands behind my head and went to sleep hatching a plan to get that stubborn ass woman back to where I could protect her the best, on my own territory.

  At the first peek of the morning sun, I was woken by the sound of a slamming door. She was going for her morning run. Standing and stretching out my tight muscles, I longed for the day I got back to some home comforts, one being my huge bed. I was past sleeping rough on a tiny stiff cot now I had gotten a taste of the luxuries of home and damn I was missing it. Grabbing a towel and some soap, I headed to the showers, while Jax kept a close watch on Casey I really wanted to avoid her today as much as possible I saw the feral look in her eyes last night and I just knew that today, if we came in contact, she would be gunning for blood…mine!

  Never in my whole life had I met such an argumentative person as her. She was spirited, he had to give her that, but damn she was going to be the death of him at this rate. Hopefully, once she had cut his balls off with a blunt, rusty razor for bullshitting her into going back to Portland, he would have to work on trying to break down the walls she had erected around herself and see what lay beyond. Yeah, he knew he was asking for trouble, but she tweaked something inside him that he had never felt before and that had him intrigued, curious and challenging. And he never backed away from a challenge.

  After my shower, I headed back to the tent to where Jax was and asked “So? What type of mood is she in today?”

  “Oh, she’s pissed, well at you that is” he laughed.

  “Ha! What’s new?” I said tossing my towel over the end of the cot.

  “She was going to call her lawyer friend until we had a chat.” Jax handed me a steaming mug of coffee.

  “And?” I asked eyebrow lifted.

  “I told her we had a talk and even though it was hard to convince you, you'd decided to escort her back to Sydney.” He smiled.

  “And she bought it?” Now that surprised me!

  “Hey, come on, your ole buddy here always knows how to charm a lady” Jax motioned to himself with his thumb.

  “You’re an ass you know that? But thanks, man, I wasn't game enough to tackle her again this morning.” I said with relief.

  “Ha Ha Ha, don't tell me you’re scared of that pretty little lady now?”

  “Are you fucking kidding me? I would rather do another tour in Afghanistan than spend a single day with her.”

  “Ah! That’s just the sexual tension between you two.” Jax gave me a wink that made me spit out a mouthful of coffee.

  “What? Sexual tension? fuck no, never.”

  “Hm hum you say that now, but once you get that little spitfire between the sheets of your bed, everything's gonna change.” He said knowingly.

  “Not going to happen, man, not in a million years.”

  “Then why are you taking her back to Portland?” Jax asked.

  “You know me, I can't let it go until I know the job is over and there is too much going on with this one that I don't think it's going to be over until I finish it myself…. So until I know for sure that she’s safe, I want her where I can protect her properly and the only way to do that is to have her right next to me.”

  “Well, at least you can be sure of one thing,” Jax
said.

  “What's that?”

  “It definitely won’t be boring".

  Chapter Fifteen

  Casey

  Dialing the number, I waited for Flynn to answer I was guessing he was asleep because of the time difference, so I was prepared to be patient, but on the fourth ring, he answered. “Casey?” he asked, his sleepy voice full of concern. “Flynn? It’s okay, don't get worried I'm ok.” I said quickly trying to alleviate his fear.

  “Jesus, Casey, what's wrong?” The sound of his concerned voice made me miss him more than ever.

  “Did I wake you?” I asked.

  “As if I give a shit about that, what's going on? you sound... upset.”

  “I just needed to talk to you, there's a bit of a problem here and I wanted to get your advice.’ I said unsure of how much to tell him.

  “Okay,” he said slowly. So with carefully chosen words I took a deep breath and tried to explain as much as I could of what had been happening here and about Nate's thoughts and conclusion. “What the fuck Casey? that sounds crazy I’ll have you booked on the next flight back here pronto, you need to come home.”

  “That’s what I’m planning to do Nate wanted to take me back to the States with him until he found out exactly what was going on, but after I kicked up a bit of a stink, he's agreed to escort me back to Sydney.” I hear Flynn breath out in relief.

  “Well at least he sounds like a smart guy and he’s looking after you. You'll be fine once you get back here and then I can look into this legally, it just sounds so nuts.” “I know, tell me about it, so much for coming here to do some good for mankind,” I said with a hesitant chuckle.

  “Are you okay?” Flynn asked, this time in a more comforting tone.

  “I am now I’ve talked to you, I just needed your input.” I sighed.

  “Well babe, you've got it, always, let's just get you home then we'll figure out the rest I'll feel a lot better when you’re here.”

  “Me too… Thanks, Flynn I'll let you get back to your beauty sleep and I will email you my itinerary for the flight as soon as I get it from Nate.”

  “Great….Just be careful ok? Love you, babe.” “Love you too Flynn night.” Hanging up the phone, I pushed the calling card back into the pocket of my jeans and turned around to see Nate leaning against a guardrail I paused for a moment, then continued to walk past him. I was trying to ignore his presence until he said in a low gravelly voice, “You lied.”

  Turning to face him I asked, “What do you mean, I lied?”

  Straightening himself out to his full height and shoving his hands into his front pockets he said: “You said you weren’t involved with anyone.”

  “I’m not,” I defended.

  “So… who were you professing your love to just then?” he gestured towards the phone with his eyes.

  “Well not that it’s any of your business but it was my lawyer.” Nate's eyebrow crooked as he stared at me.

  “Really? Your Lawyer? Not sure what world you come from baby but I don't think there are many people who could honestly say that they loved their lawyers.” Frustrated and tired, I really didn't want to argue with him, it was so exhausting. “Maybe that’s because most people's lawyers are not their brother's,” I said annoyed at him.

  The look on his face seemed to relax and soften. “Your brother?”

  “Yes, my brother, satisfied?” And with that I swiftly turned around and, as I walked away, I heard him say “Baby with you? I don't think I will ever be satisfied.”

  Going back to my room, I paced. In two days I would be back home, and then what? Besides all the problems surrounding my presence here, I have enjoyed everything; the workload, the people, my team; it's been a wonderful experience and I was actually starting to feel myself getting stronger, getting away from the demons that are still stuck in that small corner of my brain gripping like a vice, holding on and waiting to rear their ugly heads when I least expect it. The decision I had made to come here was a good one in spite of all the problems it had caused. It had given me a small glimpse of the control I did have over my actions, my feelings and my future. I felt like that empty pie dish that I was carrying around inside my chest called a heart, actually might have gotten its first slice of pie back into it. I lay on my bed and looked up at the ceiling.

  As I lay thinking my mind wandered to thoughts of Nate. What was it with him that rubbed me the wrong way all the time, I mean he was arrogant and frustrating and I bet he was always used to getting his own way in all aspects of his life. He had that commanding presence about him and I am pretty sure he had no problem with the ladies; he was perfectly built, too much, in fact, his body was so... hard, so well defined and sculptured, so... too good to be true, too perfect. Blowing out a deep breath, I plugged in my music and hopefully I would drift into a music coma because laying here thinking about Nate's perfect body and those wicked piercing, eyes that reminded me of dark storm clouds, a contrast to the strong angles of his jaw covered in a dark shadow of stubble that matched his unruly inky black hair. Eventually, the music soothed my thoughts and lulled me into a sleep with thoughts of Nathanial King entwining into them.

  The next day involved me going through my notes and paperwork and making sure everything was up to date on the patients I had been taking care of while I had been there, and swapping contact information with some members of the team that had been great to work with and wanted to keep in contact. I had been told that Jax was staying behind to look after the other civilians until the contract that King International Security had was fulfilled. It would be sad saying goodbye to Jax, he was good to talk to while having an early morning coffee, and he had been a great buffer between mine and Nate's explosive personality clash. Always there to calm things down and smooth things out, he would make a great negotiator. Funny how he and Nate were such good friends and yet so different from each other personality- wise. Anyway, maybe that's why the friendship worked, they balanced each other out.

  Damn, I was thinking way too much into those two, they would both be just a distant memory in a couple of days and so would this whole experience. Sighing deep at the thought, I started the job of packing, which was pretty easy considering I only had one suitcase and I wanted to leave myself enough time to have a last walk around the base and a final round of goodbyes.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Nate

  Seeing her small suitcase sitting outside her door, I walked over, lifted it and put into the back of the SUV. They were due to fly out at 1900hrs and they needed a good hour to get to the airport Jax was driving them out there so he could bring the SUV back to the base I was a little apprehensive about leaving Jax here, but it was the only option that they had and Jax was fine about it. He just told Nate that he owed him a nice bonus is his paycheck and a cold beer when he got back to the States. Besides Jax didn't anticipate anything major happening once Casey had left after all as Jax had pointed out, “Remove the cause and you remove the problem”.

  I watched as Casey walked over to the SUV and dumped her backpack into the back seat, then pulled herself up into it and clicked her seat belt in place. Jax slid into the driver’s seat and, after closing Casey’s door, I climbed into the passenger seat next to him Jax turned around to look at Casey. “Now, darlin' you sit back and relax and let the expert here show you what a smooth journey should feel like.” “Let's hope your driving is as smooth as your talking then,” Casey told him with a smile. By the time we reached Ashgabat Airport the sun was just disappearing into the horizon and taking some of the heat with it Jax pulled up out the front and I grabbed the bags while Casey covered her head with a scarf. Turning to Jax, I held out my hand to him and he gave me a firm handshake, then pulled me in for a short man hug with a slap to my back. “Watch yourself ok?, no heroics,” I said, giving him a stern look and pointing a finger at him.

  “Who me? Never” he said with a grin.

  “I'll call you in a couple of days, Ok?” I told him. Jax nodded, then turned to
look at Casey. He pulled her into a strong embrace “I'm gonna miss our chats little lady, you take care okay?” “You too,” she said as she leaned into him for a hug that lasted a bit too long for my liking. When they pulled apart, I found myself staring at both of them just for a split second, but it was enough for Casey’s eyes to lock onto mine. Giving my head a shake, I grabbed the bags and took her by the elbow, leading her into the airport lounge area then taking a turn in the opposite direction and down a long hallway that led away from the main boarding area. “Umm. Boarding is back there” she pointed behind us.

  “We're not going commercial,” I told her.

  “We're not?” she asked as she followed me.

  “Nope”. We walked down to the end of the hallway until we came to a stop in front of a door, where I pulled a swipe card from my pocket and swiped it through the terminal until the door clicked open and I held it and motioned for her to go in ahead of me. It wasn't a very big room, there was a desk, a few chairs scattered around and a wall of windows and a glass door that opened up out onto the tarmac. To the right, she could see some of the commercial airplanes lined up and some taxiing down the runway I dropped the bags onto the floor, then looked at my watch. “We're a little early, take a seat,” I said, and she sat down.

  “So what airline are we using?”

  “Military cargo plane had to make a drop of supplies here,” I said giving her a sideward look.

  “We're flying on a military cargo plane?” Casey asked through narrowed eyes. “But isn't that miss- use of government property?”