On His Six : A Summit Seduction SEAL Novel (The Summit Seduction SEAL Duet Book 2)

by Rachel Robinson

  “It was a letter,” Lincoln returns, sitting back on his butt and wiping his hands together to get some of the soot off. Cautiously, he meets my gaze. There’s a sadness in his eyes that only appears when he’s thinking about Rena, and I have to admit it cuts. “She wrote me and apologized. For almost killing me. And for Turner seeing fucking everything. I mean, she said a lot of things, but the most important part is that she intends to leave us alone.” Rena wants him to be happy. The lump in my throat slides down to my stomach and hardens.

  “That’s… that’s… good,” I choke out.

  Sighing, he looks down between his legs. “Nothing about that woman is good, but I trust that she meant what she said in the letter and she’s backing off. So, in those terms, yes, it’s good.” He pauses a few beats and his dark eyes meet mine. “Do you trust me?”

  “Yeah.” My voice warbles. “If you believe her, I do too.”

  Lincoln moves to sit next to me, wrapping his arm around my shoulders. “This is good news.”

  “But what about the next time she’s high? The next time she thinks of you and gets angry?” When she gets word about the deal I made with Rufio, I think. What will she do then?

  He drops a kiss on my head. “Let’s talk about this more. Tell me what’s really on your mind,” Lincoln prompts. It should be easy to share everything with him, but this has to do with Turner too, and I can’t risk bringing Lincoln into this when it’s unsafe.

  I shift in his arms until I can glimpse his face. “How beautiful you look in a tux.”

  He hits me with a sexy grin. “Oh, so it’s like that then?”

  “What else should it be like?” I sass back, trying to be as sassy as possible given my current wardrobe.

  He clears his throat. “I thought we could talk about us.”

  My heart races. “What about us?”

  “You know how I feel about you.” Lincoln shifts, scooting closer and angling me in his arms. “Wanted to make sure we were on the same page as far as… forever.”

  I turn to look at him. “Forever is eerily similar to that one word you don’t believe in. I think it rhymes with Thomas?”

  His throat works as he swallows. “Promise? Yeah, it does, isn’t it?”

  “Getting shot puts things into perspective as I’m sure you know, and I don’t want to play around anymore.”

  “Did we ever really play around though? It’s felt real since the second we met.”

  Lincoln licks his lips. “Do you want to take our relationship to the next level? We love each other. Turner loves you. Life altering incident from a few weeks ago aside, I want you near me. Will you move in with me?”

  I narrow my eyes at him. “You went from forever to moving in together. Which is it?”

  “Well, I couldn’t really get a good gauge on your reaction to forever, so I went to the step below, moving in.” Lincoln blushes as he reaches into the pocket inside the breast of his jacket and pulls out a red velvet box.

  My immediate reaction is that of horror. Rexy. Déjà vu. Death. Pain. Grief. Attachments. Danger. It’s knee jerk and I know my subconscious will settle because this is Lincoln Wilds. “What the hell is that?” He extends his palm toward me. “You just gave me the necklace.” I haven’t even taken it off. That’s how much I love it, and what it represents.

  “It’s for you,” he says, handing me the box instead of opening it. A sheen of sweat breaks across his face. “It can be whatever you want, Maeve. I just want you in any way I can have you, and I want you to know that I’m here to stay.”

  My hands shake as I take the box from his hand and pop open the lid with my thumb. Sure enough, it’s a sparkly ring, with a yellow center stone flanked by diamonds. It’s beautiful, and it fits my personality perfectly, except I’m not quite sure what he’s asking.

  I meet his eyes. “When you ask someone to move in, a big sparkly ring isn’t required.” Take the flight, Maeve.

  Lincoln is tapping a finger on his leg. “Well, talk me through this then.” He bites his lip. It’s endearing how nervous he is.

  “Are you asking me to marry you? Because I wouldn’t have any questions if you were.”

  “You shouldn’t have any questions, so I guess that’s why I’m not sure where to go from here.”

  I press my lips together to suppress a giggle. “You could try… oh, I don’t know. Maybe asking me to marry you? If that’s what this is,” I say, shaking the box. It glitters in the soft light of the fireplace. “If that’s where you’re going.” I don’t give him time to respond. “Or, on the other hand, this could be a very beautiful, very expensive, promise ring.”

  He’s confused and taken aback. “Oh,” he says, drawing a hand over the scruff on his face. “It could go a couple different ways then.”

  I say his name and his eyes meet mine. “I love you, Lincoln. Either way. Ring or no ring. Promise or no promise.”

  “This is one promise I intend to keep, Maeve. You know I don’t take those lightly. In fact, I don’t ever make them at all. Have never, actually. When I ask for your hand because I promise to hold it forever, it’s because I mean it. I’ve never felt this way about anyone before.” He shakes his head. “Believe me when I say my love for you shakes me down to my core. I question my sanity sometimes because when I think of you and being with you, it’s all-encompassing. Your face clouds my mind. I can hear your laugh, or see you in the quiet moments, staring off. Sometimes you look completely, harrowingly, sad. Then you look at me and it’s like I brighten your whole fucking world.” His back straightens. “I’ve never had that before, Maeve. Not quite in this way. Sure, I mean a whole hell of a lot to Turner, but as far as romantic relationships go, I’ve always been missing a partner who wants me as much as I want them. A partner who needs me in the ways I need them. To me, that’s heaven.”

  Tears fill my eyes and my heart rips wide open. I cover my mouth with one hand. Lincoln takes my hand and the ring box and slides the ring onto my left ring finger. “Let me not mince words, now. Maeve, will you be my little slice of heaven? Marry me and let me love you the way you deserved to be loved.” When I continue silently weeping, he goes on, “I’ll mess up, I’m sure of it, but there’s no one else I want to mess up with on this planet than you. I’ll be the one you can count on. Please say yes.”

  In this moment, I want to scream at the top of my lungs, that yes, I want to marry him, yes, I will take the flight. I won’t second guess my love, nor will I worry about what will happen in the future. The reality is, I have to worry about it. That’s part of why Lincoln loves me. He does brighten my entire world, and I do need him. I open my mouth to respond and my voice shakes.

  His eyes turn down in the corner as he senses the hesitation. “You’re gonna break my heart, aren’t you?” His voice is quiet and comforting.

  Quite the opposite. I’m trying to save it. The intensity in his eyes is more than I can bear. I look down at my left hand and the shining rock. “I’ll move in with you. I’ll wear your ring.” I let my gaze meet his. “But I can’t make you any promises tonight.”

  He blows out a breath noisily. “That was rough,” he says, inhaling just as deeply. He leans over and kisses my cheek. “Too much too soon?” The question breaks my heart.

  “No, that’s not it at all,” I return. “When you know, you know, and Lincoln, we’ve both known. Hear me out, now. What if this,” I say, flipping my hand around to show him the ring, “Is the promise?”

  He raises one brow. “Like a promise ring?”

  I close my eyes and hang my head. “Lincoln, I’m afraid of disappointing you.”

  “The only disappointment would be if you don’t spend the rest of your life with me.”

  Humor or wit can’t save me from this. Lying my way out of it wouldn’t be fair to either of us. The only thing left is the truth. “I’ll marry you. Yes.”

  Lincoln sits back farther. “Well, that seems coerced.”

  “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I ruined the moment, I
’m sorry. I should have just said yes the second you pulled the box out of your jacket like I wanted to.”

  “Is this about commitment or something else?”

  “Loving you is easy. Loving Turner is easy. Loving people has never been easy for me. It’s always this slow, brick-by-brick process that eventually ends in regret. I’m detaching what love has been like for me in the past, and I’m going to let go. It’s hard because of… Rexy.” I hate bringing him into this. “It was this torturous process of resisting my emotions for years.” I sigh. “It’s never been like that with you, and I can’t even try successfully. This ring as witness.” I meet his eyes and will him to see the love there. “I love you and I want to be with you forever.”

  I stand from the fuzzy carpet and Lincoln follows my lead. I’m fumbling with my sweatshirt. “Do you trust me?” I give him back his words.

  “I do. I think if you’d just said yes up front, I’d have questioned that, too. You gave a very Maeve-like response and I like that.”

  I pull the gray cotton over my head and toss it onto the sofa. “I’m hoping you have a very Lincoln-like response to this.” Stepping out of the sweatpants, I kick them away as well, standing in front of him naked. He smirks and tries not to laugh, and fails. His face reflects sheer delight.

  “You know me well, too,” he says, adjusting the bowtie with two fingers, sliding it back and forth to loosen it. Stepping forward, closing the distance between us, I work on the buttons of his white shirt while he unfastens his cufflinks. “Maeve,” he drawls, looking down at me.

  I swallow hard and look up from my task. “Yeah?”

  “I’d go through more to keep you. I’d go through anything.”

  I nod. “I know you would.” My heart slams against my ribs as I continue down to the button and zipper on his pants.

  He shrugs out of his jacket and shirt carefully then steps out of his shoes. I take his pants down his legs as I hit my knees in front of him. His cock is hard and ready as I put it in my mouth, swallowing it down as far as I can. Lincoln gasps, the sound echoing against the high wooden ceilings. His hands rest lightly on my head as I slide my hand and my mouth at the same time. My jaw aches, and I’m reminded again how long it’s been. Not that the blowjob is monumental, I mean, we did just get engaged, but it does take on an ethereal quality. The fireplace crackling, his moans of pleasure, and words of praise, sing a song directly to my heart. Spit covers my hand as I continue at a steady pace when he holds me in, his hands catching my head on a thrust in.

  “Pause that,” he growls. Looking up at him through my lashes, I see a man on fire, eyes narrowed, meeting mine. His abs flex and flow as he breathes rapidly. “My turn now.” His fingers release my hair and he pulls my head back until his dick slides out of my mouth with a loud pop. He steps the rest of the way out of his pants, and removes his socks before covering me with his body on the fur in front of the fire. “Are you warm enough?”

  “I am with you next to me,” I say, getting caught up in the way he’s admiring. He strokes the side of my face gently with two fingers, then slides them between my legs.

  “Let’s see if we can get you a little warmer.” His voice rolls around me like a rich velvet. A promise I know he’ll keep. “God, you’re so wet.”

  I gasp in response to his fingers stroking my G-spot. He captures my wrists with his free hand and pins my hands over my head. He stops moving his fingers when he pins me with his gaze. “I’ve missed you so much.”

  “Is your shoulder okay?” I reply, trying not to think of the knot at my core begging for attention. “Does it hurt at all?”

  His lips pull up at one corner. “My shoulder is literally the very last thing on my mind. It doesn’t hurt at all.” He resumes his subtle rubbing, and I lose my breath. “You’re the only thing I’m thinking of right now. How beautiful you look right now.” His hand slides down to my fingers. “With you wearing my ring, moaning because my fingers are inside you. My arm could be blown off right now and I still wouldn’t be able to take my eyes off you.”

  He knows exactly how to work my body, and I raise my hips seeking more. “Take your eyes off me and put your dick inside me,” I whisper.

  Letting go of my hands, he kisses one nipple and then the other, swirling his tongue over the rosy peaks, then captures my lips with his. The kiss is rough and quick as he draws his fingers from my body and sucks them. My core clenches with need at the erotic sight of him enjoying my taste, his eyes closed, lashes fanned across his cheek. He hums a noise of pleasure.

  “I’ve been waiting to hear you say that since the last time I was inside you.” Lincoln rolls between my legs and slides into my slick entrance.

  The second our bodies connect, a little of my desperation eases. There isn’t fear laced with an edge of sacrifice in the room. It’s just the man I cherish, loving me as much as I love him. His thrusts are slow and steady, but I can tell there’s a strain not to come too quickly, by the way his eyes are closed in focus. I reach between our bodies and rub my clit at the same pace as his jutting hips. The fireplace rushes and sweat beads on our naked skin.

  I say his name when my toes tingle, and I’m on the verge of orgasm. His lashes flutter open and the dark ferocity I see there sets me over the edge. Pressing my lips against his firmly, I come apart, screaming out. I see stars as bliss soaks into my limbs and core. I clench around him once more and that’s his undoing. Lincoln buries his face in the fur next to my head as he pumps into me, cum exploding with each jut of his hips.

  The only thing louder than my breathing is his. “It took everything I had in me to not come the second I put it in. I hope you appreciate that effort.”

  I play with his hair as he nuzzles my neck. Laughing, I reply, “I could make a joke about not getting shot and then we won’t have to go so long in between sex, but it might be too soon.”

  “Not too soon,” he says, sucking in a big breath. “If we can’t joke about it, the alternative is pretty bleak.” He lifts up on his elbows. “But because it’s been so long, you’re so filled with cum that it’s going to leak for days.”

  I lick my lips. “Awful cocky of you to say.”

  “Not cocky, that’s facts. That was the most powerful orgasm I’ve ever had since that first one at age thirteen, sitting on my bedroom floor hiding from my parents.”

  I snort, then cackle. “That’s not awkward or anything. I mean, you’re only still inside me right now.”

  He looks distracted. “Being inside you is pretty dreamy. It’s not awkward at all.” As he draws out of me, the fire pops and startles me. “Let’s get you in the shower before you get cold.” He scoops me up and throws me over his shoulder, and smacks my ass lightly.

  “Before I leak all over the fuzzy carpet, you mean,” I say glibly, smirking as I watch his sculpted ass muscles as he walks down the hallway. He uses my toe to flick on a light, and then another switch.

  “That too,” he admits. His chuckle rumbles against my thighs. When we get into the master bath, he sets me down. “Floors will heat up in a second. You just turned them on.”

  His face is ruddy and his perfectly coifed tuxedo hair is messy. “You’re so beautiful,” I tell him. “Thank you for this.” I glance down at the ring and back at him. “I’m going to try my very best to be everything to you and Turner.”

  He catches my face in his hands. “You don’t even have to try. That’s part of the reason I didn’t question my decision to ask you to marry me. Others may think it’s too quick, but they don’t understand what we have. It’s rare. When you know, you know.”

  “I stopped caring what people thought about my decisions a long time ago. Mostly I didn’t have anyone who cared about what I did or didn’t do.”

  Lincoln drops a kiss on my shoulder, then he turns on the shower. “I care about you and what you do.”

  I swallow hard. Accepting praise has never been a strong suit. “I know. It’s been an adjustment having someone other than Ramona love me uncondi
tionally.” No one is being paid to care for me or watch over me. This is pure, unfiltered adoration. Not unlike what Rexy felt for me, but with Lincoln, I’m untethered in a way I’ve never been before. I gave him all I have left. It’s his to do with what he pleases. “I can’t wait to marry you, Lincoln.” I lay a hand on his chest. His heart pounds against my palm. “I’ll always be on your six.”

  His grin is beatific. “What if I’d rather have you at my three? By my side instead of covering my back?”

  Reaching as high as I can on tippy-toes, I clasp my arms around his neck and hug him. “What if I can be both at the same time?” I ask, pressing my mouth against his pec. “I want to be both.”

  “You can be one through twelve, Maeve. Whatever you want. It’s yours.” He kisses me, twirls the lighthouse necklace fondly, then gets into the steamy shower.

  My phone pings from the other room and I decide to give him a head start before I join him. I grab a towel off the stainless-steel warming rack and wrap it around my body like a cape before I set off to find my phone. I hope Ramona is okay. I hope Chonk is okay with Aspen. I can’t help but worry, even in my state of elation. I’ve finally found what I’ve been searching for my entire life. I pick up my phone, open my text messages, and nearly drop it when I see the first line of the note from an unknown number.

  We have a deal. You’ll know when we’ve come for you.

  When Lincoln told me he didn’t actually speak to Rena on the phone, it was a mailed letter, I thought something like this might happen. Sure, she was ready to apologize and play nice when she mailed it, but that was before she spoke to Rufio and knew what was on the table. Given my head on a platter proved to be too much of a lure to stay true to whatever promise she made Lincoln.