by DahliaRose
Tasha looked to her side and saw bullets coming toward her like a snake crawling in the sand. She rolled and rolled, not letting go of the medic bag. Someone might need it, and she was not about to lose their most valuable life saving possession. She didn’t know that life would be hers until she heard one bullet, then two, come way too close and then felt the excruciating burn in her hip. Tasha’s eyes opened wide, and she couldn’t help the scream that came to her lips. In seconds, someone pulled her under the Humvee and held on to her hip tight. That alone caused it to hurt even worse, and she struggled against the pain.
“Stop it, Lieutenant, stop!” a voice called out harshly. But she couldn’t stand the pain. She wanted to get up and run, but this soldier’s weight kept her pressed into the sand.
“Give her something. Grab the bag!” another voice called from close to her ear.
She felt the bag that she still clutched so tightly being ripped from her grasp. She screamed as someone ripped the uniform away from her wound and now hands pressed directly on her injury. She cried out and begged for them to stop, but no one was listening. She finally felt the prick of a needle in her arm and the blessed sting of medicine going into her veins. She drifted away on the dark cloud of pain and drugs, not knowing how bad her wounds were, but not caring at that point as long as the pain was gone.
* * * *
Ian rushed into Corbin’s office. He had received a call from him in Virginia the night before. The only words that he spoke were, “Tasha’s been hurt.” From there it was a mad dash for him to get to the airport and get a flight to Georgia. He had already moved into his new life in Virginia. He took over the position of drill sergeant training new recruits on the military base. He still held the rank of major, but instead of working behind a desk, he chose to help young men to learn the honor the military he loved. His life was there now, so he didn’t even have a place to stay in Georgia anymore. Instead of even looking for a hotel, he rushed to Corbin, needing to hear about Tasha after not hearing from her in so long. He missed her—God, how he missed her—and now hearing she was hurt had sent him into a tailspin.
Corbin was one the phone, and he held up a hand to signal Ian to wait before speaking. Ian shifted restlessly with every “‘uh-huh,” “how long,” and “okay.” By the time Corbin hung up, Ian was about ready to rip things off the wall.
“Where is she? How is she hurt?” Ian asked in a rush.
Corbin sat down heavily and pulled his stash of honey whiskey out of his bottom drawer. Ian knew it had to be bad and sat heavily in the chair across from the desk.
“The convoy was in an ambush twenty miles outside the FOB,” Corbin explained. “Tasha was the medic in the second Humvee.”
“What?” Ian whispered hoarsely.
She was hit in the upper hip with an AK bullet. It shattered part of her hip, and she lost a lot of blood. It was touch and go, still is. They got her stabilized, and they are sending her to Germany for immediate operation. When she is stable enough, they’ll send her Stateside.
Ian heard the low moan and was amazed it came from him when Corbin explained what had happened. Tasha, his Tasha, was hurt, and it was his fault. She left because of him, and now her life hung in the balance.
“She loves to dance. You should see her face, Corbin, when she dances,” Ian said, looking up at his friend. He wished for the pain in his leg that was almost gone to come back. It felt much better than what he felt now. “Did they say if she will be able to walk or even dance again?”
“You know as much as I know, Ian,” Corbin explained. “But if they can’t repair that shattered bone… They’ll be sending her to Virginia, and you can be there for her as soon as she comes home.”
Ian nodded and swallowed deeply. He would be there for her in every possible way, just like she was for him when they first met.
* * * *
A week later he was on the tarmac of the Air National Guard as the medevac plane landed. All around him were medical staff waiting to take new patients to their respective destinations. Corbin had told him that Tasha would be on this flight, and he made sure to be there waiting for her. With each patient unloaded, he looked for her face. When he finally saw her being placed on a gurney to be wheeled away, he rushed forward, and relief flooded his very core.
“Tasha, Tasha, baby. God, I missed you so much!” The military orderly pushing her rolling bed stopped when he took her hand. “How are you, baby? Are they giving you everything you need?”
Her eyes widened in surprise, but then whatever emotions that were there were hidden behind a wall she put up. “What do you want, Ian?”
“I’m sorry, Tasha, so sorry,” he said in a rush. “I was an idiot and an asshole and angry at the world. By the time I came back to apologize, you were gone, and Corbin was supposed to get a message to you, but you probably never got it.” Ian laughed nervously when she said nothing, but she kept a direct stare on his face. “I moved here now. I took the training position, and I was waiting for you to come home. I didn’t want you to ever get hurt, Tasha. This is my fault, and I’m going to spend the rest of my life making it up to you. I love you, sweetheart. I never stopped. Angry words could never make me lose what I feel for you.”
She stared at him, still saying nothing, until he couldn’t stand the silence anymore. He implored her. “Say something, Tasha, anything. Say you’ll forgive me.”
“I forgive you, Ian.” Her voice held no emotion. “Now go away.”
“What?” he asked, unsure of what she meant.
“Go away, Ian. I don’t want you. I don’t need you. You are out of my life.” Tears seeped out of the corners of her eyes. “You hurt me more than this bullet ever could. So take your forgiveness, but leave me the hell alone.”
The orderly gave him a sorrowful look as he pushed her away, and Ian felt his heart slow in his chest. Each beat ached worse than the last. He couldn’t blame her. He did this to her, broke her heart. Now it was up to him to heal her soul on the inside while her body did its job and healed the external wounds.
* * * *
Three months passed, and slowly her injury healed. Tasha fought against the pain every day while she used her own methods to treat herself. Sometimes she stared at her scar in the mirror. It was about five inches long, and it looked kind of neat. But it was what was underneath the skin that worried her more. She had seen injuries like this before, and now she knew the signs. Her hip was weak trying to heal around the screws and bolts that now held it together. The body did not like foreign objects, and it fought against the new intrusion. If she didn’t get her body to cooperate soon, she would never be able to dance again.
The thought hurt her just like Ian did months before. She looked at her sad eyes in the mirror of her dance studio and wondered if she would ever feel whole again. Ian. Her mind whispered his name like a caress. He came around often, but she would never see him. He left bouquets of flowers outside her house. He sent boxes of candy and even jewelry too, and she sent it all back. He wanted to assuage his conscience, and now that she was hurt, he wanted to be with her out of pity. To Tasha that was worse than when he left her in her rehab center with angry words. So she refused his calls, his messages, and his gifts. He never lost persistence, and she vowed never to be won over or worn down.
She put on one of her favorite pieces to dance to and let the soft music flood her body. She closed her eyes and saw the music behind her lids. Tasha began to move to the rhythm of the sound around her. She felt the thrum of pain in her hip, but she paid no attention. It was manageable. Dancing helped her forget the pain and the anger and the hurt. She could lose herself in it, and everything would be okay. She felt the crescendo of the music build, and Tasha performed one of her fluid jumps. She landed on her right leg, and pain from her injured hip shot through her body and made her cry out. Tears sprang to her eyes, and she began to fall, but instead of hitting the hardwood floor, strong arms pulled her close and kept her off the ground.
She
looked up into Ian’s brown eyes filled with tenderness and worry. But anger and rage filled her heart for a moment. She pummeled his chest with closed fists, fighting him and her injury and striking out at him for everything that made her hurt physically and emotionally. He never stopped her. He took every blow her hands rained down on him until she couldn’t fight anymore. Ian held her tight, saying nothing, but kissing the soft hair at her temple. It was a gesture of affection and love, but Tasha didn’t know if she should believe it. She did before, and look where it got her. Feeling drained, she tried to pull away, but she was so tired, tired of running, of fighting, and of the pain of living without his love.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“I came to see the woman I love,” Ian murmured.
“I’m a mess.” She felt the tears that she had held on to for so long fall. “I hurt, my hip aches, and God knows you made my heart shatter.”
“Baby, I know, and I am so sorry that I did that.” Ian kissed her temple.
“I don’t want you to want me just out of pity!” she cried out.
Ian laughed hoarsely. “You think this is pity, sweetheart? No, this is love. Please pity me and come home to me, darling, because every night without you has been torture.”
“You’re just saying that.” Tasha sniffled. “Until you get ass crazy again and cuss me out.”
“That is never going to happen,” Ian said. “Corbin busted some sense into my head that very first day of me leaving. I am not going back because God knows it would kill me, and he would too, as a matter of fact.”
Ian bent to his knees and gently lifted the full white skirt that she had chosen to dance in. Slowly his hand traveled up her legs, leaving a trail of fire in its wake. He looked at her scar and placed gentle kisses on her skin. With each kiss, she felt her heart begin to mend and her desire for him build.
“I won’t let you fall, Tasha, not ever again,” Ian whispered as he looked up at her. “You can dance, and you can love me again. I promise I will always be there to catch you.”
Tasha felt her breath catch because she could see such love and devotion in his eyes she could not do anything but believe him.
“When you dance, baby, you bring light into my life. When you loved me, you showed me that I was worth something more than the military career that I thought was my existence. I will never let you hurt again. I will be your strength if you’ll have me.”
Tasha nodded and went slowly to her knees as well. Their lips met in a soft kiss that bloomed into the fire that engulfed them both. Tongues that spoke harsh words before now mated and danced from one mouth to the next in their own cadence. Ian pulled her onto his lap, and the core of her was pressed against the bulge in his pants. It made her feel powerful to know that even though they had spent months apart, he still craved her touch.
Clothes seemed to melt away as he caressed her tenderly and touched her with reverence. Each stroke was meant to cherish her as well as excite her. He lifted her carefully, just enough to let his engorged cock fill the tight confines of her pussy. He moaned against her chest as he moved under her, and Tasha bit her lip against the soft cries that escaped her lips. She missed him, missed feeling like this beneath his strong hands. He molded her to him as they moved. The sounds of their gasps in the silent room sent erotic shivers through her body. He took gentle care with her hip. While she straddled him, Ian made sure her legs were in a relaxed position next to his. It was he who rolled his hips in an ancient dance that sent him deep inside her. He increased the tempo that seemed to match the beat of her heart. He rested his forehead against hers, and their breath mingled while their gazes never left each other’s faces.
“I love you,” he groaned as he thrust into her. “Tasha, please believe me. I love you.”
“I love you, too,” Tasha cried out as she crested the heights of dizzying pleasure. “Don’t let me fall alone, Ian, please!”
“Let go, sweetheart,” Ian encouraged her. A moan left his lips as well. “I will always be there to catch you.”
Together they fell into the abyss of their orgasm. This time there was more to this than just lovemaking. In that space in time, they became one, and nothing would come between them again.
She rested against his chest, feeling it rise and fall and his heartbeat slow to a normal pace. His fingers trailed up and down along her spine to where her ass began, and she giggled.
“That tickles,” she said in between pressing kisses against his neck.
“Look at me,” he ordered, and Tasha raised her eyes to his.
“This is forever. You know that, right?” Ian asked. “I mean marriage and babies and a house next to the river.”
“I would hope so. Being naked on my hardwood floor constitutes some kind of binding agreement.” Tasha smiled at him. Her heart felt free for the first time in months.
“I gladly accept your proposal,” he said with pride.
“I don’t recall proposing.”
“We love each other, and somehow I don’t think we want to live in sin.”
“Sin can be good, but yes, we should get married.” Tasha nodded in agreement.
“There is one more thing I have to ask, one more thing,” Ian said.
“And that would be?”
“Can I call you Schmooey now?”
Together their laughter filled the room and echoed off the walls. That was silenced when their lips met and passion engulfed them again. Their own music was being played, and a new dance was about to begin, one that would last a lifetime.
The End
About the Author
Dahlia Rose is the best-selling author of contemporary and paranormal romance with a hint of Caribbean spice. She was born and raised on a Caribbean island and now currently lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, with her five kids, who she affectionately nicknamed “The Children of the Corn,” and her biggest supporter and longtime love. She has a love of erotica, dark fantasy, sci-fi, and the things that go bump in the night. Books and writing are her biggest passions, and she hopes to open your imagination to the unknown between the pages of her books.