She stumbled backward, shoving at an immobile chest as her heart beat a million times a minute. The dainty sandals and cute little sundress she had on suddenly made her feel practically naked in this man’s presence.
He loomed above her, large and frightening.
“Get off me!” she shouted, trying to pull away. Her fist flew in a punch toward her assailant’s face, but a strong hand stopped it midair, the man’s fingers closing over hers.
Icy cold dread filled her stomach.
Rebecca had a stalker a while ago. Was he somehow out of jail and back?
Was this him?
“Sarah.”
She swung with her other arm, only to be stopped again, so that the man in Patrick’s kitchen now had both of her hands in his grip.
“Let go of me! Stop!” she shouted, wrestling against him as her blood ran cold. He was a wall of muscle and could hurt her in an instant if he wanted.
“Sarah,” he said again, his voice firm.
“Wh—what?”
The lights suddenly came on as he released her, and she almost cried in relief as she realized Ryan was standing in front of her. Towering over her was really more apt of a description, because holy hell, the man was huge. He must’ve been a foot taller than her, with broad shoulders and large pecs exactly at her eye level. The type of man she usually wouldn’t mind curling up against. If she wasn’t busy throwing punches at him, that is.
She stepped back in confusion, shaking.
Concerned gray eyes watched her, and the briefest flicker of an expression she couldn’t quite read crossed his face as he glanced down at her still clenched fists.
“What the hell were you doing here in the dark?” she asked.
“I think the circuit breaker blew. A light bulb went out in the kitchen.” He stepped infinitesimally closer, heat practically radiating off his large frame as she trembled. “Are you okay?”
She crossed her arms. “I’m fine.”
“You’re shaking,” he murmured, eyes running up and down her body as if he were checking for injuries.
“You grabbed me! I thought Rebecca’s stalker was back and prowling around Patrick’s house.”
A look of anger flashed across his face. “I apologize. I didn’t mean to frighten you. I thought you were going to hurt yourself in the dark when you screamed.”
“Didn’t you know I was there?”
“I heard someone coming down the hall.”
“Then why didn’t you say anything?” she asked, feeling exasperated. Jesus Christ. He’d given her the scare of her life intentionally?
His lips pressed together. “It’s not like I jumped out yelling. I was coming out of the kitchen to check the breaker.”
Her gaze slid to the door of the kitchen then back to him. “If you’re still in here, then how’d the lights just come back on?”
“I texted Patrick and asked where the breaker was. He must’ve already gone into his garage and flipped the switch back.”
“Oh. Right. Well you didn’t need to grab me like that.”
“I thought you were going to hurt yourself swinging at me like that.”
Sarah’s cheeks warmed. She wasn’t the type of woman to go around blushing at every word a man said, but holy hell that was embarrassing. She felt as ridiculous as a kitten batting at a lion for all the good her attempted punches had done.
“I guess I should take a self-defense class,” she muttered.
“You’ve got a pretty mean right hook. I’m trained in combat though.”
“Yeah, I don’t usually go around sparring with Navy SEALs,” she said, letting out a deep breath.
“I could put you on the roster,” he said, cocking an eyebrow.
Holy hell. Now the man was teasing her?
What was next? The floor would open up and swallow her whole?
“Everyone okay?” Patrick asked, poking his head in the door. His eyes swept from her to his CO. “I thought I heard shouting when I was in the garage.”
“Everything’s great,” Sarah said with an innocent smile. No sense in telling her brother that she’d been fighting his CO. As in, literally throwing punches at the man.
“I think I frightened your sister. She throws a mean punch.”
“Jesus,” Patrick muttered. “Sir, I apologize—”
“No apologies necessary. I was at least partly to blame.”
“Partly?” she protested.
Crying suddenly coming from the back door caught their attention, and Patrick excused himself to go tend to his son, shooting Sarah a look of disbelief.
“I’ll take the blame,” Ryan assured her.
“Very funny. You know he’d never blame you for anything.”
Ryan reached out, his thumb and forefinger lightly brushing over her forearm, causing electricity to shoot straight through her. “He will if I say so,” he added, taking his hand away as she relaxed her stance, letting her arms fall to her sides. “So who do you want to fight against? Blade? Cobra?”
“Ha ha,” she said sarcastically. “How about none of the above?”
“Your call,” he conceded. A hint of humor filled his eyes.
Voices from the back door drifted in, and Sarah looked over to see Evan and Alison walking into the living room. “We’re going to call it a night,” Alison said. “I’ve been on my feet too long as it is.”
Another couple followed them inside. It was hard to keep all the guys on the SEAL team straight sometimes, but she recognized Lexi’s dark hair. Which meant the man beside her was Christopher, the computer whiz. Interestingly enough, Lexi was the only woman who seemed to like Ryan. Not that he’d really talked with her much tonight, either, but apparently they’d worked on a case together way back when. Some kind of hacker scandal or something.
And then Lexi had been kidnapped.
Seriously, this entire group needed a whole new profession. Stalkers, kidnappers—who knew what else?
Alison yawned, drawing Sarah’s attention over to her. “Let me just grab my business card for you before you go. Um, excuse me,” she added.
Ryan turned to let her pass through the doorway, so close that the cotton of his polo shirt brushed against her bare arm. The woodsy scent of his aftershave filled the air between them, and she resisted the urge to shiver—it was that damn air conditioning anyway. She still hadn’t adjusted the thermostat.
No, it had absolutely nothing to do with the arrogant man she’d almost decked earlier.
A man who commanded this entire group of Navy SEALs.
Shit.
Evan was saying goodnight to their CO, but Sarah could swear she felt Ryan’s heated gaze on her as she grabbed her purse from the table. Couldn’t she have tried to punch one of the other guys instead? She rummaged through her hobo bag, turning and handing her business card to Alison.
“No ice baths,” Ryan quipped.
“What?” Alison asked in confusion.
“Never mind him,” Sarah said smoothly. “I already explained earlier that I’m a physical therapist. Seriously, give me a call.”
“Thanks so much, I really appreciate it,” Alison said.
“No problem.” Sarah’s phone buzzed in her handbag, and she pulled it out, seeing a text from Morgan.
She might as well duck out now while some of the others were leaving. She’d meet up with Morgan and get the heck out of here before anyone else asked any specifics about her encounter with Ryan a few minutes ago. The other guys would no doubt get a kick out of her sparring with their CO.
“Bye Captain Mitchell,” Lexi said. “See you on Monday.”
“You work with them, too?” Sarah asked.
“Yes, I’m an IT specialist.”
“More like a hacker,” Christopher said, slinging his arm around Lexi’s shoulders as the three of them headed out the door.
“I didn’t realize you were on base. I thought Patrick said you worked at the Pentagon.”
“I did,” Lexi said, her violet eyes brighten
ing. “But then I ended up down here. Ran into Christopher again after ten years—and the rest is history.”
“And believe it or not, we regularly work together now. Lexi’s the best at what she does—it’s awesome to have her on base with us.”
“Plus your CO loves me.”
“That’s hard to imagine—no offense,” Sarah added.
“None taken,” Lexi laughed. “Trust me—he’s more bark than bite.”
Christopher unlocked the passenger door of his pick-up truck, pulling open the door for Lexi. “Can we drop you off at your car, Sarah?”
“I’ll see her to her car,” a deep voice behind them interrupted.
“Sonofabitch,” Christopher muttered.
Sarah’s face heated as she slowly turned around. Ryan’s eyebrow was cocked. “No punches this time, okay?”
Chapter 6
Ryan resisted the urge to smile as he watched the heat blossom over Sarah’s skin. For a woman intent on arguing with him about everything, this was probably the first and only time he’d rendered her speechless. A gust of wind blew her hair back, and he again saw the three tiny earrings in her ear. He never really paid attention to jewelry before, but somehow on her, it was sexy as hell. That intricate little braid she’d pulled a small section of her hair back in made her look feminine. He wanted to run his rough fingers through the rest of all that silky hair of hers and see if it felt as soft as it looked.
“Punches?” Christopher asked. “Do I even want to know?”
“I do,” Lexi said with a grin, turning around before getting into the cab of Christopher’s pick-up truck. “This sounds like a good story.”
“There’s nothing to tell,” Sarah said lightly as Ryan raised his eyebrows.
“Umm-hmm,” Lexi said, glancing between Sarah and Ryan. “I don’t believe that for a second. I’m sure the guys on base would love to hear about the CO getting decked by a woman.”
“Have a good night!” Sarah said with a wave, turning to walk down the street.
Her sundress blew in the breeze as Ryan jogged a few steps to catch up, swishing around her shapely legs, and Ryan heard the engine rev on Christopher’s pick-up behind them. Her hips swayed just so, and Ryan clenched his jaw. Fucking hell. Coming. Going. Sarah was irresistible all the same.
He resisted the urge to smirk as he saw the teeny little mini cruiser Sarah was gazing at.
“Don’t tell me that’s yours.”
“Of course. The new ones have amazing gas mileage. I don’t need some gas guzzler that pollutes the air and wastes natural resources.”
“Of course not,” he commented dryly.
“I’m guessing you drive a monstrous SUV large enough to hold the entire SEAL team—who you probably don’t actually drive around, so there’s no need. Your gas mileage is horrible in the stop-and-go traffic around Virginia Beach, and when you park on base, you need two spaces for the monstrosity.”
He raised his eyebrows.
“Lucky guess?”
“What makes you think I need to double park? Maybe I’m quite adept at driving large things into tight spaces.”
Sarah did a double take, and Ryan chuckled. “You’re always ribbing me. I couldn’t resist.”
She glanced up at him, her petite frame barely coming up to his shoulder. Holy hell she was a tiny little thing—which made it all the more enjoyable when she laid into him. He could wrap his hands around her waist and lift her into his arms in an instant.
Which didn’t sound like an entirely bad idea.
“More like you are always ribbing me. Which you seem to thoroughly enjoy.”
“Well I can’t argue with you there.”
She tilted her head, looking at him quizzically. Those soft pink lips of hers parted, but he returned his gaze to her hazel eyes. “Look, I’d love to stand around and argue,” she said, “but I’m meeting Morgan for drinks. Care to come with? We could always argue more there.”
“Are you asking me out on a date?”
“Not a date; I just told you I’m meeting her for drinks. Although Morgan may be with one of the guys from last night.”
“So it’s a double date.”
Sarah rolled her eyes, and Ryan pressed his lips together in amusement.
“I’m driving though.”
“No way will I fit in that little clown car of yours. If I’m taking you out for drinks, I’m driving.” His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he pulled it out with a frown, glancing down at the text message.
SITREP came in—no major updates. Briefing at 0800 tomorrow.
SITREPs, or situation reports, were updates on unfolding situations around the globe. No news was good news, in some ways. The kidnapped American woman was likely still alive. The boots on the ground and U.S. allies needed to hone in on her location stat so his team could deploy for an extraction. He could have his men on a C-17 military cargo plane on a nonstop flight to Afghanistan within hours.
And hours may be all the time they had if the situation became dire.
Those uncomfortable cargo seats with headsets on to drown out the roar of the airplane were one thing he sure as hell didn’t miss. But fighting with his men? It was different commanding a team from stateside. To not be part of the action.
Didn’t make his job any less critical though.
“Just work,” he said without elaborating. No need in letting her know the shitstorm going on as they searched for the missing American. The political pressure from Washington. The preparations being made for an impending op. That was his and his men’s burden to bear alone. Didn’t make it any fucking easier though.
“Suit yourself,” she said with a shrug. “I can get Morgan to drive me back to get my car later.”
“I’ll escort you back,” he said, voice low.
“Well aren’t you a boy scout.”
“No, ma’am,” he said, unable to resist placing his hand on the small of her back to guide her back to his SUV. “Navy SEAL.”
“Touché.”
***
Ryan grumbled under his breath at Sarah’s directions to the restaurant on the VA Beach strand. Bumper-to-bumper traffic lined Atlantic Avenue, which was unsurprising on a beautiful Saturday night. And then if they ever found the restaurant Sarah was meeting her friend at, they’d still have to deal with securing a parking spot. Not that he was opposed to going for a walk with a beautiful woman, but shit. Watching that dress swish back and forth around her shapely legs all night just might send him to an early grave.
He'd rolled down the windows of his SUV because Sarah insisted they needed the ocean breeze blowing through. He couldn’t argue with that, but with each waft of ocean air, her summery scent drifted his way as well. It wasn’t strong enough to be perfume—maybe just some girly shampoo or something. Lotion. Who knew? But hell. He had half a mind to pull onto an empty side street and haul her into his lap.
He shifted uncomfortably in his seat as his groin tightened.
“When you get to the hotel with the cute cabana area, take a left,” Sarah said, looking around.
“Every hotel has an outdoor area. That’s the point of oceanfront property.”
“No, the one with the cute tiki bar. The restaurant I’m meeting Morgan at is around the corner from that.”
“What’s the name of it?” Ryan asked, coming to a stop at a red light.
“Oh. Seafare 50 or something?”
Ryan clenched his jaw. “Searfare 77? That’s twenty blocks back the way we just came.”
“That’s it!” Sarah said with a wide smile. “Seafare 77. How’d you know where it is?”
“It’s the 77th block on Atlantic Avenue,” he said. “That’s the meaning behind its name. And we passed it ten minutes ago.”
“Oh, right. Well, I’ll text Morgan and let her know we’re on our way.”
“Didn’t you think to look up directions?”
Sarah shrugged, glancing over at him. “I figured it’d be easy enough to find. Who doesn’t love drivin
g around with the ocean air blowing through the windows? It’s a beautiful night. And seriously—don’t even start complaining. I was more than happy to drive, but you, with your outdated chivalrous ways and belief my vehicle was inferior, insisted on doing the honor.”
His fists clenched the steering wheel. Not that he minded driving around with Sarah in his SUV, but holy hell. The woman probably couldn’t find her way out of a paper bag. Looking for the souvenir shop and hotel with a cute tiki bar as landmarks were as helpful as saying it was overlooking the ocean. Yeah, it and a couple hundred other bars and restaurants.
Ryan neatly maneuvered his SUV into a u-turn, nodding at the VA Beach police officer patrolling the area. His SEAL team had worked with the boys in blue on several occasions in the past, most recently when Lexi had been kidnapped.
Hell. It seemed like half the woman his men had ended up with couldn’t stay out of trouble—and the women were the ones stateside. Not that Rebecca’s stalker or Lexi’s kidnapper had been their fault—but Jesus. If those two ended up in situations like that, it was amazing Sarah made it through her own life unscathed. She was knowledgeable, yes, but also totally unconcerned with things like directions, addresses, sticking to a schedule—basically everything his years in the military had dictated.
“Amazing, there’s a spot on the street,” he said a few minutes later, pulling alongside a car to back in to a parallel parking space.
Sarah looked at him doubtfully. “Are you sure this thing will fit? That’s why I have a small, compact vehicle.”
“It’ll fit,” Ryan said clenching his jaw as he rested one arm on the back of Sarah’s seat to turn around and back into the space.
Jesus Christ. Coming so close to touching her was dangerous. Why the hell had he agreed to go grab a drink anyway?
“Right, I forgot—you’re an expert on fitting large packages into tight spaces,” she quipped.
Ryan guffawed. “Woman, you’re going to kill me.”
“Oh, give me a break,” she said with an infectious laugh. “You command a freaking team of Navy SEALs but you can’t handle a few minutes in the car with me?”
Loved by a SEAL (Alpha SEALs Book 7) Page 5