Latched (Coronado Series Book 1)

by Hart, Lea

  She kissed him hard, “You are a hard man to resist, get your stuff and let’s go.”

  He went back to his room and got his clothes together, Why is she always trying to get rid of me? I have to come up with a better plan. She laid on the couch and looked at one of the folders he put in the bag. “Why don’t you have a mortgage on your condo - why did you pay cash?”

  He knew she couldn’t resist. She was going to be his accountant and then his girlfriend. He put his bag by the door and came and sat down next to her. “My Dad was an engineer as well as a professor at Cal Poly. When the whole computer thing was taking off he invented a widget. It’s still used today in those monster processors that banks and the government have. My mother and my two sisters and I receive a quarterly check from all of the companies that use this widget. I had enough cash to buy this condo and I didn’t want to worry about a mortgage.”

  “I thought you were just good looking and sexy. Then I find out you’re amazing in bed and smart and funny. You have the whole hero thing going and now I find out you are a mini mogul. I think I’m swimming in the deep end of the pool and I should be in the kiddie pool.”

  He wasn’t sure if what she said was a good thing or a bad thing. She didn’t look too happy about it. “Baby, you’re all of those things and more. You’re beautiful, kind, caring, smart and successful and so sexy that I can’t control myself. You probably have a lot more money than I do, maybe it’s me who is the wrong pool. Why are you always trying to get rid of me?”

  She looked up startled, “I am not always trying to get rid of you. What you are talking about?”

  He looked down a little embarrassed that he brought it up - he was way out of his comfort zone. Maybe this is what it took to get Birdie on board with his plan. “Why don’t you want to be my girlfriend?”

  “Well you didn’t actually ask me; you announced it to Betty and you assumed. I don’t like being pushed into things. I don’t even know what that means to you. We have known each other for a week and only just started dating, so why are you in such a rush? You don’t have any experience being a boyfriend. Why are you all fired up? I think it’s just because you are an alpha male and you want what you want. I’m not sure it has a whole lot to do with me.”

  He was surprised, he clearly had not conveyed any of his feelings to her. “Baby, I have not been on a date since college - that is true. In the last week you have turned me inside out. I have taken you out on a date and I have had the pleasure of making love to you and I want to do that every day. I want to get to know you and spend time with you and I want it to be just the two of us. I want to be the person that you call if you need anything. I don’t have a lot of experience being a boyfriend, but I will protect you, care for you and I will do it all unconditionally. I like you and probably more, but I’m going to leave it at that for right now.”

  He noticed her eyes were getting wet, this was going to work out for him or it was going to blow up. She took his hand in hers, “I would be honored to be your girlfriend. Thank you for asking.” She leaned over and kissed him very gently and rolled on top of him and gave him a hug.

  He let out a big breath and smiled, “I guess the lesson here is that I just have to talk with you first and then it will work out for me.” He rolled her under him and kissed the hell out of her…. kissing her was easy. “You can also be the boss of me if you want, we will eat what you want, we can go where you want to go and we can do what you want to do. How does that sound?”

  She rested her hand on his face and sighed, “Well I guess that will work out as long as I get to pick the food.” She kissed his chest right where his heart was pounding. He quietly held her in his arms, he didn’t want her to change her mind so he didn’t say anything else.

  ********

  Mark was running up the beach and he spotted Birdie sitting in the same spot that they were at yesterday. He got a big smile on his face until he realized there was a man sitting next to her and she was smiling at him. Who the fuck was this guy? Birdie was in her bikini and the guy was sitting way too close to her. He started walking towards her. He wanted to see what this guy was up to and then he heard her laugh. It swept across the sand and made his chest feel tight the same way it did a week ago. Why was Birdie laughing with this guy? He picked up his pace and when she spotted him, she gave him a big smile. She looked happy to see him, “Hi babe, I decided to come down and wait for you so we could swim.” She gave him a hug even though he was dripping sweat. His heart started to slow down when he realized that she wasn’t interested in the guy sitting next to her. The guy stood up and Mark recognized him from the base. Birdie started to introduce them, “This is Eric - he was Josh’s swim buddy. I haven’t seen him in years. Do you guys know each other?” They shook hands and Mark relaxed. A brother would never make a move on his woman.

  Mark stood behind Birdie and wrapped his arms around her, thankfully she looked up and smiled and put her hand on his arm. “We have met before, Eric is on another team. We really don’t see each other very much.”

  Birdie noticed that Mark had calmed down. “Too bad you missed Josh’s wedding last week. It was a great time.”

  Eric looked down at her and smiled, “We were wheels up on Thursday and didn’t get back until Monday. It would have been great to see him get married.”

  She kept smiling as Mark pulled her in a little tighter. “Next time I have everyone over, I will invite you and Cleo and then you can see Josh and catch up.”

  “Sounds great Birdie, Mark, take care man” and with that he turned and walked towards the Hotel Del.

  “His girlfriend Cleo works at the hotel - I think she runs the catering. I have met her when I have done the flowers for different events.” She turned around in his arms and kissed him, “Now we have to go swimming, because I am sweaty.” She handed him a bottle of water and started putting her board shorts on. She was totally unaware of how crazy he almost went when he saw her with Eric. “I’m only going to go in for a little bit and then I’m going home. You can do your long swim and then come back when you are ready.” She pulled his hand and they walked towards the water. She kissed his arm “You did a good job keeping control when you saw me sitting with Eric.”

  He looked down at her and realized this girl didn’t miss a thing. She understood what he needed and did not make it a big deal. She got in a lot faster and held his hand as they made their way in. He swam next to her and tried to take in the moment. He was falling for this girl hard, thank god she agreed to be his girlfriend. He pulled her up and she wrapped her legs around him, he dropped his mouth against hers and felt her respond. She pulled back and smiled at him, “You are the best sort of man, Mark Frazier. I feel lucky to be out here with you, even if you’re a little crazy.” She laid her head on his shoulder and held on tight, he felt the thump in his chest and this time he welcomed it.

  ********

  They had finished dinner and were sitting on the couch watching one of Birdie’s shows. It was some sort of night time soap drama thing. She was trying to explain who was who and then she gave up. He was actually fine with watching the show because Birdie was curled up against him and he had his hand up her shirt. She was happy, and if she was happy now, then he had a feeling she would make him happy later when they went up to bed. The show finally ended and they made their way upstairs.

  Birdie didn’t bother putting on a nightgown, this was an excellent development for him. He would watch every single one of her shows, even Dancing with the Stars if she would go to bed like that every night. She was fiddling with her clock, “I’m setting the alarm for 6:00. Do you need it to go off earlier?” He looked over at her and was instantly hard. The sight of her on her stomach with her amazing ass on display, made him a little crazy.

  He crawled up her and started kissing her ankles and then her legs, he ran his hand up over her hips and heard her gasp. She looked over at him, “My goodness Mark, what are you up to?”

  He didn’t say anything, he w
as too busy enjoying himself. He looked up at her and smiled and kept kissing her and running his hands all over her. The feel of her skin and the way she smelled made him nuts. He felt like he wanted to devour her and worship her at the same time. For a minute he allowed himself to rest his head against the small of her back, his hands grasped onto her waist and he held tight. He gently kissed her and knew that he had never experienced anything so perfect. The smell of her and the feel of her and the taste of her was all he would need for the rest of his life. There was never going to be someone who made his heart beat as wildly as Birdie. He kissed her ass and gave her a little bite as he lifted her hips and slipped a finger inside her folds. He discovered she was starting to get wet. He ran his fingers around and around and put his thumb on her center and she moaned.

  He wanted to learn how to make her moan every day. He kept kissing her and nipping her as he let his hand play in her wet silky folds. She was moving her hips against his hand and he could feel the beginning of her contraction. He whispered in her ear, “I sure am enjoying my girlfriend.” He kissed her neck and she came all over his hand, he tried to keep her going but she just collapsed. He lifted her hips and put a couple of pillows under her and almost came just looking at her all propped up for him. He pulled her hips up a little, wrapped his arm around her waist then pushed into her halfway and gritted his teeth. He should give her time to adjust, but all he wanted to do was bury himself in her and start pumping fast. He leaned over “How you doing baby?”

  She moaned again as he pushed all the way in and lost his mind, “God Birdie you feel so good.” He started thrusting into her deeply and then he felt her hips start to move. He pumped hard in and out. The friction built up and he felt her start to contract around him again and he let go, then he exploded into her and emptied every drop into her. He thought he felt his heart stop for a moment.

  She collapsed against the bed as he rolled over to her side; he did not want to crush her. He kissed her and rolled on his back and let his heart beat return to normal. She turned her head and looked at him and then closed her eyes. My boyfriend is a sex god and I am so lucky. I don’t even recognize myself. Mark opened an eye and looked over at Birdie and she was smiling - that was a good sign. He rolled over to his side and ran his hand up and down her back, she opened one eye and looked at him, “So far you are an excellent boyfriend. I don’t know what we just did, but I liked it.”

  “I am about to become a better one.” He rolled over and went into the bathroom and brought back a wet wash cloth. He bent over, gently cleaned her up and then kissed her neck. He cleaned himself up and took it back to the bathroom. He turned off the lights, laid down and brought her into his arms. He held one of her hands and kissed her head, he felt her sigh as she kissed him right over his heart. “Thanks for agreeing to take me on, you won’t regret it.” She squeezed his hand and quietly let her fears fall away.

  CHAPTER NINE

  MONDAY

  Mark was walking up the stairs with the clean sheets under his arm and two cups of coffee and heard Birdie singing in her closet. He dropped the sheets on the bed and left her cup on the table and leaned up against the door and watched the show. She was listening to Barry White sing, Can’t get enough of your love. He watched her as she pulled up her skirt and saw the top of her thong as she finished with the zipper. She slipped on black heels and started dancing and swinging her hips and he came to full attention. Birdie turned around and his mouth fell open, she wore a black lace bra and was singing. He had never seen anything sexier. She looked up and caught sight of him…. “Keep going, I love this.”

  She smiled and started dancing over to him and singing, when she was right in front of him she grabbed his hips and danced right against him and sang along, “I can’t get enough of your love, every time you’re near, I scream your name, I can’t get enough of your love.” She started laughing and couldn’t keep a straight face. “That concludes the morning entertainment.” She grabbed a silk blouse and started putting it on.

  He brought her flush against him, kissed her hard and grabbed her ass. “Thanks for being my girlfriend. That is the best thing that I have ever seen.” She kissed him back and straightened up.

  She smiled and started buttoning her blouse up, “No more of that, no wrinkling the accountant. I have to look professional.”

  He watched as she finished getting dressed, “So how many men work at this firm that you are going to today?”

  She walked out of the closet and gave him a funny look. She was fastening a bracelet and he got up to help her. She looked up at him, “I have no idea. I usually just go in for meetings and do the bulk of the work here at my home office. I never really noticed.” She grabbed a jacket and picked up her coffee cup. “How many women do you work with?”

  “You know that there are not very many.”

  She started to go downstairs, “You asked, so I thought I could. Would you like to show up in your dress uniform dripping in medals, or better yet you can come by in full combat gear. I think that would send the right message.”

  He came up behind her with the dirty sheets under his arm, “Smartass. You are very funny… message received.”

  She just laughed, “I have always worked with men and no one has ever been unprofessional. The same way I would not be unprofessional.” He put the sheets in the washing machine then started it and walked back into the kitchen. Birdie was scrambling eggs and then she put bread in the toaster and poured him more coffee. He got out the plates and the cutlery, then stood by the toaster and watched her make the eggs. She stirred in cheese and added tomatoes at the end, she put it on the plates and passed them over to him for the toast. It was as though they had been doing this for a while; they had a rhythm down. Mark took their plates over to the table and Birdie brought their cups and they sat down. Birdie started eating and noticed that Mark looked at her seriously. She took his hand, “What’s up? What are you thinking?”

  He held her gaze, “I want to come up with something so that if I get called for wheels up, you won’t panic. I can’t tell you when I get the call, only if we are married and then I won’t be able to tell you where I am going. I will call you or see you every day and if you don’t see me or hear from me, you can call Maryann and ask her how Josh is doing. She can’t tell you anything specific, but you will know. How does that sound?” She looked up at him and nodded her head. She understood intellectually what he did, but now that he had a piece of her heart, it meant something quite different. “Baby, they say it takes a strong man to be a Seal but it takes a stronger woman to be with him. I have a feeling that you are plenty strong.” She leaned over and kissed him and nodded her head.

  They finished breakfast and she cleaned up the kitchen, “Do you want me to put the sheets on?”

  She looked over at him and was struck by how handsome he was standing there in her sunny kitchen. He was dressed in his uniform and he took her breath away. He had slipped under her defenses and was working his way into her heart and there was not a thing that she could do about it. “No, I’m going to stop and get a mattress cover for the bed and then I will put it all together when I get home.”

  “Why do you need a cover for the mattress?”

  “Because we are not using condoms and we are going to get the mattress wet. I don’t know how to say this, but you have a lot in you.”

  He was laughing and couldn’t stop, “Birdie you were so polite about that. You forget that I have been in the Navy for a long time and there is nothing that I haven’t heard or probably said.”

  She gave him a disapproving look and shook her head. “Well I am not going to be rude, just because you are.”

  He kissed her, “The good thing is that when we want to have kids it will work in our favor.”

  She kissed him back and patted his arm, “Let’s wait until the second week of dating before we plan out our children.” She turned and walked into her office and started gathering her paperwork.

  Mark went u
pstairs to grab his bag, At least she didn’t lose her mind when I brought up children. This could be going better than he expected.

  They walked outside and Mark dropped his bag in his truck, “I will call you later to tell you my schedule, do you want me to pick up dinner?”

  She was walking to her garage and she opened the door with her remote, “Let’s decide when you know more of what your day is like.” He looked into the garage and saw a very nice Volvo SUV: it was navy blue and looked fairly new. She opened her door, put her briefcase in and turned around and kissed him. “Have a good day, thank you for the weekend.”

  Mark hugged her and kissed her back, “Have a good day. I’m going to tell everyone that I have a girlfriend today.”

  “That will liven up the morning chatter, everyone will assume that I put a spell on you.”

  He made sure she was in and buckled up, “You have me bewitched. Does that count?”

  She kissed him again, “I think it might.”

  ********

  Mark drove to the base and met his platoon in the hangar. The company that developed the new equipment was there and everyone was trying to figure what went wrong. Mark walked up to the group and Frisco filled him in on the progress, “It looks like we are going to take it out again. Tell me when you want to schedule a training op. I think we should do it out in the desert this time.” Mark walked over to the lead designer and started talking to him, he wanted to make sure it was worth taking the platoon out for three days. He didn’t want a repeat of last week. The guy seemed to understand what went wrong and was confident that he’d made the fix. He offered to go along and be available if there was any more glitches. Mark agreed and made his way to his office to work on the logistics of getting the team out to the desert. Frisco and Sam followed him in and they started figuring out what they needed for the three day op.