Anger seethed inside Matt at the thought of Sam chasing after her. Sure, Sam was a decent enough guy, but this was Becky. She deserved to be with a man who would take care of her, give her everything. She certainly wasn’t after a one-night-stand from some hard-up Marine she’d just met in a bar. “She’s off limits,” he said in a steely voice.
“Why? You know her or something?” Sam asked, eyeing him warily.
Matt nodded as he watched Becky move through the crowd toward her friend. Her silky brown hair swished over her shoulders and her hips swayed in those tight jeans she was wearing. His eyes roamed further, noticing the way the denim curved perfectly over her ass, and he instantly hardened. Damn it. He wasn’t allowed to be lusting after her like that. He’d lost his best friend for god’s sake. If anything, he should be looking out for her in a brotherly type of way, not imagining how she’d feel wrapped in his arms or how she looked underneath those clothes.
“She was Brody’s girl,” he said quietly.
“Brody? Oh, shit, man. I didn’t know.”
Matt had told the guys he was stationed with minimal details about the ambush—about losing his best friend. Hell, anyone who’d served knew someone who was gone. Who was he to sit around and wallow in his own misery? Shit happened. Especially in the middle of a fucking war zone. They all knew that.
Jason and Amy worked their way back over to Matt and Sam, drinks in hand. Jason was nursing a beer and Amy had some fruity concoction that chicks loved. Why women drank that stuff, he’d never know. “Thought you disappeared,” Jason commented.
“Got sidetracked,” Matt muttered.
“I see that. You made it, Lieutenant,” Jason said, giving Sam a nod.
“Just in time,” Sam agreed, glancing between Jason and Amy. “I don’t think we’ve met yet—I’m Sam,” he said, producing a muscular hand. “You must be Jason’s better half,” he added with a grin.
“Amy,” she said with a laugh, offering her hand in return. Sam’s hand practically engulfed hers, and Matt’s blood boiled at the thought of Sam’s hands on Becky. Hell, she wasn’t even standing in their group anymore, and he was still worried about Sam chasing after her? Not that Sam would, now that he knew who Becky was, but hell, what right did he have getting so jealous at the idea of Becky with another man? She wasn’t his. Matt’s eyes trailed across the restaurant to where Becky had headed and realized she was already walking back their way. What the hell?
“Becky!” Amy suddenly called out in surprise, waving her over. She turned to Jason, “I can’t believe it—that’s Melissa’s sister! I didn’t know she was in town.”
Becky caught sight of Amy and waved, glancing hesitantly at Matt. Great, now she thought she wasn’t even welcome in their group. One of whom was apparently friends with her sister. He’d have to work on acting friendlier around her even if it killed him. She approached the group, smiling at Amy, but coming to a stop at his side. He couldn’t help but notice that her head barely reached his shoulder, and damn. Her vanilla scent once again surrounded him, and instantly he felt his pulse pound and groin tighten. God, it really was going to kill him being around her, he thought, gritting his teeth. Sam eyed him curiously and then excused himself to go grab a beer, sauntering over to the bar. The blonde who’d approached Matt earlier was now heading after Sam. At least now he didn’t need to worry about Sam chasing after his best friend’s girl, Matt noted dryly. There’s no way Sam would be able to turn down the Barbie-look-alike.
“Yeah, I decided to come home this year,” Becky said. “I haven’t even seen my parents or Melissa yet—my flight from California just got in a couple of hours ago. I actually came here first to meet up with my friend Jade,” she said, gesturing to a table where a woman sat alone. They all glanced over at the attractive blonde, and she waved and animatedly pointed to the bar.
Matt laughed, despite himself, and Becky shot him a small smile. “I think she wants me to bring us some drinks,” she explained unnecessarily, laughing softly. She looked back at Jade and gave an exaggerated shrug, like “what can I do?”
Matt cleared his throat. “I’ll go grab a few drinks while you and Amy catch up. What do you and your friend want?” he asked, tilting his head toward Jade before gazing down at Amy. Her brown eyes met his, and he silently willed her to understand that he was sorry for brushing her off earlier. And practically every other time they’d come into contact with one another. She looked so vulnerable gazing up at him that he wanted to kick himself for not checking on her sometime, anytime, over the past year. As fucked up as it was, he’d told Brody he’d look out for her. And he’d failed at even doing that.
“Oh, uh, thanks,” Becky said, looking surprised. “Jade wants a martini. I’ll have whatever’s on tap.”
“That’s my girl,” Matt said without thinking and then hastily corrected himself. “I mean, I uh, remember you were a beer girl. Drinker.” Becky eyed him curiously, and he turned and made his way over to the bar without saying anything else. Hell. Way to keep your cool. He edged through the crowd, noting that Sam already had his arm slung around the slinky blonde, and gestured to the bartender that he was ready to order. Tonight was already turning out to be a lot more complicated than he’d planned.
***
So much for getting out of there at an early hour, Matt thought, glancing down at the time on his phone and seeing that it was past midnight. Tap Room was open for another hour, but after Sam had left with a lady friend, Matt decided it was time for him to call it a night. He’d been planning on only staying for a beer or two, but after seeing Becky there out of the blue, his pulse had spiked and adrenaline had been pumping through him all evening. Hell, if Jason and Sam hadn’t left with their respective women, he’d be tempted to call them up and see if they’d join him on a midnight run right now. Anything to clear his head. A little action between the sheets would also take the edge off, but he wasn’t going there. And who was he kidding? He’d stuck around until midnight to see if Becky made another appearance. There’d been no signs of Becky at the bar, where he’d hung out with Jason, Amy, and Sam, but he wasn’t about to go back to the table where he’d left Becky and her friend to see for himself. Not when he’d vowed to stay away.
A giggling brunette bumped into him, and Matt glanced down, noticing that the woman had had way too much to drink. “Oops! Sorry, sailor.”
“He’s not a sailor, he’s a Marine,” the dark-haired beauty beside her hissed. “Sorry, my friend’s had way too much to drink.”
“No problem,” he said, stepping around them and attempting not to roll his eyes. They looked really young—probably only twenty-one or so. Not that he was exactly an old man at thirty-two, but hell if he didn’t have the patience for those kinds of girls anymore. The ones who went out and got drunk every weekend, who went home with whatever guy asked first. A couple of years ago and he’d have been all over that but now? Not in a million years. He zipped up his coat, feeling the bite of the cold January air. It had been flurrying when he’d arrived hours earlier, but now the air was just damn arctic. There just was something wrong with walking around outside and seeing your breath fog up in front of you because it was so cold. He didn’t think he’d ever get used to that, no matter how long he was stationed in Virginia.
He headed up Main Street toward his car and was surprised to see Becky walking alone up ahead of him. There weren’t many people around this late at night, and many of the patrons still at the restaurant had parked in the lot attached to it. What on earth was she doing wandering around by herself at this hour?
“Becky!” he called out, loudly enough for her to hear him. She jumped, and he cringed slightly as she turned around, hoping he hadn’t scared her. Then again, maybe it would do her some good. She shouldn’t be walking around alone after midnight. Why the hell wasn’t she with her friend Jade? On the bright side, she wasn’t with any of the men from the bar either, he noted. Why that made him feel so damn pleased he didn’t even want to broach.
He watched as Becky’s body relaxed when she realized it was him, and Matt jogged to catch up with her. Matt noticed that her cheeks were flushed from the cold, and for a moment, he imagined her beneath him, cheeks rosy and flushed as he drove into her again and again, bringing her to orgasm as she screamed his name. Yeah, not gonna happen.
“Matt?” she asked in confusion as his mind snapped back to the present. “What are you doing here?”
“You shouldn’t be walking out here alone this late at night,” he said, sounding slightly more harsh than he intended.
Becky’s eyes narrowed slightly as she gazed up at him. “I’m just walking to my car,” she said, sounding defensive. Her lips were rosy, too, and he wasn’t sure if she’d applied some lipstick or if they were just naturally that color. Suddenly, he found himself wondering if her nipples were that same rosy pink. Would he ever find out? The thought of not knowing was killing him. What he wouldn’t give just to spend one night with her, slowly stripping her down in his bed as he thoroughly explored her body. He didn’t deserve a woman like her, not when he couldn’t even man up and watch out for her like his buddy had asked. But fuck, what he wouldn’t do to have her be his just for one night.
“You shouldn’t walk down the street alone,” he repeated, trying to get his thoughts back on track.
“Fine, next time I’ll hitchhike,” she said sarcastically.
“Becky,” he growled. “I’m serious.”
“So am I—I’m just walking to my car, Matt. Chill out, okay? Maybe go back to those college girls you were hanging out with.”
“What? Who?”
“I just saw you outside the bar,” she said, rolling her eyes. “You were flirting with those two girls when I left. I’d have said goodnight, but I didn’t want to interrupt your threesome.”
“For God’s sake, Becky, I don’t go around engaging in threesomes.”
“Well, how would I know? You’ve had a different girl on your arm for as long as I’ve known you. Now, goodnight.” She turned on her heel and walked away. Damn, was she always this feisty? Matt realized he’d never know, because he’d barely spoken to her in the past. If she appeared, he’d disappear. And they’d all been just fine with that.
“Fine,” he called out, taking off after her. “But I’m walking you to your car first.”
Becky sighed as he fell in step beside her. “Look, you don’t need to feel sorry for me, okay? I can take care of myself.”
“Of course you can,” he said, registering the surprised look in her eyes as she glanced up at him. “But I just want to make sure you get to your car safely. You’re a woman, walking down the street alone at midnight, and besides, I owe it to Brody.”
“Whatever makes you feel better,” Becky said quietly. Amazingly, they’d already arrived at her vehicle, making that perhaps that fastest damn walk of his life. Now what was he supposed to do? She was going to leave pissed at him. She couldn’t be this mad just because he’d offered to walk her to her car. She was probably still ticked off from the million other times he’d barely said a word to her. Now he was suddenly concerned for her safety? No wonder she was confused. Hell if he wasn’t confused as all get out, too.
“Hell, I don’t feel sorry for you, Becky,” he said, glancing down at her as she slowly met his gaze. “I feel guilty every damn time I’m around you.”
“Because of Brody?”
“Yes! No, I don’t know,” he said, shaking his head.
“Well, which is it?” she asked sarcastically. “It’s no secret that you don’t like me—God only knows why not. But Brody’s gone, so why the hell are you pretending to care about me now?”
Matt’s eyes narrowed, and he stepped closer. Becky backed up against her car, her back coming into contact with the metal, and her breathing hitched. Interesting. She wasn’t scared, of that much he was certain. Her mouth parted slightly as she gazed up at him, her eyes were wide with arousal, and it was all he could do not to rest his hands on the top of the car, pinning her in, and bend down for just one kiss. Her sweet vanilla scent was filling the air even now, driving him completely crazy. Would she taste as sweet as she looked? The way she was looking at him was almost as if she wanted him to kiss her. Which was completely insane.
***
Becky’s eyes widened as Matt leaned closer. She’d had a fun night catching up with Jade and was finally leaving to head over to her parents’ house when Matt had practically chased her down the street. Matt, who never wanted a damn thing to do with her. Who’d barely spoken to her even tonight. Sure, he was a Marine and probably had that protective instinct engrained in his DNA like all the rest of them did, but did he really need to walk her one block to her car? Even though it was late there were other people around. It was Friday night for heaven’s sake. Now he was gazing down at her with almost a hint of interest in his eyes.
Not possible, she thought. Matt didn’t even like her. There’s no way he’d be out here…lusting after her. Sure, he was attractive in that tall, dark, and brooding type of way. Short cropped hair, chiseled features, deep brown eyes. No doubt he had a rock-hard body beneath that uniform. She blushed, remembering bumping into him earlier at the bar. Not the smoothest way to get reacquainted. He’d looked almost angry that she’d said that he didn’t like her. Did he think he was being subtle all those times in the past when he’d avoided her? When he practically ran from the room the moment she arrived? He didn’t just make himself scarce, the guy simply vanished. Now he suddenly thought he had to chase her down the street at night, escort her to her car, and be her protector?
The air between them felt thick, and for the life of her, she couldn’t figure out if some underlying sexual tension was brewing between them or if their past history was just rearing its ugly head. They never really fought before, they just didn’t talk. Period. It had almost been easier to ignore him than to discuss the elephant in the room. And the elephant wasn’t really in the room, was it? It was sprinting away from her as fast as it possibly could. And elephants didn’t sprint.
“You should probably get home,” he said in a low voice, eyes never leaving her face.
Her heart pounded as her eyes ran over his chiseled features, the hardened planes of his face. She nervously swallowed. Man, that guy was intense. She could practically get lost in the depths of his brown eyes, which was…completely crazy.
“Yeah, probably so,” she agreed, finally breaking eye contact to reach into her purse to dig out her keys. Heat bloomed over her skin, and she wondered what, if anything, he’d seen in her expression. He’d looked like he’d been moments away from kissing her, which was ridiculous.
She clicked the key-fob and the lights on her rental car flashed.
“Allow me,” Matt said, his voice gruff, reaching toward the door handle. His hand brushed against her arm, and she swore she felt sparks, even through the layers of her sweater and coat.
Becky stepped to the side as Matt pulled open her door. “Where’d you park?” she asked.
“Just across the street,” he said, nodding in the direction of the bakery she’d been looking at earlier. She followed his gaze, unable to see which car exactly was his in the dark.
“Matt,” she said just as he started to say her name. She cut off abruptly, and he ground his teeth together, jaw ticking. “Go ahead,” she said, wondering what it was he was having so much difficultly saying.
“Maybe we can get together sometime while you’re in town. To talk.”
She nodded uncertainly, a nervous fluttering in her stomach. What was she nervous about? She’d wanted to talk to someone, anyone, about what happened to Brody all year. Now Matt was finally offering her that chance. Would it give her whatever closure she’d been looking for? Or just make things harder? He gazed at her, and she realized he was still waiting for an answer.
“I’d like that.”
“Great. Um, maybe you can give me your number?”
“Oh, right,” she said, suddenly feeling those butte
rflies again as he pulled his phone from his pocket. It’s not like he was asking her out. They were going to talk about Brody. And the reason her heart was pounding and her palms were sweating had nothing to do with giving this man her phone number. Still, an unexplained thrill shot through her at the idea of Matt calling her. Oddly enough, for the first time in a long while she found herself looking forward to something. It must just be because she needed some answers, she mused. It had nothing to do with seeing him again. Nothing at all.
She rattled off her cell number as Matt keyed it into his phone. He fumbled as he put it back into his jacket pocket, and she looked at him, puzzled.
“All right. I’ll be in touch,” he said, stepping back so she could climb into her car. “Drive safely.”
“You too. Goodnight.”
“ ‘night,” he said, stepping onto the sidewalk but not leaving. She realized he was waiting for her to drive away, and a feeling of pleasure she couldn’t quite explain coursed through her. The man had chased her down the street for God’s sake. Of course he wasn’t going to just walk off without making sure she’d safely driven away. But where had he been a year ago when she’d been falling apart? She shook her head and started the engine, then gave him a small wave before pulling out onto Main Street, heading to the other end of town. As she glanced in the rearview mirror, she saw Matt still standing there, watching her drive off into the distance.
Chapter 5
Matt swiped through the photos on his smart phone later that night, pausing when he finally got to the one of his unit in Afghanistan. There were all his buddies, lined up in front of a Humvee: fun-loving Jake, grinning from ear to ear in a goofy pose; Bryan, stern and serious as always; Eric, flexing his muscles as he flashed a smile for the camera, and last but not least, him and Brody. Ironically the photo had been snapped a week before their ambush in the desert. The fighting with insurgents had gotten worse, and he and Brody had an uncharacteristically serious chat that afternoon. Matt didn’t have anyone special waiting for him at home, so he hadn’t been as concerned with the fragility of life. Brody had a lot more to lose, and he’d made Matt swear that he’d watch out for Becky if anything ever happened to him. And damn it all to hell, he’d failed at even that. Sure, he’d been there at the funeral, but in the year since? He’d been too busy trying to make sure his own head was on straight to contact her even once.
Her Forbidden Marine (Hearts Ablaze: Men in Uniform Book 2) Page 3