“All available personnel—sober personnel—had already lifted off. With my CO cussing and breathing fire down my neck, I had no choice. It wasn’t until after we lifted off that I realized good ol’ Tommy-boy must have drunk himself insensible into the wee hours. He was no longer holding an ice pack under his balls, but he was in no freakin’ condition to be in the gunner’s seat.”
She tried to keep the trembling under control, but she shuddered as if she was hyperthermic. She pressed tighter against Nathan’s solid body. “Marines were counting on us to supply covering fire so they could bail out of that hell hole, but Tommy couldn’t do the job. He flipped out, argued with me when I attempted to turn the helo back to base. Insisted he was totally functional, threatened me, called me a frigid bitch out to ruin his career to get even, retaliation for him hitting on me. Tried to fight the controls so I wouldn’t return to base and turn in his sorry, useless ass. A total trashy mouthed, nasty-assed, outta control motherfucker.
“Marine lives were on the line, but he couldn’t handle his fucking responsibilities. No sense having a Viper diving in without a functional gunner, no firepower, or, worse, rounds scattering to the four winds, going off all over the damned place with our guys in danger of being hit by friendly fire.”
“Jeez, Kace—”
Her memories returned to the bad place, and the images lit up in technicolor.
“Yeah, I know, believe me, I know. Then he’s cursing and freaking out, screaming all sorts of rude names at me, calls me Weatherly’s fuck bitch. While he’s going looney tunes, what do I see? A rocket propelled grenade coming straight at us. I try evasive action, but it’s too late. The RPG takes out the Viper’s main rotor, totally disables the bird. The explosion sends shrapnel through the cockpit, shreds Tommy, slices and dices me, but at least I’m alive. Rotor’s gone and part of the tail, the bird spins, flips, digs itself into the sand, nose down.”
Images dive-bombed her brain. It took everything she could do to breathe, let alone actually speak.
Nathan’s arms cradled her as he lent her his strength. “That’s my girl. Talk to me, baby. Tell me.”
The scenes flashed forward through her memory, but Kacey wasn’t sure if the words actually crawled from her throat. The canopy, shattered. Kacey jammed in her seat. Tommy, mortally wounded, hanging above her, moaning. Bleeding out. His life fluid leaking onto her helmet, down her back, until his cries are reduced to whimpers, then finally stop. Bleeding from glass and metal lacerations, her body trapped in the ripped up bird, painful minutes stretched into agonizing hours, until help finally arrived to extricate her from the wreck. The all-pervasive smell of his blood in the heat, no way to escape it.
After she’d been extracted from the wreck, her physical injuries were patched up—but the nightmares hadn’t even begun to manifest themselves.
“Coupla weeks later, wounds nearly healed, I’m still grounded pending the results of the crash investigation. I don’t want to rat Tommy out, but the voice recorder tells the story, halle-fucking-lujah. I’m going stir crazy, not knowing if you’re alive or dead. Need to get back in the air while I’m waiting for you, that’s where I belong. I’m promised a new bird.”
Her chest tightened up, and she needed to clear her throat to continue. “Then word comes that Pin-Up Girl went down. My Da’s plane, Mother is the only passenger.”
Not able to meet his eyes, she felt Nathan nod.
“I’m thinking everyone’s wrong, must be a mistake. Da’s too good a pilot, the Beaver too solid a ride. Next message, two bodies were recovered. No word from your unit, of course no one’s talking. Only choice is to ship home, so I gotta go. My contract is nearly up. I take a hardship leave, don’t re-up. That’s it, that’s all she wrote. The fat lady sang, and it was over.”
After Kacey wound down, Nathan kissed her damp cheek, spoke softly. “After you and I returned to base, I was ordered to rejoin my unit the moment my feet hit the sand. The guys had been waiting on me, even packed my bag, my weapons. We shipped out immediately, no time to find you. Couldn’t get back for weeks. By then, you were gone. I took another mission, stayed long enough to finish out my tour, didn’t renew my contract. Neither did some of the squad. Jonah finally told me where you were. I didn’t wait for the guys, caught the first flight home to the States, left them to follow. Stopped to see my folks, grabbed my ride, headed north. I needed to find you.”
“Well, you found me.”
…
He did the thing with his hand again—slipped it between their bodies, fingers spread, palm against her belly, just before he drove into her. As it had done each time before, her womb clenched like an iron fist at his peculiar, incredibly intimate touch.
Her chest heaved with passion, then she finally found her voice—she had to know. Breathe, just breathe. Remember to breathe. “Why…do you… do that?”
He turned his mouth away from nuzzling her. His bright golden eyes twinkled. “In case you hadn’t noticed, I’m busy at the moment. Why do I do what, exactly?”
“That thing with your hand. When you spread your fingers on my belly, it makes me so crazy I can’t even begin to describe the feeling. My insides quiver, and I need you so deep inside me, need to feel your release. How weird is that?”
“I make you quiver? Mmm, I like it.” His kisses were feathery light against her cheek. “Do you know, you made me jealous of my own brother.”
That wasn’t exactly an answer. “Me? How?”
“Yes, you. The day I arrived home—the same day I left to find you—one of my brothers and his wife announced she was pregnant. High fives made the rounds. Our parents were over the moon, their first grandchild. Kyle said everyone was tired of waiting for me, the heir apparent, to produce offspring, even though I’m the oldest.”
Buried deep inside of her, he held still. “But me? I faked it. Faked the congrats. I was no-shit, no-holds-barred, gut-deep jealous for the first time in my life. Of my own baby brother, if one can imagine that. The look on Kyle’s face said it all. Proud, protective, possessive. Katie was his woman, his mate, mother of his child. My kid brother had turned into a grown man while I was away, and he was gonna be a dad. My own sibling. I’d give him a kidney if he needed it, yet I coveted what he had.”
That rocked her world. “So, what did you do?”
“I said my good-byes, backed out of the driveway, headed north. The longer I drove, the more I was convinced that sorta life could be waiting for me in a little New Hampshire town called Winterpine.”
He pulled out slightly, once again did the thing with his hand. Kissed her. Thrust and stayed buried. “I like the feel of your belly under my fingers, how tight and flat it is now, before I make you pregnant. I want to lay my hand on the baby as he grows, share the quickening with you, feel those first tiny flickers of movement from our child.”
An indescribable feeling cloaked her, body and soul, prevented any response.
He nuzzled her again, his warm breath sliding over her skin. “Kace, let me give you a baby. I can’t replace your family, but I can give us our own legacy to carry on your name—although I admit that O’Donnell-Weatherly is quite a moniker for a little guy to deal with. Or little gal. Or one of each. Maybe more. Probably boxing lessons will be called for to get through pre-school, the proper training which I’m sure their mother can handle.”
He slid his hands underneath to pull her hips even closer, merged into her again and again with an easy rhythm. His gaze never lost contact with hers, the weight of his heavy muscles anchored her safely under his big body.
Kacey realized that she wanted that safety, needed it—even, dare she admit it—welcomed it.
Nathan’s nuzzling stopped. “So, sweetness, what do you think? Will you have me, will my tough-ass Marine pilot have my child?”
That did it. In half a heartbeat, at his simple, direct question, her entire body responded, broke free of its chains. She grabbed his thick, heavily veined forearms as her pelvis tipped forward,
pulled him in even further. The pace of her thrusts increased as she did her best to carry him over the edge with her.
Come with me, fill me, empty your seed into my waiting womb.
“Baby, that’s all I needed to know.”
Oh, God, she’d whispered the words aloud!
Hands cradled her face as he kissed her deeply, held her, plunged into her. “You’re mine.”
She twisted and shoved under him, too distracted to speak. Suddenly, her body stiffened as a massive orgasm surged forth like a tidal wave, forced her to cry out in its intensity.
“Nathan, I do love you, I love you!”
His growl accompanied his own release, as he could drive no deeper. “You’re mine, do you hear me? I love you, and you’re mine. Forever and always. And don’t you forget it.”
The simple act of breathing became a chore as their lungs fought to function as nature intended. Trembling with aftershocks, Kacey’s arms and legs finally collapsed to the bed. Nathan rested on top of her.
He could barely force out the words. “Baby, just give me a minute, then I’ll move.”
“No. Don’t move. Don’t leave me.”
Rather than pushing him off, she wrapped her arms around his neck while he covered her throat and jaw with hot, heavy kisses. After a few moments, despite her protestations, he carefully lifted his sated body, lay next to her on his side, propped up on an elbow. He covered her leg with his. With his free fingers, he lifted damp strands of hair away from her face.
“Kace, babe, you didn’t actually answer me, about getting you pregnant. Are you okay with it? I never thought family life would be for me—not a family of my own. I didn’t think it would be fair to anyone, not while the Navy still held me. But after our first night together, it’s all I’ve been able to think about. It was a rank bitch time to concentrate on my job until I could get back to you. Us. Together forever. Little rug-rats crawling around—if you’re agreeable. If not, well, then just the two of us, and that’s fine, too.”
In that one split second, Kacey’s fears evaporated, her breathing calmed. She felt the incredible rightness of what he offered. A life she’d never considered until she met him. Maybe she didn’t need to cruise solo.
First, a deep, deep breath. Then, the low, slow, draw out sigh. Might as well own up to it, sooner than later. “Well, my dear frogman, whether or not I choose to be pregnant may be a moot point. I sorta stopped taking the pills after I came home. Didn’t remember to take them, didn’t care if I took them—wasn’t in the field any more, wasn’t anyone around for me to worry about.”
Golden eyes wide, he raised up, a bewildered look on his handsome, chiseled face. And maybe, just maybe, the slightest touch of hope in his expression. “But, I asked. You told me you were still safe.”
She shrugged. “My bad.”
“Kace—”
“Look, I’m not sure, okay. It can take from a few weeks to many months for a woman to ovulate again after so many years, but I think I already did. At least, it felt like I was. Every time you touched me, hell, every time you looked at me, I wanted you buried inside me so deep I couldn’t stand it.”
He sat up, ran both hands through his hair, the damp waves sticking up. “Then why in bloody blue blazing hell did you chase me away? Why keep running? You had to know I love you. Had to know I’d follow you to the ends of the earth, as far, as long, as it took. Baby, you know there’s no escape from a SEAL.”
The pooling tears finally broke loose and ran down her face, but this time she didn’t care. Not bothering to wipe them away, she reached to trace the line of his whiskered jaw with a fingertip. “For years, people died around me, on the battle field and off. My crazy, wonderful family was gone. I’d lost everyone who’d been important to me. Nathan, I loved you so much, I was terrified that if anything happened to you, my heart couldn’t survive it.”
The sobs turned into hiccups. “A freakin’ Navy SEAL and a Marine Viper pilot. Shit-on-a-stick, Weatherly, confidence was high that at least one of us—probably both of us—was not gonna make it out alive.”
Nathan shifted in bed, rested his head against her ribs, placed his hand over her belly again. “Die and miss this? Miss you? Nah, not in the play book.” He moved his hand to her thigh, kissed the soft, taut skin that covered her flat tummy. “I’d never miss this.”
She slid her fingers into his hair, closing her eyes to enjoy the feeling of the silky waves. “Semper fidelis, Nathan. Marines, always faithful. You have me forever.”
“So, dear heart, where should we live? I can’t see rattling around this big ol’ place. We can settle here if you are so inclined but I’m not sure we can populate the whole place with offspring just to keep the household staff busy. I’m just sayin’.”
Kacey continued to play with his hair, pulling the wavy strands into peaks. “What would you say about moving into the caretaker’s lodge, then turning Timberwyck into a shelter for veterans. Like a group home, instead of a bed and breakfast or resort hotel. Offer a safe haven for vets. People like Jeffrey. With PTSD.”
She pulled in a deep breath. “People like me.”
There, she said it. Admitted it. Out loud, for chrissakes. “For servicemen and women like us who need a break. Completely private, no government interference. I figure we can hire our own counselors, our own nursing staff. The O’Donnell lumber mills are still going strong—we could set up a trust fund to keep the facility functioning, solicit private donations to help. I’m sure Dr. Jonah will come on board to help sort it all out.”
Nathan turned over to stare at her, and his expression made her heart melt. “Are you serious?”
She nodded. “Uh huh.”
“Then I would say yes. Yes! It would be perfect. You’re an angel.” They sealed the bargain with a hot, deep kiss, then he kissed her belly once more.
As he laid his warm palm over her stomach, she felt the clench of her womb again. A soft chuckle accompanied her tremble.
“What is it?”
“Nothing, really. Just something silly.”
He slid down the bed, trapped her thighs, blew warm breath over her nether curls. “I like silly. Tell me.”
Shifting under him, she made herself more comfortable. “I was just thinking about hallucinations.” Using just two knuckles, she gently rubbed against his spine in small circles.
As he spoke, his mouth tickled her mons. “Does one think about hallucinations, or do they just happen? Ooh, baby, I’ll give you two hours to stop rubbing my back like that. Mmm.”
“Yeah, hallucinations. As in, you’re real, not a figment of my imagination.”
“So glad to hear it. I guess you’ll need to explain that one day. Just not now. I’m too comfortable to ponder any serious matters.”
“What about Gemma?”
That got a chuckle from her man. She could think it now, even say it out loud. Her man. And her man said, “First, we elope, fly to Vegas to be married with an Elvis impersonator as our best man, before the guys come up with any bizarre plan to celebrate our nuptials. Then, if Gemma’s aunt and uncle don’t want custody, we’ll adopt her. If her family does keep her—and I can’t see why they wouldn’t, since she’s such a great kid—she could be our firstborn’s fairy godmother, or whatever you want to call her.”
She stroked his sexy, muscly shoulder as their bodies nestled, his cheek against her pelvis. “Nathan, you really are my hero.”
He finally stopped kissing her belly.
“Remember, baby, I’m a SEAL—on my watch, no one ever gets left behind.”
About the Author
Sophia Roslyn, born a Jersey girl, is lucky enough to live and write in a 200-year-old farm house set on ninety acres in central upstate New York, tucked in her complete disaster of an office, with a monstrous treadmill staring at her through malevolent eyes, and any number of Whippets lounging underfoot or under-desk. Roslyn writes contemporary erotic romance, but her works-in-progress include suspense, paranormal, and time travel�
�all with a hot, erotic twist.
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