by Lila Munro
A couple of hours and two cups of coffee later purchased at convenience stores along the way and not nearly as tasty as the macchiato she loved with all her heart, she pulled into her new drive, her eyes itchy and tired.
“Now see, Clovis? That wasn’t so bad was it?” Jodi asked, pulling the cat’s box from the seat before making her way up the steps which should have been slick with newly fallen snow but instead had been cleared and were peppered with rock salt. “Looks like someone’s been here. Guess the new boss wasn’t kidding when he said they take care of their own.”
Before Jodi even got the key in the lock to her new home, the door swung open and she jumped back, dropping the keys and sucked in a breath so quickly it choked her.
“Oh, shit, babe. Didn’t mean to scare you.”
“What the fuck are you doing here?” she almost screamed, more from fright than actual anger. “Would you like the same Christmas gift O’Malley got a couple of years ago?”
“Fuck no,” Connor said, bending to grab the keys then taking Jodi by the elbow and steering her inside. “Valentine’s Day is soon enough.”
“I didn’t think you’d be home before Friday,” Jodi said, letting Connor set Clovis free before helping her out of her coat then easing her every increasing girth into the new rocking chair sitting to one side of the fireplace.
“Excellent intelligence work provided a means. Thank you, wife. We got back a few hours ago,” Connor said, smiling at her and falling to his knees between her legs. “How’s my daughter?”
“Contrary,” Jodi admitted, rubbing her side.
“You should have waited and I’d have come for you. You shouldn’t have driven so far alone at night like this.” Connor laid his cheek on her belly.
“I argued with Kyle for two hours before he finally gave up trying to send me a driver and put a trace on the car instead so he’d know where I was every single second, where I stopped, and for how long. He swore if any single stop took longer than the required amount of time to pee for a woman in my condition he’d send a team after me.”
“Good man,” Connor said, raising up and planting a kiss right above her belly button.
“Not as good as you,” Jodi said, touching his cheek. “Have I told you thank you lately?”
“For?”
“Putting me in a compromising position.”
“Speaking of positions…”
Connor stood and pulled her to her feet, leading her away to their bedroom, in their house…
The End
About the Author
After traveling the world for nearly two decades and spending the better part of the last ten years in the Carolinas bouncing from duty station to duty station, Lila Munro has most recently followed her husband to the Portland, Oregon area making a new home north of the Columbia River in Vancouver, Washington. She’s a military wife with an empty nest save one furry and quite mischievous Siberian Husky and takes much of her inspiration for her heroes from the marines she’s lived around for the past seventeen years. Coining the term realmantica, she strives to produce quality romance in a realistic setting. Her genre of choice is contemporary romance that spans everything from the sensual softer read to BDSM and ménage. When she’s not writing, Lila enjoys reading everything she can get her hands on, trips to the museum, taking field research trips, and exploring her surroundings to include everything from micro-breweries to the mountains all around her to the local farmers markets. Her works include The Executive Officer’s Wife, Private Pirouette, the Identity Series, the Slower Lower series, Force Recon anthologies, and the At Your Service series. Currently she is working on the Steele Image line and its companion short story series Steele Clips. Ms. Munro loves to hear from her readers and can be found at www.lilamunro.com on Facebook at LilaMunroAuthor and Twitter @lilamunro