SEALs of Chance Creek 01 - A SEAL's Oath

by Cora Seton

  “We won’t,” Riley promised her. “But are you guys serious? Are you really going to stay?”

  “We’re serious.” Savannah gathered them all together. “We can stand anything for six months.”

  USUALLY RILEY WAITED for Boone to pick her up in the evening, but it was a beautiful night and she was too restless to stay in the house, so she left the manor at a quarter to eight and made her way down the dirt road to Base Camp. They’d spent most of the afternoon coordinating with Mia on the wedding. She’d only managed to spend an hour on her painting. She couldn’t believe something could be so frustrating and compelling all at once. She missed the brief period of time when she’d had long afternoons to experiment. It was going to take time to figure out what she was doing.

  “Ma’am,” one of the new recruits said as she approached their encampment.

  “Evening,” she said.

  The other men grouped around the fire stood up.

  “Ma’am.”

  “Evening, ma’am.”

  Riley suppressed a smile. Now she really felt like she’d traveled back in time. “Has anyone seen Lieutenant Rudman?”

  “Lieutenant? I thought he was an NCO,” she heard one of them mutter.

  “The Chief’s in there.” A man with a thick Scottish accent pointed to the bunkhouse.

  Riley thanked him and went to knock on the door. Walker opened it, nodded in his enigmatic way and let her in. Riley nodded back, unsure of how she felt about the man. She’d always had a complicated relationship with him. Sometimes he’d watched out for her, other times he’d been the one to exclude her from her friends’ exploits without a word of explanation. She’d never figured him out and when it counted, he’d stood back and let everyone else laugh at her.

  As she entered the bunkhouse and looked for Boone, she knew Walker was watching her. “Well?” she finally asked.

  “I should have spoken up for you,” he said quietly.

  “You drove me crazy back then. I never knew where I stood with you.”

  He nodded. “I bet I did. Thought I knew best. You always rushed right in, no matter what was going on. Didn’t want you to get hurt.”

  “Well, I got hurt.”

  Walker nodded again. “I should have done better.”

  She knew it was all the apology she’d get. Suddenly, it was all she needed. She was so tired of holding onto the sorrows of the past. There was plenty to worry about in the present. “Thank you.”

  He exited the building without another word, and when a door to one side of the bunkroom opened, Boone came out of the bathroom in his jeans and little else. His feet were bare. So was his torso. He was rubbing his hair dry with a towel.

  He came to a halt when he spotted her. “Riley.”

  “I guess I’m early.”

  “No—well, yeah.” He grinned and her heart did a funny flip. No matter how many times she saw him, he gave her butterflies. “I’ll be ready in a minute.”

  “No rush.”

  As usual, they walked toward Pittance Creek, moving slowly once they made it past the gauntlet of recruits by the fire.

  “I’ve got something to tell you,” she said. His shoulders stiffened as if he was bracing for bad news and she was suddenly grateful she had something good to share. “Nora, Savannah and Avery are going to stay. They’ve agreed to be on the show.”

  “How’d you manage that?”

  “I didn’t do anything. I just have good friends.”

  He took her hand. “That is good news.” He chuckled a little. “Did they agree to marry the guys, by any chance? I heard Clay and Jericho paid a call up at the manor.”

  “In a word? No. I think they made an impression, though.”

  “I guess that’s something. It’s funny, every man around that fire outside the bunkhouse is willing to marry, but like-minded women are impossible to come by. I guess I’ll have to set them loose in Chance Creek to fend for themselves.”

  “I guess so.”

  “Clay, Jericho and Walker are disappointed, you know.”

  “Clay and Jericho I understand. But Walker?”

  “You didn’t see him when Avery came marching down here to tell me off?”

  “No, I didn’t.”

  Boone helped her navigate a deep rut in the dry road. “Walker’s not too demonstrative. You have to know what to look for. I’d say he’s a goner.”

  “For Avery?” She couldn’t picture that.

  “When the show’s over we’ll do anything we can to help you start your B&B.”

  She nodded.

  “Riley. Can I…?” He reached for her.

  She went willingly into his arms and when Boone kissed her she melted against him. She could tell by the way he held her he felt the same way.

  “I can’t wait until this is all over,” he whispered into her hair.

  “Me, too.”

  “Should we take this to the riverbank?” Boone asked.

  “I’ve got a better idea. Let’s take it to the manor. I’ve got a perfectly good bed there.”

  He held back. “What about your friends?”

  “You’re a SEAL right? Don’t you know all about infiltrating enemy compounds?”

  “You better believe it.” Boone hurried her back the way they’d come and up the hill until they reached the back door of the manor. “Prepare to learn from a master.” He took the lead with an exaggerated crouch. As he crept inside and took enormous tippy-toe steps, Riley bit back a laugh and followed him with equal exaggeration, grateful for Boone’s sense of humor. They reached the opposite side of the kitchen without incident, but when they heard Avery’s voice in the parlor, Boone flattened himself against the wall and pulled Riley with him. She knocked into a tall cabinet where their glasses and dishes were stored and set its contents rattling. Boone braced it with a steadying hand. “Watch it.”

  “You watch it,” she hissed back. When Avery retreated to the far end of the parlor, Riley stepped away from the cabinet and quickly tiptoed across the hall to the base of the stairs. She slipped around the bannister and moved rapidly up the steps, but Boone, following her, was only halfway across the hall when Nora called out, “Riley? Is that you?”

  “Just heading to bed,” Riley called back. She prayed her friend didn’t come to investigate.

  Boone scuttled back into the kitchen like a crab into its hole. Nora appeared in the doorway to the parlor. “Everything all right?”

  “Yes. I’m just… tired. Do you mind?” Riley forced herself not to look toward Boone’s hiding place. Nora studied her.

  “Are you sure you’re okay?”

  “Positive. Do you need my help with anything?”

  “No, we’ve got things under control. Sleep well.”

  “’Night.” She waited until Nora went back into the room. She was just bending over the bannister to call softly to Boone when he appeared again, took the hall in two steps, vaulted the bannister and ran lightly up the stairs. He grabbed Riley by the waist, tossed her over his shoulder and dashed up the rest of the steps, his feet making no noise. Riley, jolted and bounced by his movements, could only hold on for dear life.

  “Third floor,” she hissed when he paused at the top of the steps.

  Boone laughed. “Of course,” he muttered. He took off up the second set of stairs and didn’t stop until they reached the top.

  “What room?”

  Riley pointed. Boone turned around to see, and Riley yelped when he came perilously close to hitting her head against a doorframe.

  “Sorry.” Boone lowered her down.

  “This one.” Riley opened it, pulled him in and shut it again. Turning the lock, she faced him. “You’re not very—”

  Boone tossed her on the bed with a single, fluid movement and leaped up on top of her. Before she could say another word, he lowered himself down and kissed her.

  Riley forgot all about talking. Making love to Boone in a bed was a revelation. No freezing water, no cold dirt, no ants or flies. Just
soft covers, a comfortable mattress—and Boone.

  He seemed to think he needed to take advantage of the situation to explore her body in a very intimate way. Riley had never been so kissed, caressed and teased and soon her veins were humming with desire. She ran her hands over his skin, touching every part of him she could reach, but all she really wanted was to feel him inside of her.

  When he finally obliged, Riley gasped as he filled her. “Is that good?” he asked.

  “So good.” She rocked with his slow motions until the need in her built to a peak she couldn’t withstand.

  “Boone—”

  “I’m here. I’ll always be here.”

  Riley came with a cry she forgot to muffle. Boone covered her mouth with his, but all too soon he was grunting his release in time to their movements together. Riley sighed when they came to a stop, too wrapped up in pleasure to do anything else but lie there. Boone’s weight on top of her felt perfect and she never wanted to let him go.

  A quick rap on the door had them springing apart. Riley scrambled for the covers and tossed them over Boone, crawling under them to hide herself.

  “Yes?” she managed to say in a normal voice.

  “Goodnight.” It was Avery.

  “’Night.” She put a finger on Boone’s lips to shush him. He snorted with laughter and she waved a desperate hand in his face. “Shh!”

  She thought they were in the clear until Avery called out, “’Night, Boone!”

  Riley gasped in mortification. She tried to block him, but Boone pushed her hand away. “Night, Avery!” he called back. He pulled Riley back into an embrace. “I guess we weren’t quiet enough.”

  “You think?” But she couldn’t stay mad. For one thing he felt so good, she had a feeling they would make more noise before the night was through.

  For another, she was too happy to care what anyone else thought.

  “I STILL THINK you should have taken that job I found you,” Boone’s father said the next night at dinner. “Makes a lot more sense than prancing around on television.”

  “I won’t be prancing around, Dad. I’ll be demonstrating techniques that people can use to cut their carbon footprint.”

  “You know I don’t hold with that stuff and nonsense.”

  “I don’t think climate change cares whether you hold with it or not. Besides, most of what I’m doing is good stewardship. It doesn’t matter what you think about the long term. It’s what you do today that counts. Isn’t that what you always say? I’m going to take care of Westfield and the people who live on it the best way I know how.”

  “By ranching bison instead of good old-fashioned cattle?”

  “Bison were here first, Dad. They’re the ones who are old-fashioned.”

  “I heard Riley’s back in town,” his mother interrupted before his dad could wind up for a real argument.

  “She’s actually the reason I wanted to talk to you tonight.” Boone scooped a spoonful of scalloped potatoes onto his plate and passed it to his father. “Riley and I are getting married.”

  His mother set the dish of broccoli she held down with a thump. “It’s about time! I thought you’d never notice that poor girl! She’s had her sights set on you since she was knee-high to a grasshopper.”

  “I guess it took a little distance for us to realize the nature of our feelings for each other.”

  His mother scoffed. “It didn’t take distance for Riley. She knew a good thing when she saw one. You were the blind one.”

  “I’ll grant you that.” He didn’t want to get into the past.

  “Congratulations, son.” His dad clapped him on the back, far more cheerful than he’d been just a moment ago. “So you’re settling down at last.”

  Had his dad been afraid he’d leave town again? “I guess I am.”

  “And you’ll live at Westfield?”

  “As long as we meet Mr. Fulsom’s conditions.”

  “I don’t trust that man.” His mother handed him the broccoli. “Take a big scoop. It’s good for you.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Boone did as he was told. He was hungry tonight, anyway. “Fulsom’s a showman. As long as you remember that, he’s okay.”

  “He’ll make an ass out of you,” his father warned.

  “You’ve got that right, so prepare yourselves. Not everything you’ll see on TV will be pretty.” He hoped his parents could take it.

  “Why didn’t you bring Riley to dinner?” his mother asked.

  “I wanted the chance to talk to you about our plans first, but I’d love to bring her next time. Just so you know, we’re hoping to have a baby soon.”

  “Not before the wedding, Boone Andrew Rudman!” His mother looked appalled.

  Boone grinned. “Not before the wedding, Mom.”

  “I think I can put up with just about anything else. Except polygamy. I draw the line at polygamy.”

  Boone cocked his head. “Are you really worried I’ll marry two women?”

  “You’re raising bison, aren’t you?” his father said. “No telling what you’ll do next.”

  Boone laughed out loud. His mother joined in. His father heaved a long-suffering sigh, but grinned. “All right. I’ll admit it’s good you’re back, no matter what you get up to.”

  “I’ll try not to embarrass you too much, Dad.”

  “We’re very proud of you,” Boone’s mother told him.

  His father snorted. But at a look from his wife, he nodded. “We are proud of you,” he said. “But I’ve seen those reality shows. Try to keep your pants on, okay?”

  “Roger that, Dad.”

  THE DAYS PASSED in a blur of preparations and before Riley knew it she stood on the elegant front stoop of Westfield Manor with her friends, watching as an airport shuttle van pulled up the long driveway. The bride and her bridesmaids would get special Regency treatment at Westfield for the whole weekend. The other guests would be accommodated around Chance Creek and other towns in the vicinity, their placement determined by how close they were to the bride. They were responsible for their own Regency garb and wouldn’t arrive until Saturday. Riley thanked goodness for small miracles.

  Between Mia, Alice, the Russells, and a host of other people, the wedding was on track. Still, there were so many things that could go wrong her mind was spinning.

  “I’ve got butterflies,” Avery said.

  “Me, too,” Savannah said softly.

  “I know,” Nora said. “I hope we don’t screw anything up.”

  Riley had a stomach full of butterflies herself, but she willed herself to be calm. “Everything is ready for our guests and they’re going to be thrilled with the weekend we have to offer them,” she declared, as if by saying it out loud, she could make it so.

  She led the way down the stairs to greet Andrea and her friends. To her amusement, Mrs. Wood had arranged herself, her niece Marlena whom she’d brought with her, and Lyle Higgs, one of the coachmen James had sent over for the weekend, in a straight line in front of the manor. All of them wore period-appropriate costumes. It made her proud to see how seriously they were taking their work.

  As the airport chauffeur climbed out and opened the doors of the shuttle van, a thin young woman with blond hair and luminous blue eyes spilled out. “Savvy!”

  Savannah winced and Riley bit back a chuckle. Savannah had always gone by her full name.

  “Andrea. Nice to see you again.” Savannah allowed herself to be hugged, then made the introductions. Andrea, in turn, presented her friends as they exited the van.

  “This is my maid of honor, Brook Wright, and my bridesmaids, Win Lisle, Belinda Huck, Fran Cotter and Ingrid Spiers. We’re so happy to be here—when we landed I wasn’t sure if we’d made a big mistake; the town is so tiny.”

  “This is the country,” Riley said.

  “Well, sure, but there’s country and then there’s country.” Andrea widened her eyes as if the latter was something to be afraid of.

  Riley decided not to pursue the topic. “
Come on in. First we’ll have light refreshments in the parlor while your things are brought up to your rooms. Savannah here will give you an overview of the weekend ahead and a quick guide to Regency dress and the particulars of getting into and out of it. Then Mrs. Wood will show you to your rooms. The seamstress will be along shortly to make any final adjustments to your outfits, and later we’ll be ready for the first of our activities. Savannah, would you lead the way?”

  As Savannah gestured for the women to follow her, Riley, Nora and Avery hung back to help Lyle, Marlena and Mrs. Wood gather up their luggage and bring it inside. Riley was dismayed to see how much they’d brought, given that they were supplying each woman with two gowns for the duration. They’d sent hints about appropriate footwear and undergarments, and Riley hoped the women had paid attention to them.

  Inside, their guests identified their bags and Lyle carried the luggage to the proper rooms. Avery and Mrs. Wood served hors d’oeuvres and drinks in the parlor, while Savannah told their guests about their plans.

  “We’ll give you a little time to change and then we’ll come knock on your door and ask if you need any help with your gowns,” she concluded. “Later we’ll go for a carriage ride to acquaint you with the property and its environs. Any questions?”

  “Is it true there won’t be a ball?” a tall, dark-haired woman asked. Riley thought she was Win Lisle, a sour-faced woman whose mahogany eyes seemed to judge everything and find it wanting. She wore a high ponytail and Riley could picture her at the country club asking, “Is it true you don’t serve caviar?” Riley’s dislike of her was immediate and visceral, and she sensed that Win had been chivvying Andrea since her wedding plans began. Riley knew her type, the poisonous frenemy who lived for the opportunity to show you up. “Andrea said there wouldn’t be a ball,” Win went on in her lazy, uppercrust drawl, “but I can’t believe it. What’s a Regency weekend without a ball?”

  “There will be dancing at the wedding,” Savannah said.

  “But that’s not the same as a ball, is it?”

  “I’m not sure you understand just how big an undertaking it is to throw a ball,” Avery said.