by Billi Jean
She wanted to smack him again and cry into his broad chest all at the same time. Instead, she simply held on tight to his warmth.
“I trust you.”
There was blood on his shirt and he smelt like gunpowder, she realised. The next instant he set her aside, but held her hand as he leaned out of the open door. Her stomach nosedived to her toes and she laughed.
“Oh, God, I never meant it when I said I wanted to dive out of an aircraft.”
He grinned and kissed her hard and fast. Releasing her mouth, he took her hand and pulled her tight. “I’m sorry, baby. We drop, keep your arms crossed like this, feet down. The floatation I have on you will bring you back up.”
Gathering her nerve, she let him pull her closer to the open doorway and immediately backed up into him at the sight of the water below her. “But the water is right there!”
“It has to be,” he yelled in her ear. His rough whiskers brushed against her skin, making this so real she couldn’t pretend she’d wake up from this nightmare. “We need much closer. Wait for my signal.”
Closer? The water looked like it was rushing up to them. Whatever he’d done with the ‘copter, it wasn’t nosediving but it was going at an angle and that angle was bringing them closer and closer to the blue ocean. Eyes stinging from the wind, she tried to keep his instructions in mind.
“We jump on three. You will be right in front of me. As soon as you surface, you find me. See those islands? We make for those.”
Islands. Oh my God. Her whole body shuddered.
“Survive, sugar. Just jump like you’re at a pool.”
“Okay,” she managed, trusting him more than anyone else in this world.
“Now, one, two, three!” He shoved her out and she screamed.
Chapter Fourteen
Mandy screamed all the way down until the ocean crashed into her all at once. He’d crossed her arms and she pointed her toes so hard her feet ached. Within a breath, cold water covered her. Her body felt like someone had hit her with a solid, concrete wall, not water. Every inch of her stung but her legs weren’t broken and, besides her heart racing like crazy, she was fine. She went deep, until she realised she wasn’t swimming, just dropping. Gasping she sucked in a mouthful of water.
Idiot! Close your mouth, Mandy.
Arms spread wide, she pulled at the water, fearing she was too shaky and weak to reach the surface. The water was salty, and stung her eyes, but she kept them open, dreading the dark. The surface grew closer until, with a rush, she made it. A second later, a wave smacked her in the face. Her clothes weighed her down. The pack Mac had forced on her restricted her movement and she couldn’t seem to get far enough above the waves to swim. Her lungs burnt. Her head pounded and her eyes stung. She went under again, but managed to kick back up almost immediately.
How long, though? How long can I keep this up? Where is Mac?
As soon as she had thought his name, she heard him.
“Mandy!”
Mac. She kicked harder, trying to stay high enough to look over the choppy waves to see him. For several seconds she managed it but saw nothing. Panic began to make breathing harder. She blinked rapidly and wiped a hand impatiently over her face to get the water out of her eyes. Slowly, she turned in a circle but still didn’t spot him. Suddenly, right next to her, Mac was there, grabbing her tight in his arms and nearly drowning her again when they both went under. He pushed them back up and brushed her hair off her face as soon as they surfaced. His handsome face tightened in concern, but some of his scowl softened after he’d scanned her face.
“Shit, girl. You did it.”
“I did. I did it. Oh my God, Mac, are you okay? I was worried, I was so—” He didn’t let her finish. Suddenly he pulled her tight and kissed her with such urgency she clung to him. They’d almost died. He could have died and she’d never have been able to do this, kiss him, and feel the strength in his body, the hard press of his muscles against her and the heat of his passion ever again.
He loved her, didn’t he? The erection he shoved up against her hip amazed her. Half drowning, barely alive, and he was ready for sex. Did that mean he loved her? She nearly laughed into his kiss at the thought. Maybe, for Mac, it did.
She pulled away enough to cup his face. “You’re insane. We could have died and you’re, like, hard!”
He grinned, before brushing a kiss to the side of her mouth. “Yeah, we could have, but we didn’t. And anytime I’m near you I’m hard.” Getting serious, he scanned her face once more then looked over the water. “We’re near some shallows. I want you with me—we’re not safe yet.”
“Duh, like I’m going to get my nails done.”
He swung his head back to her and grinned. “Sugar, that attitude just might get us through this.” He pressed a kiss to her mouth again, tasting salty and so good she forgot about the plane, the killers after them, everything. He easily kept them above the waves with strong, steady kicks of his legs. She tried to do the same and not kick him at the same time.
“That other helicopter went down back a ways, so hopefully it dragged all the sharks with it. When ours hits, the rest will hit ours.”
Her bubble burst and she jerked herself closer to him by yanking his wet T-shirt. “Don’t say that. Don’t say that. Not in the middle of the ocean.” Beneath her, miles of shark-infested water suddenly became the unmanageable.
Mac had the nerve to laugh. “Just stay close. You remember how to swim.”
“I do, but can I take this pack off and carry it?” She tried the snaps again but her hands were frozen.
“Here.” He snapped it open, dragged it off then slung it over his shoulder with the other pack.
A sudden explosion scared her enough that she caught Mac up and climbed on his back, dunking him a little. He bobbed back up without a word. Scanning the horizon, they both saw the smoke from where the Black Hawk had hit. Smoke billowed over the waves and drifted up over the clear, light blue sky.
“Tad was on that, Mac. Tad.” Her throat tightened up. Tad had been so good to them. Now he was gone and in the middle of—oh God, she had no idea where they were! “We’re going to die, aren’t we?”
Mac turned his head and met her eyes with such a determined look that she reached out and touched his jaw. He pressed one of his hands over hers and shook his head. “Mandy, we’re not going to die. Whoever is after us thinks we are, though. We need to move. Swim.”
She swam. Her legs were weak and her shaking only made swimming harder. The water was cold, not as freezing as it could be, but the fear of the fight, the crash, and now sharks, was catching up. They swam in silence for a long while, until she was sure her muscles were made of noodles and she couldn’t lift her arms or kick her feet another minute.
“Shit, you used to out swim me,” Mac teased her, but at the same time he pulled her to him and turned on his side, using his body to cut through the waves. His muscles bunched against her and after a few minutes of simply soaking in his strength, she felt like she could continue on her own. “I never out swam you. You didn’t let anyone outdo you in anything.”
Mac spat out ocean water and rubbed the wetness from his face. “True. I think we’re nearing the shallows. When we get to where we can stand—”
“You think we will walk to the islands? In shallow water? Isn’t that where all the sharks are?”
“Probably. I’m hoping not, though.”
His firm voice did odd things to her, made her believe that they just might survive this insanity. She unglued herself and started on her sidestroke again. Her arms felt weak but she got some movement going. Mac kept pace with her, slowing to match her speed, she knew. Always scanning the area, and her, he made her uneasy, but safe at the same time. She hoped he could see more than she could above the choppy water.
“Not too much farther. Just keep close to me.”
“Mac, I don’t really have any place to go.”
He snorted again.
Her foot hit something
and she broke off to scream and climbed up his back again like a monkey. Suddenly she was up above the water. Mac laughed, standing with her legs looped through his arms.
“You’re so dead.”
The sound of his laugh really shouldn’t have reassured her—they were in the middle of the ocean—but it did. He reassured her and frightened her all at once.
“Damn, I hope not.”
Tears burst free like he’d suddenly taken the cork out of a bottle full of misery.
Immediately he pulled her off his back and hugged her close. “Mandy, we’re nearly there, sugar. You’re doing wonderful, baby. Shhh, come on. I need to get out of these wet clothes before my dick shrivels off.”
Laughing, she shook her head, wrapped her arms around his neck, and hung on, pressing her face into the warm skin of his neck. He smelt like Mac, warm, spicy, and masculine—if not a bit salted. He’d always smelt so good, like warm sunshine on the beach. The waves tugged at them, but he easily kept them upright. It felt so good to stand, she simply cried, hugging him tight. His rough whiskers brushed her cheek and he tightened his arms around her, trying to get her to stop, she knew, but the events of the past few hours simply wouldn’t shut down. The shaking wouldn’t stop. The tears continued until slowly she felt his warmth seep into her, easing some of the panic that threatened to choke her. She was cold, uncomfortable in her clothes, and needed to wash off all the salt badly, but she knew she couldn’t do any of that until they got out of the mess they’d landed in. Danger, she corrected herself, the danger they’d landed in. The thought made her hold him tighter.
“Mandy, you gotta stop, baby. You’re killing me with tears, come on now.”
He rubbed her back reassuringly but, when he shifted her against him, his erection burned against her hip, amazing her all over again. The man was always hard. “I’m not having sex with you in the ocean, Mac,” she muttered into his chest.
He froze in mid-stroke and chuckled. She felt his warm breath on her neck right behind her ear for a sizzling moment, then he nipped against her earlobe. A flash of liquid heat burned all the way to her pussy.
“Oh, yeah? It might be fun. Soon, though, soon we’re going to ease this heat. It’s the price for the rescue. That and a blow job. I really want a blow job, sugar.”
She laughed and tipped her head up to look him in the eyes. “You’re such a jarhead. You’re the one that got me into this mess! Why would you get a blow job for rescuing me?”
Mac frowned down at her. “Jarheads are Marines.”
She laughed again. “So? You’re practically bald.”
“I’m not bald.” He looked offended.
His hair was longer, deliciously so, but she wasn’t letting him know she liked it. “Well, your ears are too big this way.”
He squeezed her butt and pressed her tighter to his hips, and she nearly moaned at the feel of his hard, long erection. “The only thing you ever thought too big was my cock, baby, and we made sure it wasn’t.”
Ah, God, that was sexy. “You’re insane, you know that, right?”
A quick wink and he took her mouth in a fierce kiss, driving her crazy with his big hands kneading her the entire time. She threw in the towel at resisting him. She’d just survived a plunge into the ocean, crossed shark-infested waters, and wanted this—him—now, damn it.
She kissed him back with as much possessive heat as she could muster. She couldn’t get enough. She gripped him by his hair and tangled her tongue with his in a battle to show him just what she wanted. She wanted more. She wanted him. Mac.
With a low growl, he hitched her closer and rocked his erection right between her thighs, managing to hit all the right places within seconds. Right when she was ready to rip his clothes off, he breathlessly broke the kiss and grinned down at her.
“Holy hell, sugar, you’re gonna get more than you bargained for. Come on, we gotta get you out of this water. I say we head for the bigger island.” He jerked his chin to the left.
She followed his gaze, trying to tell her body she wasn’t getting to play with Mac right now, but her pussy ached. It felt swollen and so empty she wanted to beg him to simply take her now—screw the sharks, the cartel, and whoever else wanted to kill them—she wanted sex. Now. With Mac. She just needed him, holding her, and making love to her for the rest of the day—or for the rest of their lives.
The thought sobered her up. She couldn’t have the rest of her life, could she? Not with Mac. Not until they had managed to find her stalker and kill him first. She’d realised that in the helicopter. Watching Mac, she’d known, until they found the attacker, she’d never have Mac, never have what she saw shimmering so wonderfully in front of her. First, they had to survive the cartel, then find the attacker. Then, well, then she needed to explain that she couldn’t be with him unless he left his missions. Her or the Navy. Could she do that to him? Be that selfish?
“Mandy? See that, that’s where we have to go.”
She blinked and took a deep breath and pressed her hands against his chest, reassured by his steady heartbeat. He set her down from where he’d been teasing her with his big erection, but kept her close, so close his heat warmed her all the way to her water-logged toes.
The island he’d indicated looked miles away. He tipped her face up with a knuckle under her chin and looked down at her with a concerned expression that quickly turned to a smug grin. “You regretting that offer at the club now, are you?”
A laugh burst free. He’d always done that, made her laugh as a kid when things had been bad. But this was serious. Their lives were in danger. “I regret getting on a plane three days ago, now.”
He grinned and bent to whisper in her ear, “I regret not pulling those damn bikini bottoms down and giving you a ride on something much more fun than the waves yesterday, Mandy.”
Oh God. His voice deepened on her name and he brushed a hot kiss to her throat, while he manoeuvred one hand between them to cup her breast. She gasped when his fingers found her hardened nipple. He groaned huskily, making her even hotter. “Every night for the past five years I’ve dreamt of nothing else but you, taking you, every fucking way known to man, baby. And then some. Now, get your head on straight so I can get the one above my belt working.”
He let her go except for her hand and cleared his throat, not looking down at her again but focused on the distance with an intensity she envied. How was she supposed to think of anything but him? He’d dreamt of her. Of having sex with her for five years? Did he realise she’d done the same? This was her fault. She should have come to him as soon as the attack had happened. Should have called base, got hold of him instead of not trusting him to protect her and himself.
“We head there.” He pointed and she followed his arm to see two mountains peeking out from the choppy water. Both looked wild. And far.
She glanced back up to him, but he was surveying the land mass like he could gauge the distance and the time it would take them to get there. He probably was. The sun had darkened his skin over the past five years. He had more lines on his face and the lock of lighter hair at his forehead now had a scar under it. When he met her eyes again, she tried to hold in how much she loved him. Every crazy inch of him. He’d dreamt of her at night. She’d dreamt of him morning, noon and night. Only Mac. Always, only him. No one compared, no one ever came close to him.
“It’s far, but, if we keep on, we’ll be there in an hour. You were in Africa, you know what to expect. Just remember we stay together.”
She rolled her eyes. “Mac, I was in a desert climate or—”
“It was still wild. I know you, I know you didn’t stay at your base, but went wherever if you were needed.”
The accusation in his tone sent a tiny thrill through her. He’d checked into her, she was certain, but until he’d growled that down at her she hadn’t realised he’d probably freaked out at where she’d been. He slid his hand up to cradle the side of her face. “I never meant to hurt you that night.”
The admission was so unexpected she blinked. Her throat closed up too tight to talk so she nodded again. Whatever he saw in her expression seemed to satisfy him because he flashed a smile, breaking the serious moment. “Good, now, let’s walk. It might be easier for you to swim. Just stay close.”
As soon as he let her go and she lost his body heat, she shivered. The clear ocean here freaked her out, but all she saw was sand under her feet. No sharks. She took a step then another. It was hard, the water lapped at her, but Mac kept touching her reassuringly and he scanned the area constantly, soothing some of her biggest fears.
“There might be sharks, right?”
He nodded tightly. “If we see one, we’ll stop moving.”
“And do what? Wait?”
“For it to pass. They won’t attack us, Mandy. Just remember—”
“To stay close, yep, got that.” She grinned at him.
He shook his head, but he remained alert. They bumped into each other often, but she knew he did it on purpose. After what felt like hours, he stopped them to make her drink water.
She was starving.
“I’m hoping you have food in there because I’m not eating bugs. Or worms.”
He swallowed his mouthful of water before winking. “We’ll find something, but I have food. Don’t worry. Now, jump on my back, I’ll swim us a bit.”
“What? No way.” She wiped the water off her face again, taking a minute to gauge the distance to the island. It was much farther than she wanted it to be. She was so tired of being wet.
“Just get on my back. It’s getting tougher out here and it’s going to get deeper soon.”
The waves had picked up, tugging them this way and that, but she really wanted to walk, rather than swim in deep, maybe shark-infested water.
“I can go a bit longer, then you can save the day, boy scout.”
He squinted down at her and she had the feeling he struggled not to just pick her up. Finally, he shrugged one big shoulder. “Sugar, you are a pain in the ass.”