“See? I told you I’m in excellent health.”
“It’s good to have these records, Captain…I mean Jax. We hope you don’t need them, but emergencies happen, right?”
His eyes narrowed and she couldn’t tell if he was annoyed or interested. “Right.”
“How have you been feeling since you’ve been home? Any fever? Coughing?” she asked as her hands slid along his neck, searching for any signs of inflamed glands.
He swallowed. “No. I feel fine. Really.”
“That’s good.” She tried to think of what the next standard procedure was, but being this close to him made her forget a routine she had performed hundreds of times.
“What about your appetite?”
“Haven’t missed a meal.”
She sat back to record his answers on the clipboard. “And are you sleeping? Any changes in your routine?”
“I sleep fine, doc. Anything else?”
“Yes.” She handed him a pamphlet.
She was here as part of the volunteer program, not to gawk at him. “Now that you’re home we know that there is probably going to be a transition period. There are some phone numbers here if you need help readjusting. There are counselors available twenty-four seven.”
“Wait, are you recommending a shrink?”
She nervously bit at her lip. “No. It’s only if you need the numbers.”
“I told you I’m fine.”
“How long have you been gone?”
He lowered his eyes. “Two years.”
“Two years is a long time to be away from home. I think it would be normal if you wanted to talk to someone about it.”
“Is that something you do? Are you offering?”
She tried to read his eyes. What was he asking her? She wasn’t a psychiatrist. She was an emergency room doctor, but part of the program was lending an ear or a hand. That had to fall under her volunteer responsibilities.
“I could.”
Her heart beat a little faster.
“I’ll let you know, doc.” He rose from the couch and walked to the door.
“If not me, then know there are people here for you, Jax.” She walked onto the porch. “There are a lot of people who want to support our veterans.”
His hand landed on the wood post over her head. His body towered over hers and for a second she thought he was going to kiss her. But that would be crazy. That would be absurd. This man who looked like a Greek god, was not going to kiss her out of the blue.
She stared at his lips. They were beautiful. Probably the most kissable lips she had ever seen. Full and broad. Firm and perfectly shaped for kissing.
“Thank you. What did you say your name was?”
“Dr. Manning.”
“I got that. What about a first name?”
“Oh right. It’s Haley.” Her back was pressed against the post now and if he leaned any closer his solid chest would be touching hers. She would be able to feel that intense heartbeat.
“Haley.” He smiled, rolling her name over his tongue.
“Mmmhmm.” She nodded.
She knew she was lingering. She was standing on his porch, unable to take the first step toward her car. She forgot she was here as a volunteer, and he was supposed to be her veteran. Instead, she wanted to drink in every ounce of him.
Damn it. She was an educated, independent, self-made woman. She worked twelve-hour shifts, solved medical crises, commanded an entire hospital nursing staff. But standing there looking in his eyes, all she could think about was how much she wanted to be kissed.
5
Jax
He stared into her green eyes. His chest heaved with deep breaths. He didn’t know it would be like this to stand next to his mate. To know the woman he was within inches of would share his life. She was the one who would make his life complete. The thought of touching her was enough to make his skin burn. He felt the slow growl start deep in his chest. She was so close.
He bent toward her, ready to taste her lips when he heard an engine rattling along the driveway. He looked up to see his cousin’s truck racing over the gravel.
“Damn it,” he muttered.
Haley slipped out from under his arm. The moment was gone.
“Cuz, you’re home.” Brandon jumped from the truck.
Haley walked down the stairs. He wanted to pull her back on the porch, and wrap her in his arms. Steal the kiss he was thirsting for. Brandon was already half way up the stairs and threw a burley arm around him.
“Good to see you.” Brandon hadn’t even stopped to avoid bumping into Haley.
“Hold on, man.” Jax jogged down the stairs, catching Haley at her car. “Doc, wait just a second.”
Her cheeks were flushed, and he couldn’t help but think it was from the kiss that almost happened.
“Yes?”
“I don’t know if this is part of the program, but I was thinking about going out for dinner. Would you want to join me?”
Damn he sounded like he was in high school. He knew he was rusty, but he needed to get his game back faster than that. This was his mate. He thought he saw a smile form on the corners of her lips.
“Are you asking me out?”
“I am.”
“Would you say this is part of your re-entry practice?”
He chuckled. “Most definitely.”
“Well, I can’t let you do that alone can I?” She slid behind the driver’s seat. A second later she handed him a piece of paper. “Here’s my address. Pick me up at seven.”
Jax shoved the note in his pocket. “See you then, doc.”
He watched as she backed out of the driveway and her car disappeared in the wooded drive. He turned to face his cousin. He wanted to slug him for showing up when he did, but he hadn’t seen him in two years.
“Who in the hell told you I was back?”
“Good to see you too.” Brandon grinned. “Looks like you aren’t wasting any time with the women. Don’t blame you. Two years is a long time.”
Jax snarled at him. Part of him thought he should tell his cousin he had just met his mate, but there was something in him that wanted to keep it a secret. He had only met the doctor half an hour ago. It was too new to share.
“What brings you by?”
“Thought I’d bring you up to date on clan business.”
Jax sat on the top step, pulling the knife from his leg. He reached for a piece of kindling and began to whittle long clean strokes against the wood.
“Not interested in the clan right now.”
His cousin sat next to him. “Look, I know you’ve been out of country, but you’re the alpha. You’re home. You can’t ignore the clan.”
“I’m not done over there. You’ve been doing a good job filling in for me. Just keep it up.”
Brandon laughed. “I’m not the alpha. The clan’s not going to keep listening to me if they know you’re back. You need to get everyone together. There are things that need to be addressed.”
“Negative. I’m only going to be here another week or so and then I’m right back where I was. I’m sure you can handle whatever is going on.”
Brandon gripped his arm. “No. I can’t. You’re the alpha.”
Jax set his eyes on his cousin and growled. “And as your alpha I said to take care of it.”
He rose from the step and walked in the cabin, slamming the door behind him.
The last thing he wanted was to get involved in clan business. He walked to the fridge and grabbed a beer. He needed something to calm his bear. But he knew beer wasn’t the answer.
6
Haley
Haley looked at her options. She wasn’t going to wear scrubs on this date. Because that’s what it was, a date. Dinner with a hot guy.
There was something about Jackson Landon that had already gotten under her skin. It didn’t make any sense. She had only known him a few hours and she was thirsting for another look at him.
She settled on a pair of jeans and a tank top.
If she paired it with boots it would dress it up a bit. There had to be a balance between looking sexy without looking like she tried.
Today was the first of three days off, but ever since she left the little cabin in the woods the only thing she could think about was Jax. She didn’t get her bookcase painted or her junk drawer cleaned out. She didn’t even take the nap she had promised herself for the last four night shifts.
She dipped her eyeliner in the well and applied it just under her lid. Then she heard a pounding knock on the front door.
“Hold on,” she called.
Shit. He was early.
She rushed to the hall and opened the door. Standing in front of her was the most delicious looking man she’d ever seen. She blinked. This was her date.
“Hi.”
“Ready?”
“I just need another minute. Want to have a seat?” She pointed at the sofa.
“Sure.” He walked past her and she smelled his cologne. Good lord, he was unbelievable.
Haley ran to the bathroom and finished her makeup. It was hard to get the lines straight with her hands shaking like they were. The air had changed since Jax walked in the room. Her skin was tingling and her breath was quick.
She fastened her hands on her hips. She was a damn doctor, trained in medical science. There was a reason for this. Pheromones, she told herself. Also the fact that she hadn’t gotten laid in a year. She switched off the light and walked toward the living room.
“Ok. I’m ready now.” She grinned.
“You look stunning.”
“Thank you.” She felt the heat in her cheeks.
“I don’t know if you’re going to be able to help my re-entry.” He held the door for her.
“Why is that?”
She worried he was going to back out of the date. Or what if she had missed a symptom of depression or anxiety? She had been so busy studying the lines of his face she hadn’t tuned in to the cues of stress. She had to be the worst volunteer in the program.
“Is something wrong?” she asked, trying to sound like she did in the ER.
“Oh no. Nothing is wrong. I’m worried that all night I’m going to have to fight the men off of you.” His eyes trailed over the swells of her breasts. She realized she had chosen the perfect outfit after all.
Haley giggled. It was sweet and silly, but she liked it. “Do you say that to all the girls?”
“No.” His eyes grew serious. “Only you.”
“Oh.”
“Come on. Let’s go eat.” His hand clasped over hers, and Haley suddenly felt very tiny and feminine. It was his broad shoulders, his large palms, his wide chest.
Jax drove them to a restaurant and held the chair out for her to sit. She wondered how long it had been since he had done something as normal as going out to eat.
She thanked the waiter when he dropped off a glass of wine for her.
“So how has your first week back in the U.S. been?” she asked.
He folded the menu and placed it on the table. “Strange.”
“I can only imagine. But you’re happy to be home?”
His eyes landed on hers, and she felt something in his gaze she hadn’t seen before. “I think I am. For now.”
“You should just take it slow. Don’t put pressure on yourself.”
“Is that you talking or the doctor?” He raised his eyebrows.
She smiled. “Sometimes I can’t separate the two.” Haley sipped her wine, feeling the sudden smoothness soothe her.
“I have that same problem. Work hazard.”
“Yes, exactly. A work hazard.”
“How long have you been a doctor?”
“I’m finishing my residency now and then I’ll be done. I haven’t decided if I’m staying in Watkin.”
“Not stay in Watkin? Where would you go?”
“Mmm…I don’t know. I don’t have family here. There are a lot of hospitals hiring right now. Not to mention private practices. I thought about trying the east coast.”
“What?” His voice was deep and low. The sound sent a shiver down her back.
“I have a year to decide.”
“I don’t know why you’d leave Washington. What more could be out there?”
“You leave, don’t you?”
He chuckled. “True. But my job has different traveling requirements.”
Jax stopped to order for both of them before dismissing the server.
“I only know you’re in the Army. What do you do?”
“I don’t really talk about it.”
She grinned. “I think you can trust me. I have your blood pressure on file.” She giggled, realizing how light her voice sounded.
“All right, doc. You’re right. I do trust you. And I don’t trust many people.” He leaned back from the table and Haley noticed how he scanned the tables around them. “I’m in Special Forces.”
“Holy shit.” She almost choked on her wine.
“Delta Force to be exact. But that’s about all I can say about it.”
She knew there was an elite group attached to the Army unit close to Watkin, but she had never met any of the men on the team. The townspeople talked about them as if they were urban legends.
“What you do is very dangerous, isn’t it?” she asked.
His eyes softened. “It can be.”
She didn’t know where it came from, but there was a sudden need to tell him to quit Special Forces. To drop out of the Army. To get as far away from secret missions and dangerous missions as he could, but that had to be the wine talking. She had only met Jax a few hours ago. His safety as her patient would make sense. But Jax wasn’t her patient. He was her date.
Pheromones she told herself. It’s the damn pheromones controlling everything. They had to be the reason her pulse raced, and her eyes refused to blink. Yes, there was a medical explanation for everything. Even crazy, life-altering physical attraction.
7
Jax
He stared at her over the candlelight. The flames bouncing off the green in her eyes. When in the hell did this happen? This morning he was alone. A Delta determined to get back to the mission. An alpha leaving his clan in his cousin’s hands. Now he was staring at his mate, feeling compelled to leave everything behind and start a life with her.
This wasn’t the plan. This had never been his plan.
“I have another secret.” He leaned across the table.
“What’s that?” He could see the questions in her eyes.
“I know the best place in Washington to watch falling stars.”
Her shoulders relaxed. “I thought you were going to tell me something completely different. You like to surprise me don’t you?”
“I do.” He grinned. “Want to see it?”
She nodded. “Very much.”
Jax paid for dinner, and ushered her out of the restaurant. He wanted to be alone with her in the place he felt most at home. The car ride to the cabin was quiet. He had let the dial land on an oldies station and left it there.
He parked in front of the house and walked around to the passenger side to help Haley from the car, but she was already halfway out of her seat.
“Let me grab some drinks. Wait right here.”
He left her by the car while he ran in the cabin. There was a quilt on the bed he grabbed, along with a few beers from the fridge. It wasn’t much for romance, but he hadn’t thought through what would happen when he was with Haley. How he would react to her, and how badly he wanted her to feel safe with him.
He met her at the car, his arms loaded with star-watching supplies.
“I think I’ve got everything. Ready?”
She looked at what he was carrying. “Don’t we need a flashlight?”
“Nah. I have excellent night vision.”
“Let me guess…part of your training?”
She followed closely as he led her down a path and along the trail until they ended up on the edge of a ravine.
He spread the quilt o
n the ground and handed her a beer.
“Promise it will be the best night show you’ve seen.”
Haley touched the beer to her lips. “This is probably the only spot in the entire forest where you can look up and see sky.”
“It is.” He sat next to her. All he wanted to do was pull her body under his, but he was trying to use restraint. Trying to act like a man and not give into his bear all at once.
“Where are we?” she asked.
He looked around, knowing every tree, every bush surrounding them. He had spent his childhood exploring this forest, but not in a way that would make sense to Haley.
“It’s part of my family’s land.” He took a swig of beer. “We own everything on this side of the creek and another family’s land starts on the other side.”
“Did you play here as a child?”
“Yeah, I did. I had a lot of cousins growing up. We took over the woods.”
Haley smiled. “I bet that was fun. I didn’t really grow up with much family.”
“Where is your family, doc?”
“Mainly New England. My parents are there. But I don’t have any siblings. I guess you could say I didn’t spend my childhood outside. I was more of a bookworm.”
“You?” He chuckled.
She shoved his arm. “Don’t make fun of me.”
“Oh I’m not.” He couldn’t take his eyes off her. There was something about the way moonlight lit her hair that made him want to run his fingers through it.
“Do you know any of the constellations?” she asked, breaking his gaze.
“Sure.” He wedged himself behind her and pulled her against his chest. He smiled when she nestled into him. He knew she would fit perfectly. “If you look right there, you’ll see the big dipper.”
She nodded. “I see it.”
“But that forms part of the Great Bear. That’s my favorite.” He inhaled her scent. Sweet shampoo and perfume. “But if you look right over there you can see the North Star, and that will help you see the Little Bear.”
“The Little Bear?”
His hand wrapped around her waist and pulled her against him tighter. “Yes, Little Bear.”
Delta Bear (Rogue Bear Series 2) Page 2