by Zoe York
He never thought he’d be the type of guy to even notice shit like that, let alone think about marking it like some sort of big-deal anniversary.
And yet here he was, proud as punch that he had a pretty necklace to give her later on.
Gaby winked at him, and he shrugged. “Okay, I did nothing for this party other than deliver you. The planning committee met via email, twice. And I missed one of those meetings because I didn’t have Lila’s email address on my safe list.”
“Tracking you down was a nightmare. Gaby has a password on her phone.”
Of course she did. His pretty girl was super smart.
“It all worked out in the end,” he said quietly, staring at Gaby as her eyes crinkled. It definitely had all worked out.
“Quite clever to have a surprise party the day before my actual birthday,” she murmured.
“I’m selfishly happy that your birthday falls on a Sunday this year, so the party can be tonight and I can have you all to myself tomorrow.” He kissed her temple, then stepped back as her friends from the school and mutual friends she shared with Lila swarmed around her.
In the kitchen he found a group of guys he didn’t know, except one.
“Nash, what the hell are you doing at my girlfriend’s birthday party?”
Vince Nash was a senior chief on SEAL Team 9, a recon specialist, and last Trick had heard, he was in the sandbox with the rest of the team—Trick’s team. Trick had been making himself useful on Team 11, which did extractions and short-term missions, but they didn’t feel like his brothers yet, not in the same way. That would come in time—it had to, because it looked like the reassignment might be more permanent than originally planned.
His friend shrugged. “Family funeral. And it lined up with my leave, anyway, so I came home instead of going to Greece.”
“Man, that sucks, I’m sorry.”
“My granddad. He had Alzheimer’s, so it’s better that he’s not suffering, but my mom and my gran…” Nash sighed. “Anyway, when Lila mentioned your name, I thought I’d come.”
They shook hands, then Trick grabbed a beer and leaned against the counter. “You working something out with the commander to stay here, or are you heading back?”
“Heading back, but it looks like this might be my last tour.” He made a face. “I don’t want to get out, but I can’t be gone for months at a time. And I need to find something that pays better at the same time. Might be an impossible task.”
“You should talk to Drew Castle. He knows a guy looking for private operators. Legit guy, former Norwegian FSK.”
“Yeah? You ever think about something like that?”
“Nah.” Trick got up and paced to the archway into the living room, making visual on Gaby before ambling back. “Not for me. I’m good here until retirement.”
Nash nodded. “Makes sense.”
“You want to meet Gaby?”
“Wow.”
“What?”
“You’ve got it bad.”
Trick couldn’t deny that. “She’s something special.”
“Yeah? Cool.” Nash laughed and tipped his beer back. “Please introduce me to the woman who felled the mighty Novak.”
Gaby put up with some teasing from Nash, then they introduced his friend to one of her friends, and Trick was able to settle with the birthday girl on the couch for a bit. When the more artsy guests started talking about Charades, he escaped to the kitchen again.
It wasn’t until the party was over and Gaby was tucked into his side, drifting off after a quiet lovemaking session in her room, that he was reminded of his conversation with Nash.
He picked up her left hand and rubbed his thumb over her knuckles as he looked at her bare ring finger.
“What’s on your mind, Trick?” She tried to hold back a yawn, but it didn’t work.
He smiled at her. “Just really happy with you, that’s all.”
“Me too. Happy. With you.”
He laughed. “You’re funny when you’re tired.”
“And you’re chatty.”
“I’ll shut up. Happy birthday, pretty girl.”
Gaby had wanted to tell Trick how much she cared for him for weeks. Months, really. Her birthday party had almost been the perfect opportunity, but they didn’t get a minute alone until they were both exhausted, and then the next day had been a whirlwind of planned activities.
Dating a Navy SEAL could be intense.
Turned out she liked intense. A lot, but it didn’t always lend itself to sweet, quiet emotional moments.
When it finally happened, weeks later, it was when she least expected it.
The first week of May she decided she needed to add a puppet theatre to her classroom. When she told Trick she was going to Home Depot to buy power tools, he informed her he was going with.
“Do you know how to use power tools?”
He frowned at her. “Gaby, I’m a Navy SEAL. I am a power tool.”
“Okay, first, that’s not a real response. And second, I don’t think that a skill saw is the same as a machine gun.”
“Yes, I know how to use power tools.”
“Fine, then you can be my assistant.”
When they got to Home Depot, she found the major materials she needed, but as they walked down the aisle of screws and nails, she realized she didn’t know where to begin.
And Trick knew it, too. He was laughing at her, damn him, and that just wasn’t cool.
“If you know what screw I need, why don’t you just tell me?” she demanded, whirling around and planting her hands on her hips.
Of course, that just made him laugh harder.
She rolled her eyes because it was funny. But still…
“I love that you think you can do anything, Gaby.” He came closer and tugged first one hand and then the other off her hips and brought her fists to his lips. “It’s one of a long list of things that I love about you.”
She probably knew that already, but hearing it was something entirely different. Her heart thumped an extra beat as she let the words soak into her skin. “I love you, too,” she whispered, then grinned. “Wow. You love me.”
“Of course I do. I’ve always wanted to be with a master carpenter.”
“Really? You’re going to ruin this moment with teasing?”
He wrapped his arms around her, bending his knees so they were nose to nose. “Did I ruin anything?”
She shook her head. “No.”
“I love you, Gaby.”
“Thank you, Trick.”
“You want me to pick out screws for you now, don’t you?”
“Yes, please.”
He kissed her, then again for good measure, which she appreciated because his kisses were yummy.
After finding every last little bit of metal she needed for the project, he did most of the work back at the school and gave her all of the credit.
Back at his place, while she cooked dinner, she tried to think of some way to thank him. Maybe tickets to Comic Con.
Unlike Trick, though, there was no way she could pull off a surprise.
“Hey,” she called out after turning down the sauce she’d just made. “I have an idea…”
“But you want to run it past me because you’re worried I might not like it?” Trick appeared in the doorway, an amused look on his face.
She rolled her eyes as her cheeks turned pink. “Yes, maybe.”
“I’ll like it.”
“I don’t know exactly how to do it.”
Cocking one eyebrow, he leaned in with a leer. “Naked is always a good bet.”
“This is in public.”
“Keep the good bits covered up, then.”
“Definitely.” She took a deep breath. “Do you want me to get Comic Con tickets for you? And me? Would that be fun?”
A look of pure joy spread across his face. “For real? That wouldn’t be too geeky for you?”
“I like geeky stuff.”
“Babe, you like to geek out
on shit. Like books. But the full-on fandom stuff?”
She shrugged. “I can handle full-on for a day.”
“Awesome.” He bounced on his heels. “You don’t need to wear a sexy costume.”
“Oh, yeah. No, I wasn’t offering to wear anything other than regular clothes.”
“I mean, if you wanted to…”
“I don’t.” She might see if she could find Wonder Woman lingerie to wear under a Bat Girl t-shirt. It would almost be like a girly three-way in her shirt. That would have to be good enough.
“We can work on that step for next year.”
She laughed. “Won’t you be overseas this time next year?”
And the happiness disappeared. She watched as his lips thinned and his gaze shuttered. “Maybe. I might stay on this team, now. But we could go anywhere at any time.”
“I know.”
He looked away from her, first at the floor, then at the food she was cooking. “That looks good.”
“It should be. Chicken’s in the oven, spinach salad’s over there if you want to toss it.”
She gave him a minute to do that and take it to the table, while she pulled the chicken out and poured the honey-lemon sauce over it. But as they started to eat, she nudged his foot with hers.
“Hey, do you worry that I’m not going to be able to handle your next mission, or a long tour?”
He sliced another piece of chicken before responding. “Maybe. It happens.”
“But I love you.”
He looked up and smiled, but it didn’t go all the way to his eyes. “I know. And I love you. Really. But if you can’t handle it, I’ll understand.”
“Poppycock.”
He laughed. “What?”
“I’m sorry, let me translate into SEAL. That’s fucking bullshit. If you ever break up with me, I won’t understand. And I really don’t think you’d understand if the situation was reversed. If you can so easily handle me just wafting out of your life—”
“Whoa, what?”
“Isn’t that what you just said?”
He glowered at her. It did warm fuzzy things to her insides. “I was lying, silly girl. If you can’t handle me being a SEAL, I’d probably stop being a SEAL. And if you left me for someone else—some teacher or banker or landscaper—I’d tear him apart limb from limb.”
“That’s better,” she said softly. “But I never want you to worry about me, even when I tell you I hate your job. I probably will at some point, when you come back with another broken bone. But I love you and all that you are. I’m not afraid of what that means. When you jump out of a plane or take off to parts unknown in a submarine, yeah, that scares me. But I’m also proud of you. How brave and fearless you are and how you put others before yourself. I’m willing to be here, waiting for you, always. You come home with nightmares or a broken arm, I can deal with that.”
He got up and stalked around the table, dropping to his knees beside her and hauling her in for a long, bruising kiss.
She thought that was the end of it, but he brought it up again at bedtime.
“There might be shit you can’t deal with.”
She set aside her hand lotion and flicked off the light. “Might be. Not likely.”
He tugged her close, sliding his hand under her shirt to hold her boob. “Lots of SEALs get divorced.”
She nodded. “I bet.”
“What if that’s just another side effect of my job?”
“Nightmares and broken bones aren’t side effects, they’re injuries. And they can be repaired. Even if you had a permanent disability, I’d still love you, because there are work-arounds. I don’t know why those other relationships fail, but you’re not allowed to break up with me.”
“Breaking up with you is the last thing on my mind, Gaby.”
“Then what is on your mind?” She turned slowly in the circle of his arms, kissing his neck, then his jaw, before bringing her lips to his ear. “Do you doubt that you’re my superhero?”
He shook his head.
“Do you know that I love you and want you and nothing will change that?”
He nodded.
“Then shouldn’t we be having crazy-hot sex instead of all this maudlin talk?”
He fisted his hand in her hair and held her still as he kissed her. “Take your shirt off, then.”
They got naked in a flurry of limbs and flying t-shirts, then she settled herself on top of him, stroking his erection with one hand while she cupped his balls in her other. “Tell me again.”
“I love you,” he groaned, his head twisting back against the pillow as she squeezed just the way he liked it.
Rising up on her knees, she rocked her sex up the length of his cock before sliding him just inside.
“Stop teasing,” he growled, eyes jerking back to her face.
“Tell me again.” She was turned on like crazy, and her voice showed him how much he affected her.
He settled his hands on her hips, pressing her down. She sighed as he filled her.
“I love you, Gaby.”
Now it was her turn to tip her head back and groan. “I love you, too.”
He slapped her hip. “Now ride me.”
“Need a minute. You’re so big,” she sighed. Which of course only made him bigger. Men.
When she’d fully stretched around his girth, she leaned forward, bracing herself on his shoulders as she worked herself quickly toward her first orgasm. He stroked her hips and breasts, finally settling one hand low on her pelvis as she got close, lightly rubbing around her clit as she bounced faster and faster. As soon as she exploded, he flipped her over, driving hard into her from behind.
She groaned as he pounded his hips against her bottom. When his roommate came back from overseas, she wouldn’t be able to make this much noise. Such a shame.
It turned out, Gaby really liked making a lot of noise.
“I love your ass, pretty girl.” She grinned into the pillow. Trick got so dirty when he was close to coming. “Almost jiggles as sweet as your breasts.”
She pressed her eyes shut and tried hard not to laugh. What? Well, whatever worked for him. She arched her back, pressing said jiggly bottom into his hand. He rubbed a lazy circle over her skin, then slapped her lightly. Which felt good, so she arched even more, which made Trick sink even deeper on the next thrust…
“Ahhhh,” she cried out as he slapped her again. He was totally going to make her come again. By slapping her jiggling ass! The nerve.
“You like that?”
“So much,” she gasped. “Do it again.”
He did, a few times, until they both climaxed in spectacular fashion.
“That was really good,” she said after he brought her a washcloth. She was lying flat on her back and he was tracing small circles all over her torso. “Although it’s a good thing I love you, because it’s generally bad form to tell a girl she jiggles.”
“But I like the soft parts of you.”
She grabbed his hand and kissed his fingers. “Okay.”
“Next time I’ll say bounce.”
“I can’t wait.”
Epilogue
Gaby knew that Hawaii was beautiful. Everyone knew that.
But to actually experience it was something totally different.
“This is paradise!” she exclaimed, twirling across the foyer of their rented condo to the floor-to-ceiling windows that overlooked a distant view of the beach and a lot of green in between. Trick had come here for work two weeks ago, and when he finished whatever he was doing, he’d called her and asked if she wanted to jump on a plane and join him for her last week of summer vacation.
“There’s a pool on the other side of the lanai. It’s got a great view.” Trick came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. “We could go skinny dipping. Totally private.”
“Yeah?” She stroked the bulge of his bicep where he was holding her so securely against his body. She’d missed this, him just holding her. And all the other stuff
, but while sex and talking were fun, hugs were the food of life for her. “I missed you, Trick.”
“Missed you too, pretty girl.” He took a deep breath, then exhaled slowly. “I’ve got something to tell you.”
“Yeah?”
“I probably won’t be home for Christmas. It looks like we’re going to do something in the late fall…and we might be gone for a while. A few months.”
Wow. That put their two weeks apart in brutal context. She tried to take a deep breath, tried to be brave and cool like he was, but her chest was too tight and her lungs didn’t seem to work.
Trick didn’t say anything. He didn’t try to make it okay. He just hugged her, a solid wall of warmth and love behind her.
“Okay,” she said after a minute. As she did, the tightness eased a bit. Just a bit. She still wanted to cry. But she probably wouldn’t, not now. When he left…absolutely. But right now they were in paradise. Tears could wait.
“It might be less time than that. But I won’t know—”
“Trick, it’s really okay.” She twisted in his arms so he could see her face. “God, I’m going to miss you, but maybe I’ll take up scrapbooking or some other hobby. Maybe read most of the unread books on my Kindle.”
“That’s not why I asked you to fly out,” he said, his gaze burning deep into her eyes.
“I know.” She smiled. “I love you. You save the world. Try not to break anything, okay?”
“Okay.” He cleared his throat. “The condo isn’t the only part of the vacation I planned before I found out. I want you to know that, too.”
“Sure.” She wrinkled her brow in confusion. “You’re being so serious.”
“Yeah.” His lips quirked, and she took a minute to really look at him. The day of scruff on his strong jaw. His defined cheekbones and piercing eyes. Her boyfriend was so much prettier than her, and she was totally fine with that.
“So…skinny dipping?”
“Definitely. But I don’t want you to be completely naked.” He stepped back and slowly dropped to one knee.
Gaby’s heart bounced against her chest. They hadn’t talked about this, but oh my God, that was a diamond ring in his hand, and yes, she already knew her answer.
“I’m so serious about this, Gaby. I want to marry you. I want to come home to you, and only you, for the rest of my life. I want to be there for you when you’re sad and celebrate with you when you’re happy. I want to read my comic books while you watch Outlander and then take you not to my bed or your bed, but our bed, in our house. I want a house with you. And when you’re ready, maybe a baby or two. You could put them in your pocket.”