Water clung to his eyelashes as he kept his gaze locked to hers and lowered his mouth to her pussy, tongue extended. Slamming her hand over her mouth, she screamed into her palm as he lapped his way from the bottom of her sex to her clit. It was a rude, vulgar exchange, and it made her knees weak. When he did it again, she curved around him, unable to keep her back straight. His talented tongue traced up one labia and down the other before he sucked her clit into his mouth. Welsh’s pointed attack lifted her to her toes. He wasn’t apologetic or soft. This was a man on a mission to blast her to the sun. Each flick of his tongue made her hips buck, and she tried to hold his gaze, but her vision blurred.
She sank back against the wall as his hands pressed up her stomach toward her breasts. Shock and awe. It was a military tactic, she’d heard. It had once been explained to her as rapid dominance, or the use of overwhelming force, combined with larger-than-life displays of power to utterly paralyze an enemy and obliterate their will to fight. Welsh was shock and awe. His fingers pinched and tweaked her nipples. The suction of his mouth kept her clit exposed from its hood, and his wicked tongue forced her pleasure to rise to the surface. Any thought of not succumbing disappeared as she fell under the waves. She came, biting her palm to staunch the noise, and Welsh still didn’t stop. Instead, he released her clit and pressed his tongue deep inside her. His satisfied growl against her swollen flesh sent aftershocks of awareness blazing over her nerve endings. Electric shocks stuttered her heart and locked her muscles into rigid display.
By the time he released her, Rose was a twitching mass of orgasmic bliss. But shock and awe didn’t stop; it pounded and drove the battlefield into a one-sided victory, and her body was Welsh’s battle. He fought with single-minded ferocity, and he was far from done. She was left reeling as he turned her around and braced her hands on the wall for support. Helpless, she let his rough hands pull her ass back and force her back to arch. Rose felt exposed and weak, yet she had a renewed feeling of strength because his desire for her had driven him to this level of wildness. His heat burned her as he wrapped himself around her, curling his fingers in between hers before he lined his cock up to her entrance.
“Mine,” he said, and slammed into her.
How was she going to deny him?
Welsh’s teeth found purchase in her shoulder, holding her in place, and she was overwhelmed by him. His cock stretched her to the point of near-pain, and he swirled his hips with each stroke. The movement, so at odds with his harsh glide, intrigued her. Rose waited for it, following it with her own gyrations until he hit a spot deep inside that made her see stars. Throat dry, mouth open, she lost herself. His body slapped against hers, wringing out every ounce of pleasure until she was coming again. Thickening inside of her, he grunted and began fucking her faster.
“Right there, baby. Right. There.”
God help her, but she arched her back more for him and reached back to hold her ass cheeks open. He slid deeper and bellowed into her back.
“My God,” he said.
The change wrung her out, twisted her, and slammed her back down until she could do nothing but hold on for the ride. Then he was jerking out of her, moaning into her neck as he came over her ass. When he finished, he massaged his seed into her skin with deliberate strokes, claiming her. She’d never had anything so sexy done to her in her life.
“I’m not going to forget that,” he said.
Rose looked over her shoulder at him with a saucy smile. “More where that came from when you get back.”
Realizing what she’d said, she gasped. Welsh laughed and kissed her. “I like the sound of that. Something to look forward to.”
He kissed her again before he turned her around to clean her. The water wasn’t so cold now, after making love, and she enjoyed the refreshing wash with the standard-issue bar soap he’d brought. Rose never thought she’d appreciate non-descript soap so much in her life.
“Stay here, okay?” he told her when they got out.
She dried off as best she good after he threw on his pants and left. A few minutes later, he came back with a pair of scrubs for her from the ambulance, as well as a uniform for him.
“Always pays to pack extra gear,” he told her with a lopsided smile. His shoulders were relaxed, and though he scanned around as they dressed, he seemed calmer. She liked the idea that she’d helped him with that.
“Was there another pair in there?” she asked.
He nodded. “I took it by Cry Baby for Lacey. I thought you’d want to make sure she had what she needed, too.”
Rose kissed him, the kind gesture warming her heart. “Thank you.”
His cheeks went ruddy. “Ah, yeah. Sure.”
Welsh being shy was new, she sort of liked it. It showed another side of him she didn’t know yet. After they were dressed and Welsh checked in, they left the bathroom to meet up with Cry Baby. He sat near Lacey’s door with his rifle within reach.
“Enjoy your shower?” he asked.
Rose felt the heat of her embarrassment spread across her cheeks.
“Wanna find out if you can tea bag yourself?” Welsh asked.
Cry Baby barked out a laugh. “Wanna see how Vixen responds to that?”
“No.”
“Didn’t think so,” Cry Baby said.
“I hate you,” Welsh returned.
“You wound me.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. I’m going to look in on Heim and Glitz to see how they’re doing. Rose, stay close to Cry Baby, okay?”
Rose nodded. “Sure.”
Cry Baby watched Welsh walk off before he looked up at Rose. “Thank you,” he said solemnly.
“For what?”
“For him. We’ve had a rough go lately, and Welsh hasn’t taken it easily. You know how they say the clown is in the worst pain? Welsh is our clown.”
“You can’t tell me more than that, can you?”
Cry Baby shook his head. “Not without proper clearance. But I’ll just say I haven’t seen him that relaxed in a very long time, or sporting a smile that actually reaches his eyes.”
Rose sat down on the floor next to Cry Baby. “Your job isn’t the easiest.”
“Understatement of the year. We spend most of our days at home, oddly, but when we have to go, we do. We can’t say anything, don’t know how long we’ll be gone, or give details. It’s hell on relationships.”
She felt like he was telling her something important, so she turned to face him. “Most people want to know what’s going on with their loved ones. It’s natural.”
“Sure it is. But if you have a patient with a crazy case on your operating table and you barely save them, can you tell anyone about them? That HIPAA law stops you, right?”
“Of course it does.”
“Our HIPAA is ten times stronger, and it can topple countries. It can be hard to hold, especially when people don’t understand. But we need people we can decompress with, and that usually doesn’t include rehashing what we go through. We just want to be normal people, with a normal job, a beer in hand, and friends to enjoy. We don’t get it very often.”
“Give it to me straight, I’m a big girl,” Rose prompted Cry Baby.
“Even better. SEALs are a special breed, and we need someone just as special to stick with us. Be that or let him down easy. He’s had enough.”
“Hey, Rose, Heim wants to talk to you,” Welsh called.
“Coming,” Rose returned. She stood and squeezed Cry Baby’s shoulder. “I understand. I’m not going anywhere.”
Chapter Eleven
“Rebel forces have corralled the survivors of their ambush campaign into the center of the compound. At count, there are fifty, including some military personnel. There is evidence of torture on some, as well as a grave pile just outside. They haven’t moved on,” Wolf said.
The large SEAL had hit the ground running and immediately went on recon the minute his team touched down. Welsh stood next to Mozart and Abe as they hovered over Wolf’s hand drawn map. Gl
itz sat next to Heim while Big Boss leaned next to the wall beside Snake and Cry Baby. Cookie, Dude, and Benny, who’d been on recon to the compound, were on guard duty to keep Rose and Lacey secure while they discussed a plan for infiltration.
“Tex filled us in on the details for the ambush plan, and Vixen got us information from SAS. It seems Abd doesn’t have direct reach, but his cell is plotting revenge. There are a few propaganda videos about Goddess and Katya’s capture and their link to the U.S. military. Also, they’ve taken credit for a MSF medial facility attack that housed a U.S. SOST on the premises,” Wolf added.
“Fuck. They’re taunting us. They want us to know they are still coming after us,” Welsh said.
“Seems that way. At least revenge is easy to understand, and a much more direct approach. They’ve suffered a major blow after we weeded out their connections in the military. At this point, they are shooting wide to capture us.”
“But how did they know we’d be here in the first place?” Heim asked.
In exchange for leaving with the impending med evac helicopter, he was to be involved in all planning of the mission. Welsh’s team leader was chewing nails to be taken out of the action, but he understood how important it was.
“Let me answer that, fellas. They didn’t know you were coming. They have connections to the Balkans with their Russian ties for the cell. Supporting the rebel action keeps the area destabilized,” Tex explained.
“Destabilization equals recruits,” Abe agreed.
“Are you saying they hit us on accident?” Snake asked, his disbelief evident in his voice.
“In a nutshell. They are forwarding their own agenda, with a wider net, since Abd was cut off. The plant was there even before you guys were put on mission. You can choose see it like it was an unfortunate break for you guys, or a lucky stroke that you are here to protect these people,” Tex said.
“Either way, we need to get these people to safety and get things cleared out. Once we go in, we take no prisoners. If any of them get back to the cell, they’ll disclose that the SEAL team was here on mission. It’ll be a boon for them,” Wolf said.
“Agreed. We need to go in hard and fast. With two SEAL teams, we should be able to get in there, disable and remove the threat, as well as provide rescue. If we can get the hostage out of the center of the compound and bunkered down, we would have a clear battle area,” Snake explained.
“Cookie and Dude can be on rescue. Big Boss and Snake can be on snipe. Glitz, you haven’t been cleared from the possible concussion, so you stay here to keep an eye on Rose and Lacey. The rest of us will split into Alpha and Bravo team for an ambush. The faster we get them pressed out and away from the hostages, the better,” Wolf directed.
“Hooyah!”
“We leave at 0300 hours, gentlemen. Get ready.”
At Wolf’s parting order, Welsh was more than eager to end the terror the rebels had been raining down on them. He finally had someone to return to.
*
Welsh checked his rifle one final time as they fanned out just outside the dark zone of the compound. Garish lights running on generators illuminated the tied survivors, each linked to one other by their necks. It made his blood run hot just to see it. These were medical professionals, not hardened soldiers who knew how to fight. The military personnel who’d been in residence weren’t visible now, and that worried Welsh.
“Big Boss and I are in position,” Snake announced over the mic.
“Alpha team set for entry. Bravo for exit and cleanup,” Wolf added.
“I’m picking off rapidly, and when I go, the fireworks will start,” Big Boss told them.
“Hooyah!”
It started with a single blood-splattered shot. Chaos ensued, and the SEAL team didn’t have the advantage of surprise. With all the lights, they couldn’t risk being seen. Welsh caught the tail end of Cookie disappearing behind a mound as he and Dude headed toward the hostages. Welsh, on Alpha team with Wolf, Mozart, and Abe, slipped up from the darkness, weapons drawn. They cut a path with gunfire, dodging back and forth between hiding spots as they pressed steadily forward against the retreating enemy.
More shots rang out, and the large overhead lights exploded into a show of sparks. The hostages screamed, but Welsh kept his head on the mission. The sooner they got the rebels out of there, the faster they’d have everyone saved. A rebel slipped on the ground, firing wildly into the air. It gave enough time for Welsh to bum rush him, knocking his weapon from his hands and gripping him by the neck. With no room for hesitation, Welsh snapped his neck and gripped his weapon once more.
“The path behind is clear,” Welsh called.
“I’m moving the initial line of hostages out, give us cover,” Cookie returned.
Wolf came back to Welsh’s left while Abe took up his position on the right. They were larger targets that way, even in the dark, but it helped draw attention away.
“Switch to infrared sight,” Wolf ordered.
The blazoned red and orange dotted Welsh’s vision as he switched his visor to see body heat in the darkness. Bright-white light zipped across the open field, bullets represented only by the color of their heat.
“They’ve got a lot of fire power. We need more, Big Boss,” Welsh called.
“I’m on it.”
The three SEALs moved forward, maintaining their scopes to take down any rebels in the way.
“Second set of hostages en route,” Dude mic’d.
“Almost clear,” Wolf said.
“Bravo team has ten targets pinned down. Requesting assistance,” Cry Baby added.
“On our way,” Wolf replied.
Wolf tapped Welsh’s shoulder, and they lined up, coming out wide before pinching back in toward Cry Baby’s position. There they found him braced against a wall, shooting cover fire for Benny as he tossed a grenade into the fray.
“Take cover!” he yelled.
He didn’t have to say it twice. Welsh covered Cry Baby as the men hunkered down against the blast. He closed his eyes to block out the bright light from the explosion and then jumped up, ready to start again. But the world was quiet, the eerie silence after a battle has been won and the mind hasn’t registered it yet.
“Tex, tell Heim he’s about to get flown out with us, and let Glitz know he can bring Lacey and Rose back in.”
“Will do, SEAL.”
Chapter Twelve
The human spirit was resilient, and most of the doctors of MSF didn’t want to leave the compound after the attack. It took a few weeks, but using international supplies, they were able to slowly rebuild what had been destroyed. The SEAL team who had assisted Welsh and his guys left with Heim to get him treated, and the remaining men stayed to help keep everything secure. After everything, Rose only saw Welsh at night, when he came in dog tired and wrapped himself around her to get rest. Most nights, her alarm sent her scurrying out of the security of his arms, but the relationship brewing between them was real.
Welsh didn’t seem as angry when he was with Rose, and his SEAL team saw it as well. The more time they spent together, though little as it was, the more she believed going back home when her two-month stay was done was the better option. She’d rather try to have something with the SEAL, and she’d seen enough war-torn countries for a lifetime. The sunlight filtered into the room, and Rose shifted in her empty bed, Welsh having left earlier for PT. After last night’s shift, she was exhausted.
A commotion outside of the dormitory grabbed Rose’s attention, and she stalked to her window, toothbrush stuck in her mouth and half dead to the world. A collection of women hovered near the front gates, staring and pointing at something in the distance.
“I’m not going to get a lick of sleep with all that racket. We are medical professionals, for God’s sake. Act like it.”
Aggravated and tired, she rinsed her mouth out in the bathroom and headed out of the dorm. She’d get to the bottom of this, disperse the masses, and get some much-needed shut eye. She was off r
otation for the next three days and needed to get as much rest as she could. Women skipped, skipped, their way down the hall. Grown, educated, intelligent women freaking skipped.
“I must be hallucinating,” Rose whispered.
But the closer she got to the front of the dormitory, she realized that was far from the truth. Women oohed and ahhed back and forth as Rose pushed her way through the crowd to the front. Her mouth went dry, and the space between her legs went from nonexistent to needy faster than her brain could even comprehend what she was seeing. Welsh and Big Boss, in nothing but tactical boots and camo pants, sparred back and forth. And these women where ogling what belonged to her. That was a no go. But before she could set off the fury of World War III, something in Welsh’s mannerisms stopped her.
Something is wrong.
“My God, I think I need a SEAL,” a nurse whispered.
“That sort of stamina,” someone whispered back.
Rose couldn’t deny that Welsh and his teammate were a study in the perfect male physique, and her libido certainly agreed. It missed his possession and the stolen moments they’d had in the shower. Still, a warning note was ringing in her head, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. Welsh moved, his muscles shifting under his golden skin. She watched sweat trail down, slithering along the lines of his body, and she was instantly jealous of the drop. What she wouldn’t do to replace that drop with her tongue. Welsh whipped around and stuck Big Boss with a roundhouse kick. But Big Boss caught Welsh’s leg in his hands and tossed the SEAL to the ground.
It doesn’t feel right.
Rose stepped closer, examining the fight from another angle. Lacey appeared at her side. “What’s going on?” she asked.
Special Forces: Operation Alpha: Protecting Heartbeat (Kindle Worlds Novella) (SEALed Fate Book 4) Page 5