by Hazel Gower
Evernight Publishing
www. evernightpublishing. com
Copyright© 2013 Hazel Gower
ISBN: 978-1-77130-411-5
Cover Artist: Sour Cherry Designs
Editor: Cheryl Harper
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.
This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
DEDICATION
To my wonderful family, I love you. Thank you for all your support. Also, thank you to my amazing critique partners, Tamara Gill and Bianca Sarble.
LETTERS TO HER SOLDIER
Hazel Gower
Copyright © 2013
Chapter One
“I don’t know why you can’t pick your brother up, ” Bianca said on the phone with her friend Greta.
“We’re getting a surprise ready for him. You know it’s his birthday next weekend. We’re doing a big combined welcome home party. It’s taking a lot to organize. ” Greta paused. “Because I’m off next weekend for the celebration, I couldn’t get this weekend too. And I thought you might like to pick him up since you’ve been sending him letters for the last couple of years. ”
Bianca groaned. “Sending letters is totally different than talking and seeing him in person. The last time I saw Caleb, I was a chubby little girl who followed him around everywhere. ”
Greta laughed. “Well, you’re not anymore. You can’t keep avoiding him. Don’t think I haven’t noticed that every time he gets leave, you go MIA. He’s home for a while now teaching new recruits, so you won’t be able to avoid him the whole time. Unless you move. ”
Bianca wondered if her work would okay a transfer. She was their star wedding cake maker.
“Don’t even think about it, Bianca. I will hunt you down and drag you back. ”
Sighing in defeat, Bianca looked around the airport for Caleb. “Fine, but he doesn’t know what I look like. I haven’t se—”
“Yes, he does. I’ve been sending him pictures of us, of you. ”
“You what?” A bunch of people turned to glare at Bianca. “You did what? I told him no when he asked for pictures. ”
“Why on earth would you do that?”
Scrubbing a hand over her face, Bianca looked up at the arrival board to see Caleb’s plane had landed a good ten minutes ago. “I was scared. I didn’t know what picture to send. I look nothing like the girls I remember he liked to date. I’m not five-seven with legs that go on forever, a blonde, or a size under double digits. I don’t think I ever will be any of those things. I’m a wedding cake maker and designer, and I like taste testing my food too much. ”
There was quiet on the other end of the line for a moment before Greta replied. “You do realize the way to a man’s heart is with food. ”
“You can say that because you’re a size ten, and your mother taught you how to cook. Hey, aren’t you supposed to be at work? That’s why I had to come and pick Caleb up instead of you?”
Bianca was met with another silent reply, and a niggling feeling came over her that Greta was up to something more than just a welcome-home, birthday surprise for Caleb.
“Sorry. Busy working and getting the surprise ready to go. Talk later. Bye. ”
The uneasy feeling got bigger as Bianca put the phone back in her bag. Straightening her shoulders, she looked around again. Army men come out of the gate in full uniform, and she slowly walked forward. “Oh my, they do look so good. ”
An older lady next to her chuckled and asked, “Yes, they do. Any of them yours?”
Bianca shook her head and started to say no when Caleb walked out with two other men. Tall, he stood well over six feet with broad shoulders and a tight muscular body. Bianca couldn’t see much of his dark olive skin in his Army uniform. His hat covered his jet black hair and his piercing deep dark brown eyes set above a strong masculine jaw.
Caleb searched the crowd before his gaze stopped on her. He stalked forward. “Hey, beautiful. ”
Bianca stared at him, stunned, as he pulled her to him, and his mouth come down on hers. He held her tightly as his lips crushed hers and his tongue traced her lips, asking for entry.
With her mind going a million miles a minute, it took her a moment before she moaned, wrapped her arms around Caleb, opened her mouth, and met his tongue with hers.
He pulled away, leaving her panting, and she wondered if she’d fallen into some parallel universe.
Caleb smiled down at her, showing perfect white teeth. “Ready to go. Just need to grab my backpack. ”
Speechless, she nodded as he grabbed her hand and walked over to the baggage carrousel. She trailed behind him probably looking like a stunned mullet. Caleb didn’t let go of her hand when he grabbed his big backpack, shoved it on one shoulder, and then pulled her toward the exit.
“Where did you park?”
Bianca pointed to her left, not trusting her voice to talk.
“Do you still have the little white sports car?”
She froze, and he stopped and looked back at her. “How do you know I have a Honda Integra?”
A huge grin spread over his face. “The first picture I got from Greta was of you with the car your parents bought you. She told me all about how you corrupted her to go racing in it. ”
Bianca watched his eyes light up as he moved to box her in against the car behind her.
“That’s not the best part. The picture she sent is of you laid back on your car, posing in only a white bikini. ”
She gulped, and thought of the best way to kill her best friend…scratch that, ex-best friend the next time she saw her.
His hungry gaze traveled up and down her. “Do you still have that little white number?”
Holy crap. “Argh. ” Shit, her voice wouldn’t work. She nodded and maneuvered out of his way to power walk to her car, which was in sight.
She heard chuckling behind her and knew Caleb followed. Pressing the button to unlock the door, she almost jogged the last couple of steps before opening the door and getting in.
Sitting in her car, Bianca took a deep relaxing breath. What the hell was going on? Maybe Caleb had been away too long. Afghanistan didn’t have women for him, did it? He was desperate for female attention. When he got settled, he’d probably find some gorgeous woman, but until he got back into the swing of things, he was practicing on her.
Bianca debated for only a moment whether she’d let him use her or not before he got in the car and chucked his backpack onto the back seat. He took his hat off, his short jet back hair and strong face now clear to view. Hell yes, she would let him do anything to her, and she would worry about the consequences to her heart later.
He fastened his seatbelt and smiled over at her. “They’ve assigned me a house. I thought we would go there first before we go anywhere else. You know where the base is, don’t you?”
After clearing her throat, she croaked out, “Um, yeah. Sure. I know where to go. ”
Putting the car into gear, she headed out of the airport car park and paid the toll before driving the forty minutes to the base.
They sat quietly for the first twenty-five minutes. Bianca’s mind replayed the kiss and the look in his eyes as he caged her against the car. She frowned, thinking about the house he’d been given. The Army didn’t give single men houses. They stayed in the barracks. “Do you have someone moving in with you?”
She shot a glance at him and
noticed he’d undone some of his shirt buttons. Blinking she turned back to the road in time to brake at the car in front. “Sorry. ”
He chuckled. “Watch the road. I’ll answer your questions. I didn’t serve sixteen years in the Army to die in a car crash. ”
Bianca bit her bottom lip, nodded, and focused solely on the road.
“I’m hoping to have someone move in with me very soon. I just have to convince that person. ”
“Oh. Why did you choose to move now?” She was dying to ask who the person was, but thought it safer to wait to ask until she wasn’t on the road.
“I need a rest. Plus, Greta thinks that I’m getting old, and that if I keep going the way I am, I’ll fizzle out and no one will want me. ”
“You’re not that old. You’re only nine years older than me. ”
“Ten. I’m ten years older. You just had your birthday, and I turn thirty-four next week. ”
Bianca shrugged before silence settled between them once more.
“I was shocked to read about your parents. I’m sorry. ”
“Don’t be. My parents were miserable together. Mum’s having a ball going on cruise ships with some of her friends and my sister. Dad…well, I’ve never seen him so in love. He worships Katarina. It did take me a while to get used to it at first, what with the almost twenty-year age gap, but he’s so happy and she seems to genuinely love Dad. ”
Bianca relaxed into her seat. She was happy too. She’d been on two dates with a wonderful man. Dr. Mathew Ross was a children’s doctor at the hospital she volunteered at sometimes. An image of Mathew popped into her mind, and she bit her cheek to hold back a groan. He was everything a woman could ask for—tall, dark, and handsome. Mathew had been trying to get her to go on a date with him for months. She’d been putting him off. It wasn’t until recently when she knew she was ready to move on because it had finally sunk in that Caleb was out of her league and she’d never be with him, that she agreed to go on a date. It’d been fun, but he just wasn’t what she wanted. He wasn’t the man currently sitting beside her.
Maybe she could let whatever Caleb had in store run its course. When he was finished with her and had his fill, she hoped she would be too, and she could move on.
“What? What’s that look for? You’re not telling me something. ”
She forced a smile on her face and turned down towards the barracks. “Don’t worry. It was nothing. Look, we’re getting close to the gates. Do you need to get anything out?”
Bianca could feel his penetrating stare as he seemed to debate whether to ask more questions. She kept the smile in place until he reached behind them and rummaged through his bag.
He sat back in his seat with some papers and ID. She slowed as they reached the gates, and she stopped as two men came over to the car. Caleb rolled down the window, handed over the paperwork, and held out his ID. The men came to attention as soon as they read everything and checked the ID. One walked away to an office and came back before passing two envelopes to Caleb.
“Afternoon, Warrant Officer Sutten. ”
Caleb nodded, and the men returned to their posts. He looked down at the paper. “Turn left. Our house is down at the end. ”
Bianca ignored the way he said “our house” and followed his instructions.
“Number thirty-four. ”
She looked at the basic houses as she went along. They got better the farther she went down. At the end of the street, she pulled into a neat, two-story, cream-colored weatherboard house.
Caleb got out of the car, grabbed his backpack, opened one of the envelopes, and pulled out a bunch of keys. He walked to the door and tried a couple before getting the right one and opening the door.
Bianca sat in the car watching him, unsure of all her plans now. Maybe she’d imagined his kiss. Maybe she’d imagined him caging her against a car. She debated for a good couple of minutes while Caleb was in the house.
Then her eyes widened as Caleb came out with no shirt on, wearing only his uniform pants. Oh God. He must have had some spare time in Afghanistan because he’d bulked up a lot more than she remembered. He was friggin’ huge. And right now he was stalking her way with determination in his eyes. Crap. What the hell was she supposed to do?
****
Caleb stalked his prey. For the last six years, he’d received letters every week from Bianca. He knew it was his sister’s doing. Greta sent over a picture of Bianca on the car her parents had bought her, telling him about all the antics they were getting up to now that they had wheels and she didn’t have to beg their parents to borrow the car.
He’d needed something back then, and he let slip in a letter to Greta he wished he got more mail. She’d sent that picture of Bianca and something just clicked inside. He wrote back to ask about Bianca and how she was doing. Next thing he knew, he got a letter from Bianca. He wrote one to her sugarcoating the conditions where he was stationed and the danger he was in, and then it started. He got a letter from her almost every week.
His mates were jealous. She would send him things like care packages with men’s shower items, candy, and chocolates. But the best things she sent were her biscuits. They never lasted long, and he became the most popular man when they came in.
He’d started asking for photos, but she wouldn’t give them. So Caleb asked his sister Greta for more pictures of Bianca, and she sent one every couple of months.
Over the last year the letters dwindled, and then six months ago, Greta stopped sending pictures and talking about Bianca. He’d asked if something had happened between them, and she’d written back they were better than ever. Then Greta added that Bianca was getting a lot of attention from a nice guy, and she was seeing him a lot. Greta said that was probably why he wasn’t receiving letters anymore.
Caleb thought back to their last phone conversation. “You didn’t think just because she’s had a huge crush on you since she was little that she would wait for you forever?”
That sentence had him thinking for weeks. He was coming up for leave. He had one last mission, and then he was going home for a couple of months. When he got back from his mission to find only one short letter from Bianca, he knew he had some decisions to make.
He didn’t want to come back for just a couple of months and have what he’d had every other time he’d returned home, which was Bianca going into hiding. The last time he’d come home had been the worst. He’d almost become a stalker. He knew every weekday morning she dropped off her baked goods at four coffee shops. She then went to the little cake shop where she worked.
He’d sat out in front of the shop so many times, sometimes even getting out of the car to go talk to her, only to get back in and drive away. He would always laugh at himself that he could go on covert missions, kill bad guys, be tortured, have bones broken, but he couldn’t go to the woman he’d come to love, tell her how he felt, and ask her to be with him.
So based on what Greta had said, he’d asked to be transferred for a while to his hometown, be put on something easy. When he’d started to organize to come home, the Army asked about housing. He knew he was probably being premature, but he told them he was engaged, and she would be living with him so he’d need a house.
Then he told his sister, who promised to help him anyway she could to get them together. She told him her plan, and he now prayed it worked. But when Bianca didn’t follow him into the house, he hoped Greta wasn’t wrong about Bianca’s feelings for him.
Not willing to give up, he put his backpack down and checked his sister had made the room like she told him she would. Finding everything as he wanted, he took his boots off, chucked his shirt into the bathroom, and jogged down the stairs to get the woman he loved.
She sat watching him in her car. He opened her door, leaned over her, and undid her seatbelt before he pulled her out of the car and threw her over his shoulder. She let out a squeal and gripped his bare waist.
“Hey, put me down. You’ll hurt yourself. I weigh too much. ”
<
br /> He walked through the door, kicked it shut with his foot, strolled straight up the stairs to the main bedroom, and laid her on the bed. “Clothes. Off. Now. ”
He tried to tell himself to slow down, but at this moment, his brain wasn’t in control. Another part of him was.
Bianca’s hazel eyes widened, and her mouth hung open as he leaned down, pulled her boots off, chucked them behind him, undid her jeans, and yanked them off. She helped him and lifted her top over her head, leaving her in a black-and-red lacy number. Her hands moved to cover her stomach as she stared up at him. Gently he moved her hands away.
“Don’t cover yourself. You are gorgeous. My beautiful Bianca. I’ve fantasized about this moment with you so many times. You’re even better than I imagined.
He took off his pants and studied the stunning woman before him. Her dark brown hair lay sprawled out behind her, her greenish blue eyes shone bright, her full plump lips were parted with each indrawn breath, and her body…wow. Large breasts overflowed her bra, her stomach flared out into a little belly, and she was shapely in all the right places. She was the perfect kind of woman to go all night, to ride him with her thick, strong thighs until the early hour of dawn.
This was the woman he would marry. He now just had to convince her that she wanted to marry him.
Climbing back on the bed again, he slid the panties down her legs and threw them in the corner. “Oh, look at that. Smooth. ” He leaned down and licked her from the top of her pussy to the base.
He looked up to see her turn a pretty pink and close her eyes. Bianca opened her eyes, grabbed a hold of him, and pulled him up to her mouth. She wrapped her arms and legs around him as their tongues tangled together in heated desire.
He rubbed his dick against her bare pussy, savoring every touch. At the rate they were going, the sex would be hard and frantic. She scraped her fingers down his back and pulled away, fighting for air. She lay on the bed staring up at him, her eyes filled with fevered passion.