by Kara Jones
With a newfound sense of purpose, he got dressed and headed out on his bike. The sun was high in the sky, bleaching everything below it, and he reveled in its warmth. Driving out to the countryside, he soaked up the atmosphere of the wilderness and gazed at the beauty of the mountains in the distance. He could always count on fresh air and nature to bring him back to his senses. He rode for hour after hour until he looked at the time and realized it wasn't long until he had to meet Marie.
Driving back into the city, he instantly felt the jarring of the heavy traffic and noise against his psyche. More than anything, he wanted to hide in bed with a bottle of liquor by his side, but that part of him was over or, at least, he wanted it to be.
He glanced down quickly at the fuel gauge and realized he needed to fill up. Swerving left into the nearest gas station, he attracted the attention of the nearby customers, but that was nothing new. Everyone gawped and stared at the buff SEAL straddling his loud and heavy Harley.
As he filled up, he heard kids screaming behind him, and it was a sound that he hated. He winced at the high-pitched squeals and sighed.
"Damn kids," he grumbled.
But then a female voice chimed in and he spun around as he recognized it.
"Please kids, be quiet for just a sec. Johnny! Put that down, stop that. I said put that down!"
She sounded desperate and stressed and, as he looked at who she was, he knew why. Damian's wife, Suzanne, had been struggling since his death, and she looked as though she'd aged about ten years in the last few months. David had always meant to keep in touch with her. It was the least he could do, but something always held him back. He couldn't quite face being inside Damian's home without him.
As he looked at the two young boys in the back seat of the car, he saw Damian's face in both of them and it hurt to think they'd grow up without him. The guilt was burning a hole in him as he looked at the unhappy family. Suzanne was struggling to put gas in the clapped out, ancient car. Her hair was frazzled and unkempt; her clothes were dirty and disheveled. She'd obviously not been taking care of herself and, as David placed the fuel pump back in its holder, he knew he'd have to go over and help her.
Yet, something held him back. It felt like a real physical pain, and he found he couldn't take another step forward. He wanted to call out her name and say hi, give her a hug, and tell her everything would be ok, but he just couldn't. So, he climbed back on his motorcycle and hurried away, hoping she hadn't seen him.
Speeding across town, he knew he'd be cutting it fine to meet Marie and, as he arrived at her house, she was already standing on her porch with a stern expression.
"You're late." She screwed up her face and frowned, jokingly.
"No way!"
"Yep, you're a whole two minutes late."
They both laughed and headed inside. David immediately felt relaxed in her company and smiled as she held his hand.
"Come into my office." She patted his back and lead him to the back of the house.
"Office? Sounds very official. I was hoping you'd be taking me upstairs."
"Oh enough of that, David, You're here for therapy."
"Yeah. ‘Therapy,’" he said as he flexed his fingers into quotation marks.
Marie was annoyed already. She was fed up of him joking around and firing sexual innuendos at her. He needed serious help. But that charm of his, and his body… She couldn't help but beam on the inside as he flirted with her.
"Take a seat." She gestured to the chair in front of her desk.
He cockily sat back with his legs splayed and his head tilted back.
Chapter 7
This is a nightmare, Marie thought, as she bit the end of her pen. I really need to help this guy, but... Oh God, he's so hot and I could have him if I wanted.
"Ahem," she cleared her throat. "Let's get started, shall we?"
"Whatever you want." David smiled that magnetic grin of his and cocked his head to the side, watching the young therapist with a reserved sense of cool.
"So," she said, trying to ignore his seductive gaze, "I was thinking of beginning where we left off. We were discussing your sleeping habits."
"I’m an excellent sleeper, care to observe?" He leaned forward and placed his hand on her knee.
She felt the heat come from his body and she wanted him to move his hand higher and higher until he was up inside her skirt and deep in her panties. She looked down to his masculine fingers and was desperate to feel them inside of her, pushing up into her g-spot and making her wet.
"I'd like to see you cum," she said without realizing, then felt her face grow hot as she heard herself. "I mean I'd like to see you come a long way with your therapy. Many military men like you don't want to accept therapy at first, but when they do, it's as though they've turned a corner and started afresh."
"I'll turn you over if you want," he leaned forward even further and whispered into her ear. "I'd like to see you cum, too."
She was wet in an instant, as she felt his breath on her neck and his hand that was slowly sliding up her smooth leg. But she had a professional reputation to uphold, and she pulled away in fear of repercussions.
"We can't," she pushed his hand off her. "We'll get in trouble and it's wrong. I'm your doctor. It would be taking advantage of you and abusing my position of power."
"Oh, I'll abuse your position of power alright," he whispered in close to her neck before kissing her.
He smelled the deep scent of her perfume and the natural aroma of her skin. He breathed it in as his lips lingered on her neck, feeling her yield to him. She leaned into his arms and flung her head back, letting out a slight gasp as she felt the pleasure of his kiss.
Then she came to her senses and straightened herself up. Pulling her skirt down over her knees and pushing her chair back on its wheels. She took a deep breath and slammed her hands down on her desk to steady herself.
"We can't do this," she said, as she felt the slick moistness inside her underwear. "I want to, but–"
"But what?" He was quickly beside her, with his hand delicately touching her chin, pulling her gaze up to meet his.
"But it's against every policy. If we get caught, I'll lose my job." She sighed and pulled her head away while still looking at him intently. "More importantly, you're here to recover."
"So why invite me over then, eh? Why not just treat me at the clinic?"
"I don't know!" she flung up her arms in despair and stared at the floor. "There's something about you and... and... after that night we spent together, I knew I wanted to see you again," she admitted, and paused for a second to gather her thoughts. "I'm sorry, David." She stood up. "I've made a terrible mistake. I shouldn't have asked you to come over."
"Fine. I've had enough of your mind games anyway!"
"No! I'm not trying to play games."
"Whatever." He shrugged and began to walk away.
"Will you at least come to your therapy session next week?" She caught up with him in the hall and grabbed at his arm.
"Maybe," he said, pulling away.
"Please. I think you'd benefit from it."
He said nothing as he closed the front door behind him. Marie felt her shoulders sag as she watched him leave. The roar of his Harley echoed down the street, and she watched as a neighbor tugged at her curtains to see where the noise was coming from.
“Fuck.” She clapped her hand to her forehead. “I’ve messed up.”
Hurrying back to her office, she felt for her cellphone and quickly tapped the name of a man she hadn't spoken to in a long time.
"Officer Brady speaking," came the stern voice.
"Hey, it's Marie. I need to see you."
When the young doctor arrived at the bar, she attracted her fair share of admiring looks, but she wasn't interested in any of the men who were staring at her.
"Ah, Marie!" Brady was waiting for her with open arms. "It's been too long," he said, as he hugged her tight. "I ordered you a cosmopolitan. They're still your favorite,
aren't they?"
"Maybe." She smiled and wiggled her nose. "So, how have you been?"
"Yeah great. Just great Marie." He looked at her with love in his eyes. "You're growing up so quickly."
"Ah, don't you start," she said with a giggle, as she sipped on her drink. "I get enough of it from my dad."
"So, how is your old man?" Brady asked while chuckling. "I miss that old devil, I really do."
"Yeah, he's doing just great. He moved into a retirement home with my mom a few months back. They're living the dream."
"Ah, that's just great."
Officer Brady went misty-eyed for a moment as he thought back to his old teenage naval days. It was then that he'd met a young and enthusiastic sailor named Harold, and they'd been tight as thieves for years. They grew up together and worked their way up the ranks side-by-side and, as each man created a family, they were always on standby to look after each other.
Brady would always remember the day Marie was born, and he'd often thought of the young woman as one of his own daughters. Of course, now she was a strong military woman herself and he didn't need to look out for her anymore. Yet, he missed her father more than he could say. He was closer to him than any blood relative, but as they grew older and different priorities took precedence, it wasn't long until they lost touch.
"Hopefully, I'll get to catch up with him at Christmas," Brady said, slapping Marie on the shoulder.
"That would be just great." She drained her drink and ordered another.
"So," Brady said, looking at her empty glass, "looks as though something's troubling you."
"Yeah. I need some advice on a young Navy SEAL under your command. David Axel?"
"I'm sick of hearing about that boy. What’s he done now?”
"I’m treating him at the clinic."
"Oh. Didn’t realize you’d be the doctor assigned to him. It’s a small world, ain’t it?"
"Yep."
"I bet you got your work cut out with that man."
"Like you wouldn’t believe." She wiped the lipstick from the end of her straw. "But, I gotta talk to you about something."
"Anything, Marie."
"I read his case file. There’s something just not right about it."
Officer Brady went rigid at her words and sat in cold silence. He bit down on his thumbnail and looked into the distance. Behind Marie sat two young boys barely old enough to drink. They looked so innocent and happy, and it annoyed the old, decorated officer. He had to see men much younger than them suffer at the violent hands of war, and they came home crumpled shells of men. The boys didn’t know how lucky they had it.
"Hey, you ok?" Marie waved a hand in front of his face.
"Sure. Sorry, just lost in thought there for a minute." He picked up his beer and dipped his top lip into the froth as he drank. "David Axel is an enigmatic and troublesome man, but one who I wouldn’t pin down as a loose cannon. There’s something weird about his testimony, I’ll give you that, but I don’t reckon he’s as crazy as they say he is."
"What do they say?"
"That he took out his own men. That he killed his best friend."
"Dear Lord!" she gasped. "Do you think that?" Marie felt a blackness spread within her at the thought of the young man killing his own.
"No. I don’t. Something happened out there, but it wasn’t that."
"Hmm…" She played with the ice at the bottom of her glass. "I hope we find out soon."
Chapter 8
Why has she gotta play games with my head?
As David left Marie’s house, he was both raging and confused. He knew she wanted him – she’d made it pretty obvious – but why was she stalling, and why did she invite him over?
"God damn women," he muttered to himself. He pulled his motorcycle into his usual parking bay and tore off his helmet.
As he approached his house, he noticed a shadow in front of his door and it immediately sent his defenses up. Who the hell? He was on edge and ready to fight whoever it was. Could it be an intruder? He had no idea, but he was surely going to find out. He had no weapon on him, but he had his rocky fists and he felt his fingers clench as he swaggered to his door.
"Hey!" he shouted at the figure.
"Hey," the meek voice replied, and David stopped in his tracks.
"Suzanne? What are you doing here?" He stood rooted to the spot in shock. "I mean, sorry. It’s great to see you," he said, and he lunged forward to hug her.
Squeezing her tight, he realized just how much he missed Damian’s family, and he felt like never letting her go.
"I haven’t seen you in so long."
"Erm… maybe you wanna rethink that?" She smirked.
"Huh?"
"The gas station the other day. You think I didn’t notice that beast of a bike of yours roaring into the place?"
"Oh…" He felt ashamed. "I was er…. You know…" He scoured his mind for an excuse.
"Don’t worry about it,” she said, trying to soothe him. "I know you’ve got a lot to contend with."
David didn’t know what to say. His mind was in a muddle, and all he wanted to do was tell her the truth about Damian. But he couldn’t. For a moment, he moved his lips to speak, but his mouth went dry and nothing came out. He coughed instead and looked to the ground.
"Anyway," Suzanne said, shifting to signal that she was going to leave. "I just wanted to give you this."
She grabbed his hand and uncurled his fingers. She placed something cold in the palm of his hand. She then gave him a weak smile before closing his fingers back up and hurrying to her car.
"Don’t be a stranger," she called from the driver’s seat.
And she was gone with only a long plume of smoke floating up from the exhaust to signal her departure. David felt the metallic object in his hand and recognized it immediately. He felt the jagged edges and his eyes began to fill with tears. He couldn’t stop it, and the pain only got more intense when he opened his eyes. Sitting in his hand were Damian’s dog tags, and they were as shiny and clean as the day he got them.
He stormed inside and slammed the door closed. Holding the tags to his face, he let his tears fall onto them as he held his head in pain. So many thoughts were swirling in his head. The day they all died never left him, and it was time the truth came out.
He pulled out his phone and gripped it tight. With Officer Brady’s number at the ready, he held the phone to his ear and… There was a knock on the door. Must be Suzanne again, he thought. Yet, as he opened the door, he stood face to face with Marie.
"Oh! How did you find me?" he asked, perplexed.
"Your address was in your file."
"Oh yeah. Of course." He went silent, embarrassed that she caught him crying.
"Have I come at a bad time?" She reached out to hold him, but he pulled away.
"Sorry, it’s just… a lot on my mind."
"I can see that, David, but I’m here to help you. Please, won’t you let me in?"
He slumped in resignation. Looking down at his phone, he could see Officer Brady had answered his call.
"Hello?"
They could both hear the older man’s voice from the phone.
"I guess I have a lot of explaining to do." David hung up the phone and gestured for Marie to enter. "I’ll tell you everything."
Once in his living room, he couldn’t help but spill all of his secrets. He held Marie’s hands tight as he spoke, with his words catching in his throat. But, with her encouragement, it soon became easier to talk, and it wasn’t long until he felt the great relief that came with offloading all the heavy memories holding him down.
"Damian," he said, still clutching onto the dog tags. “He wasn’t well.”
"In what way?" Marie leaned forward to hug David.
“Because I was the only one who returned, they all assumed I killed our own men. But it was Damian.”
"Are you saying he murdered your unit?" Marie was dumbfounded and reeled back.
David nodded.
"He was so unwell. The pressure was too much. We’d seen things out there you wouldn’t wish on your worst enemy, but we lived through it every day." He shook his head and gripped Marie tighter. "It was the hottest day when it happened. Up there on those dusty mountains with the sun shining down on you, it can feel like you’re not even on earth anymore. It was then that I noticed a change come over Damian. He started to talk funny, just saying the strangest things. Then, he would become agitated and pace up and down for hours and hours. I was looking through my binoculars out onto the valley below when I heard the pop of gunfire behind me. I thought we were under attack, but when I turned around, I saw Damian shoot everyone down."
"Jesus," Marie said, with devastation in her voice. "That must have been so awful."
David didn’t answer. There was a long silence as he looked into space, his mind churning as he decided whether he should let Marie be privy to his greatest secret.
"I killed him," he whispered. "It was either him or me. My reflexes made sure it was him."
Marie didn’t say a word. She just held the man tight as the grief shook through his body.
"I understand." She kissed the side of his face. "You don’t need to say anymore." With that, David turned his head, brushing his lips up against hers.
They kissed sweetly as they held each other close. There was no pressure or mind-games this time, just the all-encompassing passion and affection of two people who understood each other. Their kisses, however, soon became more desperate and they pushed up against each other as they yearned to feel more of the other’s body.
They pulled at one another, tugged at each other’s clothes, and wrapped their limbs around one another’s bodies. David pulled Marie toward him tight and she climbed on top of him, her hair caressing the side of his face.
"We don’t have to do anything if you don’t want," she asked, trying to be sure he was comfortable.
"I want you more than I can describe." He traced a finger gently down the side of her cheek.
"I want you, too," she whispered, sliding off her blouse to reveal her perky breasts.
He touched her delicately, feeling her curves all the way down to her hips. Then he ripped at her skirt and tore it from her body. Rolling her off the couch, he pushed her onto the floor and kissed her hard. She spread her legs wide to feel him, and he lay in between them eagerly.