A Hero For Ku'uipo (Delta Force Hawaii Book 2)

by Reina Torres

  There were so many ways that he wanted to please her and right at that moment. He wanted to make her feel good.

  So damned good.

  “Hey,” she stepped back into the room with a big grin, “Sorry. I should have told you where everything was in case you needed something.”

  He looked around the open floorplan. Living area, kitchen, and dining all in one space. “Not too hard to find things.”

  She shrugged and he noticed that she was wearing an over-sized t-shirt with the neck cut out, allowing it to fall off of one of her shoulders without any effort.

  “The bathroom is there,” she pointed across the short space. “And this,” she tilted her head back into the room, “is the bedroom.”

  He barely kept his lips together and himself silent. So many things he could say. Too many things he wanted to but shouldn’t.

  “But,” she sighed, I guess you knew that already.”

  Stepping out into the main room she crossed over to the living area of the cottage. “Are you okay if we sit on the couch?”

  He wanted to say he’d sit anywhere because even though he was feeding his mind all kinds of images meant to keep himself in check, watching her walking around in a pair of loose shorts and that over-sized shirt was only making it harder to fight down the physical need that was riding him hard.

  “Efrain?” She had her hand on the back of the couch. “Or maybe you want to go outside?”

  “Here’s fine.” He gestured at the couch. “Wherever you want.”

  The look she gave him said she knew something was up. Still, she crossed to the refrigerator. “How about something to drink? Beer? Cider?”

  “I liked that Lilikoi Cider I tried the other night. Do you have-”

  “Two ciders coming up.”

  He shouldn’t have, but he turned his head and saw her reach into the refrigerator and he was so damn glad he was sitting down because those shorts of hers pulled tight in just the right way.

  And suddenly his slacks were doing the opposite across the front of his hips. Constriction. Cutting off circulation. Yeah, he was going to be hurting soon.

  “Here you go.”

  Smiling up at her, he took the bottle and sighed at the cold bite of the glass against his palm. He twisted off the top and held out the open bottle to her.

  “Oh?” She smiled. “You’re going to open the bottles for me?”

  He shrugged and they traded bottles. “What’s the use of having muscles if you can’t flex them from time to time.”

  They stared at each other, but the moment he popped the top off the other bottle, they broke down into laughter and Ku‘uipo leaned her arm on the back of the couch. “You’re my big, strong hero.”

  “Big, huh?” He took a long draw from the bottle as she laughed.

  “Why do guys put emphasis on that word?” She took a little sip and he matched her.

  “I don’t know about other guys, but I know that it applies to me. Strong? Obviously. You don’t get to be part of our unit and not be strong.”

  “Your unit?” She put emphasis on the word and raised a brow as she trailed the cool curve of the bottle’s mouth on her lip. “Is that another double entendre? Or are we talking purely military here?”

  He set the bottle down on the coffee table, nudging a coaster under it. “That’s a loaded question.”

  She was laughing when he reached down to the floor and wrapped his hands around her ankles.

  “Whoa!” She clutched the bottle to her chest in both hands. “What are you-”

  He placed her ankles over his thigh and kept his eyes focused on her face. “I told you. I was going to rub your feet. You’ve been on them all day.”

  Lifting one foot with her heel in the palm of his hand he gave her a lazy smile.

  “Lean back, relax.”

  She was still clutching the bottle in her hands. “Sure, relax. You’re not the one who has to trust that you’re not going to tickle my feet.”

  He heard the wary tone of her voice and shook his head. “I’m not crossing that line, Sweetheart.”

  Her shoulders eased and she set her bottle aside.

  A soft patter of sound seemed to fill the air and Ku‘uipo closed her eyes and

  drew in a deep breath.

  “I love the way the rain smells here.”

  He heard the pleasure in her voice and copied her actions. The rain made the air smell… sweet… earthy.

  “And the sound of the drops on the roof and the grass outside,” she sighed, “it’s better than music.” Lifting her arm, she adjusted the pillow against the back of the couch and set it behind her head on the arm of the couch.

  As he gently stroked his thumbs along the arch of her foot, she rolled her neck on the pillow. On the second pass of one thumb after the other, she shifted on the couch, sinking lower, surrendering her foot to his tender mercies.

  Her eyes remained mostly closed, fluttering open when he passed over a tender spot in the arch of her foot, or when he paid the same ministrations to her other foot.

  Ku‘uipo didn’t pull away, she didn’t nudge him back, she eased further down into the cushion.

  “You keep doing that,” she sighed, “and this is going to get really interesting, really fast.”

  “The last thing I want with you,” he licked his lips as she opened her eyes to look up at him, “is fast.”

  “I would have thought,” she shrugged and squirmed around until she was propped up on her elbows, “that with a nickname like ‘Train’ you’d be all about going fast.”

  When he reached for her, Ku‘uipo tensed up, thinking that he was going to tickle her. She even gulped in a breath, ready to stave off laughter.

  But he didn’t tickle her.

  He managed to slip his arm around her lower back and a heartbeat later she was up and, on his lap, one arm around his shoulders.

  And he was, or rather she was so close to him.

  Remembering their kisses in the shadows of the pavilion made her chest ache for the loss that they’d suffered, but she felt a swell of joy being there with him.

  In her home.

  With the soft and insistent patter of rain singing through the air outside, she didn’t want to think of the struggles that faced her outside. She had this moment, and this man.

  For how long?

  She hadn’t wanted to ask him. Or Hi‘ilani for that matter. Knowing when Efrain was going to leave was just going to put a ticking time clock on another part of her life.

  She had to make this hotel work.

  She had to make this training opportunity work.

  Everything was coming down on her shoulders, but the one person who was really focused on taking it off her shoulders, was holding her close, smoothing his hands over her hip and her leg.

  He was looking into her eyes as if she were the stars above and she felt his breath on her neck and her cheek.

  “I want…” she was torn in two directions and didn’t want to give up one for the other, “I want to kiss you.”

  His smile broadened and the light in his eyes pulled her in. “I won’t argue with you. I certainly wouldn’t tell you to stop.”

  She laughed at the eager look on his face and she lifted her free hand to trace the edge of his collar where it touched the tanned skin of his neck. “But I also want to know about ‘Train.’”

  He was quiet for a moment.

  Thoughtful.

  His gaze turned inward.

  Biting into her bottom lip, she pored her gaze over his face, memorizing every beautiful inch of him. “If it’s a big secret, you don’t have to tell me, I was just curious and-”

  He touched a fingertip to her lips and smiled when she kissed it with a quick peck.

  “Sweetheart, if you want to know about the name, I’ll tell you, but can I ask a favor?”

  She appeared to be thinking about it. “What kind of favor?”

  “Afraid of what I’m going to ask?”

  “I’m still
waiting,” she trailed her fingertips along his jaw, “and enjoying the wait.”

  He caught her hand in his. “If you keep touching me like this, I don’t think we’re going to do a whole lot of talking.”

  When she tried to pull her hand back, he held on.

  “I’ll tell you, Ipo.” He placed her hand on his chest. “I couldn’t tell you no, even if I wanted to.”

  She eased against him, enjoying his strong, muscled form. “I love stories like this.”

  He leaned back on the sofa and slid his palm from her hip to the outside of her thigh. “Train isn’t about moving fast,” she saw the twinkle of laughter in his eyes, “Train is about talking fast.”

  She nodded, waiting for more.

  “When I was just a rank and file soldier, I was quiet- now hold on.” He gave her a knowing look. “I know what you’re thinking but let me finish. Yeah, the idea of me being quiet, it was true. I was focused on proving myself. Reaching my goals. The whole nose to the grindstone work ethic. I wanted to be the best and that took all of my focus.”

  He looked down as she fiddled with the button at the top of his shirt, tracing the back of her finger along the open V.

  “Do you want to hear the story or not?”

  “You mean to tell me you can’t focus on telling me a story about your own nickname while I touch you?”

  Ku‘uipo watched him draw in a breath and then slowly let it go.

  When he fixed his eyes on hers again, she saw steely determination staring back at her.

  “Just remember, turnabout is fair play, Ipo.”

  She shrugged and worked her hand up until she ran her fingers through the clipped hairs at the back of his neck. “So, being the best took all your focus.”

  He turned his head and pressed a kiss to the tender flesh along the inside of her forearm before he tilted his head back to look at her. “Once I joined the unit, started working with the guys, I let loose-”

  “Let loose?” She couldn’t help the smile in her tone.

  “A little,” he clarified. “I felt comfortable. More myself. And that’s when I started talking about my favorite thing in the world.”

  “Movies.” She knew that for sure.

  “Yes,” he agreed, “movies. And I know all kinds of little things about movies. Behind the scenes stuff. Blunders. I’m a master of making connections from one movie to another. Actors, production staff, tropes, trivia, all of it inside my head.” His lips twisted into a little bit of a grimace. “And what was inside my head, spilled out of my mouth. And once I got going, I couldn’t stop. So, the guys called me-”

  “Train. Because your mouth runs away with you. I get it!” She laughed and let it spill from her throat as she tossed her head back, her arm tightening around his shoulders.

  Ku‘uipo felt his fingers tangle into the strands of her long, wavy hair.

  The twinge of pain at the tug disappeared when she felt his kiss along her neck.

  “So many other things,” he murmured against her skin, “to do with my mouth.”

  The pictures in her head were better than any movie she’d ever seen.

  He closed his mouth over the pulse in her neck and she rocked closer to him, feeling his hard length under her thigh.

  “I like that.” She swallowed as his tongue swept over her skin. “And I really like that.”

  “Hmm…” his hum vibrated through her neck to all sorts of amazing places. “Care to let me try a few more?”

  She tried to nod, but he was still holding onto her hair.

  Ku‘uipo felt the tug straight to the building heat between her legs. A breathy gasp passed between her lips as he gave her hair a little twist, arching her back.

  “You’re so beautiful.”

  Her free hand reached down and grasped the hem of her nightshirt, fisting it in her hand. The problem was, she couldn’t figure out if she should lift it up or tug it down.

  The neck of her shirt was big enough that she could probably lower it so that he could-

  His mouth covered the tip of her breast, almost breathing it in.

  “Oh god…”

  The heat from his mouth, wet rasp of the cotton fabric against her skin, made the ache between her legs that much hotter.

  Needier.

  Lifting the hem of her shirt, she felt his free hand slip under it and skirt up her belly.

  Yes.

  She shifted on his lap, tucking her legs to the side so that his mouth and his hand could touch her, tease her. And she was aching to get closer.

  Aching to press her skin against his, rock her heat over his length.

  But when she opened her lips to speak, he’d pull her deeper into his mouth.

  Or roll her nipple between his fingers.

  And the sound that she could make was more of a moan than a word. A needful sigh instead of a plea for more.

  Efrain must have had some kind of mind reading power, or at least some kind of clear and logical thought, because he turned his head to the side, rubbing his cheek against her breast. “Can I take you to bed, sweetheart? Can I spread you out on your sheets and make love to you?”

  The words hit her hard, like that runaway train that he was named after, pounding her into the tracks.

  Make love.

  Maybe he hadn’t planned the words.

  Maybe he hadn’t even said it on purpose.

  But if there was one thing she knew in that moment, it was the fact that yes, what would happen between them in her bed would be love.

  There was no other word for what she felt for the man wrapped up in her arms. She was sure that most people would tell her that she was crazy. That she couldn’t possibly love him so quickly, but time didn’t seem to matter to her heart.

  “Ipo?” She heard the hesitance in his voice and as his fingers untangled from her hair she looked down into his dark, and cautious eyes. “We don’t have to-”

  “Wait,” she finished his thought with a slow smile and a heart that was pounding in her chest. “Come with me,” she touched her palm to the side of his face and slanted her lips across his as she drank in his sigh. “I’m not ready for this night to end.”

  Eleven

  Detective Santos was ready to slam the door shut and close the blinds. “It doesn’t make sense, Miles.”

  “What?” The younger man stared at him from his hospital bed where he was lounging like a Roman emperor. “Should I speak sloooower for you?”

  He bit off a retort and tried a smile, but he knew his eyes were still glaring at the boy. “We know you set that fire. The more you try to pawn it off on Pono, the more-”

  “The more you know the truth!” He rolled his eyes. “Look, I’ve already called my mom. She’ll have an attorney for me by morning even if she has to fly one into your teeny tiny airport. So why don’t you just do both of us a favor and let me get some sleep. Tomorrow, I’m going to be out of here and I hope off this shitty little island and headed back to a real job. So, charge him. You won’t even have to put him in jail for a while.” Miles looked across the room at Pono, lying motionless in his bed. The other man had bandages covering his arms, part of his chest, and the side of his face. “It’ll take a miracle for him to get up and walk out of here anytime soon.”

  “This isn’t about pinning it on someone, Miles. It’s about making the right person pay for what they did. I think you’re the one who did this. Pono’s a follower,” Detective Santos shook his head at the sad truth of it, “I don’t know how you got him to help you or what you promised him in exchange for doing this, but this isn’t like him.”

  “But it’s like me?”

  Tilting his head, the detective shrugged. “From what I can tell, yeah. And I can promise you, if I’m right, you’re going down for this.”

  Miles narrowed his eyes as he settled deeper into his pillow. “Promises, promises. Now, go ahead and close the door after you, I need my rest.”

  Walking out of the room was the hardest thing that he’d ever done
. Every cell in his body told him to reach out and yank Miles out of bed and throw him in the squad car and book him for arson, but Miles was right.

  Damn it.

  He didn’t have anything concrete. And just based on injuries, Pono was the one who likely poured the accelerant and lit the match, but he certainly hadn’t come up with the idea himself.

  So, he’d keep looking for more proof. Where he’d find it? He had no idea.

  But he wasn’t going to stop looking.

  He wasn’t going to let this asshole get away with it.

  Miles picked up his cell phone from the bedside stand and flipped it open. Thumbing through his contacts, he found what he needed. He hadn’t called his mother. That wasn’t going to fly with her. If she found out he was in trouble, she’d shut him out for good.

  There was only one person he could call.

  The call was picked up after a couple of rings.

  “What?”

  “Jenkins, you piece of shit!”

  Miles turned away and covered his mouth with his hand when Pono moaned from the far side of the room.

  “The police think I set the fire at the hotel.”

  “Well, you did.”

  “Don’t be an ass, Jenkins. You better get me some help and get me out of this hospital.”

  There was a long huff on the other end of the phone. “You didn’t do enough to stop the opening. Hell, they got even better press because they teamed up with another business! I’m beginning to think you’re working against us and-”

  “Just who are you working for?”

  The man on the other end of the phone paused. “What? What are you talking about?”

  “You said ‘working against us.’ I caught that little slip. So, you get me out of this. You get me a lawyer. You get them to release me from this hospital, Jenkins. Or I’m going to find the other half of us and I’m going to make a deal with him.”

  He ended the call and stared at the ceiling, waiting for Jenkins to get him out of there.

  Train couldn’t wait to get to the bed. One step into the room and he was kissing her, holding her face gently in his hands as he fed from her mouth, drinking every breath and sigh from her lips.