Special Forces Read online

  “Let me clean up,” he whispered. “I’ll be right back.”

  “Okay.” She slid off his lap and onto the couch, her eyes closed, and he pressed a quick kiss to her lips before disappearing into the bathroom.

  She was still in the same position when he came back out and bent to lift her.

  Her eyes fluttered open. “Where are we going?”

  “To bed for round two.”

  “Oh.” She wrapped her arms around his neck. “Can I take my shoes off now?”

  “Nope.”

  Chapter 9

  Sometime late in the night, after they’d made love several more times, Bobbi was resting against Ron’s chest when she heard his stomach rumble loudly. She snickered in the darkness, running a hand over his rock-hard abdomen.

  “Hungry?” she asked softly.

  “We missed dinner,” he replied, running his fingers along the curve of her spine. “So, a little.”

  “I can make us something.”

  “I don’t want you to cook,” he murmured, kissing the top of her head. “We can sleep and maybe go out to breakfast before we pick up the kids.”

  “Mmm.” She nestled deeper into his arms. “That sounds nice… You sure you don’t want me to make something? I can fry up a few eggs, maybe a frittata?”

  “You shouldn’t tease me with food,” he rumbled, his chest shaking a little as he laughed quietly. “I eat a lot. All the time.”

  “I like to cook,” she said, lifting her head to look at him. “Come on, let’s go eat something.”

  “You sure?” He shifted too, sitting up.

  She reached under the pillow and pulled out an oversized T-shirt. After putting it on, she got to her feet and padded into the bathroom. He followed her, leaning over to kiss the hollow of her throat before they cleaned up. Then he followed her into the kitchen.

  Bobbi hummed as she got out the ingredients and chopped up some tomatoes. Ron sat on a stool at the island, watching as she worked.

  “Why are you staring at me?” she laughed, glancing over her shoulder.

  “’Cause you look sexy as hell in the kitchen with a big shirt and beard burn on your thighs from my stubble.”

  She flushed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I would never do such a thing with a man.”

  He laughed. “I’m sorry. No, of course you wouldn’t. You’re still a virgin, aren’t you?”

  She nodded primly. “Absolutely. I have no interest in seeing a naked, sweaty man doing such carnal things to me.”

  “What if you closed your eyes?” he suggested mildly. “Then you wouldn’t see me doing them.”

  She paused, glancing over her shoulder again. “I could do that. But I’m cooking. I’m told men require all kinds of care…like middle-of-the-night meals.”

  “Honey, we can skip the cooking and get right back to those naughty carnal pleasures.” He got to his feet and slid his arms around her from behind. “I could eat you instead.”

  Her face was red but she smiled, nudging him lightly with her elbow. “I’ve already whisked the eggs and chopped the tomatoes. Grab the mozzarella out of the fridge, would you?”

  “Fine.” He got the cheese and put it on the counter next to her.

  The food was ready less than ten minutes later and they sat at the island together, sharing the large frittata and a chunk of Italian bread. They ate in silence until Bobbi pushed her plate away and Ron finished her leftovers as well.

  “More?” she asked, teasing him.

  “Nah. I’m good.” He carried the plates to the sink and began rinsing them.

  “I can do that,” she protested, moving against his side, pressing herself closer than necessary, and looking up with an impish smile.

  “You cooked,” he said mildly, though he met her eyes with interest. “Seems it’s only fair I do the cleaning up.”

  “Or we could clean up later,” she murmured, one hand traveling to his crotch and giving it a light squeeze, right through his boxer shorts.

  “We could do that too,” he agreed, turning off the water and wiping his hands on the towel. He lowered his head to hers and their lips met with a familiarity that made her entire body hum with desire.

  “I’m so glad the kids aren’t here,” she whispered against his mouth.

  “Why?”

  “Because I’ve been without sex for two years and I plan on spending all night making up for it.”

  “What if I’m too tired?” he protested, a teasing smile on his face.

  “Aren’t you special forces guys supposed to have plenty of stamina?”

  He grinned and scooped her up in his arms. “That’s what I hear.”

  They’d made love again and were contemplating getting up to shower when his pager went off. They groaned simultaneously and he sighed as he glanced at the screen.

  “All right, I have a couple hours this time,” he said. “Wanna shower with me?”

  “Sure.” She followed him into the bathroom and slipped into his arms as they waited for the water to get warm.

  “You okay?” he asked, lifting her chin with two fingers so he could look into her eyes.

  “I think so.” She met his eyes. “I’m doing my best to get used to this.”

  “It won’t always be this way,” he whispered. “Because of Sam I can’t do this forever, but I’ve got two years before I have to reenlist and I haven’t made any decisions yet. Can you hang on that long?”

  “You have to make those decisions for you and Sam,” she said softly. “Not for me, or any other woman you might be dating.”

  “You want me to date other women?” he asked, stepping under the warm spray and pulling her with him.

  “No, silly, but chances are we aren’t going to be together forever so—”

  “Why?”

  “Why what?”

  “Why would you say we’re not going to be together forever?”

  She paused, frowning. “Well, we just met and—”

  “We’ve known each other since we were 14. That’s 18 years. Yeah, we’ve only been getting to know each other again for a few weeks, but it seems obvious we’ve always had something special.”

  “I didn’t want to be presumptuous about where we’re going with this.”

  “Where do you think?” he asked, resting his hands on her shoulders. “I want you. I’ve always wanted you. It was a lot more innocent in high school, but the moment I saw you underneath that table last month, I knew.”

  “What did you know?” she whispered softly.

  “That you’re for me and I’m for you.”

  She smiled, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her head against his chest. She didn’t say anything, but she didn’t have to; they fit so well together, both physically and emotionally. It was going to be a lot harder to leave her this time, he thought.

  “What if I kept Sam?” she asked softly.

  “What?” He stared down at her in surprise.

  “She goes to work with me, for all intents and purposes, and then I’ll feed her and Julian and she’ll go to bed. If you’re not back by the weekend, we’ll go to the beach, maybe the park… It seems silly for her to go elsewhere. Especially if we’re going to try being a couple.”

  “I’d love for you to keep her,” he said carefully, “but it’s a lot of work and you already have a kid.”

  “What else do I have to do?” she asked mildly.

  “If we do this, you absolutely have to take money,” he said firmly. “To feed her, entertainment… Anything could come up.”

  “I’m not too proud to take money I’ll need for food,” she said.

  “And…” He hesitated.

  “What?” She met his eyes worriedly.

  “If something happens to me—”

  “Nothing’s going to—” She interrupted him but he put a finger on her lips.

  “It could and this is important. If something happens to me, bring her to Sandy, okay? She has the paperwork, all the legali
ties.”

  “Who gets her if something…happens?” she asked after a moment.

  “My parents have the option of taking her, but if they won’t—and I know they won’t—my friend Erin said she and her husband, Drake, would adopt her. Erin wouldn’t let her go to foster care.”

  “Okay.”

  They showered in silence and when they stepped out, he pulled her close again. “Are you okay?”

  “I am. I promise. It just bothers me to think about something happening to you.”

  “It bothers me too, to be honest. But we have to think about Sam.”

  “I know. I understand.”

  “Sandy has copies of insurance cards, everything you might need in case of an emergency. I’ll also call June on my way to the base to let her know I’m going away and that you’re going to pick up Sam.”

  “Will she be mad?”

  “That you’re taking Sam? No, of course not. She doesn’t mind watching her and the money helps, but she has her hands full with her husband deployed.”

  “Okay.”

  He got dressed, watching as Bobbi pulled on clean panties and her big T-shirt. She sat on the edge of the bed and listened as he told her where things were in his townhouse and the PIN to his bank account. He was leaving her his house key and debit card since he didn’t have time to get cash. He took her keys and ran downstairs to take Sam’s car seat out of his truck and put it in her car. When everything was done and he was ready to go, she moved into his arms, tipping up her face expectantly. He kissed her thoroughly, hoping she understood how much he didn’t want to leave her. The longer he had Sam, the more settled he got and the harder it was to go on these missions for unknown lengths of time. Now that Bobbi was in his life, it was even worse. He loved his job, but things had changed. He didn’t have time to tell her, though, and settled for kissing her until they were both breathless.

  “Be safe,” she whispered against his lips as he reluctantly pulled away.

  “I will.” He kissed her one last time. “I’ll call you the minute I get back.”

  She kissed her pointer and middle fingers before pressing them against his lips.

  “See you soon, beautiful.” He looked back one last time before heading down the hall and out the front door.

  Chapter 10

  The first few days were easy. Having Sam in the house was novel for Julian and he’d played with her a lot. By Wednesday, he’d lost interest and went back to doing his own thing. As the weekend came around, he ignored Sam completely and lost his patience when Bobbi couldn’t play a game with him since Sam wasn’t old enough to participate. On Sunday, she needed a break and reluctantly called Sandy.

  “How’s it going?” Sandy asked knowingly.

  “It would be fine if Julian wasn’t so jealous,” she admitted.

  “Bring her over for a few hours,” Sandy offered. “It’s no problem for me and it’ll give you a few hours to do something with Julian and maybe even get something done before you go back to work tomorrow.”

  “It’s been eight days,” she blurted out. “Is it always this long?”

  “Average is about five, but yeah, he’s been gone ten days before. Has Sam started crying at bedtime?”

  “No.” Bobbi frowned thoughtfully. “She’s been great. The only issue has been Julian being a little jealous, but honestly, that just started yesterday afternoon. He’s not used to sharing me. Overall, she’s been an angel.”

  “Would Julian rather come here and play with Dean? That might be better for both of you.”

  “I’ll ask him. Either way, I’ll be at your house in an hour, ready to drop one of them off.”

  “No problem at all. See you then.”

  Bobbi had a relaxing afternoon without kids. When they arrived at Sandy’s, Julian had been excited to play with Dean and Sam had thrown a fit, demanding she get to stay too. Somehow, Sandy had calmed them all down and sent Bobbi on her way without either of them. She now had three glorious hours to herself. She had to stop at the grocery store, but that would go quickly without children in tow and she found herself finished in no time. After unloading everything and putting it away, she threw a load in the washing machine before sinking into the chair in the living room. She tucked her feet under her and reached into the coffee table drawer to pull out a romance novel she’d started months ago. She had an hour and she intended to enjoy it.

  Her thoughts strayed, however, and she finally closed the book, letting it rest on her lap. Reading about romance made her think about Ron and how much she missed him. Taking care of Sam had been a little extra work, but in the grand scheme of things, she didn’t mind. They left the house in the morning and she dropped off Julian at school before driving to the preschool. Julian arrived by bus after school and stayed in the daycare center until it was time to go home. Usually his homework was done so they ate dinner, played or watched TV for a little while and then he and Sam went to bed. That gave Bobbi a little time to clean, fold laundry and get a shower before going to bed herself. It was tedious, but it hadn’t been that way when Ron was in town.

  They’d gone to the park or the beach, and he’d suggested taking the kids ice skating one evening. Seeing him every day when he picked up Sam always made her smile and she’d felt his absence deeply. Part of her was beginning to have doubts again; not about them as a couple, but life as a military spouse. She hated it. Lots of guys traveled for work, but not many were completely incommunicado while they were gone. That was the part she struggled with. Wade had been terrible about calling and emailing when he’d been deployed, and while Ron would probably be much better about it in a similar situation, he didn’t have the option of making personal calls or sending emails while on a mission.

  Sighing restlessly, she mixed the ingredients for a meatloaf and put it in the fridge so it could go in the oven as soon as she picked up the kids. She put the clean clothes in the dryer and added another load to the washing machine. Without Ron and the kids, she apparently had no life, and it occurred to her she needed to do something about that. Whether things worked out with Ron or not, it was time for her to get a life. In the beginning of her marriage, she’d been determined to be the best wife possible, so her life revolved around Wade.

  After Julian was born, having an infant took all her time and energy so there’d been no time for herself. Then Wade deployed for 18 months and she’d been a single mom so her own needs hadn’t been a priority. Sixteen months as a widow, however, felt like an eternity and now that she’d met Ron, she was tired of her quiet, simple life. She didn’t need anything crazy, but a few girlfriends and maybe a hobby wasn’t asking too much, was it?

  Or a sexy new boyfriend, she thought with a smile. She liked that idea best, though she wasn’t going to make the same mistakes this time around. With Wade, she’d made sure her life revolved around him and Julian; this time, they needed to be equals. Ron would be on board for that, she was positive, but the problem would be times like this when he was gone. Eight long days without so much as a text or email. He wasn’t allowed, and she understood, but that didn’t mean she had to like it.

  The alternative was going back to her life the way it had been before they’d run into each other and that wasn’t truly an option. She needed to work harder on the friendships she had and even find moms to trade babysitting with so she would have a little time to herself, but nothing would make up for not having Ron. If she wanted him—and she did—she had to learn to live with unexpected departures and long silences while he was gone.

  Reunions would be sweet, though, wouldn’t they? She pictured his face in her mind’s eye, his silver-gray eyes darkening with lust when he looked at her, and then they would kiss and everything would melt away. She’d known making love with him would be wonderful, but she hadn’t expected it to change her life. A pleasant coupling that ended with an orgasm had been all she’d been hoping for but she’d gotten so much more than that. In fact, what she’d gotten had been the stuff erotic romance novels w
ere made of. That level of hot, sexy passion hadn’t been on her radar but now she lay awake at night thinking about it. And him.

  Oh, Ronnie, she thought sadly, please hurry home.

  As it reached the two-week mark, Bobbi’s resolve was slipping and she was starting to struggle. Not just with not seeing or hearing from him, but also with worry. Sandy said he’d only been gone this long once before and this many days without word had her wondering what she would truly do if something happened to him. Wade’s death had been shocking because he’d been home, and while training accidents happened, they were rare. Finding out he’d been killed due to a faulty parachute had been a real shock and she’d promised herself she would never date another military man. Ron had changed all that but now she was getting those weird butterflies in her stomach, the kind that warned something bad was going to happen.

  By Monday, when Ron had been gone 16 days, she was frustrated both with herself and with him. She got Julian to school and started her preschool lesson, but she’d asked her paraprofessional helper to read to the class so she could clear her head for a little while. She’d had physical responses to stress like this when she was married to Wade, but this was the first time it had happened since his death and she refused to give in to it. Ron wasn’t Wade and she wasn’t going to let the past ruin her chance for happiness before it even started but it wasn’t easy.

  “Mama Bobbi?” Sam’s voice startled her out of her reverie and she looked down in surprise.

  “What’s the matter, honey?”

  “Beanie?” Sam’s big blue eyes were a little watery and Bobbi reached down to lift her onto her lap.

  “Beanie’s working.”

  “Come home?”

  “Soon, honey. He’ll be home soon. I promise.”

  “’Kay.” She rested her head against Bobbi’s chest and Bobbi held her tightly. She’d never played favorites with her students before, but Sam was special. Not only did she remind her of Ron, she was the sweetest little girl and she’d called her mama a few times over the last week. She’d corrected her the other times, but today she hadn’t had the heart. She would talk to Ron about it when he got back, to see how he wanted to handle it, but until then, she didn’t want to upset her by making a big deal out of it. It was taking everything she had, but she wasn’t going to succumb to her inner insecurities and she definitely wasn’t going to drop the ball with Sam. Somehow, they’d get through this.