by Jill Shalvis
By the time she exited off Highway 1 and rode into Avila, it was past midnight. Her eyes were gritty with exhaustion and a tension that no amount of quickly downed junk food had eased.
The porch light of the lodge was welcoming, as was the ocean breeze and the unique feeling of being home.
There truly was no place like it.
And Zach was inside, or so she hoped.
Nerves leaped like butterflies in her stomach as she quietly let herself in. Silence greeted her. No one was in the kitchen or the living room, or in their downstairs office.
Everyone was asleep. She checked the front register for Zach, knowing it was unlikely he’d be officially checked in, but she was hoping all the same.
He wasn’t listed.
And she could hardly go knock on each door, waking up guests, hoping to get it right.
Disappointment was a bitter pill. Completely deflated, not to mention exhausted, she entered her room, shut the door and sagged against the wall.
Where had he gone?
Kicking off her shoes, she headed directly for the bedroom.
Sleep, she thought, her throat tight, heart heavy.
But as she stepped toward the bed, it came alive.
Then she was blinking as the lamp was abruptly flipped on, staring in stunned shock at Zach, who stared right back at her.
“Thank God,” she heard him mutter before he tossed aside the covers and surged to his feet.
He was totally and gloriously naked.
“What’s going on?” he demanded, putting his hands on his hips and glaring at her. “Where were you?”
“Didn’t...didn’t Alexi and Tara tell you?” She had a hard time keeping her eyes on his because he was so absolutely beautiful. And so annoyed.
Which, when she thought about it, was how she should feel.
“I’ve been worried sick!” he said. “Alexi and Tara wouldn’t tell me a thing. In fact, they took one look at me and started laughing.”
“Were you naked at the time?”
He looked down at himself and swore, then yanked up the jeans he’d dropped on the foot of the bed. “No, I wasn’t naked. I got naked after figuring out you weren’t coming back.” He shoved one foot into his jeans, then nearly fell over, swore again and ended up kicking the material away.
“I don’t need pants for this,” he said, then before she could blink, he had her flat on her back on her own bed, and covered by his very large, very male body.
“Now,” he said, deliberately sliding his hands along her arms, which were over her head, until he held her hands in his, effectively holding her captive. “You were about to tell me what’s going on.”
Good Lord, he was so fierce, so intense, so absolutely sexy she could hardly see straight. Not to mention her heart had just about leaped out of her chest at the mere sight of him.
But now that her big moment was here, and she could tell him how she felt, she found her tongue had tied itself into knots. “Um...why don’t you start?”
“Okay,” he said with such mock compliance, she narrowed her eyes.
Zach was never compliant.
“I love you. And I think you love me,” he said conversationally. “I also think that you’ve been telling yourself you couldn’t possibly fall in love—the timing’s bad, it happened too fast, whatever. You’d rather pretend it doesn’t exist.”
“I don’t pretend!”
“Really? So you expect me to believe you made love with me that first time because you didn’t want to clean toilets?”
“I already told you it was more than that. I knew it right away. It was just...”
“Too big to handle?”
“Yes, and I’d only known you a few days, Zach. A few days. It terrified me.”
“You’ve known me all your life. What happened then, what has happened ever since, has nothing to do with anything but us and how we feel for each other.”
“Yes,” she whispered. And there was more, so much more, but she was feeling a little shy now that the moment was here and Zach was on top of things.
Literally.
Honestly, she was having trouble putting thoughts together in her head with all his intensity and gorgeous eyes, not to mention his bare, hard, warm body stretched out over hers.
“Did I tell you the bust went just like clockwork?” he asked calmly. “That I was given a new undercover assignment? And, oh by the way, I quit my job?”
She went utterly still. “You what? You didn’t tell me that’s what you were going to do.”
“I know.” He gentled his grip on her, letting go of her hands to cup her face. “I was afraid, Hannah.”
“You’re not afraid of anything.”
“Oh, yes I am. I’m afraid you don’t really understand how I feel about you. I’m afraid you don’t feel the same way back. I’m afraid of living without you in my life.”
When she opened her mouth to speak, he leaned down and softly brushed his lips over hers. “Don’t interrupt. I’m trying to make sure I make you feel so loved you can’t turn me down.”
Turn him down...for what?
But then he was kissing her again. “There,” he whispered, smiling down at her, his eyes filled with so many things she could hardly breathe. “That’s the expression I was looking for.”
“Dazed?”
“No. Love.” He stroked her jaw with his thumbs. “Where was I? Oh, yes, so I quit my job.”
“But you loved that job!”
“I love being a cop, but what I didn’t love was being in Los Angeles, working undercover for so long that I was no longer Zach Thomas, but just a man existing. No family. No friends. No you.”
“You didn’t know then—”
He kissed her again, a long, deep, deliciously messy kiss this time, and he didn’t pull back until they were both unsteady. “No, I didn’t know I wanted you in my life, that didn’t come until after the shooting, but I figured it out after I saw you again. One look, Hannah, and I knew, even if I didn’t want to. It was as if I was looking into a mirror that night, and I saw my soul mate. I just didn’t know how to accept it until I faced leaving here. Faced being without you. And even then I kept denying the truth, until I was back in Los Angeles and couldn’t deny it anymore.”
“So you just quit your job? But I was quitting mine! I went down to Los Angeles to find you and—”
“And I was here.” Zach started to laugh, shook his head, then lowered his forehead to hers. “That’s why Alexi and Tara got such a kick out of this. And I was clueless.”
“You wouldn’t have been if you’d told me!”
“Or if you’d told me.” His eyes were alive with hope and joy. “You came after me. Do you have any idea how that makes me feel?”
“Jobless?” she asked, still stunned that he’d given up everything for her. Everything. The depth of his love amazed and humbled her. Thrilled her.
“I’m still going to be a cop,” he said. “Just here.”
“In Avila. You’d...do that?” she whispered. “Really? You would? But...”
“I would and did. Don’t you get it yet, Hannah? I want to be with you.” Nervousness leaped into his gaze when he said that, making her realize she hadn’t been honest enough back with him.
“Do you know why I went to L.A.?” she asked him. “Why I walked away from the lodge and Alexi and Tara?”
“No, but you’re going to tell me, because you’re not leaving this bed until you do.” His body pressed into hers.
“Mmm. I love the feel of you wrapped around me,” she whispered, arching into him a little.
His eyes, already hot, went hotter, and he thrust a thigh between her legs, spreading them, making room for himself. “Do you?” He dipped down to scrape his teeth over the spot beneath her ear, making her shiver with delight. “I love the feel of you wrapped around me, too.”
All she could do was hum her agreement because he’d shifted that hard thigh and was rubbing it against her legs, pressing down unti
l she spread even farther for him.
At the very intimate contact, they both sighed.
“You were going to tell me something important,” he reminded her thickly, once again rocking against the very core of her, which sent shock waves of desire through her body.
“I—” She broke off with a startled gasp when he slid the straps of her sundress down, exposing her breasts to his gaze. She felt her nipples harden into two tight, aching tips.
“You what?” he urged, palming the weight of them in his palms, using his thumbs to rasp back and forth over her nipples so that she could hardly breathe. “Hannah?”
“I—” He swept the skirt of her sundress up to her waist, whisked off her panties and settled back against her, so that they were skin to skin.
“Wait,” she gasped. “I wanted to tell you when I could actually see straight...I wanted you to know how much more than just lust this was...I wanted—”
“You’re right.” Utterly unselfconsciously, given that he was totally naked and clearly aroused, he rose off of her and kneeled on the bed.
“No distractions,” he promised, lifting his hands, a small smile playing on his lips, but his eyes were completely serious. “So tell me why you came to L.A., why you would have given up everything you cared about.”
Not as completely at ease with her own nudity as he was, Hannah sat, and demurely tugged down the hem of her skirt, which made Zach’s lips quirk, but he said nothing, not even when she crossed her arms over her chest, bit her lip and finally looked him in the eyes.
“I would have given up ten times as much,” she said. “Actually, I would have given up my entire life to be with you.”
“Why, Hannah?”
“Because I love you. I love you with all my heart.” She smiled through misty eyes. “I think I always have, and I know I always will.” Her whole world seemed perfect. Almost. “I just don’t want you to give up anything for me, I mean it.” She squeezed him close. “Nothing. If you still want Los Angeles, then—”
“No.” He smiled into her hair. “But I don’t want you to give up anything for me, either. Except for maybe some time. You work too hard.”
“I think I have a good reason to have regular days off now.”
“Let me give you a better one.” He cupped her face to stare into her eyes. “Marry me.”
She went still. “I don’t think I’m pregnant. The timing was wrong.”
A flicker of disappointment crossed his face but then he smiled. “One thing at a time then. Be with me forever, Hannah.”
Her smile widened. “I like forever.”
“Good.”
“I want your children.” Her heart threatened to burst with happiness. “I want a little girl and a little boy.”
He stared at her from suspiciously damp eyes. “Is that a yes, then?”
“It’s more than a yes.” She smiled through her own tears. “It’s a promise.”
From the other side of the door, Alexi and Tara grinned their delight and hugged for joy.
* * * * *
If you enjoyed reading this story, then you will love HER SEXY MARINE VALENTINE by Candace Havens!
The sight of the gorgeous, ripped military man across the street heats Mari McGuire from head to toe—and a whole lot in between. Yes, sir, she definitely has a case of Hot Marine Syndrome. And when First Lieutenant Brody Williams rescues her from an awkward run-in with her ex by pretending to be her boyfriend, Mari can confirm she’s got it bad...
Of course, they’re friends first, and friends help each other out. Mari needs a hand renovating the old Victorian house she just bought and Brody needs a girlfriend to secure his promotion. It’s the perfect temporary arrangement—and then there’s the sizzling chemistry. It’s wickedly racy. It’s addictive. But neither of them expects Cupid’s arrow to aim for their hearts!
Don’t miss HER SEXY MARINE VALENTINE by Candace Havens,
available now wherever
Harlequin® Blaze® books and ebooks are sold.
Read on for an excerpt of
DARING HER SEAL by Anne Marsh
part of Harlequin Blaze’s Uniformly Hot! miniseries.
“CAN YOU BE married without having sex?”
In all fairness, Levi Brandon needed the answer ASAP. His SEAL team leader paused, however, in the act of piling into the C-23 Sherpa transport aircraft as if Levi had farted in front of the President or something equally crass. The pained look on Gray Jackson’s face was the only high point in Levi’s day since he’d rolled out of bed for a dark o’clock training exercise only to discover that the US postal system and karma had caught up with him.
Gray slapped him on the back, harder than was strictly necessary. “Little personal, don’t you think, Brandon?”
“I’m talking about myself, here,” he said, humping his gear onboard. The plane was a no-nonsense set of wings and wheels, perfect for the day’s HALO training exercise.
While Gray mulled over his answer, the rest of SEAL Team Sigma loaded up with varying degrees of enthusiasm. Levi wasn’t the only guy who felt jumping out of a plane at thirty thousand feet wasn’t the best way to pass the time. He preferred keeping his feet on the ground or his fins in the water, thank you very much. On the other hand, at least when he jumped, he felt something. Even fear was marginally better than the emotional desert in which he usually existed.
“Last time I checked, you weren’t married, planning on getting married, or even dating the same woman for consecutive nights. The better question is…can you go without having sex?” Gray dropped onto the bench beside Levi, buckling up as the door slammed shut and the plane started its taxi down the runway.
He’d tried dating when he was younger. Hell. The word younger made him feel like Methuselah, but the feeling wasn’t inaccurate. Courtesy of Uncle Sam, he’d seen plenty and done more. The civilian women he’d dated once upon a time didn’t understand what his job entailed. They’d seen the movies or read the books, but they still popped out perky How was your day?s like the words were Percocet. And too many times he’d been under orders not to discuss what had gone down.
Or he’d had days that were all training or sitting in a foxhole, waiting for the action to start. Nothing to talk about there, so he’d stayed mute and his woman of the moment had gotten upset. And then when shit did go down? What chick wanted to hear about the kill shot he made at long range or the building he’d cleared at the end of an M-4? Sure as shooting, she hadn’t been planning to help him pack for combat deployment, and he hadn’t been packing socks and briefs, anyhow.
Sex was much simpler. He gave an orgasm; she got an orgasm. Or three. Everyone walked away happy, and the next time he jumped out of a plane there were no pesky emotional entanglements messing with his freefall.
He certainly had no plans for celibacy. On the other hand, fate had just slapped him with the moral equivalent of a chastity belt. Levi pulled the marriage certificate out of a pocket of his flight suit and waved it. He needed a second opinion, and sure enough, Sam leaned over and snagged the paper. As the team medic, Sam had even fewer personal boundaries than the rest of them, probably because he’d patched them all up on more than one occasion. Funny how once you’d had your fingers in a guy’s bullet holes you felt like you knew him.
“Levi brought reading material.” Sam unfolded the paper, read it over and whistled, the sound all but drowned out by the steady drone of the engines as the pilot took them to altitude. “And trouble. You’re married?”
“Not on purpose,” Levi admitted with a scowl.
Mason held out a hand for the certificate. “When did this happen?”
“I’m blaming you.” Levi flipped Mason the bird. His teammate was a big bear of a SEAL, a damned good sniper, and the second member of their unit to find true love when they’d been undercover on Fantasy Island three months ago.
Not that Levi understood how two experienced warriors could fall in love while taking down a drug kingpin, but that was apparently wha
t had happened. Levi had been looking forward to giving both of them crap about it for years to come—until he’d checked his mail this morning and discovered he had his own romantic woes to contend with.
“Your girl asked Ashley and I to be the stand-in bride and groom for a beach ceremony. She didn’t tell us we were getting married for real.”
Mason grinned. “Heads up. Every photo shoot with that woman is an adventure.”
“Yeah,” he grumbled, “but can you really imagine me married? To Ashley?”
Ashley Dixon had been a DEA tagalong on their last two missions. As far as he could tell she disliked everything about him—she’d been happy to detail her opinions loudly and at length. Naturally he’d given her plenty of shit while they’d been in their field together, and she’d really hated him calling her Mrs. Brandon after they’d played bride and groom for Mason’s girl.
After they’d parted ways on Fantasy Island he hadn’t thought of her once. Okay. He’d thought of her once. Maybe twice. She was gorgeous, they had a little history together and he wasn’t dead yet although he was fairly certain he would be if he pursued her. She wasn’t the kind of woman who shared her toys, and monogamy didn’t work for him. So how the hell had he ended up married to her?
Mason returned the certificate and Levi jammed it back into his pocket. “Does Ashley know about this?”
He doubted it. “She hasn’t said anything.”
Because if she had known, she’d have told him everything he’d done wrong that had led to an actual wedding. He’d butted heads with her every time he turned around on their past missions.
Well, every time except one. There had been that steamy alleyway kiss when they’d been surprised by a member of the motorcycle club they’d been investigating. He’d pinned Ashley against the wall and kissed her hard, because at the moment the only good excuse he could come up with for their presence in the alley was sex.
She’d kissed him back, too, in the interests of not jeopardizing their cover, but she’d made it clear later and in private that the next time his tongue got anywhere near his mouth she’d cut it off. His kiss had pissed her off that much, he thought with a smirk, and now he was gonna rile her up even more with his hey-babe-we’re-married bomb. That was the only silver lining in this whole situation.
