by L. T. Kelly
Her heart pounded, and elation fluttered through her body, making her ache. She almost went back on her plan and asked him to visit tonight, but she couldn’t risk being too tired to attend to her patients in the morning. The wait would do them both some good.
Well, Jessica is actually away for the week, so it’ll be just us, if that’s okay.
Yeah, sure. Where is she?
At relatives. I’ll explain tomorrow. Six PM okay with you? Bring wine.
Oh, okay. Catch you then, angel.
She didn’t want to go into too much detail over text. There would be too many questions. He knew about Lee, but she’d never gotten to the part about what had actually happened to him, to them. It would kill her to relive it all again, but it was the right thing to do. Evan needed to know about her. What had happened. What she’d done. It was only right. If he walked away now, it might be for the best. She quickly shook her head and batted away the negative thoughts creeping their evil way back into her mind.
* * * *
“Hey, Mountain.”
“My favorite lady.”
She grinned, he constantly demonstrated how pleased he was to see her, and he’d always said it had long been the highlight of his week. Mountain had been trying to persuade her to accept the vast amount of job offers that the center had proposed since she’d started volunteering for one day a week, three years ago. She’d always refused, only helping out when Jessica had began at nursery for two days per week. She'd been unsure if she’d ever be able—or willing—to go back to physiotherapy full time. It had been too painful having the weight of other people’s injuries resting on her shoulders. She still struggled to cope with what had happened, and each of her patients meant something to her. She suffered as though she carried the burden of their injury. She found it too difficult to distance herself from it all.
She joined Mountain in the middle of the huge exercise hall, as she always did.
“Rupy?” she asked immediately tilting her head to one side. He’d flitted into her mind several times during the week. When it had rained, when she’d yelped after banging her knee on the cart at work, when she’d seen an advertisement for Help the Heroes in the paper… Each time, she’d thought of his sad eyes, the way he’d looked at her, distant and hurt.
Mountain shook his head. “He’s not doing so good.”
She pressed her lips together and looked down to the gym floor. “Well, it’s going to take time.”
“It is. He’ll come through. They always do.”
Not all of them. She couldn’t help the thought and the accompanying images crossing her mind before she shoved them back in her mental box and locked it. She looked up at the optimistic, hulking man with a quick nod.
“Who’s first then?” She rubbed her hands together, trying to focus on the positives she could bring to the place.
She eased herself in with James, he was able-bodied but struggling with back pain since falling out of a truck a year ago. She delighted in his progress, the core strengthening exercises along with his pain medications were taking real effect and getting him well on the way to his goal of fully active service. He'd shown his dedication by refusing to quit, and the results were obvious. One more week on the program and she knew he’d be discharged from their care.
Some of the guys weren’t residential. They traveled there to get advice on their prosthetics and how to use them. She liked those patients the best. They were go-getters who didn’t let their injuries hold them back. But she wasn’t stupid enough to think they didn’t have to travel an epic journey before arriving at that incredible destination. She admired them for arriving at all.
She finished her hours of hard graft. The days there drained her physically and mentally. Yet another reason she knew she didn’t believe she could hack a full-time position there and still be a fully functioning parent. No bloody chance.
She waved goodbye to Mountain and headed up to Rupy’s room to check in on him before leaving. She ducked her head in. His eyes were closed, and his breathing sounded soft and slow. Sleeping a lot rang an alarm bell for depression, but she thought better of waking him up. As much as she wanted to help him, she doubted her ability to do so. Besides, she could see him next Friday.
She took the same deep, steadying breath as she always did when she stepped out the sliding doors of her personal hell then blew it back out softly. She saw objects and people in vivid color again, and they looked brighter whenever she left that place. She never would have agreed to going to the center if her therapist hadn’t repeatedly suggested it as a form of desensitization. The only thing that kept her going back were the results. It eased her pain and guilt a little bit more.
The closer she got to home, the more the evening ahead overtook her thoughts. She closed her eyes on the underground train, a smile spreading on her mouth as she imagined Evan’s lips against hers.
It had to be perfect. The tension in her shoulders eased once she got home and shoved her tainted clothes into the washing basket while running a hot, scented bath. The water soothed and calmed her and put her where she needed to be, focused…on herself. She readied herself for what she might be capable of with Evan and how far she’d be willing to let herself go, not just physically, but emotionally, too.
His timing was perfect. She’d dressed in a knee-length, linen day dress, not wanting to be over dressed for a night in, but wishing to impress all the same. She’d just run her fingers though her dark curls that trailed down her back, when he arrived.
“Hey there, angel.” He grinned, greeting her on the doorstep.
She relaxed even more when his eyes traveled over her with a look of hunger that would indeed inspire Bob Geldof in his eyes.
“Hey back. Are you coming in?” she asked, moving back from the doorway.
“Yes, but only for long enough to let you pack a few things.” He stepped into the hallway.
“What do you mean?”
“If you’d like, I’m taking you away for the weekend? I figured it’s been a while since you kicked back and had people wait on you hand and foot.”
She sucked in a breath. Silence hung between them while she battled it out in her mind. What if Jess needs you? Hang on, when the hell has Helen ever called you? Never. If she really needed something, she’d call me on my mobile phone. Go. What if the house gets burgled? You’ve never been away for longer than a few nights. The weekend is a few nights dummy. Go.
Evan cleared his throat, pulling her from her thoughts.
“Oh, sorry,” she said, running her fingers over her lips.
“I mean, I can cancel it if you don’t want to go.”
She eyed him curiously, her heart pounding while her mind continually ran its mouth off.
“Okay, I can do this,” she said to herself as much as him.
He laughed breathlessly, as if he’d been nervous, the flash of his bottomless green eyes giving him away. He’d been exactly that. Nervous, afraid of rejection, all the things she’d been scared of for years, so she recognized the signs and symptoms.
“I’ll pack a few things. Help yourself to a drink.” She motioned toward the kitchen before mounting the stairs.
“Oh, Katie…you don’t happen to have a passport, do you?” he asked sheepishly.
Her jaw dropped, her mouth popping opened and closed several times before she really taken in what he’d asked her.
* * * *
“Out of interest, what would have you said if I’d said no?” Katie flashed Evan a wicked grin.
He grabbed her hand as they walked down the tunnel toward the plane. He scrunched his eyebrows together figuring the options.
“No to the trip or no to the passport?”
“The passport.”
He blew out a quick breath of relief. Maybe that meant she hadn’t even thought of not going away with him for the weekend. He shrugged. “I’d have pretended I was kidding with you.”
“Ah, so, you’d be able be able to maintain such a magnifi
cent lie?” she asked with amusement in her voice.
“Yes.”
“Why, though?” Her playfulness had vanished.
“I wouldn’t want you to have any regrets. We still would have had a good time anywhere we’d gone.”
“Yes, I guess you’re right.” She squeezed his hand.
They were greeted on the plane and ushered to the nicest seats in the front. After the plane took off, the stewardess presented them with a bottle of champagne.
Katie sipped it. He couldn’t take his eyes off her mouth. He ran his gaze over her, watching her unfold, relax.
“Mmm, as third dates go, this is pretty impressive.”
“What made you change your mind about me?” he couldn’t stop himself from asking. He’d been baffled by her sudden change of heart ever since the glorious kiss she’d initiated.
She shrugged, looking unfazed by his question. “I’ve decided to take back my life back. I’m not expecting anything from you. I won’t hold you back—”
Evan sat up, his chest aching at her words. He opened his mouth to protest, but she held her hand up and shot him an icy glare.
“Trust me, I was held back by Lee. I let him do it because I felt I didn’t have a choice. I won’t be party to doing that to someone else. You have to do what you have to do. Don’t think about me. I’ll get by. I always do.”
He attempted to shove away the ache she’d caused, deciding not to argue with her. There seemed to be nothing about her that would hold him back. She’d pushed him forward. Her mouth on his, her hands running over his body had done nothing but literally make music. He wished she would realize that.
The sudden sadness in her eyes made his throat to contract. He couldn’t speak. He waited, knowing what would spring from her beautiful mouth…the story.
“When Jessica was six months old, Lee got sent away on his first tour of duty.”
“What happened?” he breathed.
She took a long, slow slug of champagne. He suspected she used it to dampen her pain.
“He lost both of his legs and one arm.”
“Did he die?” he murmured, not knowing what else to ask. He’d already figured out that Katie’s absent husband had been killed.
She smiled sadly and looked away, shaking her head. “Not from his injures.”
She looked back at him, biting he bottom lip and tears shone in her eyes. He yanked up the armrest separating their seats and pulled her head to his chest. “You don’t have to talk about this now, if you don’t want to, angel. I hate watching you cry.” He stroked his palm over her hair as it cascaded over her back.
“I have to tell you sometime, and now is as good a time as any.” She sighed heavily before continuing, “I tried to tell him it would all be okay. He couldn’t take it. He was convinced I’d leave him, that I didn’t love him anymore. He took his own life.”
Evan closed his eyes, the vision of his father’s untimely end flooded his mind. He hated talking about it, thinking about it. He pulled her closer and planted a kiss atop of her head as she clung to him.
“He left a note saying that he’d already held me back, and he couldn’t do that anymore. So, in the end, he left me. And Jessica. I’ll never be able to tell her what he did, that he left her, that he didn’t love either of us enough to fight.”
“I’m so sorry,” Evan whispered. He couldn’t argue with her, but he guessed that Lee had loved her and Jessica. He just hadn’t loved himself enough. His swallowed back his grief. Hadn’t that been what he’d thought of his father all these years? That he hadn’t loved Evan enough to stick around? Minutes ticked by, and Evan slowly dragged himself back to the present. After all, he shared space with the woman he wanted to be with. He’d never felt anything so strong. Never longed to touch someone so much that his fingertips ached. And there they were on a dimly lit airplane, sipping champagne together. He squeezed her waist tightly, and she sat upright, rubbing the space beneath her eyes.
“Hey, are you gonna be okay?”
“I feel much better now. I feel like there are no secrets anymore, not now that you know.” She smiled lopsidedly before taking another sip of her drink.
Evan shifted uncomfortably, before pulling himself together. Not yet, I can’t tell her yet.
“Let’s have a great time. I know we will. We have the weekend to forget about what’s happened in the past and have fun. Deal?” He offered his hand and flashed her a grin that she immediately returned.
“Deal.” She took his offered hand, and he brought it up to his lips to kiss. The smell of her floral-fragranced skin and the softness of her hand against his mouth heightened his senses like a promise. He’d booked two rooms, but he prayed one of them would go unused. Her kiss the other night had made his dick ache whenever he’d relived it. Imagine what they could do together in the bedroom.
It wasn't a struggle to get back to their excited, easy chatter even after the weight of the previous conversation. Katie belonged to him, and Evan was unwilling to let her go for anything.
Chapter Eleven
Katie’s gut clenched with nerves as the Mercedes rolled to a stop outside a rustic style hotel in the beautiful city of Prague. How long had it been since she’d been naked in front of another human being, let alone a man that looked like Evan. Her breathing hitched in her throat, and her body tensed into a cringe as she thought about the small patch of stretch marks just above her pubic bone. No matter how much he protested about their age difference not mattering, she’d figured he’d never cast eyes on a body ravaged by childbearing. She knew she’d gotten off lightly. Her small breasts hadn’t sagged, and her tiny frame had managed to achieve a flat stomach again.
“Don’t worry. I got us separate rooms.”
“Oh.” She bit her lower lip, hating that her paranoia had made her look like an open book. “Oh,” she said again. A new feeling exploded in the pit of her belly…disappointment.
“I don’t want to back you into a corner. That isn’t what this is about.”
“What is this about then?” She waved her hand between them, ignoring the sigh from the driver waiting for them to get out of the car.
She’d found her voice again, suddenly angry that he’d put her in an awkward position. He’d forced her into saying what she wanted, what she needed, what she desired so much it made her body ache. She wanted to sleep with Evan Waters.
“It’s about us having fun and getting to know each other. I want to know you.”
“Why though?” Her voice sounded like a whine.
He laughed despite himself. “Because, Katie…” He paused, all traces of amusement vanished. “Because you’re special. You’re important to me.”
“I don’t want to sleep in another room,” she breathed, looking directly into his glossy green eyes.
“Where do you want to sleep?”
“Don’t make me say this.” She looked down to her shoes.
“Where do you want to sleep?” he growled, squeezing her hand.
“I want to sleep with you,” she whispered.
“Well then, what are we waiting for?”
She didn’t miss the edge in his voice, that little hint that told her Evan felt as nervous as she did.
They checked in fast, Evan canceling the second room immediately. They made their way upstairs, no stalling, no talking, nothing but a wild glint in his eye that looked as sexy as hell. When she allowed herself a peek at the green pools of light, she recognized a promise that made her stomach lurch and her panties wet.
Their bags were thrown down, and his breathing became rapid as soon as they stepped into the room. He scooped her up and pressed her back to the wall as soon as the door to their suite slammed shut.
“I’ve wanted this, wanted to grab you, touch you, feel your sweet body pressed against mine from the moment I met you on that platform.”
She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t speak, all she could do was stare into his face. Her sex pressed firmly against his abs, swelling with ev
ery passing second.
“Tell me that you want me, too.”
She couldn’t. The words wouldn’t come. She had to show him. Her mouth crashed to his, her chest flooding with a fiery inferno that cascaded through her body. Her hands found the back of his head, lost in his hair as she pulled him as close as he could get.
Her nipples tightened painfully as she pressed them into his chest. He moved his head back, their ragged breaths entwined. She didn’t stop to look at him. She’d looked enough; he’d looked enough. Now was the time for action.
She pushed her legs down and away from him, fire spreading to her extremities as he hovered above her. The warmth, the strength, the safety she felt with this man was beyond all measure. She knew then that everything about being with him was right.
She tore at his shirt, pulling it up to reveal what she’d seen but hadn’t touched. She dipped her head to run her tongue over his nipples. Her fingers greedily explored his biceps and abs. He pulled his shirt over his head, groaning with satisfaction.
“Fuck,” he hissed. “No one’s ever done that before.”
She ignored him, concentrating on slowing her breathing and flinging herself back to her uni days, when she'd been young, wild and free, and touching this man would have been a usual occurrence. She didn’t want to be a widow or a mother tonight. She wanted to be a sex vixen. Her hands traced his abs for the fifth time, her stomach like molten lava. She needed him now. She couldn’t hold back any longer. Her finger popped the button on his jeans and followed though with the zip. She pulled her head away to look at him when his fingers tightened around her wrists.
“What’s wrong?”
He flashed a sexy smile and side stepped away from her. Her body froze to the core when his was no longer pressed against hers. Her breasts ached as he turned his back, kicking his shoes off as he swaggered away. Her watering mouth hung open as he pushed down his jeans and kicked them off. Her heart banged so hard in the quiet of the room she feared he might actually be able to hear it.
“Take your clothes off.” His voice was filled with husky command, a distinct separation from the boy she’d considered him to be and the man he actually was.
