Mac nodded, the expression in her eyes sinking straight to his cock. Lord, he thought he’d die if he didn’t get inside her soon. Louie hurried her outside to his vehicle, opening the door for her.
“What about my car?”
“Leave it here. We’ll collect it tomorrow.” Louie climbed behind the wheel and backed out.
“Where are we going?”
“My place.”
“I didn’t know you had a house.”
“Rental,” he said, reached over to grasp her hand. He needed the contact.
It was the fastest trip he’d ever made from Nikolai’s place to his rental on the other side of Papakura. He parked in his driveway and climbed out.
“Inside,” he ordered. Part of him was surprised when she didn’t argue his high-handed manner. He unlocked his front door and stood aside while she entered, forcing himself not to touch her until they were inside.
He closed the door with a soft click and turned to her, all bets off now. He intended to touch to his heart’s content.
“I’ve missed you, sweetheart.” Louie closed the distance between them, caging Mac against the wall with his hands on either side of her head. He breathed in her scent, wallowing in it. He smelled her shampoo again and the faint fragrance of soap. She’d lost weight and looked tired. Worried even, and he hated to think he’d add to her stress, but it was a conversation they had to have if they intended to stay together.
But first…
“Stop staring,” she complained, wrinkling her nose.
“But you’re so pretty.”
“I have scars.”
“Battle wounds, sweetheart. It’s the nature of the job. You’re alive and that’s all that matters.” A shudder raced through him at the thought of how close she’d come to death. And she thought he worried about a few stupid scars. “Do you know what I’m going to do now?”
“Kiss me?”
“I’m going to strip off all your clothes and explore your body. I intend to make love to you until you feel so much pleasure you’ll scream.” He enjoyed seeing her eyes widen and the faint color creep into her cheeks. “And then I’m going to do it all over again. We’ll start right now.”
Before she could say a word, he dipped his head and took her mouth. It was a dominant kiss, confident and demanding. He nipped her bottom lip, soothed it with the lave of his lips and swept his tongue inside to taste her. The feel of her, so familiar and full of memories, burst over him, her eager response fueling his need.
Louie pressed closer, savoring the brush of her breasts, the hard nipples poking into his chest. The grip of her fingers on his shoulders. One of her hands moved down his back and came to rest on his butt, dragging him closer, telling him without words that this thing between them wasn’t one-way.
Mac tore her mouth from his. “Clothes. Off. Now.” She pushed him away and yanked at his top button. It came undone after a quick struggle. Louie almost laughed as she started on the second button, the trembling hands telling him exactly what he wanted to know. She was desperate too. It gave him hope.
With a whoop, he lifted Mac, swinging her into his arms. He hurried down the passage to his bedroom and dropped her on his bed. Louie took a moment to enjoy the sight. Her eyes sparkled with sexual excitement as she unfastened the two buttons on her yellow knit top. She whipped it over her head and disposed of her bra. A slow grin built as he watched her wriggle out of her jeans and curse when she realized she still wore her footwear. Stepping forward, he unbuckled the sandals and pulled off her jeans and underwear. Grinning, Mac settled back on his bed and pinched her nipple.
“Trying to get my attention?”
“Is it working?” she asked, her voice slightly breathless.
Louie cupped his erection, his brows rising. “What do you think?”
“That maybe you need more incentive to hurry.” She parted her legs, flashing pink lady parts at him.
He swallowed at the sheen of moisture and sank onto the bed. “I need to taste.” Cupping her butt with his hands, he lifted her to his mouth. Starting out slowly, he blew a stream of moist air.
“More,” she demanded in a breathy voice.
“How’s this?” He lapped across her clit with a firm stroke then backed off, circling the hard nub with his tongue.
“Better,” she said with a sigh. “Much better.”
Louie lapped at the juices spilling from her, loving the moans and the increasingly frantic jerks of her hips. His cock pressed against his fly, the sensation almost painful, but he didn’t want to take the time to undress.
Mac wriggled beneath him, and he gripped her hip, holding her still while he took his sweet time tasting her, teasing her.
“Louie,” she wailed.
“Play with your breasts again for me. Show me what you like.” She didn’t hesitate and cupped her right breast before pinching her nipple between finger and thumb.
“Tell me how it feels,” he ordered, and flicked her nub with the tip of his tongue. “Tell me.”
“My breasts feel heavy. Swollen because I’ve been thinking about sex.”
“Sex with me,” Louie said, wanting to make sure and needing her to admit she’d thought about him.
“I’ve been thinking about you fucking me, the way it feels when you fill me with slow strokes. A vibrator is not the same.”
“You used a vibrator?”
Mac glared at him. “Don’t sound so offended. Would you rather I’d gone out and found another man?”
Louie didn’t even need to think about that. “Hell no.”
“So, what do you do when you’re frustrated? Did you go out and find a woman?”
“I didn’t want another woman. I’m smart enough to know the only woman I want in my bed is you.” His words rang between them, stark and full of truth.
“Good answer, soldier,” Mac said finally. “Please take off your clothes and put your cock inside me. I’m tired of feeling empty.”
Louie leapt off the bed and stripped. He returned to her side and lay back on the bed. “Ride me,” he said. “You take what you want.” His gaze swept across her face and this time he allowed himself to look at the bullet wound on the left side of her upper body. The wound had healed, the scar still a bright pink against the tan of her skin.
“Ugly, huh?”
“It will fade.” Louie pointed to a scar on his right hip. “Caught a piece of metal thrown from a car bomb. Are you going to walk because it’s ugly?”
“Of course not.”
“Then why would I worry about your scar? You’re alive. You’re mobile. That’s all that’s important to me.” Louie grasped his cock and pumped it slowly with his hand. Need clawed at him, a bead of pre-cum glistening on the crown of his shaft. He caught Mac watching, the easy glide of her tongue across her bottom lip like a zap to his balls. “Are you just going to watch?”
“You put on a good show.”
Louie snorted a laugh. “You like making me suffer.”
“No, I don’t.” Mac straddled his legs and batted his hands away from his cock. “Hands under your head. I want to play.”
“I thought you were in a hurry.”
“I’ve changed my mind.”
“Just my luck,” he muttered.
“Shush or I’ll gag you and tie you up. And I don’t do wussy girl knots either. If I tie you up, you won’t get free until I say so.”
Louie stilled. “That’s hot.”
Mac laughed and grinned at him. “I can probably think up something worse.”
“If it involves you and me naked and a horizontal surface, then I’m good.”
Mac shook her head and took his cock into her mouth. The swipe of her tongue over the crown and under, followed by a hard suck brought a groan. Mac lifted her head, releasing his shaft with a loud pop.
“Mac,” he protested.
“Patience, soldier.” She wriggled up a bit, rose above his cock and guided him to her entrance and sank down, taking his cock inside her
snug channel.
The tight squeeze of her pussy almost did him in. Willpower. He didn’t have any. An electric current surged from his balls, and he mentally stripped his rifle, cleaned each piece and slowly assembled it again. Louie let out a long pent-up breath until she started to move, rocking against him, rising and falling. Her breasts bounced as her movements became more frantic. It was the sexiest thing he’d ever seen. Raw need sprang to life again, and Louie knew he’d never last.
“Mac, I can’t hold back.”
“No problem.” Her gamine grin made his heart stutter, his pulse pound and his cock swell. He gritted his teeth as she lifted up and slid back down. She threw back her head, closing her eyes as she rose and pushed back down, impaling herself. Mac started touching herself, and he watched, entranced at her open pleasure.
The spicy tang of sex filled the air, fire flickering through his body as the need grew in him. He refused to let go, wanting this moment to last as long as possible. But her silken sheath rippled, squeezing his cock.
“This feels good, better than my memory,” Mac said. “Much better.”
Louie reached up to cup one breast, savoring the warmth of the creamy curve. He pinched her nipple and Mac moaned loudly. “That’s new. I like it.”
“What? My appreciation?”
“The sounds. I like knowing I can make you feel good, sweetheart. The sounds you make when you come are hot.”
“You make me feel good.” Mac slid her finger across her clit and threw back her head, her body straining toward the pleasure. He felt the surge of wetness and the tight, rhythmic squeeze of her pussy. “Louie,” she cried out.
It was a signal for him to let go. His hips jerked and raw, hot pleasure spilled through him. His cock jerked, the spurt of seed splashing into her body. He groaned, the enjoyable spasms continuing for long moments.
Mac fell forward and he wrapped his arms around her, seizing her lips in a hard kiss.
“Mine,” he growled against his lips.
“Yours,” she agreed without hesitation.
Louie laughed. “I thought you might grab your gun and shoot me.”
“You belong to me,” she said. “Are you going to shoot me for saying it?”
“Hell no.” His cock started to swell again, and he rolled her under him, feasting on her mouth, dragging more of those breathy moans from her as he rocked into her. Her hands laced behind his neck, a rough growl vibrating in his chest when she sucked on his neck. He knew it would leave a mark. Nikolai and Jake would give him a hard time about it and he didn’t care. He had Mac in his arms and that’s exactly what he wanted.
Cupping her bottom, he lifted her and stroked hard and fast. The feel of her hot walls clamping down on him sent him soaring and he came in a quick burst of pleasure. Knowing she hadn’t come again, he pulled out and used his mouth, sucking gently on her clit, stroking and tonguing it until she cried out, shuddering, her eyes dark with ecstasy.
Louie pulled back the covers and crawled under them with Mac, not willing to let her go. They were quiet for a while, but Louie sensed she wasn’t sleeping.
“How are you?” he asked. “Really.”
“I’m ready to go back to work, but I’ve been putting it off.” Mac pulled away from him a fraction, and he let her so he could see her face.
“Are you scared?” He couldn’t imagine having this conversation with any of his other mates.
“No, it’s not that.” Mac refused to look at him. A good sign? Maybe. Maybe not.
“What then?”
“My head isn’t in the job. I know I have to go because I need the money, but you won’t be there,” she ended on a rush. “You’re not going back, are you?”
“If you sign up for another term, I’m heading back to Iraq too.” This wasn’t the time to play games. “I’m not letting you walk away from me again, Mac.”
Mac frowned at him. “You don’t want to go back.”
“No.”
“But you’d go because of me?”
“There’s another option, Mac. One you haven’t considered.” Louie paused, watching the thoughts flash over her face. Hope followed by resignation. She didn’t believe she had a choice. “You could stay here. Get a job.”
“I thought of that, but I don’t know anything except the army. That limits my choices.”
“I have contacts. So does Nikolai. Henry. We could help you find a job.”
“I don’t spend much, but I still need somewhere to live if I stayed here. My father needs me. I don’t have the option of walking away.”
“We could pool our resources.”
Mac frowned, slow to understand what Louie meant. “You mean live together.”
“I mean get married. I don’t want to live without you, Mac. I love you.”
The contrast between Louie and David, her ex-fiancé had never seemed wider. David had walked away the moment he’d heard about her father. David hadn’t loved her enough to overcome the obstacles. He’d never even considered trying to overcome them.
“But you’re going to retire to a tropical beach somewhere. That’s what you said.” Her heart hammered, her breathing coming fast as she struggled to keep her feelings contained. Louie loved her.
“It won’t be home without you, sweetheart. The last couple of months have shown me that.” Louie reached out and brushed the hair from her face, the gesture so tender it made her heart stutter.
Could it be that easy? The answer? “So if I decide to go back to Iraq you’re going too because you want to be with me?”
“Yes. I tried to find you after Fiji, and now that I’ve found you again, you’re not escaping. Stay here with me in New Zealand.”
“But what about my father? And what if you change your mind about a place at the beach?” David had.
“Your father can stay at the home. Together, we can swing the finances for as long as your father needs. Or if you want to have him with us, we’ll work something out to make it happen.”
Mac stared at Louie, searching his face for truth. “You mean it,” she whispered finally. “No, I can’t. I’d feel as if I was taking advantage of you. You might come to resent me.” She hesitated before forging ahead. “One year before I met you in Fiji, I was engaged. My father was just starting to show symptoms of Alzheimer’s. When he was diagnosed, David broke our engagement.”
“He walked away?” The disbelief in Louie’s voice made her want to smile. The two men couldn’t be more different.
“He wasn’t happy about my choice of career either, even though he was army as well. He wanted me to retire.” And had been very vocal about it, saying she was unfeminine.
Louie snorted. “The man was a fool. His loss. My gain.” He grasped her hand and gently squeezed. “Mac, you don’t need to do this alone. I know you love me. There won’t be anything one-sided between us. Get a job if it makes you feel better. Either way, all I want is you. I don’t want to lose you, especially not to a bomb or bullet in Iraq or in some other hot spot. But if that’s where you’re going, then I’m with you on the same plane.”
Louie’s words made her melt inside. She wanted to laugh, to dance and sing. A slow grin spread across her face, and she moved into his arms, pressing kisses over his face. The kisses went from sweet to demanding, hands stroking and soft sighs of pleasure. Louie’s arms surrounded her, his scent and love. She felt love.
“You’ll stay?”
“Are you sure?” she countered.
“Mac, I won’t change my mind. I’ve loved you for a long time.” He pushed inside her, the sense of completion bringing tears to her eyes.
“Good.” And it was good. Great. She didn’t want to go back to Iraq. Some people might suggest she was frightened, her injury playing with her head. Mac knew better. It was because of Louie.
She stroked his cheek, felt the faint bristle of stubble along his jawline. The crinkle of smile lines around his eyes brought a return smile from her.
“I love you, Louie.”
Mac paused, ran her hand down his shoulder and squeezed his butt cheek. “Joanna,” she said.
He thrust, retreated and grinned. “Not every man gets two women in one package.”
The piercing ache between her thighs deepened, and a groan built in her chest. “You’re man enough to handle us both.”
“I think so.” Louie’s chuckle contained a dose of sin. He rocked against her, the drag across her swollen clit shoving her into climax. She shuddered in his arms, ecstasy washing over her as she clung to him. Joanna “Mac” McGregor had found a man who wanted her as an equal, one who offered her a future full of happiness.
Mac wasn’t fool enough to walk away from him again. This time was for keeps, and she couldn’t be happier. No matter what the future brought, they’d face it.
Together.
The End
Thank you for reading Soldier With Benefits, the second book in my Military Men series. Please turn the page to read an excerpt from Safeguarding Sorrel, book 3 in the Military Men series, and if you enjoyed this story, I hope you’ll join my readers’ group. The perks? Well, first off, you’ll receive two free books—one contemporary and the other a paranormal romance. You’ll also get previews of new stories, sneak peeks of my covers, access to short stories and ARCs plus contests especially for the readers’ group members.
So, what are you waiting for? Join my readers’ group today.
Shelley
Excerpt – Safeguarding Sorrel
James barged into the Sloan police station, skirted the front desk and strode down a dim-lit passage. He tapped on the second office door, and opened it before anyone answered. “Luke, I might have found a way into the cult for you.”
Luke Morgan, one of Sloan’s cops and James’s best friend, removed his feet from the top of his desk and stood in one smooth motion. “Let’s take this out of the station. I could do with a coffee.”
Soldier With Benefits (Military Men Book 2) Page 13
