Two Dauntless Hearts

by Elle James

  Music wafted through the first story of the big house in a lilting country and western waltz Pitbull recognized.

  Buck and Marly were already whirling around the floor, Buck holding Marly far closer than Pitbull could stand.

  Clamping his lips tight, Pitbull marched across the bare wooden floor and straight to Talia.

  She turned from the stereo system where she’d selected the music and smiled. “May I help you, Percy?”

  “Yes, ma’am. You could honor me with a dance.” He held out his hand.

  “Why, thank you. I’d love to.” Talia took his hand and walked to the center of the room.

  Not only had Pitbull’s mother taught him how to knot a tie, she’d insisted he learn how to dance, teaching him the waltz and the two-step. She figured if he could do those two dances, he would be a keeper for any woman. His mother had loved to dance. Though he tried to give the appearance of being one tough guy, Pitbull had to admit, he’d gotten his love of music and dancing from his mother. He was just careful to never let on about it to the members of his team.

  He swept Talia into a spin and danced her over to where Buck and Marly were waltzing to the music. Deftly, he spun Talia out, took Marly’s hand and pulled her away from Buck and into his arms, landing Talia in Buck’s embrace.

  “Hey, she was my partner.” Buck frowned. Then he smiled down at his new dance partner. “Well, hello, beautiful.”

  Talia laughed and danced away with Buck.

  Pitbull pulled Marly into his arms. She felt right there. He refused to think past that. He wasn’t in the market for a relationship, but he sure as hell didn’t want one of his buddies to stake a claim on this woman. He’d sort out his feelings and courses of action later. For now, he just wanted to hold her in his arms.

  Chapter Eight

  Marly relaxed and leaned into Pitbull, her body seeming to fit against his like it belonged. “That wasn’t very chivalrous of you.”

  He growled. “Buck only danced with you to poke at me.”

  Marly laughed softly. “Well, thanks. You know how to make a girl feel desirable.”

  Pitbull’s face burned. “Not that you aren’t beautiful. Because you are. Hell, you’re too beautiful to be dancing with a crusty old SEAL in the middle of nowhere.”

  “You? Old?” She laughed. “What are you, twenty-nine?”

  “Thirty.”

  “Two whole years older than me.” She shook her head. “You’ll be getting dentures and a cane before you know it.”

  He spun her out and back against his chest. “You know what I mean.”

  “No, actually, I don’t, nor do I want to.” She leaned her cheek against his chest. “But you smell nice.”

  “Woman, you’re killing me.”

  “Mmm?” She slipped her hand across his chest. “What a way to die.”

  He grabbed her wandering hand and held it pressed against his heart. “What am I going to do with you?”

  “I told you last night, but you weren’t paying attention.” She squeezed his hand. “I promise, no commitment, no strings attached. Just you and me, all night long.” What did it hurt to put it out there again? She refused to beg, but he wasn’t indifferent to her. The ridge of his trousers, pressing into her belly, was proof.

  She swayed her hips and pelvis, sliding across his arousal. Yeah, he was fully aware of her, and wanted what she wanted. Then what the hell was the holdup?

  Her blood ran cold as a thought crossed her mind. She straightened and blinked up at him. “You’re not married, are you?”

  Pitbull laughed out loud. “Really? You’re asking now?”

  “That wasn’t an answer.” She stepped away from him, her heart sinking into the pit of her belly. “Oh, my God, you’re married.”

  He shook his head. “No, I’m not.”

  Her eyebrows knit. “Then what’s holding you back from taking me up on the offer?”

  “Nothing.” Pitbull pulled her back into his arms. “Something stupid like the desire to protect you from heartache.”

  “How noble.” She traced a finger around one of the buttons on his shirt. “Nobility can be very boring. I thought you were a risk-taker.”

  “I am,” he said. “When it involves bad guys holding guns, I’ll all over that. But please don’t make me break a woman’s heart.”

  “How do you know you’ll break my heart?” She tipped her head upward and stared at him in challenge.

  He kissed the tip of her nose. “Okay, maybe it’s my heart I’m afraid I’ll break.”

  She smiled, her eyes bright in the light from the chandeliers above. “Now you’re pulling my leg. You SEALs are all over the world. How many women do you have waiting back home for you? One? Two? Maybe three?” She snorted. “Break your heart, my big toe.”

  “I don’t have a woman waiting for me anywhere. Up until now, I’ve kept my distance, never dated anyone more than once or twice before I broke it off and made it perfectly clear I wasn’t into commitment. I love my job, but the life of a SEAL isn’t conducive to relationships.” His hand tightened around her waist.

  “You’re thinking too hard on this.” Again Marly laid her cheek against his chest. “Sometimes you just have to go with your gut.”

  He slowed, his feet barely moving to the music. The song ended and he continued to sway.

  “The music stopped,” Marla whispered.

  “Did it?”

  “Mmm.” She pressed closer, not wanting the night to end.

  The next song was a lively country and western two-step.

  T-Mac stepped up to Marly and Pitbull.

  Pitbull shook his head. “Sorry, her dance card is full.” He hooked Marly’s elbow and led her toward the exit. Instead of walking out to the garden as they’d done the night before, he guided her past Mr. Wiggins in the foyer to the front door and out into the moonlight.

  Marly’s heartbeat quickened. What did this mean? Holy hell, was he going to...? Were they going to...? Would he think less of her when he discovered she wasn’t wearing underwear?

  At the bottom of the stairs, he stopped and took her hands.

  She curled her fingers around his, squeezing hard, a little afraid of what came next but more afraid he’d change his mind.

  “Relax.” He bent to kiss her forehead. “We won’t do anything you don’t want. Right now, I just want to walk with you in the moonlight, away from the crowd.”

  “The guys will be down to one female to dance with,” she said, her voice shaking and breathy. God, she was a neophyte at seduction.

  “Well, Talia seems to be right at home dancing the night away.”

  Marly nodded and swept her tongue across her suddenly dry lips. “What’s next?”

  He laughed and slipped an arm around her waist. “We walk.”

  She let him guide her down the path past the bungalows. Once they were out of range of the lights from the buildings, the moon lit up the sky, the stars spreading out like so many diamonds on a bed of black velvet.

  “This is what I love about the wildest parts of Africa,” Marly said.

  “What’s that?”

  “You can see the stars. There’s not as much light pollution like in the big cities. I could fly for miles and miles and see nothing but stars.”

  “Do you ever get disoriented?”

  She laughed. “No. I have my instrument gauges to keep me straight.”

  “Unless the engine cuts off the power?”

  “I’m trained for all the possible scenarios.” She tilted her head and glanced up at him. “Still not convinced it’s safer in a plane than a helicopter?”

  He shrugged. “I imagine I could get used to it, given enough time in fixed-wing aircraft.”

  “You’ll have to come up with me again.”

  “I will, on our trip back to Djibouti
.”

  She sighed.

  “Why the big sigh?”

  “Just thinking about Djibouti.” She leaned against him. “Our time together is limited to just a handful of days. Less, if I get my plane up in the air sooner.”

  “What are you trying to say?”

  “When my part is in, I’ll be gone.”

  “You’ll be back for the return flight, though.”

  “Yes, but once you’re back in Djibouti, you won’t need my services anymore.”

  “That’s sad.” He took her hand and brought it to his lips. “You see, in the couple days we’ve been together, I’ve learned a lot about you. Most of which I like.”

  “You do?” She stared up into his eyes, lit by moonlight. “Like what?”

  “I like the way the moonlight makes your hair turn silvery blue.” He brushed a strand behind her ear. “I like the way you wet your lips when you’re nervous.” Pitbull bent to press his mouth to hers in a soft butterfly kiss. “And I like you best when you have a smudge of grease on your cheek.” He touched a finger to her lips when she opened her mouth to protest. “Don’t get me wrong. You took my breath away tonight in that red dress. I’m sure I had to pick up my jaw off the floor at the sight of your leg peeking out from that dangerous slit.” He pulled her into his arms and crushed her to him, the evidence of his desire nudging her belly again.

  “Dangerous?” She touched his chest, her fingers curling into his shirt, her heart racing at his words.

  “Or the scandalously low cut of your neckline.” He traced the fabric, brushing his finger all the way down the V. “Babe, you had me so hot and bothered, I could barely swallow that delicious dinner.”

  “Have you thought maybe...maybe we should just go with it and get each other out of our systems?” She darted a glance up at his face.

  “More often than you can imagine.” He cupped her face and tilted her chin upward. “I can’t get you off my mind.”

  She leaned up on her toes and pressed her lips to his. “What are we waiting for?”

  He laughed out loud and hugged her close. Then he set her to arm’s length. “Care to go to my cabin for a drink?”

  “I thought you’d never ask.”

  He took her hand and started toward one of the bungalows, walking at first, then getting faster with each step. By the time they reached Pitbull’s bungalow, they were running and laughing.

  Pitbull pushed the door open, swept Marly up into his arms and carried her across the threshold.

  She tried not to read too much into the gesture. He was caught up in the moment, trying to get her into his bed before she changed her mind.

  Like that would happen.

  Once inside, Pitbull kicked the door shut behind him. Instead of setting her on her feet, he carried her past the little sitting room into the bedroom.

  A huge king-size bed took up the center of one wall with mosquito netting draped from the ceiling to all four corners. It made the bed even more intimate and inviting.

  When Pitbull finally stopped at the foot of the massive bed, he lowered her legs and let her slide down his front, his arms tight around her waist.

  Marly wrapped her arms around his neck and held on. Now that they were where she wanted him, all of her insecurities rose up to paralyze her. What did she do? Should she strip out of her clothes? Take his clothes off him? She knew she wanted to be naked as soon as possible. But would Pitbull think she was too forward and needy?

  She stood back and lifted her chin. “Look. I can fly a plane and land it just about anywhere. But I could use a crash course in what I think we’re about to do, before I can fly on my own.”

  Pitbull’s brow wrinkled. “Crash course?” Then his frown cleared. “Sweetheart, go with your gut. There’s no instruction booklet that comes with making love.”

  “No? What about the Kama Sutra?”

  With a deep chuckle, he pulled her into his arms. “That’s just to give you ideas on different positions. You know. To keep it fresh.”

  “Who takes off their clothes first? Or do we undress each other?”

  “I think we need to find that drink first.” He led her to the cabinet in the corner of the bedroom. “What would you like? Beer, wine?”

  “Do you have whiskey?” she asked.

  He looked at her with his eyebrows raised.

  She shrugged. “My father taught me to fly and to drink whiskey. I like Scotch whiskey best.”

  “A woman after my own heart.” He poured whiskey into two tumblers and handed her one.

  She tossed it back, enjoying the burn in her throat and the immediate numbing effect. Before he’d finished his own glass, she handed him hers. “Hit me again.”

  “Do you know how sexy you are, standing there in that dress, asking for a second shot of whiskey?” He put his glass and hers down on the minibar and dragged her into his arms. “I don’t know what will happen between us after we leave here, but I can’t hold back any longer. I have to have you in my arms.” He crushed her mouth with his and thrust his tongue through to slide against hers.

  He ran his hands over her shoulders and down her back, snagging her zipper as he moved lower. Then his fingers slipped inside her dress and caressed the small of her back, and moved lower to cup her bottom.

  Marly’s heart raced, her blood burning through her veins. She trailed her hands up Pitbull’s chest, loosened his tie, pulled it free and tossed it over her shoulder. Without pausing a second, she went to work on the buttons on his shirt.

  Go with your gut, he’d said. Well, her gut said get him naked. And he seemed to be of the same mind, getting her there. Her heart sang in anticipation of making love with this man. He was strong, built like a brick house and so darned sexy, he took her breath away.

  Marly tugged his shirttails out of his trousers and pushed the shirt over his shoulders.

  He shrugged free and reached for the straps of her dress, sliding them over her shoulders. The dress floated past her hips to pool in a sea of red at her ankles. She stood before him in nothing but the silver high heels she’d borrowed from Talia.

  Pitbull took a step back, his gaze sweeping over every inch of her.

  Her cheeks burned and she fought to keep from covering her small breasts. Next to Talia’s curvy shape, Marly felt inadequate and boyish.

  He shook his head. “Sweet Heaven, you’re beautiful.”

  “No, I’m not.” She did raise her hands to cover her chest. “I’m too small in some places and too tall to be feminine.”

  He took her hands in his and brought them to his lips. “You’re perfect. More than a mouthful is too much, and I like that you aren’t the size of a little girl. You’re more my equal, someone who can hold your own in an argument and possibly kick butt in a fight.”

  “That’s not very girly,” she said, staring down at his hands holding hers.

  “It’s extremely sexy, and the kind of femininity I love about you.” He raised her hand to his cheek. “And I kind of like the fact you’re only wearing high heels.”

  “Well, don’t get used to them,” she said with a shaky laugh. “They’re coming off.” Marly stared at his broad, naked chest and let her gaze travel downward to the waistband of his trousers. “Seems to me you’re a little overdressed.”

  “I can fix that.” He let go of her long enough to strip out of his shoes, trousers and socks.

  She grinned. “Nice to know I’m not the only one going commando tonight.”

  “Yet another thing to love about you. I can’t believe you weren’t wearing anything under that dress.”

  “Talia told me anything I wore would leave a line beneath the fabric. And good grief, a woman can’t show lines beneath her clothing.” She gave him a twisted grin. “I really prefer my flight suit.”

  Pitbull tossed his socks to the corner and straightened. His
body was a honed piece of machinery, all muscular with a six-pack across his abs. Not an ounce of fat graced the man’s body.

  Marly wet her lips and stared, drinking all of him in like a parched creature trapped in the desert. “Yeah, you really know how to intimidate a girl.”

  “Why should you feel intimidated?” He stalked toward her, his eyes narrowing, his lips slipping upward at the corners.

  “Look at you, all hard as stone, with muscles from head to toe.” She rested her hands on his chest, reveling in the steely hardness. “Are these real?”

  “You bet they’re real.” To prove it, he scooped her up in his arms and tossed her onto the bed.

  “Hey, you don’t have to go all Neanderthal on me,” Marly protested, though she kind of liked that he could lift her and toss her like she weighed nothing. She doubted many men could do that. At five-foot-eight, she wasn’t light.

  “You bring out the caveman in me, sweetheart.” He grabbed her ankles and dragged her to the edge of the bed.

  Marly squealed and sat up.

  Pitbull parted her legs with a nudge of his knee and stepped between them. Then he cupped her chin and lifted her face. “Now’s your chance to say no. I’ll back off and respect your wishes. But if you choose to continue, I can’t guarantee I’ll be able to stop.”

  The deep tone of his voice raised gooseflesh on her arms. “Don’t keep me waiting. I wouldn’t have walked through that door if I didn’t want this.”

  “I don’t know what will happen tomorrow, and I don’t care. Tonight, it’s you and me.” He bent and took her lips with his, kissing her slowly as he explored her mouth with his tongue. He tasted of whiskey, and was warm, wet and completely intoxicating.

  Marly wrapped her arms around his neck, deepening the kiss. She pressed her breasts to his chest, wanting to feel her skin against his. This was where she’d wanted to be since the kiss in the garden the night before.

  Without ending the kiss, he laid her back on the comforter and pressed his body to hers, his staff hard against her belly.

  Desire coiled tightly at her core, sending waves of heat throughout her body. She could die in his arms that night, no regrets.