by Cat Johnson
“What?” A long string of foul language followed, before she heard him draw in a deep breath. “You leave a key under a plant outside?”
“Yes, so I don’t lock myself out.” She no longer had Emma right down the road to drive over with a spare key.
“But you triple locked me inside with the dead bolt and the chain last night.”
Why he was still sputtering about this topic, she didn’t understand. “Well, of course. When I’m inside I use the dead bolt and the chain. A single woman living alone can’t be too careful.”
“But somebody could use the key to get in when you’re not home and be hiding . . .” He let out a big breath of air. “Never mind. We’ll discuss this key situation later. Just stay where you are now. I’m on my way. I don’t want you wandering around campus alone this late at night.”
“I’m sure it’s perfectly safe. I’m not parked very far.”
“Becca. The semester hasn’t officially started yet. When there are twenty thousand students there and the security patrols aren’t still on a summer schedule, yeah, I’d agree with you that it’s safe. But the campus is a ghost town right now and I don’t want you walking to your car this late at night, so please just stop arguing with me and stay there until I come get you. Okay?”
That was quite an impressive rant from a man who’d rarely spoken more than a few words at once during all the time they’d spent together. “Okay. I’m in the stacks by the Chaucer.”
He laughed again. “Yeah. Okay. I’ll call when I get inside and maybe you can come up with some better directions than that.”
“All right. I’ll work on it.” She smiled.
Becca hung up and stashed the phone back in her pocket so she could re-shelve the books she’d pulled out to look through. The library did have a decent collection, and it was an impressively big building. There were probably books here she’d never had access to at Vassar.
When Tucker finally appeared at the end of the row of shelves, she couldn’t help thinking he was something else she hadn’t had access to back home. She smiled. “Hey. I thought you were going to call for directions.”
“Since I can guide a platoon using nothing but the stars as a reference, all while the bad guys are out to get us, I figured I could find Chaucer.”
“I’m very impressed.”
“Then I probably shouldn’t tell you I asked at the front desk and the librarian told me which number shelves to go to.” He smiled and took a step forward.
She laughed and moved into his arms. “That does make it seem a bit less impressive.”
“Sorry. Just being honest.”
“Don’t apologize. Honesty is good.”
“Then maybe I should continue and tell you, as inappropriate as it is, I’m getting turned on.” He pulled her closer and she felt the bulge in his jeans. “I never knew books were so sexy.”
“You got turned on today by a bologna sandwich, too.” She wrapped her arms around his waist. “I don’t think it’s the books.”
“You’re right. Maybe it’s not the books or the bologna.” He leaned lower.
“Maybe it’s not.” She rose up on her tiptoes, closer to his tempting mouth.
He groaned and closed the small distance between them, backing her up against the shelves as his lips covered hers. He kissed her until she was off balance, when he finally broke away. She blew out a breath but didn’t dare let go of him yet. He stayed where he was, keeping her nestled between his body and the books, which was good since the man could take her breath away with just a kiss.
His gaze moved to the volumes behind her head. “Ah, there’s my buddy Chaucer now. Just who I was looking for.” Tuck grinned down at her.
“I’m sure.” She rolled her eyes. “Can we go now?”
“Yeah. I’ll see you to your apartment—crap, I can’t even believe I’m saying this but then I’m going to have to go home.”
“You can’t stay? Why?”
“The cadets are rallying at zero-four-thirty.”
That sounded awfully early, even in military time. “In the morning? That’s before the sun is up.”
He laughed. “Believe me, I know. It’s an overnight camping retreat, so I won’t be back until the day after tomorrow.”
“Oh. Okay.” Crazy as it seemed, she didn’t like the thought of not seeing him for two whole days.
Still pressed close to her, he shook his head. “Maybe I could hang out at your place for just an hour or two.”
“No, Tuck. Stop. You got hardly any sleep last night. You should be in bed sleeping already now. I’ll let you walk me to my car and watch me drive safely away, but that’s it. You’re going home and getting some rest for this retreat thing.”
After a moment’s pause during which she could almost see the battle going on inside him, he nodded. “Okay.” He glanced left and right before his hands dipped lower until he cupped her butt cheeks in his large palms. “You better kiss me good night here so no one sees in the parking lot.”
“Good plan.” Becca had gone through many, many years of schooling in her life. She’d spent more hours in libraries than she could begin to calculate. Yet this was the first time she’d ever made out in one. As he claimed her mouth for the second time against the volumes of Chaucer, she realized all she’d missed out on in the past.
When the pull of desire got her so wound up she was pretty sure she wouldn’t be getting any sleep tonight, she pulled away. “Come on. Time to go.”
His eyes twinkled. “Good idea.”
“I meant time for me to leave so you can go home and get to sleep.”
“Oh, all right.” He gave her one last squeeze and stepped back, sighing as he dropped his hold on her.
They couldn’t exactly walk past the front desk holding hands. The librarian might get suspicious as to what they’d really been doing in the stacks, but knowing Tucker, she suspected that’s exactly what he’d like to do.
He glanced at her as they walked. “By the way, there are no cell phones allowed on the retreat, so I won’t be able to call or answer.”
“No cell phone for two days?” That was a frightening concept. She stared at him. “What if there’s an emergency?”
“You and Jace been comparing notes?” He laughed.
“No, why?” She frowned.
“No reason.” He shook his head. “And we have phones on site, we just can’t use them except in an emergency.”
“Okay. Good.” That made her feel a little better. Who knew what could happen on an overnight camping trip. There could be bears, or wolves, or murderers hiding in the woods from the authorities. Someone tripping on a tree root and spraining an ankle might be more likely, but either way, Becca and her overactive imagination would feel much better knowing Tucker had a way to call for help if he needed to.
He gave the librarian a nod on the way past and pushed the exit door open for Becca. When they were outside on the sidewalk, he asked, “You worried about me, darlin’?”
“No. Of course not. You can take care of yourself,” she lied, and turned to lead him toward her car. “I’m parked this way.”
“Good, because I’ve been taking care of myself for a while now.” He followed her until they were standing at her driver’s side door. “You take care of yourself while I’m gone. Okay?”
“I will.”
“Logan’s number is in the faculty directory. Call his phone if you need anything.”
“Won’t he be camping with you?”
“Yes, but since he’s in charge, he’ll have his phone on him. I won’t. And if for any reason he doesn’t answer and you need anything, Jace’s home number is listed in the local book. Jace Mills. Can you remember his last name? Never mind, I’ll just text both numbers to you when I get home so you have them.”
“Tuck, if there’s an emergency I’ll call the police. If there’s not, it can wait until you’re back.”
“All right. I just hate leaving you with no one—”
“T
here’s always Dean Ross.”
“That’s right. Call Ross if you need something. That’s good.”
“You are a big worrier.” She was beginning to realize that about him. It was incredibly endearing how concerned he was for her.
“Not usually.”
“Then why now?”
“Good question.” He let out a snort. “Now get in and get going before I don’t let you leave.”
Tucker reached behind her and opened the door. He dropped the quickest kiss on her lips she’d ever had from him, then stepped back, his hand on the door frame as he waited for her to step inside so he could close her door. He must be really determined to not stay the night.
“All right. Have a good night. Get some sleep. Have fun camping, but be careful.”
“Now who’s the worrier?” He grinned. “And will do, to all of the above. Night, Becca.”
“Night, Tucker.” She bit her lip to stop from saying what she was feeling. How much she’d miss him.
Chapter Nineteen
“You’re quiet this morning.” Tuck shifted the weight of the near seventy-or-so-pound pack on his back. The sound of his boots hitting the dirt in the dim morning light melded with those of the cadets ahead, and Logan’s beside him.
“Yup.” Logan’s one-word response had Tuck glancing sideways at him.
“Something wrong?”
“Nope.”
“All righty.” This was going to be one hell of a retreat if this conversation set the tone for the next two days.
Logan’s pace slowed. Not enough for the cadets hiking ahead of them to notice, but enough for Tuck to. There was no way Logan was winded. First, this walk was a piece of cake. Second, Logan would never fall out of a march, even if he were exhausted and near collapse. It would set a bad example for the cadets. His hanging back must mean he wanted privacy.
Tuck matched Logan’s slower stride as the distance between them and the line of cadets ahead increased. “What’s up?” he asked.
“You tell me.”
“Um, all right. Can you give me some direction as to what I’m supposed to be telling you?”
“Forget it.” Logan shook his head. “I shouldn’t even be fucking asking you this, because as your superior officer I truly don’t want to know if you’re openly flaunting the university’s fraternization rules.”
Tuck’s boot hit a loose rock on the path, and he stumbled before catching himself. This was about Becca? Both of his friends—Logan and Jace—needed to get a life if all they could do was worry about his. He let out a snort. “That rule is archaic, but even so, I’m not openly flaunting it, as you say.”
“What about behind closed doors?”
“Well . . .” Tuck tilted his head and grimaced. “You’re right. You’d better not ask if you don’t want to know.”
“Okay, I get the idea.”
“You disappointed in me?” He glanced sideways at Logan and kept walking.
“Hell, no.” Logan laughed. “I’d be disappointed in you if you let that opportunity pass you by. That’s me speaking as your friend and surrogate big brother. As your commander, however . . .”
“I know, I know. Let’s just keep it don’t ask, don’t tell.”
Logan let out a snort. “That former policy wasn’t instituted for this particular kind of situation, but I guess it’ll work. Just be careful. Okay? And that’s both your friend and your commander talking.”
“Understood.” Tuck nodded.
One of the kids up ahead slowed, then turned and waited for Logan and Tuck to catch up.
“Something I can do for you, cadet?”
“No, sir. I just wanted to thank the sergeant for the recommendation of that restaurant in Drumright. Me and a few of the other guys drove out there yesterday. You’re right. Best smoked bologna sandwich in Oklahoma.”
Tuck’s heart skipped. “Oh, good. Glad you liked it.”
“We loved it, sir. Were you there yesterday, too? I think we just missed you. I saw your truck pulling out right as we were pulling in.” The kid’s question sounded innocent enough, but Tuck still felt his pulse racing.
He tried to remember that they couldn’t have seen inside his truck if they weren’t sure it was him. His brain spun with the question, lie or tell the truth? Sticking as close to the truth as possible was always the best way to lie, so under the watchful eye of Logan—who had to be wondering what the hell was taking Tuck so long to respond to a simple question—he answered.
“Yeah, I was there. Had the bologna myself. Hush puppies, too. You ever try those?” He tried to swing the conversation away from his being there, and who might have possibly been in the truck with him, by concentrating on food, figuring about now the cadets should be starting to get hungry.
“Oh, yeah. I love those things. You ever try the big stack? That sandwich where they pile up all that brisket and sausage and coleslaw?”
Tuck nodded, relieved the kid seemed way more interested in beef than in Becca. “Yup. I’ve had it. Good stuff.”
Logan shot Tuck a look that said he knew there was more to the story, but they had put the don’t ask, don’t tell policy in place, so Tuck ignored it and let the kid keep babbling about barbecue. Silently though, he made a vow to himself he and Becca would start to be much more careful. From now on takeout only. Which, considering how much he enjoyed the time they spent alone together in her apartment, wouldn’t be a bad thing.
Thoughts of Becca occupied him throughout the rest of the march. Even through setting up the campsite. He kept how much she occupied his mind to himself. What choice did he have? Logan didn’t want to know. Correction, his friend Logan wanted to know. It was safer for all involved if his boss, battalion leader LTC Logan Hunt, didn’t know.
Stupid frigging non-fraternization rules.
As Tuck sat beside the campfire, he had too much time to think. Think about what it would be like between Becca and him if those rules didn’t exist. Then again, those rules he was beginning to despise might just save him. Those rules forced him to take things slow with Becca, at least as far as the public was concerned. They sure as hell hadn’t taken things slow in the bedroom.
But the deep scars from his ex-wife’s betrayal were just starting to heal, so it was better that the first woman he was interested in being with for more than a night since then couldn’t be his public girlfriend. That way if things went south, at least the public humiliation of the breakup would be eliminated. Not the private pain, though.
Maybe he should just stop all this thinking. He and Becca were having fun together. That was enough. For now.
As the sun dropped lower toward the horizon over Lake McMurtry, it turned the dim hues of blue in the sky to mottled streaks of pink and orange. Tuck took a sip of the hot coffee in his cup and thought how beautiful Becca would look in this light. How nice it would be to roll out his sleeping bag and make love to her right there on the ground next to the fire.
What the hell? He wasn’t supposed to be thinking of shit like this during an ROTC training while surrounded by the entire cadre.
He tore into his MRE. Maybe food would distract him. Nothing like one of Uncle Sam’s Meals-Ready-to-Eat to remind a man where he was and what he was doing.
This MRE was supposed to be a tasty Southwest style beef and black beans with sauce. At least that’s what the label on the package said. You could have fooled Tuck. He swallowed a mouthful and longed for a sandwich from Joseph’s Fine Foods.
The thought only made him more dissatisfied with his current meal and brought to mind Becca and the look on her face as she bit into her first ever hush puppy. That led to him thinking about how he couldn’t wait to see her again tomorrow night when he finally got home from this retreat. He could shower and then pick up some takeout and be at her house by dinnertime. He could sleep over so they’d have the whole night together and still be up early enough to work out with the cadets in the morning.
He stopped his fork halfway to his mouth when the ful
l impact of what he was thinking hit him. This thing with Becca was a slippery slope. He’d willingly spend every waking moment he could with her if that were possible. The last woman he’d felt this way about was now his ex-wife. The thought scared the shit out of him.
This OSU no dating rule wasn’t so bad after all. He lowered his gaze and lifted his fork, specifically not wondering whether Becca was noticing at that very moment how gorgeous tonight’s sunset was.
He tried to distract himself. Tomorrow’s repelling and climbing exercise should keep his mind occupied, even if today’s land navigation training course had not. Though he had a feeling it would take much more than basic survival training to knock thoughts of Becca from his brain. In fact, an actual insurgent attack like the ones he’d lived through in Afghanistan might not even do it at this point.
Chapter Twenty
Tuck’s cell phone rang just as the steam began to fill the bathroom from the hot water. The only thing that could tempt him to delay the pleasure of a much-needed shower after a two-day retreat would be Becca, and since he’d just gotten home and hadn’t talked to her yet, the call could very well be her.
He flipped the water off and reached for the phone lying on top of the heap of camouflage on the floor. The display spelled out LOGAN, and he nearly dumped the phone back onto the floor and let him wait. Logan had had him at his beck and call for the past two days. Why the hell was he bothering Tuck now when he’d just barely walked in the door? Couldn’t a man even take a shower in peace?
Hitting the button to answer, he decided to give Logan a piece of his mind. “Jeez, man. I just left you a few minutes ago. What could you possibly need—”
“I need you to get into my office. Now.” Logan, obviously in full commander mode, interrupted Tuck’s bitching.
Tuck let out a huff of air. Something must have happened with one of the cadets and Logan wanted Tuck to deal with it. They’d only had the juniors and seniors with them on the retreat. God only knew what kind of trouble the new crop of incoming freshmen and sophomores could have gotten into over the past two days while he was gone. “Fine. I’ll be there as soon as I shower.”
