Not A Hero: A Bad Boy Marine Romance

by Sarah Robinson

  Her heart pounded in her chest as the overwhelming emotions passed through her body in waves, and she conveyed every bit of that into their kiss.

  “Fuck, Zo.” Miles moaned against her lips. “I was right.”

  She smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck, beginning to move her hips up and down on top of him. This was more than just flesh meeting flesh. This was more than the growing pleasuring tingling throughout her body each time he filled her. This was more than sex—it was making love.

  Miles was making love with her.

  The sensation was overwhelming, and her heart was certain to burst as their hips met again and again and again until he clutched her tighter against him. He broke their kiss, pressing his face in the crook of her neck instead, his teeth sinking into her skin as he growled. He buried himself as deeply as he could before she felt his release.

  She stayed frozen in place under his firm hands as he shook and trembled, relishing in the beauty of this large man breaking apart beneath her. His face was shattered, his eyes soft, and she knew the dreams that had plagued him were far from his mind.

  Smiling, Zoe kissed a line from the top of his jaw down to his cheek, before settling on his lips again. Slow, gentle kisses brought him back to life as he relaxed from his climax and turned his attention back to her.

  “Thank you,” he whispered against her lips. “You don’t know how much this meant to me.”

  She stroked her hands through his hair, kissing him again. “I could say the same thing, you know.” And it was the truth. He’d opened a part of her heart she’d thought was forever closed with his vulnerability. He’d trusted her, and she’d warmed with him in more ways than one.

  Still seated, with her in his lap facing him, he slid his hand between their bodies where they remained joined.

  “Miles, you don’t have to,” she said, dropping her head to his shoulder at the explosion inside her when his thumb touched her most sensitive spot.

  “I want to. No, I need to,” he whispered into her ear. “I need to feel you unravel around me.”

  She groaned against his skin, her body tightening with each stroke of his fingers. She felt his length hardening inside her once more, and the combination was blissful agony.

  “Miles,” she breathed. “Oh, God.”

  “Come for me, baby.” His thumb pressed harder against her bundle of nerves, making small circular motions, moving faster and faster as he thrust in and out of her.

  Their lips found each other again, pressing together tightly, fervently. She wound her arms around his neck as he brought her to the edge and pushed her over. Her body shook and trembled as sparks flew behind her closed eyelids, waves of passion slamming through her as she went rigid against him.

  Miles growled against her lips. “Just like that, Zoe. Fuck, you’re coming so hard, baby.”

  He grabbed her hips, practically slamming himself into her as he ground his pelvis against the spot where his thumb had just been.

  Every part of her burst into a million little pieces at the movement, and her heart soared as she felt him release inside her once more.

  Bodies plastered together, chests heaving, the pair stayed frozen in place as they tried to calm themselves. The rush of both pleasure and emotion completely overwhelmed her, and she was grateful he kept his arms around her because she was certain she’d lost all control of her limbs.

  When they finally came apart, he laid her down on the mattress before getting out of bed and disposing of the condom. Her head lulled to the side, watching him clean up. His naked back was illuminated in the moonlight, and all she wanted was to have her hands on it again.

  Every part of him was pure muscle—rock hard and unapologetic. A tattoo she’d never seen before sprawled across his back, an eagle reminiscent of the one on the Marines’ emblem, wings spread wide across his shoulder blades.

  There were scars, too—a lot of scars—and her heart shattered at the thought of him in pain. He looked like a man who’d been to battle, but a man who’d won a war. When he faced her again, he caught her ogling him.

  Heat bloomed in her cheeks.

  “Are you checking me out?” he teased, crawling back under the covers with her.

  Zoe did her best to look innocent. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Mhm, sure.” She could tell he wasn’t buying it for a second. Draping an arm over her waist, he cuddled into her side and nuzzled her hair with his face.

  Zoe ran her fingers gently up and down his arm in small caresses, as sleep began to pull at her. She nibbled the edge of her lip, wondering whether she should return to her room. They hadn’t discussed what tonight meant, and for all she knew, he could have wanted sex and nothing else.

  But it didn’t feel like nothing. It had felt like so much more, like an attraction that had always been there had finally been explored, only to find their souls recognized each other. They matched, and her heart was overwhelmed, her mind terrified.

  Swallowing her nerves, she glanced sideways at him. “Should I go back to my room? I know you must be tired.”

  “Don’t you dare,” he said without even a second’s hesitation. Then his voice softened, and he sighed with a sadness that pulled at her. “Please. Stay.”

  Her lips tilted into a small smile and she intertwined her fingers with his. Her eyes fluttered closed, and her body relaxed. “Okay. I’ll stay.”

  16

  She’s so damn beautiful. Miles gently brushed a stray tendril of hair from her face. Zoe was still asleep, and somehow they had ended up with him on his back and her head on his chest, her one leg and arm stretched out across him. Every part of her was clinging to him, and he loved it.

  Which was surprising in itself because he’d fought this happening. He’d pushed her away at every opportunity and had been warned to stay away from her more than once.

  Being with her now? It felt selfish.

  But when he’d woken up and found her—literally—in his bed, he couldn’t find a single reason to turn her away. She fit like she’d always been meant to be there, and he was tired, damn tired, of trying to ignore that fact.

  He’d never been the type to spend the night with a woman or date seriously. In the Marines, he was always going, going, gone. There had been no point in trying to form an attachment with anyone. It was the same reason he’d only ever dated casually before the Marines too, since he knew the moment he graduated high school, he was out of there.

  Things were different now, and yet, it didn’t feel different. It felt natural. He was starting a job in a field he loved. He was in his home with the family and friends he loved, and now he was with a woman who he…could possibly…one day…love.

  And that wasn’t scary either.

  Sure, it wasn’t love yet—that would take time. It was infatuation, intoxication, a deep-rooted need to be around her, and only her, he’d never felt before.

  He’d certainly found her beautiful in the weeks he’d known her, and he’d definitely grown to admire how kind and caring she was, how wonderfully she took care of his father, and how attentive she was to the needs of everyone around her. But he’d also grown to depend on her. To want to see her when he came in the door, and to know she was there while he was away.

  He needed her there, with him, and he didn’t see any signs of that changing. He was tired of fighting it. He was in this now, and he wasn’t looking back.

  It meant so much to him that she’d come to check on him last night, and then given herself to him, her only thought to help him. His heart swelled at the memory, and it made him want to give back to her just as much as her very presence had given him.

  Plus, the sex? Damn. Books would be written about their sex. Poems would be penned of the way he’d felt when he was pressed against her…inside her…kissing her.

  She was perfect, and she fit. Not just physically, but in some deeper sense he couldn’t quite pinpoint.

  He touched his fingertips to her cheek, tr
acing a line softly down to her chin, then down her neck. Moving across her collarbone, he followed it out to her shoulder before sweeping his fingers down her arm to the inside of his wrist.

  He made the tiniest heart shape against her flesh with his index finger before chuckling at himself for acting like a dumb, lovesick puppy.

  That wasn’t him. I think.

  “What’s so funny?” Zoe asked in a sleepy voice, stretching her body out as she blinked her eyes awake.

  He hid his smile quickly. “Nothing.”

  She lifted one brow, peering up at him. “Must have been something.” Her eyes suddenly widened and she sat up straight. “Oh, my gosh, please tell me I didn’t do something embarrassing while I was asleep. I’ll die.”

  Miles laughed loudly, then pulled her by her arm back down on the bed. He didn’t miss the fact that her breasts were now uncovered from the sheets, and only inches away from him. “You didn’t do anything, Zo. I promise. I’ve never seen anyone sleep as gracefully as you in my life.”

  She rolled her eyes and pulled the sheets back up, shivering slightly. “You lie.”

  “To you? Never.” He peppered her cheek with loud kisses before finding her lips and turning more serious.

  She moaned against his lips and he dipped his tongue between them, devouring every inch of her mouth as his hand cupped her face.

  Maneuvering his body until he was over her, pinning her to the mattress, he kissed down her neck. Small nips, kisses, and licks as his mouth traveled down to her collarbone, then her breasts. She squirmed beneath him as he took a nipple into his mouth, sucking gently on one, while his fingers played with the other. He alternated between soft caresses and hard tugs as he pulled her nipples deeper into his mouth.

  “Oh. My. God.” Zoe moaned.

  When her squirming became faster, he stopped. Her nipple popped out of his mouth, and he blew cold air across it, causing her entire body to shudder at the sensation. He continued moving south, leaving a soft trail of kisses down her stomach and to her pelvis before he pushed her knees apart and positioned himself between her legs.

  She propped herself up on her elbows, looking down at him. “What are you doing?” she gasped.

  Miles chuckled, dragging a finger gently across her slit.

  Her body jolted at the contact and she gasped louder. “I’ve never, I mean, no man has ever…” Her face flushed deep red, and he furrowed his brows.

  “Never? But you were married.” All he’d thought about since he woke up this morning was tasting her, diving his tongue between her folds and drinking his fill. He couldn’t imagine any man would be stupid enough to have missed the opportunity, but he marked it down in his head as another reason in a long list of reasons to hate Rusty.

  “I know,” she said, looking away. “He never wanted to.”

  “He’s a fucking idiot,” Miles cursed. “Lay back, baby. Let me show you how a real man treats a woman.”

  Zoe swallowed hard, then finally she nodded, and a shy smile reached her lips before she dropped her elbows and let her head fall back against the pillow. She spread her knees wider, letting him see her—all of her.

  Miles tucked his arms under her thighs, gripping her ass and pulling her closer to him as he blew a soft breath across her womanhood—beautiful and open, and just for him. She tried to inch away, but he held her tighter as he dipped his chin and trailed his tongue from her center to her clit.

  She nearly exploded off the bed, sharply inhaling.

  He didn’t let go, repeating the action—harder this time. His mouth formed a circle around her clit, sucking intently as his tongue flickered over the tip.

  Zoe shrieked, her legs shaking against the sides of his head.

  Miles chuckled and looked up at her. “Babe, you gotta stay quiet.” God forbid his father hear them.

  Hazy eyes stared back at him, her chest heaving as she nodded, putting a hand over her own mouth.

  He dropped his head back between her legs, going back to flicking his tongue across her clit then sucking hard. She moaned again, but it was muffled this time, and he couldn’t help but smile.

  When she lifted her hips to be closer to him, he dipped his tongue inside her folds, reveling in her sweet taste. Pulling out, he flattened his tongue and slid it across her length before dipping back down inside her.

  She shook and shuddered, muffled moaning and gasps every few minutes as he continued to devour her.

  Needing more, needing to feel her squeeze against him, and taste her orgasm, he let go of one thigh and brought his hand to join his tongue. His lips surrounded her clit, sucking it into his mouth and flicking his tongue back and forth across the tip, while his finger plunged inside her. He felt her pulsing around him, moving her hips in rhythm with his hand as he quickly added a second finger.

  “Oh, my God, Miles,” she said, her voice strained as her insides tightened around his fingers. “I’m going to come. Oh, my God!”

  “Come, baby,” he growled. “Now.”

  She turned her face into the pillow, her screams muffled by the fabric as she pulsed and squeezed around his fingers thrusting in and out of her. He picked up the speed, and sucked harder on her clit, flicking his tongue faster and faster until her body was shaking and her hips had lifted completely off the bed.

  She froze completely, her insides the only part of her still pulsing, but he didn’t stop. Zoe exploded against his mouth and he traded his fingers for his tongue, lapping up everything she offered. Softening his strokes, his tongue gently caressed her center until she began to push him away.

  “I can’t…no more…I swear to God, I’m dying right now,” she said, breathy and exhausted as she pulled him back up her body.

  He grinned wickedly before rolling to her side and pulling her against him. “Well, I’d hate to kill you, so I guess we’re never doing that again.”

  She whipped her hand out and smacked his chest. “Don’t you dare!”

  Miles laughed, and reached a hand to his forehead, doing a military salute. “My pleasure, ma’am.”

  Because, damn, it had definitely been his pleasure.

  17

  “Why are you sitting like that?” Walter asked her.

  Zoe looked up from the chart she was writing in, having pushed aside her dinner for a moment to finish logging Walter’s evening medications. “Like what?”

  “Like you’re in pain,” he replied, frowning at her from where he sat caddy corner from her at the kitchen table, a big plate of lasagna she’d made in front of him.

  Miles coughed across the table from her, nearly choking on the bite of lasagna he’d just taken. “Yeah, Zoe, why are you sitting like that?”

  Zoe narrowed her eyes at him, since he knew exactly why she was sitting angled to the side, her butt not directly on the seat. Secret relationships had their downside—one of those being it was impossible for her to explain that she’d been having insane sex every night for two weeks straight and her nether regions felt like they’d been to war and back.

  Ironic, since a Marine had been involved.

  Totally worth it though. Zoe smiled innocently across the table. “Oh, I just sit like this sometimes. It’s comfortable.”

  Walter shrugged, oblivious. “Suit yourself. This lasagna is great—good job.”

  “Thanks,” she replied, shooting Miles a smug look. His smile hadn’t faded but he did look slightly disappointed she’d so easily gotten out of his setup.

  “So, the VillageFest is this weekend,” Walter continued. “You two going?”

  “What? No, we’re not together,” Zoe sputtered out quickly, surprised.

  Walter looked at her like she’d just dunked her face in the lasagna and was wearing it as makeup. “Um, I meant, are you going? Doesn’t have to be together.”

  “Oh, right.” Zoe swallowed hard, daring a quick side-glance at Miles who looked like he was trying his hardest to keep from laughing out loud. “Um, yeah, I might go.”

  “Good.” Walter
nodded and turned to Miles, whose face quickly went blank. “You’re going, right? You’ve gotta go with the award and all. I can’t believe I had to hear about it from Tobin and not you. I’m so damn proud, I could burst!”

  “Award?” Zoe asked.

  “Yeah, I’m going.” Miles sighed. “They’re naming Tobin and I as honored guests. Sorry I didn’t tell you, Dad. I didn’t think it was a big deal.”

  “It’s a huge deal!” Walter said proudly. “My boy, the town hero. You deserve it, Kydd.”

  Zoe didn’t miss the way Miles ground his teeth at the very mention. She wasn’t sure why he was so set against any sort of recognition for serving his country, but she did her best to respect his wishes. “Well, that is fantastic. Congratulations, Miles!”

  “Zoe was actually on to something there,” Walter continued. “You two should go together.”

  “What?” Now it was Miles’s turn to sound surprised.

  “It’d be good for you to have a date,” Walter explained to Miles. “Tobin was by the other day and told me about the ceremony they’re having there, and he was saying his girlfriend had friends she was going to hook you up with.”

  Zoe felt a tightness in her stomach at the very idea of Miles with any other girl. Sure, they’d never defined exactly what they were, or said anything about not dating other people, but they spent every night in his bed. It wasn’t all sex either, they talked for hours about everything and nothing. They reminisced about high school and growing up in Slipwick. He shared more details about his time in the service, albeit nothing explicit. She told him about nursing school and her life before working for his father. She hadn’t told him everything of course, but she would. Soon.

  The connection was there, and she knew he felt it too.

  “So, what? You don’t want me meeting Bianca’s friends?” Miles asked his father.

  “God, no!” Walter exclaimed. “That’s why it would be perfect if you brought a date, like you were off the market. I love Tobin like a son, but the woman he’s dating scares the shit out of me. If her friends are anything like her, well, I refuse to have that for a daughter-in-law.”