Conquered in Cancun

by KaLyn Cooper

  He put his hand over hers, wanting to detain it…and retain her warmth. “I’m fine, now.” He truly was. He liked what he did these days. It was easy, and he made good money. Damn good money.

  “Did you…did you crash?” Caroline barely spoke the words. It was every pilot’s nightmare and greatest fear.

  “No. I didn’t even have to set the helo down. We were already on the ground when attacked.”

  Caroline’s eyes went wide, white surrounding the deep brown of her irises. “What the hell?”

  He hadn’t told anyone the whole story, except Commander Josh “Madman” Madden, CO of SEAL Team 4, who had grilled him extensively while he was in the ship’s sick bay. Not one of Luke’s better days. He’d been warned not to discuss it with anyone.

  But Caroline had top-secret clearance, and she would never tell.

  “Most of the op will be classified forever, so don’t ask where,” Luke began. “We were picking up eight at the same LZ we had dropped off six the night before. Two were in bad shape, and one of the SEALs had been injured during the raid and rescue. They were moving slower than expected, so they weren’t going to make the preset extraction time. We were pretty far from the ship, so we set her down to save fuel. It was in the middle of bumfuck nowhere, so we didn’t encounter any problems landing.”

  Luke had to move. He couldn’t stand there and look into those gentle brown eyes and tell her the horrors that unfolded next. He spun her around and started down the beach.

  “They attacked you?” Caroline prodded.

  “Yeah. About two hours after we shut down. I was flying co-pilot, so the crew chief and I were guarding the helicopter. We needed to conserve fuel, so we only brought one chief.” He didn’t need to tell her that, per standard operating procedures, the pilot remained inside. “I heard noises in the woods. I thought maybe the SEAL team had made it a few minutes early. They were heavily pursued, so we were on radio silence until they got close.”

  The memory chilled Luke to his core. “Through my NOGs, I saw several bodies moving toward us from every direction. Chief Jones had seen them too.”

  Luke drew in a ragged breath. As he and Caroline strolled through the warm, ankle-deep sand, his body was on autopilot because his eyes were focused on a dark humid night in his past.

  “I pegged the SEALs immediately. They were the farthest out, and those guys all move alike. Stealthy, knees bent, careful of their step, yet they’re always looking around. Two other groups of three were just ahead of them on either side. They were carrying automatic weapons with ease and moved like they’d had some training, nothing like our guys, though. Then there was a third group of what we later discovered were local men who’d seen us land but not take off.”

  This was where it got tough. He ran his free hand over his face, but nothing would ever wash away the memory. “There was this kid,” he choked out. “Just a boy.”

  “Luke.” Caroline squeezed his hand. “You don’t have to—”

  “Yeah, I do.” He brought their clasped hands to his lips and kissed the back of hers. “The shrink said it was good for me to talk about it rather than hold it in. But I couldn’t bring myself to tell him about it. I can talk to you. You’ve always understood me.”

  His steps deepened as he became more determined to get through the next part. “It started to sprinkle rain, the light kind that warned you that the real sheets were on the way. I checked the SEALs, and they’d picked up the pace. They knew we’d want to get airborne before it got bad.”

  Luke glanced toward the water, where the edge was foaming from unseen whitecaps that were building out at sea under the impending Caribbean storm. They should head to shelter.

  “I’m here for you, Luke.” Her encouraging words sent him back to that night.

  “The locals broke through the tree line first. The bad guys opened fire, and it all went to hell from there.”

  His mind replayed the way the small body had crumpled to the ground and the man beside the boy dove on top of him. Another man spun before he toppled over. The others flattened themselves in the low grass of the small meadow.

  Hate swelled deep within Luke, just as it always did when he relived those first few minutes of that firefight.

  He forced air into his lungs. “I used my MP5 submachine gun to take out as many bad guys as I could.” He paused for a long minute. “But it wasn’t enough.”

  Take a breath, son. It’s all right. His uncle’s baritone voice resounded in his head. Luke inhaled to the count of three and exhaled counting to five, the way his uncle had taught him to get his rampant emotions under control as a teenager.

  Finally harnessing his anger, he continued. “The SEALs had split up. Some stayed with the injured while the others went on the attack. I had to quit shooting because I couldn’t tell the good guys from the bad through the night vision goggles. Fuck, Caroline, it seemed to last forever. Bullets flew in every direction, and all I could do was hunker down under the helicopter and watch.”

  He shook his head in disgust with himself and his actions. “Then two men ran to the helicopter. I couldn’t tell. I just couldn’t tell if they were good guys or bad guys. One pried the door open and yanked out Sharkie—Lieutenant Stark, the pilot—and slit his throat. The other shot the chief then slid like a batter into first base next to me. I wasn’t fast enough. He cut me.” Automatically, Luke touched the scar on his hip. Thankfully he’d rolled just in time to aim his gun.

  “I killed him.” Luke might never be sure if he scrambled out from under the helicopter to get away from the bleeding man or if it was to attack the one who’d tried to steal his bird. All he remembered was anger mixed with fear and revulsion.

  “I yanked the other guy away from the door, and he shot me.”

  “Oh my God!” Caroline stepped in front of him again, forcing him to stop. She took him in her arms and just held him.

  Damn, that felt good. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d simply held on to someone for sheer moral support.

  The temperature had dropped, and the wind had picked up even more, but mostly it was Luke’s chilling memories that contrasted with the warmth of Caroline’s body against his. It felt as though he’d been dumped in the frigid Alaskan Current and she had rescued him, willing to share her body heat to revive him.

  She even felt wet.

  The storm had arrived.

  They stood for long minutes with the wind whipping around them. The rain increased in intensity until it was pouring.

  Neither moved.

  “Luke.” Her warm breath caressed his ear.

  “Yes, Caroline?”

  “It’s raining. I think we should find shelter.”

  Luke opened his eyes. Long silvery raindrops, backlit by the landscape lights of a nearby resort, reflected like Christmas tree tinsel. He ran a hand over her soaked hair then pushed dripping strands from solemn eyes.

  “I’m willing to stand here as long as you need me, but we could continue this under that dry palapa over there.” She nodded to the thatched-roof beach hut thirty feet away.

  “You’re right.”

  Hand in hand, they ran to cover.

  To each other.

  Chapter Three

  He’d been shot.

  And stabbed.

  Caroline tried to wrap her mind around that thought as they stepped under the dry palapa.

  She glanced at the queen-sized bed, thankful the condo complex behind them had been considerate enough to place clean sheets on it before the maids left for the day. Watching the pastel colors of sunset and star gazing was extremely popular with vacationers, although most didn’t use the beach huts during a downpour.

  Caroline was glad for the privacy the rain had provided.

  She was soaked to the bone but, if given the choice, wouldn’t have changed a moment of holding Luke. He had needed her, and truth be told, she needed him.

  Her life was at a major intersection, and the busload of problems she’d left in San Die
go was barreling down upon her. She had to make some serious decisions before she returned to the base.

  But right now, all she wanted was to forget about her situation and lose herself. She hadn’t had enough tequila to anesthetize her brain and turn off the worries, even for a short time.

  The mattress shifted beside her as Luke sat down. He raked all ten fingers through his long sandy hair shoving it back to drip onto his collar. He wasn’t what some would call handsome with a high brow and sharp nose, but that sexy square jaw, now covered by reddish-gold stubble certainly made her stomach flip. He always had.

  She had thought of him as Thor’s forgotten son. Although, in flight school, he hadn’t exactly been a god in bed, neither of them had ever left the sheets unsatisfied. In retrospect, she hadn’t been experienced either. She mentally grinned at how much she’d learned since those days. Her brain created a checklist of positions and toys she and Luke could try.

  He could make her forget all her problems for a few hours as they concentrated on taking each other to new sexual heights. She could show him what he missed then leave him hanging on to nothing but memories.

  No. He didn’t deserve to be treated that way. No one did.

  She could admit to herself, finally, that what they’d shared before was decidedly only sex. They hadn’t been in love. They’d been friends. Study buddies.

  She’d been the one to take it further. Starting with a thank-you hug after a particularly tough section on aerodynamics, their physical contact had increased for weeks. They’d kept it friendly, though, at her insistence.

  The day her instructor had allowed her to practice touch and goes, practicing landing and takeoff, she’d immediately gone to his room in the bachelor officers’ quarters. In her excitement, and while sliding off the adrenalin high, she’d thrown herself at him. And Luke had caught her. Their first passionate kisses had led to his bed and sexual release. Neither had been experienced lovers, nor were they virgins. Sex with Luke had been a safe release. And that’s what she needed now.

  Caroline had been the one to set the sex-only stipulation because she hadn’t wanted the responsibilities of emotional ties. The washout rate in flight school was extremely high, and she was never going to fail at flying. Determination to beat her father’s success in the air pushed her through every class and each flight.

  Blaming Luke for walking away when he had the opportunity to move on to someone better than the shy, rather naive girl she’d been back then was sophomoric. His choice to move on sexually had hurt, but nowhere as much as his decision to turn his back on their friendship.

  He had apologized, and that was a good start. He’d opened up to her once again, and she ached for what he’d gone through. Flying for the Navy had been more than a goal for him, it had been everything he’d ever wanted. Now, that had been taken away from him.

  “How bad… Where were you hit?” she managed to ask.

  “Thigh.” His hand automatically dropped to his shorts, and he pulled the hem to show the scar halfway up his right thigh. “There was some muscle damage when they removed the bullet, so they kicked me out of the Navy with a medical discharge and gave me a thirty percent veteran’s disability.”

  Caroline traced the thick, ragged white lines with her fingertips. She stared at her hand on his muscular, bare thigh. “Does it still hurt?”

  “Not at all when you touch me like that.” His voice was raspy and low. “Caroline.” He reached out and cupped her face in both hands. Slowly, he leaned in and placed his lips on hers.

  Warmth spread through her whole body. Home. It was as if she’d just arrived at her house after a long, arduous trip, familiarity banishing the weariness of travels and time. Caroline had been on a four-year journey and had returned to Luke’s embrace.

  She was lost. All resolve to resist this man vanished as he laid her back onto the ocean-side bed. This was exactly what she wanted. Needed.

  The sound of pounding rain was drowned out in the focus of their quiet sighs as the years were stripped away with every kiss, each caress. Once again, she was being held by Luke, sinking in the power he had over her.

  “Oh, Caroline.” He placed small kisses up her jaw line to her ear then nipped at the lobe before he followed the outer shell with the tip of his tongue. “I missed you.”

  Shivers ran through her body as heat collected between her legs. He had remembered what she liked. A small smile blossomed within her. He’d remembered her.

  Starting under her ear, he gently nipped a line down her throat to her collarbone, soothing each love bite with a kiss. He unhooked her halter-top at the back of her neck and slowly pulled it down, revealing pert nipples. Leaning on one elbow, he stared at her naked breasts.

  She wanted to cover herself, but she craved his mouth more. She had always loved the way he worshiped her body with his hands, his mouth, and his tongue.

  He continued to stare at her breasts as her chest rose and fell rapidly.

  “You are so beautiful.”

  The moist heat of Luke’s words was a balm to her soul. He took one nipple in his mouth and the other in his hand. His fingers flicked as his talented tongue mimicked on the other side. When he drew her deep into his mouth and sucked, his hand gently cupped her other breast and tugged on the nipple with his fingers.

  Oh. My. God. Caroline thought her brain was going to explode in ecstasy. She was so close to coming. She hadn’t even touched him, shown him any pleasure yet.

  Caroline pulled his head away from her body and looked into those amazing blue eyes. They were barely visible in the muted light filtered through heavy raindrops, but she saw the passion lost to her for too many years. Quickly, it was replaced by unspoken questions.

  “I’m so close, and I want you inside me when—”

  Luke pushed up, rising above her and kissed her fiercely, diving into her mouth in the rhythm she desired for their bodies to mimic. She arched her hips upward and met his erection in the same beat as the thrusts of his tongue.

  She tore her lips from his, gasping for breath. “Now. Please, Luke.”

  He leaped off the bed and whipped his shirt over his head. Digging in his shorts, he came up with a condom.

  And stopped.

  He stared into her eyes. “Are you…sure you…want—”

  “Yes. I’m sure I want you inside me. Now.” And if you don’t hurry up, I’m going to yank those shorts off you and jump your body.

  He glanced at the light rain that no longer hid them from the wall of patio and balcony doors a hundred feet away. His gaze darted to the four corners of the palapa and along the supporting beams.

  Then he smiled. “We need some privacy.” Starting with the side facing the condos, he reached to the connecting beams and untied the rolled side curtains. “Gotta love the designers of The Palace Resort. They thought of everything.”

  “Is that where we are?” Caroline didn’t really care, as long as Luke hurried with enveloping them in much-needed privacy. Tying the curtains to the posts seemed to take forever.

  Luke shucked off his shorts—taking his gray boxer briefs with them. He quickly sheathed himself. From the bottom of the bed, he crawled onto the thick mattress like a panther stalking its prey. His sleek body stretched, revealing toned arms, shoulders, and chest muscles.

  He’d always been in great shape, but this body was so much…more. More muscle. More tan. More man. He was completely comfortable in his nakedness. Caroline couldn’t miss the extraordinary erection that stood straight and hard. She had done that to him, excited him to the point where his cock bounced with every rapid heartbeat.

  “Now, where was I?” The roughness in his voice sent a rush of damp heat through her core straight to her center.

  He spread her feet apart and kneeled between her outstretched legs. “I think I’ll start here.” He dragged his fingers up the inside of one leg then skipped over the apex barely covered by the dress and drew them down the other leg. Reversing, teasing those heightened nerves,
he used both hands and started at her ankles, slowly pulling his fingers up her legs. He swiped lightly under her knees and electrified her whole body.

  “Oh God, Luke.” It was a plea. A prayer. A demand for more.

  “Right here, Caroline.” His smile was a bright slash in the dark shadows of their lair. “Tell me what you want.”

  “I want… Do it again, but don’t skip the good stuff this time.”

  Where had that little demand come from? She didn’t know, but she liked it. She was able to be free with Luke, more herself. She’d been trained in leadership, but she’d never before allowed herself to take a commanding role, especially in bed. But in this time, in this place, it felt right. Safe with Luke.

  He moved his hands up her bare legs so slowly she wanted to scream. When he reached the hem of her dress, he slid long fingers under the cloth but stopped just short of where she wanted him. He went all the way back down to her ankles and started the unhurried march once again. Next time he reached the hem, he lifted his hands and passed them over the material to her bare belly. Curling fingers around the remaining cloth, he ordered, “Lift up so we can get rid of this.”

  She arched her hips. He took the dress and panties with one smooth move, tossing them both to the end of the bed near his shorts. He bent within an inch of her trimmed landing strip of black curls. The heat of his rapid breath on her sex made her want to beg.

  Luke inhaled a deliberate, deep breath then closed his eyes as if to savor. “Never get enough of that scent. My aroused Caroline. Did I ever tell you how much I enjoy licking you?”

  “No.” The one word was all she could say because her body remembered how much it appreciated the way he’d used his mouth on her. A flood of passion released directly under his breath, soaking her.

  “Oh, yeah, I know you like it.”

  Luke dropped his face and swiped his hot tongue the length of her slit before parting it with his fingers. He licked and sucked her clitoris the way she liked, with quick flicks of the tip of his tongue, followed by laving strokes.