Yes you do, the little voice in my head said.
I smiled at him. “Can we just talk for a little bit?”
Oh, geez what a girl thing to say!
He smiled at me with an amused look on his face. “Sure. You not in the mood for something else?”
“No it’s not that – trust me. Now that I know you want to stay with me, I thought we could maybe get to know each other. You know, since you’re staying over and all that. I mean, we have a lot of time for other stuff...”
He cut off my rambling. “You don’t need to explain, Cara. I don’t want this to be awkward between us. I like you a lot. I know we just met and everything, but there’s something about you that I’m drawn to.” He smiled and ran his hand up my thigh. “Aside from your sexy body.”
I blushed a little and looked away.
He stared at me and grinned. “Can I ask you something?”
“Okay,” I said cautiously.
“Uh, are you on some sort of birth control? I mean, I haven’t been using anything…” he trailed off.
I nodded and blushed. “Yes, been on the pill since Aiden was born. Irregular cycles and all that.”
He looked visibly relieved.
“Alrighty then. Do you want a drink?” I couldn’t take the awkwardness.
“Do you have beer?”
I shook my head. “You know what, I’m sorry, I don’t. I don’t drink it and don’t have visitors very often. I have some wine coolers and a couple of bottles of the hard stuff.”
“Surprise me.”
I nodded and walked to the kitchen, and I could feel his eyes on my back. I pulled open the high cabinet above the stove and pulled out a bottle of Jose Cuervo Gold tequila and two shot glasses. Thankfully I had a lime in my fridge and I sliced it in half. I put the items, along with my salt shaker, on a tray and carried it waitress style out to the living room. I twirled carefully and said, “Shots, anyone?”
He laughed as I set the tray down. “Shots, huh?”
“You said to surprise you.”
“Well, you did. Not that I’m shocked that you’re drinking tequila. I know how much you like it.” He gave me a wicked grin.
I shook my head and handed him his nearly full shot glass. I grabbed his free hand and licked the area between his thumb and forefinger, then tossed some salt on it. “Drink,” I commanded.
He slammed the shot back like a pro, then licked the salt off his hand while I handed him the lime. He earned points for not wincing at the shot.
“Your turn,” he said. He picked up my glass, handed it to me, then licked my hand. My heart raced a little as I watched his talented tongue lick it slowly. Then he shook some salt on it and told me to drink.
I pounded the drink back, definitely wincing at the taste, even letting out a shudder. I licked the salt and sucked on the lime. Then smiled. “That was awesome.”
“Let’s do it again,” he said.
I think he just wanted to lick me again.
***
We spent the remainder of the weekend in bed. It was quite amazing to me that he wanted to stay. But the longer I thought about it, I realized he really had nothing else going for him. Why would he want to stay in the cramped, smelly barracks when he could crash at my place? I tried to whip away the insecure thoughts and live in the moment. I was 26, newly divorced, and definitely did not want or need anything serious. Riley was fun, and I was going to enjoy it.
When early Sunday afternoon rolled around, I had just come out of the shower to find Riley lying lazily in my bed with his muscular arms behind his head, staring at the ceiling.
“A penny for your thoughts,” I said, toweling off my hair. I had another towel wrapped around me and was a bit embarrassed that he would see me in such a natural state, but I quickly flicked away those thoughts. It’s not as if he hadn’t seen me in more… vulnerable positions.
“Freshly showered, mmm,” he said, eyeing me from head to toe.
I shook my head and grinned shyly. “You’re crazy.”
I could see his expression in the mirror of the dresser. I was fishing through my underwear drawer and saw him studying me carefully. “So I guess it’s back to business tomorrow, right?” he asked.
I slid my white thong on under the towel and started brushing my hair out. “Today, actually. My son comes back tonight so I’m gonna have to drive you back in about an hour.”
He gave me a fake pout, then sat up, still looking at me. “Okay. Gonna use your shower, if that’s all right.”
“Of course.”
After he showered and I resisted the urge to lure him back into the bed, I drove him back to the barracks. We said our goodbyes in the car with his promise to call me during the week. I wasn’t holding my breath, but it would be nice.
As I drove the eight miles home, I thought about this cute soldier and wondered why I was so smitten by him so quickly. He was very good-looking, not to mention extremely charming, but he was nothing special. He was like all the other guys out there, so I was trying to figure out why he had managed to get under my skin so quickly. Maybe it was because I expected him to leave and he didn’t. Riley was a quiet guy. He didn’t gush over me with tons of compliments; in fact, they had been few and far between all weekend and I actually liked that. I wasn’t big on receiving compliments so it worked just fine for me. He was a good listener and attentive and aggressive in bed and there really wasn’t more I needed to analyze about him. If he called me, I’d definitely be game to see him again and we could have a fun summer until he returned to Colorado. If not, there were other fish in the sea.
Before I knew it, I was home and my ex’s pickup truck was just pulling up at the same time as me. I really couldn’t stand my ex after what he’d done, so I quickly got out of the car and grabbed Aiden as his dad set him on the ground outside his truck. I hugged him tight and kissed his little nose. “Hey, buddy.”
I looked at my ex and took the red Cars backpack from him. “Thanks.”
I turned and walked inside and closed the door behind me, kissing Aiden on the top of his auburn hair.
CHAPTER 6
I really hated Mondays, especially working at the stupid prison, but I had to do what I had to do. I had a son to take care of now, and I had to work. Not that I’d been a real big on being a stay-at-home-mom, but working fulltime with a kid is hard, especially by myself.
After a long workday, I was home and had just fed Aiden his dinner. I began running him a bath when I heard my phone chirp with an incoming text. I had just stripped Aiden out of his clothes and he took off running, naked and laughing. I chased him down and plunked him into the warm suds and went to grab my phone. I walked back into the bathroom to watch my son in the tub and looked at the phone. It was a text from a strange number:
I miss you already
I laughed and hoped it was Riley, as it occurred to me that I never got his number. I decided to have some fun.
Who is this? :)
It was a good five minutes before the next text and I started to stress a little.
I breathed a sigh of relief as I heard the phone chirp again, just as I was dumping water over Aiden’s head with a cup to rinse out the shampoo.
Your sexy soldier ;)
I laughed and replied: Well now I have your number. You can’t escape me now!
I hit send then realized that last text made me sound like a total stalker. Oh freakin’ well.
***
The following weekend I made plans with Miranda to go to Cowboys. Riley had “duty”, as he called it, telling me he was stuck in some tower with nothing but a gun, some binoculars, and his cell phone to keep him occupied. I purposely told him I was going out to see what he would do. Why I decided to play these games, I didn’t know. Guess I wanted to test his jealousy meter. He had told me to “have fun”… so I did.
Miranda and I spent the evening at Cowboys doing shots and drinking beer. About an hour after we got there, I felt my phone buzz in my pocket and saw a te
xt from Riley.
Having fun?
I had to make a decision on whether or not I was going to engage him in a text conversation, so I decided not to. Miranda was already giving me the stink-eye and had asked me a million questions on the 45 minute ride to the club.
“So I can’t believe that guy is still talking to you!” she said, while checking herself out in the rearview mirror.
I pulled a piece of lint from the thigh of my jeans. “Excuse me?” I replied in mock offense.
She laughed. “Come on, those types of guys usually don’t call again.”
“He’s probably bored. Think about it, he’s stuck here for months. What else does he have going on? He can’t be all that happy stuck in those barracks with no car. I have a car, and a house, and a super-hot body for him to play with. Of course he called.”
I barely got the last sentence out because I was laughing so hard. She was laughing, too. “All right, I see your point. Just don’t fall for the guy. Military guys are such players and cheaters!”
“You would know,” I snorted.
Miranda moved back here to the Bay Area four years ago, having spent two full years at U.C. San Diego, and had blown through more Marines and Navy guys than I could count. Okay, that’s not fair, I don’t know how many, but she had quite a few stories from Tijuana that I hoped her daughter never found out about when she got older. I did love hearing her stories, though, as I’d gotten married young and was stupid and never finished college.
I was knocked out of my reverie when a somewhat cute guy in a cowboy hat came up and asked me to dance. I accepted reluctantly, as it was a slow song and sometimes that could get a bit iffy in a club like this.
Sure enough, after some lame conversation and name exchanges, it didn’t take his hands long to find my ass and his mouth to find mine. I backed off when he tried to kiss me, as he reeked of alcohol and had too much cologne on. I excused myself mid-dance and went back where Miranda was leaning on the bar, talking to the female bartender.
“Ugh, gross,” I said.
She looked surprised. “That was fast, the song isn’t even over and he was cute.”
“He was nasty. Had his hands all over me. And get this, he said his name was Jack Nicholson. Can you believe that shit? Get real.”
She threw back her head and laughed, her long hair swishing down to her butt as she did. “Oh, my God. He should have just said Bradley Cooper or Channing Tatum, he would have gotten more play!”
“I know, right? Says his parents were big fans or something.”
The truth was, I couldn’t stop thinking about Riley. I knew it was stupid and dumb, but the guy sent seriously delicious shivers up my spine and made my stomach twirl with butterflies. I wasn’t about to tell Miranda that, though. I’d never hear the end of it.
I actually had forgotten about Riley’s text until that moment, so I slid my phone from my pocket and saw two more. Him asking me what I was doing and if I was ignoring him. Then I felt bad. He had to be bored silly.
I replied with a few nice texts, telling him we were bored, the club was dead, et cetera. Which was kind of a lie, but I knew it made him feel better.
We left after about two hours, and when I got home around midnight, Riley was sitting on my doorstep with a red rose in his hand and his overnight bag.
I couldn’t hide the shock on my face. He stood up and smiled, then picked me up and twirled me around, kissing me softly. He was in his BDUs and boots, and I almost fainted at how hot he looked.
I pulled away and said, “What are you doing here? I thought you had to work.”
He gave me a half grin and said, “I got Dan to cover me. But now I owe him.”
I looked down at his bag then back up at him. “How did you get here?”
He laughed and pointed to my carport. “With Dan’s car, of course. He has to work, what does he need it for?”
I shook my head. “Man, you must have some serious dirt on that guy!”
He almost choked when he spit out, “Uh, yeah, he got a blow job from a totally hot blonde. I don’t think his wife needs that information, do you?”
“Oh, my God. You are a bad, bad boy.” I unlocked the door, and after we were inside, I closed and locked it behind me.
Riley dropped his bag onto the floor and picked me up again. “I am a bad boy,” he whispered in my ear, dragging me to the bedroom.
He kissed me more eagerly there, running a hand through my hair and I wrapped my arms around his waist. He yanked the green tank top off over my head and broke the kiss, looking down at me. He then spun me around and gazed at my ass.
“Those are really nice jeans. But they must come off. Now.”
With that, he pushed me on the bed and I loved his aggressiveness. It was such a turn-on and something I hadn’t yet experienced. My ex was a total dud in bed and never took control. Riley peeled off my jeans and unbuttoned his BDU shirt, and it was then I noticed his last name: Forrester. I had never even thought to ask for it before. I tucked it away in the back of my mind. At least I had a last name to add into my phone’s address book now.
After dropping my jeans to the floor below, the majority of his uniform followed and he began running kisses up my leg and thigh, and I was secretly glad I had shaved that morning.
His tongue came out to play as he reached my lime green thong and he hooked a finger around them, pulling them to the side as he began to lick at the damp heat between my legs.
“Oh, Riley,” I groaned as my legs began to shake at what he was doing with his tongue. The boy had mastered the art of tongue play and I was glad to be a recipient of his talent.
He removed his tongue, then my panties, and slid his hands up over my taut stomach and strummed his fingers over my hard nipples. I reached down and stroked him with one hand as I stretched behind my head and held onto the iron bars of my headboard with the other. His warm tongue found my other nipple and a low groan made its way out of my throat. I removed my hand from his member and reached around and caressed his rock-hard ass. His mouth moved more aggressively around my breasts and suddenly he was inside me, stroking himself in and out until an explosive orgasm ripped through my body and made every hair stand on end.
“Oh, Riley… you feel so good,” I breathed into his ear.
“That’s it, sexy. Come all over me.”
I felt another one begin to build and he reached down and kissed me hard on the mouth while his hand stroked my face, my neck, my hair. He ran kisses up my neck and when his tongue lightly snaked into my ear, I began to feel my body shudder with pleasure as another wave hit me and I dug my fingernails into his back. At the same time, Riley stopped his movements and lost himself inside of me with a moan.
We stayed that way, kissing more as he smoothed my hair back from my face as he smiled down at me. I was very sleepy now, and as he rolled to his side, he flipped me over and spooned me once again. I fell asleep feeling very safe and sated.
The morning came quickly and I woke up as happy as I had been when I fell asleep the night before.
We both dressed and decided we’d go to the local art and wine festival that was happening in town. As we walked around the different booths and displays, Riley held my hand the entire time, occasionally looking over at me and smiling. It made my stomach lurch with nerves. When he looked into my eyes, I held my breath. Why was this beautiful soldier boy so into me? As I realized I had been staring at him a little too long, he called my attention to a booth selling homemade dips and crackers.
“I love this stuff,” he said, sampling some of the dips. “Let’s get some and make it later when we get to your house.”
I nodded, smiling at him. “Sure. I love this stuff, too.”
We picked out three packets of dips and bought a bag of the homemade pita chips and began walking again. I grinned to myself how excited he was over something so simple. I wondered if he did these things back home.
“So, uh, who do you hang out with back home? I mean, aside from you
r wife and girlfriend?”
He looked at me shocked until he could see the teasing on my face. “Quit it. I’ve told you I am not with anyone. I’m divorced. No girlfriend.” We stopped walking and he placed both hands on my face. He leaned down and kissed me softly right in the middle of the street fair, people milling back and forth around us. But I didn’t notice. I saw stars behind my closed lids and the entire world seemed to spin around us then disappear as he kissed me. I never wanted it to stop.
We spent most of the day at the festival, and as we drove by the amphitheater on our way home, he made a comment about the upcoming rodeo the following weekend.
“Oh! We have to go to the rodeo,” he said, pointing at the marquis.
I rolled my eyes and groaned. “Seriously? You pollute my radio with country music, now you want to drag me to a rodeo?”
He laughed. “Excuse me, who was at Cowboys last night?”
“That’s different,” I said. “We only go there because we know there aren’t any thugs and gangsters that hang out there. They love Miranda too much, with her L.A. face and her Oakland bootie.”
He burst out laughing and shook his head. “Seriously? Well, I guess I could see that. Come on, it’ll be fun.”
I couldn’t resist his crooked grin so I said, “Okay. But you’re not gonna make me wear a cowboy hat, are you?”
“Only in bed, naked,” he growled.
CHAPTER 7
The following weekend, Aiden was with his dad for Father’s day weekend so Riley and I had the whole weekend to ourselves. I was grateful last weekend when Riley had to go back into work Sunday morning because I really didn’t want him to meet Aiden. Even though he was only two, I had made myself a promise when I got divorced that my son wasn’t going to see me with a bunch of different guys. Miranda and I had a mutual friend who was also a single mom to a slightly older boy and we felt sorry for him, as his mom dated a lot and she always introduced him to her dates. We agreed that it confused the poor kid and we said we wouldn’t do that to our kids. Not that I had dated a lot, but I definitely wasn’t introducing Aiden to any guy unless it was serious. And things definitely were not serious with Riley, especially since he’d be gone in about three months’ time. It was just a summer fling and I was going to have fun with it while it lasted.
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