by Cora Seton
“What are you doing?” Ella leaned over the railing.
“Running with Dan so you’ll keep your eyes where they’re meant to be—on me!”
Ella laughed. “If you run naked around the Hall, I will definitely ogle you, honey!”
“Well, hell,” Mason said. “I guess that means I better join them.” He raced down the steps, too, followed by John and Rafe.
Regan put two fingers in her mouth and let out a wolf whistle that brought everyone to a halt. “Bet you didn’t even know I could do that,” she said to Mason.
“I didn’t. That’ll come handy when it’s time to move the cattle.”
Sarah laughed along with the others, but she couldn’t take her eyes off of Dan as he stripped off his shirt and got to work on his jeans. She’d known he’d be built under his winter gear, but the muscles carving his bare chest were breathtaking, as were the bulges that formed his biceps. No amount of training would give her biceps like that—not even with steroids, which she would never touch. She was an athlete—she could hold her head up high in any company—but she couldn’t compete with him that way.
And she didn’t want to at the moment. She just wanted to watch him. Avidly.
The other men were buff, too, of course, but she wasn’t going to stare at her friend’s husbands.
“Naked racing around the Hall. That’s a new holiday tradition,” Ella mused.
“A very short-lived, if fun, tradition.” Regan smoothed a hand over her pregnant belly. “I will not have my kids growing up with this kind of thing going on.” But her lips were twitching at the prospect in front of her and Sarah didn’t blame her. The men were down to their skivvies and damn, if this wasn’t a sight to see.
“Okay, boys! When I yell go, drop your drawers and run,” Mason called. “On your mark, get set, go!”
Sarah joined in the other women’s laughter as the men peeled off their shorts and took off. Regan leaned way over the railing as they quick turned the corner around the Hall. “Now that is a sight.”
“Yes, it is,” Sarah agreed. “Too bad they’re so damn fast.”
“I think Dan’s running a hell of a lot faster now than he did earlier on those snowshoes,” Ella said.
“If we were smart, we’d run through the Hall and catch them on the other side, too.” Regan gestured for the front door.
A mad dash ensued, with some good-natured pushing and shoving along the way. The pack of women reached the back porch just in time to catch the men racing past again. Regan let out another wolf-whistle, eliciting more laughter. Sarah caught Dan’s eye as he went past and he saluted her.
“Back to the front,” Regan yelled and the women charged through the Hall again. This time they moved faster and got a full frontal view of the running men.
“All right! That’s what we like to see! Come to Mama!” Ella yelled.
Austin did a front handspring and the women cheered. The men disappeared around the side of the Hall again.
“To the back!”
Sarah charged to the back porch with the rest of them, laughing so hard she could barely keep up. As they raced back and forth and the men progressed to cartwheels, back flips and other tricks to elicit cheers, all her pain and worry about the future slid away. She didn’t know when she’d had such fun. She was going to miss Regan and the rest of the crowd when she was gone.
Even Dan.
“I don’t think I have a shred of dignity left,” Zane complained as he got dressed.
“I don’t think any of us do,” Mason agreed.
Dan chuckled. “I bet every one of us gets laid tonight.” The sudden silence among the others had him backtracking. “Every one of us with a wife does, anyway.”
“Sarah’s fair game, buddy, but she is Regan’s friend. Don’t fuck things up there.” Mason buttoned his shirt.
“I won’t fuck things up. I know what I’m doing.” Dan threw his shirt over his shoulder and went indoors, thinking that was a laugh. He didn’t have the slightest idea what he was doing. All he knew was that he’d liked her gaze on him when he raced around the Hall. He liked that she was getting an eyeful. He had no qualms about nudity—he knew what he had to offer a woman. He hoped Sarah had liked what she’d seen.
He found her climbing the stairs to her third floor bedroom. “That was some race,” she said.
“You liked that?”
“It was… amusing.”
“Did it get you hot?”
“From what little I saw, it must have made you cold. You better go finish getting dressed.”
Hmm, he didn’t buy her indifference for a minute, nor her implication that he’d been less than impressive nude. In fact, she seemed downright flustered by his bare chest. He flexed his muscles and moved closer. “You could warm me up.”
“You never give up, do you?”
“You wouldn’t like it if I gave up. Admit it.”
“I’ll admit I beat your pants off on the firing range.” She laughed unexpectedly. Bit her lip.
“Beat my pants off? Ha, ha.” But he liked hearing her laugh. He had a healthy respect for her abilities—especially after that very cold dash around the house—but he didn’t want to relate to her sailor to soldier. He wanted to relate to her man to woman. “Did you like it when my pants were off?”
“Please. Nothing I haven’t seen a hundred times before.” But she let him hook his fingers through her belt loops and tug her in against him. Her fingers rested lightly on his biceps. He quirked a smile. Was it his imagination or had she just slid those fingers over his muscles? She wasn’t immune to him after all. He slid his own hands down her back and up again, giving himself an excuse to flex another time or two. Yeah, she liked that all right. Women were women, even one as buff as Sarah.
“You haven’t seen me a hundred times before. Don’t even pretend I’m anything like those other guys.”
“What makes you different?” She accepted his caresses, but stayed alert, which told him that as much as she enjoyed them she’d be gone in a flash if he pushed his luck.
“I’ve done what you’d like to do and I understand how badly you want it.”
That surprised her. She cocked her head. “Do you understand? You actually got to join the SEALs,” she said softly.
“I did, and I enjoyed the heck out of living out that dream.”
“Why are you quitting, then?”
That was a fair question and one he’d asked himself countless times before he’d made up his mind. “If you’d asked me six months ago, I’d have said it’s because my will to live is too strong. I’ve done more missions than I want to think about. I’ve cheated death so many times it isn’t funny. Sooner or later your luck runs out, know what I mean? I had a hunch if I stayed much longer, mine would have. Once you start thinking like that, you’re no good to anyone.”
After a moment she nodded. “That’s what you would have said six months ago. What would you say now?”
He tugged her in closer. “That it’s time for me to find a wife and settle down.”
Before Sarah could answer that unsettling statement, Dan bent down and captured her mouth with his. This time his kiss was all business. They were alone and he’d evidently had enough of holding back. She’d thought his last kiss on the front porch was scorching hot, but it turned out Dan had been pulling his punches. This one had her sagging against him, kissing him back for all she was worth, and when Dan picked her up and carried her the rest of the way upstairs, she didn’t protest. She couldn’t. He had stolen her breath away.
But when he dropped her on his bed, kicked his door closed and climbed on top of her, Sarah came to her senses. She pushed him away. “No. Uh-uh. Not going to happen.”
Barred from her mouth, Dan moved his attentions to her neck, nuzzling and kissing her until she tingled all over. “Dan!”
“Metlin, you’re killing me!” He pulled back but remained straddling her hips. “What?”
“I already told you—I won’t sleep with you.
I won’t be another notch on your belt.”
“Honey, no one notches their belts anymore. They just have sex.” He reached for the buttons of her blouse.
She batted his hands away. “I don’t want to have sex.” Her eyes blazed with anger and this time when she tried to rise, Dan let her go. He watched her climb off the bed and set her clothes to rights.
“Why don’t you want to have sex?”
“I told you. I want more. I’m not into flings.”
“And I just told you I want more, too.” He rose to intercept her.
“Right. You met me twenty-four hours ago, and now you’re going to propose?”
He ran his hands through his hair. “No, I’m not that crazy. I want to get to know you.”
“But we should have a fling first, right? Just to make sure we’re compatible. No sense talking about the serious stuff until we know if we work in the sack. Yeah, I’ve heard that before.”
“Sarah, come on.” He was rock hard and ready to go. Sarah’s tousled hair and swollen lips weren’t helping any. “You’ve been with some assholes, but I’m not one of them.”
“Really? Would we be having this conversation if I hadn’t beaten your ass in target practice?”
She had him there. “Maybe not. It’s because you’re my equal—in some categories,” he emphasized, “that I find you this intriguing. You’re the whole package, Metlin. You’re a soldier, so you understand my military background. You’re a terrific soldier, which means you share my desire to be the best. You’re intelligent, which means I won’t be bored when we’re not in bed together. And you’re hellaciously sexy, so I won’t be bored in it, either. So, yeah—I’m interested. Maybe in something more than a fling, but we’ll have to get to know each other to find that out.”
“Fine.” She headed for the door. “We’ll get to know each other, just not in bed.”
“At least there’s nothing competitive about sledding,” Regan said as they bundled up the following morning to hit the local hotspot for sledding fun.
Sarah nodded, but she wasn’t altogether sure that was true, and it didn’t take long after they arrived at the hill for her to be proven right. The entire gang from the Hall had come, along with several additional groups of friends. Sarah hadn’t been sledding since she was a kid and she was surprised that a group of grownups would think of it, but her first trip flying down the hill on a plastic toboggan reminded her just how fun it could be. The wide hill held a multitude of trails, with new ones being added all the time by enthusiastic kids and adults. Mason, Austin, Zane and Dan quickly got to work on building a crazy trail full of bumps and jumps, competing with each other to see who could take the wildest ride. Sarah stuck with Regan and Ella who, both being pregnant, were confined to a couple of gentle trails down the softly sloping side of the hill.
“I wish I had a camera,” Regan said as they stood at the top of the hill and watched Mason go flying off a jump halfway down the hill.
“Why, so you can film the moment he breaks his leg?” Ella said. “I can’t even watch!”
“Are you sure you want to stay with us boring people?” Regan turned to Sarah. “I won’t mind if you join the men.”
Sarah watched Mason, Dan and Zane all pile on a single toboggan. Austin gave them a running push and jumped on the end. He held on for dear life, but the toboggan quickly left him behind. Zane spilled off after the first jump and the second one sent the other two airborne.
“I don’t think so,” she said slowly.
“Sarah! Sarah, come on!” Dan called as he brushed himself off and made his way up the hill.
“Someone’s got a crush on you.” Ella giggled. “He’s really cute, too. I think you should go for it.”
“Sarah!”
“Go,” Regan urged her.
Sarah gave in. “Coming!”
“Make sure you bet him four naked laps around the Hall this time,” Ella called as she tromped away through the snow.
“Try out our run—it’s awesome!” Dan didn’t wait for her answer when she reached him. Instead, he took her hand and led the way to the top of the trail.
“No way. I’ll give you a push, though. A big one.”
He shot her a look. “How about I push you?”
“How about you don’t?”
“Kids, kids,” Mason said. “I’ll push both of you.”
Somehow Sarah found herself on the toboggan with Dan’s arms wrapped around her. She was wedged between his legs in a very intimate way and he kissed her on the neck as Mason shoved them into position at the top of the trail.
“Hey!” She shrugged him away. “I don’t think I want to do this.”
“Too late!” Mason shoved them over the edge and Sarah screamed as they hurtled down the side of the hill, hit the first jump and went airborne. Dan hung on to her and managed to cushion her fall. She was practically in his lap as they hurtled toward the next one.
Sarah screamed again when they hit it. This time Dan couldn’t keep hold of her. He flew one way, she flew another and landed in a heap in the snow.
“Are you all right?” Seconds later, Dan pulled her to her feet.
“Ouch!” Sarah rubbed her tailbone.
“Want me to kiss it and make it better?” Dan took over for her, rubbing the base of her spine, sliding his hand lower until he brushed the curve of her bottom. Sarah slugged him. “Just trying to help.” He sprinted away to retrieve their toboggan before she could hit him again.
Sarah didn’t make any bets with Dan, but she did sled with him again. And again. And again. The truth was, she liked his arms around her. Liked sitting on his lap, his powerful legs keeping her in place. She liked tumbling out of the sled and going head over heels in the deep snow. By the time they left to make the return drive to the Hall, she was bruised all over and exhausted from laughing so hard.
“You’re going to need a hot soak,” Regan told her as they climbed the steps to the Hall. “Why don’t you go on up and have one while Ella and I get dinner on?”
“I’ll help you with dinner.”
“Nope. Take your bath. That’s an order.”
“Yes, ma’am.” She headed straight up the stairs. Heavy footsteps behind her told her Dan was following her up.
“I need a hot soak, too, but I bet if we fill up two tubs neither of us will get enough hot water.”
“So let me guess. You want to share a bath.”
“Actually I was going to toss a coin for who got to go first, but now that you mention it, it sounds like a great idea.”
“Forget it.”
“What if I promise not to touch you?”
“Yeah, right.”
“I’m an honorable man, Metlin. When I make a promise, I keep it.”
“You’re going to sit in a tub with me and not touch me?”
“That’s right.”
“I bet you can’t.”
“I bet I can.”
This was the craziest thing she’d ever done, but the devilish look on Dan’s face echoed her own desire to try this out. She threw caution to the wind. “Okay—deal. If you touch me, then no more trying to get me into bed. You can’t talk to me, proposition me, kiss me—nothing. That’s it; the end.”
“And if I don’t touch you? What do I get?”
“Five minutes.” Heat rushed through Sarah. Had she really just said that?
“Five minutes for what?” He moved closer and Sarah’s heart stopped. She could barely find the breath to speak.
“To touch me any way you want.”
His gaze searched hers and she knew he was wondering if she really meant it.
She did, but at the same time she wanted to dart into her room and hide. What kind of game was she playing here?
The kind of game that was bound to bring big trouble.
“Deal.”
Without another word they gathered their things from their bedrooms and met on the second floor where one of the bathrooms contained a clawfoot tub. Dan ran the bath
while Sarah scolded herself silently for being such a reckless idiot. There was no way this would turn out well.
They were silent as the water ran. When Dan turned off the tap, he stripped and climbed in slowly, giving her ample time to look at his muscular body. He leaned back against one rounded end and stretched out his legs. “I won’t move,” he told her. “You climb in, sit where you want, do what you want. If you touch me that’s not my fault. I won’t touch you.”
That sounded like a challenge if she’d ever heard one. Sarah’s throat went dry as she stripped off her sweater, then gripped the hemline of her shirt, preparing to take it off, too. After years in the military, she didn’t have a modest bone in her body; there wasn’t time for that kind of thing. But with Dan staring at her, she found it hard to breathe.
She pulled her shirt over her head and tossed it away. Stripped off her soaking jeans and socks.
“Now we’re getting somewhere,” Dan said.
Heat pulsed through Sarah even though she was nearly naked. She reached back to unclasp her bra and tossed it aside, too. A sharp intake of breath from Dan told her he appreciated the view. She fought the urge to cross her arms and cover herself, took a deep breath of her own and shimmied out of her panties.
Dan’s expression softened as he took her in, and she didn’t feel like he was ogling her in a disrespectful way. Instead she felt as if he was appreciative of the gift she was giving him. Suddenly feeling vulnerable, she hesitated.
“Come on in,” he said. His low, rich voice warmed her all over again, as did the water as she slipped into it and arranged herself at the far end, leaning back against the high, curved side of the tub opposite Dan.
She kept waiting for him to reach out and tug her close, but he didn’t. He sat back and gazed at her. Her feet were positioned by his crotch and she was all too aware of his body responding to hers. When she shifted, her legs grazed his.
“You look beautiful.”
Sarah knew she was blushing. She couldn’t help it. “Thanks.”
A minute passed as they stared at each other. Sarah couldn’t believe the restraint Dan was showing. After all, she was right here. Naked.
