“Okay, I see a gentleman walking toward me. I’ll check to see if he is who you’re after.”
“Thanks Jon.”
Brielle hung up the phone, hoping Tim would come back to her. No way was he the cause of her attacks. Didn’t he know he brought her out of them? He was her lifeline, the rope she clung to when she felt like she was drowning. She paced her foyer chewing on her bottom lip.
God, was she doing the right thing in asking Jon to send Tim back to her?
Yes. An unequivocal yes.
Ever since their date at the wedding and the kiss they’d shared in San Diego, Tim hadn’t been far from her mind. Over the last two months, whenever she heard a news bulletin about anything involving the military she’d worried that Tim’s name would be listed as injured, missing or dead. Then again, he was a SEAL, it was entirely possible his name wouldn’t have been publicized.
Anticipation had bubbled in her belly when she’d seen him striding toward her in the hallway at the base. He was big, dirty and handsome all at the same time. She’d barely contained her excitement when he’d stopped in front of her.
A rap on her front door startled her and without thinking, or checking who was there, she pulled the door open, her heart in her throat when she saw Tim standing there. “You came back.”
“Yeah.” His face and voice devoid of any emotion.
Brielle reached out, pulled him into her apartment and slammed the door. “Thank you.”
He crossed his arms over his chest, looking every inch the Navy SEAL he was. “What’s going on, Brielle. I know I didn’t leave anything behind.”
“Yes, you did. You did leave something behind.”
His gorgeous brown eyes narrowed in confusion and his hands patted his pockets. “What?”
“This.” She placed her hands on his shoulders and went up on her tiptoe and kissed him. A sigh rippled through her at their connection. Fortunately, Tim seemed to understand the emotions flowing through her, because his hands landed on her waist and pulled her flush against him.
He changed the angle of his mouth, taking over control of the kiss, and she opened up to let him have access. Everything fell into place in her world in that moment. The restlessness she’d been experiencing since she returned from San Diego seemed to quiet down. She’d put it down to lingering effects of her kidnapping, but now she had to wonder if it wasn’t because she wanted to see this man again.
Tim broke the kiss and rested his forehead against hers. “Are you okay?” he whispered.
“I am now. Come on.” She grabbed his hand and dragged him back into the living room couch. “You made an assumption which was so wrong.”
“I did?” His eyebrow rose in question and a small smile played across his lips. “What did I assume?”
“You assumed you were a trigger for my attacks. That couldn’t be further from the truth. You’re my salvation.”
Sitting so close to him on the couch she couldn’t miss the slight tensing of his body at her declaration.
“I’m your salvation?” he asked.
Brielle trailed a finger down the back of his hand. They were strong hands. His palms callused against her soft feminine ones. They were the hands of a killer, but they were also gentle and caring. “Yes,” she said. “You’ve brought me back from the brink so many times. Today was one of the worse episodes I’ve ever experienced, yet your strength and voice are what I reached out and grasped on to. You were my lifeline.”
One of the biggest risks she’d taken in her life was right this second. Exposing herself and her vulnerabilities in front of Tim, a man who’d she shared so much with, but in reality, the actual time they’d spent together only added up to roughly three days, was huge. Yet she trusted Tim to do the right thing with this information she was giving him. She had to make him understand that she didn’t want him walking out the door and them never seeing each other again. What she wanted was to explore this growing connection between them. That is if he felt the same way she did.
Tim ran a hand though his hair. “I don’t know what to say, Brielle. I worry that because of my job, any time we spend together would be too much of a reminder of a time you’d rather forget.”
“I can’t forget it though, can I? No matter how much I want to. It’s not something that you can ignore or put out of your mind like a bad movie or book. Can you honestly say you’ve forgotten everything you’ve seen?”
A breath whooshed out of him. “No, I haven’t.”
“And every time you get the call that you’re going to leave on a mission, do thoughts of your previous missions run through your mind?”
His lips firmed, and he nodded. “Yes.”
“So, yes, being with you is a reminder of what happened, but it’s also a reminder that I survived. That I was rescued. I may never be who I was before my kidnapping, and that’s okay because I’m beginning to accept the new me.”
Well, that wasn’t entirely true, but it was getting easier every day to move forward.
“Have you really accepted it?”
Great, why did she think she could convince the guy who’d seen her through two attacks, that she’d accepted the new person she was becoming? But she had to try and convince him, because if she kept saying it then maybe eventually it would come true. “Some days, yes I have, other days not so much. Probably the same as some days are good for you and other days everything you’ve seen works its way to the front of your mind.”
Tim nodded, as if processing what she said. “True, it’s never easy to forget everything I’ve seen and done.”
Her stomach grumbled, and she looked at her watch. It was almost six in the evening. When had she eaten last? Probably the cake at the coffee shop. “Are you hungry?”
“Yeah, I am a bit.”
“Would you like to stay for some dinner?” She asked, her heart in her throat hoping he’d accept her invitation. She hadn’t asked her doorman to halt his exit because she wanted to clear up his misunderstanding. The call to Jon was because she wanted to spend more time with him.
“Sure, sounds great. Do you want to order in?” A small smile lifted the corners of his mouth and her heart returned to its normal position in her chest.
“No. I’ve got food here I can make us something.”
She may have grown up with a housekeeper who did everything for her, but she’d been living by herself for a long time. Plus, she’d watched Mrs. Walker as she’d cooked and had helped her. Brielle had picked up a few things and enhanced her own skills over the last few years.
“Okay, that sounds good. Do you want some help?”
She shook her head. “Nope, you sit here and relax. Do you want to watch something on television?”
“How about some music instead?”
“Sure I can fix that.” She walked over to her phone and plugged into the device on the mantle beneath her flat screen. The melodic voice of John Legend wafted out of the speakers. Brielle headed to the kitchen when all she wanted to do was curl up next Tim on the couch.
Something soft brushed across his cheeks. He raised a hand to brush whatever it was away but didn’t connect with anything.
“Tim?”
“Huh?” he blinked a couple of times, a room he didn’t recognize coming into focus. He took a second to look around and connected with Brielle’s gorgeous eyes.
“You feel asleep.” Again she brushed her hand across the top of his forehead.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pass out on you. Guess everything caught up with me.”
“It’s fine. Dinner’s ready.”
He couldn’t deny that being woken up by Brielle was quite nice. What would it be like to be woken up by her every time he returned home?
Whoa, slow down there, T-Rex. This is only the third time you’ve seen her. You shouldn’t be thinking about things that can’t happen.
Brielle’s face was so close, all he had to do was lean forward and he could capture those ruby red lips and treat himself to another
delectable taste of her. He didn’t have to make the move, Brielle did and her mouth met his.
She sighed, and he took advantage by slipping his tongue in. Her hands clasped the front of his shirt and he slipped his around her back, pulling her flush against him. He changed his position on the couch so he was lying back against the cushions and Brielle was on top of him. As his lips caressed hers, his hands followed her spine to the curve of her ass. He bit back a groan as her hips bucked against his erection.
It was too soon to be thinking about stripping her naked and kissing every delicious inch of her body. He wouldn’t take advantage of her vulnerable psyche. She may think she was over her attack from earlier in the day, but he wasn’t going to take any chances that if they did end up in bed together, she’d regret her decision.
Reluctantly, he broke their connection. Her head fell against his chest. Their ragged breathing filled his ears.
“I’m sorry.”
Tim thought that was what she said, but with her face buried in his chest he couldn’t be too sure. As much as he wanted to keep her close to him, they couldn’t have a conversation that way.
“Did you say you’re sorry?” he asked once he’d maneuvered them into a sitting position.
“Yeah.”
“Sorry for what?” There was no way she’d taken advantage of him, if that was what she was thinking.
“I…don’t know. My mind gets scrambled when I’m around you. I feel things that I think I shouldn’t be feeling.”
“I’m a little confused here, honey. If you’re worried, don’t be, I wanted this kiss as much as you did.”
She pulled away and he wanted to haul her back, but he gave her space, instinctively knowing crowding her would be the wrong thing to do. “It’s not just the kiss. You fell asleep on my couch. I should’ve let you go home when you left. But…” She paused, got off the couch and walked over to the mantle. Her fingers drummed a nervous tattoo on the wood. “I didn’t want you to go. I didn’t want to say goodbye to you.”
If that wasn’t a sign that Brielle wanted to get to know him better, he didn’t know what was. He got up and move to where she stood, turning her gently. “The Commander told us we’d be stateside for a while until Joker’s fiancée has her baby. I’d like to date you, Brielle Wilson. Would you like to date me?”
“Are you asking me to go steady, Tim Exeter?” Her sassy smile warmed his heart.
“I am.”
When she looped her arms around his neck he had his answer. “Yes, I’ll go steady with you.”
He laughed, the fatigue consuming him when he woke disappeared in a blink. He dropped a kiss on her lips, controlling the temptation to deepen it. “Did you say something about dinner being ready?”
Her fingers fiddled with the material of his shirt. “Yep, although it’s probably cold now.”
“Believe me, after what I’ve eaten the last three weeks, no matter how cold it is, it’s going to be the best thing I’ve tasted.”
An hour later, Tim was sitting back on the couch, a glass of wine in his hand. “Are you sure I can’t help you clean up? It doesn’t seem fair. You cooked, I should clean.”
She waved him away. “Loading the dishwasher isn’t strenuous, besides you’re my guest. When you cook for me, I’ll sit on the couch and you can do all the work.”
“Trust me when I say you don’t want to taste my cooking. I never acquired the skill.”
Brielle walked into the room and he looked his fill. Her whole persona seemed lighter than it was when they’d first got to her place. In fact, she looked as happy and relaxed as she’d been when she’d been waiting for him by his car.
Her vanilla scent wafted over him as she sat down beside him. He threw an arm around her shoulder and encouraged her to rest against his side. A sigh of pleasure rippled through him when she did just that, tucking her head just under his chin.
“Maybe I can help you,” she said
“Huh?” All his thoughts were on how perfectly her body fitted against his side. How she was soft in all the right places.
Now he understood what Joker and Italy had been talking about when they’d said they were more contented and less restless with a woman they cared for deeply by their side.
Fuck, he really need to put a pin in the way his thoughts were heading. There was no guarantee that after a couple of dates, he and Brielle would work out. Being around him might not be good for her mental health and she might decide she’s better off without him. He should enjoy the time with her and stop wishing for things he that may not happen. Just because two of his teammates had found that kind of joy in their lives, didn’t mean he would with Brielle, even if he wanted it badly.
“You said you weren’t very good at cooking and I said maybe I could help you.”
“Right, yeah. Maybe you could. I can make a pretty decent grilled cheese sandwich.”
“Everyone can do grilled cheese. Like everyone can fry an egg or scramble an egg.”
Tim recalled his attempt at scrambling eggs. “Not me. I tried scrambling eggs once. Trust me when I say once was enough.”
Brielle lifted her head away from the resting spot on his chest. “Sounds like a good story. Wanna share?”
Tim took a final swallow of his wine and placed it on the table next to the couch. “Well not only did I manage to burn them, but I burned the toast and all together it tasted like rubber. I stuck to frying an egg after that. You’re right, I can at least do that well.”
“Were you, umm, making them for only yourself?” She tried to make the question light, but underneath he could hear the question she was really asking—did he make them for a woman. Scrambled eggs were more a breakfast food than a food you ate at dinner, and yes he’d been making them for a woman he’d been dating for a few months. His last real serious relationship, they’d split because she hadn’t been able to take him flying off at a moment’s notice.
If he wanted this thing between him and Brielle to be real, then being upfront and honest from the beginning was imperative. “Yeah, I was making them for the girl I was seeing at the time. It wasn’t long after that she broke up with me.”
Her body tensed against his and he waited to see if she would pull away from him and decide that seeing him was a bad idea. His heart kicked back into motion when she relaxed against him again. “Her loss is my gain,” she murmured against his chest.
A yawn burst out of him and he glanced at his watch to see that it was close to ten in the evening. “I should be going. It’s getting late.”
“Mmmm, I suppose so.” Brielle responded, but she snuggled a little closer to him.
Tim closed his eyes and savored holding a sweet woman in his arms. It had been a long time since he’d spent an evening just talking to a woman. But he and Brielle had chatted about neutral topics over dinner. It had been easy and fun and he couldn’t wait to do it again with her.
“When can I see you next?” he asked.
“I’m free this weekend. If you are,” she answered.
It was Tuesday evening, the weekend seemed so far away, but he would take it. “Sounds good, why don’t I call you in a couple of day and we can make some plans.”
“Perfect, that will work.”
The last thing he wanted to do was to get off the couch and leave her, but they had PT tomorrow morning. Commander Black had been generous and said they didn’t have to be on base until seven, instead of the usual five a.m. start.
He brushed his lips across her head and gently pulled her away from him. He stood and stretched, catching the way Brielle’s tongue swiped across her lips. His dick twitched in his pants. Normally jumping into a woman’s bed on a short acquaintance wasn’t unusual, but with Brielle he didn’t want to rush into sleeping with her. She didn’t seem the type to indulge in meaningless affairs. Besides the best part of making love to a woman was the anticipation of it all.
Tim grabbed her hand and walked to her front door. He placed his hands on her hips and pulled he
r in for a hug. “I had a really great time with you tonight. This week is going to drag.”
Brielle chuckled. “You’re a smooth talker, aren’t you?”
“I know it sounds cheesy, but I mean it. The weekend can’t come soon enough.”
“Do you think this will tide you over until then?”
Before he had time to react, Brielle’s lips were over his again. God, he liked how assertive she was on occasions.
Her hands clutched at his back and images of her nails digging into his shoulders as he thrust into her burst behind his closed eyes. His body liked the thought and he ground his hips against hers. She moaned long and low and his dick stood to attention.
If he picked her up and strode through the apartment to her room, would she object? He didn’t think so, not with the way her body was clamoring to get closer to his. But he pulled away from her. “We need to slow down,” he peppered her face with small kisses.
“What if I don’t want to.”
Tim rested his forehead against Brielle’s, the gold in her eyes shining brightly in the lighted foyer. “Honey, you’re making this hard for me.”
She swiveled her hips. “I can feel how hard it is.”
He groaned and counted to ten in his mind. She was torturing him with her sassiness. “It’s too soon,” he said. “No matter how much my body wants it. I don’t want to rush this.”
Tim reached behind him, grabbed the door handle and turned it. He placed another soft kiss on her lip. “I’ll be in touch, Bri. Sleep well.”
Opening the door he walked out before he ignored his good intentions and marched her back to her room.
Chapter Seven
Nerves assailed Brielle as she waited for Tim to knock on her door, Jon had advised her he was on his way up. He’d called her Wednesday to say that one of his teammates, Joker, was having a housewarming party and he asked her if she wanted to come along. Seeing as she wanted to see him, she’d said yes immediately. It wasn’t until she woke up this morning did it hit her that she would be meeting the people who’d seen her when she was filthy and stunk from not having a shower in days and living in a hovel without any basic amenities. Not to mention the two guys, Robot and Italy, who’d seen her when she’d been trapped in her own personal hell.
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