“Gorgeous boat," she remarked.
“Thanks. I got it the first week I arrived here. It was in pretty bad shape but I put it back together."
A bit like me, Tyler thought.
"You did good. It's beautiful.”
Tyler exhaled slowly. It was good to have Kate near her, talking to her, asking how she was and taking an interest in her. Her mind was clear and she felt centred. She realised suddenly that it was the first time in eight months when she had not felt like she was drowning.
“You know... When Marion said she wanted to go on this diving training thing in France, I thought it was a great idea. I was miles away from thinking that I would run into you here. And I know now that I wasn't ready for it. I’m sorry I acted like such a bitch to you Tyler.”
“You didn‘t. And I don’t want to be a problem for you.”
“That‘s not what I said.”
Tyler breathed deeply and hesitated.
“So what happened?” Kate said gently.
“Well. When Ashley heard that I’d been injured she came to see me at Staunton. She explained she was starting a business down here with Cathy, and she asked if I wanted in.”
Tyler looked out toward the sea as she spoke, her luminous grey eyes sparkling as she remembered.
“Things were a bit crazy for me for a while, after Cobel, and I...”
“What do you mean, crazy?” Kate interrupted, immediately concerned.
“My leg didn‘t heal very well at first. And...”
Tyler hesitated again. Too much to get into just now, she realised. Better to keep it simple.
“I just needed to get away for a while,” she said.
Kate nodded, her eyes on Tyler as she spoke. She knew she was not getting the whole story, but there would be time for that. For now all that mattered was that they were connected again. Tyler was back, she was talking and opening up to her once again. And Kate had never felt so happy. She had missed the sound of her voice, that husky, low voice she liked so much.
“I know I shouldn’t have left like that,” Tyler said. “And the longer I stayed away the harder it felt to reconnect.”
This time Kate met her eyes and found it quite impossible to look away.
“I’m sorry,” Tyler murmured.
“Hey, don’t worry about it,” Kate said gently. “You went through a lot. And also, it’s not like we made a promise to hook up after Afghan.”
“You did.”
“What?”
“You did,” Tyler repeated, smiling softly. “When I got injured, you said you would come for me.”
Kate gave a little sad nod at the memory.
“Yeah. I was hoping that would give you an incentive not to die,” she said, and she turned to give Tyler a crooked smile. “Looks like it worked. You were pretty out of it then, I wasn't sure that you had heard me.”
“Oh, yes. I did.”
Tyler did not tell her that Kate’s promise had been the only thing which had kept her going after that last patrol. Through the long nights alone at Staunton when even huge doses of morphine would not ease the pain, and when she found out that she would have to leave the Marines. When Ben Collins’ wife had screamed at her that she was to blame for her husband‘s death.
The only thing that had got Tyler through was the knowledge that Kate would come back for her one day. And now she really had.
“I heard you,” she repeated.
Kate turned to her slowly. Her eyes looked beautiful in the fading evening light, and as she started to speak Tyler suddenly leaned forward and kissed her.
There was nothing slow, nothing unsure about that kiss. It was demanding, deep, searching, and it made Kate’s blood sizzle and made her forget everything else she had wanted to say. Instinctively, she wrapped her arms around Tyler’s neck. She let her hands drift up and down her back. She felt her breathe harder and she bit her lower lip to stop from crying out loud when Tyler’s mouth drifted to her neck. Kate groaned.
“Tyler,” she murmured.
And then, louder.
“Ty.”
Tyler pulled back and looked at her as if she were in a daze. Kate held her breath as she took in the flash of heat in her cheeks, and the way her eyes burned. Tyler was breathing hard, and Kate could not quite believe how beautiful she was.
“You look dangerous,” she observed.
“Sorry.”
Kate gave a soft chuckle.
“Don‘t be. I like it,” she said.
“I’m sorry,” Tyler repeated as if she had not heard her.
She ran a hand through her hair and stood up to put some distance between her and Kate. She turned back to give her a flustered smile.
“You make me feel a little bit crazy,” she admitted.
Forgetting her resolve to just sit and talk, Kate got up and went to stand in front of her, stepping even closer when Tyler took a step back.
Tyler leaned against the deck railing and put her hands on it to make sure that she would not touch Kate again.
“What are you doing?” she murmured as Kate pressed herself against her.
“What do you think I’m doing?”
Kate stopped just short of kissing Tyler again and waited. She stared into her eyes, saw desire raging inside, tempered only by the fear of doing something wrong.
“Are you sure?” Tyler asked quietly.
“No.”
Kate started to undo the buttons on Tyler's shirt, one by one, very slowly. All the while Tyler kept her hands firmly on the railing, watching, worried that if she moved Kate might change her mind.
“At Cobel you wouldn’t let me touch you,” Kate murmured.
And she opened Tyler’s shirt a little and lay her palm low on her stomach. She felt her take a sharp intake of breath, and looked up deep into limpid grey eyes.
“Are you going to ask me to stop now too?” she asked.
The look that Tyler gave her was so intensely sexual that it made her instantly aroused.
“No,” she said huskily.
“Good.”
“Come with me.”
Tyler grabbed Kate’s hand and led her down below deck to her bedroom. She shut the door and turned around, laughing when Kate just grabbed her and pushed her roughly down onto the bed.
“So I make you feel a little crazy, do I?” Kate asked as she straddled her lap.
She wrapped her arms around Tyler’s neck and looked seriously at her.
“Yes. Amongst other things.”
“What other things?”
Tyler rested her hands on Kate's hips, and looked up into the rich brown eyes of the woman she loved.
“Safe,” she said softly.
Kate closed her eyes for a second.
Tyler’s tone was casual, but her words meant so much to Kate.
“I make you feel safe?” she repeated, her voice betraying her feelings.
“Yeah,“ Tyler said.
Her voice had got a little bit huskier still, and her eyes were intense and hot. She lifted Kate’s shirt a little, and let her fingers brush over her naked breast, watching her all the while. Kate bit her lower lip, tried not to react to Tyler’s feather like touch. She wanted to take her time. But she was trembling already.
Tyler glanced at her, raised her head a little bit more, and blew gently on her nipples.
“Tease,” Kate gasped.
“But you like it?” Tyler asked.
“Oh yes…”
Tyler smiled a little and closed her fingers around Kate’s perfectly round breasts. She rubbed her cheek against them, breathed her in, and then she took a hard nipple in her mouth. A low moan escaped her as she closed her lips around it. She felt Kate’s hands on the back of her neck, and Kate’s fingers working their way up into her hair, making her head swim.
Kate sighed as she held Tyler against her.
“Take off your top,” Tyler murmured.
Kate pulled the garment over her head quickly.
“You too,”
she demanded.
Tyler slipped out of her shirt and threw it across the room, and reached for the belt on Kate’s jeans.
“Get rid of those too.”
The jeans went flying across the room. Tyler pulled Kate back on top of her. She wrapped her arms around her waist, and she kissed her again, deeply, urgently. She was no longer playing, no longer teasing. She felt the way that Kate’s hips moved up against her, asking for more. Tyler brought her head up, breathing hard. She traced a finger along the side of Kate’s throat, between her breasts. She kissed her there, breathed deeply and closed her eyes.
“You know how often I wanted to do this when we were together at Cobel?” she said.
Kate shook her head no and looked down at her. She was finding it a little difficult to speak now.
“I wasn’t sure you wanted me…” she murmured.
Tyler smiled a little, blinking back tears at the raw emotion contained in that simple little statement.
“I do want you, Kate,” she whispered. “Let me make love to you.”
It was darker in the cabin when Kate opened her eyes again. She was lying with her back resting against Tyler, cradled deep inside her embrace, feeling warm and completely spent.
She stirred a little and Tyler immediately tightened her hold on her.
She kissed the back of her neck, her eyes closed, smiling when she felt Kate stretch lazily against her.
“Hey doc,” she murmured. “How’re you doing?”
“Hmmm.”
Kate raised herself up a little. She turned to face Tyler, and gave her a slow, happy smile.
“I’m doing great,” she said. “How long have I been snoring?”
“Only about twenty minutes.”
“I haven’t felt this good in a very long time,” Kate said, and she lay her fingers against the side of Tyler’s neck and kissed her softly.
She felt her pulse going fast under her fingertips, and she smiled.
“Hey, is it me or are we rocking?” she asked.
Tyler laughed a little.
“Yeah, it‘s getting windy outside. You don’t get sea sick, do you?”
“No. This is very nice, I like it.”
Tyler tried not to tremble as Kate slowly caressed her breasts, then let her hand wander down the length of her stomach, over her hip and down the inside of her leg. She reached for the sock-like compression bandage that covered Tyler’s injured leg, but Tyler stopped her immediately.
“Please don’t,” she said nervously.
Kate gave her a long look, spotted anxiety dancing in her eyes.
“Okay,” she said gently. “I won’t do anything you don’t want me to.”
Tyler nodded, and relaxed again immediately.
“Your skin is always so hot,” Kate murmured. “I remember that from Cobel.”
She kissed Tyler lazily, brushing her lips against hers. She smiled a little when Tyler went after the kiss impatiently, and she pulled back with a grin.
“Hey. Go slow,” she said.
She carried on with her exploration, gently deepening the kiss. Once more she rested the palm of her hand against Tyler’s stomach, enjoying the way that Tyler jerked and gasped as she did.
“Sensitive?”
“A bit,” Tyler said.
“Good. Think I can make you feel hotter?” Kate whispered against her ear.
“I don’t know… takes a lot… Oh!”
Tyler held hard onto the side of the bed and could not quite prevent a small cry as Kate unexpectedly rubbed her hand between her legs and parted her.
“You were saying?” she asked, pleased and aroused by Tyler‘s reaction.
Tyler reached for her, sighing when Kate pushed her back down.
“Stay still, it’s my time to play now,” Kate murmured.
“I’m not very patient.”
“That‘s okay. I will show you how.”
Kate kissed the smile on Tyler’s lips. She caressed between her legs again. Tyler arched her back, trembling in response.
“You are very easy to please…” Kate whispered.
“Yeah?”
“Hmm. Yeah.”
“You don't like it?” Tyler said breathlessly.
“Oh, I do like it, captain. I love that I can make you feel like this.”
She could feel herself getting aroused again, but this time she would not let Tyler touch her. This moment had been such a long time coming.
Kate could feel Tyler’s body quivering beneath hers. Her eyes were hot and fastened onto Kate, tracking her every movement. Kate lay fully on top of her, pinning her arms back when Tyler tried to pull her down harder.
“No touching,” she said. “You’re not allowed.”
The words alone were enough to make Tyler shiver. Her breathing got even faster when Kate dropped her thigh between her legs and started to rub.
“How do I make you feel now?” she asked.
“On fire…”
Tyler squeezed her eyes shut as Kate pressed her leg harder against her.
“Kate,” she gasped.
“Easy. I don’t want you coming just yet.”
“I’m trying not to,” Tyler said. “But I…”
“Yes, you can. I want to go slow. Do it for me.”
Tyler tried to catch her breath as Kate sucked each of her nipples, taking her time. Her fingers were still firmly locked around Tyler’s wrists. Her body was heavy and hot against hers, and her leg was pressed playfully against Tyler’s centre, just enough to keep her on the edge
“Who‘s in charge now, captain?” Kate whispered against her ear.
Tyler shuddered all over.
“You,” she whispered.
"And do you trust me?”
“Yes,” Tyler replied immediately. “I love you Kate.”
Her words were like a slice of light through Kate’s heart. She glanced at her lover and saw desire so intense in her eyes it looked like pain. She lowered her head a little, buried her face against the side of Tyler’s neck.
“Go now,” she whispered, and she entered Tyler and stroked her hard at the same time.
Released at last, Tyler wrapped her arms around Kate and she closed down on her fingers. She held on to her as an orgasm so fierce it almost knocked her out blazed through her.
When she could see again she dropped back onto the bed, her hands shaking. She stared at the ceiling for a couple of minutes, feeling dazed, catching her breath.
“Jesus,” she whispered eventually.
“No, it was all me,” Kate said, her tone serious.
Tyler burst out laughing.
“What a relief,” she said.
She turned her head to look at Kate, and chuckled a little when she saw the satisfied look in her dark eyes.
“Why the smug face?” she asked.
“Because,” Kate said softly, “I got you to trust me.”
“I’ve always trusted you.”
“But tonight you let me see what's going on inside. Right here,” she said, and she rested her fingers on Tyler’s chest just above her heart.
She kissed her and pulled back until she could look straight into her eyes.
“Why did you run?” she asked.
Tyler tensed immediately. Kate saw in her eyes the impulse to pull away. To keep her distance again. If she had, Kate did not know what she would have done. She sensed the tremendous effort it took for Tyler to pull herself back into the conversation.
She did not run.
What she said made Kate’s blood turn to ice.
“I had a girlfriend… A few years ago. She shot herself in the head with my service weapon.”
Shock registered over Kate’s face. She looked bewildered at first, and then her expression hardened, and she tightened her grip on Tyler’s hand.
“What? Why? What happened?” she asked.
Tyler met her eyes and what she saw in them melted her heart. The love shining in Kate’s eyes was so profound, her grip on her hand so strong.
She looked ready to stand up for her and to fight for her, and Tyler had to look away, because otherwise she would have cried.
She took a deep breath, and started to talk.
“Her name was Helen,” she said. “She was a lawyer for a big firm, worked a lot. She said she loved her job, and I know that it was true. But there was a lot of pressure with it as well. I didn’t know it at the time, and she never told me, but she was struggling.”
Tyler was looking through the round porthole on the side, far out across to sea as she spoke. It was easier that way. She had only told that story twice, to Collins and to Ashley. It was difficult to have to say it again, especially to Kate.
“She started drinking. A lot. Right about the same time that I started working more. I was away on exercise a lot, there was pre-deployment training, some missions I could not even tell her about. The usual stuff, but it’s hard when you are on the outside and not involved. You know?”
Kate nodded her understanding, and gave Tyler an encouraging smile.
“I knew she liked her drink, but I never realised how much until she ended up in hospital after crashing her car, and I found a big stash of empty tequila bottles hidden in the yard. She got fired for drinking on the job. I found out she had a history of depression.“
“What did you do?” Kate asked quietly.
Tyler shrugged a little.
She brushed Kate’s cheek with her fingers, gave her a soft smile.
“There was nothing I could do,” she said. “She dumped me. As soon as I started to question her drinking, she pushed me away. That was right before my first tour of Afghan, so I didn‘t have much of a choice, I had to leave her for six months anyway.”
“Can’t have been easy for you.”
Tyler gave a bitter smile.
“Wasn‘t the happiest time of my life. She said we were over, but she kept on writing and emailing me. Just horrible stuff, blaming me for how she felt, saying that I should be at home with her, helping her.” “Even though she had made it clear that she never wanted to see you again?”
“Yes.”
Tyler shrugged a little, and tried again for a smile. But Kate could see how hard this was for her, and she held her tighter against her.
“You okay, honey?” she murmured.
Tyler nodded absently, her eyes a little bit glassy as she remembered.
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