“Yeah, I know they were happy,” I agreed, glancing over at Josh’s profile in the darkness. “It was just a little unexpected.”
He yawned. “At least we’re almost back. I’m beat.”
We finished crossing over the bridge back into the city, and Josh turned down one of the main streets heading back toward our apartment building. Despite this never, ever happening when I was the one driving, a car pulled out of a space right on our block as Josh turned down the side street. Josh pulled alongside the car parked in front of the empty space and then expertly backed into the parking spot.
“You have all the luck,” I grumbled. “I always drive around for fifteen minutes trying to find parking.”
“Maybe you should drive faster,” he said, glancing over at me with a grin.
“That’s completely illogical.”
“If you’d been driving, the space would’ve been taken because we wouldn’t get here for another half an hour.”
“Whatever,” I said, climbing out of the car and shutting the door behind me. I was tired and not really in the mood to argue, even though I knew Josh was just joking around.
Josh quickly got out and was around the car and by my side in no time with his long stride. “I’m just saying it pays to be in a hurry sometimes. Anyway, here you go,” he said, dropping my keys back into my hand.
“Thanks.” We started walking down the block toward our building, the heels of my boots clicking on the sidewalk. There were no other cars on the street, and the stoplights glowed red in the darkness. It was kind of strange to have a moment of quiet like this in the middle of the city, but it was also nice with Josh here beside me. “Oh, I left my cell phone in the car,” I said, suddenly stopping short. “Be right back.” I turned and rushed back the way we’d come as Josh stood waiting for me on the sidewalk. Normally I might have tugged him along with me to go back, but I knew he was exhausted, and it would only take me a moment to grab my phone from the front seat.
I clicked the button to remotely unlock the doors and heard the “beep beep” echo through the empty street. I gripped the handle, pulling open the car door, and saw that my phone was sitting on the passenger seat just where I’d left it. I bent down to retrieve it, and as I stood, suddenly felt Josh’s strong arms wrapping around me. I stiffened in surprise, wondering what he was doing, and realized the arms encasing me couldn’t belong to Josh—they were holding me too tightly, lifting me up and off the ground, and roughly pulling me away from the car.
“Give me your keys, now!” a masculine voice growled menacingly in my ear.
“Let go of me!” I shouted, kicking as I tried to wrest myself free. My heart was racing as he held me in his iron-like grip, my entire body shifting into fight-or-flight mode. There was no way this creep was going to hurt me if I had anything to say about it. “Help! Help!”
Josh was already running in our direction, but I hoped someone else might come to our assistance too if they heard my screams. “Put her down!” Josh shouted. “Let her go!”
I wasn’t sure if my assailant hadn’t noticed Josh in the darkness or just didn’t care. The man holding me was strong, but he certainly wasn’t bigger than Josh’s six feet of solid muscle. He probably thought he could quickly snatch my keys and take off before anyone arrived to help. The traffic light had finally changed to green, and I could see some cars approaching in the distance. They seemed miles and miles away but in reality were only a block or two down the road. If this guy didn’t take off soon, we’d be able to flag down someone else for help.
Evidently sensing the same thing, he unceremoniously dropped me to the ground, and I rushed over to Josh’s side, my entire body shaking.
“What’s going on here?” Josh asked, anger in his voice. He grabbed my arm and stepped in front of me, shielding me from any further danger. I quickly punched “911” into the cell phone clutched tightly in my hand. If I hadn’t gone back to retrieve it moments before, none of this would have ever happened.
“Hey man, no need to worry. This is between me and her,” my assailant said, backing away.
“No, it’s between you and me now,” Josh said menacingly, taking a step closer.
“911, what’s your emergency?” a female voice asked from the other end of the line.
“Yes, I need help,” I said calmly into the phone. I may have been scared out of my wits, but my clinical training and hours spent in the ER had paid off when it came to thinking rationally in stressful situations. I just needed to relay the facts as quickly as possible, provide my location, and soon help would be on the way. “A man just attacked me and tried to steal my car.”
“Is the assailant still there?”
“No, he’s running away,” I said, watching the man take off down the street. Josh started to run after him, but I tugged on his arm so that he would stay with me.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, just a little shaken up.”
“Okay ma’am, what’s your location?”
I gave the address to our building and a general description of the suspect as Josh turned back toward me. Tears were welling in my eyes as I spoke to the 911 dispatcher. “Yes, okay. No, my roommate is here with me. Okay, bye.”
“Are you okay?” Josh asked, gripping my upper arms with his muscular hands. He gazed down at me, concern etched all over his face, but I could detect the anger in his voice as well. He was concerned about me, but I knew it was taking everything in him to stay at my side and not chase the guy who’d attacked me down the city block. His entire body seemed to be surging with adrenaline, and if I hadn’t stopped him from leaving, he’d probably have the guy pinned to the pavement by now.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” I said, trying to brush it off. “Just shaken up a little.”
“I never would’ve forgiven myself if something had happened to you,” he said, his voice gruff, as he pulled me into his arms. I relaxed against his muscular chest, breathing in the scent that was distinctly him, and felt his warm arms wrap around me. I heard sirens piercing the air in the distance and closed my eyes as Josh held me. I shivered slightly, thinking what could have happened if Josh hadn’t been there, and he tightened his embrace.
“I’m fine,” I reassured him. “I knew you were right there and would help me.”
“I wasn’t right there,” he said angrily, shaking his head in frustration. “I should’ve walked back to the car with you. If I had, none of this would ever have happened.”
Three police cars pulled up to the curb, and several officers climbed out of the vehicles. I realized that the passenger door to my car was still wide open. I almost walked over to close it but then decided against it, thinking maybe they needed to dust it for prints or something. I didn’t think my attacker had touched the door, but I wasn’t sure what exactly had happened with all the chaos that had just ensued. Two of the officers walked over to where Josh and I were standing. I’d moved from his embrace, but he still kept one arm securely around my shoulder, holding me close to him.
The first officer cleared his throat, pulling out a notepad to take down our information. “All right,” he said in a gruff voice. “Why don’t you tell me exactly what happened.”
***
“Thanks,” I said as Josh handed me a steaming cup of decaf English Breakfast tea while I relaxed on the sofa. Normally I was a coffee drinker, but there was something about a warm cup of tea that I found soothing. It was now well after 1:00 a.m., and Josh and I had finally made it back up to our apartment. Our relaxing evening with our families had been tainted by the incident upon our return. We’d just spent more than an hour talking to the police, and I was looking forward to crawling into bed and hopefully sleeping for a long, long time.
“You’re welcome,” he replied, his voice deep as he sank down beside me. He yawned, looking like he was ready to give in to sleep as well.
“You should go to bed, Josh. I’ll be fine, and as soon as I finish my tea, I’m heading to bed myself.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah. I know you’re exhausted,” I said, glancing over at him. Dark circles were evident under his eyes, and he looked a little pale despite his tanner complexion from months spent in the desert. I knew it had been a long two days back for him, and he probably needed his rest even more than I did at this point.
“All right,” he said, getting to his feet. “You know where to find me if you need anything.” He bent down and brushed his lips across my forehead. It was done in a brotherly, affectionate kind of way, but I couldn’t help but notice the butterflies in my stomach at the warmth of his lips against my skin. I was really going to have to get my feelings in check if we were going to stay roommates. This was Josh for crying out loud—I’d known him since we were kids. He certainly wasn’t swooning over me, so I’m not sure what exactly my own problem was.
“Goodnight,” I said, giving him a small smile.
I watched him walk down the hall as I finished sipping my tea. A few minutes later, I took my mug into the kitchen and turned out the lights. I stopped in the bathroom to quickly wash my face and brush my teeth and then finally went into my own bedroom. I opened my dresser drawer, pulling out a tank top to wear with my panties to bed. At last, I finally switched out the light and crawled under the covers. What started out as a relaxing Saturday had turned into the longest day imaginable, and I hoped that tomorrow I could put this entire day behind me.
***
I walked down the street to my car, on my way to a shift at the hospital, when I thought I heard footsteps right behind me. Turning my head toward the sound, I was puzzled that no one was actually there. Something about the entire situation didn’t sit right with me. The streets were always crowded with people first thing on Monday morning. Why was I the only one around? Suddenly strong arms grabbed me from behind, and I screamed as I was lifted into the air.
“This time you’re not getting away,” a male voice said menacingly into my ear.
I screamed again and tried to twist out of his grip, when a bright light suddenly shone in my eyes.
“Jess! Jessica!”
Josh? What was he doing here? And why was someone shining a flashlight in my eyes?
Suddenly I realized that I wasn’t walking down the street at all but was still safe in my own bed, fighting at the sheets that had become twisted around me during my restless sleep. Tears streamed down my face as Josh grabbed hold of my arms, trying to calm me down. I sat up in bed, hysterical, as I thrashed around. “Josh?”
“It’s okay, I’m right here,” he replied, his voice deep and comforting.
“He was trying to attack me!” I said, sobbing in my confusion.
“No one’s trying to attack you, Baby” Josh said soothingly, wrapping his muscular arms around me.
“He grabbed me and….” I choked on another sob as I tried to continue.
“No, you’re safe right here. I promise I won’t let anyone hurt you.” He pulled me close to him, and I cried softly against his chest, my tears dampening the white cotton tee shirt that he was wearing. “Shhh,” he whispered, stroking my hair with one hand.
“He’s going to find me,” I whimpered. “The police didn’t catch him yet.”
“No one’s going to find you. I’m right here.”
I sniffled as my sobs began to lessen, and Josh continued soothingly stroking my hair and back. I yawned as I leaned against Josh’s chest, realizing how nice it felt to be nestled against him as he held me in his strong arms. It really did feel like no one could hurt me as long as he was here.
“Let’s go back to bed, all right? I’ll stay right here with you if you want.”
“Okay,” I whispered, pulling out of Josh’s embrace. I snuggled back under my covers with Josh climbing in right beside me. He held me close, my back pressed tightly against his chest. I could feel the beat of his heart, and the warmth and security of his embrace was already lulling me back to sleep.
“Is this okay?”
“Yeah. Thanks for staying with me.”
“Just close your eyes,” he whispered. “I promise I’ll never let anyone hurt you.”
I started to mumble a response, but I was already drifting away into dreamland. Josh’s warm body was curled protectively around mine, and wrapped safely in his arms, I knew I wouldn’t have any more nightmares tonight.
Chapter 5
The next morning, I awoke to the sun beating down through my bedroom window. I yawned, trying to remember the last time that I’d slept so well, and as I became more aware of my surroundings, I realized that a very male, very muscular tanned arm was hooked over my waist. For a split second I wondered how I couldn’t remember going to bed with someone last night, and then the events of the entire evening flashed before my eyes: walking down the block with Josh late last night, returning to my car for my cell phone, and a man grabbing me from behind. I glanced at the clock on my nightstand and was shocked to see that it was 10:30 a.m. Unless I returned from a night shift and finally went to sleep in the morning, I didn’t usually sleep this late on a regular day. Not that last night’s events could really be considered “regular” by any stretch of the imagination.
Josh stirred beside me, stretching his long body out beside mine. I felt safe and content here with him in my bedroom and wasn’t sure that I was ready to return to our regular lives and reality just yet. Mike and I had broken up months ago, and even though nothing had happened between Josh and me last night, it had been long time since I’d awakened in the arms of a man. A chiseled, gorgeous man at that.
“Jess,” he murmured, pulling me close to him again. “How’d you sleep?”
“Amazingly well,” I said, trying to disentangle myself from Josh. He finally lifted his arm off of me, and I sleepily sat up, turning to face him. His face was crumpled with sleep, but his blue eyes were clear as they gazed up at me.
“Any more nightmares?” he asked, sounding concerned.
“No, I slept like a baby with you here.”
“Me too,” he said with a sheepish grin. “It’s kind of ironic that I slept better with you in my arms—I thought I was supposed to be comforting you last night.” Suddenly a more serious look came over his face. “I’m going to move your car this morning. I should’ve moved it last night, but I was too distracted and tired after the police interviewed us.”
“In case that guy comes back?” I asked, frowning.
“Yeah, I doubt he’ll be around again. The police will be patrolling this area more, and they’re out searching for him. He has no reason to return. But I don’t want to leave it there in the off chance that he does come back.”
“Yeah, that’s probably a good idea,” I said hesitantly.
“Hey, I didn’t mean to worry you. It’s just a precaution. Let’s just take that variable out of the equation. Then both of us will feel better about it.”
“I know,” I said, nodding.
I must have still looked uncertain, because Josh sat up beside me and reached out to cup my face in his hand. “Jess, I swear I’ll never let anything happen to you.” A single tear rolled down my cheek, and Josh pulled me to him. “Baby, please don’t cry,” he said, his voice husky. I relaxed against his chest, feeling the hard muscles beneath his tee shirt, and felt his strong arms tighten around me. A few more tears slipped down my cheeks, and I wiped them away, feeling slightly foolish for crying again in front of Josh. We were safe in my bedroom. It’s not like anything was going to happen to me here.
“Shhh,” he whispered, stroking my hair. I finally began to feel calmer but made no move to leave his arms. As he held me close, I suddenly realized that we were snuggled up in my bed, each wearing next to nothing. Josh had on his tee shirt and boxers, and I was wearing only the tank top and panties that I’d worn to bed last night. His hand began absently stroking the bare skin on my upper arm, and my senses shifted into overdrive, suddenly aware of his every movement and touch. His chest rose and fell beneath me, but I could practically feel a shift in
the atmosphere between us—that, and a certain part of Josh’s anatomy that was growing hard as he held me.
Josh made no move away from me either, and I uncertainly glanced up at him. His blue eyes met mine, searching, and then he dipped his head down, his lips brushing against my mouth. I hesitated only a moment before kissing him back, loving the feeling of Josh’s strong arms around me and his warm mouth on mine. My hands traced over his face and strong jaw, feeling the stubble across his skin, and I thought there could be nothing sexier than Josh in my bed, kissing me passionately. He shifted our bodies, gently lowering me down, so that I was lying across the bed with him hovering above me. “Josh,” I breathed, wrapping my arms around his neck. The butterflies in my stomach were back, only this time I could tell that so much more than an unassuming kiss was about to happen.
Josh’s soft lips met mine again, his tongue pushing its way inside. My tongue danced with his as he explored my mouth. His chest rubbed up against my pert nipples, covered only by my thin tank top, and my panties were already dampening with arousal. “Jess,” he mumbled, his voice low as he began softly kissing the tender skin of my neck. “I’ve always wanted you.”
“What?” I murmured, confused by his sudden confession but distracted as he gently sucked on my skin, his teeth grazing against my flesh. His hand traced up my body, skimming over my hip and ribcage, until he was squeezing and cupping one breast. His thumb grazed across my nipple, gently moving back and forth, as I moaned. I could feel his erection pressing against my stomach and longed to feel Josh deep inside of me.
In the Arms of a Soldier Page 3
