Locked, Loaded and SEALed

by Carol Ericson

  “God, I hope they haven’t followed us here. I sort of felt safe in this hotel.”

  “We are. They obviously know now that you’re with someone who’s not just a Spark date, but nobody has gotten a look at me yet. They don’t know who I am, and my rental car isn’t on their radar.”

  “My car is.”

  “That’s why we leave it in the hotel parking lot. That’s why you don’t get in touch with any of your friends right now.” He traced the edge of the plastic room service menu. “Maybe that’s why you shouldn’t attend Dr. Fazal’s memorial.”

  She dropped the tea bag she’d been unwrapping. “Are you crazy? That’s not an option.”

  “He’d understand. He’d understand more than anyone why you couldn’t be there.”

  “No, no and no.” She snatched up the tea bag and started twirling it around her finger. “He’s family. You can do your sniper thing again to protect me, but I have to be there. I’m speaking”

  “Okay. I’ll think of something. Right now I’m going to take a shower. If room service shows up while I’m in the bathroom, don’t open the door. Come and get me.”

  “There you go again. I thought we were safe here.”

  “You can never be too careful. You should know that by now.”

  “Go take your shower. I’ll make my tea and watch some TV.”

  He grabbed a pair of sweats and a T-shirt on the way to the bathroom. He couldn’t exactly lounge around in his briefs.

  Once in the shower, he cranked on the faucet and turned his back to the hot water. The hotel had an adjustable showerhead, and he reached up and turned it to a pulsing spray. He rolled his shoulders under the onslaught of the water, and started soaping up his body. He was supposed to be relaxing in here, but thoughts of Sophia kept seeping into his brain, making him hard.

  He dropped his sudsy washcloth and didn’t bother picking it up. Instead he rinsed off with much cooler water to temper his heated thoughts.

  He turned off the water and snapped a towel from the rack just outside the shower curtain. As he dried off, Sophia tapped on the door.

  “Room service.”

  “Already?”

  “You’ve been in there for a while. If you’d been in the tub, I would’ve been worried about drowning.”

  He cursed under his breath, dropped the towel and swept up his sweats from the back of the toilet. He dragged them on and swung open the door of the bathroom.

  “Is he still there?”

  “I told him to hold on.” Her gaze skimmed across his bare chest and it felt it like her fingers trickling across his flesh.

  He shivered. He pressed his eye to the peephole and opened the door, blocking the entrance to the room. “I’ll take it in, thanks. Check?”

  The room service waiter pulled a sheet of paper from the front pocket of his white coat. “Here you go, sir.”

  Austin signed the meal to the room and added a hefty tip for keeping the guy waiting. Then the waiter loaded up the covered dishes onto a tray and placed it in Austin’s arms. He backed up into the room, kicking the door closed.

  Sophia cleared off a space on the table by the window. “That looks like enough food to feed an army—or rather a team of navy SEALs.”

  He snorted as he placed the tray on the table. “This? Not even close.”

  “While you’re chowing down, I’m going to take a shower, too. Swinging from a balcony is almost as strenuous as an entire workout at the gym.”

  He plucked a lid from one of the dishes and waved it at her. He didn’t even want to think about her in the same shower where he’d just been, naked, soaping up...thinking about her. Best just to eat his meal, pretend to work and conk out on the sofa bed.

  * * *

  SHE TURNED HER back on Austin and crouched beside her suitcase. As she dug through the bag, her fingers found the silky nightshirt she’d bought in the clothing store downstairs earlier that day.

  Pressing the pretty but serviceable item to her chest, she sidled into the bathroom. She didn’t want to come on as full-fledged sex bomb, but he might appreciate seeing her in something other than an old T-shirt, or she might appreciate him seeing her, or she might...

  She slammed the bathroom door. She didn’t know what she wanted. No, that wasn’t true either—she wanted Austin Foley—lock, stock and rippling muscles.

  She showered quickly and slipped into her new nightgown, its silky folds caressing her bare skin, heightening her sensitivity—everywhere. After washing her face, she let down her hair and brushed it out until it had a glossy sheen.

  She squared her shoulders and marched back into the bedroom, hoping to find Austin snoozing on the sofa bed and making her decision for her.

  He glanced up from his plate and his eyes widened. Then he coughed and took a gulp of water from his bottle.

  Suddenly self-conscious, she scurried to her suitcase and dropped her clothes on top of the mess inside. Austin hadn’t even put a shirt on. He wasn’t going to make this easy at all—unless he grabbed her and planted a kiss on her mouth.

  Austin Foley, Wyoming cowboy, navy SEAL and all-around good guy would never do that. Making a move on a woman without politely asking first had to be against his moral cowboy code or something—especially after knowing her for a grand total of three days.

  If she wanted something with Austin before he took off and disappeared from her life completely, she’d have to take the initiative—and risk rejection. Hell, it wasn’t as if she hadn’t encountered rejection a few...or a hundred times in her life.

  “How’s the steak?”

  “Perfect. Do you want a bite? Of steak?”

  “No, thanks.”

  He held up a spear of asparagus, dripping butter. “Asparagus? There’s so much butter on it, it doesn’t even taste healthy.”

  She sauntered toward him, fully aware of her nipples peaking and chafing against the material of her nightshirt—and not giving a damn.

  Austin’s eyes never left hers as she drew closer. When she landed in front of him, she dipped, bending her knees slightly, mouth open.

  He swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat as he placed the tip of the asparagus on her tongue.

  The buttery taste flooded her mouth, and she took a bite. Raising her eyes to the ceiling, she said, “Very good, and you’re right. That didn’t taste like a healthy veggie at all.”

  He popped the stem of the asparagus in his mouth and then ran the pad of his thumb just below her bottom lip. “Butter.”

  “Can’t take me anywhere.”

  “Do you want any more?”

  She allowed her gaze to drop to his bare chest and wander to his flat abs. “Not...now.”

  He stacked his dishes on the tray with a clatter, breaking the tension between them. Who knew asparagus could be sexy?

  “I’m done.” He shoved the tray to the other side of the table and stretched his arms over his head. A spasm of pain shifted across his features.

  “Are you okay?”

  “Still sore where that damned chair poked me in the back.”

  “That’s my fault for landing on you.”

  “Better me than two stories below.”

  “Do you need any more ibuprofen?”

  “Already took my allotment. I’ll down another couple in a few hours.”

  “That’s not helping you now.” She backed up to the bed and patted the mattress. It was now or never. “You know in addition to being a physical therapist, I’m also a trained masseuse.”

  “Really?” He rolled his shoulders. “That must come in handy.”

  “It comes in handy when I jump on top of people and knock them backward into chairs. I’ll give you a free session, relax your muscles and relieve some of that pain for you.”

&nb
sp; She held her breath. What if he turned her down? Would he view this as some kind of desperate attempt to keep him in Boston, keep him in her life?

  His lids fell over his eyes as if in slow motion. “Sure.”

  She scooted off the bed. “I don’t have any massage oil, so the hotel lotion will have to do. It’s all in the hands, anyway.”

  “I’m sure it is.” He stretched out on the bed and she hurried into the bathroom.

  She grabbed the little bottle of lotion from the vanity and stopped in front of the mirror to assess the stranger in front of her. Flushed cheeks and bright eyes indicated a level of excitement she hadn’t felt in years. How crazy for these incredible highs coming along with the depths of despair over losing Dr. Fazal and then Ginny. Maybe hooking up with Austin was just her way of climbing out of the pit of darkness.

  Whatever the reason, she had a perfect male specimen waiting for her in the other room.

  She returned to the bed with the lotion pinned between her arm and body, rubbing her hands together. “I’m going to warm up my hands so I don’t shock you.”

  He rolled his head to the side, his green eyes glittering. “Nothing you could do would shock me.”

  The lotion slipped from her hold and bounced on the carpet. She ducked down, allowing her hair to fall over her hot face. Where had those gentlemanly manners gone?

  She popped up, lotion in hand. “Just relax. I’m going to start with your scalp, without the lotion.”

  “Head on the pillow or off?”

  “Let’s get rid of the pillow, so you’re lying flat.”

  He shoved the pillow to the side. “I’m all yours.”

  A girl could wish.

  Curling her legs beneath her, she settled on the bed next to his right hip. She cracked her knuckles and rose to her knees. She dug her fingertips into his thick, short hair until they met his scalp. Then she pressed the pads of her fingers against the points behind his ears and down to the base of his skull.

  He released a long breath. “That feels surprisingly good.”

  “You haven’t had a head massage before? Even haircuts usually involve a massage when you get your hair washed.”

  “When I get a haircut, the navy barber doesn’t exactly massage my scalp.”

  “Well, he should start.” She finished with his head and moved down to his neck, pinching into the hard, corded muscles. “Lot of tension right here.”

  “Yeah, well, that’s an occupational hazard. I have to hold my head in the same position for long stretches of time when I’m on a mission.”

  She drove her thumbs into either side of his neck, and he sucked in a breath.

  “Sorry. With this much tension, there’s gonna be some pain.”

  “Hurts so much, it feels good.”

  “If you say so, tough guy.”

  Her hands slipped to his broad shoulders, spanning the slabs of muscle beneath his smooth skin. She squeezed a puddle of lotion into her palm and rubbed her hands together. Her hands slid across his shoulders, and he seemed to melt beneath her touch, as his eyelashes fluttered and his eyes closed.

  He tensed up as she worked toward his shoulder blades. “You’re getting close to my injury.”

  “I can see it. A bruise is forming where the chair leg gouged you.” She dabbled her fingertips over the red spot. “I’ll work around it, and as your muscles get loose, that’ll relieve some of your pain in that area.”

  “Go for it. I trust you.”

  Avoiding the bruised area of his back, she massaged his warm skin. His back formed a perfect V, tapering down to his narrow waist. The waistband of his sweats began just above the curve of his buttocks.

  How far did she dare go? While he seemed to be enjoying the massage, he still hadn’t made a move. In her book, this massage screamed, “Take me.” Did he still have doubts that she wanted him?

  Maybe he’d take the massage and reject her.

  Her knuckles kneaded the area on either side of his spine on the small of his back. As she skimmed the band of his sweats, he seemed to stop breathing.

  “Are you going farther?”

  “D-do you want me to?”

  “Oh, yeah, but not if this was supposed to be some therapeutic massage.” He cranked his head around and pinned her with a gaze from beneath heavy lids. “You wanna stop, you stop, and I’ll go bang my head against the wall.”

  A smile crept to her lips. “I don’t want you sustaining any more injuries. I need you—to get me through this mess.”

  “Is that the only reason you need me?”

  She didn’t want to answer that question, didn’t want to think about the variety of ways she needed Austin, so she peeled back his sweats.

  His muscled backside curved into a perfect crescent, and her fingertips tingled as she ran them across his skin. He shivered beneath her touch.

  She drove the heels of her hands against his tight glutes and along the sides of his hips while he moaned softly and buried his head in the crook of his arm.

  After several minutes, he said in a muffled voice, “I can honestly say that’s the first time I’ve ever had my backside massaged.”

  “Does it feel good? Do you like it?”

  “Do you want me to show you how much I like it?”

  Before she could answer, he rolled onto his back, dragging his sweats down over his hips. His erection rose from his body, hard and hot.

  She lodged her tongue in the corner of her mouth. “Looks like you enjoyed that—a lot.”

  “I think I need a massage here, too.”

  “This is going to cost you extra.” She cupped one hand between his legs and closed the other around his erection, running it up and down his shaft.

  Tipping back his head, he made a low sound deep in his throat. He thrust his hips forward, and she pumped him harder until he grabbed her wrist.

  He growled, his voice rough around the edges. “I can do a type of massage, too.”

  “Really?” She widened her eyes and batted her eyelashes as heat surged through her body.

  “With my tongue.” He sat up suddenly and grabbed the hem of her nightshirt, yanking it over her head.

  The cold air made goose bumps rush across her chest, and her nipples hardened and ached beneath Austin’s hungry gaze. He encircled her waist with his hands and flipped her onto her back. He loomed above her and slid her underwear down over her thighs. With one finger, he dragged them down her legs and flicked them off her feet.

  She drew her knees to her chest, but he planted one hand on each knee and spread her legs apart.

  “This is your idea of a massage?”

  “Oh, yeah.” He crawled between her open legs, burying his head between her thighs.

  The ends of his hair tickled her tummy and she stifled a giggle.

  He peered up at her. “Are you laughing at my attempts at therapeutic massage?”

  “I...” Her words ended in a gasp as Austin drove his tongue into her core.

  He played her, bringing her to the edge of passion and then teasing her by slowing down, drawing back, leaving her gasping for more. She dug her fingers into his scalp and urged him on. Her muscles tensed as he spun her higher and higher until she was almost afraid of the inevitable crash.

  His lips sucked at her flesh, pulling her into his mouth. The tingling at her toes raced up her legs and pooled between her thighs. She arched her back, offering even more of herself to Austin’s talented tongue.

  When he grabbed her derriere with both hands, she lost it. Her orgasm clawed through her and she opened her mouth to scream, but she couldn’t muster the breath to make a sound. Something between a squeal and a whimper eked past her lips as her hips bucked wildly.

  Over and over the waves of passion ripped through her body, and
she thrashed her head from side to side as colored light flashed behind her eyes, which were squeezed tightly closed.

  Austin, his head no longer between her thighs, pinched her nipples, extending her orgasm with shots of pleasure. As she began to descend from her high, he kissed her mouth and she wriggled beneath him, sighing against his lips.

  But if she thought this was some kind of calm respite after the storm, Austin soon dispelled that notion as he drove into her.

  He whispered in her ear. “Sorry, but I’m too damned hard to wait.”

  She felt the truth of his statement filling her up, plunging into her deeply, making her whole. Wrapping her legs around his hips, she squeezed him, holding him against her body and going along for the ride.

  He stimulated her sensitive points and her passion rose again, but she’d have to wait for another orgasm because his exploded inside her.

  His low growl morphed into a full-fledged howl as he threw his head back. He lifted his body, bracing his hands on either side of her shoulders as he continued to spend himself.

  She ran her fingertip from his chin down his glistening chest to his hard abs and ended where their bodies connected.

  His gaze pinned her with a look so hot, she almost felt the steam rising from the bed. Even though he’d already reached his climax, he continued moving against her.

  “Your turn again.”

  Even if she hadn’t been close, the smoldering way he looked at her and the unselfish way he continued to pleasure her sent her over the edge.

  Her second orgasm moved through her like hot lava, and she melted beneath him. He thrust into her a few more times before lowering himself on top of her and nuzzling her neck.

  “It feels so good inside you, better than I even imagined—and I imagined a lot.”

  “Was I too obvious with the massage ploy?” She smoothed his hair back from his forehead with the palm of her hand.

  He pressed a kiss against the pulse throbbing in her throat. “I was just waiting for a sign from you. I didn’t want to take advantage of the situation.”