by Nicola Marsh
She couldn’t be standing at his hotel door, dressed in black pants and a low-cut shimmery red top, carrying a small overnight bag and looking up at him with the solemnity of an orphan arriving on a foster family’s doorstep for the first time.
“What are you doing here?”
She hesitated before her defiant gaze met his. “I came to see you.” She hoisted her overnight bag higher and shook it in his direction, in case he didn’t get it. “To spend some one-on-one time with you.”
O-kay. He didn’t understand her rationale for showing up but he wasn’t complaining. One-on-one time with the woman he loved sounded pretty damn fine now he was free to pursue a future.
He hated seeing Pop in the last stages of dementia, confined to bed and almost comatose, but visiting him before his flight to Sydney had cemented his decision. Joining the army had been his way of giving back to Pop for walking away from the career he loved to raise him. He’d wanted to make Pop proud, to show him his sacrifices were appreciated and respected and the catalyst for Flynn’s career choice.
But Pop didn’t know him anymore and his obligations were done. He’d paid his dues. Time to do what he wanted.
“Adam’s with Jane, in case you were wondering.”
“How is he?”
“Good.” She gnawed on her bottom lip, uncertainty clouding her eyes. “Aren’t you going to invite me in?”
“Uh … sure.”
He hesitated only a moment before opening the door wider. Wasn’t like she hadn’t seen it all before.
Her eyebrows lifted a fraction as her gaze swept his body.
“Nice boxers.”
“I wasn’t expecting company.”
He turned away and rummaged in the wardrobe for clothes, feeling foolish standing there in his black cotton underwear.
Her hand on his shoulder stopped him.
“Don’t get dressed on my account.”
Her touch scorched his skin, the radiant heat from her palm branding him as hers.
As he turned to face her, he wondered how a simple touch could say so much? Or was his libido taking control of his brain yet again when it came to this amazing woman?
“If I don’t put some clothes on in the next two seconds I won’t be responsible for my actions,” he said softly, his gaze never leaving hers for a second.
Despite his best intentions, he wasn’t a saint. He’d waited too long for this moment and it seemed like a lifetime. He wanted to light her body with desire and fan the flames repeatedly, all night long.
“About time you ditched the rigid army act and lost control.”
She dropped her bag on the floor and stepped into his arms, wrapping her hands around his neck and pulling his head down toward her.
Thankfully, Flynn didn’t need to be asked twice and Lori sagged against him, knowing this time there’d be no turning back.
As his lips met hers she ignited, desire ripping through her body at lightning speed. She ran her hands over his arms, his chest, exploring every inch of the hard, bare flesh as she’d yearned to do for so long.
His body jerked against hers as she scraped her nails lightly down his back and he groaned, guiding her toward the bed before she knew it had happened.
“One of us is way overdressed,” he murmured, fumbling with the buttons on her top as he nipped the tender flesh at the base of her throat.
“Let me help.”
She shucked out of her pants and kicked them away as he peeled her top from her body and tossed it on the floor.
He stepped back, his gray eyes darkening to sable as his gaze traveled the length of her body, studying it in minute detail.
“You’re more beautiful now than you were at eighteen,” he murmured, the reverence in his eyes staggering in its intensity.
“I’ve got stretch marks,” she blurted, unable to cope with his reconnaissance a minute longer.
Her body blazed beneath his stare and if he didn’t assuage her need soon she’d melt on the spot.
“Like I said, beautiful.”
He knelt at her feet as if worshipping a goddess and placed a soft, open-mouthed kiss on her stomach, shredding the last of her inhibitions concerning the changes of her body following Adam’s birth.
Her hands tangled in his hair as he went wild, lavishing her navel with mini kisses, licking and blowing on the skin around it until she thought she’d faint.
“Love me,” she whispered, her body tightening as he continued his erotic exploration lower.
And he did.
Without holding back, Flynn ran his hands over her satiny skin, his mouth following a similar path, tasting every delicious inch of her. He didn’t know when they sank onto the bed, how he lost his boxer shorts or how long it took.
All he was aware of was the woman he’d loved forever pliant in his arms and urging him to make love to her.
And though he’d like nothing better than to douse the flames that threatened to consume them both he wanted to take it slow, to prolong the exquisite agony of their mutual passion.
They lay side by side, her eyes round as saucers in her face as she stared at him, the need he read there matching his own.
“Now, Flynn.”
“Patience, sweetheart.”
He ran a finger down her body, starting at her neck, circling her breasts, across her abdomen and stopping short of where he so desperately wanted to be.
His hand splayed against her skin, stroking the curve of her waist, the roundness of her butt as she arched toward him, trembling under his hand, making small sounds that begged him for more.
“I’ve wanted you for so long,” he said, enveloping her in his arms, their bodies plastered against one other the entire length.
“I’ve wanted you longer,” she whispered, raining a smattering of light kisses across his chest.
Flynn buried his face in her hair, inhaled her unique fragrance and silently thanked God he’d come home.
Lori opened her eyes, stretched and looked around the room, slightly disoriented. It took a moment to recognize her surroundings and she smiled the wide grin of a well-satisfied woman.
It wasn’t the surroundings that brought a smile to her face as much as the room’s occupant and what he’d done to her last night.
Correction, what they’d done to each other last night. Repeatedly.
She glanced across at the empty space beside her and wondered where Flynn had disappeared. Though she strained her ears, she couldn’t hear the sounds of a shower and experienced a fleeting panic. What if he regretted last night?
Hating her insecurities, she swung her legs over the side of the bed and clutched the sheet to her chest. Maybe he hadn’t wanted to disturb her? Maybe he still took an early morning walk like he used to?
However, the longer she sat there a whole host of maybes and what ifs popped into her head, each one hammering a nail in her heart.
Resisting the urge to pummel her pillow she leaped out of bed, grabbed her overnight bag and headed for the shower. She needed to present a fresh, confident image when he returned because Lord knew she was a quivering mess inside. Now they’d cemented their relationship she needed to know exactly where things stood between them.
No more word games, no more holding her at arm’s length. Flynn wasn’t that good an actor and he’d shown his true feelings last night. Now all she wanted was to hear if from him in the cold light of day and she’d be the happiest woman on the planet.
Humming some soppy love song, she showered and dressed in record time, eager to face Flynn and their future. Together.
“That has a nice ring to it,” she murmured, picking the clothes she’d worn last night off the floor, a hot blush rising to her cheeks in the process.
Her body still tingled at the recollection of his hands, his mouth and the consummated skill with which he’d wielded both, leaving her sated beyond her wildest dreams. To think, she could look forward to that every day for the rest of her life.
She sank onto the b
ed and covered her burning cheeks with her hands, reminding herself to thank Jane for her gentle shove in the right direction. Her friend had been right. Why sit around moping and waiting for a man to come to his senses when she could grab him with both hands, so to speak?
She’d never done anything remotely daring in her life yet the last few weeks with Flynn had her doing some crazy things, all in the effort to win him over. Now that she had him maybe her life as the staid schoolteacher and respectable mother could return to normal.
Who was she trying to kid? Her life would never be staid or normal ever again.
And she could kiss the man responsible for it.
“Good morning.”
Flynn stepped into the room and her heart thudded at the sight of him.
While she hated that uniform and all it stood for — potential loss and loneliness and devastation — she had to admit it made him look irresistibly lethal.
“It’s a great morning.”
She knew she must be beaming like a moron but couldn’t help it. She’d never been any good at hiding her feelings and this morning proved to be no exception. Especially this morning.
“Would you like breakfast?” He glanced around the room as if searching for something. “I’ll find the menu and ring room service if you like.”
Her smile waned at his cool tone.
Don’t panic. Calm down. He’s probably feeling as awkward as you are and doesn’t know how to broach the subject of what happens from here.
“Are you going to join me?”
“Sorry, can’t stay. Meeting with my CO.”
Of course a meeting with his commanding officer would be more important than her. The army had always come first and always would. How foolish she’d been in thinking just because they’d finally reconnected on a deeper level last night that it meant anything.
He rummaged around in the wardrobe, threw a few items of clothing into a duffel bag and zipped it.
So much for gazing into her eyes and professing his undying love.
So much for happily ever after.
She’d always been a sucker for fairy tales and it looked like her Prince Charming had turned into a toad.
“Fine,” she said, though it wasn’t. Not by a long shot.
He slung the duffel over his shoulder and finally looked at her. “About last night — ”
“Let’s not get into it right now.”
She held up her hand, wishing he’d leave so she could break down in private. “I can see you have places to be.”
A tiny frown of concern creased his brow. “I hate to rush off but have no idea how long this meeting will take. Why don’t you order breakfast, take your time and check out when you’re ready?”
The splinter in her heart drove in a little deeper, opening a fissure long healed.
“So I’ll see you back in Melbourne?”
“Uh-huh.”
He glanced at his watch, his brusqueness at complete odds with the tender lover a few hours earlier.
“Well then, don’t let me keep you.”
She hated how churlish she sounded, when he’d done nothing but revert to type. She was the stupid one for reading more into their encounter. Like he might actually give a damn.
“Lori?”
“Hmm?”
“Last night was special. Don’t second guess yourself.”
He dropped a quick kiss on her lips and tapped the tip of her nose with his finger. “We’ll talk when I get back, promise. Take care of yourself and Adam.”
She almost said, “don’t make promises you can’t keep,” but he’d already walked out, leaving her alone, the way she’d always been.
Flynn would’ve loved to stick around earlier that morning and plan his future with Lori. She’d shocked him by showing up at his room last night but the minute she’d set foot inside he’d known they’d reached the turning point.
Rather than push her away until every last loose end was tied up in his life — like he’d planned — he’d succumbed, unable to resist her.
Making love had been incredible, so much more fulfilling than the experience they’d shared before. Lori the young girl had been lovely, Lori the woman was incomparable.
She’d captured his heart over a decade earlier and though he’d done his damnedest to break it, here he was, falling in love with her all over again and grateful for the opportunity.
However, he couldn’t tell her the whole truth until he completed his business here in Sydney. Yesterday, he’d taken care of training center business. And he’d made peace with Pop, even if the old guy hadn’t comprehended half the stuff he’d said. It annoyed him, that he’d left it so late when Pop couldn’t understand. Flynn should’ve confronted his demons many years ago, when he’d jumped through metaphorical hoops to thank the guy for giving up his life to raise him, rather than articulating his gratitude as he should’ve.
Flynn couldn’t remember his mom much beyond pictures Pop had secreted away, couldn’t remember much before Pop had taken him in at three years of age. But he did remember growing up with an angry, bitter man who ran his home like an army camp. He remembered tiptoeing around Pop, learning to read his moods, striving for good grades to impress him.
Pop hadn’t been cruel but growing up in an emotionless environment had taken its toll. Ironic, following Pop’s footsteps in the army had been about gratitude and obligation initially, but the brusque surroundings had suited him too.
He’d held Pop’s hand yesterday and told him all of it. About why he’d joined, how the army became his family, how he now had a son of his own. And he’d thanked the man who’d taken him in, who’d sacrificed the only life he knew, to care for an orphaned boy.
It had been cathartic, releasing years of repressed resentment. Pop may not have responded, and never would, but it had allowed him to take a giant step forward toward his future.
Today, he needed to take care of the rest and then he’d be free.
Free to do what he should’ve done six years ago — whisk the woman of his dreams down the aisle and provide their son with the family they deserved.
He glanced at his watch, hoping Cathy would be waiting for him. She’d had an early morning meeting scheduled at Centrepoint Tower so he’d said he would meet her there for coffee afterwards. He wanted to make a clean break and hoped his commanding officer wouldn’t give him a hard time.
Cathy had been a great boss and he’d learned a lot from her but it was time to focus on other things besides his career, starting with Lori and Adam, the two most important people in his life.
He rode the lift to the top of the Tower, his thoughts totally focused on Lori. He wondered what sort of wedding she’d prefer, a quiet affair or a big party? Would she wear a simple suit of understated elegance or a gorgeous gown fit for a princess?
He smiled at the analogy. She’d always loved fairy tales and she’d shared some of her English essays with him, every story she ever wrote ending happily. This time he fully intended to give her the happily ever after she deserved.
As he stepped from the lift, Cathy rose from a seat by the window and waved him over. He’d battled men in combat, he’d faced egotistical sergeants bellowing orders, yet both paled in comparison when confronting a woman like Cathy. He’d bet she picked men up and chewed them up before spitting them out, and that would be before breakfast.
“About time you showed up, Logan.”
She tapped her watch impatiently before returning his salute, gesturing to the chair opposite. “So what’s this all about?”
“I think you know.”
Cathy nodded. “Dammit, I’m going to lose one of my best soldiers?”
“Yeah. Think you can help expedite my release?”
“Not asking for much, are you?” She rolled her eyes. “I knew this was coming when you requested the extended leave but what’s the hurry?”
“Personal stuff,” he said, wishing they could wrap this meeting up ASAP so he could get back to Melbourne and prov
e just how personal he could get with his future wife.
Cathy’s eyebrows shot up. “This is about a woman?”
Flynn laughed. “Just because you military girls have a guy in every port doesn’t mean I’m the same. I’ve found the one and I intend to let her know it.”
“Well, I’ll be damned.”
Cathy shook her head, her grin widening by the second. “Remind me not to grant any of my other top staff leave. Look what happens. You go soft.”
Flynn shrugged. “What can I say? I’m a romantic at heart.”
Cathy’s loud guffaw had heads turning. “In that case, this CO won’t stand in the way of true love. Good luck, Logan. I reckon shacking up with one person for the rest of your life is going to be way harder than any of the missions I ever sent you on.”
“I’ll take my chances.”
They shook hands, as Flynn wondered why it was so easy to walk away from a career that had meant everything to him until recently. He’d expected to feel a twinge of regret, a feeling of loss. Instead, he couldn’t believe the surreal lightness he’d left his past behind, and the intense eagerness to start his new life.
“Great working with you, boss. And thanks for speeding my ROSO up.”
“No problems, Logan. Your Return of Service Obligation was complete a while back so you’re off the hook.” Cathy saluted. “If you ever need your butt kicked or feel the need to do a hundred push ups after running a marathon as a warm up for a mission, you know where to find me.”
Flynn grinned, knowing he’d left that part of his life well and truly behind him.
From now on, he had a new mission, starting with convincing Lori to spend the rest of her life with him.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Nothing soothed a broken heart like retail therapy. Jane’s mantra, something Lori had never tried considering she’d only ever let one guy close to her heart and the only thing she’d shopped for back then had been baby clothes.
Foolishly, she’d booked a late flight back to Melbourne, envisaging an entire romantic day following her sizzling night with Flynn. Considering that plan had been scuttled when he couldn’t get away to his precious army meeting quick enough, she now had hours to fill before heading to the airport.
