Chapter 3
The compound consisted, in part, of a former resort commandeered by the U. S. Government and transformed into a small military base. The hotel had been converted into a dormitory, with the first floor a mix of military utility and luxurious resort furnishings. Most of the rooms had been transformed into top military brass offices, briefing rooms, c-store, and a post office.
Conrad enjoyed sitting in the leather chairs and watching the hustle and bustle around him. Georgie lay at his feet, not at all interested in watching anything but the inside of her eyelids. A tall woman with dark blonde hair strolled out of the post office, and opened a large manila envelope as she made her way to the seating area. For a moment, he just admired the way she carried herself—confident, yet elegant. And while Army fatigues did nothing to enhance the female form, this woman mastered sexy in the desert storm cami’s.
When she lifted her head, ice washed over Conrad. The bitchy doctor from the previous day. Rude and condescending. And insulted his dog. Kidd told him later she was all right, even went as far as to say she was nice. Conrad had scoffed, but Kidd just shook his head, and reminded him that he was damn lucky she hadn’t followed through on her threat to report him for insubordination.
There was that to be thankful for…
And she would’ve been right to do it. Conrad had acted like an ass—but his intentions were good. The doctor glanced at him, and then abruptly halted. She stood motionless for a moment, and started to turn away.
Conrad rose. “Wait.”
Her eyebrows crinkled together, and she frowned.
“I wanted to apologize for my behavior yesterday. My comments were out of line, and my conduct inappropriate. I was worried about my buddy, but I shouldn’t have acted in that manner. It was inexcusable and I’m sorry.”
She stared at him for a moment. Finally, her features softened. “Understandable, following what you had been through. Apology accepted.” She reached her hand out.
He grasped it—as soft and warm as the smile sneaking across her lips. He hadn’t noticed yesterday what a knockout the doc was, which was unlike him. Hot women were like a beacon that called to him, and he rarely failed to notice a gorgeous woman. But this woman was unlike any he had met lately. Obviously smart, didn’t take shit, but able to maintain her femininity amongst the overwhelming testosterone within the compound.
What would a woman like her be like in bed? As take charge during sex as in her exam room? Or submissive? He pictured her, naked, laid out across a bed of clean, white sheets. Her hair splayed across a pillow, her long legs spread open, inviting him in, and ready to wrap tightly around him. What would it feel like to drive into her hard and deep until she came?
She gently tugged her hand free of his grasp. He hated letting go, as if he could hold on to the fantasy just a little longer, maybe even make it come true, if he could maintain the connection.
Whoa…where was this coming from? Maybe he had been without sex for too long. Might be time to get laid. He shook the thoughts from his head and turned his attention back to the doc.
“You were getting ready to sit down before you saw me. Please, don’t leave on my account.” He gestured to a chair next to his and hoped to god she would stay.
She exhaled, her gaze darting around the area. She seemed to be contemplating whether or not she could sit somewhere else without being rude and rebuffing his invitation. Relenting, she said, “Okay, thanks.” She passed by him as she moved to the chair across from him. The air swirled around him, and he breathed in her soft scent. A sweet and sort of spicy aroma filled his senses.
“Did you get some good mail?” he asked, pointing at the large envelope on her lap.
Smiling, she shook her head. She pulled out a stack of papers with a large binder clip at the top. “Well, I guess that depends on your definition of good.” She glanced up at him with the hint of a smile on her face. “Divorce papers.”
Shit. “Actually, it’s how you would define good.”
She chuckled and then let out a deep sigh. “It’s fine, as sad as that sounds. A long time coming, and it’ll be nice to have this behind me.”
“Still,” he said and shrugged, a firm believer that marriage was a sacred promise between people, one that should last a lifetime. His parents had been great examples of working hard on a marriage, even when it appeared not worth saving. They always managed to find a way back to each other, and rekindle their love. Conrad hoped to have that one day, also.
Silence dragged out between them. Time for a change of subject. “How long are you here for?”
Her shoulders dropped a bit and she seemed to relax with his question. Probably eager to move past the talk of divorce. “I’m heading home in a few weeks, actually.”
Few weeks…Conrad’s heart clenched tightly in his chest for no reason. Why would it matter when she was leaving? It’s not like there was a chance in hell anything was going to happen between them. For one, she was so far out of his league it was ridiculous. And second, she was an officer and he was enlisted. The military had strict rules against fraternization between commissioned and non-comms—even when it was a hot doctor and a spec-ops K-9 handler. Rules were rules—and this one was a big no-no to break. Careers ended over shit like that.
“Where’s home?” he asked.
The doc settled back in her chair. “Small town in the northern Rocky Mountains—very small town. Which is part of the reason I was happy to get orders over here.”
“The other part being your soon-to-be ex?” He pointed at the papers she had set on the small table between them.
“Bingo,” she said. “Not much fun watching him parade his fiancé around town.”
Conrad winced. “Ouch, that’s gotta sting.”
She hesitated, as if weighing whether or not she should open up to him. After all, he was a complete stranger. But Conrad knew he put most people at ease. It had always been that way. People just seemed to open up to him.
“Well, him moving on doesn’t bother me,” she said. “Seeing him with the woman he was cheating on me with does. It’s a constant reminder of how stupid I was for so many years.”
Conrad shook his head in disbelief. “How are you stupid? You were married to him, and had every right to expect him to be faithful.”
“I bought into all his lies, even though I knew. In the back of my mind—I knew something was off. The saddest part is, I would probably still be with him if someone hadn’t sent me pictures of them together.”
Conrad felt his stomach churn. “Oh, damn, not of them having sex?”
“No, nothing that graphic. But they were…intimate. Holding hands, kissing, walking arm-and-arm.” She looked out the window, her eyes distant, as if recalling a memory. “Things he used to do with me.”
Conrad felt a wave of rage wash over him. He wanted to pound the crap out of this prick. Irrational, yes, but he couldn’t shake the fierce need to protect her. Also, something ingrained in him since birth. Safeguarding people.
“Anyway, once I saw the photos, a light switched on and I was able to see the truth.”
What he wouldn’t give to reach across and take her hand in his, provide some type of physical support. But he couldn’t—especially not out in the open, in front of curious eyes. “You’re better off without him. If you ask me, he’s the moron, Doc.”
She smiled and nodded at him. His heart swelled in his chest and his body was instantly flooded with warmth. Damn…the woman has me with just a smile.
A heavy hand landed on his shoulder. Fuck, how had someone come up behind me without my notice? The answer was sitting across from him. The doc had stolen every bit of his attention.
“Sorry to interrupt.” Another of his spec ops buddies, Bart Hilden, had a wide shit-eating grin on his face. His eyes slid over to the doc. “We have a meeting to get to, Conrad.”
Conrad glared at Bart. “Right behind you.” The man walked away, and Conrad stood. “See ya around, Doc?”
&nb
sp; She smiled. “I’ll be here.”
He stretched his hand out to her. “Thanks for giving me a chance to correct your first impression of me—“
She slid her hand into his, and his insides did a strange and uncomfortable flip. “Julie Sutton.”
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Kidd stop and look at him. He pointed to the door and cocked an eyebrow. Conrad gave him a head nod. “Nice to meet you. Come, Georgie.”
He jogged over to where Kidd was standing, Georgie at his heel. “What was that all about?” Kidd asked.
Conrad shrugged, “Nothing, just apologizing to the doc.”
“Is that why your eyes are lovesick, and you have a boner?”
Conrad checked his junk, then felt like an ass. Kidd laughed and slapped Conrad on the back. “Man, you got the hots for the doc.”
“Fuck off,” Conrad said, knowing it was true but pissed he was so fucking transparent.
Chapter 4
Julie walked into the CaSH and slammed straight into the corpsman’s chest. At least he was paying attention, and was able to raise his cup of coffee to avoid splashing hot liquid on either of them.
“I’m so sorry,” Julie said, her words rushed, her head reeling.
“No worries, Ma’am—you okay?” The corpsman’s eyebrows were knitted together, his gaze traveling her upper body. Typical of medical personnel to check for visible injuries while asking the question…not something she would ever take as inappropriate leering.
“Yes, thanks. My brain was somewhere else.”
Understatement of the day. Since Conrad had left her sitting in the lobby, she couldn’t stop thinking about him. Yesterday she had wanted to hammer him for insubordination, or at the very least, physically throw him out of the exam room on his ass. But today…well, she was struck by how sensitive he had been. He’d let her go on and on about her cheating ex-husband, and had offered support. Not something she would’ve expected from the rough and rugged Ranger.
There was something to be said for being able to talk to someone about something so personal—so humiliating—and get it out without fear of judgment. The oddity was that it was someone she had just met. And the most startling was that she had opened up to him at all. The day before he had been an ass, yet just moments earlier, he had been everything she had needed. She’d known the divorce papers were coming, had been anxious to receive them and end her farce of a marriage. But having them in her hands opened up wounds in her heart and soul she thought had healed.
There she was, her heart bleeding, and the last person she had wanted to see was Conrad. But he had turned into the exact person she needed. How was that possible?
She’d watched him leave the building and more than her heart was strumming a quick and steady beat. Sergeant Conrad Matthews was not a bad looking guy. Not by a longshot. His light brown hair made his neatly trimmed beard appear blonde, almost nonexistent against his tanned face. Broad shoulders and muscles in all the right places were always a bonus, but she was used to seeing that on the military guys on the compound, especially the Rangers. What was it about this guy that made her body hum with buried desire?
It was more than his body that she was attracted to. The great body was just the icing on the cake. He had kind, sincere eyes, and a smile that seemed to create a warm, safe place. A place she wanted to stay, wrapped up in his protective aura.
She closed her eyes, and banished thoughts of being that physically close to Conrad. It was not allowed, and she didn’t need an Article 134 Courts Martial for banging an enlisted guy. She liked her position with the reserve unit and wasn’t about to do anything that would jeopardize her side job.
Pushing through the doors to the exam room, she crossed the small space and entered the office she shared with Betesh. “Good morning.”
He swiveled in his chair, dark circles under his eyes.
“Everything okay?” she asked.
“Fatigued. But I will be fine. Do not worry, Dr. Julie. I will perform my duties.”
Julie tossed the envelope on the desk and sank into her chair. “That’s not my concern, Betesh. Are you feeling okay? What’s causing the exhaustion?”
“Lack of sleep,” he answered, and released a long sigh, his shoulders dropping as he spoke. “Yana is getting worse. She was unable to sleep last night. Coughing uncontrollably.”
“Did you give her the dextromethorphan I sent home with you?”
Betesh nodded. “And we have vaporizer going with eucalyptus you give to us, also. Nothing works.”
“Is she coughing during the day?”
“Yes. I fear she is going to expel her lungs soon.”
Julie’s mind was running though the various issues that might be facing the child. “And you say she’s been like this for a couple of weeks? Have you listened to her lungs?”
“Yes, almost three weeks. Her lungs have fluid. Early on, she can to clear them temporarily. In last few days, she is congested, even after expelling mucus.”
“It sounds as if she has pneumonia. You need to get her to a hospital.”
Betesh shook his head. “I cannot.” She knew that. They had discussed the issue before. Even with Betesh’s credentials as a doctor-in-residence, he was not authorized to have his family treated at the CaSH. And Yana would not receive effective care at the local hospital. She was a girl, and her life did not mean as much as that of a male. Betesh also had a couple of strikes against him in the community: he had not produced a son, only a daughter, and he worked for the enemy. No matter how much good the U.S. established in the area, their presence was seen as an invasion of their lands. It didn’t matter that they were attempting to rid the town of terrorists. Americans were the enemy, and Betesh was a traitor.
“Would you like me to come to the house and take a look at her?” she asked.
A smile flooded his face, and he clapped his hands together. “Could you? That would mean so much to me and my family. I trust you to give Yana the care she requires.”
Of course Julie would go. Betesh had been a godsend for her. He was able to step in and perform procedures the corpsman had not been formally trained in. “Just let me know when you want me to come, and I’ll be there.”
“I will talk with my wife tonight,” he said. “Thank you, Dr. Julie.”
“We’re family, right? Family takes care of each other.”
Betesh nodded, quickly turning away to type on his computer.
Was he crying? She had never seen Betesh emotional before, but knew it would not be something he would want her to see. She picked up the envelope, pulled the papers out, and started reading. Time to get this mess done and over with. She wanted to be able to sign the papers and get them sent out that day. There was absolutely no reason to delay this. She wanted to be free to explore a new life.
An image of Conrad, sitting across from her with that beautiful smile on his face flashed in her mind.
No, no, no, Julie…that one is off-limits.
Her heart thumped in her chest, lodging its complaint that she turn away from the first man in a long while to make her pulse quicken and her thighs quiver.
Chapter 5
Major Hawkins stood at the front of the conference room. Pinned to the wall behind him was a large map of the area. He was a good guy, knew his shit, and was easy enough to get along with—as long as the job was getting done. “All right, gents, pop a squat and shut your traps. I’ve got better things to do with my time than brief you assholes.”
“Hot date with Rosie, sir?” Bart asked, raising his hand and spreading out his fingers.
“Measuring his office,” a voice from the back of the room added. “One tug, tug, pull…two tug, tug, pulls…” He made a gesture as if yanking his cock around the room.
Laughter erupted throughout the room.
Hawkins raised his hands in the air. “Simmer down, fucktards. We’ve got a Rembrandt mission tonight starring some Hornets off the Roosevelt.” The room quieted down, and the guys turned their att
ention to the major. The mission was routine, but strict attention still had to be paid. No one wanted to be the asshole that missed something in a brief because he was fucking around and caused someone to be injured or killed.
A Rembrandt mission meant they were painting a target with an IR strobe so the FA/18’s could drop bombs where the team shined their infrared lights.
“Target’s a school two clicks from city center. Intel from the booger eaters states some ISIS high-level leaders will have a meeting of the minds. Hornet calls signs will be Picasso One and Two, checking in on a Remington covered 300.6 frequency.”
Hawkens looked around the room. “Any questions?”
Heads wagged back and forth. “No, sir.”
“Then get the fuck out of my sight until 2300 hours.”
Bart leaned over to Conrad. “So what’s up with you and the smokin’ hot doc?”
Conrad closed his notebook and slid it into his side pocket. “None of your business.”
“Let me guess…she diagnosed you with limp dick syndrome and is trying to cure you by prescribing kinky sexual intercourse.”
Allen Francisco came up behind him and slapped him on the shoulder. “Did she give you a rectal examination?”
“Bend over and cough,” Bart chimed in and grabbed his own nut sac.
“Hopefully she had little fingers,” Bart said.
“Yeah, you don’t want that hole to stretch out too much,” Franscisco chimed in. “No one like a gaping hole, man.”
Conrad didn’t mind being the proverbial butt of the jokes. He should’ve known it was coming when the guys saw him talking to Doc. But something deep inside him flared and an ember of anger flamed to life. He didn’t like that his relationship with Doc—such as it was—was being reduced to something cheap.
What the hell was that all about? Nothing was going to happen between him and Doc that wasn’t completely platonic. It couldn’t. There was too much at risk if they moved into a more intimate place.
Conrad Page 2
