Coming Up for Air

by Karen Foley

  He cocked his head, and one corner of his mouth tilted in a ghost of the smile she found so attractive. When he spoke, his voice sounded slightly strangled. “Are you propositioning me?”

  Jenna felt her own smile falter. “Um, yes, actually. I believe I am.”

  He laughed softly and scratched the bridge of his nose. “Wow. I don’t know what to say.”

  Jenna felt her irritation rising. “How about ‘Jeez, that sounds great. I’d love to’?”

  He shifted his weight, and his gaze traveled slowly over her. “Listen, you’re a beautiful woman—don’t get me wrong—and I may kick myself in the ass later for saying this, but I’m going to have to pass on your offer.”

  Jenna felt her mouth open in dismay before she snapped it closed.

  “But I am flattered,” he said, no doubt in an effort to reassure her. “It’s just that I don’t mix business with pleasure.”

  He was parroting her own words back to her, the very words she had said to him when she’d tried to explain why she avoided getting involved with guys in uniform.

  She drew in a deep breath and felt a burning tide of humiliation color her face. “Fine,” she finally said, trying to sound nonchalant. Businesslike. “I completely understand. But you can’t blame a girl for trying, right? Have a good evening, Major.”

  She heard him curse softly under his breath, but before he could say anything else to her, she spun on her heel and strode away from him. She walked blindly, her pulse pounding hotly in her ears, willing herself not to do something really idiotic like cry. She was so not going to cry. But as she made her way toward the B-Huts where she would spend the night, she could feel the hot sting of tears and was grateful for the swirling dust that concealed her weakness.

  * * *

  SHE’D BEEN GROUNDED.

  For at least two days, maybe more, until the dust storm that was raging through the region had passed. She had no business flying in these conditions, but there was no way Jenna wanted to remain at Kabul, knowing he was somewhere on the base.

  “Where are you going?” From the narrow bed next to her own, Laura lifted the pillow she had bunched over her head and peered at her watch. “It’s barely five o’clock in the morning.”

  “I’ve already been over to the flight line,” Jenna said, keeping her voice low in consideration of the other two women who were trying to sleep in the small hut. “We’ve been grounded for at least two days due to the sandstorm.”

  “Oh, thank God,” Laura muttered, and dropped her head back down, her fists curling into the pillow and arranging it around her ears. “I can finally sleep late.”

  “I’m going over to the gym,” Jenna said in a whisper, sitting on the edge of her bed as she scooped her hair into a ponytail. “Do you mind watching my weapon? I’ll be back in a few hours.”

  The only response was the sound of light snoring.

  Jenna envied the other woman. Sleep had eluded her, and she’d spent most of the night lying awake in bed, thinking about Chase Rawlins and the fact that he had rejected her. In fact, he’d turned her down flat.

  If she didn’t know better, she’d think he really didn’t remember their encounter, but she gave him more credit than that. He knew she was a helicopter pilot, and how many female Black Hawk pilots were there? Jenna could count them on both hands. There was no way he wouldn’t remember that detail, since it had pretty much ruined their night.

  Wrapping her kerchief over her face, she walked across the dark compound to the gym, which was housed in an enormous, rounded tent stretched over accordion-like metal supports. Dust still swirled across the base, and by the time she reached the gym, her eyes felt gritty, and she spent five minutes shaking the powdery sand from her hair and clothes. It was early enough that she had the place almost entirely to herself, with just two men lifting free weights at the far end of the tent. She chose an elliptical machine at the opposite end to begin her workout.

  Within fifteen minutes, she had established a rhythm that got her heart rate up and caused a light sweat to break out on her skin. She was so caught up in her own thoughts that she didn’t immediately notice the group of men who came in and made their way toward the weight equipment, until one of them dropped a weight with an enormous clang. Startled, she looked over at them and nearly lost her smooth stride.

  Two men stood flexing free weights, while another used the lateral pull-down weights. But her attention was riveted on the man who lay on the weight bench, his feet planted firmly on the floor as he lifted a weight in each hand and brought them together over his chest. Every muscle in his impressive arms and across his shoulders bulged with effort, and beneath the T-shirt, she could see his pecs and abdominal muscles contract with each repetition.

  Chase.

  As if sensing her scrutiny, he turned his head and their gazes locked. For just an instant, his expression registered utter shock, and he nearly dropped the weights. Jenna dragged her attention back to the elliptical machine and turned the power off, her heart racing. She couldn’t face Chase right now. She’d spent the entire night tossing and turning because of him, and she felt tired and achy and vulnerable. There was no way she’d be able to act as if she didn’t care.

  As if she didn’t still want him.

  Snatching her towel up, she left the workout area, pausing only long enough to wind the towel around her face before she walked swiftly toward the exit and into the swirling dust storm. Her legs felt rubbery and weak, both from the exercise and in reaction to seeing Chase. She had gone less than fifty feet when she heard his voice.

  “Jenna!”

  Putting her head down, she quickened her pace, determined to ignore him. She wouldn’t stop. If she stopped, she’d be toast. She couldn’t even begin to identify the whirlwind of feelings that consumed her, but she knew that, in her current state, she wouldn’t stand a chance against his potent charm.

  “Damn it to hell, Jenna, would you hold up?”

  She should have known that he wouldn’t let her just walk away. Blowing out a hard breath, she stopped and turned to face him as he jogged to catch up with her. Unlike her, he wore no protection against the blowing dust, and used one hand to shield his mouth and nose. He glanced around and then grabbed her by the arm, pulling her with him to a nearby structure. Opening the door, he thrust her inside and followed her, shutting out the storm. One small, dirty window allowed weak light to penetrate the darkness and Jenna saw they were in a storage unit filled with excess fitness equipment. Beside her, Chase was swiping the sand from his hair and face, sending up small clouds of powdery dust.

  “What the hell are you doing here?” he demanded, his eyes raking over her.

  “Working out,” she replied coolly, hoping the indistinct light hid the fact that she was trembling.

  There was something different about him, and it took her a couple of seconds to realize that he had shaved the scruff of beard from his jaw. He shook his head as if in disbelief.

  “I thought I was seeing things,” he said, sounding incredulous. “Jesus, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you, and— Come here.”

  Before Jenna could react, he dragged her up against his hard chest, his hands sliding around her stiff body as he lowered his head and covered her mouth with his own. For one long, blissful moment, Jenna was too shocked to protest. The only thing in the world was Chase and the hot, insistent pressure of his lips against hers. In the next instant, sanity returned and she struggled to break free from his embrace. He released her immediately.

  “Sorry,” he said. His voice was gruff, but the roguish grin that she loved was back. “I just had to do that.”

  Jenna struggled to recall why she had pulled away. When it looked as if he might actually reach for her again, she put her hands up to forestall him.

  “Whoa. Stop.”

  “What’s going on?” He spread his arms out, but that only drew her attention to his amazing biceps and shoulders. Her mouth began to water.

  “I don�
�t know what game you’re playing,” she finally managed, dragging her gaze upward to his face, “but I am not going to be your dirty little secret. So if you think you can pretend not to know me in front of your guys, and then go all sweet on me when we’re alone, you are so out of luck.”

  She saw the puzzlement in his eyes. “What are you talking about? If you hadn’t hightailed it out of the gym so fast, I would have come over to you and demonstrated to anyone who cared to watch just how well I do know you. As it is, the guys think I’ve lost my mind, chasing you outside in this shit.” He scrubbed a hand over his hair, sending renewed puffs of dust into the air. “Jesus. For a moment there, I thought I was hallucinating. I still can’t get my head around it. When did you get here?”

  Jenna narrowed her eyes and studied him. “Don’t screw with me, Chase. You know damn well when I got here.”

  As she watched, his face altered and his expression grew shuttered. When he spoke, his voice was cold. “What did you just call me?”

  Jenna frowned. “Chase.”

  She gave an audible gasp of surprise when he grabbed her by the upper arms and pulled her so close that their faces were mere inches apart and she could feel the warmth of his breath fanning her face.

  “What’s my name?” he growled.

  “What?”

  “Tell me my name,” he repeated in a hard tone, his fingers biting into her shoulders.

  “Chase Rawlins.”

  “When did we first meet?”

  Jenna shook her head, not understanding. “I don’t—”

  “Answer the damned question, Jenna!” His voice was so tight with controlled fury that Jenna felt a frisson of fear tiptoe its way up her spine.

  “Technically, we met that night at Shooters, when you drove me out to the airfield. But I ran into you at the supermarket before that.”

  He relaxed fractionally, but didn’t release her. “Apart from that night by the airfield, you’ve never been with me? Never kissed me or had sex with me?”

  “What?” She pushed weakly against his chest. “You know I haven’t!”

  He gave her a slight shake. “You called me Rawlins that night at the club. How did you know my name?”

  Jenna stared at him, bewildered by his interrogation. Maybe he’d suffered a head injury and had some kind of short-term memory loss. Why else would he be acting so strangely?

  “My roommate told me,” she explained carefully. “She saw me watching you at the club that night and said you were special ops. She knew your name. Don’t you remember that night?”

  His eyes grew hot, and she knew that he remembered everything. Then he swore under his breath and released her, dragging his hands over his face before he pinned her with a calculating look. “Come with me. There’s something I need to show you.”

  Before she could protest, he wrapped her towel around her face and opened the door, pulling her out into the storm. She stumbled to keep up with him as he practically dragged her across the base, seemingly oblivious to the choking dust that whipped around them. She knew he was agitated, since he hadn’t bothered to cover his own face. The blowing sand and grit made it impossible for her to speak, and nearly impossible to see where they were going.

  He finally pulled her to a stop in front of a containerized housing unit, or CHU, which was nothing more than a shipping container that had been prefabricated into living quarters. An air conditioner was mounted into the wall beside the door, and hummed noisily. Chase hammered on the door with his fist until finally it was yanked open. Jenna found herself pulled into a tiny living area sparsely furnished with a desk and a couple of chairs.

  Unwinding the towel from her head, she used it to wipe the grit from her eyes before she turned to face Chase. A second man stood by the door, wearing nothing but a pair of shorts, and it was clear they had roused him from sleep. Jenna blinked, convinced that the dust was making her see double. Stunned, she stared at the man, taking in the scruffy beard and the hard eyes that watched her warily. Her gaze flicked to Chase, who stood with his arms crossed over his chest, waiting.

  “What the hell…?” Jenna was only vaguely aware that she had uttered the words aloud. Except for the beard, the two men were identical in every respect.

  “Jenna, I’d like you to meet my brother, Chase Rawlins,” said the man who had kissed her just moments before. “My twin brother, Chase. He’s special ops.”

  Jenna felt her mouth fall open as she gaped first at the real Chase, who had the grace to give her a sheepish grin, and then at… Who was the man she’d just kissed, and hadn’t been able to stop thinking about?

  “So if you’re Chase,” she said weakly, before switching her gaze to the other man, “who are you?”

  “I’m Major Chance Rawlins, call sign ‘T-Rex.’ Apache helicopter pilot and the guy you…met at Shooters. Pleased to meet you.”

  Jenna didn’t miss the hesitation in his words. Not only was he the guy she’d met at Shooters, he was the guy she’d screwed blind mere hours later. A guy she’d believed to be a special ops soldier, when in fact he was a helicopter pilot.

  A pilot.

  “Oh, my God,” she breathed with dawning horror.

  She’d broken her own number-one rule: she’d slept with a pilot! Worse, after they’d had sex, she’d talked trash about male pilots and their inability to have any kind of meaningful relationship. No wonder he’d ended their evening so abruptly.

  “I, um, I need some air,” she finally said, and fled.

  6

  CHASE STEPPED ASIDE AS Jenna wrenched the door open and bolted into the swirling sandstorm.

  “Jenna, wait!” Chance tried to sprint after her, but found his way blocked by a muscular arm.

  “Let her go, bro,” Chase said quietly. “She needs some time.”

  “It’s a goddamned duststorm,” Chance bit out. “I am not letting her lose her way out there.”

  “She’s not stupid. She’ll be fine.”

  Chance had never felt such impotent anger, and with a savage curse, he kicked at the open door, causing it to slam back on its hinges. “Goddamn it!”

  “So that’s her, huh?” Chase mused, pulling the door closed. He turned to a coffeemaker on the shelf and began measuring out coffee and water. “The mystery lady from Shooters. The reason you missed my send-off party. I can see why you like her, although I have to say she’s a far cry from your usual type. Did I mention that I hitched a ride with her from Kalagush yesterday? She seemed interested in me when I climbed into the chopper, but I didn’t expect her to hit on me after we landed.”

  Chance felt his chest tighten in an unexpected surge of jealousy. “She hit on you? Jesus, if you—”

  “Relax,” his brother said with a rare grin. “Nothing happened. I was too beat to take her up on the offer.”

  “Lucky for you,” Chance muttered. “I’d hate to have to kick my own brother’s ass.”

  “Ha,” Chase scoffed good-naturedly. “You and whose army? If it makes you feel any better, she only did it because she thought I was you.”

  “Yeah, well, I wish you’d told me about it last night. I might have put two and two together and realized she was here.”

  Chase arched an eyebrow. “If I took the time to tell you about every chick who hits on me—”

  “It’d be the shortest conversation in history,” Chance interrupted, aiming a friendly punch at his brother’s arm.

  “Still, what are the chances, huh? It’s pretty hilarious when you think about it.”

  Chance disagreed. While he and his brother had played their fair share of jokes on friends and teachers when they were kids, they’d drawn the line at switching identities to fool the opposite sex. Mostly because Chance had been unwilling to leave his girlfriend alone with his brother, even for a few minutes.

  Although the two of them looked identical, there had always been something about Chase that drew girls to him like moths to a flame. He didn’t even need to do anything and girls hovered in his airspace, h
oping to attract his attention. And it just seemed to annoy him. But right now, Chance didn’t find anything remotely funny about the fact that Jenna had actually hit on Chase. In fact, for the first time he could recall, he found himself feeling resentful toward his twin, and wishing that they weren’t located on the same base, even if it was just for a couple of days.

  Chance flew with the 82nd Aviation Regiment, or the Wolf Pack, the army’s only airborne attack helicopter battalion. He’d arrived at Kabul Air Base a month earlier and had spent the past four weeks supporting ground troops. He knew that Chase and his special ops team had been sent to a forward operating base in northern Afghanistan, but his brother’s exact location had not been disclosed.

  He’d been pleasantly surprised when Chase had knocked on the door of his housing unit last night to let him know he was at Kabul for a couple of days. This was Chance’s fourth deployment, and God only knew how many times Chase had been over here. Too many to count. He’d been one of the first special ops teams to put boots on the ground after the invasion, and Chance suspected his brother would continue to conduct operations long after the majority of troops were sent home.

  Their deployments had overlapped before, but it was rare that they were both located on the same base at the same time. Kabul Air Base was so large, however, that Chance found himself running into people he’d served with years earlier and had never expected to see again. There was a saying that if you stayed at Kabul long enough, eventually you’d meet every soldier who served in the army.

  Not knowing how long he might be at Kabul, Chase had gone straight to Chance’s quarters and the two brothers had stayed up late into the night, catching up on each other’s lives over the past two months. Chance had admitted that he’d missed his brother’s going-away party because he’d met a woman, but he hadn’t given Chase any details. It didn’t seem likely that the relationship would develop into anything meaningful. In fact, considering the things Jenna had said that night, the likelihood she would even speak to him again was about nil.