All's Fair in Love and War: A story of love and betrayal

by J Theron

  “I hope Hotel California has vacancies,” Ryan laughed.

  “Maybe we should’ve made reservations,” Carlos said. “It looks very popular.”

  Gabrielle looked at the one vehicle parked in front of the building. It was an old yellow Volkswagen Beetle. The car was so rusted, she almost expected it to collapse in a heap while she was looking at it.

  “I bet the owner is an Eagles fanatic,” Ryan replied.

  “Well let’s find out,” Gabrielle said as she opened the door to the entrance and stepped into the foyer of the building. She looked around and was relieved to find the inside clean. There was an old man standing behind the reception desk and he was dressed like a member of the Village People. Gabrielle bit down to suppress her amusement and stepped closer. She could hear the others following her inside and smiled at the man who was looking at them as if they were aliens.

  “Good evening. We need a place to sleep tonight. Do you have any vacancies?” she asked in Spanish.

  The man narrowed his eyes. “You’re American,” he said in an American accent. It was a statement, not a question.

  She nodded. “Two of us, yes.” She pointed at Ryan. “So are you,” she said in surprise.

  He kept looking at them with an annoyed expression on his face. “I don’t want any trouble. And you look like trouble.”

  Ryan stepped forward. “We promise to be out of here tomorrow. We only need a place to sleep tonight.”

  The man seemed indecisive. Gabrielle smiled at him. “I’m a doctor working for an NPO doing surgery in Colombia. My name is Lisa Stevens and this is my husband, John.” She pulled Ryan closer. “That is my colleague, Doctor Miguel Lopez and his wife Sofia.” She pointed at Carlos and Valentina. “The plane we were flying in had to make an emergency landing in the forest and we’ve been travelling the whole day to reach civilization. We would be immensely grateful for a place to sleep and a telephone to contact the NPO to let them know that we’re okay.”

  The man pondered her statement for a few seconds before turning around to take two keys from the rack behind his head. “Room four and ten. Four is on the first floor, ten is another floor up.” He pointed to the stairs at the back of the reception area. He bent down and took a shotgun from underneath the desk. He placed in on the counter in front of him and looked at them with narrowed eyes. “I hope you’re not lying to me.”

  Gabrielle smiled her sweetest smile. “I’m a doctor and may lightning strike me down where I stand if that’s a lie!”

  The man nodded. “My name’s Tod. My wife, Olivia placed clean towels in the rooms this morning. You can order food from our kitchen if you’re hungry.”

  “Thank you,” Gabrielle replied as she took the keys to room ten. She noticed Valentina giving her a dirty look when she pocketed the keys for her and Carlos’s room. Gabrielle tried not to look smug, but she knew Valentina would be angry because she had to share a room with Carlos. Gabrielle decided to ignore Valentina and walked to the stairs.

  She did not have to turn around to know that Ryan was right behind her. She stopped in front of the door to their room and turned the key to unlock the door. She walked into the room, dropped her pack on the floor in exhaustion and sat on the bed.

  She looked up and was surprised to see Carlos at their door. Ryan was standing in the doorway and he was speaking to Carlos in a hushed voice. “Let’s get clean and we can meet before dinner. We need to talk about a few things.”

  Carlos looked past Ryan to fix his blue eyes on Gabrielle before saying, “I will see you in a couple of hours.”

  Ryan closed the door and turned around. He dropped his pack on the floor and sat next to her on the bed. The room was on the small side with just enough space for a wooden bed with a very floral bedcover, a chest of drawers and a small seating area consisting of two dilapidated arm chairs and a small coffee table. The curtains in front of the windows had the same floral pattern and there was a threadbare woven rug on the dark wooden floorboards between the bed and the door. She could see the small bathroom leading from the bedroom and was relieved to see a shower and a toilet.

  “Hey, we have an en-suite,” she said.

  He smiled at her and her heart stopped beating for a second. “I really want to kiss you, but I have to shower first. I can smell myself.”

  She laughed. “You’ve smelled better, but I’m right there with you in the stinky section.”

  He leaned over and pushed his nose in her neck. She could feel the goose bumps travelling from her neck down her arm where his nose touched her skin. He took a deep breath and placed an open mouthed kiss in her neck, his tongue flicking out to touch her skin. He sat back and she could see the desire burning in his eyes.

  “Go take a shower. And be quick,” he said in a hoarse voice.

  She jumped up and grabbed her toothbrush and toothpaste from her pack before rushing into the bathroom. She brushed her teeth, showered and washed her hair in record time. The bathroom was small and she could barely turn around when the door was closed. One look in the mirror told her that she had seen better days, but at least she was clean. She wrapped the towel around her body and opened the door to the bedroom.

  Ryan was standing in his boxer shorts next to the bed and she was shocked to see the large purple bruise radiating down from the gunshot wound in his shoulder. “Ryan, your arm,” she exclaimed as she rushed towards him.

  “It’s okay,” he whispered as she stopped next to him and examined his shoulder.

  She removed the bandage and frowned. “Take a shower and then I’ll dress the wound.”

  He nodded and walked into the bathroom to brush his teeth. He did not close the door and she watched as he dropped his boxers before getting into the shower. She could see the outline of his body through the translucent curtain and she could not tear her eyes away from his powerful physique.

  When he was finished, he pulled the curtain away and stepped out of the shower. His face was inscrutable as he towelled down and she could feel the heat pooling between her legs when she saw his rock hard erection.

  He was watching her intently as he wrapped the towel around his hips. Even the thick material of the towel could not hide the extent of his arousal as he walked towards her. He came to a stop, only inches away, and she could sense the heat of his skin as she leaned forward and placed her hand on his chest where his heart was beating.

  She looked up and into his eyes. “I’ve spent years hating you, but loving you at the same time. When I lost you, I lost everything. I couldn’t feel anything for the longest time. I haven’t been able to connect with anyone since I left you.”

  He placed his hand over her hand. “When you left I went a little crazy for a while. I joined the CIA and it became an obsession to find you. I finally tracked you down and I decided to travel to Colombia to see you. Only once, I promised myself. Just to get closure. I wasn’t planning on speaking to you, so I followed you around the village.”

  She was perplexed. “How’s it possible that I never saw you?”

  He frowned. “I’m an agent for the CIA, Gabrielle.”

  She smiled. “A stupid question.”

  “When I saw you that first time, maybe twelve months ago, I knew I would never get over you. So I started to watch you. To keep you safe, I told myself. But I was deluding myself. I did it because I can’t live without you.”

  “Then kiss me Ryan Stephen Evans, and we’ll never be apart again.”

  Ryan took the edge of the towel still wrapped around her body and yanked it loose. He did not move, but simply stood staring at her naked body. He devoured her with his gaze and she had to concentrate not to cover herself with her hands.

  “My memory didn’t do you justice,” he murmured. “I’ve spent nights imagining you in my bed. Being inside you, tasting you.”

  Gabrielle trailed her hands down the hard muscles of his stomach before loosening the towel tied around his waist. He pulled her into his arms and she stood on her toes to wrap her arms
around his neck. He looked at her intently before lowering his mouth to hers. The moment his lips touched hers it felt as if an explosion rushed through her body. The feel of his naked body against hers set her skin on fire.

  She opened her mouth and touched his tongue with hers. He groaned and placed his hands on her hips to lift her up. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he walked towards the bed. He lowered her onto the bed with his one arm behind her back and with the other hand he hitched up her knee to spread her legs.

  “Wait, your shoulder,” she said anxiously.

  “My shoulder feels okay. Frankly even if I had a broken leg, it wouldn’t have stopped me from doing what I’m going to do now.”

  “And what is that?” she asked breathlessly.

  “I’m going to make love to the only woman I’ve ever loved. And I’m going to be thorough.”

  He lifted his head to trail kisses down her neck and over her torso. He touched her nipple with his tongue, before taking first the one breast then the other into his mouth. He sucked hard before biting down gently and she could feel it all the way to her core.

  She watched as he kissed her stomach before moving his head between her legs. He sat back and spread her legs wide open and she felt self-conscious as he touched her.

  “Say you want me,” he growled.

  “I want you,” she moaned.

  She closed her eyes and arched her back when he leaned forward and licked the hard nub at the apex of her thighs. He made small flicking motions with the tip of his tongue as he inserted one of his fingers inside her wet heat. She fisted her hands in his hair when he pushed his tongue inside her and she exploded as a mind numbing orgasm travelled through her body. She was still coming down to earth when he lifted his head and moved his body over hers. He entered her with a powerful thrust and she could not help but cry out in ecstasy.

  “The walls are very thin,” he whispered in her ear as he filled her with one powerful stroke after the other.

  “I’m sorry. I’ll try to be quiet,” she moaned as she locked her ankles around his waist and lifted her hips to deepen the thrusts.

  “Don’t. I want everybody to know what we’re doing. You’re mine.”

  Gabrielle grabbed the headboard behind her and she could hear the bed thumping against the wall as Ryan claimed her body in a frantic pace. She tried to hold back and prolong the ecstasy as he filled her so completely, but all the pent up frustration of years of yearning wanted to burst out of her and she screamed as the second orgasm gripped her, even more powerful that the first.

  Ryan shouted her name as he came inside of her. He collapsed on top of her and she had to push him slightly to the side to breathe. They lay in silence for a few minutes, both too exhausted to move.

  Gabrielle was the first to speak. “If you pulled your sutures I’m going to be very angry,” she said in feigned anger.

  He lifted his head from her neck and grinned. “What are you going to do, Doctor? Punish me?”

  She frowned. “I’ll have to spank you.”

  He sat up and looked at her very seriously. “Where’s the stitch cutter.”

  She looked at him for a few seconds and then burst out laughing. “You’re a funny guy, do you know that?”

  He smiled and her breath hitched at the sight of his smile. “I can only imagine what’s going on downstairs,” he said.

  She groaned. “Valentina was seriously pissed off when I forced her to share a room with Carlos. But who knows, maybe her and Carlos…”

  He grinned and then became serious. “Did you know that Carlos is in love with you?”

  Gabrielle sat up and pulled the bed cover over herself to cover her nakedness. “Don’t be silly. He flirts with anything in a skirt. It’s how he is.”

  Ryan picked up the towel from the floor and wrapped it around his waist before sitting down on the bed again. He looked at her and she could see he was thinking. “I see how he looks at you. It’s as if he wants to devour you whole.”

  She shook her head. “That doesn’t mean he’s in love with me.”

  “I must admit I’m a little bit worried. If he feels anything close to what I’m feeling, I see a problem. I don’t know him well enough to predict how he will react when he realizes that he has lost you.”

  “But he never had me, Ryan. This is ridiculous. He’s not going to do anything.”

  Ryan stood up and started to pull on his boxers. “Just be careful, okay?”

  “I think you’re worried for nothing. I’m more worried about Valentina.”

  “Valentina is a friend.”

  She sighed. “A friend who’s in love with you.”

  He placed his hands on his hips and looked at her intently. “I didn’t sleep with her.”

  “I won’t lie and say that I’m not relieved, Ryan.”

  “I’m going to get dressed and then meet Carlos downstairs. We need to figure out what we’re going to do tomorrow. Try to get some rest. I’ll bring some food when I come back.”

  Gabrielle watched as Ryan dressed and she bandaged his shoulder and arm before he pulled a shirt over his head.

  “I’ll be waiting,” she said as he pulled the door shut behind him.

  CHAPTER 16

  Gabrielle waited anxiously for Ryan to return. She tried to sleep a bit, but could not switch off the constant buzzing in her head. The last few days played on a never-ending loop in her brain and she was reminded of the days when she studied for her exams during medical school. She had the same problem then and she often went for a run in the middle of the night in an effort to switch off her brain that tended to go into overdrive when it was crammed with too much information.

  She was immediately aware when the door handle moved and sat up as the door opened. She sagged back in relief as Ryan stepped through the door.

  “Hey baby. Sorry I took so long. I thought you’d be asleep,” he said as he closed the door behind him.

  “I tried to sleep, but I was worried about you.”

  He placed a container with what she assumed to be food on the small table and sat on the edge on the bed. He took her hand and turned it over to kiss her palm. “At the risk of repeating myself, I’m an agent for the CIA. I was told by none other than your father, that I’m one of the best field agents they have. I really can take care of myself.”

  She pulled her hand from his grasp and sat on her heels to place her arms around his neck in a hug. “I can’t help it. I love you. I’ll never stop worrying about you.”

  He hugged her before running his hands over her bare legs. She was only wearing a T-shirt and he smiled when his hand reached her hip and only encountered bare skin.

  “You’re not wearing any underwear,” he murmured.

  “Really?” she asked. “Let me check.” She pulled her white T-shirt over her head and he watched in fascination as she leaned back against the headboard. “You’re absolutely correct, Captain Evans. It seems your power of observation hasn’t failed you yet.”

  “Shall we see what’s going on underneath my clothes?” he asked with a serious expression on his face.

  She smiled. “I think we should. I need to check your wounds and in order for me to do a thorough inspection, you’ll have to remove all your clothes.”

  Ryan stood and he pulled the grey T-shirt over his head, struggling slightly because his shoulder was more painful than he wanted to admit. He started to unbutton his jeans, but he stopped before he pushed them down. He placed his hands on his hips and seemed to be deep in thought.

  Gabrielle sat forward and whispered, “What’s wrong, Ryan?”

  “I didn’t use a condom earlier.”

  She regarded him thoughtfully. “Have you been with anyone after I left?”

  He shook his head. “No. Except possibly Jennifer,” he said and she could see he felt uncomfortable talking about it. “But I had a full medical when I joined the CIA and it was clear.”

  “I haven’t been with anybody either, and I know I’m healthy
,” she replied.

  “That’s not really what I’m worried about.”

  “You’re worried that I might get pregnant.”

  “Aren’t you?” he asked.

  “Not really. I love you. I want to marry you. Have your children.”

  Ryan sat down on the bed and he looked at her with a frown on his face. “I live a very dangerous life. Are you sure this is what you want? I’ve never really thought about the consequences of my life in the CIA. It’s easy to take risks if nobody really cares if you live or die. Since I rescued you, I’ve been unable to think of anything else. I don’t want to let you down.”

  Gabrielle placed both her palms on his face and kissed him tenderly on the mouth. “Why are we talking about this now? Let’s get out of here first. Then we can try and figure out what’s going to happen in the future.”

  “I want to talk about this now. You never know what might happen. You could be stuck, raising a baby by yourself.”

  “And I could cross the road and get hit by a car, Ryan. I’m not going to worry about something that hasn’t happened yet.”

  “Are you sure,” Ryan pressed.

  “At the risk of repeating myself, I love you. I’ll love you no matter what work you do, as long as you promise to love me in return. I trust you implicitly. That’s all that matters to me. I know you and the reasons why you’ve always wanted to serve your country. I’ll never take that away from you.”

  “Tell me why you think that this is important to me?” he asked as he pulled away from her.

  “You’re alone, Ryan. You’ve been alone since you were five when your parents died in that car accident. You consider your country your family. I could see it in the way you treated your fellow soldiers. They were your brothers. But I also want to remind you that you have me now. I want to be your family. You’ll never be alone again.”

  He sat perfectly still. He looked away and when he looked back she could see the relief that replaced the look of worry on his face. “I would still choose you if you asked me,” he replied.

  She nodded. “I know. That’s why I’m not asking you.”