Twenty-Five
TWENTY-FIVE
T HE WARM WATER was a clear, crystal blue as Jackson swam toward the surface in a rush of bubbles. Just a few strokes above him, Maya surfaced first. She was treading water, wearing a huge grin when he joined her above the waterline. She took the regulator out of her mouth and pulled off her goggles. Her dark brown hair was slicked back, and the sheer joy shining in her eyes filled him with happiness.
He cocked his head. “Well? How was that for a first dive?” He already knew the answer because he’d seen her reaction the moment she’d dropped over the side of the boat into the water.
“It was amazing. ” She laughed, the sound brimming with joy. “Everything I ever hoped it would be and more.”
He smiled. “You’re a natural.” From the very first time he’d introduced her to scuba in their hotel pool, Maya had taken to it easily, without any fear. They’d practiced buddy breathing and other important things over the past four days in preparation for this dive. Seeing her underwater earlier, delighted by everything she saw, was beautiful to watch. This was exactly what both of them had needed—a stress-free vacation in paradise to help put everything that had happened in Afghanistan behind them. Every day he could see her getting stronger, the lingering signs of trauma lessening.
“You look hot in that wet suit, by the way,” Maya told him with a naughty grin.
He quirked a brow. “Yeah? Wanna peel it off me once we get back on the boat?” Just the thought of it made him hard.
“I do. Wanna race?” Before he could answer, she turned away and began swimming for the catamaran bobbing behind them in the gentle ocean swells. He caught up with her within a few strokes and together they swam side by side to the boat. After taking care of their equipment and getting out of their wet suits, they relaxed on the deck with a beer with the other passengers until the sun began to go down.
While the faint beat of reggae music floated up from the cabin, Jackson led Maya around to the front and sat with his back against the window just aft of the trampoline centered between the two pontoons. He pulled her down to sit between his upraised knees, wrapping his arms around her to hold her close. She laid her head back against his shoulder and snuggled into him, enjoying the view. They were only a couple of miles offshore. The Kauai shoreline was studded with coconut palms and volcanic rock formations that the waves crashed and exploded against in bursts of white foam. A salty scent tinged the air, made stronger with Maya’s sea-damp hair wetting the shoulder of his T-shirt.
“You were right,” she said after a while. “It’s paradise here.”
It was, and he’d loved showing her the island. Every morning they’d gone for an early run on the beach. Except today, when Jackson had woken her with soft kisses up her legs until she’d begged and he’d concentrated on the soft, secret flesh between them. He’d teased her for a long time with his tongue, then made her come twice before letting himself find release inside her warmth. Afterward they’d fallen back to sleep, sated and tangled around each other.
Bending his head to kiss the sensitive skin beneath her ear and earning a smile, he saw the look on her face and his heart swelled impossibly full. Her expression was one of complete serenity. She was happy, totally at peace with him here. Their first night she’d had a bad dream and he’d been right there to hold her. They’d stayed up for a few hours after that, lying together in the darkness talking about what they’d been through. That shared experience made a huge difference. He knew they both had a long way to go before they’d dealt with everything, but at least they were moving forward, rather than getting stuck on the past.
Jackson hugged her closer. She felt so damn good in his arms. He’d never get enough of holding her. It thrilled him that she’d already become comfortable with displays of affection. Now she initiated cuddling and fooling around almost as often as he did, telling him she craved the closeness as much as he did.
Maya’s face was soft and almost dreamy, bathed in the rosy light from the setting sun as she stared out over the waves toward shore. Suddenly she sat up, pointing excitedly. “Look!”
He glanced up in time to see a large humpback whale breach the surface of the water. It turned its massive body in the air so its pale belly faced them before slamming back down into the waves, sending up a huge eruption of water.
Maya’s delighted laugh was like music. “God, that was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen!”
No, she was. Jackson knew what he wanted and he couldn’t wait one second longer to go after it. Setting a hand on the side of her face, he cupped her cheek and turned her head toward him. Maya tipped her head back to look up at him, that gorgeous smile still on her face. It faded a little when she saw the intense look on his face.
“Will you marry me?” he murmured.
Her expression went blank with shock. She straightened and swiveled around to face him, absently tucking a lock of wet hair behind her ear. “What?”
“Marry me. Here. Tomorrow. I’ll find us a justice of the peace, and we’ll get married on the beach at sunset.”
She looked incredulous. “You’re serious?”
He nodded, trailing his thumb across her parted lips. “I love you. I want to spend my life with you and have a family together someday. I’m going back to Bagram in ten days and when I do I want to do it knowing you’ve taken my name.” Maybe that was territorial, but he didn’t care. Maya was his, and he wanted the world to know it.
She searched his eyes as though she still couldn’t believe what he’d said. “But I don’t know what’s going to happen with my job. I’ll be out of the Air Force soon and I don’t know where I’ll wind up. You want to go to medical school.”
“I don’t care where we end up, as long as we’re there together.” He could go to med school in a lot of different places.
Her face softened and her eyes warmed in that special way that told him he’d touched her deep inside. She raised a hand to touch his cheek. “What about your family? Won’t they be upset if we elope?”
That sounded like an almost yes. He pressed. “You’ve already met my family and they’re all in love with you. We can do a church wedding later. I want to make you my wife tomorrow, just the two of us and an official on the beach.”
Her lips quivered slightly and her eyes turned damp. She sighed, seemed to struggle with her composure for a moment. Finally she shook her head and spoke. “God, on top of everything else you’re a romantic too?”
Her reaction made him chuckle. “Yes, ma’am.”
That quiver in her lips turned into a full-blown smile. It bloomed slowly, and the soft glow in her eyes was the most beautiful thing in the world to him. “I would love to marry you, Jackson,” she whispered.
Sheer relief almost tore a groan out of him. “Tomorrow?” he prompted, wanting to make it real, to lock it down.
“Tomorrow is perfect,” she agreed with a nod, and hooked a hand behind his neck to pull him down and seal her promise with a kiss.
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