Chapter 17
THE NEXT AFTERNOON , their plane landed at the small, regional airport in Virginia Beach. Trees flew by the window as they touched down on the runway, and they raced along, eventually coming to a stop.
“Is that your SEAL team?” Bailey asked, glancing out the small window.
Noah looked out, grinning as he saw some of the guys.
“I guess they missed us,” he quipped. “They can’t do anything without Mason and me.
” He grabbed Bailey’s hand, and they walked down the small steps of the plane and onto the tarmac.
Bailey’s sundress blew slightly in the breeze, and he gripped her hand tighter, thrilled that she was his.
“Viper!” Jacob shouted with a whoop, coming over to see them. “I heard we almost lost your sorry ass. What the fuck, man?”
Noah laughed good-naturedly, elbowing him in the side. “You would’ve missed me.”
“I would’ve missed our nights out at Anchors, that’s for damn sure. Good to have you back!”
Hunter walked over to greet them, giving Noah and Mason each a handshake. “Hell, you guys gave Emma a scare. Don’t go getting lost at sea again. She’s beginning to think you’re bad luck, Mason.”
“Me?” he asked with a chuckle, wrapping his arm around Taylor and pulling her close. “Where the hell would she get an idea like that?”
“London,” Hunter said dryly. “Bogota. Shit happens when you’re around.”
“How the hell were either of those my fault?” he asked with a smirk, walking over to grab his and Taylor’s bags as they unloaded them off the small plane. “And you were both places, too. I guess I’ll have to remind her of that little detail.”
“Mason rescued Taylor when she was kidnapped,” Bailey said, her eyes darting toward Hunter. “I mean, that was good luck right there, no?”
“That was skill, sunshine,” Noah said, pulling her close. “It had nothing to do with luck.”
Hunter looked between the two of them, smirking. “It looks like we’re down another man. First me, then C-4,” he said, referring to Colton “C-4” Ferguson. “Then Riptide, and now you, Viper?”
“He’s taken,” Bailey confirmed, and Noah grinned, ducking down to brush a brief kiss over her lips.
“She’s all mine,” Noah agreed.
“Well, hell,” Hunter said. “This calls for a celebration. The Alpha team is having a bonfire on the beach soon—”
“No bonfires,” Bailey said.
“No beaches,” Noah added. “Not for a hell of a long time.
“We’ll think of something else, then,” Hunter said. “Jacob and Ryker will just have to bring dates along or something since they’re the only single guys left.”
“You ladies must have some single friends, right?” Jacob asked with a grin.
Hunter shook his head, smirking. “It’s good to have you both back.”
“I don’t think I’ll leave for a long, long time,” Bailey said. “And I’m definitely never fishing again.”
Hunter eyed Noah as Bailey went over to say goodbye to Taylor and Mason. “Are you fit to report back to duty tomorrow? The CO wants to brief us on a pending op. Since you weren’t in the hospital down in Florida, you shouldn’t need medical clearance to report in to base.”
“I’m ready,” Noah said, nodding. “It was a hell of a swim in the ocean, but nothing we’re not used to with training. It was Bailey I was worried about,” he said, his eyes drifting over to her. “She held up damn well though. She didn’t get scared and fought hard to swim to the island with me.”
Hunter nodded. “She’ll have to be strong to deal with our line of work. She’s got Taylor though. And the other women all stick together when we’re gone.”
“It’s good they have each other. I’ll see you at oh-six-hundred then,” Noah said, nodding at his team leader. “I’ve got to get Bailey home.”
“And I’ve got to get back to Emma. She hasn’t been feeling well the past few days.”
Noah raised his eyebrows. “Is she okay?”
Hunter nodded. “She’s pregnant,” he said in a low voice. “It came as a shock to both of us, but we’re ready. Now I just have to figure out how to handle her morning sickness and take care of a baby.”
Noah let out a low whistle. “And so it begins. The Alpha team is full of kids,” he said with a low chuckle. “Maybe those guys can give you some advice. Hell, you’ve got nine months to get ready.”
“Don’t knock it—you could be next,” Hunter quipped.
Noah chuckled. “Not for a damn long time.”
Bailey walked back toward him, smiling. “What’s wrong?” she asked, glancing between the two men.
“Nothing’s wrong,” Hunter assured her. “I just have to get back home to Emma. Take care of Noah,” he said with a wink.
“Will do,” she assured him.
They said goodbye to the others, and then Noah took her hand, and they went off to gather their luggage.
***
N OAH PULLED UP TO BAILEY’S apartment building thirty minutes later, grabbing both of their bags from the back of his Jeep. She eyed him, a smile tugging on her lips as he set both suitcases down in the parking lot and slammed the back hatch shut.
“Are you staying here tonight?” she asked.
“Hell yeah, sunshine. As long as you don’t mind my being up bright and early. I’ve got to be on base at the crack of dawn. But I’m yours until then.”
“I suppose I could tolerate it,” she teased.
“Oh yeah?” he asked, sauntering up beside her. “Tolerate me or my getting up early? Should I try to persuade you?” he asked, ducking down for a searing kiss.
“What’d you have in mind?” she asked, her eyes heating.
“First we’re going to order some food, and then maybe we’ll take one of those long, hot baths you seem to love. Then we’re going to bed. I’m going to kiss every square inch of you and then make love to you for hours. Probably again in the morning before I have to go to base.”
“I’m in,” she said, flashing him a grin. “But I get to sleep on the left side of the bed.”
Noah chuckled, grabbing their luggage and following behind her. “Who said anything about getting any sleep?”
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR reading Noah and Bailey’s story! If you enjoyed this book, you’ll love Summer with a SEAL . Find out what happens with Jacob “Joker” Olson.
She’d trust him with her life, but what about with her heart?
Navy SEAL Jacob “Joker” Olson knows a good thing when he sees it—and the striking yet shy elementary school teacher he meets on the beach hits all the marks. She’s down to earth with curves that won’t quit—not to mention lips he wouldn’t mind kissing until dawn.
Jessica Lockwood is renting a house for the summer with her girlfriends—and she’s not about to fall head-over-heels for a military man she’ll never see again. So what if his abs are carved from granite and his slightly crooked grin leaves her weak in the knees?
He could kill a man with his bare hands, and she has no doubt that he could also trample her heart.
When Jessica gets caught in the middle of a bank robbery, Jacob is the one who comes to her rescue. But getting her out of a hostage standoff is only the beginning. Can he convince her that she can also trust him with her heart?