Chapter 17
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T he scent of sea, salt, and fish was carried on the breeze as Brynn took the last few photos. Just below, a colony of sea lions lay pressed tightly together. The hoarse, horn-like bark of one small member of the pod echoed off the cliffs.
Now that this section of beach had been closed for the sea lion’s protection, it had taken weeks to get a permit to make a practice run and take pictures of the sea lions. She needed more experience taking pictures in the wild to prepare for doing the same in Australia. She’d viewed videos of the beaches laden with seals there online and hoped to make it one of the things she documented.
One very large bull sea lion eyed her as she stood on the stairs that led up from the beach. He gave her a rumbling bark as a warning.
“Relax, big guy. I’m not interested in claiming any of your territory or your lady friends,” she said beneath her breath as she clicked his picture.
She worked as nonintrusively as possible, keeping a safe distance from the protective mothers. Luckily, the lens made it possible for her to get some amazing pictures of the relationship between mothers and pups.
She looked out to sea and saw the blue cabin cruiser she’d photographed at the docks in the distance. Raising her camera, she took some quick shots of it.
Brynn removed the large zoom lens she rarely used from the camera, then pushed it into its protective sleeve and gently placed it on the ground. She then removed the SD card from the camera and slipped it into a protective sleeve before placing it inside her postcard-sized purse. The camera went into her backpack. She swung the backpack up and slipped her arms through the straps. Then, she grabbed the strap of the padded storage bag that held the zoom and slipped it across her torso so it would be secure against her body.
She made her way down the beach and then up the steps, leaving the odor of fish and more that lingered around the colony.
The days had seemed to drag since Tucker had gone wheels up, as he called it, for places unknown. He hadn’t been able to tell her anything other than he’d be gone for at least a week.
She’d been relieved in one way. After telling him everything, she felt stripped, emotionally vulnerable, and exhausted. Since he was away, she hadn’t had to figure out how to act. After six days, though, she’d gotten past that. And with each passing day, she became more restless and anxious. Worried.
If something happened to him…
She couldn’t say they were in a relationship. They weren’t connected in any way other than his teaching her scuba. They hadn’t made love. They weren’t a couple yet—were they? She felt they’d been left in a sort of no man’s land. That’s what made the whole situation so difficult. And it was her own fault.
She cared about Tucker. How could she not? He’d broken through the walls she’d built just by being so open and trusting of her. She wanted him, which was a miracle. It had been such a long time since she’d felt any stirring of sexual feelings.
Every time she thought of him, she could hear him whispering in her ear, “I’ll have to come up with something I can do for you.” She experienced that same rush of need just thinking about it.
Thinking about him so much, she realized he’d been seducing her since they’d first met with his subtle touches and the way he looked at her. He’d shared painful, humiliating moments of his life he probably hadn’t shared with anyone else, and that had encouraged her to trust him with hers.
She wasn’t making a mistake by trusting him. She was certain.
She stowed her backpack and zoom in the back seat and buckled them in. She wondered if Tucker had arranged to have anyone check on the house or water his landscaping while he was gone. Surely, he had something like that in place since he flew in and out of the country so often.
She couldn’t drive by his house when he wasn’t there. It would be too much like stalking. But she wanted to.
Arriving home, she found Liam Bryant’s email with the photographs he’d chosen for the brochure and the slide show. To keep her mind occupied, she went directly to work on the slide show, paying close attention to the order and movement of the presentation.
He could have gone with a video, but it wouldn’t have shown nearly as many of the amenities available on board the vessel. The photos of the dining room, in particular, made the space look romantic and inviting.
The intercom buzzed, and she rose to answer it.
“Hey, I forgot my keycard. Can you buzz me up?” Jessica’s voice came over the intercom.
“Sure.” She pushed the button to unlock the door downstairs. When a knock followed in a few minutes, she expected Jessica to be standing outside and smiled. Jessica was there, but her attention focused on Tucker. Her heart leaped at the sight of him. She stepped forward, and it seemed so natural to reach for him. His arms went around her and tightened.
She shot Jessica a look of thanks. Jess nodded and moved on down the hall to her apartment.
After a few moments, Tucker loosened his grip on her and eased back to look into her face. “I just wanted to see you. We just landed about an hour ago.”
His jaw was heavily shadowed by a beard. It was evident that he hadn’t shaved all week. He looked as though he hadn’t slept either. His uniform was different, heavier and more utilitarian than the one she’d seen him wear the week before. His hair looked windblown and curled around his ears. Though he stood as straight as always, there were subtle differences in his stance. Something that triggered the urge to comfort him.
“Come inside.”
*
He remained at the door. He needed to go home and deal with this pain.
“Let me get you something to drink, Tucker. Have a seat.”
“I can’t stay. I need a shower and to make some phone calls.” He should have taken the sleep aid Knotty had offered him, but he’d been too wound up with grief to do it.
Brynn continued to pour the tea. “Has something happened to your father or grandmother?”
“No.” He shook his head. His temples were pounding. “A friend was killed in a parachute jump during a mission. We were told about it just before transport home. His name was Jordan Tolliver. He was my swim buddy in BUD/s.” He raked his fingers through his hair. The grief had eased, and anger had replaced it. He wanted to shout and rage at the injustice of it. “This is the fifth parachuting accident in the last two years. Only one man has survived, and his life has been turned to shit. He’ll never walk again.”
Brynn caught his hand and tugged him to the couch. “Did you know the others?” she asked and offered him the glass.
He turned the glass in his hands and then finally took a long drink.
“I knew a couple of them from BUD/s or from deploying with them and their teams. Book was my teammate. And now Jordan.” He shook his head. “It’s hard enough to lose a teammate or fellow SEAL in combat, but this is senseless.” He set the glass aside on the coffee table.
“No matter how careful people are, accidents happen, Tucker.”
“There have been some close calls, too, Brynn.”
She paused to take that in. “Then someone isn’t packing the chutes right.”
Tucker remained silent.
“It can’t be deliberate, can it?” she asked.
When he didn’t respond again, shock rippled across her face. “My God!” She dragged in a breath. “What are they doing about it?”
“I can’t talk about it.”
“That’s…” She seemed to struggle to bite back what she was about to say. “They’re not moving fast enough.”
“No.” It wasn’t fast enough. Jordan had died because they hadn’t found the fucker responsible.
He pressed the heels of his hands against his eyes. It had been over twenty-four hours since he’d slept. The back of his neck felt like it was slowly being tightened in a vice. When in battle, the adrenaline held the aches and pains at bay. But that had leeched from his system long before leaving Ecuador. “I have to go.” He got to his feet with an effort. He should have never come here. Why had he come here?
“You need to lie down for a while, Tucker. I can see you’re in pain. You can stretch out in my bedroom and sleep a few hours. Whatever you need to do can come after that.”
She took him by the hand and led him down the hallway. Her bedroom was all in grays and blues, soothing. She shut the blinds, took the decorative pillows off the bed, and tossed them into a chair near the window. Then she turned back the covers.
“I’d hoped the first time you invited me into your bedroom, it would be under different circumstances.”
She looked up, and a half smile tilted her lips. “Lie down, and I’ll pull your boots off.”
“I’m not that far gone yet.” To prove it, he sat down on the side of the bed, unlaced his boots, dragged them off, then set them side-by-side next to the nightstand. “I could use a shower.”
“The bathroom’s yours. My brother left a pair of sweats and a T-shirt behind when he last visited. They’re clean if you don’t mind using them.”
“I don’t mind.”
She moved to the closet and slid back the louvered doors. She tip-toed to get the items off a shelf over the hanging clothes and set them at the foot of the bed. She went into the bathroom, found a toothbrush and disposable razor, and placed them on top of the clothes.
“When you wake up, I’ll fix you something to eat. Give a yell if you need anything else.”
He waited until she’d walked out of the room before he forced himself up. He grabbed the sweatpants, toothbrush, and razor and went into the bathroom. He turned the water up as hot as he could stand it, stripped and stood beneath it for ten minutes before using her body wash and shampoo to scrub away the sweat and grime. After drying off, he put on the sweatpants and brushed his teeth but left the razor for later.
He fell face down on the bed and, within seconds, dropped into sleep.
The room was pitch black when he woke. He’d opened his eyes to so many strange rooms, so many foreign places, but the scent of Brynn’s shampoo lingering on the pillow brought with it a feeling of familiarity and comfort. He rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. His body felt rested, but his mind still felt sluggish, as though weighted with grief and exhaustion.
Jordan was gone. Since they were friends, NCIS would probably call him back in and grill him, which added another level to his anger.
He went to the bathroom and then stretched back out on the bed.
At a light step from the hall, he opened his eyes.
Brynn peeked around the edge of the open door, then smiled. “Hey.” She came into the room. “How are you feeling?”
“Almost human.” He sat up on the side of the bed.
She walked toward him with her graceful dancer’s stride. She ran her fingers through his hair, brushing it back from his forehead.
Experiencing the new tender version of the woman he’d been trying to get to know had needs rearing up to torment him. Blood rushed south, and he grew painfully hard. He drew her between his legs and rested his cheek against her breasts and felt no bra. He ached to push her thin T-shirt aside and take her nipples in his mouth.
Her fingers massaged the back of his neck, and he hummed in appreciation. He slid his hands beneath her shirt to caress her back in return and found it smooth as silk.
“I missed you, Tucker.”
The breathless tone in her voice urged him on, and he cupped one warm round breast and ran his thumb over the peak. It beaded beneath his touch.
“Show me, Brynn.”
She placed her knees on the side of the bed and straddled his lap. Her lips caught his in a soft kiss that had him groaning. His hands stroked her back as he molded her close. The kiss became more ardent, and her tongue stroked his.
*
She was trembling, but it wasn’t fear. It had been so long since she’d been touched, held. Tucker peeled her shirt up and off. She pressed her bare breasts against him, skin-to-skin. A sound somewhere between a sigh and a sob was drawn from her at the contact. She hadn’t really thought she’d ever have this again, that she’d ever have the courage to let it happen. But it was Tucker who made her feel secure and wanted, and his touch on her breast felt so perfect.
This different, vulnerable Tucker made her want to take him in and comfort him. But at the same time, she wanted him as hyper-aware of every brush of their skin as she was. She wanted him inside her, filling that empty void that had been driving her crazy for the last week every time she thought about him.
She also wanted to wipe away the feelings that had brought pain into his eyes, at least for a little while.
She turned her lips against his shoulder, then scraped her teeth against his skin.
He shivered and dragged in a breath. He cupped her ass and shoved back on the bed. For a few moments, they grappled as they helped shed each other’s clothes.
He was lean and muscular, sculpted by arduous physical activity and conditioning, but she had already known that. A thin line of hair arrowed down the center of his stomach, between the six-pack of muscle there. His erection thrust bold and ready out of a thatch of dark brown hair. Just seeing him like that had everything tightening down below.
“I hope you bought some condoms,” he said huskily.
She rolled toward the nightstand drawer, opened it, and tore open the box with an impatience that had him chuckling. He grinned when she handed him the small package.
When his mouth captured hers, she hummed with pleasure and pressed close. His skin was hot to the touch as she ran her hands down his chest. He slid downward to capture her nipple and sucked. She dragged in a shaking breath as the warm ache already building intensified. As he switched to the other breast, his beard prickled her skin, adding another dimension to the sensation. She ran her fingers through the thick curling hair at the back of his head and caressed the slope of his shoulders.
He drew back up to look down at her, and his eyes looked dark and intense, the sea-green almost swallowed by his pupils. His mouth moved with tempting hunger over hers as his hand followed the curve of her hip then caressed her thigh, and she parted her legs. He found her with his fingertips. He tempted and teased until she strained against his touch for more, her hips rising as her need reached a fevered peak. When he thrust one finger inside her, she climaxed, her hips jerking with the pleasure of it.
She wasn’t even close to recovering when he covered himself with the condom, rose over her, and pushed inside her. She’d imagined how they’d be together, but as he moved, nothing compared to the reality. Pleasure built again with every thrust, every touch, every kiss, and she lost herself to it. The sensation built until she could barely breathe as she rose to meet him over and over. The next climax swept through her like a brush fire, and she cried out. As she felt the answering throb of his release, intimate and deep. She held him close as they both worked to catch their breath.
He raised his head to look down at her, and the tension had left his expression, but something more vulnerable had taken its place.
She smoothed his hair where she had ruffed it into spikes.
He kissed her slowly, tenderly, and once again, the tingling heat raced through her. When he started to leave her, she sighed with regret.
“I’ll be right back.” He shoved off the bed to go into the bathroom.
Even from the back, he could trip her heart into a gallop, but without his body heat, the air conditioning was chilly, and she drew up the sheet but looped one leg over it.
He paused in the doorway of the bathroom to study her. “I could spend hours just looking at you.” Comfortable with his nudity he strode back to the bed. She raised the sheet, and he slipped in beside her and turned to face her. He tucked a long strand of streaked hair behind her ear. “I thought about you while I was gone.”
“I thought about you, too. I kept waiting for my phone to ring. And I kept thinking about the night before you left.” Just knowing he was out of touch had driven her crazy… But he didn’t need to hear that.
“I gave Knotty your number to call if something…came up, and I gave it to Dad.”
“Your Dad?”
“Yeah.”
She supposed it had to be someone, but telling his dad to call her… What would he think? Would he wonder about their relationship? She had wondered enough about it while he’d been gone. And if something…had come up, would he have been in any shape to call?
She didn’t know anyone Tucker was close to. She’d only heard him talk about them. With her issues, would he ever feel comfortable introducing her to them?
“Dad and Knotty are my go-to guys.”
“Knotty?”
“Frank Denotti. He and I are teammates. We look out for each other.”
“Natalie told me about him when she first talked to me about the scuba lessons.”
“She did?”
“Yes. Dark hair, shoulders as wide as a door, and looks like a Roman gladiator who time-traveled to current times.”
Tucker laughed. “I’ll have to tell him what she said. He’ll eat that up.”
He brushed her cheek with the back of his fingers. “I know this change didn’t come about just because I was gone, Brynn.”
“No.” She drew a deep breath and then moistened her lips. “The only person who knew what happened to me was Natalie. She was like all the rest, trying to pump me for more information and use me, but I shut her down. Martin had guessed some things, and he’s so nosy I knew he’d look things up, but we never talked about it. He was smart enough to leave it alone.
“Jess has been my neighbor since I first moved here. I just recently told her a little about it. But talking to you, telling you the whole story, knowing I could trust you with it all, helped me release some of what I’ve been carrying since it all happened.”
“Good.” He urged her closer.
“It’s been more than three years since I’ve been held or touched.”
“Jesus, Brynn!” His arm tightened around her. “You should have told me.”
“Why?” She brushed her palm over the muscular landscape of his chest, exploring the texture of his skin.
“I’d have taken more time.”
“You took as much time as I—we needed.” Half embarrassed by the admission, she said, “You’ve been asleep nearly four hours. Are you hungry?”
“Starving” He caressed her bare ass, and a smile played across his lips.
She hung between embarrassment and being turned on again. “There’s beef stew and cornbread muffins in the kitchen.”
“Are you dusting off your cooking skills for me, Brynn?”
“Don’t expect it to last,” she warned.
He chuckled. “A bowl of stew sounds good. But right now, I just want to hold you for a few minutes.” He turned against her and drew her close. “Tell me what you’ve been up to since I’ve been away.”
It was hard to concentrate with his very male naked body pressed so intimately against hers. “I’ve been working on a slide show of photos I took on a yacht. I met someone who knows you, and he asked me to tell you to call him.”
“Who was it?”
“His name was Ahmad. I have his card.”
His cell phone beeped on the nightstand, and he turned to reach for it. His jaw tightened as he read the message.
“What is it?”
“We have to report to headquarters in the morning at zero-seven-hundred.”