Chapter 11
Helena had never been desperate before in her life but she was desperate for Nolan’s kiss.
She practically clung to him as their lips parted and they deepened their kiss.
Nolan took over the kiss as soon as their lips met and she just tried to keep up.
His hands commanded her body. Nolan kept one hand on the back of her neck with his thumb under her chin and his other hand .
. . well, his other hand left her a shivering wreck of anticipation.
Nolan kissed her with a confidence that wasn’t arrogant, but focused on giving her pleasure.
Then his hand moved down her arm, sending her skin into a frenzy of goosebumps screaming for his attention.
He wrapped his large hand around her hip and tilted her hips toward him, where she was brought right up against his . . .
Helena groaned and practically climbed him like a koala. She rubbed herself against him while rocking, because his erection was hitting her right there.
“Come on, Hellion,” Nolan whispered as he broke the kiss and moved his mouth down her neck. “Take what you need.”
Nolan moved his hand from her neck to cup her breast. His fingers were like magic and that was all Helena needed.
She was about to scream Nolan’s name when he covered her mouth in a searing kiss.
As she came down from her high, he tucked her head against his chest. A good thing too.
Helena blushed so hard her cheeks actually heated.
She couldn’t believe she’d done that. It was as if she were a teenager again, but there was nothing about Nolan that reminded her of anything but pure man.
Especially the way he was whispering how beautiful she was.
It stopped any embarrassment and instead made her feel like a goddess.
All the feelings Helena had been trying to keep in check for the past months blossomed. Nolan made her feel safe, not just physically, but emotionally. “Nolan,” she whispered against his chest as he stroked her back. “I’m so glad you got me out of my circle.”
“Me too, sweet one. Me too. Now, it’s late. Let me hold you while we sleep.”
“But, what about you?”
“You are my gift tonight and everything I’ve dreamed of.
” Nolan kissed the top of her head and snuggled her closer.
Her eyes closed and she inhaled his scent.
For once, her mind was blank and her body completely relaxed.
So relaxed that before she could even argue with him about him not finishing, Helena had fallen asleep.
Helena woke up as the little spoon. During the night, she must have rolled over, but Nolan had her anchored against him.
She wiggled her bottom and smiled at what she felt.
Sure, she knew it was common in the mornings, but it still made her feel sexy.
Especially when Nolan’s lips met her neck and his one hand slid over her belly.
“I see you woke up this morning and chose to be a hellion. Up to trouble already?” Nolan asked against her neck.
“More like completing unfinished business.”
“Mmm.” Nolan pulled her hips tight against him and she ground against him. That was, until his phone went off with a horribly loud siren.
“Shit,” Nolan cursed as he leaped from the bed. “That’s the emergency notification. I have to get to the fire station. I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry.” Helena tried to smile but there had been no time to talk about what last night meant for them.
Nolan yanked his shirt over his head and shoved his feet into his shoes.
He stopped by her side of the bed and leaned down.
He kissed her hot, heavy, and way too quickly.
“I’ll text you.” Then he was gone. “Lock your door!” he shouted from the hall, causing Helena to smile.
She got up, locked the door, and then got ready for the day.
Helena walked downstairs forty-five minutes later.
She was dressed casually and was now caught up on her emails.
The smell of coffee drew her to the dining room where coffee, tea, juice, and a full breakfast were laid out.
Poppy wasn’t there, but Lucas sat chatting with the other two guests.
Judging by the luggage sitting out of the way, they were about to be on their way.
Helena didn’t have time to grab a plate before the couple was heading out the door. “So,” Lucas said. Helena didn’t need to turn around to see his smile. She could hear it in that one word. “Nolan yelled at me on his way out the door that I’m to hang out with you today. Anything you want to do?”
Helena took her plate and her cup of coffee to the table and sat down. “Is there any way I can visit Bella?”
“Of course!”
“And, there’s a present I want to bring her, but it might be difficult to get.”
Lucas rubbed his hands together. “A mission! Excellent. What’s our objective and do I need one or two guns?” Lucas laughed and shook his head. “Silly me, I already have two on me.”
“Here’s what I’m thinking.” Helena told Lucas, who just laughed. She’d never met someone so good-natured as Lucas and it was contagious.
“No problem. When do you want to leave?” Lucas asked.
“How’s thirty minutes? Can you get it done that fast?” Helena asked.
“It’s already done,” Lucas said, holding up his phone. “Challenge me next time.”
Helena finished her coffee, hurried up the stairs, went over the next batch of emails that had come in the second her assistant had arrived at work, and then they were on their way to visit Bella.
The hospital wasn’t busy at nine in the morning. They found out Bella had been moved into a regular room and made their way there.
“No sir. It’s just a scratch,” Bella said into the phone, causing Helena’s eyebrows to rise. This was not a scratch. “In fact, they’re discharging me tomorrow. Sure, as soon as I get back from vacation I’ll have the doc examine me and you’ll see I’m cleared for field duty.”
“I thought she broke her leg?” Lucas asked in a whisper.
“She did,” Helena whispered back.
“Sure thing, boss. Talk to you soon.” There was a pause before Bella called out. “You can come in now.”
Lucas pushed the door open the rest of the way and stepped back for Helena to walk in first. Then he followed behind her. “Someone is telling fibs about their tibia.” Helena stared at the leg being held immobile.
“I’m a quick healer. Who is the guy in shorts, flip-flops, and a spray-painted shirt with a polar bear on it?” Bella asked as she looked at Lucas, clearly trying to figure him out. Helena had given up on that. Lucas was just, well, Lucas.
“Lucas Sharpe. FBI HRT.” Lucas held out his hand and Bella shook it. “And this is my Bertha,” he said pointing to the polar bear on his shirt.
“Of course it is. HRT? Really?”
Lucas shrugged. “I get that a lot, but yeah, really.”
There was movement at the door and Helena looked and looked again just to make sure she saw correctly. “I brought you a get-well gift,” Helena said to Bella while trying to keep a straight face.
“I hope it’s chocolate,” Bella said with a sigh.
“Not exactly.” Helena motioned and a man in tactical black walked into the room with a medium-sized red dog strapped to his chest and chilling in a baby carrier.
Bella’s mouth dropped open and a tear might have rolled down her cheek. “It’s you!”
“It is I. The Ahmed. And this is the Remi.”
The rust-colored dog’s eyes took in Bella as if she were clearly judging the woman in the bed. Then her tail wagged and she wiggled in the carrier.
“Sir,” a nurse said, rushing into the room, “this is a hospital. You cannot have a dog in here!”
Ahmed glared. Bella gasped and clapped her hands with utter joy. The nurse fled to get security.
“Out,” Ahmed said at the same time he unclicked the straps and the front of the baby carrier dropped open.
Remi jumped gracefully to the ground before making her way the short distance to the bed.
She rested her head on Bella’s hand and used her rust-colored nose to demand pets. “If my dog likes you, then I like you.”
“And if your dog didn’t like me?” Bella asked.
“I’d probably kill you.”
“Best. Gift. Ever!” Bella said to Helena with a huge smile. “You are my hero. I’ve tried to be accepted into your training center three times. I can’t believe you’re actually here. I have so many questions to ask you.”
Ahmed frowned. “What department are you with?”
“U.S. Marshals. I even fought and clawed my way onto the tactical operations team, but I was reassigned to high-risk fugitive retrieval six months ago. Hit one man in the nuts during combat training and you’d think I’d broken the law.
It’s combat. Haven’t you hit someone in the nuts before while fighting for your life? ”
Helena could almost see one of Ahmed’s lips twitch. “I’ve cut off nuts before. Very effective for interrogation.”
“I love you.”
“I’m married,” Ahmed replied as if he were used to hearing that.
However, his fingers were flying over his phone as he frowned again.
“Yes, you have applied, but your boss for tactical operations sent in a bad reference. He said you can’t take orders, are a loose cannon, and can’t work with men.
Ah, that makes sense now. As soon as your leg is healed, you’re in,” Ahmed told her as Bella’s mouth dropped open again, but not with good surprise, but with anger.
The way her heart rate shot up and her face turned red told Helena that.
“Impressive file, Ms. Gilmore.” Then Ahmed’s lips tilted up into a full smile right as the nurse came back in.
She took one look at him and walked out in a daze with her hand to her heart.
“It wasn’t one man in the nuts. It was your team commander. That takes, well, balls.”
“Yeah, well, he thought it was a good idea to grab my boob during combat. So, I grabbed his nuts. Grabbed. Twisted. Pulled.”
“Hmm,” Ahmed said with a frown. “Noted.” Ahmed sent a quick text and then turned his full attention back to Bella. “What questions do you have?”
“This is so cool,” she said again before launching into questions over interrogation techniques, survival, and the names of terrorists Ahmed had taken down.
Helena listened as Ahmed answered her questions and asked his own. Bella was glowing and so animated it was hard to believe she was the same person. Helena was horrified by what she heard, but she now completely understood why Nolan believed she’d be safe in Keeneston.
Ahmed finally turned to her and looked as if he were reading her soul. “So, Kazim Garang is after you. He’s such an asshole.”
“You know him?” Helena and Bella asked at the same time.
“Kori, another Rahmi soldier, and I have had the same experience with him. Kori mentioned he’s talked to you about him.
Similar to Kori’s story, but ten years earlier, Garang captured a Rahmi ship when he was a pirate.
I went for fun with some . . . friends, to get it back.
Garang threw his whole team at us so he could escape.
I know a lot of people in Keeneston that will be happy to help capture him. ”
“You mean in Rahmi,” Bella corrected.
Ahmed didn’t reply. Instead, he snapped his fingers and Remi stood up, turned, and jumped into his arms. Ahmed had her buckled back into the carrier in seconds. “You should meet my daughter, Abby. I look forward to having you in my combat class.”
Then he was gone.
Bella looked at Helena with wide eyes. “Holy crap! That was amazing.”
Bella talked a mile a minute until there was a knock on the door and a man and a woman, both with intense hazel eyes, walked in.
“Hey, what’s up?” Lucas asked, clearly knowing the two. Helena knew them, but she couldn’t remember their names.
“Hi,” the man said to Bella. “I’m Dr. Jace Davies and this is my cousin, Dr. Layne Greene. Nolan told us about you and we just finished talking to your doctor.”
“Bella Gilmore. I’m sorry, who are you?”
“I’m the town doctor in Keeneston. If you’d like, I can take over your care when you’re discharged,” Jace told her, shaking her hand.
“And I’m Layne. I have a doctorate in physical therapy. I can work with you in Keeneston if you’d like until this one is born,” she said, rubbing her belly. “But then I have the perfect person to take over for your care.”
“Layne is badass. She rehabbed her husband and his wound was gnarly. Walker told me all about it,” Lucas told Bella. “Like, shot in the leg, left to die in the ocean gnarly. Layne fixed him up.”
“You think you can get me up and going in four weeks?”
Layne looked at Bella and smiled. “I know I can. The question is if you can?”
“A challenge. I like you.”
“Then are you good with us taking over your care tomorrow?” Jace asked.
“I can’t wait.”
“We can turn one of the sitting rooms on the first floor of the bed and breakfast into a room for you, Bella,” Lucas offered.
Jace nodded and Layne offered to start therapy tomorrow evening after Bella got settled.
Helena noticed Bella yawn as did the two doctors.
Soon Bella was napping and Helena was listening to stories about Bertha on the way back to Keeneston.
She pulled out her phone and saw that Nolan had texted her twice while they’d been apart.
“He’s a good guy,” Lucas said, suddenly serious as he nodded to the phone. “You can’t do any better than Nolan.”
“I’m starting to see that.”