Latched (Coronado Series Book 1) (3 page)

“How long have you been out here this morning? Are you experiencing sunstroke?” He dropped his sunglasses and looked at Mark, “He’s attractive in a super alpha man way. But he’s not good looking. Why can’t you ask a Lt. Commander to bust your slump? They don’t have sex? Is he married?” He noticed Mark staring at them, “I bet he would be interested in your plan. Don’t break his heart though.”

“I don’t want to break anything - I want to change my juju. The guy is built like a boxer, look at those huge biceps.” Birdie dropped her glasses as well and looked at Mark again. “I don’t think I could break anything on him even if I tried.” She moved her glasses up, “Too bad he’s off limits to me.”

Mark watched as Birdie was swept up in her friends arms and had the same thought again,
Don’t hug him. Hug me.
This guy James was one good looking son of a bitch. He was tall and had model good looks that the girls seem to go for. Even a dumb sailor like him could figure that out. Maybe this was the man Birdie was holding out for. He started walking over to the truck and introduced himself to James. They shook hands and Mark realized that the guy was probably gay. Well that worked out for him. The less men he had to push aside, the better.
 

They talked for a few minutes and Birdie turned to James, “We’d better get started. I still have to get ready for the wedding.”
 

Mark leaned down and gave her a kiss on the cheek, surprising both himself and Birdie. “See you later at the wedding. James, nice meeting you.”
 

She watched him walk away and stood there with her hand on her cheek.
He smells good, he smells perfect. I like the feel of his cheek and the weight of his hand on my arm.
 

“Birdie, this could be the beginning a wonderful affair.” James started laughing as he looked at her.

“I want to run my hand down his massive chest. I want to kiss him and see what he tastes like. I want to feel the weight of him. Too bad I can’t ask him for some meaningless sex.”

James leaned back on his truck, “Those are some pretty specific plans, I think you may still have a shot. The guy was looking at you like you were the main course on his dinner menu. You may just get what you ask for.”

“Frisco said I look like I have a body for sin, but when I open my mouth men figure out that I’m responsibility. I’m planning on being very quiet and letting my body do the talking. I’m going to send out a naked fun message. Let’s get started; I want to finish up, go home and get ready. I have a lot to transform.”

********

Birdie stood in the closet running her hands over her dresses as she contemplated her choices for the wedding. It was between the Eli Saab pale pink dress and the blue Narciso Rodriguez sheath. Both were really sexy. The Eli Saab was a little heavy because of all of the beading, but she could breathe and dance in it. The Narciso was more fitted, it was harder to breathe in, but very chic. Unable to decide she walked back into the bathroom to finish her hair. She shook it out and sprayed it a little so it wouldn’t go flat before the dancing began. She returned to her closet and chose the Eli Saab dress. It was flirty and fun and almost made her look a little naked. Most of Eli’s dresses had a similar effect. The way the beading was done made it look like if you moved just right, you might get a flash of something.
 

She slipped into it, added her Jimmy Choo gold heels and perfume and was ready. She looked in the mirror and was glad she’d decided to get the lash extensions that were so popular now. It made her eyes look really dramatic. Before she headed downstairs, she said a little prayer. “Please let me meet someone and please make sure he’s good in bed.” She figured it was a good idea to be specific about what she wanted - she didn’t want to be blessed with the wrong man.
 

 
She walked down stairs and called for James. He was sitting in the kitchen reading the paper and drinking champagne. “Well how did I do?”
 

He looked up and smiled, “Oh Birdie, you did good. You look like a woman who is ready for the next chapter and some really great sex.”
 

“Good, I tried to vamp it up as much as I could. Do I look like I’m capable of naked fun?”
 

James studied her, “Mostly… the naked dress sure sends the right message.”
 

“I have a lot of family there - it’s still appropriate right?”
 

“People see what they want to see. Your Aunts will see a lovely pink dress. Mark is going to see a naked dress and follow you around all night.”
 

She lifted her glass in a toast, “Well, here’s hoping. A year is too long to go without sex.” She finished her glass of champagne and put it down on the counter.
 

“I had no idea it had been that long. I think a couple of days is a long time, but that’s just me.” James checked to make sure she had cab money and the number of the taxi service for her return home. “Do you need a condom too?”

Birdie waved her hand in dismissal, “I’m hoping for a kiss, not a shag in the bushes. But I’ll put them on my shopping list for next week. I think I need to be ready if I find a candidate for my plan.”

James stood up, adjusted his clothes and grabbed her hand, “Let’s get you to this shindig.”
 

********

They pulled up to the Officers Club and people were gathered on the front lawn where the ceremony was taking place. Birdie noticed how pretty the sky looked. It was 5:00, the sun had settled a bit and the sky had softened. It made everything and everyone look a little better.
 

“Get going girl - go have fun. Dance your feet off and eat lots of cake.”

She got out and went to his side of the car and gave him a big kiss. “Thank you, thank you for everything today. You really are my prince.”

James looked over her shoulder, “Mark is staring at your ass right now. He’s not acting uninterested. You’d better get going.”
 

Birdie stood up, straightened her dress, fixed her shoe and spun around with a big hopeful smile on her face. She stared at Mark in his suit, the guy was impressive in a tee shirt and shorts - but in a suit he was devastating. His broad shoulders filled out the jacket and she could see the fabric of his pants clinging to his massive thighs. It gave her the feeling of dynamite being wrapped in tissue paper…. completely unnecessary.
Here goes nothing.
She started to walk towards him, hoping she didn’t trip and fall on her face.
 

Mark saw Birdie arrive in a black Mercedes and wondered if she managed to find a last minute date for this thing. He watched her lean over to talk to the driver and his mouth fell open. She was in a fucking naked dress – you could see right through that thing. He felt his body tense with anticipation and desire. He leaned forward and waited for her to turn around. He noticed she had a much better figure than he first thought. She was a freakin brick house with all of those curves. He had a very strong desire to sink his hands into her hips and kiss her up one side and down the other. He never understood why women wanted to be so skinny, they were supposed to be soft and round with hips to hold onto. Who wanted to feel like you were lying next to a fourteen year old boy?
Maybe that’s just me – I’m a big guy and I don’t want to feel like I am going to break the woman if I kiss her too hard. I want to have something to hold on to when I sink into her
.
 

Birdie kissed the driver and the same thought popped into his mind again,
Don’t kiss him… kiss me
. He watched her do a little shimmy to straighten her dress and then bend to fix her shoe.
I just want her under me, over me and beside me.
She turned around and he got the full effect of all that was Birdie. She had a big smile on her face and her hair was down - she was soft and sexy. He could imagine the feel of her hair draped around him like a curtain and wondered what she tasted like.

He felt light headed as he watched her walk towards him,
Come here baby….come to me.
Mark felt a tightening in his pants from just looking at her and thanked God for the jacket. He was a man with a lot of self-control so he willed his body to obey and was able to bring it all back down. That was until she started walking towards him and he saw her hips move in that rhythm women had. He felt sure he was going to get glimpse of something as the beading moved on her dress. As she got closer he realized the dress wasn’t completely sheer. He also noticed she didn’t look confident in her heels and appeared to be concentrating as she took each step.

Birdie looked up, smiled and that’s when it happened. She tripped and almost fell right into him. He caught her around the waist and pulled her up against his chest. She looked up and laughed, “I almost made it. I was so close. But I looked up and saw you standing there and I got distracted.”
 

She straightened up and tried to pull away, but he didn’t release her. He bent over and whispered in her ear, “You looking amazing sweetheart - nice dress.” He noticed she smelled like lilacs and summer. He had no idea where that thought came from. But he would now associate the smell of lilacs with desire.
 

He pulled her in a little tighter and held her flush against his body. She was unable to respond right away, because her brain shut down. She felt all 6’3” inches of Mark’s muscular build and had the urge to settle in and stay a while. He smelled amazing, like soap and starch from his shirt and something else that was all him. She wanted to run her nose up his throat,
I want him.
That was the thought racing through her head. She snapped out of it and finally responded, “Thanks for the save.”
 

She straightened up and patted his broad chest, “Thanks again.” They stood on the lawn in a semi embrace, staring at each other with people moving around them, not moving. She could feel all his intensity and focus when she was this close to him. It was contradicted by the very easy smile on his face. She could also feel the mutual attraction that was happening between them - it felt like an arc of electricity. She wondered if anyone else noticed what was happening between them.

Finally he released her and took her hand in his. She looked down at their clasped hands and felt a line of electricity run up her arm.
Was he feeling anything, because it felt like everything to her?

Mark liked the feeling of her small hand in his. It felt like it was supposed to be there. “Can I walk you to your seat? I want to protect you from all of the men who are going to be staring at you in your naked dress.”
 

“This isn’t a naked dress - it just looks like it. I’m not flashing anything, it’s not even short.”
 

Mark shook his head, “Nope - it is a naked dress. Every man here is just hoping for a shift of those beads for a little glimpse.” He put his hand on the small of her back and guided her towards where the ceremony was going to take place.
 

 
Birdie stopped at the center aisle for a moment and tilted her head as she studied the arch and the flowers she had created for the ceremony. “You think it looks okay…even and everything?”

Mark nodded and smiled, he was looking down at her and could smell her hair. He noticed how shiny it was and how soft it looked. “Perfect,” he replied.
 

Frisco stood in the aisle and studied Mark and Birdie. He realized his friend hadn’t taken his advice about leaving Birdie alone, in fact, he was doing the opposite. He studied his commander and tried to determine what his intentions were with Birdie. He realized Mark looked like he’d been hit and wondered if he was even aware of it. Birdie looked the same, open and friendly. Maybe she was going to be the one to break his heart. Hopefully she found what she was looking for. He sure hoped she knew what she was doing. He approached them both. “Birdie would you like help to your seat?” He totally ignored Mark, just to get a rise out of him.
 

“I’m fine. I see my two aunts over there and I’m sitting with them.” Mark still had his hand on her back and started to lead her over. She turned and placed her hand on his chest to stop him. “Save yourself, Mark. You don’t have to sit with me. My Aunts are a kick in the pants, but they have no filter. They say whatever comes to their mind whether it is appropriate or not.”
 

“I’m a big boy – I think I can handle your two Aunts.” He took her hand in his and followed her over to the two women, admiring her very fine ass the whole way. Birdie gave two identical eighty year old women big hugs and kisses. She then introduced Mark to her family. “This is Lt. Commander Mark Frazier. He just escorted me over and is going to sit with his friends.” She put her hand out to him, “Thank you, Enjoy the wedding.”
 

He realized she was trying to get rid of him so he ignored it. He shook both Aunts’ hands and put his arm around Birdie. “Actually, I’m sitting with you Birdie.” It was a good way to let every man know that she was with him and also let her know he was interested in her.
 

Birdie sat down and started talking to her aunts, ignoring the very large male sitting next to her. It’s one thing to hope for something to happen, but it’s another when it starts to actually happen.
 

 
Her aunts spoke loudly and it was hard not to overhear them. Aunt Belle staged whispered loud enough for the back row to hear, “Birdie dear, I think Mark may have other ideas about you.”