Her Sexy Marine Valentine (6 page)

How he looked at her sent her body into a full-on heated flush. A potent combination of adrenaline and arousal sped through her veins. It had been a really long time since she'd had sex. Her ex thinking she was terrible in bed was the sort of comment that stuck with a girl. Whereas Brody made her dream about doing naughty things that would feel
so
good.

Maybe he could teach her—

No. Bad idea. First, he was free labor. And if she was really as terrible in bed as her ex said, then it would be all awkward and just plain wrong.

Probably best to keep Brody as a friend only.

The crowd roared again and she caught a glimpse of him as he high-fived the CO. Then he turned and winked at her.

She blew him another kiss.

He put a hand over his heart and the women around her sighed. Dang. He was getting into this. And so was she.

The rest of the game went by in a blur, as she imagined rolling around in the sand with Brody. Naked.

Wrong
.
So wrong
.
You can't think of him like that
.

“Hey.” Brody pulled her out of her reverie. “We won. And you owe me at least four more kisses.” He glanced around them. “I'll make you pay up when we get home.”

“That sounds like a threat.” Her voice was low and raspy. “One I'm perfectly willing to give in on.” And then she smiled at him. “You were kind of awesome out there.”

“It was all for you, babe. You made this a great day.” When he leaned down and kissed her lightly on the lips, someone walked past them and whistled. Brody leaned away and gave her one of his devastating smiles.

He had the towel from the beach bag and he was wiping the sweat from his arms and stomach.

Save me
.
Universe
.
Please
.

“Can you get my back?” He handed her the towel and then turned around. There were scars up and down his spine. Some were round, others were thin and long, as if he'd been cut by something. While the round marks were faded, older perhaps, the slashes were pink and puckered, as if recent.

What had happened to him? He'd mentioned he didn't sleep much and there was always that hint of something sad in his eyes. The only time she'd seen it disappear was when he'd been talking to baby Lily.

She patted him down and then handed him the towel.

“Good game, Lieutenant,” the CO said as he passed by.

“You, too, sir.” Brody watched the other man with a smile on his face.

“Look at you, big winner. I bet you're happy,” she said.

“I am. That was fun.”

She laughed. “Yes, because you guys won.”

“I'm surprised you noticed. You seemed kind of lost in thought while I was out there.”

“I was thinking about the paint color for the kitchen. Maybe the off-white would be better. But then I worry about the whole thing being too white.”

Liar. Big fat liar.

“I thought you'd settled on the cornflower blue,” he said, as he took his T-shirt from her and slipped it over his head. She was sad to see the abs go, but it made it easier to focus.

“Too country for the Victorian. I'm thinking I need to stay true to the colors of the time period.”
Good cover
.

“Hmm. It's up to you. I'm not a fan of the green that was in the bunch of historical swatches you brought home. And yellow always seems kind of girly to me.”

She shrugged. Strange that they could have this conversation when a few seconds ago she was thinking about rolling around naked in the sand with him. “Yep. You're probably right.”

“The blues seemed more calming,” he said seriously. “I mean...it's your kitchen, you can do whatever you want.”

“No, I like having a guy's opinion. The house has to appeal to all buyers. I appreciate the input.”

“Hey,” Brody said. “Before we head home, I was wondering if you wanted to take a walk on the beach. Mark was telling me about a bunch of starfish that washed up after the storm last night. They're trying to find volunteers to put the live ones back in the water a half mile down the shore.”

“Oh, no. Patrick's in trouble,” she said in her best SpongeBob impression, which was really awful.

He frowned. “Who is Patrick?”

He didn't get her joke. She laughed. “You know, the dude who is the best friend of the guy who lives in a pineapple under the sea?”

He felt her forehead as if she had a fever. “Did you maybe get too much sun?” She batted his hand away.

“Silly. It's a television show. Patrick is a starfish and he's SpongeBob SquarePants's best friend. It's been on a while.”

“I pretty much watch sports and news,” he said.

“Borrring.”

“So we'll go save some Patricks?” He held out his hand, and she placed hers in it and tried not to think about what the warmth of his touch did to her body.

It's all for show. It's all for show.

Yep
.
You keep telling yourself that
.

7

B
RODY
SAWED
THE
boards he needed for the kitchen floor, trying his best to avoid looking at Mari. She was bent over another board measuring his cuts for him. Her cute shorts rode high on her creamy thighs, and he didn't even want to think about how his hand would feel on her ass.

No
.
Just no
.

Ever since this afternoon at the beach, there had been something between them. But for the past several days, he realized they'd been getting to know one another—swapping stories, exchanging knowing looks. Even finishing each other's sentences. There was an innate calmness to her, almost soothing to him in a way. She was a balm to his dark soul, seeing the light in most everything. When things went wrong with the house, she'd roll up her sleeves and do whatever needed to be done. And she never complained.

He respected the hell out of her, which was the main reason he could never touch her.

Yesterday he'd been in a bad mood at the base and he couldn't figure it out until it occurred to him that he was missing her.

It was strange. He'd never been so attached or attracted to a woman.

And he couldn't tell her. One of the greatest temptations of his life, and there was nothing he could do about it. At this point, and it had only been a week, it was more about losing her as a friend, rather than a fake girlfriend.

Except it wasn't so fake anymore. She was the kind of woman he needed in his life, but temporarily. And she didn't need that.

She hummed and he paused to watch her again.

Her long hair was piled on top of her head and for the past hour he'd been consumed with the idea of taking it down and letting it fall to her shoulders. Then he'd capture her lips and...

“Brody? Are you okay?” Mari stood in front of him with a board in her hand.

“Yep.”

She smiled and his cock twitched.

“What were you thinking about?”

“You,” he said before he could stop himself.

What are you doing?
Screwing everything up
.

She blinked. “Me?” she asked as she set the board she'd been measuring on the sawhorse.

“Yes. It happens a lot, especially lately. You're a gorgeous woman and I can't stop myself. It's a bad idea. I get it, as well as I know how to breathe.”

“We— I mean, I think about you, too, but—”

His body tensed. She thought about him?

“It complicates things,” he said, wondering if her thoughts were heading in the same direction that his were. “We're friends. Anything else will, like I said, be complicated.”

She nodded.

He caressed her cheek with the back of his fingers and she leaned into his hand.

“Mari?”

“Yes.” Her eyes were caught in the same web, neither of them able to look away.

“I need to kiss you.”

“Yes. You should do that,” she said as she took a step closer. “Friends kiss, right? I mean, they do it. Oh. Uh. Not what I meant. There's a whole movie about friends with benefits. Oh. Crap. I can't shut up.”

He caressed her jawline with his fingers. “We can't do this. It will ruin everything.”

“You're right.”

She stepped so close to him, their bodies touched. Her breasts, the ones he'd been dreaming of, were pressed into his chest. A man could only take so much.

“But if we gave in to the sexual tension,” she continued, “kissed and got over it, maybe we could move on. Be friends. We're probably making more of this than there really is.”

She made way too much sense. But maybe the reality wouldn't match the fantasy?

“We're in agreement that this is a really bad idea.”

“Stupendously bad,” she said.

“Stupendously?”

“New vocabulary app on my phone. I'm trying to use a new word at least five times a day.”

Wow, she was too much. But that didn't stop his lips from capturing hers.

Sweet. Delicious. And so soft, a mixture of peppermint and Mari. Better than he could have ever imagined. His hands itched to hold her, but he settled on resting one hand on her hip as the other pulled the knot from her hair.

He teased her mouth open with his tongue, needing to taste more.

And then she sighed into him. Her body melding into his.

He was a drowning man and she was his savior.

“More,” she whispered against his lips, and then she took his hand from her hip and put it on her breast. Who was he to deny her? His thumb raked across her taut nipple.

She gasped, the sexiest sound ever. He backed her against the wall as his mouth explored her, and his hands took full advantage of the permission she'd just granted him.

“I don't do commitments. I have to be honest about that,” he whispered in her ear as her hands squeezed his shoulders.

She tilted her head away from him and stared, her cheeks flushed. “I'm in no position to ask for something like that. I just want this, right now.”

As long as they were clear on that one thing, he didn't see any reason why they shouldn't do exactly what they wanted to.

Using his other hand, he lifted her leg around his hip and pressed his hardness into her. He thought that might scare her away, for her to feel how much he needed her. She moaned and rocked against him. He stilled.

This was wrong.

This was Mari.

Hadn't he told himself only moments ago that he didn't want to risk their friendship? He should stop this before things got out of hand.

“We can't,” he said. His voice was hard, but he didn't let her go. She rubbed against him.

“Why?” she asked.

“Friends. We're friends,” he answered. His hand caressed her hair and his gaze snagged hers, forcing her to focus on him.

“Yes. But why can't we have the benefits? I really need the benefits.”

He smiled, because damn if he didn't want the benefits as well. But they were caught up in something here. Something powerful. “No.” He had to be strong enough for both of them.

She blinked and then frowned. “Oh, you don't want me?” She started to pull away, but he held her there.

How could she think that given the position they were in just then?

“I can't remember ever wanting a woman more, but this changes things. We talked about it.”

“Right,” she said, but she still didn't move. “But it's been six months since I had sex. You're ready. I'm ready. We do it. It's simple. We just have to keep it simple.”

He leaned his forehead against hers. “What we want to do is far from simple. I'm not the guy for you. You need the forever kind. I'm a here-for-now-only type. I could get deployed tomorrow.”

“Stop trying to plan a future for me. I want to be with you. Have you inside me. I don't care about tomorrow. I need this.” She put her hand on him and rubbed, the friction nearly driving him mad. “Please.” Then she kissed him, darting her tongue in and out of his mouth, matching time with her hand on his shaft.

When he pressed himself into her hand, she groaned, and he was lost.

A good five minutes later, he forced himself to back away. His cock was still rock-hard, but he made himself stop.

“I should go,” he said. “We...you. You might think differently tomorrow.” And he couldn't get it out of his head that this one night might ruin the first good thing he'd had in years.

Her eyes were still closed, but she nodded. What a sight, with her swollen lips from his kisses, her nipples tight against her tank.

Walk away now.

“Or you could stay,” she said, opening her eyes. The desire he saw there was raw and drew him back to her. “Please. I meant what I said. I can separate this,” she whispered, pointing to her heart, “from what I need right now. I know the difference. Although, I should warn you. I might not be very good at it, but I want to try with you. Call it an experiment. A test mission.”

“What do you mean you're not very good at it?” The last few minutes told him quite the contrary. She was a good match for him, going after what she wanted. He loved it when a woman did that.

“I, uh. I've been told I'm boring. In. Bed.”

“What? Oh, the ex, right? That guy is a first-class dolt for letting you go. I wouldn't believe anything he says.”

“That's so sweet, Brody. This is a one-time thing I promise you. I want to experiment...or go on a mission with someone—I want it to be you. I feel like you won't judge me.”

That look, when she glanced up at him through those lashes of hers, kept him from leaving.

Walk away
.

No. He had to show her that her ex didn't know what he was talking about. If he gave her nothing else, it would be the confidence that she was the sexiest woman on the planet. And she felt safe with him, she'd told him so. “We're clear? This is a bad idea.”

“Already established.” She reached her hand out to him.

He took it and the other and then raised them above her head. He kissed her again, his control straining. It had been so long.

“Tell me now if you want to stop.”

Eyes wide, pressing her pelvis into his, she said, “No stopping. No talking. Just this.” Her pert breasts teased his chest. He lifted her leg, stroking her thigh and wrapped it around his waist. She ground into him.

He was quickly losing what little control he had left.

“Need more,” she demanded before kissing him long and hard. He slid his hand between them and lower into her shorts. She was wet for him and undulated against him. He had to breathe, had to slow down. But she was so tempting, so encouraging. He stroked her hard nub and she moaned. She was so tight, so hot.

“Yes,” she hissed, and then she caught his tongue and sucked. He was on fire for her, her mouth might as well have been on his cock.

Could he come from just kissing her?

Her muscles tightened around his fingers and she matched his rhythm with her hips.

Yes, yes, he could. But he wouldn't. He wanted to be inside her when that happened.

“Oh,” she cried out and threw back her head. He loved that she was so responsive to him. Loved the sounds she made. “Yes,” her voice rasped. Her body trembled against him. He had to be inside her now, but he'd take his time, be everything to her. She was a woman to be indulged and savored.

“Brody,” she gasped when he threw her over his shoulder. “What are you doing?” He took the stairs two at a time and she giggled as they bounded up the steps, his hand firm on her ass. He made it to her bedroom, where he carefully laid her on the sheets.

“Okay, Mari. I'm with you. We scratch the itch and then we're done. Back to being friends.”

She nodded. Her smile alone nearly did him in. He tugged off her shorts and the silky pink thong she wore. Mari was pure heat and he had to taste her.

Before she said a word, his mouth was on her, his tongue teasing her core. Another intimate gasp from her and her fingers were running wild through his hair as he sucked and kissed. She bucked against him and he couldn't help but smile. Quiet little Mari was calling out his name and writhing. He glanced up to find her eyes hooded, and that one of her hands was squeezing her breast through her shirt.

It was the sexiest thing he'd ever seen.

Any man who didn't enjoy making love to this woman was a fool. Plain and simple.

“Brody,” she panted as he teased the tiny nub relentlessly. “I've never felt like this...this...” Her thighs trembled and she rode his touch through the quake.

When she'd finally calmed, he moved up to lay next to her and kissed her passionately. After several long moments, she abruptly pulled back. “I want to taste you,” she said, unzipping his jeans.

One touch of her lips and he'd lose control for sure. “Can't,” he whispered. “I have to have you now, Mari, if I don't get inside you I might combust.”

She burst out a laugh and he grinned. She shifted closer to him, gesturing at her top. He stripped it off her in record time and then removed her bra. Her taut, rosy nipples stole his attention as he kissed them to even tighter points. He slowed only long enough for her to shove off his jeans and sneakers. Then went the black briefs.

When she let go of him, she fell back onto the bed, pushing herself up on her elbows as she watched him, her eyes fixated on his erect cock. Control. He was at the very end of his, but he wouldn't rush this.

“Condom?” he asked. He'd never thought to bring one. Never in his wildest imagination did he think they would get to this point. Not that he hadn't considered it, but he didn't anticipate it would actually happen.

“Drawer,” she told him and pointed to the side table. He nearly tore the drawer from its hinges. He ripped open the packet with his teeth and slipped the condom on.

She continued to watch him, and as she licked her lips his cock jerked. “You're amazing,” he said as she tugged him to her, slipping her legs around his waist.

“You don't have to say stuff like that,” she said. Her eyes glanced away. Her hair had fallen around her shoulders and her body was flush from his attention.

“Mari, hand on heart, you're one of the most stunning women I've ever met. For weeks I've thought of little more than this,” he said as he teased her with the tip of him. “So many cold showers, Mari. I've dreamed of you just like this. Waiting to take me. Coming around my cock.”

Her heated gaze met his. He was careful as he slid into her slowly, he wanted her to adjust to his size.

“More,” she whispered fiercely. “Now.”

He kissed her forehead, the tip of her nose, her sweet, full lips before he moved in and out of her, taking his time. But when she tweaked and caressed her nipples once, twice, he couldn't hold back any longer. He increased the pace, moving faster and faster.

Soon she held his face in her hands and he could see she was as lost in him as he was in her. “You feel so good,” he told her as she shuddered around him. He thrust into her one last time and her back bowed, her mouth open.