Live Free and Love (6 page)

He couldn’t help but miss her.

He had gotten used to her being around, her presence alone soothed him and helped him through the day. Yesterday had been a real test of his strength.

His demons had come at him hard, his old habits calling to him. It had been harder than anything he could remember to just sit and wait for the attack to pass.

He was proud of himself. The deaths of those boys would forever be with him—he had no doubt about that—but it was getting a little easier to deal with each day.

Danny was just setting the plates out on the table when his phone rang. Going over, he answered on the third ring.

When he hung up, he cursed. The base psychiatrist wanted him to report to her office in the morning. He suspected what he would be told, but hoped for the best.

He looked at the incomplete dinner he had been preparing, and took a deep breath. Whatever the news he got tomorrow, he would not let it stop him from enjoying his night with Kristina.

He couldn’t help but fall for the woman. She was utterly beautiful. She had seen him at his worst, yet had not turned her back on him or passed judgment.

Instead she had been compassionate, had opened her heart to him and helped him when he’d needed it.

Thinking on it, he knew that he loved her, but didn’t know how to tell her. He knew that she cared for him as a friend, but he was unsure if she shared the same feelings.

Walking back to the kitchen, he finished setting the table. He decided he would tell her, but not until he came home from his meeting.

****

Sitting in his living room after dinner, Danny watched Kristina sip her wine. He had been thinking about asking her something all night, and decided to do so/go for it.

He didn’t know what she had planned, but hoped she was free to fly with him to Camp Pendleton tonight. He knew it was short notice but he wanted her to go with him, wanted her to be there if he got the news that he was dreading.

“Kristina, I wanted to ask you something,” he said, looking her in her eyes.

She set her wine glass down and looked towards him. “Sure, anything.”

“I wanted to know if you will go somewhere with me tonight. I have to fly out to California, meet with somebody on base. I… want you there in case I got any bad news.”

“Why would you be getting any bad news?” she asked him.

“There’s always the possibility. I just want the support if I needed it.”

“Of course, Danny; what time is the flight?”

****

They landed in Los Angeles at around one thirty in the morning. Kristina noticed that Danny was unusually quiet. She didn’t know what was on his mind, but whatever it was it had him nervous.

“Are you okay?” she asked him.

Danny nodded to her and forced a smile. “Come on, let’s go pick up the rental. It should be waiting for us.”

Kristina shook her head and followed him to baggage claim, where they pick up their bags.

A short while later, they were driving toward Oceanside. The car ride was very quiet, the silence not a comfortable one.

Kristina tried to strike up conversation a few times, but failed to keep it going. Giving up, she turned to look out the passenger window, watching the roadside pass by.

“Tina, wake up. We’re here,” Danny said softly.

Kristina looked around her and saw they were at a hotel. She hadn’t even realized she had fallen asleep. She must have been more tired than she had thought.

Opening the car door, she went to the trunk, where Danny stood grabbing their things from the car. When he had everything, he turned to her and smiled, this time letting it reach his eyes.

“Sorry if I’ve been a little standoffish. I’ve just been thinking, is all. I hope I didn’t offend you.”

Kristina smiled back at the man she loved. “Not at all,” she said, not exactly telling the truth. “I’m just concerned about you, Danny. I hope everything goes well for you tomorrow.”

“Me too,” he said, looking off into the distance. Pointing, he said, “You see that section of land off to the right?”

She turned her head and looked in the direction he was pointing at. “Yes.”

“That’s Camp Pendleton. That’s where I learned to be a Marine, where I learned to protect my country.” He had that old haunted look in his eyes.

“It’s going to be okay. Whatever it is, it’s going to be alright,” she said, unable to come up with anything else.

She wanted to take that look from his eyes, to turn him back into the man he had been for the past couple of weeks.

“Come on,” she said, grabbing his hand. “Let’s get checked in.”

They walked hand in hand towards the hotel office. Once inside, they paid the fee for the room and grabbed their key.

Kristina headed for the shower as soon as they were inside the room. She glanced around her. The room was small but comfortable, with a large bed and big overstuffed chairs off in the corner.

Telling Danny that she wanted to get the road off her, she undressed quickly and climbing under the stream of water.

She knew that whatever was bothering Danny wouldn’t just go away but she intended to try to take his mind off it, at least for a little while.

Walking out of the shower towel-drying her hair, she saw Danny sitting by the window. He seemed so deep in thought.

“Danny, you wanna jump in the shower?” she asked him.

Turning, he glanced at her. “Yeah, actually, that sounds really good right now,” he told her as he got up from his seat. As he passed her, he kissed her on the top of her head.

“I’ll be right back.”

“Okay,” she said watching his back as he disappeared into the bathroom. Kristina waited until she heard the water running before she rushed to her suitcase. She unzipped the luggage and rummaged around until she found the items that she was looking for.

She listened in the bathroom, making sure Danny was still in the shower, and rushed outside with the ice bucket.

When she had stopped at her house before leaving, she had an afterthought to pack some extra items just in case she had the time to use them.

It looked like her quick thinking was paying off.

Once back inside the room, she carefully unwrapped the two wine glasses she had packed. Picking up the bottle of wine, she stuck it in the ice and hoped it would be at least a little bit cold when they got around to drinking it.

Glancing at the bed, she peeled her robe off, exposing her bare skin. She let her hands roam across her body, lingering on her breasts and continuing down to her hips.

Reaching toward the bed, she grabbed the black lace teddy and matching thong she had bought when she went to Chicago. She sat down on the bed and slid the garter up her leg until it settled at her thigh.

Next, she slipped her feet into a pair of black stilettos. She rarely wore these shoes, but this was for Danny.

Standing, she went to the full length mirror that adorned the wall. She gazed at her body, appreciating the view. She had to admit that she looked sexy. She just hoped that Danny would like it.

She had never worn lingerie for a man before. When she was with Trevor, he was always a straight-to-the-point kind of guy, and her flings in college hadn’t been serious enough for her to care.

Kristina knew that she was an attractive woman, but she had a moment’s insecurity when she heard the water turn off and Danny got out of the shower.

He’s gonna love it, calm down
, she thought to herself.

Kristina went to the edge of the bed and sat down. She leaned to the side, exposing her thigh and the roundness of her ass. Licking her lips, she tossed her hair, and waited for him to exit the bathroom.

A few short minutes later, the door opened. Danny was drying his face and hadn’t looked at her as of yet.

“Tina, I was thinking maybe we should try to get some rest. We have an early day ahead of us,” he said, turning to her.

The look on his face dispelled Kristina’s insecurities immediately. Hunger instantly flared in his eyes, his cock hardening visibly under his towel.

“You sure you want to sleep? I thought we could… play for a while,” Kristina said seductively.

He just stared at her. His eyes took in every inch of her. The teddy enhanced all of her best features. The lace dipped in a low ‘V’ in the front, framing her beasts. The material was see-through, letting her nipples to peek through the fabric.

He licked his lips as his gaze traveled the curve of her hips.

Kristina stood and began to walk to the wine. She felt his palm stop her movement.

His eyes lowered to hers. “You look beautiful.”

Kristina couldn’t thank him before he lowered his mouth to hers. The kiss was different, more heartfelt and sensual than usual.

Kristina wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him back just as fiercely . His hands roamed her body, gripping her hips and ass.

His arms tightened around her body, pulling her flat against him, his erection pressing into her belly.

A moan escaped her lips.

Breaking the kiss, he reached up and cupped her breast, his thumb flicking across her nipple. She sucked in a breath.

He brought his lips back to hers, sucking at her lips, lightly nipping at them with his teeth.

She reached her hand down and gripped his cock in her palm, felt him grow even harder. She began to lower herself and took him into her mouth. She sucked slowly, taking him fully into her mouth.

His sharp hissing breath let her know he liked what he felt. His hands came to her hair and tangled themselves in its tresses.

She flicked her tongue across the tip of him, his hips jerking in response. She sped up her pace, never breaking contact .

Danny’s breathing was ragged, his moans guttural. She brought her hand up to grip him as she continued to suck, loving the way he reacted to what she was doing to him.

After a while he pulled her up and scattered kisses on her mouth and neck.

“You little vixen,” he told her, before he lifted her and carried her the short distance to the bed.

He laid her softly on the bed, his fingers finding the straps to her thong and pulling the small scrap of lace off her body.

He seemed to devour the sight of her. She was glistening and wet, ready for him. He had other thoughts in mind. He spread her legs as wide as they would go and dropped his head, placing a kiss on her womanhood.

Slowly he brought tongue up her slit, circling around her most sensitive part. She arched her back off the bed, lost in the feel of him and the pleasure he was giving her.

Danny feasted on her, dipping and tasting her. Her hips moved in perfect sync with the rhythm he set.

She felt the stirrings of her orgasm begging to build, her moaning becoming louder, more primal.

She shattered all at once, feeling Danny grip her hips tighter as she rode the waves of ecstasy.

Her body felt weak and exhilarated all at the same time. The bed dipped as it accepted his weight. He positioned himself between her thighs, never taking his eyes off of hers and he slid within her.

She would never tire of the feel of him, of her body stretching to accommodate his large size.

He was still for a second, but began to move when he heard her plea for him to make love to her.

His pace was steady, drawing out their lovemaking. Raising her legs, she wrapped them around his hips and met him stroke for stroke.

His body was slick with sweat, the muscles in his arms rippling as they supported his weight.

Danny brought his lips to hers once more, his tongue dueling with hers. He slid his hands beneath her, lifting her, allowing him to go deeper.

Kristina gripped Danny’s back, digging her nails in. He felt so good, so right.

Danny tensed, his body going rigid. Kristina felt him pulse within her, his low moans telling her that he had reached his completion.

Danny leaned down and kissed her on her forehead. “You were amazing, Tina. I could spend the rest of my life buried inside of you.”

“I could get behind that idea,” Kristina said, adjusting herself to better support his weight.

“Don’t tempt me, woman,” he said, staring down at her.

“I’m serious, Danny. It sounds like the perfect way to spend the rest of my life; not just the sex, but with you as well.”

There, I finally said it
, she thought to herself.

Danny rolled to his side, facing Kristina. He was silent for a while, thinking about what he would say.

“Tina, I care about you a lot, and that’s putting it extremely lightly.” He thought about his meeting in the morning, about what he might be told. He didn’t want to make her promises for the future that he couldn’t keep.

Kristina mistook his silence as him saying he didn’t feel the same way, and rushed to put all her cards on the table.

“Danny, I understand you have been through a lot, more than any person should ever have to go through. But ever since I could remember, it’s been you. You got me through my childhood. If it hadn’t have been for you, I don’t know how I would have made it through that.