Authors: Cassandra Cole
CHAPTER NINE
She entered Cal's room to find him perched on the side of his bed, trying to get up. His skin has a sheen of sweat over it and was an unhealthy light gray color.
“What the hell are you doing?” She demanded, dashing over and trying to give him some kind of support at the same time as pushing him back onto the bed.
“Going to the bathroom.” He growled through clenched teeth.
“You got shot and had major surgery less then twenty-four hours ago!”
“Don't mean I gotta’ go in a pan.” He grunted. Tessa managed to get him back on the bed with ease, where he panted and grabbed the mattress in both fists. She looked over to where one of the nurses had left a steel bedpan and patted him on his burning shoulder.
“What about if I arrange a mobile commode?”
Eventually, after he had been convinced to get back in bed, Tessa approached again.
“Feel any better?”
“Never better T.” Tessa gave him a stare.
“Cal. Do you feel any better?”
God, how I want this man. I could just lock the door and do all the work... he could just lie there. Damn, no locks on these doors.
“Yeah, I'll be out of here tomorrow.” He told her.
Right. One of those patients, then.
“You're going home?” He nodded, “And the IV antibiotics?” Tessa asked, pointing to the needle which pierced his vein. “You need those to fight the infection you will get from having your colon split open by a bullet.”
“Lecturing me, doc?” Tessa smiled and shook her head.
“Reasoning with you. Anyone been to see you?” His eyebrows went up.
“Like who? No one here knows me, save you and your mama.” She couldn't argue with that.
“Is there anything you need? Do anything for you?”
“Foot massage might be nice.” He grinned. “Shoulder rub too?”
“Magazines or books was more my thought.”
“Guns and Ammo?”
“I don't think they carry that in the hospital shop, sorry.”
“Ah well, can't win 'em all.” They fell silent for a few seconds.
“Can I talk to you without you getting all upset?” Tessa asked. Cal scowled.
“Depends on what you want to talk about.” He grumbled. Tessa took a deep breath and let it out.
“What happened?” Cal knew exactly what she meant and his face turned angry.
“We were in Africa,” He hissed through clenched teeth, “Gathering Intel, it was supposed to have been. We got close enough to start spying on his operations. Two days in, we ended up getting attacked. Five guys got hit in the first minute easy. I got four of them out and the last got fragged. Happy now?” He asked spitefully.
“God Cal, you are a hero just like Captain Dimitrioles said.”
“Yeah, some hero, leaving a man, a brother, behind to die.” Cal said idly punching the bed.
“You saved four.” She reminded him gently and felt her throat tighten when she saw tears starting to well in his eyes. She grabbed his hand, “You saved four.”
“It doesn't matter, I still let one of them die.”
“You can't blame yourself, babe,” She told him, “You did everything you could humanly do to save them.” They fell silent again while Cal shed a tear.
“You called me 'babe'” He said with a smile. Tessa blushed.
“Yeah? Bothered?” He shook his head and patted the bed next to him. Tessa hesitated for a second before lying down and putting her arm across his chest. They were asleep within two minutes.
CHAPTER TEN
Cal made excellent progress, mainly due to his fitness, and came home the following week. When her mother pulled up outside his father's home, Tessa felt sick, wondering if she had done the right thing in the week he had been hospitalized. She watched him as the car pulled into his driveway, waiting to see if he would be happy or angry.
“The cherry trees gone I see.” Cal said as he watched the small crowd cheering on his front lawn. “Been busy, have you?”
“They have.” Tessa told him, pointing to the four people who were there. “I was with you most of the time.”
“Who are they?”
“Nice, generous people. Some of them were in Hurley's that night and when word got around about you being a hero they were more than happy to help out.” She grabbed his hand, “Come on, have a look at your house.”
Cal got slowly out of the backseat to the hoots and hollers of the strangers, Tessa appeared beside him, wrapping her arm around his waist for support. Cal had found he really enjoyed the closeness which had developed between them in the week and was looking forward to getting her alone.
How she had managed to transform the outside of the crappy old house he had spent his youth in Cal could not believe, but it was like a completely different house, homey actually.
“Pleasure to meet you Mr. Hughes,” An elderly man said, offering his hand.
“Call me Cal.” Cal said, shaking it, “And thanks for all this.”
“I had a boy in the army. He didn’t make it back from the Gulf way back, so when I heard about you, I thought it'd be nice to lend a hand.” Cal made his way down the line, hearing similar stories from the other people then made his way inside. Pausing as he got through the door, his chest heaved as he took in the scene.
“I got rid of all the furniture, babe,” Tessa told him, “This all came from donations.” Cal looked about at the nearly new sofa, table and chairs, combined with the paint job which brightened the whole place, it had transformed the house
.
She had pretty much gutted the place, by the looks of it and fresh paint coated the walls.
“Tessa...I...” Cal foundered for the right words then smiled, “You got rid of that smell then.” He turned and took her in his arms, “Thank you.” His voice was choked and she kissed him deeply in front of the other people.
Pattering feet scampered across the linoleum as the Labrador flew in from the rear garden, his whole body wagging in excitement. Cal chuckled and bent to stroke the creature,
“Hey Trigger.” He said, using the name he had decided on when Tessa told him the dog was the one who saved his life, whoever pulled the trigger wasn’t to take his life, not here, not today, not this way. It was Trigger’s little whimper that brought her to him, leading her into the ally alerting her to his being shot. Cal sat on the sofa and accepted Trigger's mad licking at his face and throat, laughing when the dog flopped on his back and started rolling around, grunting.
For the rest of the afternoon, Cal and Tessa entertained the helpers who had cleared and repaired the house for him, swapping stories and promises to meet again. Finally as the sun was setting, they found themselves alone. Cal threw his arm round Tessa's shoulders and pulled her close.
“I still can't believe you did all this for me.” He said, shrugging, “Thank you from the bottom of my heart.” Tessa got up and turned to crawl onto his lap, straddling him and putting her hands on his hard shoulders. She leaned in and pressed her lips against his, feeling his hands trace up her thighs and along her sides, sending tingles across her skin. “I love you, Tessa.” He added when she pulled back.
Tessa felt her stomach turn and heat burned up through her at his words. His declaration had been so simple but so heartfelt she knew it was true. She knew he wasn’t someone who B.S’d about something like that. If anything, she admired him for his vulnerability, and sharing his feelings. She allowed the moment without the usual smart-alec comments. It was real, she knew it. It was beyond fast, but something ineffable was there. Why explain it, why fight it. She leaned into him and wrapped her arms round his neck.
“I love you too,” She breathed on his neck, following her breath with kisses, working her way down to his collarbone. Cal's hands traced designs up and down her back, eventually working their way up under her t-shirt. She moaned into his mouth, tasting his tongue where their mouths met. Tessa felt him wriggle between them and...
What the hell?
“Trigger!” Tessa laughed as the dog poked his nose between them. Cal laughed too,
“Maybe we should go upstairs?” He suggested. Tessa nodded enthusiastically.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
With the door firmly closed and the dog on the other side, Tessa turned to Cal, staring in wonder at his impressive muscles.
Even after a gunshot there was solidity to his presence, an air of impregnability which was a potent aphrodisiac, drawing him towards her. She moved over and stepped into his embrace, tilting her head up for another kiss.
Heat built quickly between them as they explored one another with hands, eyes and lips.
Cal kissed his way down Tessa's neck, sending goose-pimples down her spine and along her thighs. He reached down to grab the hem of her shirt and drew it up over her head with ease.
His strong hands cupped her breasts through her bra, teasing her hardening nipples through the lacy fabric and making her moan.
“Yaaaa.” Tessa hissed when she felt Cal nipping kisses along her shoulder at the same time as freeing her heavy breasts from their confinement.
She wrapped her arms around his head as he kissed his way down her right breast, circling her nipple with little licks of his lips on and around her areola, “Cal.”
Tessa breathed, humming in delight as his hot mouth clamped down on her nipple. Cal teased her with long slow pulls of her nipple into his mouth, gripping it in his teeth and teasing the end with his tongue. Tessa felt a tugging deep inside her abdomen and scratched her nails down his back, reveling in the muscles she found there.
Cal stood up again and Tessa pushed him back until the edge of his new bed hit him in the back of the knees. He sat and she crawled on top of him, laying him down and kissing his throat.
She kissed and licked her way down his strong, muscular chest, working her way down to his abs. She could feel his strong erection pushing into her leg and reached down to grip it through his pants. Cal growled as she nuzzled and kissed his impressive physique, rubbing her hand up and down the length of his manhood.
His hand roved down her back, massaging and squeezing his way towards the waistband of her jeans. He stroked her butt cheeks, squeezing her through the fabric and stroking her thigh.
He couldn't get his hand down to touch her bare skin so she jumped up and slowly slipped her jeans down, bending slowly to give him a good view.
“Wow!” Cal rumbled, “You're so sexy.” Tessa looked at him with a lust filled stare.
“Then don’t keep them off me.” She said and slipped her panties off, standing naked before him. His huge eyes fell to the opening between her legs and he swallowed, standing to take his own trousers down, freeing his erection.
“Whatever you say, ma'am.” He growled and gripped her waist, pulling her to him. He kissed her, thrusting his tongue into her mouth and sliding his fingers round to her cheeks, pulling and rubbing.
Cal spun her round, grabbing her breasts and squeezing, stroking her nipples before running his hands down her belly and slipping them between her legs.
Tessa gasped as his rough finger grazed across the top of her sensitive clit and her hips bucked forward into his hand. She reached down and wrapped her fingers around his thick, hard penis, working it from base to tip. Her breath came in little gasps and Cal was growling deep in his throat as they toyed with each other.
The feeling of his fingers sliding across the tip of her clitoris was driving Tessa towards an orgasm. He took her moistness into his mouth and she leaned back into Cal, letting him support her as her legs started to shake. He teased his tongue back and forth, with little nibbles, noting what made Tessa moan focusing on it. She exploded with a cry, shuddering and almost collapsing but his strong arms cradled her as she rode the waves of pleasure throbbing through her.
Tessa guided the blunt head of his penis towards her throbbing, soaking, now tighter entrance, pushing back as he leaned forward. The joy of his penis forcing its way in, making room for itself was oddly completing, as if this was how she was supposed to be and a part of her had been missing before he'd filled her. She bent forward, putting her hands on the bed, and looked back into Cal's lust filled eyes. She grinned and wiggled her hips which Cal abruptly grabbed and pushed her forward before sliding himself back inside her again and again.
“Oh. God. Cal!” Tessa managed between powerful thrusts of his hips. She could hear his labored breath getting more and more ragged as his own orgasm approached and a wave of excitement washed through her at the thought it was her body which was making him feel this way. With a deep groan of pure pleasure, Cal came hard inside her, bucking and grunting through his ejaculation.
Cal leaned and wrapped his arms round Tessa's waist, pulling her up and laying his head against her shoulder.
“And to think I wasn't going to come back here at all.” He said with a deep chuckle. Tessa scratched his arms, still able to feel the throb of his heartbeat deep inside her. She turned in the circle of his arms.
“What do you mean?”
“I was gonna' sell this place and disappear forever, never to return.” They both lay intertwined on his bed, and snuggled in as closely as she could, feeling the heat between them. Just on the edge of falling asleep, they both heard a muffled whine from outside the door. Cal laughed.
“Trigger.” He grunted, sadly getting up to open the door. No sooner was there enough room by the opening door for the Labrador to slip inside, a chocolate brown fur-ball shot up attempting to land the height of the bed he wasn’t quite ready for as a young puppy. Cal helped the little guy up, who jumped out of his hands and pounced managing to bury his ice cold nose on Tessa’s neck, making her squeal before lapping at her face and neck madly. Cal joined them and got his face washed as well, eventually managing to subdue the tiny beast with belly tickles and ear scratches.
“What's going to happen now?” Tessa wondered.
“I'll have to get him a bed or something, he can't sleep here.” Cal said, missing her point.
“No Cal, I meant between us.” He sensed her nerves and pulled her in close.
“I don't really know, Tess. I was just gonna' stay here for a while, sell the house and go. Now I've got a little puppy, he teased.” He smiled warmly, “Besides which, you're going off to Portland, aren't you?”
“But are we together, like together together?” Tessa asked shyly.
“Hope so. You know I say I love you daily to other women and all, he continued to poke fun” He said, warming her heart by reminding her. Tessa sighed.
“Wouldn't you have gone back to the Navy?” Cal went quiet for a while.
“I...I was medically discharged.” He admitted making Tessa's chest fill with ice.
“What's wrong?” She asked. His eyes went distant.
“Oh, you know, I started having panic attacks and they sent me to some shrink who said I got PTSD or something like that.” He shrugged. “They said I needed some time to deal”.
“Oh babe, I'm sorry.” Tessa hugged him tightly, feeling his whole body trembling. “Is there someone you can talk to? A counselor?”
“I don’t believe in all that crap.”
“It can make a big difference. Trust me.” He thought about it.
“I dunno'” He said, “I can't see talking to some stranger about it.” They fell silent.
“Could you tell me?” She wanted to know. Cal shrugged, “I know it's hard. What if you wrote it down? Got it all on paper?”
“Like a memoir?” Tessa nodded, “I can't type worth a damn.”
“You could learn, or just write it down on paper.”