Defender (Navy SEALS Romance Book 4) (5 page)

A
fter dinner
and some conversation that thankfully didn’t involve rescuing people, Jake and Veronica left the restaurant by way of the pier that extended out over the beach. They walked along the hard-packed sand at the water’s edge, watching the last stragglers darting in the cold water and running screaming towards the safety of dry land when the waves came.

“Tourists,” Jake muttered, but he couldn’t help laughing slightly to himself.

“Hey, watch it! I’m still technically a tourist!” Veronica said, feigning indignation as she shoved him playfully in the arm.

“Yeah, but you have better sense than to go out in the ocean at night. Did you know that one-third of all drownings happen after dark, and that most drownings happen in less than two meters of water?” he asked, only somewhat teasingly.

“Actually, I did. I knew both of those things. I’m a reporter, remember? Random useless facts is what I do.” Veronica started to smirk at Jake but caught her foot in a slight indentation in the sand. Jake’s hands immediately shot out to catch her, keeping her from ending up on the ground. “Whew! Thanks!”

“No problem,” he answered, but his hands lingered on her arms as he looked at her. “I really am sorry I was rude the other night.”

“You already apologized for that,” she replied in a half-whisper, watching the intense look in his eyes.

“I know. But you didn’t accept my apology, so I must have screwed it up. So… I’m sorry.”

“I accept,” Veronica answered, leaning closer. Before either of them could rationalize it, she rose up on her toes and kissed Jake, the sensation catching both of them off guard. He froze for the blink of an eye, then wrapped his arms tighter around her, holding her closer as she pressed against him.

Against all rational thought, Jake felt his entire being relax under the weight of that kiss. All the rage and uncertainty and frustration he’d carried around with him for weeks—no, make that months, ever since they’d first been informed their SEAL team was dissolved—slowly left him. He could feel even down to the bone that the things he’d unsuccessfully tried to keep bottled up were evaporating as he kissed Veronica.

“I… I shouldn’t have done that,” she said, wide-eyed, as she pushed away from him. The emptiness in Jake’s arms where there had just been calming warmth was the worst kind of jolt. It took him a second to recover, to think through what had happened.

“I don’t know what to say,” he stammered. “What’s wrong?”

“I just… no, I shouldn’t have done that. Not with you.” Veronica turned and sprinted away, her feet kicking up small explosions of sand as she fled towards the restaurant.

“Not with me? What’s that supposed to mean?” he called out. Jake’s confusion gave way to something else, a different kind of determination. He chased after her, but kept some distance between them. The last thing he wanted to do was frighten her when she was already so upset.

Jake reached the parking lot in time to see her car squeal out onto the main road. He wavered for a moment, then jumped on his bike and followed her. The evening traffic was light and he was able to keep up with her despite the odd red light that caught him.

Veronica pulled into her apartment complex and hurried inside, locking the door behind her. Jake reached her door just as he heard the deadbolt turn in the lock.

“Veronica! Open up and talk to me!” he yelled, rapping on the door lightly. “Come on, just tell me what’s wrong.”

“Please go away.” Her voice sounded off somehow, but he couldn’t tell if it was the door or her own tears that muffled her voice. The thought of her blowing him off made him mad, but if she was in there crying for some reason…that image stung.

“I’m not leaving ‘til you talk to me. You owe me that much.”

“I don’t
owe
you anything!” she shot back, and through the door her indignation sounded almost comical. Jake couldn’t help but laugh to himself. Veronica must have realized how it had sounded because she calmed down enough to ask, “Would you please just go?”

“Nope. Sorry, I’m not going anywhere ‘til you talk to me. I guess I’ll just have to camp out here tonight. Do you think this little bench will hold me if I—”

Veronica opened the door to glare at Jake with red-rimmed eyes. Her expression told him what he’d already suspected, that she’d been crying, probably all the way home from the restaurant.

“See there? That wasn’t so hard,” he said in a kind voice. Veronica continued to glare at him, refusing to be swayed by his soft smile, but she did step back and let him enter the apartment.

Jake looked around at the sparse living room, the bare walls, and the small stack of unpacked boxes. He craned his neck and looked out the window over the kitchen sink, repulsed by the view of the trash dumpsters.

“Man, you sure know how to pick some luxury accommodations, don’t you?” he teased. He turned to look back at her when she didn’t respond. “I’m only kidding. I know you just got here. You wanna tell me what happened back there?”

“Nothing,” she answered curtly, sniffling slightly. “It was just inappropriate for me to kiss you.”

“Because… you’re married?” Jake asked sarcastically.

“Of course not.”

“Then it’s because of our obvious height difference, right?” He wrinkled his brow in confusion, still trying to get her to laugh.

“You're really not nearly as funny as you think you are," she shot back angrily.

“Well, then… I got nothing. I don’t know what the problem is. You’re an adult, you’re not married, you’re the same species as me… nope, not seeing what’s wrong with two unmarried adult humans kissing.”

“You wouldn’t understand,” she said in a huff, walking over to the small kitchen nook and getting a bottle of water out of the fridge. She opened it and drank from it with her back to him, still not explaining. Jake walked up to her and put one gentle hand on her arm, turning her around to face him.

“Then what’s the problem?”

“Nothing, all right? It’s just… nothing.” She dropped her gaze until Jake reached for her chin, lifting her face up to his.

“It’s not nothing.” He hesitated, waiting for her to get angry or get loud or order him out of her apartment. But when she didn’t, he slowly drew closer until his lips brushed hers softly. She returned his kiss with far more fervor than he’d expected, dropping the water bottle in the sink behind her and wrapping her arms around his neck, twisting her fingers slightly in his short hair. The feeling gave him chills and caused him to moan, a sound which excited Veronica immensely.

Jake trailed a line of soft kisses down her neck, pausing to pay close attention to her collarbone where it peeked out from beneath the open collar of her shirt. He heard her soft gasp and grinned in spite of himself. When he felt her reach for the hem of his shirt, he paused; only moments ago she’d been ordering him out of her apartment, telling him this was wrong.

“Are you sure?” he asked, leaning back and looking in her dark brown eyes. She nodded and kissed him again before prying his t-shirt off over his head, taking in the sight of his well-muscled frame with an appreciative look. The intensity of their kisses grew when she reached for Jake’s belt, making quick work of unbuckling it and opening the button on his jeans.

He ran his fingertips down the row of buttons on her shirt one by one as he slipped his tongue into her mouth to ravish her there. His lips melted against hers until he worked his way lower once again, his lips, teeth, and tongue grazing over her throat as he pulled her shirt down her arms. One of the buttons was still fastened but it tore off, only Veronica didn’t care about that at the moment. She only cared about the heat that was building up inside of her, all because of this angry, hurting, gorgeous man.

Veronica kicked off her shoes and led Jake down the hallway to the bedroom. He struggled to follow her, his mouth connecting with her chest as he reached for the hooks on her bra. He lifted his head to look around the bedroom, glad to see that she’d unpacked sheets and a few pillows.

She quickly shed the rest of her clothes while Jake stepped out of his jeans. She led him by the wrist until they both fell onto the bed, Jake catching himself on his elbow beside her. Her breathing was quick, and Jake was already hard as he stopped to really look at her, relishing in the sight of her amazing curves. His lips found her breasts, hungrily kissing every inch until he reached her nipple, drawing it into his mouth eagerly. She moaned from the onslaught of pleasure snaking through her, crying out again when his hand gripped her other breast.

Jake pushed himself up to kiss Veronica again, tasting her as his hand brushed against her stomach on its way further down. She parted her thighs when he came to her womanhood, gasping slightly when he dipped a finger inside her. She arched her back against the sudden wave of pleasure, raking her nails across Jake’s shoulders as she clung to him.

Veronica had to remind herself to breathe as she spread her legs even wider for him. She groaned, unable to stop herself, as Jake rubbed her sensitive spot, making her even wetter. She whimpered, wanting more.

It was a tempting relief when he finally pulled back and took hold of himself, pressing against her opening. He rubbed himself against her a little, soaking up her slickness along his hard length. They both cried out in ecstasy when he thrust himself inside her, their hips meeting as he hilted her on his full length.

Veronica dug her nails into his back again while Jake held himself up, his hands on either side of her, pulling himself out. She lifted her hips for him, her breath catching when he drove back into her.

Jake buried his face against the smooth skin of her neck as he continued to stroke harder and harder. She felt her orgasm building deep within her, then felt the burst of hot rush burning her nerve endings in the best possible way. She arched her back against him, pleasure washing over her in waves. Lost in her own orgasm, Veronica was almost unaware when Jake picked up the pace, gripping her hips tightly and pressing into her, his own release leaving him panting.

They were silent for several minutes, the only sound in the room their ragged breathing. Neither of them spoke, unsure of what to say after the whirlwind that had been the last two days. When Jake finally pulled out of her and rolled onto his back, he snagged a pillow that had fallen to the floor and tucked in underneath his shoulder before pulling Veronica closer to him. He held her tightly, pressing her back against his chest. She closed her eyes and soon fell asleep next to him.

“
J
ake hasn’t made
it in yet?” Knox asked, sipping his coffee while scanning the weather update from NOAA. No one answered right away, finding excuses to be too engrossed in something else. “Hey! Ghost town! I asked a question, has Jake showed up yet?”

“Uh, no. He’s not here yet,” Mike answered, keeping himself occupied in his flight manual.

“Well, has anyone called him?”

Again, no one answered, hoping against hope that either Jake would walk through the door any second, or Knox would let it go. Finally Madison broke the tension.

“He’s still… he’s still at Veronica’s,” she stammered, looking down at a loose thread on her flight suit.

“What? He spent the night with the lady he hated? The reporter lady?” Knox said, holding back a laugh. “What, did she eat him alive and put the leftovers in her fridge? Where is he?”

“His bike was still there when I was coming in to work this morning,” she mumbled.

Knox was quiet as he thought it over. On the one hand, he was horrified that Jake may still be out there with a pushy woman who left him with an unsettling feeling. At the same time, spending the night with a good looking girl was the most normal thing he could have expected from Jake, at least from the “old Jake” everyone knew. It might be a sign that things were finally looking up.

“Okay then,” he finally sighed. “I guess it’s not like we have set hours to clock in, or anything. It’s just… not like him. Somebody give him a call, okay? Just make sure he’s okay and that he remembers he has a job.” Knox pressed his lips together in a grim line that was supposed to resemble a smile, then went back to his reports.

Only Jake didn’t need a phone call to wake him. He opened his eyes when the first rays of sunshine filtered through the blinds, taking in his surroundings for a moment and remembering everything that had been great about the night before. They’d made love, slept, woken up to make love again, and repeated the cycle all night long. It was no wonder he’d slept in.

Jake slid his arm carefully from beneath Veronica’s neck, watching with amusement as she wrinkled her nose in her sleep, disturbed at losing the warm body curled up beside her. He stepped into his jeans and made his way to the kitchen outside her bedroom to look for his phone.

“Shit,” he muttered when it wouldn’t turn on. The screen stayed black, and Jake searched the tabletop frantically for a charger cord that might be compatible with his phone. He sighed gratefully when he spotted one wrapped up next to Veronica’s laptop, then reached for it and unwound it.

The cord brushed against the laptop keys just long enough to wake her computer, and the sight of her screen made Jake go cold. There on the screen was an enlarged photo of the rescue effort from a few nights ago. He couldn’t help himself, he clicked the arrow at the bottom of the screen to look at the next image. More pictures of the entire S&R team working to save the downed plane’s passengers appeared. He continued clicking, and saw photos of the team seated at the restaurant’s outdoor patio, laughing and talking.

Jake did the math. The patio pictures must have been taken while she was still in her car the other night. When he clicked through those again, he even saw a little bit of his bike at the edge of one frame, some of his leg in another frame. She had to have been photographing the team when he pulled up, right before she hit him with her door. That’s why she hadn’t noticed him beside her, because she was too busy spying on his friends.

“But the wreckage,” he whispered to himself, clicking back through the pictures once again. How had Veronica gotten photos so close to the rescue site? There was no way, unless she’d been there herself.

“What do you think you’re doing?” a shrill voice behind him demanded. Jake jumped slightly, then turned around in a fresh rage.

“What am I doing? Are you serious? What the hell is all this, Veronica? Why do you have these pictures?” he demanded. She clutched the sheet she wore even closer to her body, then darted forward and closed the laptop.

“They’re my work. It’s my job, remember? Interviewing you? Writing an article about search and rescue operations?” Her voice wavered slightly, a sure sign that she was lying. And Jake knew it.

“Bullshit. There’s no way a reporter is taking that kind of shit. A reporter takes pictures on the scene, sure, but how in the hell did you get four miles out to sea? And why would you take pictures of us rescuing them, instead of taking pictures of the victims or the plane?” Veronica blinked rapidly, scrambling to answer, so Jake pressed on. “And what gives with the pictures of us sitting around eating pizza? That’s not for an article, and you know it. And I want answers…NOW!”

Veronica jumped when he barked the last word, but instead she squared her shoulders and looked him in the face, challenging him back. “I don’t answer to you. I have a job to do, and if you don’t like it, then that’s too bad.”

“Really? We’ll see about that.” Jake turned away and scooped up his clothes. He grabbed his phone from the table and dropped it down in the pocket of his jeans. Then, with a last piercing glance at Veronica, he reached out and snatched the laptop out of her hands, bolting towards the door with it.

“Hey! That’s private property!” she screamed, chasing after him still wearing only the sheet. He didn’t even pause at the doorway, but instead jumped down the stairs and threw a leg over his bike. His jeans were still unbuttoned and his arms were loaded down with clothes and the computer, but he managed to turn the key in the ignition and tear out of the parking lot.

Jake shifted the items in his arms at the first stop light he came to, trying to get a better grip on all of it. The clothes could drop the pavement for all he cared, but he was keeping the laptop. He took off when the light changed, still clutching the thin but heavy device.

All eyes turned to stare when he reached S&R headquarters. Jake was still half-naked, clutching his loose jeans with one hand and the laptop and his clothes with the other. Knox was the first to notice him, and made a show of checking the time on his watch.

“About time, soldier,” he teased, but he stopped when he saw Jake’s aggravated expression. “Whoa there, what’s wrong?”

“This,” Jake answered, putting the computer on the desk and stepping away from it like it was poisonous. “That lady who’s been following us? She’s been really following us…like, following us at work, at dinner, the whole thing.”

The others stared at him in shock, stunned by both his appearance and his manic outburst. Angel was the first to approach him, inviting Jake to show him what he meant.

“There, it’s all on her laptop,” Jake insisted, pointing to the screen as it lit up. The others gathered around and squinted at the images, unsure of what they were seeing at first.

“Holy shit, you’re right. That’s the plane rescue from the other night. Look, there’s the raft. How’d she manage to get out that far?” Angel asked, speaking to no one in particular.

“I called in a favor,” Veronica answered from the doorway. “Not that it’s anyone’s business.”

Everyone whirled around to face her, shocked to see her leaning casually against the door frame in the face of such damaging evidence. She sauntered into the office like she wasn’t concerned in the least, holding her hand out and waggling her fingers.

“Now, if you don’t mind, that’s personal property and I’ll be taking it with me.”

“Not so fast. We work under a government funded contract,” Knox said, intervening before Jake could lash out at her. “You don’t have the proper authorization to photograph an FAA-controlled crash scene. In fact, if it’s later determined to have been an act of war, you can be prosecuted for photographing victims of war crimes.”

Tanner turned and shot Knox a look, but Knox only shrugged. It was a long shot, of course, but it was the only way he could think of to stall.

“Trust me, I have all the authorization in the world. And I’m taking that computer now.” Veronica shoved her way past the group and reached for the computer, but before she could grab it Jake took her elbow and turned her around. He half-carried, half-shoved her outside, closing the door behind them.

“I want to know what’s going on right now!” he bellowed. Behind him, someone opened the door a crack, but Jake lunged for the doorknob and pulled it shut without ever taking his furious eyes off of Veronica.

“I don’t answer to you! And if you know what’s good for you, you’ll remember that…and you’ll stop interfering!” she answered just as angrily.

“Interfering with what? A human interest piece on ocean-going lifeguards? Answer my question!” he roared.

“No! A US Naval investigation into the current activities of SEAL Team 11!” Veronica spit out. As soon as she’d said the words, she pressed both hands to her mouth, her eyes going wide. She hadn’t meant to reveal the real reason for her surveillance, but now the truth was out and there was no taking it back.