Return of a Soldier (Soldier Series Romance Novellas) (2 page)

“Nothing you can’t handle,” I teased.
  “I’m going to go clean up.  I’ll be quick!”

He bent down and brushed his lips against mine.
  “I may have to come find you if you’re not,” he hinted, his brown eyes gleaming.

“
Well, I wouldn’t stop you….”  I met his eyes with a grin and then turned to walk upstairs, leaving him to decide whether or not to clean up the mess first or follow me.  Although I’d dreamt of our first night together for months, anticipating every delicious moment of our reunion, I didn’t feel all too glamorous in my current state.  I quickly riffled through my closet, trying to find something else to change into.  So much for the hours spent debating what was just right to wear when we saw each other again—I’d wanted something feminine but also a little bit sexy.  Although the sundress was casual, it hugged all my curves, and I had noticed Trent’s eyes on me throughout the evening.  Finally deciding that I’d just throw on whatever appealed to me after a quick shower, I walked into the bathroom connected to my master bedroom.  I pulled my cardigan and sundress off, leaving them on the bathroom counter for me to clean later.  I pulled my hair up into a messy bun and turned on the shower, letting the hot water pour down and steam fill the bathroom.  A moment later I stepped inside, pulling the curtain closed behind me.

I’d just rinsed the soap suds off when I heard Trent knocking on the bathroom door.  I poked my head around the curtain and called out for him to come in.  Catching sight of myself in the bathroom mirror, I saw that my cheeks were flushed from the warmth.  A few strands of my blonde hair had fallen out of my bun and were now framing my face.  As Trent stepped into the bathroom, his dark gaze met mine.  “I thought maybe
you’d want some company,” he said, his voice deep.

A smile played on my lips as I watched him.  “That sounds good to me.”

He walked over, pushing the curtain aside.  His gaze trailed down over my breasts, the curve of my hips, and the patch of hair nestled between my legs.  “God, I’ve missed you,” he said, once again meeting my gaze.  I stretched up on my tiptoes and kissed him, not caring that I was getting water all over his uniform and the bathroom floor.  His hands slid up and over my breasts, and as he ran his thumbs back and forth across my nipples, I felt a familiar throbbing between my legs.

“Let me get out of this,” Trent said, stepping only a few inches back and quickly undressing.  My eyes
ran over his strong shoulders and chest, taking in the ripples across his abdomen.  He was even more muscular than I remembered, and I wondered if he’d been working out more in Afghanistan.  He unzipped his pants and stepped out of both them and his boxers.  His erection sprang out, throbbing with need, and he quickly joined me in the shower, pulling the curtain closed behind him.  His manhood pushed into my stomach as he bent down and kissed me, his tongue thrusting into my mouth.  He pushed me back against the cold tile wall, and I shuddered, but soon his body pressed up against mine was warming me up all over again.  The warm spray from the shower poured down over us, and I ran my hands over his shoulders, now glistening with drops of water.

Trent’s hand slid between my legs, his fingertips slowly trailing up the sensitive skin of my inner thigh until he reached my core.  He slowly eased his fingers
through my folds, searching, until he found my most tender spot.  He began to trace in slow circles, and he gently tugged on my lower lip with his teeth as I moaned.  His other hand found my breast, and he squeezed gently, caressing and kneading it with able fingers.  “Trent,” I gasped, as he slid two fingers inside of me.  He gently worked them in and out, and his thumb simultaneously caressed me.  “Oh,” I gasped again, as I felt an orgasm building inside of me.  It had been so long since we’d been together, but my body was responding as if it had been just yesterday.  I recalled every intimate moment we’d spent together, and that was turning me on more and more.  He increased the speed of his movements, his thumb circling around and around, and moments later I was crying out with release.

I collapsed against Trent, my head resting against his strong chest.  His
arms circled around me, pulling me tightly to him.  The water continued pouring down over us, and I realized that my efforts to keep my hair dry by pulling it back into a bun were now futile.  I reached up and pulled the elastic out, letting it fall down past my shoulders.

“I missed you so much, Meghan,” he said, nuzzling his face into my hair.  “Sometimes, when I was over there, I was worried I’d never see you again.” 
His voice sounded gruff, and I looked up and kissed him, standing up on my tip-toes to be even closer.  My breasts pushed into his chest as he held me tightly, and water droplets ran down both of our faces, trailing down over our lips as we kissed again and again.

“
You’ll always see me again,” I said urgently.

His hardness pushed into my stomach, and I reached down to grip his firm length in my hand.  “No,” Trent murmured, shaking his head.  “I want to be inside of you.” 
He reached over and turned the shower off and then pulled open the curtain, grabbing a towel from the rod hanging there.  He dried me off first, wrapping the soft cotton around my shoulders. Trent gently towel-dried my hair and then carefully dried my torso and legs.  His eyes caressed me as he worked, and I couldn’t recall the last time I’d felt so taken care of.

He quickly dried himself off as well. 
“Let’s go in the bedroom,” he said huskily, and I carefully stepped out of the shower with Trent right behind.  I got a glimpse of our bodies in the mirror, Trent’s hard muscle and rippled torso a contrast to all my soft curves.

“I like this view,” he said, catching me from behind, and watching us in the mirror as well. 
He towered above me, strong and tan, his short brown hair still wet and his dark eyes gleaming.  My blonde hair hung just past my shoulders, damp from the shower, and I looked pale in comparison to his months spent outdoors in the desert.  He reached around me, one hand cupping my breast, as he pulled me tightly against him.  His other hand slid down between my legs, and I started to get aroused all over again at the sight of his muscular hand covering my intimate area.

“Meghan,” he murmured in a low voice, dipping his head so that his lips brushed against my ear.  “I want to watch you come.”

He softly rubbed his hand up and down where he cupped me between my legs, taking his time, and with his other hand caressed and squeezed my breast.  Trent met my eyes in the mirror, his dark brown gaze boring into me.  I gasped as he slid a finger through my folds, knowing he would find me already wet with arousal.  He lowered his head and began to nibble on my neck, and I practically collapsed against him as he found my fleshy nub and began to trace in slow circles again.

“Trent,” I gasped, as I began to feel the start of another orgasm beginning.  I couldn’t believe he was going to make me come again, and I writhed against him as his eyes
once again met mine in the mirror.  He gripped me securely with one muscular arm, holding me right beneath the curve of my breasts, as his thumb moved back and forth across my nipple.  His fingers sped up, circling around and around my sweet spot.  I arched back against his firm body, ready to give in to him once more, and a moment later I was crying out again and again.

He didn’t stop until I was panting and trembling in his embrace. 
“Now let’s go to bed,” he whispered, bending down and scooping me up into his arms.  I felt dazed as Trent turned to carry me through the doorway.  He walked into my bedroom, placing me down on the bedspread, and I eagerly pulled him into my arms as he lay down beside me.  The last time we’d been with one another was at Christmas, and now finally after all these months, we were together and alone at last.  He kissed me tenderly on the lips, his firm body warm against my own, as his large frame covered mine.  I gasped as he entered me, relishing the feeling of Trent filling me up, and then began to relax as he gently made love to me.  I couldn’t imagine Trent ever leaving again.

The sound of the phone ringing startled me, and I blinked in the darkness as I fumbled and reached over to my nightstand.  Trent stirred beside me, and I gently extracted myself from his embrace so that I could sit up.  Glancing at my clock, I saw that it was 12:20 a.m.

“Hello
?” I sleepily asked.

“Meghan, it’s me,” my sister’s voice came from the other end of the line.

“Marissa?  What’s wrong?”  I was instantly alert, adrenaline coursing through my veins at the thought that something terrible had happened.  There was no other reason that Marissa would call me this late at night.

“Hannah’s sick.”

“Oh,” I said, simultaneously feeling both worry for Hannah and relief that nothing was seriously wrong.  “What happened?  Is it that stomach bug that your kids had last week?”

“
Yeah.  She woke up sick half an hour ago.  I was hoping she’d feel better, but she’s still sick and crying for you.”

“
Oh no, the poor thing.  I’ll be right over.  Can you pack her stuff up?  I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”

“Sure, sorry again Sweetie.”

“It’s not your fault,” I protested.  “Kids get sick.  I’ll be there soon.” I hung up the phone and swung my feet down to the floor, easing out of bed so that I didn’t wake Trent.  I hoped that Hannah would be okay for a few more minutes until I could quickly dress and drive over.  Trent and I had never even left the bedroom after our shower together earlier, so I couldn’t exactly head over in my current state, which involved wearing exactly nothing.

“Is everything okay?” T
rent asked, sounding concerned, as I stood.

“Hannah’s sick, so I have to go pick her up
,” I said, feeling my way around in the darkness and pulling open a dresser drawer.  I grabbed a bra and panties, not even caring if they matched, and quickly put them on.  “I should be back in half an hour or so.  Let me just quick find something to change into…is it okay if I switch on the light?”

“
I’ll drive you there,” Trent said, his voice deep with sleep, as he climbed out of bed.

I switched on the lamp on my
dresser. “It’s your first night back; you should stay here.  I’m sure you’re completely jet-lagged.”

“
Meghan, of course I’ll come,” he said patiently.

I glanced over and Trent
had already pulled on a pair of khaki cargo pants.  They hung perfectly from his hips, showing off his bare, chiseled torso, and I silently groaned.  This man was physical perfection, and now he was willing to go with me in the middle of the night to pick up my sick daughter.  Sometimes I couldn’t believe my lucky stars that I’d actually met him that snowy afternoon.  He didn’t even live around here anymore, and if that branch hadn’t fallen across the road, our paths would probably never have crossed. It was almost as if fate had intervened and brought us together.  I watched as he grabbed a dark grey tee shirt and pulled it over his head.  It hugged his torso and biceps nicely, and I realized I should unglue my eyes from him and finish getting ready myself.  Trent stepped into his boots and quickly strode toward the bedroom door, suddenly all action and ready to go.

“That was fast,”
I commented with a wry smile as I hastily pulled on a pair of jeans and a long-sleeved shirt.

Trent shrugged
as he stood waiting for me.  “I’m used to early morning drills.  Hazard of the job.”

“So sick kids in the middle of the night aren’t usually your thing
?”

“They are now,” he said, giving me a warm smile.

I met his eyes and smiled back, feeling another flood of emotion at having Trent here with me.  I was so used to doing everything on my own that even the smallest things he did for Hannah and me were making me melt.  It was literally a relief to have someone else around to bear some of the burden of raising a child alone.  He’d been so kind to Hannah all afternoon as they played together, and I had to admit, I was happy to have someone else to go with me in the middle of the night to pick her up.  Even just having him listen to me while he was deployed made me feel like I had someone in my corner that I could count on.  I was sure Trent didn’t even know how happy I was to have him in Hannah’s and my life.  I wasn’t really one to gush over things, but I knew sometime we’d be able to sit down and talk, and I could tell him just how lucky I felt.

I grabbed my purse and walked over, letting him take my hand as we exited the bedroom.
  “All right,” he said.  “Let’s go get our girl.”

***

I awoke the next morning to the smell of freshly-brewed coffee, bacon, and eggs coming from the kitchen.  I’d spent the night at Hannah’s bedside, finally falling asleep on the floor.  She’d been sick until 2:00 a.m., after which we’d both collapsed, completely exhausted.  I’d been planning to wake up early and make breakfast for Trent before picking up Hannah later in the day, but her unexpected illness had changed those plans.  I wondered what time Trent had gotten up since I hadn’t heard him at all.

I quietly crept out of
Hannah’s bedroom so as not to wake her and went into the bathroom to freshen up a bit before heading downstairs.  I was still in the jeans and shirt that I’d thrown on in a hurry last night, so I quickly stripped them off and turned on the shower.  I washed my hair, closing my eyes as the warm spray poured over me.  This was a far cry from the erotic shower that Trent and I had shared last night, but it was relaxing and exactly what I needed this morning.  I wanted nothing more than to crawl back into bed and felt like no amount of caffeine could keep me awake at this point, but at least I would be somewhat refreshed to face the day.  By the time Trent and I had eaten breakfast Hannah would probably be waking up, so I’d need to fix something plain for her to eat and tend to her.