SEAL for Her Protection (SEALs of Coronado Book 1) (6 page)

“But he wasn’t,” Hayley said softly.

“No. Keith and his brother were tight and it hit him hard. Two weeks later, he killed himself.” Chasen looked at her, his face grim. “I dropped out of college and joined the Navy the day after Keith’s funeral. I knew if I became a SEAL, I’d be on the front lines taking down terrorists, and that’s what I wanted to do.”

It had been fifteen years since 9/11 and the events that had taken place in the aftermath were still clearly painful for him to relive. It had been horrifying for her, and she’d been a sophomore in high school at the time, on the other side of the country from New York City. She couldn’t imagine what it must have been like to be so close to Ground Zero or to have known anyone who’d lost their lives that day. She felt awful for making him revisit them.

“What did your parents think about your decision to join the Navy?” she asked.

He snorted. “My dad about blew a gasket. He couldn’t understand why I’d throw everything away—his words, not mine. He still hasn’t forgiven me for not following in his footsteps, so we don’t talk anymore. As for my mom, she’s always afraid for me.”

Hayley couldn’t argue with his mother on that. She’d just met Chasen and she didn’t like the idea of him being in danger.

They chatted for a while about what it was like growing up in a family with one set of expectations, only to go off and do the exact opposite. Her family situation hadn’t been quite as drastic—her parents had hoped she would go into the medical field—but she definitely understood the concept.

They were so deep in their conversation Hayley didn’t realized her fish was gone until she reached down with her fork and scratched an empty plate. When had that happened? She didn’t even remember eating it.

She put down her fork and knife then rested her forearms on the table and looked at him. Chasen had just admitted he and his father hadn’t said a single word to each other since he’d walked away from law school.

“Well, if your father were sitting here right now, I’d tell him he needs to stop being such a damn fool and start being proud of his son. Because you, Petty Officer Ward, are a hero in my book.”

On the other side of the table, his mouth curved into a sinfully sexy smile that made her pulse skip a beat. If they leaned in any more, they’d be close enough to kiss. Chasen might have to sweep the plates off the table to make room, but Hayley figured that wouldn’t be a problem for him. She held her breath, waiting. But when it seemed like it was finally going to happen, their waiter appeared at their table to take away their dirty dishes. Blocked by a waiter. That was coming off his tip. Well, it probably actually wouldn’t, but it should.

“Can I get you anything else?” the man asked. “Some coffee maybe, or dessert?”

Chasen gave her a questioning look as he sat back a little in his seat.

Hayley shook her head. “I’m good.”

“I’ll be right back with the check, then,” the waiter said.

After the man had left, Chasen leaned forward again. “You feel like taking in a movie?”

She’d been trying to think of some way to make the date last longer and while a movie wasn’t the first thing to pop into her head, it would still work. Then again, the thought of sitting next to Chasen in a dimly lit theater did have a certain allure. It might be their first date, but what happened in a darkened theater didn’t count anyway.

She smiled. “I’d love to.”

Hayley expected Chasen to head for the closest movie theater, so she was surprised when he drove all the way to Waterfront Park.

“I thought we were going to watch a movie,” she said as he found a space in the crowded parking lot.

He threw her a grin as he shut off the engine. “We are. They have Movies in the Park here on Friday night.”

Of course. Duh. Hayley knew that. She didn’t realize they showed movies so late. Not that ten o’clock was late. She’d assumed it was an early evening event. But the park was packed with people.

Chasen grabbed a fleece blanket from the backseat of the truck, then came around to open her door. Pocketing the keys, he took her hand and led her toward the entrance. His grasp was gentle and strong at the same time, and she found herself moving a little closer as they walked.

They made their way past the reflecting pool then circled around the fountain with its dancing sprays of water and colorful lights, navigating through the group of people lounging on blankets and relaxing in lawn chairs. Finding an open space in the center a few feet away from a hipster couple with a cute puppy, Chasen spread out the blanket.

“Hang tight here and I’ll go get us some ice cream,” he said.

As he went in search of dessert, Hayley slipped out of her wedge sandals then sat down on the blanket. First dinner, followed by a movie in the park under the stars, and now ice cream. She couldn’t think of a more romantic date. Smiling, she leaned back on her hands and looked out at the ocean. Across the San Diego Bay, she could see the green and white flashing lights of the rotating beacon on the North Island Naval Air Station. If she looked really hard, in the distance, she could even see the glow of lights from the Naval Amphibious Base where Chasen and the rest of SEAL Team 5 were stationed. It was a beautiful view.

“Sorry it took me so long,” Chasen said as he dropped down on the blanket beside her a few minutes later. “There was an elderly couple in front of me who couldn’t decide whether they wanted nuts on the sundaes they ordered or not.”

Hayley laughed as she took the plastic bowl with the ice cream sundae he’d gotten for her. Holding the cherry by the stem, she popped it into her mouth.

“What movie are they playing tonight?” she asked.

Not that she really cared. Something told her she’d be too busy cuddling with Chasen to pay much attention to it.

He dipped his spoon into his sundae. “
Top Gun
.”

“Cool. I’ve never seen it.”

Chasen’s eyes went wide. “You’re kidding, right? It’s a classic.”

She shook her head. “Nope. I take it from the way you’re looking at me that you obviously have.”

“Hell, yeah. At least twenty times.”

It was her turn to be surprised. “Seriously? You must really like it.”

He shrugged. “It’s kind of a favorite whenever the Team ends up being on a ship for any length of time. We watch it like other people watch
Rocky Horror Picture Show
. We act out the scenes, make up new dialogue—stuff like that. We walk around for days afterward spouting lines from the damn thing.”

Hayley grinned around her spoonful of ice cream. She hadn’t even seen the movie yet, but the thought of him and his buddies acting out scenes from it sounded hilarious. “You and your Team sound close.”

“We are,” he admitted. “Those guys are like my brothers. In some ways, we’re tighter I guess.”

“How so?”

He shrugged. “The Navy takes us from all around the country and drops us into a Team then puts us in situations where we have no one else to depend on but each other. We’re all different, with our own backgrounds and experiences, but all of that gets put to the side when you’re on the Team. You have to be totally there for each other because there’s never going to be anyone else. That kind of isolation and dependency builds bonds that can’t be replicated anywhere else. Blood is important, but people don’t pick their families. We chose to be SEALs and that ties us together more than simply being born to the same parents.”

She licked ice cream off her spoon as she considered that. Chasen followed the movement with his gaze, the hunger in his eyes unmistakable. She ran her tongue over her lips in a truly innocent gesture—that was her story and she was sticking to it—and dipped the spoon in her ice cream again. She needed to steer this somewhere safe or she’d be jumping his bones in another minute.

“I’ve always wondered,” she said, purposely ignoring her ice cream for the moment. “Do you stay together as a Team on one base the whole time, or do you change duty stations regularly like everyone else?”

“We tend to be together on one Team for most of our careers,” he told her. “It allows us to build those bonds I mentioned and helps us get to know each other’s strengths and weaknesses. There are ways people can request a transfer to another Team if there’s a personality clash leadership simply can’t resolve. But that’s pretty rare.”

Hayley was relieved to hear that. She’d had a purely selfish reason for asking. If she fell for Chasen, she didn’t want him bailing after a month or two.

Hayley would have asked more, but the big popup screen at one end of the park suddenly lit up with the opening scene of
Top Gun
and music filled the area amid cheers. She set her empty plastic bowl on the blanket beside her and scooched closer to Chasen. He took the hint, placing his equally empty bowl on the blanket and leaning back so she could cuddle up close beside him and rest her head on his shoulder. It was a bit more forward than she might get on most first dates, but she was seriously attracted to Chasen.

While the movie was intriguing and would have definitely held her interest any other time, it was difficult to pay attention to what was happening on the big screen when she was this close to a real life hero as hunky as Chasen. So near the water, the air took on a slight chill and Hayley shivered a little from the cool breeze. The little black dress had been perfect for dinner, but it was a bit short for an outdoor movie. Chasen wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her even closer. She snuggled up to him, lifting one leg and draping it across his hips.

Yeah, that produced some serious heat for her.

She spent most of the movie enjoying the feel of his body where it touched hers, not to mention the feel of his fingers lightly caressing the bare skin of her arm. She almost sighed as a warmth she hadn’t felt in a long time started between her legs and spread from there.

She wasn’t the only one aroused. She could feel Chasen’s hard-on under her thigh. It was all she could do to not wiggle her leg a bit, just to hear him moan.

Hayley was wondering how much more she could take when Chasen sudden rolled over and she found herself flat on her back, her Navy SEAL leaning over her with a smoldering, hungry look in his eyes.

When his head came down, her mouth automatically tilted up to meet his. The kiss was gentle at first, but then became more urgent as she reciprocated with a passion matching his.

He tasted so good it was hard holding back a moan, but she did. No matter how aroused she got, they were in the middle of a hundred and fifty people in a very public place. Even so, she reached one hand up into his short hair and tugged him close, letting him know without words he’d better not even think of stopping.

His tongue toyed with hers, turning her on so much she almost said the hell with her standard rule about no sex in public. The urge to drag him on top of her and wrap her legs around him was almost impossible to resist.

Somehow, they both behaved, simply lying there on his blanket necking like two kids at a drive-in movie. But it was hard. And so was he for that matter. Something told her when they finally got somewhere private, they might burst into flames on the spot.

Hayley wasn’t sure whether to be relieved or bummed when the movie came to a close near midnight.

Chasen pulled back to rest his forehead against hers as the credits rolled on the screen. “I guess we should get out of here.”

“I suppose,” she agreed.

But neither of them moved. Instead, he leaned forward and kissed her again. That one kiss turned into another, then another. When they finally pulled away and stood up to collect the blanket and their trash, the movie screen was long dark and the park was practically empty. Well, she’d retained her gold star for no sex in public, but she’d come close.

The thirty-minute drive to her apartment was sweet torture. Sitting close to him but forced to keep her hands to herself in the interest of public safety was maddening. When they got to her apartment building, she practical ran into the elevator with him so they could make out some more on the ride up to the fifth floor. Unfortunately, a nice older couple got on with them, putting that idea on hold.

Hayley unlocked the door of her apartment then grabbed his hand to lead him inside. But he resisted. She turned to look at him in confusion.

“You’re not coming in?”

Chasen reached up to cup her chin and brush his thumb over her lips. “I want to. Man, you don’t know how much. But I have training early in the morning.”

“So?”

His mouth edged up. “So I’ll have to get up around three in the morning and I really don’t want to rush our first time together. Or run out on you before I’ve had a chance to enjoy everything I want to do to you.”

She shivered at the heated look in his eyes. She was ready to let him do anything and everything he had in mind. But as disappointed as she was that Chasen wouldn’t be spending the night with her, she was equally thrilled he thought enough of her and the possibility of their newfound relationship to take his time.

“I’m not going to lie and say I don’t hate like hell that you can’t stay, but it’s nice to know you’re not a love ’em and leave ’em kind of guy,” she said. “Rain check?”

He chuckled softly. “Do you even have to ask?”

Chasen didn’t give her a chance to answer, but instead slid his hand deep in her hair then bent his head and kissed her. Now that they were alone—as alone as they could be in the hallway outside her apartment in the middle of the night—Hayley didn’t need to hold back. Chasen must have thought the same thing because he reached around with one hand to cup her ass, pulling her close even as she slid her hands up the front of his shirt to grasp his shoulders. The bulge in his jeans pressed up against her tummy, making her moan. She was so excited she was about to combust. She and her vibrator were going to spend some quality time together tonight.

“If I don’t leave now, I’ll still be here kissing you when the rest of the Team reports for training at 0400 tomorrow morning,” he groaned. “What are you doing in the afternoon?”

“Not much,” she said. “Why?”