Badass: A Stepbrother SEAL Romance (11 page)

For the first time ever, I was aware of what it meant to be with a Navy SEAL. If I should ever need protection on this trip, I had it.

Chapter 22—Shane

I placed my arm around Cassie’s shoulder, clutched her to my side, and led her back to my ride.

Bikers. I didn’t recognize their club patch, but in SoCal we had plenty of motorcycle gangs, mostly offshoots of the Hells Angels, or the Mongols. Either way, I didn’t want to fuck with them—I never went looking for trouble, but I was more than capable of handling any chaos they sent my way.

But I didn’t like the way they looked at Cassie. She was my woman, and I’d be the only one to look at her like that.

We entered Mexico and the
Federales
didn’t stop us. I wanted to stick to the toll roads despite Cassie suggesting that we take the coastal road. I didn’t even have to argue with her because the coastal road was closed. My bike barreled along the highway, the view of the coast on our right side. I’d never taken a road trip with a fine ass woman on the back of my bike, her arms clutching around my waist, attached to me like human velcro, her heat contrasting with the ocean breeze. Her body just fit with mine, her sexy hips opened for me, her luscious thighs clinging clenched around me, her tits bouncing against my back. Every sensation was heightened, and Cassie’s body filled me with lust.

An hour later, I turned into Puerto Nuevo. I loved this place, this quaint fishing village, still unmarred by tourists. It reminded me in a way of my home in Billings, Montana. Great food, nice people. I could see myself getting a place down here, catching my own supper, drinking Coronas while watching the sunset.

I parked the bike and she took off her helmet. Her hair cascaded like a curtain down in her face. Sweaty, fiery, wind swept, she looked like I’d just fucked her all night. Which I was about to do. But not yet.

“Wow, Shane. I didn’t figure you for the romantic beach hotel but I like it. I’ve always wanted to come here, explore the marine life.”

“We’re not staying here—just getting lunch. I’m sure you’re used to five star resorts with pool boys spritzing your face with cucumber water and feeding you fresh pineapple skewers, but that’s not how I roll.”

“I read Ortega’s has the best hand-made tortillas. Let’s go, I’m hungry.”

I tried to fight a smile but my lips involuntarily widened. She was always fun, bright, cheery. A big contrast to all the heavy stuff in my day-to-day life. I could get used to someone always trying to lighten up my day.

“I’m hungry too but we’re not going to Ortega’s.” I took her hand and led her down to the beach. I knew a few of the lobster divers from my last trip. I left her on the shore and went over to one of the boats and negotiated a deal, using my best Spanish.

As I walked back toward Cassie, I noticed that the hem of her tight pants was now tinged with sand. I could see the outline of her thong and couldn’t wait to rip it off with my teeth. I wondered if she was freshly waxed or she was still sporting the neatly trimmed triangle look. Either way, I couldn’t wait to taste her again.

“Let’s go, babe.”

“Go where?”

“Get lunch. We’re diving for lobsters. Get in the boat.”

Her eyes focused on the boat. “What? It’s illegal. Only Mexican citizens can take crustaceans from their waters.”

I raised my eyebrow at her. “Juan is a Mexican national so it’s fine. It’s not like you would want to violate any marine laws now, would you?”

She swallowed hard. That skill would be useful later tonight. Now it was time to hunt for lunch.

Chapter 23—Cassie

The white boat sped down the waters, and I focused on the blaring sun in the distance.

Juan had provided all the equipment. Despite his repeated assurance that the gear was properly maintained and the tanks had plenty of oxygen and no leaky valves, Shane was doing a detailed inspection.

I didn’t really want to do this. Why had I told him that first night that I was an experienced diver? Was I trying to impress him? I do talk too much when I get nervous. I wasn’t scared, but I had no desire to rip these beautiful crustaceans from their homes. Lobsters have feelings, they scream when they are boiled, they mate for life. It just seemed cruel.

The boat slowed. Juan said something to Shane, who replied in perfect Spanish. Where had he learned that? I was impressed.

“Okay, Cassie listen up. There’s a group of rocks near this cove that the lobsters hide in. Now usually, they hide under sea urchins, but if you’re lucky and go deep enough where it’s dark, they could be out looking for a date.”

I scowled. Poor lobster looking for love and we’re going to snatch him. Fuck this.

Shane continued. “If you see one, swat it—like this.” He held his hand out over my wrist. “Grab the body, and slam it against a rock. The lobster is gonna fight you, gripping for life to the rock. Keep shaking it until its antennae loosen.”

Great—now I was going to play tug of war with a lobster. He handed me some gloves so I wouldn’t get sea urchin spines lodged into my hands. We put our equipment on; Shane attached a glow stick into my mask.

We climbed down the boat steps and descended. Shane kept me close to him and took out his dive light, which was fluorescent green and resembled a gun. Around 30 feet down, we saw a patch of rocks, a lone antenna peeking out of the rock. Shane motioned me to go first. I didn’t hesitate. I reached into the hole and grabbed that poor lobster by its body and slammed it into the rock. He didn’t put up much of a fight, and once I loosened his antennae I threw him into the bag.

Shane gave me a high five. He dug into that hole as if he was the lobster boss, grabbing two of the lobster’s buddies. He saved the last one for me. He put up a bigger fight, probably because he’d just watched all his friends being kidnapped.

We made a slow, careful ascent to the top of the water and climbed back into the boat. “Not bad, for your first time.”

I didn’t respond. Instead, I stared at our bag of four scrambling lobsters, fighting for their lives, spending their last few moments on this earth trapped in a plastic bag with their friends and loved ones.

I knew I shouldn’t be so sentimental, but hell, sea life was my passion. I wasn’t even going to eat the things, so this just seemed wasteful to me.

Chapter 24—Cassie

When the lobsters we had personally trapped showed up piping hot at our little table in the nearby restaurant that cooked them for us, I took a big swallow of beer and stared at mine. Again, I thought of it swimming around, doing lobsters things just a little while ago. It hadn’t known its existence was about to come to an end in a boiling pot.

“What?” said Shane, who was already digging into his.

I grabbed a tortilla and shoveled some black beans into it, then dumped some guacamole on top. I rolled it up. “I probably should have told you.”

“Told me what, doll?” He was giving me that once-over again. Now that I was in my bathing suit and cover-up instead of the motorcycle duds, he’d been eye-fucking me constantly.

“I don’t eat shellfish. I’m a vegetarian.”

He looked dumbfounded. Ha! “Are you fucking with me?”

I shook my head and took a bite of my beans and rice.

“Damn. You helped me dive for these things!”

“You ordered me to. Just keeping my end of the bargain. I figured you had a craving for lobster. Isn’t it supposed to be good for the libido? Or…no. Maybe that’s oysters.”

The corners of his mouth took on a dangerous slant. “I don’t need any kind of help.”

I smiled cheerily. “Cool. I would be disappointed if you did.”

He shook his head slowly. “You’re digging yourself deeper and deeper, you know that?”

“I’m reckless like that. That’s me, Motorcycle Mama—I’m all about living on the edge.”

I wasn’t, of course. I’ve never lived on the edge. I was usually cautious, thoughtful, analytical. Despite my yearning for a bad boy lover, I’d always been pretty much of a good girl. Good grades, healthy lifestyle, no smokes, drugs, or excessive partying. When my mom had taken sick in high school, her illness had changed my life. Her death could have destroyed me, so crazy with grief had I been at the time.

But I’d held it together because I had to. Dad had no one else except me, and I knew he wanted me to prove to him that I could still do well in school and make a good life for myself. So I’d tried.

Now, against all expectation, Dad had fallen in love.

So what did that mean for me? I wasn’t sure. I had no clue. But in a weird way, I felt as if I could do anything now. Anything I wanted. For this one week before the wedding, I was free. I could be crazy and contrary and wild, because why the hell not? Our parents would never know.

Ever since the first time I’d seen Shane, my body had gone into a hormone-drenched state of high alert. I knew a little about the biology and chemistry of sexual attraction. Clearly his body and mine had a lot of compatible molecules. We’d formed a strong physical bond that transcended anything our minds were capable of feeling. I wanted him and he wanted me.

So here we were, a graduate student and a Navy SEAL, with nothing in common and no possible future except as reluctant stepsiblings, sitting across the table in Mexico engaging what amounted to pre-coital banter.

I expected he would fuck me just as hard and just as dirty as he had the first two times.

I hoped he would.

I didn’t like the guy, but I craved the release he could give me.

“If you’re really not going to eat that, push it over here.”

“Fine. I’ll take your beans and rice.”

We made the exchange, with him frowning the entire time. I think he took it personally that I didn’t want his precious lobster. “Your father is into fishing. Are you telling me you won’t eat the fish he catches?”

“He mostly does catch and release. Like your Mom. Isn’t she a catch and release fishing guide?”

“Yeah, but she’s not some kind of weird-ass vegan. She eats everything.”

“I’m not vegan. I eat some dairy. I even eat sushi sometimes. I just don’t eat shellfish, meat, or fowl.”

“Why? Are you one of those animal rights crazies? That’s probably why you were trying to help that baby sea lion. I’m surprised you didn’t pull him out of the water and trundle him off to SeaWorld to be taught to do cute tricks for the tourists.”

“I’m a scientist. Not an animal rights nut. And I would have let nature take its course that day if it hadn’t meant he’d die a long, slow death of strangulation. That wouldn’t have been nature at work, but man, dumping his trash into the oceans and polluting the ecosystem.”

I was getting hot under the collar now. I took a pull of my cerveza and ramped my emotions back down. “Anyway, I’m not here to listen to your critique of my eating habits. It’s none of your business what I eat. So back off.”

He reached across the small table and gripped my wrist. His thumb somehow found its way to a spot where it could scrape gently across my palm. Uh-oh. That touch. It put me in mind of all the other intimate things he had done to me. And of everything I hoped he’d do tonight.

“You’re a firecracker,” he said, low. “Must be that red hair. I love the idea of tangling my fingers in that hair while you wrap those luscious lips around my cock.” His eyes caressed me. “And that long, slender throat of yours. How deep can you take me, babe? We’re gonna find that out tonight, aren’t we?”

Shit. I couldn’t look away from his burning blue eyes. Fine. I wouldn’t. Let him do whatever he wanted. I was on board with it. So
very
on board.

* * *

Shane

I relaxed back into my chair for a final few minutes before we hit the road again. Cassie surprised me, again. Hadn’t bitched once, captured lobsters like a champ even though she was a vegetarian.

Five days and five longer nights. Cassie had no idea what was in store for her tonight. I couldn’t wait to have my way with her, fuck her brains out, make her scream my name. On her knees, on all fours, from behind, riding me cowgirl. Every fantasy I’d had about her during deployment was about to come true.

A beautiful woman to fuck was one thing, but I planned to camp in my tent under the moonlight alone, count the stars, a cold beer in my hand. Some of my Teammates had wives who adored them, were faithful and loving, but that type of love was not in the cards for me. Not only had I never had a serious girlfriend, but also my dad left when I was young so I’d never really seen a healthy partnership.

This was just sex, that’s it. That’s all it could ever be. She was going to be my sister for fuck’s sake. That was more certain now than ever. And my mom deserved to be happy without me fucking up her relationship.

But if after this trip my dick couldn’t stop craving Cassie’s pussy, I would do what I had to do—move on. I could always apply for one of the East Coast Teams. Otherwise being her stepbrother would be the one type of torture this Frogman would be unable to endure.

Chapter 25—Cassie

After Puerto Nuevo, we climbed back on the bike for what Shane warned, with a touch of sadism, would seem like a long ride. He was right, the road was a lot narrower after Ensenada—we were really in Baja now. It was an agricultural area with farms and some vineyards. Wine and vegetable country. Apparently they grew a lot of tomatoes here.

We could see mountains on our left and the road got hilly—some of the sharp curves scared me a bit. But Shane seemed in absolute control of the bike and I didn't think we were speeding.

The sun was beating down, and even though it was January, it felt hot. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like to do this trip in the summer.

Shane had warned me it would get a lot chillier in the evening, and I could feel the land cooling down when we got to San Quintín, where he planned to spend the night. I began looking for a good hotel as soon as we hit the town, but Shane was more interested in another gas station. When we finally did pull into a small restaurant, I was dismayed. It looked like a real dive.

I said nothing, though. Besides, we’d already had one good-sized meal today. Him especially, considering he’d eaten all the lobsters.