Model Soldier (22 page)

“Had sex with her? Right after I’d been with you?” Hawk sat in shock. “Emily. What the hell kind of man do you think I am?”

Her eyes filled with tears. “I know. I’m so sorry. It’s just, I was so hurt…”

Hawk let out a frustrated breath as he gathered her against him. She came willingly into his arms, which was encouraging. “You were hurting over nothing. I can’t believe you spent all this time thinking I would do that to you when all you had to do was ask me.”

“I would have said something, I tried to that morning, but then there was the explosion,” she sobbed.

He remembered. She had started to say something and then all hell had broken loose. Shaking his head, he squeezed her closer. All those weeks, months of agony on both their parts…

“I was getting one of my men out of Kerri’s tent. That’s all.”

“I know. Mel told me when I saw him.”

“Mel?” That name rang a bell. Hawk froze as he put the name with the man. “Crocodile Cameraman?”

How the fuck could he be here in New York? Hawk had just seen him when he flew out of Bagram to get home to his sister.

Emily nodded, laughing tearfully at the nickname. “Yeah.”

Hmmm. “So you saw Mel?” the ugly green monster inside Hawk asked.

“Yup. This morning. He was meeting Jai and stopped by to say hello.”

Who the fuck was Jai? Then Hawk remembered Rasta-photographer.

Emily continued. “He told me he’d seen you in Bagram, then he told me about you having to get Wally out of Kerri’s tent.”

Hawk frowned. “So, do you see this Mel often?”

Emily pulled back from him, eyes open wide. “You’re jealous!”

“No!” Hawk sighed then opted for the truth. He’d do anything, even admit this, if it would keep Emily in his life. “Yes. I’ve never been so jealous of any man in my entire life.”

Of course, he’d probably never felt so much for any woman the way he did about Emily. “He was all over you in Bagram, Emily.”

Emily smiled. “It was an act to make you jealous.”

Now it was Hawk’s turn to be surprised. “You were doing it on purpose?”

She shrugged. “It was Mel’s idea, but I kind of went along with it.”

Relief overwhelmed him, along with curiosity. Although he suspected he knew the answer to his next question. “Why?”

“Because I was jealous of you being with that flirty Kerri London every second of the day.”

That was what he had hoped. Hawk laughed and pulled her closer again. “What a pair we make.” They could maybe even be happy if they both stopped getting in their own way.

“Hawk?”

“Yeah?”

Emily looked up at him with baby blues that could melt a man. “Will you kiss me?”

“Oh, baby. You don’t have to ask me twice.”

Heart pounding, he cradled her face in his palm and lowered his mouth to hers gently, until all the pent up passion of the past months without her rose to the surface and poured through him into his kiss.

Breathlessly, she pulled away long enough to say, “Make love to me, Hawk. I need you. I’ve needed you for so long.”

She definitely didn’t have to ask him that twice, either.

Hawk’s actions served as his answer. His mouth frantic on hers, his hands trying to be everywhere at once. He tugged at their clothes, an annoyance that separated them when he wanted nothing between them.

He needed her so badly, but at the same time he also needed to treasure every second with her and hold it close in his memories for later.

Tenderly, almost reverently, Hawk undressed Emily, revealing her inch-by-inch, reveling in each new exposed part of her creamy skin. Tasting her, caressing her, kissing the warm soft flesh that had only lived in his memory for so long. Her lips never tasted sweeter, her body never felt more responsive than at that moment.

Compared to their first time together when the attraction was purely physical and they were still nearly strangers, even compared to their frenzied reunion on the desk in Bagram, this joining seemed to be so much more. Perhaps because he felt so much more for her now after thinking he might have lost her, not that he’d ever really had her because he’d been too afraid to commit.

He wasn’t afraid anymore and he would never make that mistake again. This time he’d leave her with no doubt of how much she meant to him, how much he needed her.

But now was not the time for words, not when his mouth had so many better things to do.

Struggling out of his jeans and button-down shirt, Hawk finally freed himself of his restraints and pulled a nearly naked Emily on top of him.

He pushed aside the white lace of her bra and drew one taught pink nipple into his mouth as she trembled above him. Slipping his hand into her panties, he found her wet from wanting him. That knowledge drew a groan from deep inside him.

His face buried against her as he took in her warm scent, Hawk pushed aside her panties and slid inside her. The feeling of her heat almost mind-blowing, he plunged into her again and again.

She rocked against him, shaking, gasping, making those tiny noises that drove him insane as she came closer to release. He felt the muscles inside her gripping him so tightly he thought he’d lose his mind.

As he felt her orgasm breaking, she cried out, “Don’t stop, Hawk. Please. Don’t stop.”

Thrusting her down onto his cock one last time as he exploded inside her, he swore a promise for the future to them both. “Never.”

The End
About the Author:

It all started in first grade when Cat Johnson won the essay contest at Hawthorne Elementary School and got to ride in the Chief of Police’s car in the Memorial Day Parade…and the rest, as they say, is history. As an adult, Cat generally tries to stay out of police cars and is thrilled to be writing for a living. She has been published under a different name in the Young Adult genre, but Linden Bay is the first to release her romances. 

On a personal note, Cat has one horse, too many cats, one dog, parakeets, fish, and a husband, and is not sure which of those gives her the most grief. Needless to say, she is very busy most days on her little 18th century farm in New York State. She plays the harp professionally and stresses that this does not mean she plays well. A past bartender, marketing manager, and Junior League president, Cat’s life is quite the dichotomy, and on any given day she is just as likely to be in formal eveningwear as in mucking clothes covered in manure. Cat hates the telephone but loves email, and is looking forward to hearing from you.

[email protected]

Also by Cat Johnson:

Trilogy No. 102: Opposites Attract

…a three-part lighthearted romp through the intertwining lives of six people who learn that in spite of everything you have to remember to live, love and laugh to be happy.

Taking a Leap:
Bradley Morgan is the quintessential computer geek and nice guy, through and through. The only problem is that in his opinion, nice guys almost always finish last when it comes to hot women like his sexy co-worker Alyssa Jones. But things change after Alyssa finds her boyfriend cheating. Suddenly, nice guys like Brad don’t look so bad. So when Brad agrees to ghostwrite the sex scenes for a romance novel as a favor for desperate client Maria White and asks for Alyssa’s help after hours, she agrees wholeheartedly and things really start to heat up. Brad and Alyssa learn you should never judge a book by its cover, and that sometimes love requires a leap of faith.

Light my Fire:
Amy Gerald’s life is filled with whirlwind romance. Unfortunately, it’s all on the pages of the romance novels she publishes. That is until she volunteers to cat-sit for her author friend Maria and meets Troy O’Donnell, the hunky fireman who lives next door. The problem is, this commitment-phobic consummate bachelor is far more willing to run into a burning building than allow love into his life. Troy will grasp at any excuse, even the ridiculous assumption that Amy is a lesbian, just to avoid his growing feelings for her. Amid a comedy of errors and misunderstandings, which includes Troy’s first hilarious visit to a gay bar, Amy manages to light Troy’s fire, but can she also conquer his fears?

Second Time Around:
Antonio Sanchez thought that at 32 his life was all mapped out—wife, kids, career—until some major bumps in the road radically alter his course and send him careening right into the path of newly divorced Maddie Morgan. Suddenly thrust back into single life, Antonio moves back in with his old-fashioned parents and has to learn to juggle his kids, his job at the firehouse, and his role as Best Man for his newly engaged best friend Troy, all in addition to facing his unquenchable desire for Maddie. Throw in a slew of matchmaking friends and relatives, led by Maria whose apartment appears to be the Bermuda Triangle for lost lovers, and Antonio and Maddie discover just how complicated things can get. Can the pair prove that love really is better the second time around?

Trilogy No. 103: Red Hot & Blue

Trey
: Special operative Trey Williams doesn’t want a girlfriend, nor does he need one in his life. A distracted soldier is a dead soldier, that’s his motto. The problem is, the woman who has been recruited to pose as his wife on a special assignment is proving to be more of a distraction than Trey can handle. What’s a soldier to do?

Jack
: Ordered by his superiors to take time off for his "mental health", Jack Gordon heads back to his hometown for two weeks of R&R. But then he meets Nicki Camp, the new hand his brother has just hired to help out at the family farm. Is Nicki playing hard to get, or is she hiding something? Jack knows one thing…he isn’t going to rest until he finds out!

Jimmy
: Jimmy Gordon has learned during his career in the Special Forces that he can handle pretty much anything, including pretending to be everything from a banquet waiter to a terrorist, while undercover. But there is one thing he finds he’s having a bit of difficulty handling, and that’s the governor’s hot red-headed daughter, Amelia Monroe-Carrington. Maybe the time for pretending is over?

Trilogy No. 105: Smalltown, U.S.A. 

You loved Pigeon Hollow in
Trilogy No. 103: Red Hot & Blue.
Now, really get to know the men of this quintessential Smalltown, U.S.A.

The Horseman
: Jared Gordon considers himself a lucky man. He enjoys the simple things life has to offer: a slice of his mama’s pie, a pretty girl, a well-bred horse. Life on his farm in Pigeon Hollow is good, until big city girl Mandy Morris blows into town. Like a tornado hitting a trailer park, Mandy turns Jared’s simple life upside down. Will he ever be the same again?

The Ballplayer
: Cole Ryan found a life of fame and fortune in the major leagues. When an injury takes him out of the game he returns to Pigeon Hollow, the small town he thought he’d left behind. Yet every cloud has a silver lining, and for Cole that would be returning to the arms of Lizzie Barton, the small-town girl who got away a decade ago and still haunts his dreams. Will the secret she’s been hiding from him all these years get in the way of their future?

The Deputy
: Deputy Sheriff Bobby Barton agreed to put up with the taping of a reality TV show in his town for two reasons. He thought it would be good for the town’s business, and the producers promised they’d keep out of his. But the show keeps creeping into his personal life, and he finds himself hoping that the show’s assistant producer, Christy Dunne, would creep into his bed. Did Deputy Barton make a mistake that will cost him his heart?

Trilogy No. 106: Nice & Naughty

The hot firemen you loved in Opposites Attract are back with their friends, but now they’re wearing a lot less clothing
!

Secret Recipe
: A famous lifestyle maven who secretly can’t cook? Good thing a sizzling fireman who knows his way around the kitchen is there to rescue her and her holiday charity event from certain disaster. And if they detour to the bedroom on the way to the kitchen, even better!

Mr. December
: What’s hotter than a fireman? Twelve of them, nearly naked on the pages of your calendar! But when a rich department store owner steps in for Mr. December and meets the pretty lady photographer, things really start to heat up. He’s no fireman, but that’s all right. He doesn’t want to put out the flames between them anyway.

Can’t Buy Me Love
: What do you get when you take one over-worked caterer on the brink of a nervous breakdown and add a hunky fireman for sale at the charity bachelor auction she’s catering? You get a woman who finally finds the one holiday gift to buy herself that she’s never going to want to return!

Trilogy No. 107: True Blue

In the long anticipated sequel to Red Hot & Blue, the true blue men of Task Force Zeta are back…and they’re hotter than ever!

Bull:
Bull didn’t earn his nickname because he has a reputation for being stubborn; he’s just a very big boy. But beneath that hard as granite and big as a mountain exterior beats the heart of a caring man. Can a pretty little thing barely five feet tall capture it?

Matt:
Technical genius and communications specialist Matt Coleman is sick and tired of watching his friends ‘get the girl’ while the only thing he’s had his hands on lately is a computer console. But perhaps Matt has been looking for love in all the wrong places. Could it be that what he’s looking for has been right in front of him the entire time?