Patriotic Duty (3 page)

I cocked my head to the
side and smirked. “I was until you interrupted.”

She threw back her head
and laughed. “C’mon, we’re
gonna
get out of here. Can
we go to your house? My sitter is at mine.”

I looked at Riley. “Want
to follow us back to my house? It’s only about eight miles.”

He looked at Dan and Dan
nodded.

Looking back at me, Riley
said, “Sure. Dan’s driving.”

As
if I cared.

Miranda was in way better
shape to drive than I was and she got us home in no time.

Dan parked next to my car
under the carport, and as I slid the key in the lock, I could feel Riley’s
hands wrap around my waist. I smiled and opened the door, tossing the keys and
my purse onto the coffee table.

Dan grabbed Miranda’s hand
and led her to the sofa where they apparently were going to continue the
makeout
session they’d started at the bar.

Riley was already a step
ahead of me, obviously figuring out which room was mine. Guess the red race car
bed in Aiden’s room was a dead giveaway.

I suddenly felt nervous
and excused myself to the bathroom while he sat on my bed, curiously taking in
the simple décor of my room. A queen-sized bed, a hand-me-down dresser, and a
small desk with my laptop perched on it was pretty much all I had.

I looked at myself in the
bathroom mirror and began to talk to my reflection. “What are you doing?” I
whispered.

Unfortunately, she didn’t
answer me, she just stared blankly back at me, as if I had all the answers.

I made my way back to the
room and kicked off my sandals. I walked to the window and opened it up all the
way, letting the cool night air blow in through the screen. Thankfully, even
though the day was hot, the nights cooled off enough to have the windows open.
The room was stifling but I wasn’t sure if that was from the warm day or the
electricity sizzling between us.

I made my way back to
where he was now standing, watching me. Riley reached over and unbuttoned my
gauzy white top and I shrugged it off, letting it flutter to the floor. He
pushed me on the bed, and exuding confidence, he began to kiss me again in his
delicious way. Tingles climbed up my back.

Now, I got married young,
but before that, I had gone out to clubs with my fake ID and had kissed quite a
few guys. I thought I was a pretty good kisser, and was a pretty harsh judge of
kissers. I would say Riley was at least in the number two, if not number one
spot at this time. There’s nothing better than a man who could kiss.

He ran his hands through
my short blonde hair and then trailed a finger down the length of my side until
he hit my bare thigh, and I shivered.

My hands were exploring
his back and I tugged at his T-shirt. He stopped his kisses and pulled the
shirt over his head, tossing it to the floor. I let out a moan of satisfaction
at seeing his beautiful chest. The shades on the lone window from my room were
open slats, and there was enough moonlight seeping through them to allow me to
see how wonderful he looked.
A very small amount of hair on
his chest, but defined
pecs
and abs.
I was now
putty in his hands.

He unzipped my skirt and
slid it down my legs, running a calloused but gentle hand over my thighs. “You
have beautiful legs.”

I smiled up at him. “Thank
you.”

He reached down to kiss me
once more and we lay like that for what seemed like hours, kissing and touching
but not removing any more clothes. He threaded a finger through the small band
of my thong near my hipbone and I waited with baited breath to see if he was
going to tug them off or not. He didn’t; he just continued to play with the
material, running light fingers over the flat of my stomach between my hip
bones and driving me crazy.

I could feel the strain of
his excitement through his jeans and part of me liked just lying here touching
and kissing, but another part of me – the sinful part – was begging for
release, and I could obviously feel he was, too.

I broke the kiss and
propped myself up on my elbows. When he looked at me questioningly, I used my
fingertips to push him onto his back on the bed. He lay there in expectation,
and without breaking eye contact, I unsnapped and unzipped his jeans. Yanking
them off slowly, I let them slide slowly off the bed to join the pile on the
floor. I then ran a finger around the waistband of his boxer briefs and his
skin was hot and sticky there, no doubt from the heat of the room.

I slowly pulled the shorts
off and let him spring free. He was very ready for me, and I suddenly had the
desire to do nothing but pleasure him. I looked up at him and he now had a
wanting look on his face; he was looking at me with both adoration and
something else I couldn’t describe. Then he whispered, “Touch me.”

I obeyed immediately,
running my hands over his silky, yet hard little soldier and my mouth literally
began to water. I held his gaze once more as I lowered my mouth and licked it
slowly, starting at the base and making my way slowly up. Riley let out a groan
I will never forget, which only encouraged me further.

Taking all of him in my
mouth, and with my hand still around the base, my green eyes still locked on
the ocean depths of his, I began to do what felt so good to the both of us.

His eyes rolled back and
then fluttered closed as I watched his hands bunch handfuls of sheets and
blankets while moaning softly. It didn’t take long until I heard, “Oh, God…”
and a sigh escape from his beautiful lips.

I smiled around my mouth’s
intrusive member and slowly inched off the bed. I made my way to the bathroom
to get rid of the evidence.

I’m
not Monica Lewinsky, you know.

When I came back into the
room, he was still on his back, but had replaced his boxer briefs and he looked
sexy as hell lying there like that. He opened his arms, inviting me in.

I was still very turned
on, but at the same time, I felt like I was going to pass out, as the alcohol
made its way out of my system, leaving me spent. My eyes felt heavy when I
heard a knock at my bedroom door. I blinked a few times and got up, opening the
door to see Miranda standing there, looking part satisfied and part pissed off.

“Hi,” I said, smoothing my
hair down, which I’m sure was sticking up, partially hiding myself behind the
door.

She was scowling, a hand
on her hip and her red purse slung over her shoulder.
“Married.
Stupid asshole.”

My eyes got big.
“Seriously?”

“Yeah,” she whispered. “I
only gave him a B.J. though, thank God! He already left and I’m
gonna
take off, too. Call me tomorrow, okay?” She peered
around me to see Riley lying on his side and she winked at me.

I mouthed, “I’m sorry” and
smiled at her as she walked away. I heard the front door close and I went back
to bed and passed out in Riley’s arms.

CHAPTER 4

The
bright morning sun was shining something fierce into my room and there were
very annoying birds chirping in the tree outside my window. My head felt very
heavy and I had the worst case of cottonmouth ever. I reached for the water
bottle on my nightstand and took a big swig when I felt a hand brush my
hipbone. I smiled.

I quickly swiped at the
black makeup smudges under my eyes I knew were there and ran a hand through my
short hair before turning over. God, he was even beautiful in the morning. A
small bit of stubble shadowed his face and I couldn’t take my eyes off his
lips. He flipped me back over on my side so he was spooning me once again and
began to kiss my neck. His fingers were still grazing over that sensitive spot
between my hipbone and stomach and it was causing goose bumps to pebble my
entire body.

I groaned when he reached
up and cupped my bare breast under my thin tank top (I don’t remember removing
my bra last night but clearly it came off somehow). He ran gentle fingers over
my nipple, and between that and what he was doing with his mouth at my neck, I
almost came unglued.

I was more than ready for
him, and was about to take control again when he whispered in my ear. “Can I…?”

I didn’t need to ask what
he meant and I answered him by rolling over and kissing him. He slid my thong
off and his boxer briefs came off faster than I’d ever seen a guy remove them.
I opened myself to him and put my head back when he placed himself in me. I
think we moaned in unison and when he slid his right arm under my neck, he used
the other elbow to prop himself partially up. We moved together, kissing,
licking, panting, touching, until we both reached our climaxes together. It was
hands-down the best morning sex I had ever had.

With flushed cheeks and
swollen lips, I whispered, “You sure know how to treat a lady.”

I could feel him grin into
my neck where his face still was, and when he rolled off of me, I missed him.

Once he returned from the
bathroom, we both fell asleep instantly and when I woke again, my bedside clock
read 10:08. Good Lord, I hadn’t slept in this late since I was a teen.

I got up and sat on the
edge of the bed, turning my head around to sneak a glance at Riley. He was
looking at me with those beautiful blue eyes and he smiled.

“What?” I said, suddenly
feeling awkward.

“Well, I don’t have a car.
You okay to drive me back to the base?”

I smiled.
“Of course.
I am
gonna
need to
shower first, though. Help yourself to some coffee and whatever you want to eat
in the kitchen. You’ll have to make the coffee, though.”

He grinned. “I think I can
manage.”

After I brushed my teeth
and showered, I had just finished blow-drying my hair when I wandered out into
the living room wearing white denim shorts and a loose halter top. I chose the
same sandals from last night. I saw him in the kitchen, drinking coffee and
reading my paper.
Wow, he sure made
himself at home.
He lifted his gaze from the paper and I could see him give
me elevator eyes, evaluating me.

I bit back a smile.
“Anything interesting?”

He grinned at me over the
edge of the coffee cup. “Who gets the Saturday paper anyway?”

I shook my head. “I only wanted
the Sunday one but they said it was a weekend thing.” I shrugged. “Are you
ready to go, or would you like to use the shower?”

He looked at me seriously
then took a deep breath. He surprised me when he asked, “What are your plans
for today?”

I thought most guys wanted
to just
hit-it-and-quit-it
so I was
shocked he wanted to spend the day with me. “Um, I don’t have any plans.
Just boring chores.”

God
that sounded lame!

He shrugged. “Want to go
to San Francisco? I’ve never been.”

I smiled and it dawned on
me that, aside from his first name and the fact he was in the military, I knew
absolutely nothing about this guy. “Where are you from?” I poured myself a cup
of coffee and headed toward the fridge for some cream.

“Colorado. Well, that’s
where I’m stationed. I’m originally from Arizona.”

I frowned. “Stationed? I
thought you lived here.”

He shook his head. “No,
I’m just TDY here for twelve weeks.”

I furrowed my brows
together. “What is TDY?”

“It’s like a temporary
duty station. I’m doing some training on that base.”

“Ah,” I said, feeling
stupid. “But sure, we can go to San Francisco. It’s a gorgeous city if you stay
to the touristy areas.”

His beautiful face lit up
and I grinned. “I’ll be ten minutes.” He set his coffee mug in the sink and
rinsed it out, then disappeared behind the bathroom door.

I was still reeling that
he didn’t want to just go back to the base. I will admit I’ve had a few
one-night stands and they barely lasted past morning of the next day, most of
them not even until morning.

I was checking my e-mail
on the laptop when he came in freshly showered wearing nothing but a towel. I
had to tell myself to close my mouth because he looked so hot I was ready to
strip off my own clothes and push him back on the bed.

He looked a bit chagrinned
when he pointed to the floor. “I left my clothes in here.”

“Ah,” I said, feeling
awkward again.

“Good thing I had just
changed into these before I went out last night, since I have to wear them
again today.”

I laughed. “I’m sure
they’re fine.”

After he was ready, we got
into my car with me driving. I had this weird thing about letting people drive
my car. I swear I’m not a control freak or anything like
that,
it’s just a responsibility thing my parents had instilled in me.

As I made the turn on the
interstate, Riley reached for the buttons of my radio and searched until he
found a country station. I wrinkled my nose. “Ugh, turn that off.”

He looked at me, confused.
“What?”

“I don’t like country.”

He snorted. “They were
playing it all night in the bar last night. You didn’t seem to mind.”

“Did I have a choice?
Besides, I like country bars and
clubs,
I just don’t
listen to it voluntarily.”

He tilted his head to the
side and studied me. “Then why do you go to country bars?”

I shrugged and popped a
piece of gum in my mouth. I offered him a piece and he took it.
“Because it’s the only place to meet decent guys.
The other
clubs are full of thugs and stuff.”

I can’t believe I just
admitted that to him. I must have had a mortified look on my face because
amusement danced in his eyes, as if he had just caught me stealing.

He chuckled. “I see.”

“Seriously, Riley, turn
the station.”

He shook his head.
“Nope.”
He leaned back in the seat with his arms behind his
head.

I wished at this point I had
one of those steering wheels with the radio controls on it, and I vowed my next
car would.

We reached the Bay Bridge
and he sat forward to look out at the beautiful view. The water was glistening
over the peaks of the white ripples and tugboats and barges were floating on
the edges of the shore. In the distance, the picturesque San Francisco skyline
jutted into a blue sky scattered with white clouds.
The
TransAmerica
building stood tall and proud.

I pointed to my right.
“See that island out there?”

He looked out his side and
back to me.
“Yeah?”

“That’s Alcatraz.”

“Oh, wow,” he breathed. He
looked like a kid in a candy store and I laughed to myself.

After we crossed the
bridge into the city, I luckily found parking near Fisherman’s Wharf, and as
soon as I locked the car and began to walk toward the Wharf, Riley grabbed my
hand gently and smiled at me.

I again was shocked. I
guess I was so used to jerks that I couldn’t believe this guy I just met – and
slept with without even knowing – wanted to not only spend the day with me, but
hold my hand in public. I think my self-esteem needed a serious boost, and he
definitely was helping.

As we walked around the
Wharf, I was pointing out different areas and he was buying souvenirs like the
tourist that he was. I just laughed to myself, happy to see he was having a
good time. We were on the deck of Pier 39 waiting for a ferry to take us to
Alcatraz when my phone vibrated in my pocket. I pulled it out and saw a text
from Miranda:

Can
you believe that ass was married? I’m still fuming.

I laughed at her and
replied,
Yeah, that
sucked. Jerk.

Was
your guy married too? He was cute.

I
don’t think so, but I’ll ask him as soon as we board the ferry to Alcatraz.

OMG
WHAT! You’re with him?
And in the city?
Call me later,
girl!

I flicked the screen off
and shoved the phone back in my pocket to see Riley watching me curiously.

“Important
texts?”

I chuckled.
“Hardly.
Miranda’s still pissed at that friend of yours. I
mean, really, married? Why did he even bother telling her?”

He shrugged. “I don’t
know. He told me he was divorced. I don’t know him very well, just met him
actually when I got here last week. He’s my roomie.”

“Well, he’s an asshole.”

He grinned at me and put
his hand out for me to take as we boarded the ferry.

The ride to Alcatraz is
only about twenty minutes, but it’s a beautifully windy ride and the day was
just perfect – shining sun and a cool breeze off the water. I was standing on
the edge and Riley was behind me with both arms holding onto the railing,
cocooning me safely and making me smile. We talked about my son and my divorce
and he mentioned he was also divorced and only 24, so we had that in common. He
seemed okay with the fact that I had a son, but then again, I barely knew him
and didn’t care that much if it bothered him or not. Aiden and I were a package
deal and that’s what I told every guy I dated.
 

We did the tour thing, and
by the time we rode the ferry back, it was late in the day. We were both tired,
and as we drove back towards home, I looked over at him as we crossed back over
the bridge, still with the annoying country station playing. I knew I wasn’t
winning that battle so I just left it.

“So I guess I’ll drop you
off at the barracks...” I asked, sounding more like a statement.

He looked sideways at me
and gave me a half-smile. “Well, I do have the whole weekend off. Would you
have any objections to me staying another night? I just need to grab an
overnight bag.”

I was a bit shocked, for
the hundredth time today, that he wanted to see me again. It’s like the never
ending one-night stand. I had no plans tonight, as Miranda had no babysitter,
so I
thought,
what
the hell.

“Boy those barracks must
be awfully miserable.” I bit my lip and suppressed a smile at my stupid joke.

He let out a laugh.
“They’re not too bad. I would just rather sleep in a room with a pretty girl
rather than a bunch of dudes.”

I could feel myself flush
and I murmured my thanks.

After showing my
government ID to get on base, I pulled the Acura up in front of a large three-story
building painted a dull blue. He looked at me in the driver’s seat and planted
a soft kiss on my lips, probably for the amusement of the other military guys
walking by, gawking at us. I didn’t mind and grinned when he got out of the
car. He had already had the window down and he poked his head in and said,
“I’ll be out in five.”

I nodded,
then
looked at all the other hot military men walking around
the small housing area. There were two identical buildings of barracks and a
small mess hall straight across from me. The guys were alternatively looking at
me, probably wondering who I was and what I was doing there, but nobody
approached me. They all looked very yummy in their camouflage BDUs. I know that
soldiers in full dress-blues uniform was
supposed to
be hot, but there was something about the BDUs that sent a tingle up my spine.
As I was mentally drooling over them, I heard Riley open my car door and looked
over to see he had changed clothes. He was also carrying an olive green colored
duffel bag in his hand. He tossed it into the backseat and closed the door.

“Ready?” he asked.

I nodded and put the car
in gear.