SEAL The Deal (15 page)

Coming up for air, he whispered, “Sorry, just had to do that, baby. I couldn’t help myself.”

It was exactly what she wanted to hear. “Nick I’m so ashamed of how I’ve acted. Like a child.”

“Sweetheart,” he whispered while he layered kisses under her chin, under her ears and down her shoulders, “I love the way you act. The way you smell. I love watching you get mad, I—“

She was aware he was stopping himself from saying something he might regret. She was sliding into the pool of warm water where it didn’t matter anymore what they said. She’d gladly follow him anywhere right now.

His hands roamed over her breasts. He lifted her T-shirt, and the feel of his tongue and lips on her nipples made her sex tingle with anticipation. She needed the feel of this man’s fingers, his mouth, all over her body.

He hitched her up and placed her thighs above his hips, wrapping her legs around his lower torso. She moved herself against the buttons of his jeans, squeezing with her thighs, telegraphing her wanton need of him.

“I want you inside me,” she whispered between kisses.

Nick’s gentle moan was his answer. “Baby, this will have to be quick.”

“I don’t care. I need you.”

He arched back to look into her eyes with a frown line in the middle of his forehead. “You need me or my cock?”

Her hands smoothed over his bulging shoulders and up his neck. She pressed her breasts into him. “I need you
and
your cock, and I am totally unashamed to say it. I need you to make love to me, make me feel the way you did before. As only you can do.”

He let her slide down as he urgently removed her pants, then got to work on his own. With his cargo pants down at his ankles he turned and they nearly fell onto the bed.

“Baby, baby, baby, I haven’t been able to think of anything else but you.”

“Me, too.”

“You sure?” he said as he positioned his penis over her wet opening. He was without protection.

She placed her hands on his buttocks and pulled him into her. He gladly rooted deep inside, angling up, raising her thighs over his as he sunk in deep, gripping her hips.

She was delirious with pleasure. He filled her, warmed her, and ignited her insides. Everywhere he touched and kissed and sucked she gave back to him willingly. Her body was his completely.

“I need you,” she said again. “Is it possible to need someone too much?” she whispered to his neck and the side of his face. “I’ve become addicted to you. Tell me that doesn’t scare you. Please.”

“Baby,” he said as his cock began to lurch. “Nowhere else I’d rather be. This is my world, right here. I want—” his seed began spurting just as Devon’s insides clamped down and she began a rolling orgasm to his tempo. “I want this to last forever.”

It was a spur-of-the-moment comment, and for a second she felt the panic of commitment sizzle through her. But his scent, his soft moans into the pillow, the feel of his damp hair at the nape of his neck and the way his hands kneaded her buttocks as he filled her, urged her to step through the doorway she’d avoided before. She gave her whole body and soul to him in that moment. He had claimed her as much as she now claimed him.

She wanted to belong to him.

Forever.

Fresh from the glow of their quick lovemaking, Devon and Nick entered the kitchen.

Marc had made a bowl of drop biscuit batter and preheated the oven. He shoved three dozen eggs into Devon’s hands and gave her another wink. “Go crack some eggs, lady,” he said. Devon got to work after Nick kissed her neck and sent a warm blush back to her cheeks. She couldn’t help but smile and decided not to hide her feelings for him any longer .

Exactly at oh-six-twenty a breakfast feast was laid out on the plank tabletop. Several under-the-breath comments were made about what had delayed the cook, and Devon’s cheeks flushed, but she didn’t care. Eight hungry sailors devoured three pounds of bacon and sausage, two fresh pineapples, two pitchers of orange juice, homemade biscuits with real butter, pancakes and syrup, three dozen scrambled eggs, and a pint jar each of Sophie’s salsa and orange marmalade. Hardly a word was spoken. They were eating machines, reaching over each other without asking to help themselves to whatever they wanted. There were smiles all around and appreciative moans of approval, especially over Sophie’s homemade marmalade and salsa.

Never in her life had Devon seen so much food consumed so quickly. In barely a half hour nearly everything was gone. Fredo and Cooper cleared the table. Nick began washing dishes and Devon grabbed a couple of tea towels and started drying, placing the cleaned plates on the table. By seven everything was put away, cleaned, floor swept, counters wiped down and the crew was outside ready for work.

Devon asked Marc how Sophie was.

“Still sleeping. Got the evil eye from Emma.” He shrugged. “Think I’ll make sure I stay useful.”

Devon stopped him from leaving the kitchen. “Marc. Thanks for this. For what you’re doing for Sophie, and Nick. For me.”

“You got it, kid. She’s a lovely lady. She deserves way more out of life, but I can’t do anything about that. So I’m here now.”

“Just thank you, Marc. Really.”

“You’re a doll, Devon. Take good care of my buddy’s heart now, will you?”

“No worries there.”

He lifted her chin with his thumb and forefinger. His azure blue eyes were warm and gentle. Not the face of a trained killer. He was a man, as they all were, who understood what life was, because he had an up close and personal relationship with death. “He’s a good man, and I’ll kick your butt if you do anything to hurt him. He’s pretty snagged.”

“Snagged?” she asked.

“As in you got the golden cuffs on him and he wants to be captured. Get my drift?”

Devon smiled. “Yes. And that’s exactly where I want him to be.”

“Okay. Just be sure you know what you’re doing. It’s an intense thing getting wrapped up in our community. I won’t lie to you, some women can’t take it. Watch yourself, Dev.”

“Devon,” she corrected him.

He smacked her on the butt, turned and left the kitchen.

Devon started dragging an ice chest outside, but got barely two feet from the door of the office before the tall one, Cooper, was there to pick it up. While Coop was several inches taller than Nick, he had the same muscle mass in his shoulders, and sported a variety of unique tats, including the same frog prints that Nick had going up his right forearm from wrist to inside of his elbow. He looked up and gave her a respectful grin.

“Where you want this, darlin’?”

“Just put it inside the greenhouse there to the right under that platform. I’ll fill it with ice.”

“No can do.” He set the chest down and whistled to his cohorts. “I need two able-bodied frogmen to help this little lady out,” he bellowed.

Shovels and rakes were dropped and soon there was a line of hunky guys standing at perfect attention, chests out, staring straight at her.

“You’re gonna have to choose, Devon,” Coop said.

She walked up to Nick and placed her palms against his chest, slid them up the luscious territory to the back of his neck, weaving fingers together and pulling his head down. “Well, this one,” she said on tiptoes as she pulled him to her, “I’ve already chosen.”

As soon as their lips touched, Nick’s hands migrated to her butt and he lifted her, wrapping her legs around his hips. The line went crazy with whoops and catcalls.

“That’s what I’m talking about,” bellowed Cooper. “Damn, I’m getting homesick.”

“I think you guys better go inside and get the ice,” said Kyle. “In fact, I’m making that an order, sailor.”

“Yessir,” Nick said as he kissed her neck.

Devon looked over his shoulder at the admiring crowd and was caught off guard when Nick hoisted her up over his shoulder and ran for the office door with her slung over like a sack of potatoes.

She watched the men go back to work as Nick carried her into Sophie’s sales office. He pulled her off his shoulder and slid her down his torso slowly. With his hands entwined in her hair, he removed her clip and bent down and gave her a mind-numbing kiss. Devon’s insides turned to flames.

“We’re supposed to be getting the drinks and ice.”

“I can use ice,” he said as he kneeled and kissed her belly under her T-shirt. “You want some ice, baby?”

“Sophie’s going to be up soon.”

“We seemed to do pretty good before breakfast. How about a round two? Just another quickie.”

“Hardly seems fair,” she gasped as his fingers slid down the front of her pants to find her. “Everyone else is working so hard outside, and here—” She gave another sharp inhale as two of his fingers found their way into her opening.

“I’m working hard too, Devon.”

She glanced outside. No one was paying attention to them, even though the doorway was open. While she was checking to make sure the coast was clear, Nick had unbuttoned her pants and had removed her T-shirt. He stood.

“I’ve got an idea.” He led her around the bench table to the storeroom where Sophie’s cot was. He slid his cargo pants down, sat on the cot, let her pants fall to her ankles. She stepped out of them and stood before him fully naked. He guided her over to sit on his lap, legs spread to the sides. Holding her waist in his massive hands, he adjusted her to slide down his shaft.

She gripped the tops of his shoulders as he bounced her up and down on him, her knotted nipples rubbing against his warm chest. He was so deep, and she still wanted more. Her swollen tissues were sore, but she wanted him anyway. He adjusted his pelvis, leaning back and bracing the weight of both their bodies on his palms gripping the edge of the cot. He rolled his hips and ground into her in smooth movements that were urgent, demanding, and relentless.

Her orgasm was quickly coming on her. “Oh! Niiiick!!”

He sucked her breasts, teasing her nipples with a little bite that made her jump. She held herself against his chest, wrapping her arms around him as her muscles milked his cock. As he lurched and began to come, she drew back to watch his face, then softly leaned back into him to nibble on his lips.

“Love this, baby,” he said between kisses.

“Yes,” she sighed. “I want you more each time we—” Her orgasm sent the delicious shudder down her spine. When she opened her eyes, the look he gave her showed his need. It was something she wanted to remember forever.

Nick hauled two bags of ice to the cooler while Devon brought a case of bottled water. She placed them in the ice while Nick brought out some sodas and beer Marc had bought the night before.

The radio was blaring out a country western station, and soon all the SEALs were topless. With each new song, which was always someone’s favorite, there was an outburst of air guitars and karaoke routines. She hadn’t seen so much undulating at shovels or rakes and pole dancing of two-by-fours in her life.

When one song came on, it seemed to erupt in a dance free-for-all.

The way I see it,

The whole wide world has gone c-r-a-z-y,

So baby why don’t we just dance?

Cooper was dancing with Kyle. Fredo grabbed Malcolm’s elbow and they did a do-si-do. Rory Kennedy put his T-shirt over his head and paraded around like on a runway with his shovel, sticking his chest and his butt out with affectation. He got sprayed with the hose.

Devon was clapping her hands and enjoying the spectacle, when several of the men came towards her and took turns twirling her around on the gravel floor of the greenhouse under a liberal sprinkling of water from the overhead wand. She wound up dancing with Nick last, and realized it had probably been designed that way.

By the end of the day the plants were trimmed and sorted. An enormous pile of discarded plastic containers was stacked neatly behind the water tank beside a pile of debris and dirt. Sophie sat in her wheelchair and wrote prices on plastic tags that Devon placed according to her instructions. Cooper managed to get two high weed mowers oiled and tuned to perfection, as well as six rototillers. He even serviced Sophie’s small tractor with the front loader on it. Fredo and Malcolm replaced missing slats in the walls and the overhead canvas sun cover was replaced with new fabric Sophie had stashed somewhere.

They made a large PLANT LIQUIDATION SALE sign for the end of the driveway to put out in the morning. Wind chimes, garden tools, fertilizers and statuary were displayed inside the office at 50% off. Sophie had a few items she wanted to keep, and Devon took them to her bedroom. Everything was dusted, swept. Team guys washed windows and removed cobwebs from the eaves inside and outside the little structure. They raked the gravel parking lot last.

Emma’s brother had offered to help out, so Emma drove off in his car. Charles was also from Fiji, but was easily as tall as Cooper and built like a linebacker. He liked working with the SEALs, and demonstrated some of his island dance moves for them. At one point, he started a line dance that went viral and snaked around the property with all the Frogs in tow. Devon got some pictures none of her friends would believe and decided to post them on Facebook as proof.

Sophie came out to look over the place as the sun was setting. “Can’t believe how beautiful this is. Just like I’d pictured it could be. Makes me wish I didn’t have to sell it. Sure none of you wants to go into the nursery business?”

Marc agreed to stay back with Sophie while the rest of the dirty crew decided to clean up and go into town for some pizza and more beers. Devon hung back, not sure she was invited.

“You’re going with me,” Nick said. “I intend to keep my promise to my sister, and this will make date number three, if I’m not mistaken.”

The pizza parlor was filled with Friday night revelers. They took a large round table in the corner and ordered several pitchers of beer, watching the local “talent” as Rory called the girls who ogled and drooled over the team guys.

Devon didn’t have much appetite, so ate a few bites of her salad and sipped from Nick’s beer glass. As the minutes went by, he slid closer and closer to her, at first tracing the arc of her right ear with his forefinger, which tickled, and then discreetly exploring the nape of her neck in a dark corner away from the eyes of his friends.