Whirlwind (SAI Book 2) (17 page)

Laying his arm across her back, he moved his face next to hers. “You belong to me, even if you don’t recognize it yet.”

Her hand moved along his cheek, and she kissed him gently. “You want me?”

“More than you’ll ever know. I haven’t owned my heart since you kissed me. You have it, and there’s not a damn thing that I can do about it.”

“Well…I guess I’ll have to take good care of it.” Closing her eyes, she kissed him again.

Before he could respond, her breathing evened out and she was asleep. Throwing his leg over hers, he tightened his hold. There was some primitive part of him that wanted to mark her as his. His need to keep her close and safe roared through his head as he stared at her face. The only peace he could find was having her within his reach. Was it because she was in danger, or was his need for her that great? He closed his eyes and allowed himself to drift off as a picture of Sara telling him she loved him filled his heart.

***

Sliding an eye open, Grady watched Sara sitting in bed with her sketchbook on her lap. She was drawing while staring at him. “Are you drawing me naked?”

“Of course I am.” The pencil flew across the page as she worked. “I spent a long time studying art, so when I find it in my bed, I sketch it.”

“Are you including my scars?”

“Absolutely. That’s what makes you worth drawing. You are more than a perfect body. You are a story worth being told.”

She ran her hand over his shoulder and pressed against the skin that was puckered. A bullet had been dug out in the field, and the medic didn’t have time to make it pretty. “I don’t know if my story is that fascinating.”

“Oh, I think it is.” Leaning over, she set her sketch pad down and crawled on top of him. Kissing his back, she let her arms fall around him. “I have a mad crush on you, and I’m in that phase where I want to know everything about you. I’m trying to fight my attraction because I don’t think it’s fair to bring a threat to your door.” Wiggling around, she sighed. “But since I’m draped naked over you like a blanket, I’d say I’ve lost the fight.”

He rolled over and caught her so that they were face-to-face. Holding her tightly, he leaned up and kissed her. “I want you to fall into the crush and let me catch you. I’ll protect you and make sure that you have a soft place to land.”

A tear slipped down her cheek, and she tried to turn her face away before he saw it. “Oh, Grady…”

Turning her face back to his, he stared into her eyes. “I want to see it all and hear it all. No walls, Sara. I can handle whatever you’ve got.”

“But, can I?” She laid her head against his chest and remained quiet. “I’ve lived my life a certain way for over a year, and it’s going to take a while for me to adjust. I’ve been hiding long enough to have lost a bit of myself. So I’ll ask for your patience while I figure it out.”

He rubbed his hand up her back and took a deep breath. “We have plenty of time. Fifty years or so should do it.”

“I like your subtlety.”

“Thanks, honey.” He sat up and took her with him. “Let’s get showered, and then we can walk over to the Hotel Del and have breakfast.”

“Sounds perfect. I forgot the yogurt, so I need to refuel.”

Laughing, he heaved them off the bed and walked into the bathroom. “You can lick something off me later. Maybe ice cream?”

“Sure, whatever you want.”

***

They walked along the sand hand in hand. The breakfast they had just consumed was one for the record books. “I left nothing untouched,” Sara commented, as they walked back to the condo. “I’ve embarrassed myself, and I hope you never tell anyone what you just observed.”

“Honey, I’m proud of you. It’s not every day that a person can get the full value out of a forty-dollar breakfast buffet. I think they may have lost money on you.”

She pressed her fingers against his lips. “Don’t talk about it.”

He shortened his steps so that their paces matched. Sara was moving slowly along the shore, and he attributed it to the massive amount of food she’d just consumed. He had enjoyed every second of watching her eat. It turned out that her appetite for food was similar to her appetite for sex. Which was good news for him. “What would you like to do today?”

“I have some panels to finish for my meeting tomorrow. Other than that, it’s up to you. If you have something to do, please go ahead. I can sit on the beach and be very happy.”

“Not without me.”

Turning, she looked up at him. “Why not?”

“We are milk and cookies. We stay together.”

“That’s right…” Lifting their clasped hands, she swung them back and forth. “What would you like to do today,
cookie
?”

“I’d like to go by the offices and maybe the warehouse. They have a setup at the airport that we might want to mimic. Rory set up offices and a gym in the hangar where they keep the plane and helicopter. Joel and I have been discussing doing something similar. We want to grow, but we’re limited by how much space we have in our current location.”

“Let’s do that.”

“What about the drawings that you have to do?”

“If there is a chair, then I can draw just about anywhere. You’ve taken time off to come with me, so I want to make sure that you can do what you want.”

“I want to do
you
.”

Laughing, she squeezed his hand. “You have…several times.”

The late morning sun warmed the air, and the seagulls cried out. There were lots of kids close to the shore, running in and out of the water. The tide was low, so it was perfect for the little ones to test their bravery. One little girl in a purple swimsuit almost ran into Sara. Holding her hands out, she caught the cherub and steadied her. The mom came rushing over, scooped up the girl and smiled at them before walking off. “What a cutie.”

“How many do you want?”

“How many what?”

“Rugrats?”

“Oh…well. I’m not sure. I haven’t thought about it in a while.” Holding her hands behind her back, she walked quietly and stared at the horizon.

“Do you want children?”

“Yes, I do. But a lot has to change in my life before I really think about it. I’ve shoved a lot of dreams to the back of my mind because they’re not possible right now. No need to torture myself when none of it is likely.”

Wrapping his arm around her shoulder, he held her securely against his side. “Everything is going to be possible sooner than you think. Then you can think about all of the things you want, because I’m going to give you every single one of them.”

“Just like that?”

“Yeah. Just like that.”

“Well, you did get me waffles
and
French toast this morning, so maybe anything
is
possible.”

“It’s only the beginning, Sara.”

***

Grady parked the truck in front of a two-story home on a quiet street on the east end of Coronado Island. Casa Frazier. I haven’t been here in over three years.”

“When was the last time you saw Mark and Birdie?”

“At their wedding. Somehow Mark talked Birdie into marrying him within weeks of meeting her. He was seriously injured on an op, and Birdie agreed to marrying him as soon as she could get a wedding together. They got married on New Year’s Eve, and it was one of the best weddings I’ve ever been to.”

“What made it so enjoyable?”

“Mark and Birdie love each other like crazy, and it was very cool to see them celebrate it. Birdie made sure the wedding was fun with a lot of great food, music, and drinks. It felt like the best party in the world celebrating two people who fell in love.”

“I know that’s what a wedding is supposed to be, but so often isn’t. People get caught up in the pomp and circumstance, and they forget what the whole thing is about.”

“Birdie and Mark never forgot it for a minute.” He climbed out of the car and walked around. Opening the door, he held out his hand. “This is going to be fun.”

Kissing his cheek, she stepped out of the car. “What a lovely home.” The two-story craftsman had a big porch that framed the front of the house. An impressive garden bloomed along the front porch with a small fountain off in the corner. “I should update the front of my house. This inspires me to put in a little more effort.”

“Had a few things on your plate. Can’t imagine that a garden has been on the top of your list.”

“I would like to change my life enough that I can think about my garden.”

“Working on it.”

She kissed his arm and squeezed. “I know. You’re the only thing that stands between me and utter despair.”

“Honey, I’ll stand between you and anything bad in the world.” The front door opened, and Mark stood in the doorway with a beautiful baby girl in his arms. Grady waved as they approached. “You’re lucky that your wife gave you such a beautiful baby,” he called out.

“Don’t I know it. Thank God Maddy inherited her looks from her mom.” Mark kissed his daughter’s head and smiled. “Madeline loves company.”

Mark shifted his daughter to the other arm and shook Grady’s hand. “Good to see you, man. It’s been too long.”

“Agreed.” Stepping behind Sara, he placed his hands on her shoulders. “I’d like you to meet my girlfriend, Sara.”

Sara held out her hand. “Lovely to meet you, Mark.”

“Are you sure that you want to tie yourself to this old sailor?”

Glancing over her shoulder, she winked at Grady. “Absolutely.”

Birdie walked up and smiled at the group. “Everyone come in.”

Mark stepped aside and looped his arm around Birdie. “We’re happy to have you.”

Sara greeted Birdie and exchanged hugs. “Thank you for having us. I’m looking forward to getting to know Grady’s friends.”

“I’ll tell you all the embarrassing stories from over the years. I have a lot of them,” Mark responded.

Birdie held out her arms for her daughter and shook her head. “If you tattle on him, then he gets to do the same. And I, for one, can live without hearing anymore tales from your wild past.”

“You like my wild side, no matter what you say.” Mark laughed.

Birdie shook her head and winked at Sara. “He likes to remind me of that whenever he gets the chance. Follow me and I’ll get you a drink. We can leave the men to their own devices.”

Mark clapped Grady on the back and led him into the house. “It’s good to see you.”

“Thanks for having us.” Grady glanced around as they walked into the kitchen. “Family life suits you.”

“I’m a lucky man. I married the love of my life, and she’s given us an amazing child to love. I never imagined that I would be this fortunate. I sometimes come into the house and wonder what I did to deserve this much happiness. My wife and daughter look at me with more love than I’m worthy of.”

“I’ll bet they feel the same way about you.”

“Yeah, Birdie likes to tell me how much she loves me about two or three times a day.” Shaking his head, he grinned. “I highly recommend the family life.”

“Working on it,” Grady responded.

“Congratulations. I thought that might be the case. You have the same look I did when I met Birdie.”

“What look is that?” Grady asked.

“The look that says you will do whatever is necessary to bind the woman in your arms to your side for the rest of your life.”

“Makes all those ops we were on look like a cakewalk.”

Mark laughed as they walked into the kitchen. “Ops were easy in comparison to this.”

Birdie handed Maddy to Mark and gave him a questioning look. “Are you saying that life-and-death missions were easier than family life?”

“Of course. The men all followed my orders, and we had a clear objective. You and Maddy hardly ever follow my directives, and working with you two is like herding cats.”

Maddy clapped her hands against her father’s face and made a raspberry sound. “Thanks, Mads. You proved my point perfectly.” When she leaned her head against his chest, everyone saw who the boss in the family was.

Birdie laughed and patted her husband’s back. “We’re a lot more fun, and we smell better.”

Mark rubbed his daughter’s back and shrugged. “That’s true.” He winked at Grady and Sara. “I like this fireteam a lot more than any of the other ones that I was on.”

Grady laughed and hoped like hell to be as lucky as Mark someday. Glancing over at Sara, he wondered if she would be willing to go all in once they took care of the mafia. He sure as hell hoped so, because he couldn’t imagine wanting anyone else to be on his fireteam. Taking her hand, he kissed her head. “You wouldn’t want it any other way.”

“That’s the truth,” Mark responded as he put his arm around Birdie. “I knew what I was in for the minute I spotted Birdie. Damn lucky I was right.”

***

Grady sat with Mark in the backyard while the ladies were inside giving Maddy a bath. It was fun to see Sara with the baby and how excited she was to hold her. It gave him ideas about what their future might look like together. “Are you and Birdie as happy as you seem?”