The Last Kiss (8 page)

Propping her chin up, her eyes barely met his and his heart pounded stronger every second she didn't answer. The hesitation that lingered in the air between them ate away his patience but forcing her to talk was useless. Forcing her would only cause her to shut down harder. He wanted to know, needed to know why. But how could he push her when every second he spent with her, felt like a dream?

“Raeve.....why did you wait so long?” he pushed.

 
                “Because I didn't want to get hurt again,” she confessed, turning from his gaze. “I don't know, maybe because secretly I was hoping for so long that I stood a snowball's chance in Hell to be with you.” Shit how could he have been so blind? Her haunted eyes held pain that he hadn't known before. Admitting to him her secret on blind faith, trusting him not to hurt her like her previous boyfriend. Letting out a sigh, he pulled Raeve into his arms, rolling her on top of him.

“Raeve, I won't hurt you like he did. That’s a promise.” Aidan prayed the resolve in his voice was enough to convince her to trust him, when in reality only time would show her. Kissing her softly, he promised her he wouldn't allow another human being to ever hurt her again. Silently vowing to be her protector, whether she wanted him to be or not.

“Never.”

~Chapter 9~

“Babe, food's getting cold.”

Raeve's playful tone carried down the hallway, and all Aidan could do was smirk. Climbing to his feet, dog tags and necklace in hand, Aidan made his way down to the kitchen where she was plating their food. He held back for a few moments, watching her twirl around like a ballerina to her music. He saw the light in her eyes spark as she rolled her body to the music like a belly dancer. Biting his lip, he wished he could watch her forever.

“Sweetheart.” He spoke softly, and stepped into the kitchen. “I have something for you.”

Stopping her mid twirl, plate of bacon and eggs in hand, he nudged her to the counter. “
Here.” He handed her the small black pouch, and her eyes shot up to his, concern and confusion seared across her features.

  
“What is it?” she asked shyly.

 
              “I want you to hold on to this for me until I return. It's my favorite.” Aidan pulled out a small black pouch and spilled free the silver necklace. The scorpion pedant landed in the palm of her small hand.

“It's beautiful, babe, but why? Why not leave it in your safe?”

   “Let's just say it's a ‘just in case thing’.”

He watched her expression twist into fury as she shook her head at him. He knew it was the last thing she’d want to hear, but he had to say it whether she wanted to hear it or not.

“No! None of this ‘just in case’ bullshit, you are coming back to me! That's final.”

  
“Sweetheart, I might not, and I want you to keep this in the event that I don't return.”

Her hands cupped his cheeks, for the first time the searing heat of her touch burned him. “You will come back to me. Understand? Because if you don't, I will track you down in the land of death and beat the holy hell out of you.”

Biting back a laugh, he knew she was serious, and the idea of her in red leather and brass knuckles set fire to his body in a completely different way. Raeve meant what she said, and his body yearned to see just that. “Sure, sweetheart.”

Watching her clutch the silver necklace to her heart, he almost wished he could keep a piece of her tucked away in his footlocker, just as his reminder. “And there's this.” He slipped his dog tag into her other hand, Raeve knew what he was handing her before she even looked at it. Biting her lip, her eyes refused to look down at the small piece of metal.

“I thought you gave this to Jake,” she said curtly.

                   “Won't you need your tags?”

“No. Nothing that can be linked to who we are, that means no jewelry, no mementos, nothing.” His voice was eerily calm, even to himself, but he needed her to grasp the severity of this mission. He considered his next tour as his possible last, given the fact he had only a fifty-fifty chance of survival. Her beautiful natural blush disappeared. Realizing that the odds were stacked against him coming back alive, the sickening twist in his gut grew. Watching her with a careful eye as Raeve slumped
back, , he could feel she was off. Within moments a clammy sheen covered her paled out skin, as his words sank in. Regret smothered him like a wet blanket as he cursed himself for ever agreeing to take this mission.

“I want to you hold on to this. Keep it safe.” Curling his hand over hers, it took every ounce of his will to stop himself from going AWOL.

***

Raeve felt another wave of tears stinging the back of her eyes as she thumbed the punched sheet metal. Clutching it to her heart, words failed to come to her. She wanted to scream, to beg him not to go. The cold hard reality slapped her in the face when she finally gazed upon his tags. “I―I can't…take these. They mean too much, you should give them to your sister.”

“I did, she has the other. This one is for you to hold on to.”

   “I thought you gave these to Jake, that's what you told me.” Her eyes stared at his with an accusation that had to sting, as her heart raced and her hands shook. He closed the gap between them, pulling her into his arms. Softly he brushed his knuckles over her trembling cheek, as he pressed a kiss into her hair

“Jake and I exchanged our first set of tags when we came back from Kuwait. I had these made up before I went back. They've been with me for a long time, Raeve. Now they're yours. I'll always be with you. Always, just remember that.” Aidan smoothed a kiss over her lips.

Raeve longed to kiss him back, but the sadness crept back in and nestled deep in her heart.

With some effort she shook her head clear. This wasn't what she wanted to hear. “I don't need tokens like this, dammit! What I need
is you, by my side, every freaking day until we die!” She felt the hysteria welling up, trying to tamp it down would end up being a losing battle, and she knew it. She closed her eyes against the truth Looking at him, so calm and deadly serious, was just too much to handle. She wasn't prepared for him to say his goodbyes, not when there was so much more life to live…together.

He tried to sooth her and
calm her worried mind, but there was no changing the reality of the situation. Thumbing her tears away angrily, Raeve pushed herself off the counter and stalked off to her bedroom.

“Sweetheart, please. Don't walk away.” He begged, reaching for her as she went past.

   “Aidan, I need to be alone right now. Please, just let me be,” she cried. “I just can't do this right now.” Closing the door behind her and shutting him out was the hardest thing she had ever done. She refused to let him watch as she broke into a withering mess. There was no eloquence in her fall to the bed. Burying her head in her arms, the ripples of sadness shuddered throughout her body.

She didn’t hear the door open, or anything he may have said, but the needed warmth of his body as he lay down beside her eased her. Welcoming the unwanted intrusion, his arms wrapped around her curled body.

“I'm sorry.” she murmured through tear thickened voice. “I'm so sorry, Aidan. I'm fine.” Lie. She knew it, as she wiped away the wet traitors streaking down her face.

“
Shh, it's all right. I don't expect you to be okay with this. Believe me, if I had any other choice, I wouldn't go. The idea of leaving this bed itself is maddening.”

Rolling over to face him, she watched his eyes trace over every curve of her features. Thumbing over his lip, Raeve pecked a small kiss on the curve of his jaw as she held his tag close to her heart.

“I love you.” the words were so effortless to say, yet filled with years of meaning. She just needed those years to stretch out for many more. The very first time she’d spoken those three little words, she never expected that the meaning behind them would grow as it had.

“I remember the first time you told me you were in love with me.” Aidan spoke with utter sincerity as he stroked her cheek. “That was the second happiest moment of my life, well at that point.”

“What was the first?” There was no smile in her voice, only a detached sense of wonder.

  
“The first time we made love. You remember? At the hotel in Texas?”

Her returning smile barely lifted as she recalled those moments before she boarded her flight home.

“Yeah, I remember.”

    ~Chapter Ten~

Texas 1999

They had spent the afternoon visiting his base, meeting the wary stares of his friends in his platoon. As day carried on into night, and music littered the air at the Rusty Saloon, Raeve felt the heat of Aidan's stare on her while she danced. Swaying her hips to the rhythm as she silently coaxed him to join her on the dance floor. Words were pointless, the speakers bellowed out music set on a 'blow your eardrums out' level. The shiny slinky material of her dress hugged every curve of her body as she twisted and writhed to the electronic beats. Her heated gaze burned into his as her glossy red lips coyly begged him to join her.

Reluctantly he rose to his feet. Raeve knew all too well the things he was good at, dancing wasn't one of them. Skilled martial arts fighter and trained protector sure, but Fred Astaire, he wasn't. Sidling up close to his rigid body, she wasn’t about to let the night get away from her, even if it meant dancing for his eyes only. Her eyes locked onto his like heat seeking missiles as she watched in delight as heat flared off him in droves the moment her body rolled sinuously up to his. Slipping her arms around his neck, her body arched into his, demanding attention. Her fiery gaze glinted from the pulsing lights, as one hand slid shamelessly down to his chest.

She moved her body effortlessly, slinking around him like she was stalking her prey in a seductive version of The Huntsman. Rolling her hips across his, she felt his hard-on through the thick layer of denim which she was tempted to strip off his body. Her flesh felt alive and tight sensing the heat rolling off him in droves. Capturing his mouth, her wanting tongue sliced savagely between his lips. It had been hours since Aidan had rolled her body beneath his, filling her to the brink of sanity. But she needed more. She needed to feel him deep inside her again, consuming her with greedy need. Curling her slender fingers around his neck, Raeve pulled him to her lips while she explored every crevasse of his decadent mouth with her tongue.

The fire that pooled between her thighs burned hotter than before. She had known how Aidan could rule her body with one simple touch, but the way his ocean-blue eyes burned her with intensity had her heart pounding out of her chest. Like an addict seeking their next fix, Raeve felt utterly helpless against the way he made her feel. She craved him, and the hunger grew with every touch of his electric fingers on her sensitive skin. Every time he crushed his lips over hers, or embraced her protectively against his body, screamed of his longing for her. But it was the long hard stalk of his cock pinned between them that caused her essence to swell. He wanted her, and he wasn't hiding that fact. Couldn't hide it as the rigid length pressed against her abdomen.

Staring into his eyes, as the din of voices and music disappeared around them, she silently begged him to take her right then and there. Her breath caught the moment his fingers swept over her cheek.

“Do you want to go?” he asked.

By the tick in his jaw and the possessiveness of his hold, Raeve knew what he was really saying. 'I need you spread wide before me, I need to feel you scream as I delve deeply into your wanting body.' His thoughts spoke volumes through the windows of his brilliant eyes.

Nodding her head in agreement, she brushed her lips over his once more, nipping his lower lip. She didn't need words to say it; the intensity of her eyes penetrating him said all that needed to be said. Slowly she twisted from his arms. The heat from him scorched her like a wildfire had erupted. Her head buzzed, with visions of his body covering hers, filling her up and showering her with every pleasure possible. Smiling, Raeve delighted in seeing Aidan settle in his resolve the moment she took his hand in hers and led him from the building.

The humid air prickled her heated skin with the first rush of the night air. Her heart thundered in her ears as she begged time to stop, so she could relish the live-wire feeling. As he pulled her closer, Raeve felt the strong protectiveness he harbored for her. Aidan’s hand was clamped tightly around hers, making her insides jump. With gentle urgency, he pulled the door open for her, but she couldn't bear the idea of waiting in anticipation of his next kiss.

Wrapping her arms around his neck, Raeve pulled him down to her, crashing her lips to his. Aidan had lit the fuse, and she wasn't ready to tamp it out. Crushing her body to his, Aidan wrapped his thick muscled arms around her back, gingerly running his fingers up the length of her spine. The delightful way she arched her back as small moans spilled from her lips splintered any waning control they tried to hold on to.

“Get in the truck,” he panted.
“Not here, not like this.” In a swift movement, Aidan settled Raeve into her seat, pressing one more kiss to her sultry lips.

Though it had only been hours since Raeve had felt the mind splintering effects of his touch, it felt more like weeks had passed, and her body ached to feel that delicious explosion that rocked her body.

Climbing into the truck, Aidan’s eyes stayed transfixed on her as slammed his key into the ignition without thought. She felt the heat roll off him as he radiated sexual desire. He stared at her with an unrelenting gaze that promised a night of carnal worship to the likes she had never known. Under the neon lights, his cheeks seemed to glow with his blush. Raeve sensed his need as plainly as she saw his arousal buck beneath his zipper. Smiling as she watched him with the same intent stare as he licked over the spot she had bitten. Her breath stammered from her chest as he slid the truck into drive and jolted forward.

She had no concept of time as they drove past the town's center. She could have sworn hours had passed, though the drone of music hadn't changed. The midnight air that drifted through the truck sent a shiver down her back, though Raeve wasn't entirely convinced it was just the wind causing it. She couldn't remember the
moment they pulled into the hotel's parking lot. Drinking up the sight of him, Raeve could barely take her eyes off his impish smile.

“We're here.”

The erotic drawl of his words vibrated through her as she reached for the door handle.

“Wait,” he softly commanded.

Jumping out of the truck, Aidan carelessly slammed his door shut and headed over to hers.

“Such a gentleman.”
She winked as he opened the door.

When he offered her his hand, she slid her palm over his and started to climb out. The moment her feet it the pavement, he pulled her to his chest. Circling his arms around her, Aidan lifted any doubts she had ever held. It was in this one moment, she felt free. Free to be
herself. Free to just be a woman in love. She couldn’t miss the tornado of butterflies flying carelessly around in her stomach. Her heart swelled a little more each time he brushed his fingers across her cheeks. His lips trembled as he lowered a hungry kiss onto hers. The fire coursing through her veins made her body quiver as she sank deeply in to his kiss.

Wrapping her arms around his neck tightly, Raeve sagged into his embrace, as he urgently sliced his hot tongue inside her mouth. She
realized it wasn’t a matter of if she wanted him; no it was much more carnal and dire. She needed to feel him; every inch of his skin covering hers lit every nerve in her body. Her skin prickled with goosebumps as she took their kiss even deeper. Visions of his chiseled body standing before her wearing nothing but a towel loosely hung around his hips flashed through her mind. Her hands couldn't find enough of his flesh to purchase as she ran her fingers over the stony striations of his broad chest.

The low growl that rumbled through his lips sent another wave of need coursing through her body. The suite seemed too far away, and she needed him, deep within her core, needed to feel Aidan fill her up until she cried out in ecstasy. Her hands slipped lower over his belt, quickly freeing the leather bind to expose his button and fly. Breaking from her kiss, Aidan's eyes gazed feverishly into hers. His dark, half-lidded stare shattered the last of her control.

Brushing his lips over her skin until he reached her ear, his deep voice pleaded with her to stop. “I'm ready to explode sweetheart,” he growled.

“Then I guess
it’s best that we get you inside…”

  
                 “Yes,” he agreed breathlessly.

Cocking her brow, Raeve smirked, “…of me.” Coyly, she slipped his hand between her thighs.
“I―I…oh God, Aidan…yes.” His fingers grazed over the sensitive button of her clit, working it in small circles. Pressing her back against the cool metal of the truck, her shuddering body coiled around him as he taunted her with the delicious sensations his fingers were causing.

“Is this what you want?” he drawled, sucking in air through his teeth. His body blasted her with another round of inferno fire, deliciously burning her as she writhed against his touch. “Tell me you want me,” he urged.
The seductive rasp of his voice, so dark and deep sounding punched her straight between the thighs as she gripped his arms for dear life. She couldn't think, she could barely breathe as he grazed over the silk covering her smoldering essence.

“Tell me…or I'll stop,” he growled in her ear.

                “I want you,” she panted. Pulling back to stare him down, the darkness in her eyes fell away as lust consumed her.

             
“Now,” she growled. Her teeth gnashed together, and the primal need to devour and be consumed in return, tore away any rational sense she had left.

He didn't spare her a second
glance, quickly he scooped her up into his arms and stalked toward their suite. Her breasts shuddered with every breath, and she shivered each time he nuzzled her neck. His lips barely brushed over the small beating of her pulse as he pulled out the card key to enter.

“How badly?” he pressed.

The burning heat of her stare shot him a knowing glare, as she licked her way up to the soft curve of his ear. “Bad,” she taunted.

Though the room was dark, silvery streams of moonlight shimmed through the curtains, hitting the floor. His surefooted steps carried them over the threshold, and with one swift movement he kicked the door shut. They were once again alone, and her lips begged to taste his once again. She couldn't wait, didn't want to. Cupping his face between her palms, Raeve stared squarely into his eyes as she lowered her lips to his. “I've wanted you
all night.”

***

As dawn's early light splintered through the crimson curtains, Raeve's heart thrummed like a hummingbird in flight. Everything since she had arrived had seemed too perfect. Felt too perfect.
Every stolen glance now lasted longer. Every soft kiss, full of love and sensuality, quickly tumbled into urgency. The past two days had flown by, with hours to go before her flight, every part of her felt alive. Each time he touch her, a renewed feeling of electricity coursed through her veins.

She had learned so much more, being with him like this. Aidan guarded her like a sentinel with his protective nature whenever they had gone out. He had shown her nothing but kindness, to the point of denying himself until she had her fill. With each new memory, her heart fluttered more. She didn't want to fall in love, but somehow she hadn't just fallen, but jumped in feet first.

Her body ached deliciously from head to toe as she settled against the pillows. The heat rolled off his body even while he slept, providing her with all the warmth she ever thought she'd need. His arm wrapped around her waist as he curled around her. His soft snore and quiet murmurs as he slept filled the void of silence lingering in the still room. She tried in vain to make out what he was saying, but only caught clips and fragments. Casting a small smile, she held his arm tighter, interlacing her fingers through his. The suppleness his of skin pressed against hers felt like heaven as she nestled against him.

He had sinfully tormented and pleasured her body in so many ways, filling her up in ways she had never known possible, and still she craved more.
Greedily so. Closing her eyes, her thoughts drifted to dreams of a future, where she awoke every morning in his arms. Where no one else, and nothing else mattered. Just a private oasis made for the two of them. She was going to miss this. The quiet moments wrapped up together in their solitude. Glancing at the clock, a sudden sadness pricked her. She was just a few hours away from leaving the man she felt beating inside every chamber of her heart.

Dawn had barely skimmed across the horizon as she lay quietly next to him. Her body begged for sleep, yet her mind fought the idea off violently, as she prayed with everything she had this wasn't to be the last time she was with him. He was just a few weeks away from deployment. Although he tried to make light of it, she saw the same worry in his eyes that she felt deep in her heart. She knew there had been a possibility of it, but she hadn't expected to fall hopelessly in-love with him. She had hoped this trip would have proven that all her late night musings about him were just silly ideas she had concocted. Instead it convinced her of her true feelings.

For all the hours they had spent on the phone, all the sweet letters he had written her, telling her how much he missed her each day, she had prayed for the strength to let him down gently. Her will crumbled the moment he held her close. She hadn't wanted to fall in love, especially not to someone who may not be here tomorrow, but she was lost to him.