Tangled Pursuit (5 page)

It was a year after Brian had died when Wyatt Lockwood first penetrated her defenses and made her feel things a normal woman would feel. She’d been over at the recreation hall, swimming in the large pool in her one-piece black swimsuit. She’d literally bumped into Wyatt, who was working with some Afghan children at the shallow end of the pool. He was dressed in a pair of long swim trunks that came almost to his knees, bare-chested and total eye candy.

She’d been in deep grieving, and yet that first time she met Wyatt, her heart opened, sending warmth throughout her chest, making her aware of her body, her hormones, and her needs for the first time in a year. She hung around, but not too obviously, and watched him with that group of little Afghan boys, teaching them how to swim. She found herself yearning to go down there and watch him work with the children, who adored him. His smile was frequent, and the funny faces and expressions he made had the Afghan children rocking with laughter, squealing and splashing water on him. She ached to meet him, and somehow he must have known that.

After he’d spent an hour teaching the children, he climbed out of the water, threw a white towel around those broad shoulders of his, and came down her way. He’d introduced himself, sat down on the edge of the pool, and made her feel like she wanted to live once more. Wyatt loved children; that was clear. And she was powerfully drawn to his boyish demeanor, that sexy Texas drawl of his, and the amusement that always glinted in his eyes. Like Brian, he took life easy and didn’t get into a snit about the little things like so many others, including she, did.

And then he had leaned over and kissed her lightly on the lips, jarring her. Shocking her. Giving her a burning look, Wyatt told her that he was going to make a habit of being around her a lot more often. It was later that same week that Tal had seen Wyatt with her brother, Matt, and realized they were good friends. Then she learned he was a Navy chief, an enlisted person. She was an officer. And the two just couldn’t mix. Tal tried to tell herself that that was the reason to ignore Wyatt and push him out of her life. But in truth? Brian had been enlisted too, and she’d fallen hopelessly in love with the man. And maybe that was what scared her so much, why she was always running away from Lockwood: he drew her like a powerful magnet that she couldn’t resist.

Tal took a minute to get herself together. No point in spoiling this rare time with her brother and sister just because she was messed up emotionally. She shifted to a plea, knowing they’d go for it. “Come on, guys. You have to admit that I’m always the logical one among us.” Turning to her sister, she added, “And I’m realistic, Alexa. I know you fall in love easily. I don’t. I’ve always said you had a Teflon heart, and I didn’t get one at birth like you did.”

Alexa’s mouth curved. “You sound jealous, Tal. I can’t help it if I’m a romantic and I’m able to deal with breakups or changes in a relationship. I wouldn’t give up my positive, idealistic attitude for anything. And just because I haven’t found a relationship that sticks like glue doesn’t mean I’m locking myself away in a tower, either. We normal folks aren’t meant to be alone.”

Tal, eyeing Alexa, responded calmly, “Li’l sis, we just have different career responsibilities. Maybe if I was in an air war instead of a ground war, I might be more like you. But I’m not.” Tal had lost her idealism about ground-war combat a long time ago. Alexa was up in the sky, safe from seeing the blood, hearing the screams of a man dying, smelling the stench of death, watching a child bleeding out after stepping on an IED, an improvised explosive device.

Alexa sighed and shook her head, giving her a warm look. “You have always been the serious, responsible one of us, Tal. But then, you’re firstborn, so you can’t help it.”

Why did she have the feeling Alexa felt sorry for her? Matt, too, was giving her a compassionate look, but Matt didn’t mess around with women like Lockwood did. He had essentially shut himself away from relationships because of the kind of job he had.

Alexa’s air war, on the other hand, gave her lots of free time on a nice, cushy base, with lots of good-looking Air Force dudes around. And because she was a guy magnet, Alexa was always the object of every man’s attention, enlisted or officer. She wasn’t a flirt, however. She was simply one of those people who brought sunlight into every life that she touched.

Matt said, turning to Tal with a pleading look, “Wyatt is a decent person, Tal. I’ve been out with him on plenty of ops and I’d trust him with my life. And you know I don’t say that kind of thing lightly.”

“That might be true, but as a woman, I’m not impressed with a guy I see tomcatting around the base as soon as he gets off an op. Ever seen him in that kind of action?”

“Wyatt believes in living life to the fullest,” Matt rationalized. “It’s not my way, but I don’t condemn the guy, either. It isn’t like he’s going around jumping women. He’s got enough women standing in line who want his attention. He doesn’t have to look far, believe me.”

“I can see why,” Alexa sighed, resting her chin in her hand. “Right now, he’s pretty scruffy-looking, but you know what? He oozes sensuality. I mean, it’s pretty awesome. I haven’t seen many men like him with that kind of charisma.”

“How lucky can I get?” Tal asked snappishly, and was immediately sorry because her siblings gave her a reproving look.

“He brings out your bitchy side,” Alexa said thoughtfully. “Wyatt must
really
be getting under your skin.” And then she gave her a sunny smile and reached out, patting Tal’s hand. “Or into your pants? And if he hasn’t yet, why not give him a try? I really think you need some great wall-banging sex and some heavy-duty orgasms to get him out of your system, Tal. And he’d be just the guy to give you all that and more. Four years without sex is a terrible dry spell to endure. That would be my worst nightmare.”

Matt rolled his eyes. “I’m staying out of this one. You women get down and dirty a hell of a lot more than a bunch of men talking about sex ever do.”

Tal gave him a laconic look.

Alexa raised one brow, nodded to Tal, and grinned brightly.

CHAPTER 3

I
T WAS NEARLY
dark when Wyatt caught sight of Tal heading away from the chow hall. She was probably going to the women’s area of the B-huts. These were barracks huts made from plywood, with a small room for each of the four officers living in them. Each room contained a cot, a dresser, a window, and an air conditioner. The walls were paper-thin, and any
thunk-thunk
on the plywood floor would wake up anyone else in the hut.

Wyatt had visited the barber after seeing Tal at breakfast and gotten cleaned up. He’d trimmed his beard, had his shaggy hair shaped a little, and then taken a long, hot shower. That was what he looked forward to the most—a hot shower to loosen the kinks out of his sore, stiff muscles. Now, wearing a clean day uniform that consisted of a long-sleeved shirt and cammies, he felt human again. He walked silently, like all SEALs, sure that the good Marine captain couldn’t hear him approach her from behind. Wyatt didn’t want to scare the hell out of her, but everyone in their business was hypervigilant.

“Hey,” he called softly, wanting to catch her attention but not have her reach for that pistol on her thigh. “How are you feeling now, Captain?”

Tal jerked to a halt and spun around, her hand automatically going for the damned pistol. Even in the dusk, Wyatt could see the fear and shock in her narrowing eyes, her palm automatically coming to rest on the butt of her safed .45. He smiled and held up his hands, leaving a good six feet between them.

“Hey, I’m unarmed, darlin’,” he teased in his drawl. He saw her eyes move to his two drop holsters with SIGs in them.

“You’re
never
unarmed, Chief,” Tal muttered, pulling her hand away from the butt of her .45 pistol and slowly straightening to her full six feet.

He lowered his hands, allowing them to rest easily on his hips as he studied her in the dusk. The entrance to the B-hut was a good hundred feet away. She couldn’t just turn, slip into it, and slam the door in his face.
Not this time.

He noticed that her voice was sharp with adrenaline, and he felt guilty for alarming her. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare the bejesus out of you.” He hitched a thumb toward the chow hall in the distance. “I spotted you coming from chow and thought I’d intercept you, see how you’re feelin’ after your coughing and choking episode.”

Well, that was half true. It was a good reason to get her to drop that icy shield she kept around her. The fear dissolved in her eyes, replaced by a spark of anger. Why?

“I’m fine,” she muttered, the tension bleeding out of her. “Now leave me alone, please.”

He adopted his old cowboy slouch and said, “Hey, I’d like to take you out for pizza and beer some night. If you’re like me, you could use some downtime after those last ops we were on . . .”

“Are you crazy? I’m not going anywhere with you, Lockwood.” She couldn’t believe his gall. Hadn’t he gotten the point yet?
She wasn’t interested!
Well, that wasn’t quite true. Her body sure as hell was interested in the lanky, casual SEAL, but her heart? That was wholly another matter. Tal wasn’t a love-’em-and-leave-’em type; she was never interested in one-night stands. What interested her was a long-term, serious relationship. And she knew Wyatt Lockwood wasn’t interested in that sort of ongoing affair.

He looked down at himself and then up at her. “Crazy? Not since the last time I checked. Why not go out with me?”

Okay, so sweet-talking wasn’t going to work. Wyatt knew they had simmering chemistry between them. It had always been there. He wasn’t a SEAL for nothing. They went after what they wanted. He straightened and walked right up to her, took her gently by the arm, and led her over to the side of the materials and supply building, placing her back against it. This way, she had no place to go, since he was standing a foot away from her, looking into her shocked eyes.

Taking her completely by surprise, he said, “I really like you, Captain, but you won’t even let me get my foot in the door. It’s been three years now, so you can’t say I’m not patient. So satisfy my curiosity, okay? What’s going on here?”

Unsettled by his bluntness, she took a minute to get her thoughts together and came up with the most important reason first. “It’s obvious, even if it’s escaped your notice. I’m an officer and you’re enlisted, and never the twain shall meet. You know those are the rules, even if you are a stubborn damn SEAL and think you can break rules whenever it suits you.”

She reminded him of a cornered female bobcat, all hisses, spits, and growls. “That’s never stopped me before, and it shouldn’t stop you, either.” He looked around the base, watching the night throw its shadowy cape across the busy desert Army base. Returning his gaze to her, he said, “I know a number of safe places here on base where a man and woman who want total privacy can get it.”

“I’ll just bet you do,” Tal retorted, her fists clenched at her sides. “Listen carefully, Lockwood. I want nothing to do with you. Period. Does that compute?”

He took off his baseball cap and scratched his combed hair. “Well, no, not exactly, darlin’.”

Her fine nostrils flared and her voice quivered. “Don’t you dare call me that word. Save that for all the other women you routinely chase around here.”

His brows rose. “Ahhh, my legendary reputation has preceded me. Well, I’d like to share my philosophy with you—”

“Don’t bother! Matt told me all about your ‘living for today’ attitude.”

“It’s a good philosophy, don’t you think?” He allowed a hint of a smile to leak from his mouth, wanting to kiss the hell out of those petulant, full lips of hers. Had anyone ever told this woman how sexy, how earthy and sensual she was beneath that godawful uniform she wore? Just because she was a Marine didn’t mean she wasn’t sexual.

“No! I don’t do sex for sex’s sake, so get me off your radar, Chief Lockwood.”

“Now,” he crooned in his best drawl, “the woman I want to take to bed and make love to is my whole world. She’s the only thing on my radar, darlin’. I want to hear her talk, listen to the tenor of her voice, feel how soft her skin is, how responsive she is when I start to please her. My woman is all I live for in that moment. Nothing else exists for me except her heart, her soul, and what I can do to please her.”

“Ugh,” Tal muttered, wishing she could gut-punch him so he’d move and leave her alone.

Wyatt thought he saw arousal in her eyes when he dropped to that low, soft drawl, kind of like a croon, and he knew the effect it had on women. He wondered if she was damp between her thighs yet. How he’d like to run his hand between her legs and find out. “I don’t see anything wrong with wanting to please my women, do you?” he said, and remained where he was. Wyatt knew if he reached out to touch her right now, she’d probably deck him.

He’d wanted to test Tal to see just how deep her supposed revulsion toward him really was. There was a slim possibility that she really didn’t want him, but he thought the chances were between low and none. “You know,” he continued, “there’s more than just sex between a man and a woman. There’s the sharing of genuine feelings. And the best part is when they like each other as well as have a great time in bed together.”

He saw her drag in a ragged breath. His hands itched to follow the curve of those breasts, to feel their heat and touch her nipples, which by his calculations were already hard right now.

“Step back,” she ordered, her eyes narrowing. Tal couldn’t go there. She just couldn’t, even though her damned body was being a traitor, falling for Lockwood’s seduction. The man clearly knew how to get a woman’s full and undivided attention. And worse, she liked that he was fully, intensely focused on no one but her. Absorbing him, that glint in his eyes, his shadowy features, wildly aware of the male heat rolling off him, she wanted to try to disregard her fearful heart. It had been shattered with the death of Brian, and it had nearly broken her as a result. She never wanted to endure that kind of pain again.