The Elite: The Complete Series of Boomer and Player (With Bonus) (18 page)

I arched up to kiss him and he replaced my fingers with his own, using his two fingertips to hum out a vibration on my clit that had me clawing my way up his back as a powerful orgasm ripped through my body.

By the time I was laying still on the bed, still panting and shivering in the aftermath, Jack was ready to go again. He grinned down at me when my eyebrows shot up in response. “You weren’t going to sleep tonight anyways.”

* * * *

He was right, neither one of us slept that night, and while most of it was spent making love, there were quiet, tender moments in between that were full of long stares, our eyes saying the things we couldn’t bring ourselves to vocalize. Even without losing hours to sleep, the morning still came all too soon. When the sun started to peek through the blinds, I rolled over to face Jack. He traced a line down the side of my face and let his hand rest on my shoulder.

“What time do you have to leave?” I asked, not wanting to hear the answer, because no matter if it was an hour or six, it wouldn’t leave us enough time to say goodbye.

Jack glanced at the bedside clock. “Soon. I have to get back to the base by eight.”

“I already hate this.”

“I know.”

I sighed and relaxed my head down to his chest. He tightened his hold on me and kissed my forehead. We lingered as long as we could, neither of us wanting to be the one to finally pull away, but eventually, Jack’s strong arms loosened around me and I rolled away.

We both dressed in silence. There was nothing left to say. All the plans and promises had already been made. All that was left, was goodbye.

Jack led the way downstairs and called Princess over to him at the front door. “I’d invite you to go with me to Rosen’s, but I think it might make this even harder.”

I nodded, begrudgingly agreeing. “Bye girl,” I said, leaning over to kiss Princess on the head. She wagged her tail. “Hunter will miss you too.”

When I straightened, Jack pulled me into his arms and held me against his chest for a long time, our hearts racing together. The words I wanted to say were sitting on the tip of my tongue, but I couldn’t choke them out.

“Holly,” Jack said, pulling back slightly so I could see his face. “I want you to know that meeting you has been the best thing that has ever happened, and I can’t wait to get home and see where this goes.”

“Me too,” I said, unable to get my voice over a faint whisper, without the tears brimming in my eyes slipping loose.

Jack kissed me and I couldn’t hold them back anymore. My lips trembled as Jack’s moved over mine. When we parted, it was in slow motion, and his thumbs went to my cheeks to wipe away the tears.

He kissed me once more on the lips, dropped a kiss to my forehead, and then released me. I followed him out to the porch and watched as he loaded Princess into the passenger seat. He stopped, his hand resting on the driver’s door. “Goodbye, Holly.”

I smiled up at him, blinking away the tears. “You mean, see you soon.”

Jack nodded. “You’re right. See you soon.”

He saluted me and got into the car. I stood on the front steps, paralyzed as he drove away. My muscles were weak and tingling, like the feeling after a long workout, all the energy sapped, and when his Camaro rounded the corner and drove out of sight, I collapsed down onto the top step.

A scratching sound startled me, and I twisted around to see a brown paw poking through the front door that I’d left cracked open. Hunter’s nose popped out next, and he waddled over to sit next to me, offering a lick on the cheek as I wrapped my arms around him.

“It’s okay, Hunter. He’ll be back.” I nodded to myself. “He has to, because I’m pretty sure I’m in love with that man.”

I hadn’t been able to say it to him when he was in front of me, the words still too large to say out loud, but as I stared up the road, I knew it was true and when I was back in his arms—I might be ready to let him know.

Continued in
Boomer - The Elite Part Two
releasing on March 16th! If you would like a friendly reminder on release day,
CLICK HERE
to sign up!

Boomer - The Elite

Part Two

By

KB Winters

Copyright © 2016 BookBoyfriends Publishing LLC

Published By: BookBoyfriends Publishing LLC

Copyright and Disclaimer

This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination and have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

Copyright © 2016 BookBoyfriends Publishing LLC

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of the trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

Dedication

This book is dedicated to the brave men and women of our armed services who put their life on the line everyday to protect our freedom.

Thank you for your service.

~ KB

Chapter One

Holly

Leaving Holiday Cove was far more difficult than I’d anticipated. As I drove back down the 101, the sun was overhead, and each bend in the road revealed breathtaking glimpses of the warm sand and sparkling Pacific Ocean below. The weather was perfect and serene. But inside, my heart had never been more dark and stormy. Every mile tugged at me, amplifying my emotions until there was a physical ache in my chest. The problem wasn’t that I was leaving behind the picturesque beachside town that I’d been staying at for the past two weeks. Or even that I’d be back to my daily grind the next day and picking up where I’d left off before hitting pause on my life to take a two-week vacation. It was more than that.

So much more.

As I watched Holiday Cove fade from sight in the rearview mirror, the assortment of memories that Jack and I had created there were also fading, leaving me wondering if what had happened was real—or if it had all been some kind of waking dream.

Despite my best efforts, I couldn’t stay focused on the road ahead or the gorgeous ocean view to the right. My mind remained engrossed in the small beachside house and the early morning goodbye with Jack on the front porch. Surprisingly, those whispered goodbyes had been one of the hardest moments of my life. I’d prepared myself the best I could, but in the end, there was nothing I could’ve done to brace for the impact of the overwhelming sadness of watching Jack drive away.

Hunter, my chocolate lab puppy, whined from the back seat. The low whimper pulled me from my musings, and I flicked the rearview mirror down to check on him. I smiled at the soulful blue eyes that met mine in the mirror. “Don’t worry, boy. We’ll be okay.” He put his face down between his front paws, his eyes still shifted in my direction. “You missing Princess?” I asked, the sound of her name hitting me in the chest, as a memory of her running beside Jack on the beach the first day we met, popped into my mind.

Hunter whined again and my heart twisted. “Me too, buddy.”

I sighed and adjusted the mirror back up and refocused on the road. After a little while, I turned on the radio, in hopes that a little music would ease both of our minds. A few songs in and the radio cut out, a soft beep alerting me of an incoming call. I glanced down at the touch screen display on the dash and smiled at Jack’s name and number in bold print.

“Hey handsome,” I answered with one push of a button.

“Hey pretty girl,” Jack’s smooth voice filled the car through the Bluetooth speaker system. My body warmed at the smile that was audible in his tone. “Whatcha doing?”

“Hunter and I are still on the road.” I glanced in the mirror and smirked as Hunter struggled to sit up on the backseat. He wasn’t opposed to car rides, but he was definitely clumsy when the car was in motion. It was something like the doggy equivalent of finding one’s sea legs out on a boat. “Are you back at the base?”

“Just checked in with my Commander and getting settled back at home. I have about a thousand things to do in the next two days.”

I laughed softly. “I hear you. I’m dreading that first attempt to clean out my voicemail back at the office tomorrow morning. That’s gonna be a hoot.”

“Aww, I’m sure you can handle it,” Jack replied, chuckling. “Maybe you need to hire an assistant?”

“You want an application?” I asked, smirking.

Jack laughed loudly and I laid my head back, letting the sound of his voice wash over me. “Depends. Tell me about the benefits?”

His suggestive tone sent a flash of heat over my skin. I smiled, marveling at how he could make me laugh so much, and then moments later, have me blushing like some kind of virginal schoolgirl. No one had ever made me feel that way before. This was all new to me.

I laughed. “Well, for starters, I’d imagine you’d get unlimited kisses, occasional back rubs for a job well done, and on top of all that, I only buy really expensive coffee.”

“Sounds like a sweet gig. I especially like the kissing part, although I’d have to push that boundary a little farther.” I shivered again at his words and the images they stirred inside me. “How about I get back to you in six months and let you know?” His voice was still light and teasing, but my smile faded at the reminder that he was really leaving. Within days, he’d be on an air craft carrier, out in the big blue sea, to fight with his squad in the Middle East, taking on terrorists and keeping our forces safe.

I still couldn’t get over the timing of everything. The odds that I’d finally meet someone who could even make me consider letting down my guard long enough to get to know them, let alone start to fall for them, was a feat in itself. Then, to have it be Jack, on a vacation a few hours from home, when he was preparing to ship out with his Naval unit for a dangerous deployment overseas.

The whole thing was inexplicable.

“Holly?” Jack’s voice pulled me back to reality. “It’s going to be okay. I promised, remember?”

I nodded, my throat suddenly thick. “Uh-huh.”

It was all I could manage.

“I should get going. But I’ll catch up with you later tonight. Text me when you get back to your place so I’ll know you’re safe. Will you do that?”

“Yeah. I will.”

“Okay, beautiful girl. I’ll talk to you soon. Be safe.”

“I will. Goodbye, Jack.”

I clicked off the call and sucked in a long, slow breath. Doing my best not to give in to the tears pricking at my eyes.

* * * *

“Welcome home!” Rachel greeted us, her voice loud and celebratory as soon as Hunter and I got inside my condo later that afternoon. Hunter tugged hard enough that I dropped his leash and he bounded over to where Rachel had just jumped off the couch. “Huntey! Oh, how’s my favorite little troublemaker?” She squatted down next to Hunter and laughed as he answered by licking every inch of her face.

I smiled as I watched their reunion. “You’d think it had been years since he saw you,” I commented, rolling my suitcase inside the door and pushing it against the entry way wall.

“I guess in dog years…” Rachel answered, still giggling. She patted his head and stood up again. He tried to jump up, but she nudged him down and he tore off down the hall, sniffing everything like it was his first time in the house. “I’d hug you, but I’m pretty well coated in slime here.”

I held up my hands and laughed. “Yeah, I’m good.”

Truthfully, living with Hunter meant dog hair was a permanent accessory that went with every outfit. I followed as Rachel went into the kitchen to wash her hands at the sink. She tossed her head as she scrubbed. “Your mail is over there.”

I crossed to the opposite counter and gathered the small pile into my hands. I flipped through the stack casually. None of it looked pressing. Mostly the same junk everyone gets. Credit card offers, coupon flyers for local businesses, and a couple of statements that still came to me no matter how many times I’d opted for paperless billing. I sighed and set it all back on the counter.

Rachel flipped the water off and dried her hands on the kitchen towel before turning back around to face me as I leaned against the counter. She smirked and raised an eyebrow at me. “So…?”

My cheeks heated up, and I ducked to hide my face until I could recover. Rachel was my best friend, and I always told her everything—but there was something awkward about telling her about Jack. I knew she’d be happy for me. Likely, over the moon happy. But, there was some explaining to do, as well.

The last time I’d seen her, Jack had just driven all the way back to Holiday Cove from his base in Northern California because Aaron, his best friend, had called him after I’d shown up asking for him. After Jack and I reunited, I’d officially introduced him and Rachel, and the next thing I knew, she’d packed her suitcase and cleared out so Jack and I could spend the last night alone together.