The Long Road Home (19 page)

"When can I get one of these to wear?"

Erik watched him move a minute more, nodding with approval. "Right now, soldier. That's yours."

Yes!
One step closer to his ultimate dream.
I can do this!
Logan barely refrained from pumping his fist in the air.

Instead, he thanked the man, grabbed up the bag with the charger and spare battery, and trotted down the hall, more than eager to get home and show off his latest gadget to Gwen. Picking up the pace in his excitement to run for the first time since his accident, he nearly bowled into Dr Fields as the man turned the corner.

"Oh, sorry."

Dr Fields looked at Logan, down to his prosthesis, and back. "In a hurry or just excited?"

"Both." Logan couldn't stop grinning. "Got the new model. I can run now. It's just amazing."

"Sounds like." Dr Fields smiled. "Good to see you looking happy and upbeat."

Logan nodded. "I'm going back to the front." He glanced down. "With this device, there's no stopping me."

The psychiatrist patted him on the back. "You're well on your way, son. Well on your way."

With a quick salute, Logan jogged to the door, a bright smile still covering his face.

Chapter 32

Shifting on the work station stool, Gwen felt a pinch of soreness between her legs. Each time the tiny bit of discomfort zinged to her mind, the physical reminder conjured up memories from the night before. All day long, she'd revisited their evening in bed, which only whetted her desire for more. And soon.

Her belly flip-flopped as she remembered straddling Logan's body, accepting his presence in her body for the first time, the gentle way he'd touched and caressed, bringing out every ounce of pleasure in her body. The one time didn't fulfill her need, only added to her cravings for more. Like a chocolate addict, she couldn't wait to get home, find the object of her fascination waiting, then precede to lick. And touch. And make love until they fell asleep from sheer exhaustion.

Checking the clock, she found thirty more minutes left in her workday. Close enough. She'd finished her tasks for the day, even cleaned up her work station early, all in anticipation of escaping and rushing back into the arms of Logan. Her boyfriend. Her lover.

Heading to the staff lounge, she collected her purse from her locker, deposited her safety glasses and lab coat inside, then closed the door, clicking the lock shut. On the table was a small basket of novelty condom samples, extras from the testing process, which her company happily made available to their staff. Might as well use them for real situations when given the chance, her supervisor always said.

With a mischievous grin, Gwen grabbed a handful and dropped them into her purse. About time she lined up as one of the voluntary guinea pigs in the up close and personal casual condom-testing research. Besides, Logan would probably get a kick out of the bright colors, the flavors, and even the glow-in-the-dark one. Lighten up their future sexual encounters. Literally.

Chapter 33

"Logan? I'm home."

He stepped out of the kitchen, found Gwen dropping her purse off at the living room table, and grinned widely. He'd thought about her most of the day, daydreaming for their next sexual encounter, remembering her vivid responses to his lovemaking. Hell, he walked around with a hard-on most of the day, alternating between trying to quell the physical reaction to his risqué thoughts and enjoying the memories of a damn good night. Luckily, he'd worn loose sweats, and no one seemed to pay much attention to the bulge that came and went.

"There you are. How was work?" Walking over, he folded her in his arms.

"Pretty much the same." She hugged him, then stepped back. "How about you? Did you have a good day?"

"Yep." He couldn't keep the silly grin off his face.

Her eyebrows furrowed. "I'm missing something, aren't I?"

"Uh huh." He moved a couple steps away and pulled up his pant leg to reveal his new prosthesis. "What do you think?"

Gwen bent over and studied the device. "Wow. This looks so much more advanced than the metal rod you had before."

"That's because it is." He pointed to a small box. "It's battery powered. Works like a calf muscle, which allows a more natural movement." Standing up, he held the material of his sweats, giving them both ample time to check out his new prosthesis. "It's so much easier once you get used to it. I don't have to use nearly the energy as before to move around. The battery takes care of it for me."

"That's absolutely wonderful!" She stood up and beamed at him, her gaze flicking from the mechanical leg to his face. "Is this yours to keep? Forever?"

He nodded. "Well, for the near future anyway. The prosthetic doctor thought I was doing well enough to handle this model."

"I knew you could do this."

"And I talked to him about returning to active duty. He's had several patients who did just that. Said most liked this model best and returned to service with it. A few didn't like worrying about their battery going down in a critical time, so they stuck with the old standard."

He could hardly contain his enthusiasm. Finally, after weeks of near hopelessness, he could see the light at the end of the tunnel. Therapy proved tough, but he could already see and feel the results. Tyler's article proved his dream didn't have to die on the front lines of Afghanistan, and now he had one of the most advanced prosthetic devices available. Combined with the fact he could come home to Gwen each and every evening, he currently resided on cloud nine.

"I'm so happy for you." She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek. "You deserve this and so much more."

He swooped in, sealing his lips over hers, sharing his quickly rising passion with the woman he truly loved.

Love?
The word startled him, yet didn't dissuade him from sliding his tongue between her lips and reacquainting himself with her sweet taste. He pondered the emotion for only a moment, found it sound, and turned his full attention to the lovely creature in his arms. Sliding his hands under her blouse, he pushed the material upward, forcing her hands straight in the air until the garment came loose. He tossed the unneeded piece of clothing on the couch and made quick work of the clasp of her bra.

"Wait a second." Gwen pulled the bra off, flipped it to rest on top of her discarded shirt, and stepped over to dig through her purse. Standing up, she handed a foil packet to him.

He turned the package over to peer through the clear side, finding a brightly colored blue condom inside. "I love it when you bring your work home with you." He grinned wickedly even as his manhood leaped to attention, immediately filling to granite hardness.

Her lips curled up at the corners. She returned to stand in front of him, grabbed his shirt, and tugged it off. Without hesitating, she slid her hands over the broad expanse of his chest, then headed lower, hooked her fingers in the waistband of his pants, and tugged downward. Kneeling before him, she carefully worked the material over his prosthesis until he could lift his leg and step out of the puddle of clothes.

Totally naked, he watched her face as she appraised him. Appreciation appeared as longing and heightened desire sparked in her brown eyes. Her gaze fell to his jutting cock, then she licked her lips.

He bit back a groan as his erection throbbed with impatient need. He craved her, needed her touch, her body writhing under him. Wanted to hear her scream his name as she reached the pinnacle over and over again.

"You have way too many clothes on."

"I do?" She blinked innocently at him, then ruined the effect by chuckling. "Sorry, I'm too enthralled with staring at your gorgeous body to do more than stand here."

He smiled, relieved and thrilled to know she liked what she saw. "No worries. Stare all you want. I'll just help you get naked while you do." Reaching out, he found the button on her slacks, slipped it through the hole, then undid the zipper. Snagging both the panties and pants, he slid them both down her slender legs, finally dropping them to the floor. She kicked free, leaving her in the buff. Except for her socks. As her feet didn't interest him nearly as much as the other bits, he could deal.

Her beauty astounded him, whetted his already revved up libido and compelled him to do more than simply look. Before he could touch, she grinned mischievously, then darted straight for the bedroom. He shook his head and followed at a more sedate pace, stalking her like a hungry lion would pursue an antelope.

Turning into her bedroom, he found her sitting on the edge of the bed with a come-hither expression pasted on her face. Nothing short of Armageddon could tear him away at this moment. Probably not even that.

"Do you know how much I want you?" He took a moment to tear open the foil package he'd carried with him, then rolled the blue condom over his aching member.

Her eyes lit up at his words. "Plan on showing me?"

"Oh, yeah." When she scooted to lay flat on the bed, he climbed on, finally settling on his side facing her. He cupped a breast and worried the nipple with his thumb. "I'll show you over and over again. Until we raise a white flag or the cows come home, whichever happens first." Leaning in, he kissed the rosy peak, then suckled.

Dropping his hand, he dipped his fingers between her legs, smiling when she splayed her legs, eagerly accepting his touch and lifting for more. Gently, he parted her folds, found her tight nubbin and strummed.

Gwen threw her head back and whimpered. Her breath caught as he repeated the caress.

"There?"

"Yes. Oh, yes."

His arousal jacked up ten notches with her whispered words, the stark passion written across her face, as well as the abundance of dew greeting his fingers as he moved lower and entered her channel.

Gwen groaned, then reached for him, wrapping her fingers around his condom-clad cock. Lightly, she explored, then with more confidence, measuring him in long, snug strokes. Fiery need cascaded over him, pushing him to the threshold of his control.

He ground himself against her hand, showing her exactly what she did to him, how hard she made him. "I can't wait any longer."

Shifting, he positioned himself over her, kneeling while using his new prosthesis to hold traction on the bed. Satisfied with his sturdiness, he lowered enough to cover her, while levering most of his weight on his forearms.

Sealing his lips over hers, he drank deeply, savoring her taste. Meeting her unbridled passion with gusto.

Gwen's hands wrapped around him, stroking his back with long caresses before dipping lower to squeeze his rear.

Sucking in a breath, he grasped the reins of his control with an iron fist before slowly pushing ahead, joining his body with hers, unable to stifle a moan at the tight and hot channel still as snug as the first time. He steadily pushed forward, her muscles squeezing his rock hard cock deliciously, like a perfectly fitting glove.

Pride and satisfaction flared. With exquisite precision, he pulled back and thrust forward with more power, not stopping until he rested fully seated deep inside her feminine core.

Logan kissed her collarbone, her neck, licking his way up to her chin, before he meshed their lips together once more. Delving in, he sought to build her banked fire, to share his burning desire, let her catch the fever and follow him to ecstasy.

Immediately, she returned his kiss, demanding more, flicking her tongue inside for a deeper taste. Her hips surged upward, telling him of her wants and needs.

Slowly, he retreated a few inches only to reverse direction and push forward once more. Testing the waters, he found her more than responsive as she matched him in counterpoint.

Her hands found his flanks and dug in. "Ohhh. Logan."

Shifting most of his weight to his arms, he began a lazy rocking motion, watching her face for any sign of discomfort. Finding none, he picked up the pace, lengthened his strokes, and savored the sensation of being fully seated in her depths as he hit bottom each and every time.

She spread her legs farther, providing plenty of room and easy access for him. Her feet rested on the bed, giving her leverage as she lifted to meet his downward motion, their flesh slapping together time and again.

"That's it, sweetheart." His breathing escalated as he fought to maintain control until she could reach the pinnacle. Not an easy task with such a beauty under him obviously delighting in riding the waves of passion once more. Despite the fact they'd had a healthy round of sex just the day before, he grappled with his control.

Gwen lifted, rolled, and clamped down with her inner muscles. He saw stars and felt the reins slowly slipping from his grasp as a low moan carried through the room. "Take what you need. Reach for it. You can do it. Just feel."

Her breath panted in and out as she flung herself into the frantic pace. Her eyes lost focus as she reached down, cupped his butt, and yanked him to her.

He slammed against her, locked deeply inside as strong muscles rippled and clenched around him. Her climax threw him over the edge. With a hoarse shout, he buried his face in her shoulder and ground against her, ensuring the farthest depth while his whole body centered on his rapidly firing orgasm.