Two Weeks With a SEAL (The Wakefield Romance Series) (21 page)

"Yeah," Chad
said, his eyes meeting with Harlan's, "we'll go with ya." He gripped
me tighter to his side, squeezing my shoulder into his lower ribs and pressing
my head to his shoulder. "What time?" I can see Harlan was relieved
that Chad had agreed. He stood a little straighter and seemed to shake his
shoulders loose of some unseen weight.

"Um, how bout
eighty-thirty-ish," Harlan said and Chad nodded in reply. "Alright
man," Harlan and Chad shook hands with gusto, both of them smiling and it
makes me laugh a little at Harlan's enthusiasm. "First round's on
me," he says, taking one more cinnamon roll and bounding down the front
steps, waving from the driver’s side of his truck before getting in and roaring
down the road. We both stand there for a second, seeing his truck pull into
Kendall's driveway we share a glance, Chad breaking out in a laugh as we close
the front door behind us, engulfed in the warmth of our home once more.

Our afternoon passed
with more love-making followed by starting to paint one of the upstairs spare
bedrooms where there was barely any furniture, only an empty dresser and an old
gliding rocker that had no cushions. Chad's mom joined us, bringing us some
cold chicken sandwiches which we both devoured
.
They were layered with
stuffing and cranberry sauce, all leftovers from the other night. The robin’s
egg blue color looked good and we all praised it as we rinsed out the paint
roller and trays in the finished basement drain sink. Dana loved the color and
convinced me [it was no big fight] to give her the left over paint so that she
can pix up an old dresser and table she has. The woman was always looking for
something to craft or paint, occupying her time other than her part time job at
the credit union.

Dana left Chad and I
late in the afternoon and we both sank down on our couch, my head automatically
going to his shoulder while his arm rested on the back, just behind my head,
his fingers lightly playing in my hair. We were watching reruns of Law &
Order: Special Victims Unit on the USA network as I started to nod off, giving
in to Chad's body heat and the slight massage he was giving me on my scalp. I
felt myself sigh long and heavy, my cheek sinking further into his t-shirt and
I wrap my arm around his chest, running my fingers over his muscles, feeling
them twitch bringing a smile to my lips.

Waking up with the room
pitch dark was disorienting. More so because I was alone and still on the
couch, sprawled out like I had been fighting some imaginary bear. I slowly sat
up because there was a kink in my back from being all twisted around, looking
around the dark room I squint to see if Chad is on the floor or in the kitchen,
but there's no lights. "Chad," I loudly say, my voice scratchy as I
wipe the drool off of my chin. I guess I had been quite tired and hadn't known
it.

"I'm in the
bedroom," he yelled down from upstairs as I tumbled from the couch, the
fleece blanket tangled around my ankles. I groped around, making sure I don't
bump into anything as I make it to the wall by the stairs, running my hand
along it to find the light switch. I felt blinded as the staircase light beamed
to life, my hand going to my face to shield some of it away but my eyes still
watered as I made my way, slowly, up the stairs.

I yawned loudly as I ran
my hand along the banister, taking the slight left at the top of the stairs and
walking through our open bedroom door, Chad smiling at me as he turned from the
dresser. "Better get in the shower sleepyhead," he winked as I
shuffled past him to the bathroom door, "we gotta get to the bar in about
an hour."

"Alright," I
mumble, flipping on the shower and pulling a towel from the shelf above the
toilet. "Will you set me out some jeans and a shirt while I'm in
here," I yawn, leaning my chin on the door frame, batting my eye lashes
playfully at him as I see him pulling on his dark jeans.

Damn, he looked good.
His abs stood out and made me want to scrub laundry on them. His chest was
wickedly defined leading to perfect arms and shoulders moving under his smooth
skin.
God! How bad I wanted this man all the time!
He noticed that I was
eyeing him up and down and he does a little spin, holding his arms out then
swiping his hands down his sides as if to showcase his perfectly ripped body.

"Yeah babe,"
he grins, leaning in and kissing me sweetly, making me want more, "get
your beautiful ass in there so we're not late." Turning with a smile, I
feel his hand meet my butt in a swat and I jump, giving him a little squeal of
delight.

The stars were out, the
sky being clear and the air chilly as we drove to Muncy's, smack dab in the
middle of town at our only stop light. Friday was a very busy night, people
coming in to drown their paycheck away in long necks and shot glasses. My older
cowboy boot tips peeked out from under the boot-cut, snug jeans Chad had picked
out for me. The v-neck on the red long sleeve dipped down below my breasts, my
red and white tank filling the void. I can't help but feel he's trying to show me
off, flaunt me if you will, and it makes me giddy. Chad Payne wants to flaunt
me around our local bar, showing everyone that I'm his.

The large parking lot
was almost packed, Chad taking the space three down from Harlan's F-150 and I
pulled my thin Hanes sweatshirt over me, staying away the chill till we get in
the bar. I could already hear the jukebox blaring Toby Keith's "I Love
This Bar" as Chad's hand wraps around mine, his fingers lacing through
making me feel small and protected at his side. Walking across the gravel, he
tugs me to his side kissing my temple and then my ear, his teeth grazing
lightly at the tender flesh and I swat him in the chest.

"Down tiger,"
I purr, looking up at his blue eyes, losing myself in them to the point where I
stumble. Chad steadies me by grabbing my free forearm, a chuckle running
through his chest. "Oh ha ha," I say, swatting at him again.

His hand shot out to
grab the large handle of the heavy wooden door, swinging it open so that the
heat and smell of stale beer hit me directly in the face. It was packed. The
booths and tables scattered around the front bar room full to the brim, with
patrons standing idly by, talking and joking, but mostly just drinking.
Shedding my sweatshirt, I drape the hood over a set of deer antlers that were
used as a coat rack by the door. Muncy's was a pure redneck bar, all wood and
dark, with dead animal parts and mounts all over the place.

The bar was horseshoe
shaped  situated in the corner off to the left, leaving plenty of room for tables,
booths and a good size dance floor with a small stage where a local country
band played once in a blue moon. There was a small kitchen behind the bar where
they pumped out burgers, fries, wings and your other typical bar foods. There
was a small room off to the right where there were three pool tables, two
foosball and five dart boards.

The smells and sounds
made me smile, Chad's hand on the small of my back pushing me forward only
making it brighter and wider. I really liked working here on the weekends and I
can see that maybe this place will bring me a little happiness to occupy my
time when Chad is deployed. I loved conversing with all the townies. Hearing
stories I've heard a million times over and calling wives or mothers to come
pick them up when they've had one too many, which was often. The older men were
always the bigger tippers, leaving me five to ten dollars compared to the guys
more around my age who would leave a dollar or two. Chad pushed me through the
crowded room as we both offered polite greetings and waves to those who did the
same, finally seeing Harlan and Kendall up at the bar.

Seeing them, I stopped
in my steps, poking Chad in the chest getting him to bend so that his ear was
close to my mouth. "Look at those two," I say with a smile. Kendall
was up on the bar stool in her typical skin tight jeans and Harlan stood off to
the side, his hand resting on her hip, his knee up on the bottom bar, his leg
brushing hers. They looked like a couple. It was so damn cute. I practically
ran the rest of the distance, sliding next to Kendall's right side and tapping
her on the shoulder.

Her face lit up, her
eyes going wide as she wiped the back of her hand across her mouth.
"Hi," she squealed, throwing her arms around me as I did the same,
hugging her tight and giving Harlan a dramatic wink as her blonde hair brushed
on my face. "We thought you guys had split on us," she said, hugging
Chad and then coming back to face me. She looked great and she seemed to be
beaming.
Hmmmm
, I thought to myself. She had finally let her feelings
for Harlan fly and flourish. Good for her.

"I accidentally
fell asleep," I say, shrugging my shoulder. Kendall gives me a raised
eyebrow, mouthing the words 'oh yeah right', and we both laugh. Harlan lives up
to his promise of buying the first round and hands Chad and I bottles of
Budweiser. I settle into the stool next to Kendall, Chad behind me and we
formed a sort of square of solace, conversing close to one another so we could
hear over the booming jukebox. Chad and Harlan fell into comfortable
conversation about football or something, I couldn't really tell because I
could only hear bits and pieces while Kendall and I talked about her and
Harlan.

I learned that Harlan
had confessed his long time feelings for her at the bonfire and that she had
confessed hers, leading to a long, heated make out session and Kendall blushed
telling me, which she never does. This is my friend who watches soft core porn
remember, so her blushing is something very irregular. We had gone through three
rounds before someone interrupted our little group. Guys who had gone to school
with Harlan and Chad, asked them to come and play darts.

"You two
okay," Chad asks into my ear and I nod. He kisses me quickly three times
on the cheek and temple, making me giggle and Harlan and him are off. Turning
back from watching him walk a couple tables away I see that Kendall's eyes are
still watching Harlan, locked on their disappearing figures until I snap my
fingers in front of her face.

"I wonder how
Jarrod is gonna take the news of you and Harlan," I say, leaning closer to
her. Kendall is dressed a little like me, her jeans snugger and her shirt
showing more cleavage, but we have similar style right down to our cowboy
boots.

She shrugs and takes
another long drink of her beer, "Don't really care," she says, her
eyes darting around the packed bar room. "Harlan says Jarrod always
flaunted what we did together in front of him so frankly I hope he shows up
tonight so I can see the look on his face." We both laugh lightly, knowing
that Jarrod will act overly dramatic like he always does and both knowing that
the whole bar will erupt in laughter when it happens. We click the necks of our
bottles together, silently cheers-ing one another, still giggling as we take
long swigs of the cold Budweiser, slamming the bottle down on the bar top as we
both finish them.

Brad Muncy is tending
the bar tonight and he sees us signal for another round, uncapping the bottles
and sliding them our way. Brad is one of Duke's friends but he had always been
nice to me, sticking up for me when Duke is being an over the top asshole. He
was about five foot seven with close cut black hair, kept gelled and spiked
when working [he managed the bar which was owned by his dad] and under a torn
up baseball cap otherwise. I had always found his large hazel eyes magnificent,
especially since they were rimmed with long dark lashes. He had a country boy
drawl and was always polite to everyone, unless they caused a problem. Then he
used his very toned body to haul them out into the parking lot.

The bad thing about Brad
was that he was a follower, being a year older than Duke but he followed him
around like a little puppy dog. I guessed it was because Brad had a slight case
of dyslexia, causing some kids to be mean to him when they were younger, giving
him a lower self-esteem. He was a cutie, I just wished that he would dump Duke
and his other lackies and find himself a nice girl, or guy because I had an
inkling that Brad might bat for both teams, if you know what I'm saying.

"When you gonna
come back ta work girl," he winks at me, wiping the bar right in front of
Kendall and I, giving me a smile that could bring any girl to her knees. He was
good to work for, being flexible on hours and tip sharing.

I lay my hand over his
large one, patting it slightly like I always do. "Next week bud, don't
worry." I give him a sweet smile and he chuckles, shaking his head as he
turns to dish out some more drinks. Kendall leans in to say something just as I
feel a hand on my shoulder, causing me to turn on the stool, coming face to
face with a frowning Duke Orr.

Duke, in all his six
foot two bulky stature, stood before me in a ripped pair of Levi's, scuffed
cowboy boots, a plaid, pearl snap flannel unbuttoned to let his white t-shirt
show underneath. His normal dirty Earnhardt Racing cap is replaced with a black
cowboy hat, well-worn and creased to fit. His bottom lip bulged with Copenhagen
as his blue-green eyes bore a hole into my blue-gray ones, squinting and
looking over my outfit. I shift a little under his scrutiny as I see his eyes
settle on my chest, then my thighs.

"Hey Ray," he
said, tipping his chin at me, sparing a glance at Kendall.

I nod at him, looking
behind to see that he was flanked by his cousin Jesse Ludwell, Kendall's ex
Jarrod Rawlings and his ever present shadow, Garth Cobb. Garth was the only one
who looked indifferent, his eyes focused on the bar as Jesse's face curled into
a smile. His eyes watched me and Jarrod's eyes were locked on Kendall, well the
back of her head at least because she hadn't turned back around.