Wounded (An Aspen Series Novella) (Prequel to Relentless) (8 page)

They walked through a thin copse of trees to the
edge of the ridge, moonlight illuminating their way.  The first explosion
echoed over the valley just as they spread out the blanket.

“Good timing,” she said as she sat cross-legged
on the blanket.

He filled the space next to her, choosing to
recline instead of sitting with his head cranked upward.  “It’s better if you
lay down.”

She didn’t argue as she dropped back next to
him.  A brilliant display of red, white and blue burst across the sky followed
by another loud boom.  “I think they’re better up here, don’t you?”

“Yep.”  He tried to concentrate on the patriotic
colors filling the sky, but each thought and awareness was centered on the
woman lying next to him.

He startled when she took his hand.  He squeezed
it.

“I’m sorry I let you down.”  Her voice reached
deep into his soul.

It more or less scared the shit out of him how
easy it was for her to affect him.

She rolled onto her elbows, facing him.  “I’ll
regret it for the rest of my days.”

He shifted his gaze to her face, a sparkling
burst of red haloing her head.

“I just wanted you to know that.”  She looked at
him a moment longer before laying down again.

Damn.  He couldn’t stand how bad he wanted to
pull her in his arms.  This time
he
rolled.  The sky lit again, giving
him a flash of wide green eyes that burned with longing.

He didn’t know what to say to her.  Too many
things crowded his mind, and nothing singly stood out.

Instead, he lowered his lips to hers, instant
heat bursting like the fireworks overhead.  The kiss he’d purchased earlier
hadn’t quenched his thirst for her in the slightest.

Her soft lips parted for him with the slightest
pressure, his tongue finding hers like it hadn’t been forever since they’d
kissed.  She tasted of mint and a lifetime full of desire.  A powerful ache
claimed him, making it hard for him to not ravage her on the spot.

He trailed his middle finger up the valley of her
breasts, remembering the feel of her sweet, tender skin.  She gasped beneath
his kiss, but he didn’t give her time to breathe.

He followed the delicate column of her throat and
then splayed his fingers into her hair at the base of her neck, cupping her
head, holding her so she couldn’t get away.  If his kisses were too rough, she
didn’t complain.  She took all he had and matched the potency of his desire.

He slipped a thigh between her knees, and she
opened for him.  “I want you, Kimber,” he whispered in her ear as he settled
more fully on top of her.

“Yes.  Please take me, Jerry.”

He lifted, staring into her eyes, hoping what he
saw burning there wasn’t an illusion of the nighttime.

“Please.”  She grasped his head, pulling him to
her.

He kissed her again until they were both
breathless.  As he sucked in a breath, he ran a hand up her rib cage, cupping
her breast from beneath.  The tantalizing mound filled his hand, making his
already hard erection throb.  The soft knit of her sweater did little to hide
the hardened nipple beneath.

She hissed in a breath.

Damn.  He’d dreamed of this moment so many nights,
believed he’d never hold her again, and now here they were.  He intended to
enjoy every moment.  One thing combat duty had taught him—enjoy each second
because it might be the last.

He flicked open the first button of her sweater,
and she inhaled a ragged breath.  “Your skin is always so soft.”

“Jerry,” she whispered, her voice pleading with
him.

He leaned forward and kissed the succulent skin
between her breasts, trailing his tongue up her neck.  He nibbled on her
earlobe while his fingers worked the second button on her sweater.

He undid the rest of the buttons, and she inhaled
a deep breath when he opened her sweater to the warm evening air.  He was
grateful for the overhead explosions that allowed him to view her black lace
bra with greedy eyes.

Shit.  “God, Kimber.  You’re beautiful.”  They’d
been apart a long time, but it hadn’t diminished his memory.  There was nothing
like the sight of his woman, hot and bothered, and half naked beneath him.  Her
bra had plumped up her breasts, urging them toward him as though they were ripe
fruit waiting to be tasted.  Hell if he’d waste any more time.

He swallowed as he slipped a finger beneath the
clasp on the front of her bra, freeing her breasts for him and the heavens to
see.

She arched as though she needed to encourage him.

“Give me a second, baby.  I just…damn.”  He
lowered his head, sucking a puckered nipple into his mouth, the sweet taste of
her adding to the intense pounding in his cock.  He sucked hard, manipulating
her other breast with a greedy hand.

This was moving too fast, but he couldn’t seem to
slow down.  He pulled from her, dragging her nipple with him until he had to
release it.

Her sighs filled the night air.

He trailed his fingers down her stomach until he
reached the waistband of her cutoffs.  He had to know.  She stilled as he undid
the button and slid down her zipper.  He didn’t bother removing her clothes. 
He needed to feel her now.  Needed physical proof of how much she wanted him.

Her body couldn’t lie.

He slid his hand beneath the lace that covered
her, and she opened, allowing him access to her secrets.  His breath whooshed
out of him as his fingers found her heated core.  Ah, God.  She was so hot and
wet for him, he nearly came right then.

She bucked as he delved inside her.

“Shit,” he whispered.

“Take me, Jerry.  I can’t wait any more.”  Her extreme
need echoed his.

He wanted so much to savor this moment, but it
seemed their bodies had been too long parted.

He jerked her shorts and panties from her legs
and rid himself of his jeans just as quickly.  “I don’t have a condom,” he said
as he hovered over her.

“I don’t care,” she whispered.  “I haven’t been
with anyone but you.”

His heart swelled.  Not Eric, he wanted to ask,
but he wouldn’t let that bastard ruin their moment.  “Me, either.”  He wasn’t
about to bring up pregnancy.  As desperate as it may seem, if they created a
baby tonight, she’d have a much harder time leaving him.

He
needed
this woman in his life.

He locked his gaze with hers and buried himself
into her welcoming depths.  She gripped his biceps, her nails digging into
him.  They both moaned at the same time.  Then laughed.

He slid out and then slammed back into her.  She
arched and sighed with pleasure.  “Again,” she whispered breathlessly.

He pounded himself into her with an unmatched
intensity.  It was as though he’d waited his whole life for this moment, and he
couldn’t get enough.  She wrapped her legs around him, encouraging him as she
held on.

She cried his name as she stiffened and shuddered
beneath him.  The sound of her voice and the feel of her nails digging into him
cost him his control.  His muscles tightened as he spent himself inside her,
the feeling owning him for a few glorious moments.

He rolled off her, pulling her into his arms.  At
some point, the fireworks had ended, and now they were left in the darkness
with the quiet chirping of crickets.  “God, I’ve missed this.”  There was no
doubt in his mind, he was home.

“I’ve missed you,” she whispered as she stroked
his chest.

He crushed her to him, so afraid he might lose
her again.  “You know we belong together.”

She nodded, bumping his chin.  “I know.”

 “How did we get so off course?”

“I don’t know.  You’d been gone so long, and I
hadn’t heard from you in forever.  I know it’s not a good excuse, but I found
myself in a dark and lonely place, and I let others influence me.”

“Eric.”

She nodded again.  “I only dated him once.  Then
I heard what happened to you, and my world fell apart.  I knew I could never
love anyone like I love you.”

He squeezed her to him, emotion thickening his
throat.  “I’m sorry I didn’t call.”

She slid her fingers along his jawline, her thumb
playing with his stubble.  “It was so hard not hearing from you.  I’ve spent my
whole life wondering if my dad would come home at night, worrying some bad guy
might do him in.  As a child, that’s pretty tough to take, knowing the only
person you have left in the world might not come home.  Not hearing from you
was ten times worse.”

“I’m sorry.”  He wanted to tell her why, but that
was the tough part.  That was why he’d backed off in the first place.

“I understand that you couldn’t call all the
time, but even an email, something, anything to let me know you were alive.” 
Her voice cracked, and he hated himself for what he’d put her through.  “The
not knowing was the worst.”

He had to tell her.  If he wanted to give this
thing between them the best chance to work, she needed to know what she was
getting into.  He cleared his throat.  “I didn’t know what to say to you.  It
was a tough time for me.”  He took a deep breath.  “I killed people.  Men.”

A quiet descended upon them, and he feared the
thoughts that might be going through her head.

“Did you think I didn’t know that?” she said in a
low voice.  “Or at least expected it?  You were in a war zone.”

“I didn’t know how to tell you.  It haunts me. 
It changed me.  And I didn’t know if it would change your feelings for me.”

“Jerry.”  She lifted, cradling his face in her
hands.  “I love you.  I know you wouldn’t choose to kill someone.  But I also
know you’re doing what you’re doing because you’re trying to make the world a
better place.  You’re in the army.  If you find yourself in combat, you have to
fight back.  It’s that or die.  Do I like it?  Not any more than you do.  Do I
wish there was a way around it?  Of course.  But you have to do what your
commanding officers tell you to do.”  She kissed him, her words and touch
soothing to his soul.  “It doesn’t make me love you less.  I’m so proud of who
you are.  You’re amazing to me.  Every part of you.”

Her words humbled him and filled the reservoir of
his heart to the brim.  He rolled her over, trapping her beneath him.  “I love
you, Kimber.  I’ve always loved you.”

She tugged his head to hers.  “I love you, too,
Jerry.”  Then she giggled.  “I think there’s another part of you that loves me,
too.”

He’d grown hard again, his erection pressing
against her thigh.  “You think?”

“I do.  And it doesn’t seem to want to be
ignored.”

He shifted so that his penis sat against her
opening.  “What do you think we should do about it?”

“I don’t think you need to ask that question,
soldier.  You’re an expert with that weapon, and I’m certain you know how to
use it.”

A laugh rumbled from deep inside him, and he
realized the weight of the world had been lifted from his shoulders.  He nipped
at her neck.  “What if I don’t want to use it?”

She wiggled beneath him.  “Then I may have to
take you prisoner.  I could tie you up and—”

He cut off her words with a kiss.  “I don’t think
that will be necessary.”

She started to laugh, but he silenced her as he shoved
inside her, making her gasp instead.

Kimber had no idea how much time had passed
before she and Jerry made their way to his Camaro.

“I have to go back, Kimber,” he said as he climbed
inside the car and shut the driver’s side door.

They both knew he didn’t mean Aspen.  “I know.” 
His words pierced her heart, but she refused to let him see it.  “But not for
long.  I’ve been crossing off the days on my calendar.”

“Are we going to be okay?”

“Yes,” she said, finding strength in the fact
that he loved her.  He needed her to be strong.  “I won’t let you down again. 
I have my foundation to focus on, plus my job at City Hall, and I have a group
of friends that meets regularly.  We help each other when times get tough.”

“That’s pretty cool.  I’m sure their husbands
appreciate it, too, knowing things are okay back home.”

It felt so good to actually be talking about
everything after all her months of waiting and wondering.

Another question burned on her tongue.  She had
to ask, even though she didn’t want to hear the answer.  “Did you really get
shot the same day I broke up with you?”

He stayed quiet for a moment, then sighed.  “Can
we just leave that in the past?”

“You did.”  Her voice cracked.  God, she was a
horrible person.  “How can you forgive me for that?”

“Because it’s not your fault.  There were many
things that came into play that day that led to the attack.  For a long time, I
wanted to blame it on you because I was hurt and angry, but it’s not your fault
or mine.  It happened.  I lost some good friends that day, but there’s nothing
I can do to bring them back.  I’d really like to try to move past it, live a
good life in their honor.  It’s what they’d want.”

“I agree.”

She nodded, and he started his engine just as her
phone rang.

They exchanged glances as she pulled the phone
from her purse.  “It’s Noelle.”  She noted the time was well past midnight as
she pushed the answer button.  “Hello?”

“Where the hell are you?”  The panic echoing from
her friend’s voice sent her into fight-or-flight mode.

“With Jerry.  What’s wrong?”

“It’s your dad.  He’s been shot.”

*        *        *

Lights in the emergency section of the Mt. Uintah
Medical Center glared down on Jerry and Kimber, stark and sterile.  They’d been
sitting in the waiting room for hours, learning bits and pieces of the domestic
dispute in town that had taken place after the fireworks and had ended with her
dad getting shot.

Noelle had fallen asleep on the couch opposite
them about an hour after they’d arrived.  Since then, Jerry and Kimber had
spoken very little as they sat worrying and waiting to hear of her dad’s
condition.