Her Sexy Marine Valentine(18)

She faced Brody and he wrapped his arms around her, kissing her again  and again. "That was..." He hesitated, seemingly at a loss for words.

"Amazing," she filled in. "I've never had sex where someone might walk in. That was daring." So not vanilla.

"I feel like I should say I'm sorry, but I'm not." He smiled and his  fingers trailed across her face tenderly. He could have all the time he  wanted for this; this she loved.

"No, don't apologize. That was fun, Brody. Unexpected, but fun. And  we've stayed more than the required twenty minutes. Take me home,  please, Marine. We haven't christened the dining room yet, or the pantry  or-"

"Whatever you want, babe." He kissed her on the lips. She wanted more.  When he lifted his head, he said, "But just so you know, for the rest of  the night I'm taking my time with you."

She shivered with anticipation.

Before he opened the door, he swept her into another long kiss. They  finally came up for air. "While we're doing this, Mari, promise me that  you're mine and only mine. I can't handle another man touching you."

"I promise you it's not like that with Michael. He's like a brother to  me. But I'm flattered, Brody. I still can't believe this is happening  between us. Whatever it is. Exclusive is good and it works both ways,  right?"

He held her close. "Yes, it does. Until we are done."

She didn't want to think about the done part. Instead, she concentrated on how his touch was sending shivers down her spine.

It was crazy. She'd never been this responsive to any man. Of course,  they'd established she hadn't been hanging out with the right men. But  she had a feeling Brody was one of a kind. That hurt. One day soon, when  the house was finished, it would be over between them. Or he might get  transferred or even deployed overseas. She forced those sad thoughts  from her mind.

Don't get caught up in the future. Enjoy today. Yes. That's what she had to remember.                       
       
           



       

After they made sure their clothes were in order, he swung open the bedroom door and they ran smack into Gary.

Mari started giggling. She couldn't help it. Even though they'd sorted  themselves out, there was no doubt from her disheveled hair and the heat  warming her cheeks that they'd been up to some very naughty things.

Very, very naughty.

"Hey, man," Brody said to her ex. "Again, thank you. She's the best  thing that's ever happened to me. Oh, and you've got some great walls in  this place. Ultra soundproof."

Gary stared at them, his jaw hanging open. He glanced from her to Brody  and then back again. He knew exactly what they'd been doing.

"We've got to go," Brody said. "Can't keep my hands off her,  practically made love to her right in front of all your guests." Then he  pulled her through the party as if they were rushing away from a fire.

Maybe they were, because Mari was burning hotter than she ever had before.

Danger. Danger.

She just didn't care. Whatever time she had with Brody, she would make the most of it.





10

SOMETHING WAS WRONG and Brody had no idea what it was. As they reached  the pier where the CO's rented yacht was docked, Mari was continuing to  be quiet.

After the party at her ex's on Friday, he and Mari had made love for  most of the night. She'd been fine before she'd drifted off to sleep.  But that was hours ago. Now it was Saturday afternoon, and ever since  he'd picked her up at her house, she'd been silent. For the life of him  he couldn't figure out what he'd done, but he was sure it was bad.

"Are you okay? You don't seem like yourself," he asked for what felt like the hundredth time.

"I'm fine." The slight shake in her hand said something different.

"The CO likes you, and you met almost everyone who's here at the  picnic," he said, trying to encourage her. "If we weren't dating he'd  probably be all over you. Every time I run in to him at the base, he  asks how you are." He frowned. He didn't like the idea of anyone being  hot for Mari except him. Yesterday when the CO had cornered him to make  sure Brody was bringing Mari on the boat, he'd almost told him to get  lost. But he also didn't like the idea of having to dig latrines for the  next millennia, so he'd kept his thoughts to himself.

He wasn't sure what had happened to him exactly, but he felt protective  toward her, possessive even. He didn't get that way over every woman.  The line between them pretending and the real thing was long gone, he  suddenly realized. He cared about her. Didn't want her dating anyone  else.

That's not good.

"It's not that. We should just go," she said, reaching for the car door  handle. He had the urge to stop her. Instead, he jumped out quickly to  help her down from the truck. Then he leaned in behind the seat to get  the present she'd chosen and wrapped the day before. She wouldn't say  what it was, only that it was something the CO would like.

He followed her down the ramp to where the yacht was moored. The late  afternoon sun was warm, and a gentle breeze lifted the skirt of the blue  dress she wore. She nervously pushed it down.

"You are so pretty," he said.

She gave him a quick smile, but it wasn't her normal sunny one.

"If you aren't feeling well, I can make excuses. I'll drop off the present and we can go."

"No," she said abruptly. Then she put on the fake smile. "I mean, we're  here. We might as well say hello." That smile would have worked on  anyone else, but he'd spent enough time with her to know it wasn't  genuine. When she got to the yacht, he assisted her across the ramp.  Again, her hand shook.

Why won't she tell me what's wrong?

Carissa waved them on board. She was in white shorts that should have  been illegal and a rhinestone-covered bikini top. He preferred Mari's  dress. The blue brought out the color in her eyes and it molded  perfectly to her figure.

"Everyone is in there," Carissa said as she pointed toward a large  living space. Then she looked past him and waved furiously. He glanced  back to see his buddy Ben Peterson. Poor guy, he was in for it now. The  CO's daughter had moved on.                       
       
           



       

It was crowded in the main area and there wasn't much seating. Mari  seemed even more tense than she had been before they'd gotten on board  the boat. They said hello to the CO and then took a tour of the massive  yacht. It was stunning.

There were about fifty people there, the senior officers from the base  and their significant others, along with some of the CO's friends. After  the tour Brody got caught up in a conversation with Mark and Gray about  the new fuel pumps going into the Vipers.

Mari excused herself to go to the ladies' room. He felt bad about her  being excluded from the conversation, and made a note to himself to be  sure they talked about things that might interest her when she returned.  When she hadn't come back in twenty minutes, he went to look for her.  She wasn't in any of the bathrooms or in the main area. He checked the  bedrooms and then climbed the stairs up to the deck, slightly panicked.  Maybe she'd gotten off before they left port. He hoped not.

He and Mari never should have boarded the boat. He'd known something wasn't right.

He'd almost given up when he found her sitting on one of the lounge  chairs off the central deck with her knees tucked under her chin. She  didn't look good. Her glowing skin was slightly green and there was a  white rim around her luscious pink lips.

Seasick. He'd seen it before. Even the toughest Marine could get hit  with it. They were just out of the harbor and the yacht sluiced through  the water, barely rocking, but she was feeling it.

He sat down on the chair next to hers. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"What?" She kept her eyes on the water beyond the railing.

"That you either hate the water or boats."

She shrugged.

"Or both," he mused. Her dress was over her legs and she had her arms crossed over her knees with her chin on them.

She sighed. "I didn't want to disappoint you. And it's a big boat, I  thought I could handle it. I wanted you to impress your CO." She lowered  her voice on the last part.

"You could never disappoint me, Mari. We could have stayed home in bed and it would have been a lot more fun."

She tensed.

Was she regretting that they'd taken things further than they'd  planned? Their relationship had hit a new level that caught him off  guard sometimes. Such as, he always wanted to be with her. That had  never happened before.

But they'd both been lonely and he truly believed that it was a good  compromise for them to find some affection with one another. Their time  was limited, and it was supposed to be casual. Maybe she thought it  should be more.