Chapter Eighteen
Bree
I jerked awake as I felt the car wheels drifted off the road and onto the gravel shoulder. Panicked gripped me. Night had fallen, and we were alone on the winding road. If the gunmen were following us, there was no place to hide.
"Don't worry," Nathan said. "I'm just tired. I figured we should pull off the road and try to get some rest."
I rubbed my eyes. "What time is it?"
"Just past one o’ clock."
Nathan steered the maroon sedan down an embankment and into some brush. He gave me a wink and then hopped out to pull branches over and around the car. Soon, I was nestled in a secret glen, the car hidden from anyone driving by.
"Do you think anyone followed us?" I asked as soon as Nathan climbed back in the car.
"I haven't seen anyone for hours, and I've been doubling back and taking detours this whole time. We should be safe. You can relax, Bree." Nathan reclined his seat while he grinned at me.
"Relax?" I stumbled over the word because it sounded foreign and we both laughed.
"Hope you like camping," Nathan said.
I rolled my eyes. "I'm not some helpless girl. I can camp. I've just never done it in a car."
Nathan's raised eyebrow implied his mind was on doing something else in the car. "So, about relaxing. Anything I can do?"
I gave his shoulder a slap. "You can tell me your plan and then we can hash out the details. Together."
"My idea was more fun," Nathan grumbled.
I turned sideways in the passenger seat, leaning against the door, and crossed my arms. "Plan first. Relax later."
"Yes, sergeant," Nathan said. He shifted in his seat and stretched his legs out across the center console. "First, we're going to need to switch cars."
My shoulders slumped. "My car."
"I know, but you get now why I told you to leave it behind?" Nathan asked.
The thought of that black hood swooping over my head made me shudder. "Yeah, I learned my lesson. So how do we switch cars?"
"I bought this one for cash, so we find the next used car dealership, trade this thing in, and get something else. I still have enough cash to cover the difference," Nathan said.
I eyed the exposed wires by the steering wheel. "Sure they'll take this on a trade-in?"
Nathan slapped his forehead. "No keys. Well, we'll find a scrap yard first and get some cash."
I reached a hand up and got my fingers tangled in my hair. "I wish we could go back to my car. All my stuff is in the trunk."
Nathan sat forward and put a hand on my knee. "I'm sorry, Bree, but you have to leave everything behind. You have to let your car go."
"Can't we just swing by, grab my stuff out of the trunk, and drive off? It'll take all of thirty seconds." I raked my fingers through my hair and tried to smooth it out.
"They'll be watching your car, waiting for us to slip up again," Nathan said.
"How many of them are there?" I muttered.
Nathan slumped back in the driver's seat. "I don't know but I'm starting to think I'm up against a big organization. We should just assume they have men everywhere."
"My favorite sweater is in that car. Along with my waitress uniform. They're going to make me buy another one," I said.
"You're planning to go back to the diner after this is all over?" Nathan asked.
"You mean, if you get me out of this alive?" It wasn't a fair question but I was upset.
Nathan sat forward again, rubbing the rough stubble on his chin. "I will, Bree. I'll get you out of this safely. In fact, I've been thinking about taking you straight to my base. If we can get to New Mexico, you'll be safe there. And you can tell my squadron commander everything that happened."
"Where will you be?" I asked.
"El Paso."
I sat up, my fingers clenched into fists. "So, you're going to dump me off with the military, leave me to answer all the questions, while you follow up on a random postcard?"
"It can't be random," Nathan said. "I put it in that safety deposit box for a reason."
"Has it ever occurred to you that you might not have been in your right mind when you went to that bank?" My voice was too loud for the confines of the sedan.
Nathan's eyes went dark, his frown making his handsome face hard. "I have thought about that. It's just that deep down, I still believe I was trying to do the right thing. It's okay if you don't believe me."
My breath was coming in panicked huffs. "Believe you? I don't know what to believe. If you had told me at the diner that I would get shot at, kidnapped, rescued, and escape in a hot-wired car, there is no way I would have believed you. But here we are."
"That's why I think it's best for me to take you to the Base," Nathan said again.
"No." I leaned forward so my eyes met his. "You promised me when I got into this car that we were in this together. I'm not letting you go back on your word."
A new light sparked in Nathan's eyes. "You're assuming that I'm a good guy, that my word means something to me."
"Doesn't it?" I asked.
He smiled, and I felt a warm knot loosen in my core. "It does. So, I must be a good guy, right?"
I grabbed his chin with one hand. "Don't distract me. We're in this together, right? No dropping me off with your fly-boy friends."
"You're right. I don't want to drop you off at the base. Too many handsome men in uniforms. I'd get jealous." Nathan caught my hand before I could pull it back. "I want you all to myself."
I don't know whether I leaned forward or Nathan pulled me into him. Either way, his lips were a gravitational force that I could not resist. We brushed lips in a light kiss then immediately came back for more. Tasting, trying a new angle, smiling as we pulled back and came together again.
Then I felt Nathan's smile fade as he gave into the kiss. He still thought I'd be better off without him, and I couldn't bear the thought.
"If you want me then you better keep me by your side. No matter how dangerous this gets," I said.
Nathan nodded, one hand slipping up to cup my cheek. "I'll keep you safe, Bree. I swear."
I raised my hand, too, delighting in the rough stubble of Nathan's jaw. It teased the palm of my hand and the friction caused little bolts of electricity to shoot through me. I could imagine what it would feel like on my nipples and the thought sent a lusty shiver through my body.
Nathan seemed to read my mind. His hand drifted down from my cheek and slipped open the buttons on my shirt. I turned my little gasps of delight into soft kisses across his lips, down his rough jaw, and onto his neck.
The car was warm and tight. We were safe and out of sight. The only problem was I couldn't get close enough to Nathan. He kept bashing against the center console, and I couldn't join him in his seat because of the steering wheel.
"Backseat?" I whispered against his ear. Then, when he shivered, I let my tongue trail along the curve of his ear, eliciting a soft moan.
Nathan sat me up, dove into the backseat, and then held open his arms for me. I climbed through the front seats and felt his hands clamp onto my hips. Nathan guided me to sit astride him and rewarded me with a deep, ravenous kiss when I settled on his lap.
"Are you sure?" Nathan asked.
I lightly traced my tongue along his bottom lip before sliding inside to meet his. "Maybe you can help me relax," I said.
“Bree? Are we going to talk about it?” Nathan asked.
“Talk about what?”
He cleared his throat. “Your, um, virginity.”
I shook my head, cheeks blazing. “How about we don’t. Besides, I’m not a virgin anymore.”
He pulled open my shirt, careful to slide the sleeves over my sore wrists, and placed hot kisses across the tops of my breasts. I rocked forward, arching my back and pressing my chest into his lips. Underneath, I could feel his hard passion pressing against my thin panties and I glided up and down over it.
Nathan unclipped my bra and brushed his stubble across one nipple. I cried out, my hands bracing against the roof of the car as pleasure jolted through my body. His hands splayed across my back, pulling me to him and his stubble grazed my other erect nipple. Then he drew it into his mouth and sucked softly.
All my fear and stress and worry felt like a huge knot that Nathan was untangling one tugging kiss at a time. I rubbed against him, feeling him swell, my breasts heavy in his face. I felt powerful on top, and I loved the hungry look in his eyes when I offered my body to his mouth.
Nathan's hands slid down my back and slipped into my pants, cupping my backside and setting the rhythm of my rocking. It was too much for both of us and at my frustrated cry, Nathan flipped me down onto the sedan's backseat and tugged off my pants.
As he leaned over me, I fumbled with his jeans, losing my motor skills as his chest hair tickled across my sensitive nipples.
He looked down at me, a shadow of worry crossing his handsome face. I answered by putting my hands on his shoulders and drawing him down as I opened my legs. He pushed into me, connecting deep, and we both buried our moans in another hot wet kiss.
The old car creaked at Nathan's first hard stroke and the sound made me laugh against his lips.
"Now you sound relaxed," Nathan said.
"Almost," I answered, rocking my hips upward and wrapping my legs around his waist.
He couldn't respond in words, only his body's rhythm, and soon I couldn't breathe, much less form a word. The car's creaks were the only sound above our panting breaths until Nathan pushed me so high that I cried out.
As my body fell back to reality, Nathan let loose with a triumphant roar.
"Think anyone drove by and saw us?" I asked, breathless.
Nathan flopped next to me on the sedan's backseat and pointed to the steamed-up windows. "I'd say we're hidden enough."
"Enough for what?" I curled my body against his.
"To relax and stay naked like this until I can go again." Nathan kissed the back of my neck, and I felt all my tension dissolve.
We were safe, for now, and I was exactly where I wanted to be.