Chapter Four
They were lounging in bed again, Maggie pulled into his side, his arm wrapped around her, sharing a single glass of bourbon. Gabe had so many conflicted emotions swirling inside him, he didn’t know if he’d ever get them sorted out. All he’d asked for? A sexy, mature woman with brains that he could enjoy for one night. Never did he think he’d find one that, in just a few hours, would be firmly implanted in his brain and his heart.
His heart! What a joke. His team members often teased him that he didn’t have a heart—that he was cynical—closed off...isolated. Focused. All the things that made him a great team leader and an outstanding SEAL. Nothing ever got in the way of a mission. But he’d seen other SEALs find happiness, and wondered why it eluded him.
“You’re an old soul, Walker,” a commanding officer had once told him.
Gabe knew it. Knew he needed someone who understood that. Could live with it. And none of the women his age could.
But Maggie? Oh, she was definitely a whole different story. He had two friends married to women older than themselves. Cougars, they joked. But they had a quality of satisfaction about them, a light in their eyes, an air of anticipation when each leave approached that Gabe envied. And wanted for himself.
“Maybe this time I’ll give a nickel for them,” Maggie joked. “I can almost smell your brain burning.”
Gabe trailed his fingers lightly up and down her arm, enjoying the feel of her soft body curled into his, of her breasts pillowed against him. What would she think if he let her in on the ideas whirling around in his brain? Heavy thoughts in such a short time.
“Why haven’t you ever married?” he asked.
She looked up at him, startled. “That’s what you’re thinking about?”
He shrugged. “Just curious.”
“Well, since it seems so important to you, I’ve never found a man who didn’t want me to change my life for him. Work less, Maggie. Do this for me, Maggie. Be available whenever I want you, Maggie.” She snorted. “As if.”
“What if….” He took a deep breath. “What if you found someone who felt differently? Who wanted you to have a fulfilling life and loved your independence?”
Her eyes widened. “Why, Mr. Navy SEAL, are you asking me something special? After less than twenty-four hours?”
He knew she tried to make a joke out of it, but he heard an unusual note of uncertainty in her voice. Did that mean she was interested, but not sure of how he felt? That it might be the heat of the moment talking? Or was she trying to blow it off because this one night gave her what she wanted?
“Think about it,” he said, as he rolled her beneath him and licked the sensitive spot behind her ear.
She shivered with pleasure and shifted to give him better access. He spent a long time kissing her neck, her collarbone, and finally her breasts, tugging each plump nipple into his mouth and laving it thoroughly with his tongue. She made little whimpering sounds of pleasure again, the ones that turned him harder than stone.
He kissed his way down her body, taking his time, leaving no area of her silken skin unattended to. When his mouth reached her pussy, he lapped at the slit and curled his tongue around her sensitized and swollen clit. Maggie arched and writhed beneath him, her breathing erratic.
“Mmm,” she moaned and clutched at his head, pressing it close to her.
She cried out in protest when he left her hot, pink cleft to trail the same light kisses down the inside of one leg and up the other, before returning to lick her cream and place gentle nips on her pink labia. By then, she twisted and arched beneath him, begging him without even knowing what she asked for.
When she was ready, he gently turned her over and urged her to her hands and knees, plumping two pillows beneath her. For him, what he coaxed her into was the ultimate symbol of possession. Despite his reputation, so gleefully embellished by his team members, he indulged in this intimate act sparingly. Only with a woman he thought might mean more in his life.
Up until then, his very few choices had been poor ones. But with Maggie he’d found a different breed altogether. Her age gave her a maturity lacking in the other women, a richness of body and soul that made him think he’d finally, finally found the woman who could make a difference in his life. He hoped the thoughts chasing around in his brain weren’t leading him down yet another wrong path, but he had to try.
In the top drawer of the bedside table he found a variety of lubes, choosing a tube with hearts on it.
Hearts? What the hell?
He shrugged and unscrewed the cap.
“I feel something special here, Maggie,” he drawled, his hands cruising over her curves. “I want you to feel it, too. I want us to be really connected.”
She tensed beneath his hands, and for a moment he thought she would tell him to stop. Then she relaxed.
“I want that, too.” Her voice had a breathy sound.
“Just relax, darlin’,” He reached between her thighs to find her clit and stroked it, coaxing her body to unfold for him.
He kissed each globe of her buttocks, lavishing kisses while he continued to rub and caress her hot little nub. Slowly, he moved his fingers from her cunt, up to the cleft of her ass. Rub, stroke, caress. Down, up. Down, up, until it was all one smooth, smooth motion, all the while crooning to her, murmuring erotic words, telling her how much she turned him on, how sexy she was, how she took his breath away.
By the time he uncapped the lube and squeezed a generous amount onto one finger he had Maggie moaning and crying out, rocking back and forth on her knees. He spread the lube on her tiny puckered opening, rubbing gently, smoothly, softly, placing tender kisses on each curved cheek. Then more lube. More kisses, reaching between her thighs again for her clit.
As he gradually eased one finger into her tight channel, he pinched her button of flesh hard and she sobbed with pleasure. Gabe had to force himself to go slowly. He had no idea how much experience she had with this and he wanted to make sure he didn’t hurt her.
More lube. A second finger. More stroking and rubbing.
A third finger. She squirmed and moaned and he wanted to moan himself, he was so damn hot and hard. Squirting a generous amount of the lube onto his palm, he coated his shaft liberally, gritting his teeth to maintain control.
He leaned over the luscious body beneath him. “Have you done this before? It’s important for me to know.”
She nodded, her body shuddering in anticipation.
“Okay, then. We’ll still take it nice and easy but holy shit, Maggie, I’ve never wanted this with another woman as much as I do with you.”
“Me, too.” The words came out in a rush.
As good as his word, he grasped for the fraying edges of control.
“Breathe, darlin’. In now. And let it out.”
As she exhaled, he let the head of his cock penetrate her. In, out, again. And a little more. Until at last he was all the way in, gripped by her hot, tight flesh.
Oh, Jesus, let me just hang on long enough to give her pleasure.
He began the slow, steady glide, one hand creeping past her hip to find her throbbing nub again. He rocked with her, his balls slapping against her thighs.
Harder. Faster. More, more, more.
He roared. “Now, Maggie.” Pinching her clit, they exploded together.
And oh, god, his body shuddered as the spasms of pleasure ripped through him. Nothing existed for him except this woman and the intense satisfaction of making love with her.
Yes, not sex. Making love.
With one last tremor, he collapsed forward, catching as much of his weight as he could on his arms. He had no breath left. Couldn’t speak. Couldn’t do anything except wrap around this unexpected treasure pressed against him.
***
They were in the shower again, wrapped in each other’s arms, ignoring the multiple soft sprays flowing lightly down on them. Maggie couldn’t remember ever feeling such soul-deep satisfaction, or such a sense of rightness being with someone, like this strong, macho, yet tender SEAL. Had he’d gotten what he expected out of tonight? She certainly had. And definitely after this shower they’d have no trouble sleeping. They needed it.
But then what? Would it be breaking the rules of 1Night Stand if she told him she’d like to see him again? Would he even want to?
“Maggie?” He’d wrapped her curls around his fingers and cradled her head.
“Mmm?” She pressed her face against his hard, solid chest.
“Close your eyes. I want to ask you something.”
“’Kay.” She lowered her eyelids, hoping she wouldn’t fall asleep standing up.
“I don’t know what proper procedure is here,” he began, “but tonight turned out to be so much more than I expected. Way more.”
“Yeah?” She tightened her arms around him, their wet bodies plastered together.
“See, the thing is….” One large hand lightly stroked her spine. “In the life of a SEAL, you don’t really have a lot of time to waste. When you find something that’s right, and you know it’s absolutely right, you have to move forward immediately.”
“Immediately?” she repeated.
“Uh huh. Because you don’t know what’s coming up for you tomorrow.” He huffed out a long sigh. “I’m not very good at this.”
Puzzled, she pushed her head back and looked up at him. “At what?”
“At telling you I want more than tonight. Much more. I know it’s quick,” he said in a hurry, “but—”
“But, I want more, too.” She smiled.
“You do?” He pushed her wet hair away from her face. “I have to tell you, being with a SEAL isn’t that easy.”
She laughed. “Neither is being with a smartass cougar.”
“I mean, I’m gone for long periods of time—”
“I have a firm to run that keeps me very busy.”
“Sometimes when I come home from a mission I don’t want to talk. I just want to lose myself in someone and—”
“You can lose yourself in me.” Her heart thumped so hard, he had to feel it.
“But, I’ve never felt a connection to a woman like this before.”
“Me, either. A man, I mean.”
Thump, thump, thump.
He tilted her face up and kissed her, heedless of the water.
“Can you get away for a few days?” he asked, his mouth still touching hers. “I have a cabin in the Hill Country. Really isolated.” He ran his tongue over her lips. “Just you and me.”
“Yes,” she breathed.
“And a chance to make plans for the future. Maggie, I don’t want to rush you, but life moves fast for me and we fit like a glove. We—”
She slid her fingers between them and touched his mouth. “Yes, it does, and yes, we do. When do we leave?”
“How about we get some sleep in what’s left of the night, then tomorrow I can follow you to your place, leave your car. You can pack some things.” He grinned. “Not too many clothes, though.”
“What about you?”
“I keep stuff at the cabin. We just have to stop for groceries.” His eyes sparked with mischief. “I plan on using up a lot of your energy.”
“Good.” She leaned her head against his chest. “I look forward to it.”
They stood for a long moment, locked together. She loved the feel of his body against hers.
“I think we should send a thank you note to Madame Evangeline,” she said finally.
He chuckled, the sound rumbling in his chest. “Let’s just invite her to the wedding.”
She gasped, stunned.
“W-Wedding?”
He kissed her forehead and tightened his arms around her. “Moving too fast for you, Maggie darlin’?”
Was he? Hell, life was too short not to reach for something good and right. Her friends might call her crazy, but she knew this would probably end up being the sanest thing she’d ever done.
She laughed joyously. “Don’t worry. I’ll catch up real fast.”
“I promise you won’t be sorry.” He tipped her head up to give him access to her mouth and kissed her with so much emotion it nearly made her heart burst.
“No,” she said when he lifted his lips. “I don’t believe I will. But maybe, just to seal the deal, you should kiss me again.”
After a long time they managed to drag themselves out of the shower, crawled into bed and fell asleep. Locked together in an embrace, they dreamed about their future.