He held me tighter than ever before, and I didn’t want him to leave. Kyle had snuck me back into my barracks without rousing a soul, and for that I was grateful. We shared a tender kiss goodbye and he disappeared almost as fast as he’d appeared. After I stared at the window long after he’d left, I slept blissfully, despite a mortar going off in the background in the middle of the night. The next morning, I woke when our director, Denise, rapped at the door. I knew that knock. Could she have banged any harder? Instinctively, I covered my head with the pillow.

Then for a second, my heart stopped—had she known I’d snuck off in the middle of the night? I sat straight up.

“Sara, we leave in ten minutes.”

I took a deep breath; I was paranoid. But I’d definitely slept in. Only my head moved as I stared at the window again. I wondered where on the base was he, and what was he doing? I felt like some love struck teenager. But I knew I wasn’t in love, not even close. I was curious. Kyle was hot, and I craved him. He was like every sexual fantasy I’d ever had coming true. A SEAL. A football player. With qualities I admired. Too bad he wasn’t interested in a relationship. I wasn’t either, but for Kyle, I’d consider making an exception.

I hated being so pathetic and emotionally attached. I was such a cliché. He fucked me just like I liked and I was willing to forget what he’d said. Being with him was a damn pipe dream. Here I thought I was this cool chick in control of my sexuality, able to separate my emotions after sex. But since the night I’d met Kyle in PB, I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about him. I hadn’t even looked at another man. Sighing, I finally stood up and rushed to get ready.

I guess it was a blessing I wouldn’t be seeing him much before we left. Today we were set to tour the next base, and though we’d return here tomorrow night, in five days we’d be back in the States.

And Kyle would remain here. For Christmas. Sure, at some point he’d return to San Diego, for however long SEALs remained in town before their next deployment. But Kyle had made it crystal clear he wasn’t interested in anything more than a casual “friends with benefits” situation. And I respected him for being honest with me. Most guys would say anything to get laid. Not that Kyle seemed to have any problems in that department.

My door flew open. But it wasn’t my director or Kyle. It was Maya, all done up, hair perfectly curled.

“Damn, girl. You look like shit. Put your face on and I’ll do your hair.”

I hopped out of bed and put on my travel clothes as Maya went to work on my hair. She pulled back a lock of my hair to tease it and gasped.

“Is that a hickey? Oh my god. You didn’t! You hooked up with Kyle!”

I cupped my neck. I didn’t remember him giving me a hickey. How could I have been so stupid. I grabbed my compact and dug into my makeup case and slabbed some concealer on it.

“Sara Elizabeth Michaels. Tell me now.”

“Okay. Yes. I did. Please lower your voice. He snuck me out of the room. It was incredible.”

She just shook her head, clearly disgusted with me. “What were you thinking? I don’t care what you do back home—hell you could go fuck an entire SEAL Team and I wouldn’t give you a hard time. But we are on a tour. Why are you risking your dream on this guy?”

I wasn’t going to argue. I dabbed and dabbed makeup on until the hickey was less noticeable. “Don’t tell anyone. Please? It won’t happen again.”

“Damn straight it won’t. I’m sticking with you until we go home. Seriously, Sara. He’s not worth it.”

I rolled my eyes and reminded myself she was just trying to protect me. I agreed with her, anyhow. That was it. Last time. I would not become his fuck buddy.

I counted my blessings. I was on a USO tour, entertaining our troops who risked their lives for our freedom. How many people could say that? I was a member of one of the best dance squads in the league while still keeping a high GPA. And last night I had the most incredible sex of my life with an amazing man, a hero. I was truly fortunate. The pesky other feelings be damned. Kyle made me feel safe, and I knew that as long as he was in my corner, while I was here, he would never let anything happen to me. That was why I cut him a break. He might not be willing to stick around, but for the short time I was near him, I felt wanted. And that was enough.