Her first flight of the day, into Naples, had been rough, with zero frills. There weren’t any flight attendants on a C-130 Hercules. But it was better than an eight-hour bus ride to Ankara, so Jenna was grateful for the travel advisory which meant as an NGO she was given a spot on the US Air Force transport instead of being expected to make do with ground transport to the nearest international airport.

Sean had been waiting as promised. He met her at the gate with a wide grin, his arms out, and as soon as she was close enough, he’d pulled her in tight for a hug, and then a sweet, stirring kiss.

Jenna nodded off after takeoff on their flight to Spain. She dreamed of stripping Sean naked and rubbing against him, and when she woke up, she was twisted around him for real, her face buried in his chest. Even worse her hand was under his shirt, her palm flat against his flexed, hard abs.

“Sorry,” she whispered, straightening up.

He caught her wrist and held her against him. “Don’t be,” he murmured back. “You feel good.”

She nestled closer and let her eyes drift shut again. He felt good, too. So good.

“I’m getting used to you nodding off on my shoulder,” he murmured. “Don’t worry, I booked us rooms close to the airport for tonight. By the time we pick up the rental car, it’ll be nearly dinner time, and I know you’re zonked.”

Her eyes popped open. “Rooms, plural?”

“I didn’t want to assume.” He grinned at her as he ran his fingers through the ends of her hair.

Since they’d been reunited, he’d been touching her almost non-stop, and she loved it. Right now his other hand rested gently against her knee, and when she returned his smile, he leaned in and kissed her.

“We’ve got two weeks ahead of us. I’m not in any hurry.”

Jenna was, though. She wanted to climb Sean like a tree and that scared her. If she rushed into something here, she might fall so far, so fast, she’d never see the heartbreak coming until it smacked her in the face. She reached for him and caught the front of his t-shirt with her fingertips.

He glanced down at where she was touching him and groaned under his breath. “Okay, that’s a lie. But I’m trying to be chivalrous.”

Why did his being old-fashioned surprise her? He’d been nothing but kind and attentive since they’d met.

It was a good reminder they were still strangers. Strangers with chemistry and affection for one another, but still two people with a lot to learn about each other.

To be fair, they hadn’t discussed room sharing. And this wasn’t how Jenna normally went about dating. She’d never been with anyone who wasn’t a friend first, for quite a while. Her love life had always rolled out in an orderly fashion, usually after a spark followed by a frank discussion about sex and boundaries.

Healthy, but not…romantic?

And there was something really romantic about Sean. If he wanted to be chivalrous and take his time, she would sink into the anticipation and enjoy it.

“Okay,” she whispered, kissing his cheek just as the captain informed them they were about to start their final descent.

They were both traveling light, so they didn’t need to wait for baggage. Sean took her hand as soon as they were off the plane and he held it all the way to the car rental counter.

“Do you want coffee?” she asked quietly after he handed over his license and reservation number. She pointed to the cafe at the end of the hall. “Something to eat?”

“Maybe something cold. Coke?”

She grabbed them both pop, and picked up two sandwiches and a fruit tray as well. There was no way she was waiting until the Spanish dinner hour to eat—if she even stayed up that late. Her cat nap on the plane hadn’t done much to dull her ever-present fatigue.

Now she was glad Sean had booked a hotel close by instead of driving to Arcos de la Frontera, where Sean had rented an apartment for the next ten days. She’d have only fallen asleep in the car, and she didn’t want to miss any of the adventure.

When she returned, the car rental paperwork was almost complete. Sean’s gaze locked onto her and he leaned in, his hand settling on the small of her back. She had all of his attention, and she loved it. It was the most delicious kind of foreplay.

“Here is your key. The car is located through those doors. Please follow the signs, and you will find it.”

“Got it,” Sean said, his gaze never leaving her face. “Thank you.”

Always polite, even when distracted. She was in such delicious trouble.

They found their car easily, and as Sean moved the seat back and adjusted his mirrors, Jenna typed the hotel address into the built-in GPS. The controls were in Spanish, but the interface was intuitive enough she figured it out.

It wasn’t the fastest, though. The screen took forever to load, and once they set off, there was a bit of a lag as it updated to their changing direction. But they found the hotel easily and Sean quickly spotted an open parking space in the crowded lot.

“Eagle eyes,” she teased him, and he gave her a quick grin and a kiss before hopping out.

The lobby was crowded, too, and when they got to the counter, the desk clerk couldn’t find their reservation. “Foster, Foster,” he kept repeating, and Jenna’s stomach dropped each time he stretched out Sean’s last name. Sean didn’t seem fazed. Jenna was super fazed. Or super tired, probably. Also, hungry. She wanted to devour that sandwich, then lie down and not get back up again for twelve hours.

“Ah.” The desk clerk frowned. “For two?”

“Yes.”

“We apologize. It was set aside. Yes, here it is.” Set aside? In a computer? Whatever. As long as they had it, that was all that mattered. “Mr. Sean Foster, reservation for two. Your room is in the north tower. One moment.”

Room? Not rooms? Not that she cared.

But Sean did. “A single room? I reserved two rooms.”

“A room for two, sir. That’s how we have it recorded. Perhaps there was some confusion.”

“Perhaps.” Sean’s voice stayed level, but from the way his jaw flexed, Jenna knew he was annoyed. So Mr. Steady and Calm had limits after all.

“It’s fine,” she whispered. “If it’s fine with you?”

He twisted around so his back was to the clerk. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah. Of course.” She held up their bag of sandwiches. “I’ll even buy you dinner before taking advantage of you.”

He laughed, his face softening. “You have a deal.”

A surge of desire pushed her fatigue to the edges again, and when he looped his arm over her shoulders, she leaned into him. If anything, she was relieved not to be saying goodnight at a door tonight.

Her heart thumped in happy anticipation as they headed to the north tower. The room was big, with a king-size bed, and a small couch and table filled the far corner.

She jumped as the door clicked shut behind them, but Sean was moving ahead of her and didn’t notice.

Pressing her hand to her belly, she forced herself to be normal. Chill. Food might help. “Hungry?” she asked as he stowed his bag in the corner.

He turned slowly and gave her a sexy grin. “Yes.”

Gah, her insides turned to mush and heat flooded her cheeks. She hadn’t meant it like that, but that worked too.

Carefully, she set the bag of food on the table then dropped her backpack. Sean watched, his gaze hooded, as she closed the gap between them and fisted the front of his shirt. A shiver ran up her arm as her fingers curled against the hard, broad expanse of his chest. Every time she thought she was getting used to the bigness of him, to his strength and virility, her body surprised her with another visceral craving for him.

He was gorgeous.

And they were finally alone.

She pulled him closer, the gentlest tug on his shirt, and he came readily. Big and strong and broad as he pressed against her, seeming to know she wanted an all-consuming, thought-scattering kiss.

His mouth covered hers, his lips immediately questing for more access. She opened for him and surrendered to his tongue, letting him taste her. He gathered her in his arms and plunged his fingers into her hair, wrapping her in his embrace as he deepened the kiss. Harder, faster. He devoured her, and her pulse skipped and leapt along.

Yes, yes, yes.

When he eased back, he did it reluctantly. She could feel the tension vibrating through his arms, hard as steel around her. He caught her lower lip between his teeth and tugged, just for a second. Just enough to make something heady tug hard inside her.

More.

Breathing hard, he pressed his forehead against hers and tightened his hands in her hair. “Food. We should eat it.”

An out-of-control giggle burst forth from deep inside her. “Yes. We should.”

He kissed her again, hard. He nipped and pulled, and she pushed up onto her toes because she wanted more of that. “Sean…”

“Mmm.” His lips softened against hers, then he pulled himself back and cleared his throat, a faint blush colouring the tops of his cheeks. “Come here.”

He pulled her to the couch, and they sat next to each other as they ate their sandwiches. When they finished the last sips of their pop, he tugged her into his lap again. This time their making out was slower, more exploratory.

But before they went any further, she really needed a shower. Reality was so unromantic. And she wanted to shave her legs. It was probably too soon in their whirlwind romance to do that in front of him. “Do you want to take the first shower?” she finally asked as he kissed his way down her neck.

He shook his head as he patted her hip. “Ladies first.”

The old-fashioned thing was definitely working for her, especially when he was flexible about it.

“You sure?” she asked as she reluctantly eased off his lap.

He hung on to her hand as she stood. Maybe he was reluctant for their contact to end too. “Go on. You’ve earned that hot water.”

After four months of tepid water and horrible pressure, the shower felt like heaven itself. She stood under the heavy spray for a minute, letting the heat get into her pores as she tried to tamp down her excitement for this adventure to a reasonable, healthy level rather than the off-the-charts thrill ride it currently felt like. She needed to keep her attention focused on the travel and not so much the sex, although they were going to have sex, and she had no doubt it was going to be amazing.

Incredible, even.

Sean’s kisses promised a lot for what would come next.

But she needed to keep the fling casual, because it had a very definite end-date. And more to the point, she needed to return to work re-invigorated, not mopey about losing access to ready orgasms and easy, soul-warming smiles.

And she had no doubt Sean understood that—because he was in the same boat.

She grinned as she finished scrubbing her skin. Yes, they were going to help each other a lot over the next two weeks. Restore all sorts of positive energy. Humming, she did a double dose of conditioner on her hair before shaving her legs. Only when her fingers turned pruny did she reluctantly turn off the water.

After dressing in the basic grey lounge pants and black t-shirt that she’d brought for pyjamas, she stepped back into the hotel room and gave Sean a ready smile. “All yours.”

He gave her a slow, warm once over that made her shiver, then grabbed his own bag. “I won't be long,” he said and he gave her a kiss on the cheek as he moved past.

She stretched out on the bed, luxuriating in how big and soft it was compared to her cot. Had a pillow ever felt this good? She rolled her face into it and closed her eyes.

* * *

Sean roughly turned the bar of soap between his hands, working it into a lather. It matched how he felt, although no amount of scrubbing could clean his filthy thoughts when it came to Jenna.

This wasn’t a one-night stand. It didn’t feel like a friends-with-benefits thing, either, although he sure as hell wanted to be Jenna’s friend.

And he wanted all the benefits.

He rolled his neck under the hot spray of water before turning around to rinse his front. The sting of heat against his junk did nothing to slack his erection. He was so hard for her it hurt. The little sounds she made as he hauled her close echoed in his ears.

When he soaped up his balls, just that touch nearly sent him through the roof. Fuck. He didn’t want their first time to be over before it started. He wanted to take his time and make it the best she’d ever had.

He took himself roughly in hand and jerked. Three strokes and he was done, spilling his pent-up release. With a shuddering breath, he leaned against the tile and closed his eyes.

The things Jenna made him feel were strange and new. Why was he putting so much pressure on himself to give her some kind of perfect romance? She hadn’t asked him for that. But as he finished showering, he couldn’t shake the thought that he wanted it for himself.

He’d come halfway around the world in service to his Queen and country. For himself and his career too. But he’d found something else. He’d found Jenna and the spark she lit inside him, and he wanted her, fiercely, on a whole different level from anything and anyone he’d desired in the past. From the second she’d looked up at him, her fingers wrapped around that apple, he’d been a goner.

Need at first sight.

He wasn’t crazy enough to think about the l-word. But two weeks of something special?

Yes, he wanted that.

He wanted romance, and he wanted it to be magical. He wanted to remember this time with Jenna for the rest of his life.

And his first orgasm since he’d met her had been by his own hand while she waited.

What the hell was wrong with him?

In the end, it didn’t matter. He realized even before he rounded the corner that Jenna had fallen asleep. His shower had taken less than ten minutes, and she’d probably passed out the second he left the room.

He leaned against the wall and watched her slow, even breaths. Damn, she looked sweet.

And exhausted.

In the two days that he’d been at her camp, she’d probably had a sum total of six hours sleep between the two nights. If that was standard, she’d probably sleep like the dead until morning. He had when he’d landed in Naples. Now he was adjusted to vacation-time, and she deserved the same transition. He wasn’t going to try to wake her.

He pulled a paperback from his bag and stretched out on the other side of the bed.

The romance could start in the morning.