Page 21 of The Night Ride (SEALs on Wheels #3)

Chapter fifteen

I n the morning, I woke in a strange bed as memories of the night flashed through my brain.

I’d betrayed Evan. It didn’t matter that he was dead and buried. Because I’d slept with the guy’s sister. Multiple times. She was a drug in my veins. An oasis from the dark forces I battled every time I was shipped overseas.

Being with her, feeling her around me, witnessing the trust she displayed in me, knowing what she’d been through, humbled me.

I wished I could give her more.

But I’d gone the long-distance route before with my marriage. It crashed and burned in spectacular fashion. And I was unwilling to traverse that path again.

Beth deserved so much better than me. I knew it. Yet it wasn’t going to keep me from her bed any longer. I wanted her too fiercely, with a desire that rattled my foundation.

I rose, trying not to think of her. Yet it was hard when her sent surrounded me. I could smell her on me.

I headed into the shower. Beth had left early this morning. She’d told me not to get up. And I gave her space. Mainly because I needed it. Choosing to head back to the oblivion of sleep rather than deal with the consequences of our actions.

Because I wanted her again.

It didn’t seem possible. I never stuck around after a tryst or wanted more. But Beth was different. She gave even when it would be in her best interest not to.

I didn’t know what that made me because I couldn’t seem to walk away. Not now that I’ve tasted her. That I’ve felt her soft body beneath mine.

She felt like heaven. And for a man like me likely bound for hell, I couldn’t give her up just yet.

After my shower, I padded into the kitchen. Once again, she left a note on the fridge that breakfast was inside. Fuck, she was sweet, going out of her way for my comfort.

Inside was another omelet and some biscuits with gravy on them. Jesus, just how early did she get up this morning to be able to make this?

I ate every delicious mouthful. And while I ate, I received a message from the tech store that the equipment I ordered would be ready for pickup at one today.

Good. The sooner I could get the cameras installed, the faster I could help catch the thief and head out to meet the others. My chest clenched. Because the thought of leaving her didn’t sit well with me. Yet I couldn’t change who and what I was. I swore an oath.

I’d also broken another last night and would do so again before I left town.

Even though my soul was already forfeited, I had to uphold the oaths that were still standing. And that meant finishing the job here and moving on with Evan’s final mission. My reasoning felt hollow even as I thought it.

Glancing out the back window, I saw debris scattered in the yard, lots of broken branches and twigs from last night’s storm.

Checking the time, it was a little after eight.

But I would use what free time I had to take care of chores for her.

It was the only way I could help her. I spent the better part of the morning outside clearing the debris.

Last night’s storm had been bad. And it looked like Beth’s house didn’t get the worst of it.

While I worked in the front yard, I saw whole trees had been toppled or snapped in half in other neighbors’ yards.

I headed to the store at noon and picked up the order. Then shot off a text to Beth.

The camera equipment arrived. I’ll be there shortly after the bakery closes. I’ll get the system installed then.

Great. See you then.

That afternoon I took a drive attempting to divine how to handle another broken oath. I’d sworn to Evan that I would never touch Beth again. Last night, blew that one out of the water.

I never should have touched her. I knew that.

But I couldn’t help it. She enchanted me.

Brought out needs inside me I thought were long since dead and buried.

The way my marriage fell apart messed me up for a long time.

In some ways, it still guided my actions and kept me from committing, always keeping things casual with women.

Beth was anything but casual. More like complicated to the nth degree. I had feelings for her. Deep ones. They left me grasping at excuses to stay away.

I shouldn’t have touched her yet now that I had there was a bone deep craving inside. I couldn’t offer her long-term commitment. For guys like me, always on the move, I just didn’t have it in me for long-distance relationships.

And maybe I carried one too many scars that my ex-wife placed upon my soul. She cheated in the worst way possible with the man who had stood as my best man at our wedding. The guy who had been my best friend growing up, from elementary school through high school.

Beth wasn’t my ex-wife. They were night and day different in every way. But it had been a long time since I allowed myself to be vulnerable. And with Beth, it was easy when I was with her. There was a magnetic pull that reeled me in. I had never wanted a woman the way I wanted her.

As much as I wanted to give her more, I promised her brother I would stay away from her. Every moment I spent in her presence I was giving that vow the finger.

I didn’t know which way to proceed. It was unlike me. I was a man of action and decisive. I didn’t scare easily. Yet the situation with Beth terrified me.

Because she mattered.

I didn’t want her to. I didn’t want to worry about her here all alone, fending for herself. But I would regardless of whether we slept together again or not. But the thought of her moving on with some faceless, nameless guy ripped a hole straight through the center of my chest.

I should tell her that last night was a once and done situation. That it couldn’t happen again because it had just been a physical outlet for us. But I’d be lying.

I wanted Beth more than I wanted air to breathe.

How could I rectify breaking my oath simply because I desired her? It didn’t matter that Evan was gone. It didn’t matter that he might want someone like me there to support and protect his sister.

But I wasn’t okay with breaking my oath to him again.

By the time I arrived at her shop that evening, I was no closer to making a decision. She came to the door, a smudge of flour across the bridge of her nose, in her baker’s apron and hat, and my being came to life.

Her beauty stole the breath from my lungs. And god, but her shy smile knocked me sideways.

For whatever reason, fate had put us in one another’s paths again.

The moment I was in her presence all doubts floated away.

Replaced by a hunger that dominated me. I fucking craved her.

I wanted the taste her desire on my tongue again.

I ached to hear the breathy moans she made while I drove inside her.

Fuck, I wanted her. Just her.

Perhaps for whatever time we had we could be together. Enjoy each other’s company and get the other out of our system. Because when I left Saint Louis, that had to be the end of it.

She opened the front door open since my hands were full, her eyes filled with joy and another emotion I couldn’t name. “Hi. Thanks for coming to do this tonight. I’m ready to get this thief out of my life for good.”

“It’s why I’m here.”

The light in her eyes dimmed. But I didn’t want her to stop looking at me with desire.

I stepped into the bakery as she shut and locked the door behind me.

Setting the box of supplies on a nearby table, I swiveled around and caught her by the waist, drawing her in until there wasn’t a centimeter of space between us.

She gasped and her hands went to my chest. They felt like hot brands.

My gaze dipped to her lips. “The cameras might be why I’m here, but they aren’t the only reason. ”

She clutched at my chest. Her full lips parted. Those porcelain cheeks grew rosy as need infused her gaze.

I stared with heat and need swirling around us in an intoxicating combination. Yet I refrained. Because if I kissed her now, we wouldn’t come up for air for hours.

I gave her waist a squeeze then released her. “Why don’t I get started. That way we can head back to your place.”

“Okay, where do you want to start first?”

“I thought out here would be best and then move my way back.”

“All right, that works since I have to clean the kitchen and then finish up the day’s accounting.”

“I think your office will take the least amount of time. Would you like me to start there first? That way I won’t disturb you while you’re doing that stuff?”

“Sure. That makes more sense.” She ushered me into the back then left me to deal with the camera installation.

It was easy work. I just had to figure out the best angle for each camera. Then ensure the camera came online before moving onto the next one. Beth’s office was fast, as was the cash office and hallway.

When I was done with those areas and Beth had finished in the kitchen.

We were two ships passing one another in the night, neither of us docking or searching for land as we worked to complete our tasks. I did the installation in the front of her bakery, making sure I had an unobstructed view of the registers from all angles.

The last area I had to tackle was the kitchen. I had just finished putting in the last camera when Beth waltzed into the kitchen.

“Do you need any help?”

“Nope. It’s the last one. You should be good to go.” I climbed off the latter and joined her at the stainless-steel counter. “Here’s your phone.”

“Plan on showing me how to use the cameras?”

“Yep. Open the app there.” I pointed out the small square emblem of the security app.

“If you press this on the side, it will give you the twenty-four-seven feed on each of the cameras. If you want to look at one more closely, just tap that video screen and voilà, you have the image. This company stores all your recorded data, for each camera, specific to the date. The time is important too. They run constantly on your current electrical system. There’s nothing you need to do for the power since I connected each one to the current wiring. ”