SEALs of Honor: Baylor Read online

  “Yep,” he said. “Why?”

  She looked up at him, smiled, and said, “It just seems like such a waste.”

  “Waste of what?”

  He looked at her, frowning, because she was already confusing him. Something he was unfamiliar with in terms of females and women. She definitely wasn’t a victim, and he highly applauded that. She was also a little more forward, a little more demanding, and a little bit more of a spitfire than what he was used to. But he was loving every minute of it.

  “It just seems like such a waste,” she said, looking at him, with a particular light in her eyes.

  His gaze widened as he realized what she meant, and he said, “Well, we can’t have that now, can we?”

  “I don’t know,” she said. “You’re awfully slow at moving.”

  He smirked and immediately snatched her up into his arms and walked into the bedroom, and said, “We’ll fix that at once.”

  She burst out laughing as he dropped her gently on the bed, and she just laid there, with her arms up. “You better be coming down here to join me,” she said. “It’s awfully lonely.”

  “You won’t be lonely for long,” he said, and he quickly stripped off his clothes. Then he stood in front of her, fully nude. She gasped as she stared at him, and he felt self-conscious until her fingers reached out to some of the old scars that he had.

  “What happened?” she asked.

  He looked down and shrugged. “Oh, I don’t remember where I got that one from.”

  She reached out, kissed it, and then found another one and kissed it, and then another one.

  “If you do that,” he said, “I have to tell you that you’ll take a long time.”

  Her gaze widened, and she asked, “Is your job always that dangerous?”

  “No, some of these were sustained during training,” he said. “And believe me. I felt them all, but none of them worried me. They were just part of what I was doing.”

  She nodded slowly. “I get that. I really do. I guess I have some adjusting to do in that regard.”

  “You do,” he said, happy that she was quite prepared to even look at adjusting.

  She smiled, wrapped her arms around him, and said, “You truly are a beautiful man.”

  He shook his head, unwrapped her arms, and said, “And you are overdressed.” And, with the same spirit he’d seen all the way along this op, she quickly shed her clothing, until she stood there in just her bra and panties. He gave a happy sigh, as he slipped a finger in the waistband and said, “I think you’re still overdressed.”

  She slid a little closer and said, “Yeah, well, maybe you should take care of that then.”

  He pulled the material with a jerk, and it separated at both seams. Embarrassed, he said, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to do that. Well, I did but not exactly that way.”

  She burst out laughing, until his finger slipped into the tiny tight curls at the apex of her thighs. She gasped and said, “Oh, wow. This will be a hard and fast ride if you keep that up.”

  “Ride?” he asked, an interested look in his eyes.

  She smiled and asked, “Don’t you get to go riding?”

  “I think the question is, do you get to go riding?”

  “I hope so,” she said fervently. “I really do hope so.”

  He shook his head, still amazed at the laughter and the light in her voice. And just the sheer freedom of the moment and her ability to reach out and to snatch it up and to take full advantage of it.

  “Something wrong?” she asked quietly.

  “No,” he said, “but I’m slowly realizing just how very special you truly are.” She stopped and stared. He shook his head and said, “Those aren’t empty words. You really are special. I know you don’t see it, but I do.”

  “Thank you,” she said, with a bright smile. “So, are you ever planning on coming to bed, or will we just stand here and talk?”

  He grinned, wrapped her up in his arms, and gently laid her on the bedding. She opened her arms, and he joined her on her side of the bed. As he looked down at the bra, he said, “It seems such a waste to take it off.”

  “Well, you could leave that intact this time,” she said with a smile. “So I have something to wear home.” He looked at the ripped underwear and winced. She chuckled. “It’s okay. You’ll just have to think about me going commando.”

  He groaned, then buried his face in between her plump breasts. As he lifted his head, he said, “That’ll kill me all the way home.”

  “Yeah, but it was your own doing,” she said, with a snicker, then rolled over until she could kiss him and kiss him and kiss him again. When she finally came up for air, she whispered, “Man, it’s been a rough few days.”

  “It has been,” he said, ever in tune with her moods. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m more than okay,” she said. “Some things just had to happen the way they did, and right now I’m slowly adjusting to that reality. But I’ve never been happier than right now in your arms.”

  He held her tight, closing his eyes, as he realized how much he’d really wanted to hear that. “Isn’t it too bad we didn’t connect all those years ago?” he murmured.

  She shook her head. “No, I don’t think we were ready. We’re such different people now,” she said. “Just so much more waiting for us, as the people we currently are.”

  He smiled and said, “I think you’re right.” He rolled over until he was settled between her thighs, with that lovely purple bra right in front of him, so he lowered his head and proceeded to explore every single inch of her creamy smooth skin. By the time he hit her small dainty hip bones, she was twisting in his arms and mindlessly crying out for him. He’d never thought he’d seen anything so erotic and so beautiful as her honest reaction when she made it very clear who and what she needed.

  She reached her hands up, sliding them against his scalp to grab hold of his hair, and tugged him down. She whispered, just as she reached up for his lips, “I want you now.” Then she kissed him with all the passion she held inside.

  He whispered, “Are you sure?”

  She looked up, smiled. “If you don’t,” she said, “I might have to punish you.”

  He groaned and plunged deep. As he seated himself right to the hilt, she stilled, as if unaccustomed to such things. He waited for her to adjust, as she wiggled beneath him, and he swore as every movement pushed him closer and closer to the edge.

  Finally she looked up, and whispered, “All good.” He shuddered and started to move. She wrapped her arms around him and hung on for the ride, as he drove them both to the edge.

  Somewhere in the back of his mind, he realized she’d said something about riding, but, no, he was just too far gone to even switch positions, and, in truth, it didn’t look like she even remembered. Her eyes were closed, her mouth open, and the cries coming from her were nectar to his soul.

  As he made one final plunge and ground his hips tight against her, he felt the tension coiling deep inside him finally exploding from within. Even as his orgasm rolled through him, she bucked beneath him, crying out in joy. And he knew that both of them had made it over this one peak that they had been so desperate to reach. He pulled her into his arms and slowly relaxed beside her.

  She snuggled up close. “Man,” she said, “that was wonderful.”

  “Well, you didn’t get a chance to ride.”

  She smiled and said, “Next time.”

  He looked at her, grinned, and said, “I can’t wait.”

  “You weren’t planning on rushing, were you?”

  “Hell no,” he said, “we’ve got all night.”

  She looked at him with interest. “Seriously?”

  He nodded. “The flight doesn’t leave for several more hours,” he said. “We’ve got time for more and some sleep.”

  “Perfect,” she said. “Let’s grab a little sleep, and then we’ll talk about riding.”

  They both closed their eyes, and he held her close. He’d never been
happier, and his heart had never been fuller, as he realized just what a special gift had come into his life. He didn’t know whetherMason had a hand in it or not, but, damn it, Baylor wasn’t beyond saying thank you.

  When he closed his eyes, he whispered, “Thanks, Mason. Whatever you did, man? That was perfect. Now we got to find somebody for Hudson.”

  Then Baylor closed his eyes and slept.

  Epilogue

  Hudson Cameron sat beside Mason in the back of the carrier, watching Baylor and Gizella. Hudson looked at his boss and said, “Looks like you were right.”

  Mason turned to view the other two, then smiled and said, “Yeah, that one was pretty easy.”

  “Are you actually taking an active hand in these connections?”

  “No, not at all,” he said, “but sometimes you just get a feeling that things would work out. They’ve got a long road ahead of them and lots to learn, but any relationship does. And they’ve come a long way.”

  “It’s kind of a sad trip home,” he said, as he motioned to the two coffins strapped in the back.

  Mason’s smile fell away as he nodded. “And it’s a good time for Baylor to be there for her.”

  “It is,” Hudson said. “I just hadn’t expected to see it with my own eyes.”

  “That’s because it was happening right in front of you. Too often when it’s you, you don’t see it happening until you’re already caught up in the mess.”

  “Maybe,” he said. “I had one long relationship eons ago,” he said. “I’ve had multiple short ones since, but nothing like that one.”

  “What happened?” Mason asked curiously.

  “She died in a car accident. After prom,” he said quietly, staring at the long road of his past. “We were planning on going to college together,” he said with a lopsided smile. “We’d been sweethearts since forever, and, when she died, it felt like something inside me died too.”

  “I’m sorry,” Mason said. “That’s a tough one.”

  “It is, though it’s been long enough that I should have gotten over it by now. I just haven’t found anybody else.”

  “Are you close to anybody in her family?”

  “Her sister,” he said immediately. “But Delilah’s death keeps us together.”

  “Are you sure about that?” Mason asked.

  He looked at him in surprise. “Well, we have coffee every once in a while, but nothing more than that.”

  “Is there nothing more to it than that because you don’t want there to be?”

  He frowned. “I hadn’t actually thought anything was there to develop.”

  “Well, maybe you should take another look,” he said. “Too often, in cases like that, people get together because of the person they lost. Sometimes it doesn’t work because they’re hoping the other person will be a clone of the person who is gone. The opposite is also true. They stay away from that person because they think that they’ll make them a substitute.”

  “Well, she’s not a substitute for anybody,” he said. “She’s got a lot of piss and vinegar, where her sister was much more sugar and spice.”

  “But that doesn’t mean she’s not interested.”

  “I don’t even know what she’s doing these days. I haven’t talked to her in quite a while.”

  “Maybe it’s time you should. Maybe it’ll help you put the past to bed.”

  “Well, I wasn’t thinking along those lines. I was just hoping that, I don’t know,” he said, with a shake of his head. “She’s fun to be around, and I really like her, but I still see her sister’s face. So, I’m probably in the second category.”

  “Are you still seeing her sister’s face, or is that a habit?” Mason asked quietly.

  Stunned, he looked at Mason. “Very interesting,” he said. “I see the psychoanalyst coming out in you.”

  “I’ve just seen a lot of guys on teams go through a lot of relationship strife and struggles,” he said. “There’s been more than a few who have lost their spouses too. Some before, some after marriage,” he said, “and some who have lost whole families.”

  At that, Hudson winced because he knew a few himself. “That’s what I mean. It seemed like it happened a long time ago, and I just haven’t found anybody new.”

  “Are you open to finding anybody new?”

  “Maybe. I guess,” he said, with a shrug and open hands. “I don’t want to be alone for the rest of my life.”

  “So, the next time you get back, or maybe when we’re back this time, give her a call. Go for coffee or whatever, and just take a look at it with a new perspective.”

  “And what perspective should that be?”

  “One that says that she’s your friend, that she’s somebody you know well and have enjoyed seeing seeing off and on. And just see if something’s there.”

  He thought about it, smiled, and said, “Why not? Like I said, she’s a good friend.”

  “The thing about good friends is,” Mason said, “often we friend-zone somebody, even though that’s not what they wanted.”

  “I don’t think she’s interested in me,” he said.

  “Why is that?”

  He stopped, thought about it, and said, “I don’t know, but she’s pretty special.”

  “Well, maybe you should check out just how special she is then.”

  He laughed. “You’re just so set on being a matchmaker,” he said. “You can’t stand to see anybody not hooked up.”

  “I have to admit that I’m pretty much liking the status myself,” he said, “so who knows? Let me know how it goes.”

  “I can do that,” Hudson said with a smile. “But don’t count on it.”

  “It’s not a case of counting on it. Just give it an honest try and see what comes up. You might be surprised.”

  “I doubt it,” he said, “but, hey, just for you, I’ll give her a call.”

  “No,” he said, “not for me, do it for you.”

  At that, he smiled and said, “Good enough, but not until I get home.”

  “Done.”

  This concludes Book 26 of SEALs of Honor: Baylor.

  Read about Hudson: SEALs of Honor, Book 27

  SEALs of Honor: Hudson (Book #27)

  Due a few days of R&R, Hudson heads to visit his best friend in Vail, Colorado. The first day, an explosion in his hotel sends the city into chaos. He’s doing what he can to keep Avery safe, as this was no accident. He’s not allowed to join the investigation, but being on the spot and having the training he has are huge benefits. No way will he sit by and do nothing. Especially if Avery is in trouble.

  Avery has been looking forward to Hudson’s visit. They are best friends, and she’d love to spend more time with him. Hell, she’d loved him since forever but didn’t want to risk their special friendship by taking the relationship further. Now she regrets it, as the explosion in town is only the tip of the problem—for the terrorist realizes that Hudson caught a glimpse of him.

  Now the game of cat and mouse is on, with Avery caught in the middle …

  Find Book 27 here!

  To find out more visit Dale Mayer’s website.

  Author’s Note

  Thank you for reading Baylor: SEALs of Honor, Book 26! If you enjoyed the book, please take a moment and leave a short review here.

  Dear reader,

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  Cheers,

  Dale Mayer

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  About the Author

  Dale Mayer is a USA Today best-selling author, best known for her SEALs military romances, her Psychic Visions series, and her Lovely Lethal Garden cozy series. Her contemporary
romances are raw and full of passion and emotion (Broken But … Mending series). Her thrillers will keep you guessing (By Death series), and her romantic comedies will keep you giggling (It’s a Dog’s Life, a stand-alone novella; and the Broken Protocols series, starring Charming Marvin, the cat).

  Dale honors the stories that come to her—and some of them are crazy and break all the rules and cross multiple genres!

  To go with her fiction, she also writes nonfiction in many different fields, with books available on résumé writing, companion gardening, and the US mortgage system. She has recently published her Career Essentials series. All her books are available in print and ebook format.

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  BAYLOR: SEALS OF HONOR, BOOK 26

  Dale Mayer

  Valley Publishing

  Copyright © 2020

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  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  ISBN-13: 978-1-773363-93-6

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