As we waited for dinner to come to a broil, we kept on trading barbs and exchanged stories. Who would have guessed that Mr Hunky Hicksville had travelled almost as many places around the world as I had. And beneath that country boy charm, he had a nasty lil sense of humour behind it. Perhaps at that moment, I should have wound up the conversation. If he became a tad more irresistible, I couldn't be responsible for my actions. Smart, funny, devastatingly gorgeous. Why was I being punished with this? Leaving the bowl on the floor, I took refuge at the farthest corner away from him. "So what are we gonna do here?"
"Wait around till morning." Peering out the small window that was left to us, he gazed silently into the dark. "We're relatively safe here till then."
Since he didn't mention what his next plans were, I safely concluded that his team must be close by. "Team Sixteen is still around. Still think you guys should have left me there. Now, don't go frothing at the mouth again, but I was pretty safe."
"I wasn't frothing."
"You were. Like a rabid dog." I couldn't resist pointing out gleefully.
"I won't argue that point since I was that mad." His blue eyes narrowed. "Sure, we wold have loved to have dumped you there to roast but we couldn't very well leave the prominent physician in that shit hellhole. After all, he saved some SEALs in other tight situations before."
About three years ago, I'd been involved as a civilian member of a team in Bosnia. All I remembered were ashes, blood and vulnerable, lost children. I was surprised that he knew but then again, this man had managed to surprise me all day long. "I am afraid to ask how you know that."
A warm smile curled up his lips. "Ben Reilly. One of the men you saved was my buddy during Hell Week. That's one of the reasons why I haven't thumped you one yet."
The grumpy smile he sent me had me laughing. "Thanks."
"You're welcome. Enough about me." He took a moment to check through the food and stirred some extra spice in. Figures that he'd like it hot. "So what's an insanely wealthy doctor like Dr. Cameron Kincaid doing in these parts? Shouldn't you be out trolling for meat in WeHo instead? Dancing around clubs in Ibiza and such?"
Though he said the word wealth, I could sense that my wealth didn't impress him in the slightest. Which although admirable - was qute a pity since I would have given quite a bit for a piece of meat like him. "Looking for hot dick in all the wrong places?"
"In a manner of speaking."
Leaning back on the wall, I smiled reminiscently. "Would it surprise you that I did all that five years ago. One mad fling after the other with no thought to the consequences."
Munching some of the rice, he shrugged. "Nah, you're a pretty good-looking guy. And with your megabucks, I'm sure you're hot stuff. If you go for that kinda thing."
I laughed. "You can bet many guys go for me." It sounded terrible once I'd said it and I tried to retract the statement. "I mean, the guys.."
"I get the point." He put out his hand to stop me. "What made you change?"
It wasn't a story that did well for my reputation but I remembered that day as clearly as it had been yesterday. The dirty, stained sheets, the stranger snoring next to me. "Had a wake-up call one day when I woke up - and realized I had no idea where I was! Boozed up, high on god knows what and totally confused about who's bed I was in. I couldn't imagine how I'd gotten to such a stage. So that's me, wild, kinky partyboy extraodinaire. Not so great after all, huh."
"Actually, you impress me."
All the fawning compliments I'd received before didn't mean as much as these words. Which in turn gave me a surprise. "Me? You're not still mad at me for jeopardizing everyone."
He eyed me speculatively. "Don't remind me."
I smiled.
"I still think it's a fool idea to be tramping around in the middle of nowhere. Obviously God didn't give you much in the way of common sense but I gotta say... there are only a handful of men who would run through what you did last night without peeing in their pants. Even I'd be a lil freaked out inside. But you walked through the place as cool as cucumber like some guy taking a stroll down 5th Avenue." Finishing his sentence, he suddenly stretched, giving me an awesome display of incredible male physique. Biceps, triceps, pectorals, lats - all came into play as I watched in silent awe. If only Lieutenant Commander Michael Muldoon had dropped by medical school, I'd have paid much more attention at Human Anatomy.
As I tried to roll my tongue back between my teeth - and not where I wanted them to be which was between the deep valley of his pecs, I looked away. "Believe me. I was shaking with fright and praying hard that one of those bullets wouldn't blow my brains out."
Muldoon sent me a wink. "As I said, I am impressed."
"You'd have done it without breaking a sweat, I'm sure." The idea of sweat and Muldoon had an unusual heat building up in my pants. It was easy to imagine him working in the fields, wiping the sweat off his forehead, even as it dripped down his hard, rippling pecs. God, I'd have tumbled him in those fields for sure.
Turning to me, he gave me a wry smile. "Doc, I'm brave. Not stupid."
That made me laugh. And luckily drew me out of my lurid fantasies of licking Muldoon's incredible heaving six-pack as he moaned helplessly in some barn / hayloft of my imagination. In my mind, I had almost reached the dick of my dreams. Could it possibly be the horrific 10 inches that I'd imagined?
The dinner was sizzling already and the scent almost made my stomach growl. "In a minute or so, you'll taste Muldoon Du Jour and you'll go down on your knees." Giving me the plate, he looked up at me in anticipation, his blue eyes wide.
The idea of having a bite of Muldoon definitely made me wanna go down on my knees but I doubt that was what he meant. Taking the plate of rice he offered, I took a tentative bite and felt heaven. Oh My God, I must marry this man. He looked like a god and cooked like a dream. Could that factory he came from manufacture some gay Marine Ken version?
Slurping up the rest of the soup, I couldn't help but tease him a little. "By the way, you're still pretty."
With a glint in his eye, he snarled at me. "Take it back, Doc."
"Pretty boy. Shiny muscles. Toothy smile. Could probably audition for a boy band. Or an A & F commercial."
The growl was warning enough.
His reflexes were amazing and in a second he had me on the floor, those powerful arms pinning me to the floor, those hard pecs rippling above me. My tongue was a moment away from taking a quick slurp.
"Surrender, lil man," he grinned.
Surprisingly, not all his dreamy looks nor his sexy butt got me going all the way but one look at that mischievious, almost boyish grin, the irresistible twinkle in his eyes had me revving up my engine without thinking of the consequences. Before I could have stopped myself, I raised my head and kissed him hard on the lips.
It was quick peck on the lips although I sure as hell wanted more. But I knew I couldn't. The man hadn't even shown the smallest interest. Even as I pulled away, I could feel his muscles tense and his hands moved away from me. His hands curled into fists and I wondered how much a plastic surgeon could cost.
For the moment however, we both remained silent. In the desert, silence was just that. I could practically hear the sound of his breathing, deep, slow and laboured. His eyes were closed and his handsome face was expressionless leaving me in doubt whether he was going to tear my head off - or even more terrifying, he'd fulfil all my X-rated orgasmic dreams. Heaving a deep sigh, he rested his forehead against mine and looked at me. The expression in those deep blue eyes were unfathomable but I knew that I could drown in them. Satisfied that he had my attention, he spoke softly. "You want me, don't you?"
The evidence was pulsing hard against his own thigh which would leave any of my arguments pointless. Even so, being pinned to the ground by 200 pounds of sex, muscle and man was more than I could bear. Trying to sit up, I signaled for him to move away. "Mike.."
"No." The man shook his head stubbornly. "Don't lie to me. I've seen you checking me out. You've been hot for me since Kandahar."
How could I possibly lie when I was hard as hell for him? Just move one inch closer and I'd gobble the man up. Bite on that sexy lower lip.
"Yeah, looking at me like I'm some hot piece of Marine beef. Wanting to eat me up with those eyes."
His voice held a hint of a sneer that had my heart coming to a standstill. Was this the thumping that I'd anticipated earlier? Perhaps this insane scheme was some kinda homophobic SEAL torture - dangle the gorgeous hunk bait in front of the gay man and then break his kneecaps if he did anything.
"Are you going to beat me up now?"
"Shit." The look on my face was telling and the man had the gall to laugh. "Doc, I am not gonna hit you."
"Then what is this?"
"I don't know. I've never felt like this but I... " He sounded almost confused for a moment but those lips of his started something wonderful at my neck.
His lips felt amazing. "What the hell are you doing?"
"Don't ask. I sure won't tell."