21 Marine Salute: 21 Always a Marine Tales (88 page)

He didn’t want to play doctor—he wanted to play
with
the doctor.

“What happened?” Rick asked again, tracing his finger along the length of the scar, which according to the medic who treated him, stretched about four-and-a-half inches in length and a couple of centimeters thick.

“Would you believe me if I said I tripped?” He glanced over his shoulder. Rick’s expression tightened and his jaw flexed. He looked very commanding.

“No. This had to be deep and they used the wrong kind of stitches….”

“Field dressing for a week.” He had to stop him before he went all med school on some poor corpsman. Turning around, he pulled Rick into his arms. “Running drills, smoking out insurgents. I got on the bad side of a knife. I’m fine. It didn’t nick anything important and I was only down for three weeks.”

“Elijah.” Rick never used his full name.

“Oh, say it like you mean it.” He kissed him, taking over from Rick’s lead. He wanted to be together more than he wanted to talk about old wounds or bad injuries. It happened. He’d healed. They could move on.

“I want to inspect all of you.” The words sent a possessive thrill through Eli, but he ignored it.

“Only if you touch and play.” Eli helped him out of his shirt. He was all sinewy shoulders and lean muscle mass. His hands were firm, well-shaped and incredibly skilled. They had a surgeon’s dexterity. When Rick wrapped a hand around Eli’s cock, he reminded him that he had other skills, too.

Hips thrusting forward, he drove into Rick’s grip. They made it to the bed and Rick turned the tables, giving him a little shove. He stripped out of his pants, having abandoned his shoes somewhere else. Soaking up the view, Eli could have come right then.

“Damn. I missed this.” He loved the way Rick’s cock stretched, filled out with need and bounced against his belly. Rolling over, he caught his hips and held him still. Tracing his tongue over the tip of Rick’s erection, he felt and heard the other man’s deep sigh.

Eli worked his mouth around the rigid shaft, swallowing him as deep as he dared. A year of celibacy fell away. He’d had a few offers—none he wanted.

None from the man he wanted.

He might have walked away and fallen for his own bullshit that they were over. But like Rick, he’d never given up, never stopped wanting him. The man was hot as hell and Eli moaned. Between the use of his hand and his mouth, he managed to suck most of the length. He worked another hand between Rick’s thighs, teasing the soft, sensitive skin between his balls and cock.

It tripped Rick’s trigger and he began to thrust, pushing deeper. Eli wanted him to come, and he wanted to swallow every drop. Tears flushed his eyes, the loneliness of the past months washing away and he dared a look up and found Rick staring at him—his face tight with pleasure and wonder.

Giving his nut sack a soft squeeze, Eli clamped his mouth and swallowed hard, increasing the suction. Head jerking back, Rick shouted, coming in a hot spurt, and Eli held onto him, milking his pleasure even as his own balls tightened up unbearably. He wanted to make it last.

Collapsing onto the bed next to him, Rick dragged Eli to him for a kiss. He deserved a cuddle, but rolled over onto his belly. “You bring the stuff?” he teased and presented his very tanned, very firm ass.

“Yeah, but I thought maybe you’d want to rest…” Eli couldn’t help drawing a finger down his back. The muscles jumped and twitched, flexing under his touch.

“What I want is for you to suit that cock up, and fuck me. I’m ready—you don’t need to do a lot of prep.”

Aroused and more than a little curious, Eli slid his finger along his crack. An anal plug sat tucked neatly between his cheeks, stretching his anus. It had to be the sexiest thing Rick had ever done for him

“Oh, fuck me.” A drop of pre-cum beaded along the tip of Eli’s cock. He launched off the bed for the condoms and lube he’d packed, and it only took a moment to retrieve both. Suited up, he toyed with the plug.

“That was the idea.” Rick groaned. “It’s been so long—I thought I wanted to make it easier for both of us.”

Eli paused. He knew he hadn’t—had Rick? “So no one else?”

“No.”

Leaning forward, Eli kissed him hard. “I love you.”

“I know.” He laughed.

Easing the plug out, Eli added lube to slick the wheels. He hoped Rick really was ready, because he ached so bad he didn’t think he could afford anymore foreplay. He slid the crown of his cock into the softened ring of muscles, desire cranking a vise around his balls, and he thought he might lock up there, but he kept pushing, easing forward in short bursts.

Rick’s body accepted him, dragging him forward and it was tight—so damn tight. A hot, slick clasp massaging his dick with every push. Pulling Rick up onto his knees, Eli barely restrained the thrust of his own hips. He was close—way too damn close to wait.

Beneath him, Rick vibrated with a growling groan. Eli fought to hang onto his control, to keep the thrusts even. No matter how prepared he was, he had no intention of hurting him. Pleasure coursed through him and turned his spine into liquid iron. He came in a hard rush, the world exploding before he collapsed on Rick’s back and sagged. Dizzy from it, he lay there.

“Welcome home,” Rick murmured beneath him and Eli laughed softly.

Yeah, it was damn good to be home.

Waking up before Eli the next morning afforded Rick the opportunity to watch him sleep. They hadn’t really talked much the night before. Instead, they’d fallen back into each other’s arms and stayed there. They laughed, had sex, and watched a game. And when Rick went to sleep, Eli pillowed his head against the man’s shoulder, the rich musk of their combined scents filling his nostrils.

He went to sleep happy.

So why had he woken with doubts?

Because we still haven’t figured out what the hell we’re doing, that’s why
. Rick sighed. He’d managed to inspect most of Eli’s new scars—four of them to be exact. A knife injury on his hip, a puckered rash of scars down the back of his right thigh from sliding down an outcropping, and two deep nicks behind his left ear from hitting the rocks below when he landed. The casual delivery of the incidents spoke volumes.

Eli was a sniper. He did a lot of training, but most of his fieldwork took place in isolation with a spotter and little else around. If he took injuries, it was on the go for a target.

But that’s the life he chose for himself and the life I knew he had when we met…I can hardly complain about it now
.

Well, he could. But he wouldn’t.

“You’re doing it again,” Eli murmured, his eyes still closed and one arm tucked behind his head.

“Doing what?”

“Watching me. Weighing your options. Worrying.” He cracked his eyelids open and stared at him sleepily.

“Guilty. I want to bring it up and I don’t know how. I also have this sick feeling of déjà vu, and I don’t want to go down that road again.” Bad enough that it happened the first time, he refused to participate in another massacre of his heart.

“Fair enough.” Eli cupped Rick’s cheek, meeting his gaze. “Bring it up. I’ll talk. Not walking away this time—not walking away at all.”

“Yeah?” He wanted to believe him.

“Yeah. I only have to make the same mistake a couple of times before even my thick head gets it. I want you, Rick. If that means we come out, we come out. If it’s that important to you—then I’m on board.”

Rick frowned. “Just like that?”

“No. Not just like that. Like I know what my life is like with you in it, and I know what it’s like when you’re not. I didn’t want to hurt my mom—I didn’t want to….” Eli’s jaw tightened and his eyes took on a distant look. “I didn’t want to admit I felt like a coward because I left Mitch out in the cold, alone.” He held up his hand, silencing any response Rick might make. “My mom and you—you both say the same things and maybe you’re right. Maybe I’m not to blame. Maybe I couldn’t have fixed Mitch’s problem. But that doesn’t change how I feel about it. I let my little brother down. I failed him. I have to live with that.”

He exhaled a hard breath and Rick’s heart broke for him all over again. It was a hell of a burden to bear.

“I failed you, too,” Eli admitted in a softer voice. “I failed us. That’s on me….”

“No, it’s not.” In this, Rick had to disagree. “I pushed when you weren’t ready and I saw that, and instead of giving you a break, I didn’t let up. I should have, but I didn’t.” He pressed his fingers against Eli’s lips to stop him from interrupting. “Whether we go out and dance at weddings or go to holiday parties together—that isn’t what matters. What matters is that I’m here when you get home and that you come home to me. Everything else is window dressing.”

Eli sighed. “But that window dressing is important to you.”

“Not as important as you are.” Rick leaned on his elbow.

“So, you want to go back to how things were?” Skepticism underscored the words.

“You don’t?”

Eli shook his head, shocking the hell out of him. “No. I don’t want to go back. I want to go forward. I want to introduce you to my mom and when she’s ready, to Christina and the girls.”

His heart squeezed in his chest. “You sure?”

“Hell, no. But anything that gets my sister to stop trying to marry me off is worth the risk.” The twinkle in Eli’s eyes and the twitch of his mouth betrayed his humor.

“Watching me turn into a nervous wreck has nothing to do with it, right?” What had he gotten himself into?

Eli dragged him closer. “Nah, that’s just a perk. Tell you what—why don’t we do this one day at a time? We don’t have to go full throttle in either direction as long as we’re both on board.”

“Don’t screw with me, Eli. I’m a surgeon…I can do some serious shit to your body.” Despite of—or maybe because of—the mock threat Eli laughed.

“I’m aware of what you do to my body. Stop being such a girl. I’m in…you?” He delivered the proposal like throwing down a gauntlet.

But what else did Rick expect. “I want to be wooed.”

“You want to be what?” Eli blinked slowly.

“Flowers. Dinner. Dancing. Romance.”

“How about a pizza and I’ll wear a Mets cap.”

“Yeah?” Brows raised, Rick gaped at him. The cap was a bigger concession even than meeting his mother.

“Yeah. Offer going in three, two….”

“Sold.” Rick kissed him hard.

Eli flipped him over. “Are we done with the hearts and romance portion of our morning?”

The stiff erection rubbing against his own told him exactly what Eli wanted. Rick grinned. “One more thing….”

“What?” he growled, the sound sending a shiver up Rick’s spine.

“Marry me.” The proposal burst out of him and Rick braced himself for his lover’s reaction.

“We live in Virginia.”

“I work in Maryland.”

“It’s legal in Maryland?” Eli stared at him hard.

“Since January 1, 2013. Marry me?”

“You drive a hard bargain, Doctor McConnell.”

“Is that a yes?”

Eli smiled slowly and kissed him hard. “Oh, yeah.”

One long kiss led to more, and they enjoyed the lazy exploration of each other.

“You know.” Eli lifted his head. “We could have a really long engagement.”

Disappointment fisted in Rick’s stomach. “We could, but why would we want to?”

“’Cause the minute I put a ring on your finger—” Eli kissed his way down Rick’s chest. “My mother will expect grandchildren.”

Disappointment turned into panic and Rick swallowed hard. “Kids?”

“Oh, yeah.” Eli grinned up at him. “At least two. You ready for that?”

“Long engagement works for me.”

Laughing, they didn’t need any more words.

Always a Marine - Book 14

By

Heather Long

~Dedication~

For Nan, because she taught me to never give up
.

What was it about formal dresses that they always itched? Lillianna tugged the bodice and tried not to squirm. Of course, it might not be the dress. She’d purchased a bra on her way to the ceremony. She meant to get a nicer one, but didn’t own that many strapless bras and two hours before she needed to get dressed didn’t leave her enough to time to track one down with the perfect fit, so she deserved the discomfort. Had it really been a year since Rebecca asked her to be a bridesmaid? A year of planning this wedding gave her plenty of time, but she still found it hard to believe Rebecca was getting married.

The bride in question swept into the room—the picture of a fairy princess in her cascading tulle ball gown.
Did I expect anything else?
Shame slithered through Lillianna. She could have been a better friend over the last few months and helped with the planning, but instead she let her personal grudges get in the way.

A half-dozen bridesmaids ooh’d and aah’d over the dress, from the sweetheart neckline accented with ornate lace appliques on the bodice, to the tiara fastening her veil in place.