Healing Love: Saints Protection & Investigation (20 page)

Turning his head, he lifted her chin with his fingers wanting to see her eyes. Hoping he would see at least satisfaction and not regret, his heart skipped a beat with the emotion pouring out from her gaze. Like he was a fuckin’ hero.
Her hero.

Smiling widely, he asked, “You okay,
cariña
?”

“I’m perfect.”

“Yeah, yeah you are, babe. Absolutely perfect.”

Glancing down at the mess on her stomach he stood up, lifting her and their clothes at the same time. Cradling her in his arms, she squealed as she threw her arms around his neck to hang on.

“Where are you going?”

“Wanna take care of you. Get you cleaned up.”

“But Cam? We have no clothes on!” she exclaimed.

“We will, but let’s get cleaned up first.”

Within a few minutes he entered the water coming down from the river that was fresh and cool. Gasping as the water hit their warm bodies, she hung on tightly. He set her feet on the sandy bottom, not letting go, and washed his cum off of her stomach. Moving his large hand between her legs, he gently washed her there as well.

The intimacy of the act was not lost on her as she realized she was not embarrassed. No other lover had taken care of her afterwards.
Not that I’ve had that many lovers
, she thought.

His words interrupted her wandering thoughts. “Lean back, baby.”

Answering her questioning gaze, he added, “Let’s wash the sand and salt out of your hair.”

Smiling, she allowed him to lean her back over his strong arm, while the other arm ran over the long strands of her hair. As he pulled her forward again, his lips found hers in a soft, gentle kiss. The kind of kiss that speaks volumes. Maybe even more than the wild kisses of passion. This was a kiss that made her think of promises to come.

Once more he carried her out of the water and, taking his t-shirt, dried her body before she slipped her scrubs back on once more. He did the same and then pulled his extra boxers and cargoes on. Walking back to their hideaway, hand in hand, they spoke little. But both knew things had changed.

*

Lying beside each
other, watching the sun disappear into the surf as a brilliant red orb cast colors across the sky, he tucked her closely once more. Having eaten the last of the mangoes and drank more fresh water, they finally settled in for the evening.

Miriam watched as he placed a call to his contact and felt better as she saw that the plans for tomorrow seemed to be on schedule. Cam did not speak much, but as he flipped the phone shut, he turned toward her knowing she wanted to know the details.

“Okay, babe, I can see you’re nervous. Right now, we’re still on track to leave tomorrow morning, as soon as Marc can get the plane here. He did say that there was a lot of reported activity in the camp where you and I left, and he’s had our group back home checking satellite photos. What they can tell is that we’re probably missed and they’re likely looking for us. They’ve found the jeep and I’m sure they’re combing the river area.”

Sucking in a deep breath, she forced her breathing to slow and kept her eyes on his.

He caressed her neck and gently pulled her forward until she planted into his chest. “You’re good, babe. I’ve got you.”

He felt, rather than saw, her nod. “Right now, what we’ve got going for us is that they’re still hampered by the earthquake clean-up and the mess from the storm. That’s the good news.”

She lifted her head and leaned back to look into his face. “And the bad news?” she prompted.

“You’ve seen one of the major players because he was a dumb-fuck, who thought with his dick, and took you right to his house. He may be buried in this storm, but the cartel’s reach is long. And by that, babe, I mean long. So we still gotta get out of here and back home. And then you’ll have to meet with the DEA and some others to go over what you know.”

“But my family?”

“I’ll get you to them,
cariña
. I promise.”

“What about when I’m questioned?” she asked, the fear and uncertainty in her voice speaking louder than the words.

“I don’t know exactly how that’ll play out, but I’ll be with you as much of that as I can. They’ll be talking to me as well.”

She lay quietly for a few moments, her mind racing with all that had happened and her fears of what was to come.
And us? What happens when we go back to our lives?

“I can see those wheels turning,” he accused gently, turning her face toward his with his fingers. “I can keep you safe and I can help you through the shit we gotta deal with when we get back,” he promised. “But what else is going through your mind?”

Her eyes skirted to the side, afraid that if she looked at him he would be able to see her questions about
them.

Before she could deny that there was anything else on her mind, he asked, “You do understand about us, don’t you?”

At that, her eyes jumped back to his.

Before he could say anything else, his body tensed and moved quicker than she could have imagined he could move. With a shove, he pushed her further back into the rock formation and rolled so that his body was covering hers, with his front facing outward. Her hand grasped the belt of his cargo pants as she heard the roar of a speed boat engine moving along the coast.

“Who is it?” she whispered, but he did not answer. Afraid to speak again, she just huddled against his broad, muscular back.

Keeping his head lowered, he nonetheless managed to track the boat as it moved along the shoreline, a searchlight dashing around the beach. Several long minutes passed, neither of them moving, before the boat continued out of sight.

Shaking, afraid to speak, she wanted to peek over his shoulder to see if anyone was coming.
I can’t go back. I can’t do that again.

Cam finally allowed his breath to slowly let out, feeling the tug on his belt and the quivering body of the woman behind him. Twisting his head to hers, he saw the terror in her eyes.

“It’s okay, babe,” he whispered, lifting his hand to cup her face.

“I…can’t…no…going back,” she stammered, eyes wide.

He rolled toward her, wrapping his arms around her still shaking frame. “No one’s getting you. They’re gone,” he promised.

“Were they looking for us?”

Taking a deep breath, he let it out slowly. “Possibly. There’s no way to know for sure. But it’s dark. They can’t see us and Marc’ll be here in the morning. I’ll contact him to warn him, but he’ll get us.”

Pulling her face in close to his, he whispered again, “Promise,
cariña
.”

Nodding again, she rested her head on his shoulder. “I’m not sure I can go to sleep,” she confessed.

“Just close your eyes and listen to the surf. Let it all go, babe. I’m right here.”

Breathing deeply, she found that his shoulder was infinitely more comfortable than the thin cot she had been sleeping on.
What would it be like to have this always?
And that was her last thought before she drifted off to sleep.

C
am slept fitfully,
taking short catnaps during the night, staying vigilant, but there was no repeat passing of the boat.
Had it been the cartel looking for them?
He shifted slightly on the bed of sand knowing no comfortable position was possible. But what the hell? In his arms dozed Miriam.

He could barely make out her features in the dark, but knew them by memory. Ebony hair, drying slightly curly, framed her beautiful face. Shadows were under her eyes making her translucent complexion seem pale in comparison. Her cheekbones were more prominent than the photograph he had seen bringing her drastic weight loss of the past month to the forefront of his mind.

The idea of taking her out for a huge, expensive dinner filled his mind as he yearned to take care of her. Smiling, he knew from what he had learned from her, she would rather have a hotdog while watching a college baseball game.

His mind rolled back over the mission, pleased they had made it out, but knowing that without the fortuitous storm it would have been almost impossible. Sighing heavily, his hand moved to his chest where his St. Camillus medallion rested. Patron Saint and founder of the Red Cross.
Jesus,
he smiled, clutching the pendant knowing that they still needed all of the help they could get to make it back home.

Miriam stirred next to him, snuggling her body closer to his in her sleep, tossing one leg over his as one arm landed on his chest, near his hand still holding the medallion.

He reached out gently and held her hand for a moment.
This woman, I could spend the rest of my life with.
He watched her breathe slowly, her face sometimes twitching as she dreamed.
But what of her? Can she love a man with my career? A man who’s future is sometimes as uncertain as the missions I take.
Unfamiliar doubt crept in, leaving him with a feeling of uncertainty.
What’s better for her…fighting for her or walking away to give her a chance at a normal future?

He now understood his boss’ dilemma over the last year as Jack battled with the knowledge that he had fallen in love with his pretty neighbor, Bethany, and wanting to give her the white picket fence future. What seemed obvious to Cam at the time, was now just as confusing as it must have been to Jack.

As the early morning light began painting the sky with colors, he felt his phone vibrate. He slid quietly away from the sleeping beauty and walked away toward the beach while still staying within the shadows of the rocks.

“Yeah?” he answered, knowing the call was from Marc.

“All’s good,” came the response.

“Thank fuck.”

“Got the plane and got it fueled. Alberto’s coming also in case we need some help.”

“Why? What’s goin’ on?” Cam asked suspiciously.

Marc quickly replied. “Intel’s that they’ve been tearing up the compound looking for the missing nurse. They didn’t make a connection to you at first until they finally started putting two and two together. With the missing vehicle and knowing you had been to the river, they finally got their search going, and located it. Alberto’s been able to find out that they’ve flown a few passes over the river and even taken a boat out to where the river meets the ocean, right where you are.”

Cam sighed, knowing that the news was not unexpected, if unwelcome. “You think you’ve got trouble with our plans?”

“Don’t know. Alberto is coming to provide fire-power if needed. From what he can tell, the assumption is that you two are dead, never making it out of the storm, but these fuckers don’t want anyone escaping, so they’re on the lookout.”

“What’s your ETA?”

“Give us about two more hours to get everything ready. Got to check in with Jack one more time to make sure our trip home is ready. I’ve got us cleared with Homeland Security and Blaise has taken care of DEA. We’ll land somewhere unknown and refuel before making it back to Richland. But warning, bro, it’ll be intense once we get back. You may need to prepare her.”

“Already on it. She knows there will be intensive debriefing.”

“Good.” After a pause, Marc asked, “How’s she holding up?”

“Like a fuckin’ champ,” Cam stated, his admiration evident.

The men continued their conversation for a few more minutes, detailing the rescue. As Cam disconnected he remained still, looking out over the surf, his mind focusing on the rescue. Thoughts of her slipped back in, but he pushed them to the side.
Not now. Gotta focus on getting us the fuck outta here.
Sighing once more, he forced his mind to the mission.

*

Miriam woke, suddenly
chilly after having been so warm. She realized that Cam had slipped away and her body missed him snuggling close to her. Blinking in the early morning shadows with the sunrise barely painting the sky, she saw him standing nearby talking on the phone.

His back was to her and she watched the muscles in his broad back as he moved around the beach. His waist was trim but, with his size, even that appeared powerful. His smooth shoulders were burned into her memory as she held them when he entered her. Sucking in a deep breath, she remembered every feel of their coupling. The way he took her with such power…and care. Closing her eyes for a second, she forced her mind to abandon those thoughts.