Impulsive (The Soldier's Firm Hand) (2 page)

“As a matter of fact, I am, and I’m not sure I like your attitude.”

“Oh, please.” She rolled her eyes. “What are you going to do, spank me?”

An interesting and very appealing suggestion. “Maybe I should, because I can see words aren’t enough for you, kitten.”

“Hey!” she squeaked. “I’m not your kitten! You big... ape!”

In spite of being too mouthy for her own good, he found himself enjoying their verbal sparring. “That’s exactly what you looked like out there. Like a little, lost, wet... kitten.”

It was her turn to growl, which made him laugh, because it did nothing to change his mind about her new nickname. Lauren was a proper little hellcat, whether she admitted it or not.

He grabbed her around the waist and hauled her over to the couch. She squirmed and kicked, but it wasn’t hard to keep a hold of her. Even soaking wet she couldn’t have weighed much more than the gear he had to lug around on a regular basis.

In fact, all it did was make him more aware of the feel of her soft curves.

“This is ridiculous,” she spat.

Jared put her down over his lap and held her in place easily with one arm. He was glad he’d worn jeans instead of his around the house sweatpants today, because there was no stopping the way his body reacted to the sight of her wet cotton pants clinging like a second skin. He was a red blooded male, and attitude or not, she had a beautiful ass. Nice and round and firm. Perfect for cradling a man, or in this case, paddling until she learned her lesson.

He fought the urge to pull down her pants and do this bare. Lauren would probably hate him after he was done as it was. It shouldn’t bother him if she did, this was for her own good, not to make friends. Still, he didn’t like the thought of driving her away so soon.

“Wanna borrow my camera?” she asked, disdain dripping from her voice. “Take a picture for proof you managed to overwhelm someone half your size? Maybe jerk off later to my pantyline?”

Not sure if he wanted to laugh or yell, he slapped her ass hard enough to echo around the small room. “Nope, I think I’ll remember this well enough without it.”

“Oooooooooooow! Oh my God!” Lauren bucked hard in his lap, but he didn’t relent. “This is ridiculous! You can’t just spank people! I’m going to scream!”

“Go right ahead. Who’s going to hear? The wind and rain would cover up the noise, even if we weren’t the only people for miles.” He spanked her again and she sucked in a harsh pained breath. “This isn’t about me proving anything.”
Smack.
“It’s about you admitting you made a bad call and put your life in danger over a few pointless pictures.”

At first she snarled and struggled, but by the time her entire rear was burning under his hand, she’d grown quiet. He slowed his assault on her jiggling bottom, taking the opportunity to caress her tempting globes as he soothed the hurt. Lauren’s body tensed every time his touch disappeared, but she began to arch her back slightly afterwards, silently asking for more.

He heard a breathy mewl from his lap and blood rushed straight to his cock. Jared slapped the sensitive spot where her ass met her thigh, curling his fingers slightly between her legs, to trail lightly over the seam of her pants. Her breathing was heavy, and he realized his was too.

A dangerous new current ran between them, one he’d normally love to explore, but wasn’t sure what to do with yet. They were past simple discipline now and drifting into something that felt far too intimate to share with a stranger.

Willing down his instinctive response to her arousal, he gritted his teeth and rocked her with four more vicious swats to each butt cheek.

The sudden ferocity broke the spell they were under and made her cry out. “Stop! Please! Enough. I’m sorry! You were right. I should’ve called for help before it got so rough.” Lauren hung her head and sniffled as he rubbed her shuddering back. “They told me not to go out today but I did anyway. Are you happy now?”

“Happy?” As glad as he was to hear her admit her mistake, it wasn’t about making him happy. “Kitten, I spend enough of my time trying to keep men and women alive who are out there putting their asses on the line so brats like you can spend your lives taking pictures of sunsets. The last thing I need is to use what little personal time I get saving people from themselves. Do you have any idea how many resources are lost each year to rescuing people from their own stupidity?”

Damn it, this was exactly why he needed some alone time when he got back from deployment, especially after the long ones. He wasn’t ready to deal with civilians and their crap yet. Another week or so of quiet and he might’ve almost been ready for babysitting lost photographers. Almost.

Or at least more ready than he was.

Lauren sat up and straddled his legs, his hands reflexively closing around her waist. A small, delicate hand stroked his stubble covered jaw. She leaned forward, her rounded breasts pressing softly against his muscular chest. Warm lips pressed against his and he closed his eyes, giving in to the wordless comfort her was offering.

Her curious tongue teased his mouth and he opened to her, letting her explore as he enjoyed her sweetness. They fit together perfectly, her body trim but womanly. Soft in all the right places. He was just slipping his hand under the hem of her t-shirt when she jerked backwards and sneezed into her arm.

“Shoot! Sorry.” Lauren looked downright miserable.

Jared could’ve kicked himself. What kind of an asshole was he turning into? A half drowned stranger showed up on his doorstep and in less than an hour he’d yelled at her, spanked her until his hand stung and then been about to molest her in his living room. She was still in her wet clothes, and the only thing keeping her warm was the burn on her ass and their shared body heat.

“Shit, Lauren, I’m the one who should be apologizing. I’ll go find something you can change into while your clothes dry.” Jared scooped her up and deposited her on the couch. “I don’t have anything your size, but it’ll have to work for now.”

He got up to go figure out what she could use, and more importantly, get away from the temptation her proximity brought. She was getting to him and he needed to get his head back on straight.

When was the last time he’d gotten laid? Too long apparently, but the allure of one night stands with women who were willing to go home with anything in a uniform had grown thin over the years. Something his eighteen year old self would have found impossible to believe, but true nevertheless.

Spanking her had been a mistake. That side of him needed to stay under wraps. Lauren wasn’t his girlfriend, or even his friend.
Not my responsibility.
She would be gone soon enough, and in the meantime he needed to keep his hands to himself and try to forget how right she’d felt wiggling in his lap.

Fat chance.

“Jared...” She looked sweet and vulnerable sitting there on the sofa, fingers on her lips. “I really am sorry.”

He stopped and gave her a short nod without looking back. The less said, the better.

*** Lauren ***

I
sat on his bed, listening to the storm batter against the shutters. When Jared suggested that I rest and warm up after changing, I’d jumped at the chance to put some distance between us. Now I was trying to psych myself up before facing him again.

Sleep had been the last thing on my mind, but after everything, I’d been out like a light as soon as my head hit the pillow. He’d been right, a couple of hours of sleep had done me a world of good.

Physically at least. Emotionally? Just as confused as before.

He’d
spanked me
. Spanked!

Nobody had ever lifted a hand to me in my life. Not once. Not even my parents! Sure I’d joked about it in a flirty sort of way with previous boyfriends, but not one had ever taken me up on the offer. Most of them seemed uncomfortable with the idea and made me wonder why I’d said it to begin with.

And the worst part wasn’t the actual pain of being disciplined, it was that instead of pitching a fit like a normal person would’ve done, I’d practically thrown myself at the big jerk.

That couldn’t be normal. It had to be a reaction to the stress. There was no way I could be attracted to a guy like him, even if he did happen to be the hottest thing I’d ever seen. His muscles had muscles for cripes sake.

Nope, no attraction at all. I usually liked my men sensitive and artistic, if Jared was either of those, he hid it well under his “I know 10 ways to kill you with my thumbs exterior”.

In any case, hiding out in his bedroom for the rest of my life wasn’t an option, so sooner or later I was going to have to hike up his enormous sweatpants and go out there like nothing happened. Maybe he was just as embarrassed as I was.
Right
.

Hopefully he’d at least be enough of a gentleman to not rub it in too much.

Speaking of rubbing, I smoothed a hand over my throbbing behind. Thankfully he’d missed the bruise from my fall, or it probably would’ve hurt a heck of a lot more. As it was, everything was warm and a bit sore, but not too bad. In fact, it had made a much bigger impact emotionally than it had physically once the initial sting wore off.

The scent of food drifted under the door and my stomach clenched painfully, reminding me that I hadn’t had anything to eat since the oatmeal at breakfast. I had that candy bar still, but it was unhelpfully tucked away safely in my bag, out there, with Jared.

I groaned when I stood up and caught a glimpse of myself in his dresser mirror. Between the oversized clothes, and the messy mop of tangles on my head, I looked like a well-sexed girlfriend. So much for trying to grow up and be more professional. My fingers worked out the worst of the knots, and I walked out to face my temporary roommate.

“Hey, feeling better?” His back was to me, stirring something that smelled divine in a pot on the small stove. “I hope you didn’t mind having to use my bed. The spare room is still a wreck and the paint fumes haven’t had a chance to air out yet. Can’t exactly open a window when it’s like this.”

“Yeah, I noticed.” I snorted. “But it was fine, thank you.”

It had been more than fine. My face, and other body parts, heated at the memory of his spicy scent all over the sheets. I could still smell him on my skin and clothes. The strange second-hand intimacy of it was making me tingle in a not entirely unpleasant way.

“If you’re thirsty, grab a bottle from the fridge. It might look clean from the taps, but with the weather like this I don’t know if it’s safe to drink or not.” He turned and smiled a little apologetically. “Is canned stew okay? I wasn’t exactly expecting company. Hope you’re not vegan or anything. Pickings would be pretty slim but, I’ve probably gone a can of beans around here somewhere.”

I shook my head, transfixed by the sight of such a dominant man looking so domestic. His eyes were like stormy blue skies, and his hair was buzzed short, but just long enough to make me wonder what it would feel like under my fingers.

Over six feet tall and solid muscle topped with a handsome face and a strong jaw. It was horribly unfair that he had to be a grumpy control freak... who made dinner and saved stranded women on his time off from keeping the world safe...

My mouth went dry. I could remember the feel of his hips between my legs as I straddled him, and the warmth of his lips as they worked against my own.

Get a hold of yourself!

“Water would be good, thanks.” I slipped nervously by and snatched a bottle from the refrigerator door. “Can I help? I really am sorry for causing you so much trouble today.”

He shrugged and kept stirring. “Shit happens. You can set the table if you want. The dishes are up there above the sink.” Jared’s words were casual, but he seemed more tense than he was letting on.

Great, I was standing there lusting after him and he was too polite to tell me what a nuisance he really thought I was. “Sure, I can do that.”

I reached up to take down two bowls, and froze when he sucked in a sudden, ragged breath. The armless undershirt he’d loaned me was gaping open at the side, revealing a clear view in to the lacy bra I’d thankfully had the good sense to put back on after my nap. Great, now I’d thrown myself at him, leered rudely, and flashed him. Wonderful first impression.

Blushing fiercely, I snatched the bowls and set the table as if nothing had happened. Because nothing had, but tell that to my turbo charged sex drive. Awareness of the tension between us thrummed through my veins. I couldn’t blame the hard points of my nipples or the dampness in my panties on the rain anymore.

We sat down and ate quietly until I couldn’t stand the awkward silence for another second.

“So you know who I am.” I pointed to myself with my spoon. “Hack travel photographer, murderer of cell phones, useless at weather reports. Who are you?” It almost sounded natural, but then a laugh slipped out at the end, giving away my nerves to anyone who knew me.

Jared grinned. “Officer Jared Pate, US Army. Mediocre cook, family handyman, occasional rescuer of damsels in distress.”

“Not Navy, or Coast Guard? I would’ve figured with the place on the beach and all... no?”

He glared at me as if my question wasn’t even worth answering.

“Right, gotcha. Army. So is this place only yours, or,” The lights went out, making me shriek in surprise. With all the outside shutters locked tight, the room hadn’t just gone dim, we’d been plunged into complete darkness.

“Shit!” Jared swore and his chair scraped against the floor. “I was hoping that wouldn’t happen. Stay put. I’ll check the box, but it’s probably our whole area.”

––––––––

E
yes closed, I curled my legs underneath me on the chair and tried to keep my breathing calm.
It’s just the dark. Everything is exactly the same as it was a few minutes ago.
How long had he been gone? Terror squeezed my chest and muddled my thoughts. Before I could stop myself, I was on my way to the door, uncaring of the weather. My clumsy fingers worked blindly at the lock.

“What the hell?” The room filled with a soft glow, and then Jared’s arms were locked tight around my torso, lifting me away from my struggle with the door.