Return of a Soldier (Soldier Series Romance Novellas) (6 page)

“I was going to, last spring.  My tour was ending this summer.  But then we got in that argument and everything went downhill from there.”

“Where are you stationed?”

“Just a couple of hours away.”

I swallowed and nodded, tears rolling down my cheeks.
  Everything had gone so wrong before, but now it seemed like we had a chance at a future together.  We’d been miserable the past few months, and at this point we were finally both willing to compromise.  I’d do anything for him if it would make him happy, and I wanted nothing more than to have Trent back in Hannah’s and my life.

“Meghan,” Trent said huskily, finally walking across the porch to me.  He cupped my face in his hands and wiped my tears away with his thumbs.  “I love you.  I never want us to be apart.  I want us to spend the rest of our lives together
.”

I nodded, gazing up at him with tear-filled eyes.  “I love you, too.”

He bent down and kissed me, his mouth hungrily crushing against my own.  Trent reached down and lifted me into his arms.  I wrapped my arms around his neck and legs around his waist as he sank down onto the porch swing, supporting my weight with his own.  I kissed him again and again, breathing in the spicy scent of his aftershave and feeling his muscular arms holding me close.  The rain continued pounding down, drowning out everything but the two of us, and we were safely cocooned in the darkness.  I could feel the bulge growing beneath his pants and knew Trent and I had the same thing in mind.  His muscular hands slid up my bare thighs, pushing my dress further and further up.  I rose slightly so that he could tug down my panties and unzip his own pants, and then I was lowering myself down, feeling his firm length filling me up.

Trent gripped my waist, ducking his head to nibble on my neck as he began to move beneath me.

“Are you sure about this, Meghan?”

“Positive,” I said, gasping as he filled me up again and again and the base of his erect penis began to rub against my sensitive spot.
  A deep ache was building inside of me, and each thrust Trent made left me yearning for more.  I knew what I wanted most of all was him though—and a family to call our own.  “Let’s make a baby together.”

“Let’s make a baby,” he repeated
, rocking me against him as he began to thrust even harder.

S
oon I was crying out into the darkness, unable to hold back anymore.  “Trent,” I moaned, as he finally slowed his rhythm down and I collapsed against his firm chest.

“That was amazing,” he said, still deep inside of me.

“Completely,” I agreed.

“You know,” I
pointed out a few minutes later as Trent cradled me in his arms, “we might have to try that again.”

“We might,” he agreed.

“It took Marissa and Mike months to get pregnant with their kids.”

“We’ve got all the time in the world,” he murmured, dipping his head low so that his lips brushed against my ear.  “There is one other thing though….”

“What’s that?” I asked, lifting my head from his chest to gaze into his eyes.

Trent procured a small, black velvet box from his pants pocket and opened it up, showing of
f a gleaming diamond solitaire ring nestled inside.  “Marry me?” he asked, holding his breath as he waited for my response.

“Yes!” I cried out, tears streaming down my cheeks once more.

He slipped the ring onto my finger and bent down for a kiss.  “Now, about trying that again….”  He quickly scooped me up into his arms and walked across the porch to the front door of the cabin.  “What do you say we use a bed this time?”

I giggled and wrapped my arms around his neck. 
“A bed sounds perfect.  And I do have a thing for cabins.”

“Me
too.”

THE END

Makenna Jameison is the author of the Soldier Series Romance Novellas, including the bestselling
Christmas with a Soldier
.  She grew up dreaming of writing, is an avid reader, and lives in Washington, DC with her husband and daughter.  Visit
www.makennajameison.com
.

Want to read more from MAKENNA JAMEISON?

Keep reading for an exclusive excerpt from
In the Arms of a Soldier,
the third book in the Soldier Series Romance Novellas.

ER doctor Jessica Evans has a busy schedule and newfound single life.  Her roommate, Army Officer Josh Patterson, has just returned from deployment to Afghanistan.  Friends since childhood, they’ve both noticed a change in their relationship since he’s been back.

When Jessica’s safety is threatened one night, she finds comfort and protection in Josh’s arms.  But can the two move from lifelong friendship to something more?

Enjoy this steamy romantic escape! 
In the Arms of a Soldier
is the third book in the Soldier Series Romance Novellas.

I heard
the click of the front door locking as I walked out of the bathroom, wrapped only in a fluffy white towel.  The steam from the shower poured out into the hallway of my apartment, along with the apple scent of the shampoo I’d just used.  I turned toward the sound of the noise, my wet brown hair swinging behind me, as I stopped in surprise.  My roommate Josh was deployed to Afghanistan, and although I’d been planning to meet him at the airport when he returned this afternoon, he’d somehow managed to sneak home early.  His bags landed on the floor with a thud, and for a moment I wondered if I should rush in to see him or quickly throw some clothes on first.  Thankfully, I’d grabbed a towel and not just wandered out of the bathroom wearing nothing at all.  I’d gotten so used to living alone that I’d have to remember I had a roommate once again.

Before I could make a decision to dress first or not, the steam from the bathroom reached the oversensitive smoke detector that was installed right outside the bathroom door, and a shrill piercing sound filled the air.  I jumped at the sudden noise, cringing, even though this exact same thing happened every time I forgot to turn the bathroom fan on.

“Jess?” Josh called out from the living room in his deep voice.  “Jessica?”

“In here!” I shouted back as I stood up on my tiptoes, waving one arm back and forth as I attempted to fan the smoke detector.  “Everything’s fine!”

Josh rounded the corner and paused for a moment, his blue eyes on me.  I glanced over to see him standing there, still wearing the fatigues and black combat boots he’d likely worn on his entire trip home.  His dark blond hair was cropped short, and he had a trace of golden stubble across his face and strong jaw.  He was tan from all of his months spent outdoors and more muscular than I remembered.  His six foot frame looked bulkier, built up with solid muscle, and he had a hardened look about him.  But his mouth quirked up with a trace of a smile as he watched me, and I realized how ridiculous of a situation he had just walked into.  “Geez, they still haven’t moved that thing?” he shouted above the noise, walking over to give me a hand.  “There’s never a dull moment with you, Jess.”

“Right.
  Because
this
is exciting,” I shouted back, gesturing to the smoke alarm as Josh removed it from the wall.  The piercing stopped as Josh hit the reset button, and he stood there holding it, his tall frame towering over mine, as he grinned back at me.  “Much more interesting than, say, flying home from the other side of the world or living in the desert for six months….”

Josh laughed as I smiled up at him.  “Anyway, what are you doing here so early?” I asked excitedly.  “I was going to meet you at the airport, not in the hallway in my bath towel.”

He laughed easily, and his eyes lingered just a moment too long as he glanced down at my towel, which was showing off my cleavage to its full advantage.  “I caught an earlier flight.  Surprise!”

“God, I can’t believe you’re really back,” I said, embracing Josh in a hug.  My arms slid around him, and I rested my head on his chest as I felt his strong arms wrap around me, pulling me close.

Despite the fact that I was wrapped in Josh’s arms, half-naked, this moment wasn’t nearly as romantic as anyone observing us might have imagined.  Josh and I had been friends since we were kids.  We’d gone from playmates to best friends throughout high school and college to roommates.  He’d been there for me when I broke up with boyfriends or pined away for various guys all wrong for me over the years, and I’d been his shoulder to cry on when his high school girlfriend had broken his heart after they’d gone off to college.  I’d eventually ended up at the same university as him, but since Josh was two years older than me, he’d left me to fend for myself during my junior and senior year while he’d enlisted in the military.  After I graduated, I’d gone on to medical school, where I’d met my ex-boyfriend, Mike, during my third year.  Mike and I were together for two years before finally calling it quits a few months ago, while Josh was deployed.

Josh and I kept in touch via email and online chats during his time in Afghanistan, and although I’d told him Mike and I had been having problems, I’d never actually gotten around to telling Josh that we’d broken up.  Our chances to talk were always so few and far between that I didn’t want to ruin any of the precious time we had by dredging up the subject of my now ex-boyfriend.  Being vague just seemed better given the situation, and the fact that Josh was part of the reason Mike and I had broken up was all the more reason to keep it to myself.  Although I always would see Josh as just a close friend, Mike didn’t like the fact that we kept in such close contact while he was away or the fact that we were roommates.  The truth was, however, that my relationship with Mike had run its course; we’d each gone off in different directions after medical school, and try as we might to make it work, I knew this was the best thing for us.

“I can’t believe it either,” Josh said, pulling away from our embrace and bringing my mind back to the present.

“You should have told me you’d be back early!  I was going to meet you at the airport.”

“I texted you from Paris.  I figured you were stuck on a shift or something when I didn’t hear back from you.”  His blue eyes searched mine questioningly.

“Yeah, I just finished a twelve-hour shift.  It’s weird the message didn’t come through.  I’ll have to check my phone.”

I was an ER doctor at a nearby hospital.  I’d just completed three shifts during the past several days so that I could have the weekend off to spend time with Josh.  It was worth the hassle of rearranging my work schedule though, because it wasn’t everyday that my roommate and best friend returned home.  I was looking forward to catching up with him over the next few days and had already made plans for us to meet up with some of our friends tonight.

“Anyway, let me get dressed,” I continued.  “Then we can sit down and chat.  I made us plans for tonight,” I called out over my shoulder as I walked down the hall to my room.  I left the door slightly ajar so that I could talk to Josh while I threw on some clothes.

“Is Mike gonna be there?” he asked as he fiddled around with the smoke detector in the hallway.  It sounded like he was trying to reattach it to the wall.

“Long story.
  I’ll tell you in a minute.”  I slipped on a bra and panties and then quickly pulled on my dark bootcut jeans, white camisole, and a lightweight lavender top.  It clung to my curves, and I glanced down at it questioningly for a moment, wondering if I should change.  I chided myself for being so silly though.  Josh and I had been friends for years and roommates for the past eighteen months.  He’d seen me in everything, and I’d just greeted him in a towel for God’s sake.  Sure he’d been gone for the last six months, but it’s not like we’d just moved in together or something.  Glancing in the mirror above my dresser, I ran a comb through my brown hair.  My blue eyes gazed back at me as I studied my reflection, and I noticed that my cheeks were slightly flushed.  It must have been from all the commotion earlier, with Josh arriving early and the smoke detector going off.

I walked out into the hallway barefoot, noticing the slate gray nail polish on my toenails stood out in contrast against the cream carpet.  The smoke detector was hanging neatly back on the wall, with no signs of my earlier struggle with it.  I flipped off the light in the bathroom,
which I’d neglected to do with all the fuss moments ago, and joined Josh in the kitchen.  He was grabbing a soda from the fridge as I walked up beside him.