Shadow Soldier (15 page)

She watched him run up the stairs on his way to finish saving the world. She loved his dedication and the knowledge that he would come and find her when he was done. She pretty much loved everything about
him. No matter how hard she had tried to avoid it, she had fallen in love with the man.

 

N
ICOLA CAME OUT
of the shower and rubbed her hair with the plush towel the maid had set out. She had decided to stay in Washington for the night, at her father's insistence. She wasn't ready to return to Devon and deal with her smoke-damaged house.

Someone knocked on the door. The maid had already left for the day, and she wasn't expecting Alex for another hour. He had called several times. Stuck in meetings with the Colonel, he'd said. Couldn't tell her more than that. He'd promised to take her over to the military hospital to see Spike in a little while.

“Nicola?” her father's voice came through the door.

“Come in, Dad.” She tightened the belt of her robe and tossed the wet towel on the back of a chair.

“Are you okay?” He walked into her room hesitantly. “Should I come back later?”

“It's fine. I'm fine,” she said.

He ran his fingers through his graying hair. When had he gotten old? He'd lost weight, as well, she noticed, ashamed that she hadn't visited him for so long.

“I'm so sorry about what happened.” He searched her face.

“It wasn't your fault. You can't control every maniac out there.”

He nodded, his face somber. “I'm sorry about everything before this, too.”

She blinked away the tears that threatened to fill her eyes.

“After—” he took a deep breath and went on “—after your mother died…I couldn't cope with it. I blamed myself. I threw myself into work. I didn't know how to raise you, so I focused on what I did know. I wanted a bill for more money for cancer research. I wanted to fight against the disease that took your mother.”

He'd done that and more. She looked at him, seeing him anew.

“I was obsessed with fear of losing you, too. I was on every committee that had to do with crime or drugs, anything I thought might threaten your future. I wanted to protect you.” His eyes glistened. “I know I went about it all wrong.”

“All I ever wanted was your love. A little attention,” she said, her throat burning with unshed tears.

“You have that. You always had it.” He came to her to hug her, and kissed the top of her head as he used to do when she was a child. “I want to change things between us. I don't want to waste another day.”

“Me, too, Dad,” she choked out, hugging him back.

The past few days had changed everything for her. In a way she felt as if she'd never really grown up until now. After being in so much danger, her life and the people she loved seemed infinitely more precious. She understood her father more—what he did for this country. And for the first time, she appreciated the sacrifice.

“I love you, Dad.” She rested her head on the wide chest against which she had so often been comforted as a child.

“I love you, too,” he whispered.

 

N
ICOLA TURNED OFF
the hair dryer and listened. There it was again. Somebody was knocking on her door. She walked out of the bathroom. Had her father forgotten something?

“Come in, Dad.”

“He went for a walk.” Alex stood in the doorway, wearing a tailored suit and a dizzying smile.

She had to catch her breath before she could talk. “I wouldn't have thought you owned one of these.”

“Bought it this morning. Got nervous about going to court a senator's daughter. May I come in?”

She stepped aside, feeling as giggly as a teenager. “I heard that a good shopping spree is just the thing to relax you after a day of armed confrontation.”

His grin widened. “Hardly a spree. I only bought three things.”

“What are the other two?”

He walked out to the hallway and brought in a cage, covered with a towel.

“Is that…” She pulled the towel off, tears springing to her eyes to see her Tweedles safe and sound. He'd said he'd bought two more things. She'd expected a pair of new birds. The Tweedles were quiet for once, picking at something shiny hanging on a silk cord from the top of the cage.

Alex pulled up the cord, and held out a key.

“I put a down payment on a house in Cleveland Park this morning. It has a huge sunroom with two overgrown banana trees. I thought maybe the Tweedles would like it.”

“A house?”

“I'd like you to stay there until your place gets fixed.” He held her gaze. “Or forever.”

Forever? Her heart screamed
yes!
but for the life of her she couldn't get anything intelligent past her lips.

Alex went on. “I got two days from the Colonel. After that I'll have to leave on a mission. But when I come back, I'll be taking over training for a while, here in Washington.”

“Is that what you want?” She didn't want him to give up doing what he loved for her.

“A bunch of rookies engaged in live ammunition exercises should keep me in enough excitement.” He grinned. “I hope to see some action at home, as well.” Then he grew serious. “I want to work in a job that makes a difference. If it ever comes to that, I will gladly give my life for my country. But right now the Colonel needs a good training officer as much as he needs me out there. And as important as this country is to me, so are you.”

He pulled a blue velvet box from his pocket and got down on one knee. “I love you, Nicola Barrington. Will you marry me?”

She clutched her chest, struck speechless again.

“I know it's kind of sudden. You haven't known me for long. But I want you to think about it. Maybe you can give me your answer when I come back. I know you're the only woman for me and—”

“It is,” she said finally, unable to do anything but echo his words, “kind of sudden.”

“I'm a soldier. Once I decide on a course of action, I execute without hesitation.”

She swallowed.

“Plus I figured you might still be worn-out from your experience and I had a better chance of knocking down your defenses in your weakened state.”

“Lord, Alex. I never had any defenses when it came to you. I love you.” She threw herself into his arms, knocking him to the floor.

His wide chest felt solid beneath her, his heart beating strong and steady. He gathered her close and kicked the door shut.

His deep voice sent delicious shivers through her when he spoke. “I don't ever want to let you go.”

And she was glad. Because nowhere on earth would she ever feel as right as in the circle of his arms. She nuzzled his neck, then pressed her lips to his warm skin and drank in his familiar scent. She belonged with him. They belonged together. She had no doubts about that.

He kissed her hair, and when she lifted her head, he brushed his lips against hers, gently at first then more possessively. She gasped as he cupped her breast, awakening her body. “Should we move to the bed?”

The grin he shot her lit up his handsome face. “Hey, who is in charge of this operation?” He thumbed her nipple, sending a wave of pleasure through her.

She slid a hand between them and showed him.

Nicola stretched as she drank in the breathtaking view, the gently rolling water of the bay, brilliant blue tinted with orange, reflecting the sky above. The hillside lay like an emerald carpet below them. She could see their balcony at the Hawaiian Hilton from here, and it brought back memories of the night before.

“You were right.” Alex finished his Tai Chi and came up behind her to sneak his hands around her waist and share the beauty of the sunrise.

She loved the way he couldn't seem to keep from reaching for her anytime they were near each other. Happiness greater than she had ever thought could exist filled her, and she turned in his arms for a kiss.

“Mmm…” She pulled away when his hands slid under her tank top. “We should probably go and say goodbye to our guests.”

“Come to think of it—” He took her hand as they
walked down the hillside. “The sooner our wedding guests leave, the sooner we can get started with our honeymoon.”

“And we'll be right in the hotel, with that lovely suite waiting.” Nicola picked up the pace, liking the way the man's brain worked.

Alex grinned, then stopped. “On the other hand, we're already here.”

“Here?” She glanced around. The meadow looked like something straight out of a dream, hibiscus blooming everywhere, palm trees providing a canopy above and soft grass at their feet. “What if someone sees us?”

“Nobody gets up this early in the morning unless they're chirped out of bed by bickering finches. The Tweedles are going home with the guests.”

She smiled. They had been too busy the night before to remember to cover the cage. And once the birds woke them this morning, she had talked Alex—with wicked promises—into some Tai Chi on the top of the hill, combined with watching the sunrise. She hadn't considered that he would want those promises fulfilled so soon.

He sat and pulled her down to the grass next to him. “I promise you it's perfectly safe. I don't think this island has ever been this safe, nor will it likely be again.”

He was right about that. A number of Alex's team
mates had shown up for the wedding, along with Colonel Wilson. Spike had the honor of being the best man, with both legs in casts.

“What if my father is looking for me?”

“The morning after your wedding night?” He lay back on the grass and pulled her with him.

“It seems he's always looking for me lately.”

“Trying to make up for lost time, that's all. I think he finally realized what he missed.”

“Maybe he—”

Alex silenced her with a kiss, then pulled back. “Nicola, I don't want to talk about your father.”

He was right. Neither did she. Now that he was half on top of her, his palm covering her breast, she didn't want to talk at all. There were much more important things to be taken care of.

She pulled his head down for another kiss. And, being the take-charge type of man he was, he took it from there.