Warrior's Heart (Gifts Of The Ancients #1) (4 page)

“Sounds more like a research team than a fighting unit.”

She tried to keep her observations light, but her mind was busy. Why was he telling her so much? Was he trying to test her in some way? Or was he trying to tell her something? Something that Hal wouldn’t tell her? Just whose side was he on? Hers or Hal’s or the Army’s? It was too confusing.

“We’re a bit of both, actually. We’re highly trained and in top physical shape, of course. We’ve earned our places in the ranks, passing the regular courses and schools to get where we are. We also have these other interests, and sometimes they come in handy. Like in Iraq. We actually visited the sites of ancient cities. Places the Bible and the ancient Greeks speak of in their writings. Even though it wasn’t my exact field of study, some of the sights we saw in our travels blew my mind.”

“I bet Hal was in Heaven.”

“You could say that again.” Jeff grinned, showing her his straight white teeth. “He was forever going on and on about some of the sites we visited, clearing them of the enemy and securing the antiquities for the Iraqi people.”

“I understand there was a big problem with national treasures going missing from the museums early on in the war.”

He nodded. “There was some problem with that. Luckily, a lot of it was cleared up when the curators came forward. They’d hidden many of the treasures to keep them safe, and another team was dispatched to the museums to deal with the remaining difficulties. We were sent out into the field. Our task was a little different. We went to the places to investigate and secure those things that couldn’t be put into a museum. We went to the sites of ancient cities and permanent monuments made by peoples long gone. It was amazing.”

She nodded, hearing the nostalgia in his voice. She looked over at him and, from the dim light of the dashboard, she could see the look of awe on his face as he remembered something only he could see.

“For me, it was like the first time I visited Stonehenge. The feeling of the ancient stones and the power of the place. It was nearly overwhelming.” His expression hardened. “And then to see the destruction, the bullet holes and RPG burns from the fighting that’s gone on. In ancient Babylon, the former regime set fires in the museum’s display cases, just out of spite. We also saw the rubble of the ancient Buddhas in Afghanistan, and I nearly wept. The Taliban wantonly destroyed one of the wonders of the ancient world. It was disgusting.”

“I saw that on television,” she said softly, remembering her own feelings of sadness when she saw what the former regime had done. “That was a crime.”

Jeff nodded, taking the exit that would lead them to her apartment without being prompted. The car slowed, and she realized her time with this interesting man was coming to an end. She’d learned a great deal from him—more than Hal had even hinted at about his activities overseas—but she still didn’t quite understand why he’d been so forthcoming.

He pulled up in front of her apartment complex, parking in her usual space. She realized then that they must have been watching her and Hal’s activities more closely than she ever would have guessed. Jeff shut off the car and turned to look at her in the gloomy darkness.

“Hal needs to trust somebody. I’m betting it’s going to be you. You probably don’t realize how much you mean to him, but I know for a fact that he carried around each of your letters and cards, re-reading them a million times, and each time your words brought a smile to his face.” She didn’t quite know what to say. “I’m telling you this for a reason, Casey. He won’t bring it up. You have to do it.”

“Why?”

Jeff sighed heavily, turning to stare out the dark window.

“Something changed him. Changed all of us. It’s not good or bad. It just is, and it’s hard to deal with. We’ve tried to be there for each other, but Hal needs more. He’s our commander, our leader. He’s had to be strong for us, and he hesitates to let us be strong for him. That’s why he needs you, Casey. He needs to share his burden with someone who will care enough for him to help him find his way. I think that someone is you.”

Casey shook her head, a little overwhelmed. “I don’t know what you think our relationship is. Hal’s like my older brother. He never lets me close enough to know what he’s really thinking or feeling. I don’t expect that is going to change anytime soon.”

Jeff smiled and closed his eyes briefly. “Not to worry, Casey. Things will proceed as they were meant to. All you have to do is recognize your opportunity when it knocks.”

She chuckled, a bit uncomfortable with the direction the conversation was taking. “Now you sound like some ancient philosopher, or maybe that old Oracle at Delphi.”

“I’ve been to Delphi, little one.” For a moment the gaze he turned on her glowed with an ancient and frightening knowledge. She thought she must’ve been seeing things just a second later when all she saw were his normal, riveting blue eyes. “Never doubt the word of the Oracle.” His smile teased her into chuckling along with him. He really was an easy man to talk to and if her heart weren’t already given, she might find him incredibly attractive.

He popped open the driver’s side door and moved around the car quickly to open hers. He locked the vehicle and escorted her right to her apartment door, leaving her with a last lingering look and a gentle kiss on her hand.

She watched him disappear into the night. One minute he was walking down the sidewalk away from her complex, the next he was simply gone. She shook her head and marveled at the silent, almost ghost-like way these men moved. Hal moved the same way, and it never failed to amaze her.

Chapter Five

The phone rang early the next morning, catching her in the middle of an exercise routine. Sweaty and out of breath, she picked it up on the third ring, simultaneously shutting off the DVD player and turning down the sound on the TV. Her greeting was more than a bit breathless, but she gave herself points for getting to the phone at all.

“Mmm, you make me think scandalous things when you answer the phone like that.”

“Hal,” she gasped. Hearing his tempestuous purr on the other end of the line made it even harder to catch her breath.

“How are you feeling?”

“Much better. However, I may have a coronary just listening to you answering the phone. What were you doing? Am I interrupting something?”

The faint edge of steel in his voice surprised her into a laugh. That and the relief in her heart at hearing him sound so normal—and healthy—made her almost giddy. She’d been so worried that she’d barely slept the night before.

“Yes, you are interrupting. I was doing step aerobics, and I’m only halfway through the workout.”

“So you’re hot and sweaty. Damn, this just keeps getting better and better. What are you wearing?” His voice dropped to a teasing, sexy tone.

“Hal, you’re a pervert.” She had to laugh.

“Only with you, sweetheart. Only with you.”

She didn’t know quite how to respond, so she changed the subject.

“When are you coming out again?” Coward, she mentally chastised herself.

Hal paused as if deciding whether to let her get away with the diversion.

“Next weekend.”

She heaved an inward sigh of relief. She didn’t want to face the change in their relationship out in the open just yet. She wanted to hug it to her and think about what it would mean a little longer. She also wanted to see him. And kiss him. Hell, she might as well admit it. She wanted to fuck him in the worst possible way.

“Will you stay with Mark?”

Again he paused. “I’d rather stay with you.” The tone of his voice made her think he wasn’t kidding this time, and his next words confirmed it. “Do you think that would start World War Three?”

She caught her breath in excitement. “It could. Maybe you could come out late Friday night and then go to Mark’s on Saturday.” She couldn’t believe she’d gotten up the nerve to suggest a secret rendezvous.

Apparently Hal couldn’t quite believe it either, he was silent so long. She was afraid she’d misinterpreted him for one horrifying moment. She was about to backpedal big time when he spoke again.

“I’d love that.” His voice had dropped deep and sultry. “Are you sure, sweetheart? I don’t want to rush you.”

“How can you rush someone who’s known you for almost twenty years?”

He chuckled. “Half that time you were just a kid, Casey. This—you and me as adults—is relatively new.”

She took a deep breath for courage. “Not to me, Hal. I’ve been thinking of you the way an adult woman thinks of an adult man for years.”

She heard his breath shudder on the other end of the line, and hers was doing a fair imitation, still ragged from her only slightly lower pulse. Hal had a way of igniting her pulse, stealing her breath and raising her temperature. Hell, with him around, who needed aerobics?

“Me too, Cas. Me too.”

Well, why didn’t you ever say anything before? She wanted to scream in frustration, but she knew the timing had never been right.

“Then it’s settled. Come to my apartment on Friday. I’ll make dinner. Mark will never know.”

“I don’t like sneaking around, Cas.”

“Neither do I. It’s just for now, though. Until we see where this is going. I don’t want to start trouble between either of us and my overprotective big brother.”

“We’ll have to tell him sooner or later.”

Trust Hal to be the voice of her conscience. “I vote for later. I can’t face him with this yet. Not until I’m sure...” She trailed off, not wanting to insult him or give voice to her doubts.

“You can be sure of me, Cas. I would never knowingly hurt you, and I’m not just in this for a quick fling. I’m not playing around. I want you in my life, long-term. You can be sure of that.”

Her heart filled with hope, but she didn’t quite trust it yet. For one thing, he was still in the Army and something very strange had happened to him in Iraq. The uncertainty surrounding his health and his future made her want to reach out and grab whatever time she could with him. She dared not let her heart count on the future. It was too uncertain.

“I’m not playing either, Hal.”

Her voice was almost back to normal, but she found she couldn’t speak above a whisper. Baring your heart had that kind of effect, she guessed.

“I’ll see you Friday for dinner, sweetheart. I can’t wait.”

The week flew by and by the time Friday rolled around Casey had everything set. Candles were already on the table, along with a new tablecloth and her famous chicken ready to serve. All she needed was the man.

At six sharp the doorbell rang, and Casey smoothed the skirt of her little black dress. She’d wanted to look good for her first real date with Hal. She knew the date would more than likely end with them in bed together. Still, she wanted to look her best.

She was rewarded for the extra care she’d taken in dressing when Hal just stared at her for a good long minute after she opened the door. Casey was looking him over too.

He looked healthy, whole and wholly edible. Not a sign that he’d been sick after saving her life the weekend before. He had gorgeous flowers for her—stargazer lilies, which were her favorite—and an expensive bottle of wine to go with dinner. Of course, the appreciative look in his eyes meant more than anything else.

He stepped into her apartment, dropping the flowers and wine onto the couch before sweeping her into his arms for a long, hot kiss. His lips were brutal at first, then gentled as he tasted her, sipping at her mouth and groaning in satisfaction. Her tongue tangled with his and his hands roamed over her shoulders, under the thin straps of the dress and then over the silky material, down to her waist and lower.

He pulled her against him, shocking her with the blatant hardness at the juncture of his thighs as he pulled away for just a moment to look into her eyes.

“You’re beautiful, Cas and so sexy.”

She smiled up at him. He was in dark slacks and a black knit shirt that hugged his bulging muscles. “You’re not too shabby yourself, Captain Haliwell. Is that a rocket in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?”

“A little of both, sweetheart.” He laughed with her and let her go. “But we’ll call a ceasefire while we eat dinner, okay?”

“Just like a man, thinking of your stomach first.” She began to take the flowers and wine into the small kitchen, Hal stopping her with a hand on her arm.

“Actually, I’m thinking of you, Cas. I want you to know that this doesn’t have to be anything more than dinner. If you want, I’ll sleep on your couch tonight. No pressure. Okay?”

His gaze was so serious, his look so earnest, she smiled and moved back into his arms, placing a light kiss on his cheek.

“I know you well enough to tell you off if I feel uncomfortable. Thanks for being so sweet. I made your favorite—mom’s recipe for chicken and rice.”

He let her go, rubbing his washboard stomach with a grin of appreciation. “Oh man, I’ve died and gone to Heaven. I’ve got a smart, beautiful, sexy woman to keep me company and my favorite food in the whole world.”

She turned to him as she set the wine in a cooler of ice and put the flowers in a vase. “Flattery will get you everywhere, Captain.”

“A man can only hope.” The twinkle in his eyes set a little fire in her tummy.

They ate together, as they had many times before, but this time it was different. It was just the two of them. No family was around to interject or interfere with their conversation. They talked about many different topics until she finally broached the subject she’d been thinking about all week.

“I had a very interesting talk with your friend Jeff,” she began hesitantly.

“Oh, yeah? What did the little pipsqueak have to say?”

She chuckled at the idea of Jeff Penworthy being a pipsqueak. Like Hal and the other men of his unit she’d met, Jeff was built. Muscles on muscles. Jeff might be a little more compact than Hal, and slightly shorter, but no less solid. These were men with a capital Mmm.

“He told me about your unit and the different specialties you and your men have, and he told me something happened in Iraq to change you all.”

Hal looked up from his dinner, suddenly serious. “That’s classified information, Cas. He knows better than to go around saying anything about our time there.”

“He thought you needed someone to confide in. He said that because you’re the unit leader, you’ve been there for the men. He thinks no one’s really been able to be there for you.”

“And he thinks you can do that?” Hal stood from the table, suddenly upset. “Damn him. What gives him the right to involve you in this?”

She looked down at her plate. “I think you probably gave him the idea, Hal. He said he’d seen the way you reacted to my letters and cards. He probably also saw the way you kissed me at the heliport and put two and two together. I mean it’s pretty obvious I care about you, and I think you have some feelings for me.”

“Feelings? Dammit, Casey, I love you. I’ve loved you for years, though I’ve tried to stay away. I don’t want to subject you to my life—especially now with what’s happened, but I don’t seem to be able to help myself.”

She went from the heights of happiness to the depths of despair and back again in a single sentence. He loved her?

She hadn’t dared dream, but there was a darkness in his eyes as well. A darkness that hadn’t been there before he’d gone to Iraq.

She stood on shaky legs and moved to stand in front of him. “First and foremost, I’m your friend. I have been for almost twenty years, whether you want to admit it or not.”

She moved closer to him. “I care what happens to you, and I want to help you if I can.”

He pulled her into his arms.

“You help me just by breathing, sweetheart. Just by being you.”

He kissed her deeply, using his hands to inch up the skirt of her little black dress, quickly getting carried away. His mouth devoured hers, bruising her tender lips and exciting her breathing. His own breath was coming in ragged pants when the doorbell chimed, breaking them apart.

“Shit.”

“You can say that again.” She smiled to break the tension when the doorbell sounded again.

“Can we pretend you’re not home?”

“Not with the lights on and music playing. Whoever it is can hear it in the hall, I’m sure.”

He rested his forehead against hers for a quick moment.

“Okay, better go see who it is.”

She sighed, pulling out of his arms and pulling down her skirt as she moved to the door. She pulled it open while the doorbell sounded a third, impatient time, and her mouth dropped open in shock.

“What the hell is going on here?”

Her brother Mark looked from her swollen, bruised lips to the man who’d come to stand behind her. Hal put his hand on her shoulder in support. Hal stood with her, facing down an irate Mark. She’d known they’d have to face the music sooner or later, but she hadn’t planned on telling Mark quite this way.

“You’d better come in.” Casey stood back to let her brother enter, closing the door behind him. “Hal and I were having dinner.”

“That wasn’t all he was having, was it?”

Hal stepped forward, ready to defend her honor if need be.

“Watch your mouth, Mark.”

“How could you do this? She’s my little sister.” Mark sounded angry and appalled at the thought of his best friend getting busy with his sister.

“Sheesh, Mark, it’s only dinner.”

“And just where was he supposed to sleep tonight? He told me he’d be at my place tomorrow.”

Busted, she thought to herself. “He said he’d take the couch.”

“Yeah, right.” Mark plopped down on said couch, looking angry and hurt. “How long has this been going on?”

“Honestly, Mark. This is the first time we’ve gotten together without your knowledge. We were going to wait a bit before we told anyone.”

Mark looked at his solemn friend. “You love her?”

Casey sucked in a breath, going scared, but Hal didn’t hesitate.

“With all my heart.”

Mark ran his hands over his face and through his hair, finally standing from the couch with a distracted air.

“All right then. You treat her right, Hal, or you’ll answer to me.”

Hal only nodded, and Casey’s expression went soft.

“I’m getting out of here. You stay here or go back to base. I don’t want to see your sorry ass for a while until I come to terms with this.”

Hal nodded again, his eyes dark. “You’re still my best friend, Mark. I hope that won’t change, but I can’t fight the way I feel any longer.”

Mark looked up at his friend as he neared the door. “How long have you been fighting it, Hal?”

“Since she turned eighteen.” His eyes pinned her where she stood. “I finally admitted to myself on her eighteenth birthday how much I wanted her, and I’ve been in hell ever since.”

“Damn.” Mark paused with his hand on the doorknob.

“You’ve been being noble all this time? You’re more of a masochist than I thought.” He chuckled softly and opened the door. “You’re my best friend too, Hal. That won’t change. Give me a chance to get used to this idea, okay? You broadsided me, dude.”

They laughed genuinely for the first time. Mark left, and they were alone once more.

“Think we blew his mind?” Hal raised one eyebrow toward the closed door.

“No doubt about it. I think he’ll be okay in time. He took it better than I would have thought, actually.”