Her Forbidden Marine (Hearts Ablaze: Men in Uniform Book 2) (2 page)

Becky walked into the crowded restaurant and scanned the warmly lit room, looking for Jade.  It would be tough to spot her even if she had arrived on time for once—people were packed five-deep at the sleek bar, every table was full, and it was hard to even hear herself think over the thumping of music coursing through the speakers and loud conversations being carried on around her.  She brushed a hand through her long brown hair, trying to smooth out the wind-blown look of it, and sighed.  She’d only been back in her hometown for an hour, and already the place seemed suffocating.  Catching a flight back to California was sounding better and better with every passing minute.  She could be back in her apartment by morning, safe in her own bed—and her family and friends would be furious.

No, it was for the best that she’d finally come home.  She’d come straight from the airport to meet Jade after she’d picked up her rental car, not even stopping by her parents’ house first.  She’d be spending most of her winter break with them, but she figured a night out first was well-deserved.  The semester was over, it was the holiday season.  Why not live it up a little as long as she was here?  And let’s face it—sometimes a girl just needed her best friend.

Was that someone from her high school waving at her from across the bar?  Becky hesitantly waved back at the gorgeous blonde, eventually recognizing her as a girl who’d been a year ahead of her at her alma mater.  She certainly was done up tonight, with tons of makeup and a tight red dress that was certain to attract lots of attention from the opposite sex. Becky glanced down at her own dark skinny jeans, sparkly camisole, and sweater.  Pretty Plain Jane compared to what’s-her-name.  What
was
her name?  Callie?  Hallie?  Not that she kept in touch with many people aside from Jade.  What was the point, really?  College was over; high school was
long
over, and she was finishing her Ph.D.  Yet somehow it didn’t matter that she was twenty-five years old, had been on her own for years, and had a burgeoning career that she was proud of.  A couple of hours back in town and she felt like an insecure teenager all over again.

Callie/Hallie was gesturing for her to come over and sit with them, but Becky waved her off.  She wasn’t about to sit there and stroll down memory lane.  She’d find Jade, have a few drinks, and then finally head over to her parents’ house.  Hopefully they weren’t waiting up, but her mom had seemed understanding that Becky wanted to catch up with her best friend before coming home when they’d spoken on the phone earlier in the week about her plans.  And despite her reluctance to return to her hometown, it
would
be good to see her family.

“There you are!” a female voice suddenly rang out.  Becky turned and saw blonde hair swinging through the air as her best friend, Jade, swooped in for a hug.

“Jade!  God, you look amazing!”

Jade had obviously changed after work, as she was now dressed to kill in a slinky black dress and red stilettos.  How on earth did she walk around in the snow in those things?  And furthermore, why hadn’t Jade warned her that she was getting dressed to the nines tonight?  She looked like a woman on the prowl, not someone who was just here to catch up with her best friend over a drink.  Then again, Tap Room was about a million times trendier than it had been during her college days.  She’d spent plenty of nights here on summer vacation and never gave a second thought to what she had on.

“Thanks hun!  I had to run home and change after a day at the salon.  There was no way I was coloring and styling hair all day long in stilettos.  You look pretty fab yourself.”

“I look a little underdressed.  Since when did this place become so trendy?  I can’t believe how packed it is.”

Jade laughed, throwing her dirty blonde hair back.  “Trendy?  You’ve obviously been leading the collegiate life for too long.  Have you been slumming with the undergrads and attending frat parties or something?”

“Right,” Becky said with a laugh.  “Because every doctoral student loves to hang out with a bunch of horny eighteen-year-olds.  It just looks different than I remembered.  The rest of town is exactly the same.”

“Yeah, they remodeled it last December….”  Her voice trailed off, and Becky knew she was remembering what
else
had happened last year—namely that her fiancé had been killed in a roadside ambush and nothing had been the same ever since.  Becky hadn’t come home for Christmas last year.  But why dwell on the sadness of the past?  She was here to actually move on and live her life.  If that included returning home and facing family and friends who knew her sad story, then so be it.

“It’s okay,” Becky said softly.  “It’s not like I suddenly forgot everything that happened and you bringing it up reminded me,” she said with a shrug.

“I’m sorry, hun.  I’m just so glad you’re here!  I wish I’d known sooner that you’d be home this year.  My family already booked that week-long ski trip, but I’m so glad we have a couple days to hang out first.  And I’ll be back next weekend.  You’re coming to my party right?”

“Wouldn’t miss it.  And I know, I wasn’t sure if I’d want to come home or not.  But the semester was over, and I hadn’t been back since the accident, so here I am.”

“What happened to that guy you were dating?”

“Oh, God, didn’t I tell you? That fizzled out by our third date.”

“That bad, huh?”

“No chemistry.  As in zero, zilch.”

Jade grimaced and then flashed Becky a smile.  “No worries.  There are plenty of attractive men here tonight.  Maybe you can find a tall, dark, and handsome stranger to take your mind off of the no-chemistry college boy.”

Amy laughed.  “He was a doctoral student like me.  And he was a perfectly nice guy, there just wasn’t a spark.  Anyway, want to grab a drink?  I need one after that long flight.”

“Definitely.  And as a bonus, one of the bartenders that works here is super hot.”

Becky laughed as the girls moved forward, dodging waitresses making their way to the tables and happy hour revelers animatedly talking.  It felt good to be here with her friend, even if she wasn’t exactly looking to meet someone.  It almost felt like old times.  A male pair of eyes watched her as they passed a full table and Becky flushed despite herself.  How long had it been since she’d really looked at another man?  The ill-fated dates with her fellow student earlier this year barely counted, that was for sure.

“Ohhh, a table is opening up!” Jade said, grasping her elbow.  “Get me a martini, okay?  I’m going to snag us a seat.”

Becky watched as Jade hurried off, nearly bumping into a Marine of the tall, dark, and handsome variety.  He was still in uniform, undoubtedly stationed at nearby Quantico.  Becky watched as he walked after Jade, apparently seeing something he liked.  No doubt Jade would love that.  Becky sighed, turning back toward the bar.  Nothing like having guys all over town to remind her of—humph!

She collided into the very solid, very muscular chest of someone male.  His warmth and masculine scent enveloped her, all clean soap, spice, and something else distinctively male.  Her hands flew to his chest as she regained her balance, feeling the wall of solid muscle beneath his shirt. Warmth surged through her at their closeness, bringing alive feelings of attraction that she hadn’t felt in a long time.  This man towered above her, but for some reason she felt nothing but safe and secure as her body pressed up intimately against his.  An odd sense of déjà vu washed over her at their close encounter, and startled, she looked up. Her eyes traced over a strong jaw, five-o-clock shadow, chiseled features, and finally met a pair of dark brown eyes that looked completely stunned to see her.  They narrowed slightly as Brody’s best friend, Matt Beckett, quickly jumped back from her like he’d been burned.  Becky stared at him in confusion—both in disbelief at seeing him here and because of the abrupt way he’d immediately pulled away.

“Becky,” he ground out, his voice gruff and deep.  He held himself stiffly, his large frame taught and tense as if he were ready to bolt at any moment.  His jaw ticked as he gazed down at her.  If he was any more wound up, Becky thought, he’d probably implode right here in the middle of the restaurant.

“Matt?” she asked in disbelief as her heart pounded in her chest.  “What—what are you doing here?”  She looked around confusedly, as if the people around them would somehow explain Matt’s appearance on the other side of the country, here in her hometown.  Was he here to see her?  Impossible.  In the past, they’d barely spoken when they were in the same room together.  And if he wanted to talk about Brody, calling her when they were both in California would have been more logical than flying all the way across the country.  But what were the chances…?

“I’m stationed at Quantico now,” he said briefly, without a trace of warmth.

God, was Matt always this big and intimidating?  The man was made of nothing but solid muscle and towered over her much smaller frame.  She could feel the warmth and heat radiating off of him, even from here, and could still smell the spicy cologne he had on.  Both shock at seeing him and an unexpected attraction to his pure masculinity competed within her.  She wanted to step closer, to soak in all that warmth and strength.  To go back to a moment ago when her hands were on his chest and his heart was beating beneath her fingertips.  But that was completely crazy.  Matt was Brody’s buddy, and he sure had never been friendly toward her.  True, when she’d seen Matt at the funeral, he’d been just about the only thing keeping her from completely shattering apart.  But aside from that one moment where he’d let a softer side show, he was always polite but cool around her.  Since those guys were deployed half the time, it hadn’t mattered that she and Matt had barely gotten to know one another.  She’d always been glad Brody had a close friend for their long deployments.  If she and Matt weren’t going to be friends, too, so be it.  She certainly hadn’t needed his blessing to date Brody.

“Quantico.  Right.  Well, I’m home for the holidays….”  She trailed off.  His deep chocolate brown eyes were hard as they studied her and seemed full of secrets—secrets that he would never tell her, of course.  Why he’d never liked her, what had happened during the ambush, how a man so cool and calm could be best friends with the more easygoing Brody.

“That’s right, you’re from Virginia.  How’ve you been?” he asked.  His jaw ticked, as if he wanted to say something more, and his dark eyes gave nothing away.  In about ten more second he’d be giving her the brush-off.  Just like he always did.

“Oh, uh, fine,” she finally replied. Well, wasn’t she articulate today?  They both knew she hadn’t been fine, would never be “fine” again in a certain sense.  Maybe he wouldn’t be either.

“It’s good to see you,” he finally said in a low voice, not moving as he stared down at her.  Matt was standing so rigidly in front of her, it was hard to believe he meant that at all. 
He’s lost someone, too,
Becky reminded herself. 
He saw Brody die right in front of him.

“Right, you too,” she replied softly.

“Hey, Beckett, what’s up?” a burly guy in uniform called out in a deep voice, walking up to them.  The man was as tall as Matt, well over six feet, but darker-skinned and even more muscular, if that was possible.  He had a huge smile on his face and grinned as he looked back and forth between Becky and Matt.  “You picking up chicks, or what?” he asked, winking at Becky.

“No, we’re just—” Becky started but cut herself off.  What were they, anyway?  Certainly not friends.  Not really.

“You probably need to get back to your friends,” Matt said, effectively ending their brief encounter.

Becky hesitated as she looked at him, confusion and hurt flashing through her eyes.  Well, why would he want to catch up with her anyway now that his own friend was here?  And besides, it was Friday night.  They were here to pick up some women, as evidenced by his friend’s comment.  Who was she to stand around cramping their style?

“Right, I should go,” Becky said hurriedly.  “My friend got a table already.”

“Right,” Matt replied, his voice deep.  “See you around.”

“See you,” she said, turning around and quickly walking toward Jade, feeling slightly flustered.  Well, that was that.  She’d said goodbye to Brody last year and said goodbye to his best friend tonight.  She’d always imagined if she and Matt had talked, she’d gain a small sense of closure over what had happened.  Maybe he had heard Brody’s last words or could tell her something,
anything
, that could bring her some semblance of peace.  To make her feel like it was okay to move on and leave that part of her life behind.  All he’d given her tonight was the brush-off.

She was halfway to Jade when she realized she still hadn’t gotten their drinks.

“Dude, that was harsh!” Lieutenant Sam Chapman said, eyeing Matt like he was crazy.  “Why’d you blow her off like that?”

“I didn’t—I don’t know,” Matt said gruffly, shaking his head.  He’d completely frozen up when she’d bumped into him—her soft curves brushing up against his body, those full breasts pressing into his chest.  He was hard in all the places she was soft, and hell—her body had molded so perfectly to his.  If that wasn’t enough, her sweet vanilla scent had overwhelmed him.  He’d always had a hard time concentrating when she was around, just being in the same room together.  But with her that close, pressed against his body, practically in his arms? It was like a fire had ignited inside of him, and it was all he could do to restrain himself from pulling her tightly against his chest and never letting go.

His mind flashed back to Brody’s funeral last year.  He’d held Becky close, then—the one and only time he’d dared to touch her.  She’d practically collapsed in a fit of tears during the service.  He’d pulled her close, his own heart tearing apart from the pain of losing his friend and from watching the woman he’d been slowly falling for suffer as well.  The feelings were unrequited though—they were feelings she’d never return and ones he had no business having in the first place.  But how the hell was he supposed to know that all those years ago when he and Brody had spotted Becky and her friends at a California bar that she’d pick Brody?  He wasn’t quick enough to talk to her first, so Brody had.  Brody had flirted with her, and she’d flirted right back.  It’s not like he expected for them to eventually fall in love or for him to slowly, yet surely, fall as well.

Becky would never know.  He kept his distance to keep himself in check and they’d all managed just fine.  Her showing up in the town of his new assignment didn’t change that.  Sure, maybe it made things a little more difficult for the moment, but it’s not like he was required to spend time with her.  Maybe they’d see each other around, maybe they wouldn’t.  She’d eventually go back to California and that was that.  Problem solved.

“Whatever, man,” Sam said with a laugh.  “If she’s not your type, maybe I can go buy her a drink.  Nurse her wounds a little after the cold shoulder you gave her,” he added with a grin.

Anger seethed inside Matt at the thought of Sam chasing after her.  Sure, Sam was a decent enough guy, but this was
Becky.
She deserved to be with a man who would take care of her, give her everything.  She certainly wasn’t after a one-night-stand from some hard-up Marine she’d just met in a bar.  “She’s off limits,” he said in a steely voice.

“Why? You know her or something?” Sam asked, eyeing him warily.

Matt nodded as he watched Becky move through the crowd toward her friend.  Her silky brown hair swished over her shoulders and her hips swayed in those tight jeans she was wearing.  His eyes roamed further, noticing the way the denim curved perfectly over her ass, and he instantly hardened. 
Damn it. 
He wasn’t allowed to be lusting after her like that.  He’d lost his best friend for god’s sake.  If anything, he should be looking out for her in a brotherly type of way, not imagining how she’d feel wrapped in his arms or how she looked underneath those clothes.

“She was Brody’s girl,” he said quietly.

“Brody?  Oh, shit, man.  I didn’t know.”

Matt had told the guys he was stationed with minimal details about the ambush—about losing his best friend.  Hell, anyone who’d served knew someone who was gone.  Who was he to sit around and wallow in his own misery?  Shit happened.  Especially in the middle of a fucking war zone.  They all knew that.

Jason and Amy worked their way back over to Matt and Sam, drinks in hand.  Jason was nursing a beer and Amy had some fruity concoction that chicks loved.  Why women drank that stuff, he’d never know.  “Thought you disappeared,” Jason commented.

“Got sidetracked,” Matt muttered.

“I see that.  You made it, Lieutenant,” Jason said, giving Sam a nod.

“Just in time,” Sam agreed, glancing between Jason and Amy.  “I don’t think we’ve met yet—I’m Sam,” he said, producing a muscular hand.  “You must be Jason’s better half,” he added with a grin.

“Amy,” she said with a laugh, offering her hand in return.  Sam’s hand practically engulfed hers, and Matt’s blood boiled at the thought of Sam’s hands on Becky.  Hell, she wasn’t even standing in their group anymore, and he was still worried about Sam chasing after her?  Not that Sam would, now that he knew who Becky was, but hell, what right did he have getting so jealous at the idea of Becky with another man?  She wasn’t his.  Matt’s eyes trailed across the restaurant to where Becky had headed and realized she was already walking back their way.  What the hell?

“Becky!” Amy suddenly called out in surprise, waving her over.  She turned to Jason, “I can’t believe it—that’s Melissa’s sister!  I didn’t know she was in town.”

Becky caught sight of Amy and waved, glancing hesitantly at Matt.  Great, now she thought she wasn’t even welcome in their group.  One of whom was apparently friends with her sister.  He’d have to work on acting friendlier around her even if it killed him.  She approached the group, smiling at Amy, but coming to a stop at his side.  He couldn’t help but notice that her head barely reached his shoulder, and damn.  Her vanilla scent once again surrounded him, and instantly he felt his pulse pound and groin tighten.  God, it really was going to kill him being around her, he thought, gritting his teeth.  Sam eyed him curiously and then excused himself to go grab a beer, sauntering over to the bar. The blonde who’d approached Matt earlier was now heading after Sam.  At least now he didn’t need to worry about Sam chasing after his best friend’s girl, Matt noted dryly.  There’s no way Sam would be able to turn down the Barbie-look-alike.

“Yeah, I decided to come home this year,” Becky said. “I haven’t even seen my parents or Melissa yet—my flight from California just got in a couple of hours ago.  I actually came here first to meet up with my friend Jade,” she said, gesturing to a table where a woman sat alone.  They all glanced over at the attractive blonde, and she waved and animatedly pointed to the bar.

Matt laughed, despite himself, and Becky shot him a small smile.  “I think she wants me to bring us some drinks,” she explained unnecessarily, laughing softly.  She looked back at Jade and gave an exaggerated shrug, like “what can I do?”

Matt cleared his throat.  “I’ll go grab a few drinks while you and Amy catch up.  What do you and your friend want?” he asked, tilting his head toward Jade before gazing down at Amy.  Her brown eyes met his, and he silently willed her to understand that he was sorry for brushing her off earlier.  And practically every other time they’d come into contact with one another.  She looked so vulnerable gazing up at him that he wanted to kick himself for not checking on her sometime, anytime, over the past year.  As fucked up as it was, he’d told Brody he’d look out for her.  And he’d failed at even doing that.

“Oh, uh, thanks,” Becky said, looking surprised.  “Jade wants a martini.  I’ll have whatever’s on tap.”

“That’s my girl,” Matt said without thinking and then hastily corrected himself.  “I mean, I uh, remember you were a beer girl.  Drinker.”  Becky eyed him curiously, and he turned and made his way over to the bar without saying anything else. 
Hell.  Way to keep your cool. 
He edged through the crowd, noting that Sam already had his arm slung around the slinky blonde, and gestured to the bartender that he was ready to order.  Tonight was already turning out to be a lot more complicated than he’d planned.

***

So much for getting out of there at an early hour, Matt thought, glancing down at the time on his phone and seeing that it was past midnight.  Tap Room was open for another hour, but after Sam had left with a lady friend, Matt decided it was time for him to call it a night.  He’d been planning on only staying for a beer or two, but after seeing Becky there out of the blue, his pulse had spiked and adrenaline had been pumping through him all evening.  Hell, if Jason and Sam hadn’t left with their respective women, he’d be tempted to call them up and see if they’d join him on a midnight run right now.  Anything to clear his head.  A little action between the sheets would also take the edge off, but he wasn’t going there.  And who was he kidding?  He’d stuck around until midnight to see if Becky made another appearance. There’d been no signs of Becky at the bar, where he’d hung out with Jason, Amy, and Sam, but he wasn’t about to go back to the table where he’d left Becky and her friend to see for himself.  Not when he’d vowed to stay away.

A giggling brunette bumped into him, and Matt glanced down, noticing that the woman had had way too much to drink.  “Oops!  Sorry, sailor.”

“He’s not a sailor, he’s a Marine,” the dark-haired beauty beside her hissed.  “Sorry, my friend’s had way too much to drink.”

“No problem,” he said, stepping around them and attempting not to roll his eyes.  They looked really young—probably only twenty-one or so.  Not that he was exactly an old man at thirty-two, but hell if he didn’t have the patience for those kinds of girls anymore.  The ones who went out and got drunk every weekend, who went home with whatever guy asked first.  A couple of years ago and he’d have been all over that but now?  Not in a million years.  He zipped up his coat, feeling the bite of the cold January air.  It had been flurrying when he’d arrived hours earlier, but now the air was just damn arctic.  There just was something wrong with walking around outside and seeing your breath fog up in front of you because it was so cold.  He didn’t think he’d ever get used to that, no matter how long he was stationed in Virginia.

He headed up Main Street toward his car and was surprised to see Becky walking alone up ahead of him.  There weren’t many people around this late at night, and many of the patrons still at the restaurant had parked in the lot attached to it.  What on earth was she doing wandering around by herself at this hour?

“Becky!” he called out, loudly enough for her to hear him.  She jumped, and he cringed slightly as she turned around, hoping he hadn’t scared her.  Then again, maybe it would do her some good.  She shouldn’t be walking around alone after midnight.  Why the hell wasn’t she with her friend Jade?  On the bright side, she wasn’t with any of the men from the bar either, he noted.  Why that made him feel so damn pleased he didn’t even want to broach.

He watched as Becky’s body relaxed when she realized it was him, and Matt jogged to catch up with her.  Matt noticed that her cheeks were flushed from the cold, and for a moment, he imagined her beneath him, cheeks rosy and flushed as he drove into her again and again, bringing her to orgasm as she screamed his name. 
Yeah, not gonna happen.

“Matt?” she asked in confusion as his mind snapped back to the present.  “What are you doing here?”

“You shouldn’t be walking out here alone this late at night,” he said, sounding slightly more harsh than he intended.

Becky’s eyes narrowed slightly as she gazed up at him.  “I’m just walking to my car,” she said, sounding defensive.  Her lips were rosy, too, and he wasn’t sure if she’d applied some lipstick or if they were just naturally that color.  Suddenly, he found himself wondering if her nipples were that same rosy pink.  Would he ever find out?  The thought of not knowing was killing him.  What he wouldn’t give just to spend one night with her, slowly stripping her down in his bed as he thoroughly explored her body.  He didn’t deserve a woman like her, not when he couldn’t even man up and watch out for her like his buddy had asked.  But fuck, what he wouldn’t do to have her be his just for one night.

“You shouldn’t walk down the street alone,” he repeated, trying to get his thoughts back on track.

“Fine, next time I’ll hitchhike,” she said sarcastically.

“Becky,” he growled.  “I’m serious.”

“So am I—I’m just walking to my car, Matt.  Chill out, okay?  Maybe go back to those college girls you were hanging out with.”

“What?  Who?”

“I just saw you outside the bar,” she said, rolling her eyes.  “You were flirting with those two girls when I left.  I’d have said goodnight, but I didn’t want to interrupt your threesome.”

“For God’s sake, Becky, I don’t go around engaging in threesomes.”

“Well, how would I know?  You’ve had a different girl on your arm for as long as I’ve known you.  Now, goodnight.”  She turned on her heel and walked away.  Damn, was she always this feisty?  Matt realized he’d never know, because he’d barely spoken to her in the past.  If she appeared, he’d disappear.  And they’d all been just fine with that.

“Fine,” he called out, taking off after her.  “But I’m walking you to your car first.”

Becky sighed as he fell in step beside her.  “Look, you don’t need to feel sorry for me, okay?  I can take care of myself.”

“Of course you can,” he said, registering the surprised look in her eyes as she glanced up at him.  “But I just want to make sure you get to your car safely.  You’re a woman, walking down the street alone at midnight, and besides, I owe it to Brody.”

“Whatever makes you feel better,” Becky said quietly.  Amazingly, they’d already arrived at her vehicle, making that perhaps that fastest damn walk of his life.  Now what was he supposed to do?  She was going to leave pissed at him.  She couldn’t be this mad just because he’d offered to walk her to her car.  She was probably still ticked off from the million other times he’d barely said a word to her.  Now he was suddenly concerned for her safety?  No wonder she was confused.  Hell if he wasn’t confused as all get out, too.