by Amy Brent
“So sensitive. I’m sorry.” She apologized, watching Deacon as something crossed his face. He moved away from her momentarily, resting against the pile of pillows as he drew her into his arms, half-naked and shivering. Her face was relaxed with need and her eyes shone brightly against the dim light of the amber lamp in the corner as she regarded him quietly. “There’s something that I need to tell you.” Deacon remained quiet, stroking her soft skin as he gazed at her with gentle eyes. “For one, I’ve never wanted someone the way I want you after such a short time.”
“Nor have I.” He replied, watching her eyes fill with emotion as he found her hair to stroke it slowly.
“Oh, Deacon. I wish we’d have met just a few months before this. It would be so much easier.” Rowan told him, her eyes filling with tears.
“What’s wrong, Rowan? Why were you in the hospital?” He questioned her, wiping one that slid down her cheek.
“That’s a story.” She admitted in a trembling voice, shaking her head slowly. “I found out that night that I was pregnant, Deacon. Just over three months.” His eyes widened as she watched him take it in as his hand stilled briefly.
“Do you have someone in your life? A husband or a boyfriend?” Rowan couldn’t tell if he was angry with her or the situation in general, but his sexy eyes were flashing as she reached up to stroke his cheek.
“I'm alone in this, Deacon. There’s so much more that I need to say.”
Rowan began, snuggling against his warmth as she silently wished for him to stay with her. “About four months ago, I was at a bar with some teacher friends just blowing off some steam. I had ordered a drink, running to the bathroom before I stepped outside to the small patio for some fresh air. It was hot and crowded, something that can get on my nerves really fast.” Rowan swallowed as she watched his face harden, feeling his arms hold her tighter. “I remember feeling dizzy out there and stumbling towards the door to find my friends before I fainted, something that was getting stronger by the moment. Everything went black until I came to in the cold air somewhere dark. It was so quiet and scary.” She trembled again as he held her tighter. “I was in the alley behind the club, alone and scared, but I managed to get myself together enough to get back inside. Even if my clothes weren’t ripped, I could feel that something had happened to me.” Tears slipped down her cheeks freely as she spoke, her pain from the memory still fresh in her mind. “I still felt so sick and so violated, but the staff that was cleaning up for the night called the police for me. An ambulance came to take me to the hospital and…it was awful. They determined that I was raped but there wasn’t enough DNA to find the person or group that did it.”
“Fuck.” Deacon said slowly, still as all of his protective mode started to take over.
“They helped me recover from whatever was in my drink…some date rape drug. I forgot the name of it as soon as I could. Physically I was fine and I went home the next morning, since I was too much of a mess to be alone that night. The nurses were so good to be, comforting me and trying to make me laugh. It worked sometimes.” Rowan looked at him. “I’m a strong girl. I talked to someone about it and worked through my feelings so I wouldn’t shut down. I knew that I had to go on.” She shook her head and pressed her lips together. “I knew that I’d been feeling…off, but I assumed that it was just the physical effect of the recovery. I kept trying to exercise more, breathe more. I did everything that I’ve ever been taught to do but I just kept feeling worse. The night at the restaurant, I’d done a long Hot Yoga class and was grabbing dinner before I went home.” She let her eyes widen as she let the memory flood her. “They told me that I was pregnant. I don’t sleep around a lot to begin with, so I knew that the baby was a result of the rape. It was so much to take in but I knew that I couldn’t abort. No matter how this came to be, this baby was mine and deserved love. I was talking to Lisa and I looked up and saw you…it was like being hit by a train. It was everything that I’d read about or seen in movies but it was at the worst fucking time possible.” She started to cry. “I couldn’t believe it when I ran into you at the gym the next day. You looked even better and I knew that what I’d felt was real. Your smile made me weaken and say yes to dinner and I knew that I was going to fall. I couldn’t stop myself but I couldn’t lie to you about any of this either.” She stopped, closing her eyes as she waited for the goodbye. The part where he tells her that he can’t handle all of this. The part where she lost the person that she was certain she was meant to meet when she had a possibility with him.
“I want to kill the mother fuckers that did this to you, Rowan. I want to rip their throats out.” His voice was low and serious enough to make her shiver. “I admire you for going through with this. I know why you are because it’s who you are. It’s your heart.” She heard him sigh and stroke her shoulder. “I can’t just walk away from you, Rowan. It’s going to be hard at moments but I need to see this through.”
“You’re staying with me?” Rowan asked, opening her eyes to look at him.
“I’m a disciplined man, Rowan. My family was in the military…I was a Seal until my world changed three years ago. I have struggled so much with what I was supposed to do since that time.” Deacon stared into her eyes. “The only constants that I have in my life is my brother and my best friend. I haven’t dated anyone seriously since I went into the Navy and that’s what I’m used to. Seeing you at the restaurant and then at the hospital shook my world.” He reached out to stroke her hair again. “I don’t want to lose that feeling. It gives me hope and the way you’re giving this baby life…inspires me. I want to try to bend here and see what I can take.”
“Oh. Good.” She spoke slowly, nodding at him. “That’s good. My hormones have been driving me crazy and I want to come so bad. I want you to take me every way that you can, Deacon.” Her eyes were hooded as he felt himself respond to her words, hard and ready to go. “I clearly can’t get pregnant but I’ll understand if you want to use a condom. I’m free of everything so far but still testing regularly.”
Deacon kissed her hard as she gasped, pressing her thighs apart with his knee as he moved over her. “I have one.” He kissed her neck and she cried out as she arched against him, needy to the point of begging him.
“This is so embarrassing.” Rowan told him, making him look at her with stormy eyes. “I’m so horny.”
Deacon moved off of her, stripping her free of her pants as he looked at her legs hungrily. “Let’s take care of that.” There was no reason to slow down now that everything was out in the open. He needed to do this to either connect with her or be done, but Deacon needed to be inside of her.
He watched as she shed her camisole, freeing her heavy breasts. Deacon parted her legs and watched her stare greedily at him as he stroked up her skin, seeing how ready she was for him. He found her inner thighs that were soft and damp, watching her drop her head to the pillow as he ran his fingers over her teasingly. “Please.” Rowan begged, closing her eyes as she felt his finger enter her.
The therapy had been to move on and accept this as a regular part of her life, while dealing with her feelings. She wanted Deacon more than anything, though thinking too much beyond this night scared her so much that she pushed it away.
The first orgasm was hard and strong as he sucked on her swollen clit and curled his fingers inside of her tight walls. She cried out through it, opening her eyes enough to see Deacon watching her in awe before they closed again.
The second orgasm was longer but just as intense as she wrapped her legs around him and felt his thick cock take her again and again. Rowan felt tears slide down her cheeks as the waves hit her over and over, feeling him tense and thicken as he stilled inside of her. Deacon came with a low grunt, crying out her name as he kept moving slowly with his orgasm.
They collapsed together, naked and sweating as Deacon realized that he was all in with this girl. He was willing to let go of the past that had hurt him so much and allow something new in his future, even if it was
something that he wanted to handle differently. “I’m going to stay.”
EPILOGUE
One year later, Deacon carried the steaks out to the grill as he glanced over the pool to see everyone having fun. James was trying to drag his girlfriend into the pool, who just happened to be Rowan’s sister. They’d met just a few months ago and hit it off immediately. Lily looked a lot like her older sister and was just as sweet, doing something for James that had made him so much happier.
His divorce was final and Susan hadn’t taken him for everything except some money and the house. Their lawyer was good. James paid her what he needed to and went out and bought another house near Deacon, meeting Lily soon after. She was now living with him and attending school in Washington to be closer to James and her family.
Trevor and Lisa were the newest couple and working well, given his busy schedule. There had been an awkward moment between him and Lisa where she had told him that she liked him as more than a friend, concerned when he explained that he was with Rowan. She already knew everything that had happened.
Rowan was sitting under their umbrella, holding their daughter in her lap as she smiled happily. Corinne was named after her grandmother with the middle name Nora for his mother and she’d been born looking just like she was really theirs. He hated the person that had raped her still but had found that the result had made both of them so happy. It didn’t affect their love for Cori or each other.
Deacon still worked out every morning if the baby hadn’t kept them up too late and helped his brother with the growing company. They now had a bigger office and some staff to help them, making it possible for the brothers to spend time with their families and make some new memories.
He brushed the hair out of his face before tossing the meat onto the grill, feeling his fiancée watching him. She loved the new hair even while he grumbled under his breath about it, secretly loving it when she used the soft waves to seduce him.
Within the next year, they planned on another baby that would be theirs as much as Cori was.
Life was working out.
THE END
A BABY FOR MY SEAL
Shareena Hues spent most of her time in nature. As a photographer, which was her passion and hobby, nature always had her in awe. Sure, she had to pay the bills by doing portfolio work, but her love was nature. Birds and wildlife, the way the plants, trees, and streams would look. She never felt more at peace as she did when she was deep in the woods snapping pictures, and capturing pieces that very few people took the time to appreciate.
She had been published in numerous magazines, and had written articles to go with them. Writing wasn’t nearly as fun for her, but she was getting good at writing descriptive articles that allowed visuals in words to go with the pictures.
What she stumbled upon today surprised her. Out in the middle of nowhere, there was a body, laying in a field face down. Carefully making her way over to it, she poked it with her toe. The body shuddered and she realized he was alive. Bending down she helped him turn over and saw a very attractive man, in a navy uniform. It was a good two hours from the nearest naval port or coast, so he was a long way from home.
“What are you doing all the way out here?” She asked him as he woke up and looked at her with one eye.
“Bachelor party… gone wild.” He muttered and sat up, holding his head.
“You had a party all the way out here?” She asked him, shocked.
“No, it was in town a few minutes from her. The stripper was giving me a ride home. She dropped me off here, took my wallet, and left me to rot. She took my cell phone too.” He muttered. “I know, I know, but I don’t hit ladies. So don’t give me that look.”
“You let a stripper take advantage of you?” Shareena stared at him and then started to laugh. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“You remind me of hot chocolate and smell like vanilla and cinnamon. Unless you want me to eat you, please help me up and let me borrow your cell phone so I can call a buddy to come rescue me,” realizing he didn’t give her his name, he paused and felt slightly embarrassed. “Charles, sorry. My name is Charles Danlies. You can call me Charlie though.”
“Okay Charlie, I’m Shareena. I have my cell phone back in my car, if you think you can walk that far without falling over.” She helped him up and realized that he towered over her. She could feel his muscles through his uniform and while she wasn’t a small girl, he made her feel delicate and tiny compared to him. The man was a giant.
“Did you know you have skin the color of mocha? And your eyes remind me of whisky.” He told her, as he looked down at her, “I totally am not hitting on you. However, you are beautiful. Thank you for your help.”
Shareena didn’t know whether to laugh or feel embarrassed. The man was clearly still intoxicated, despite his night spent in the grass.
“So, is anyone missing you?” She asked him quietly, changing the subject.
“No, I work for Navy intelligence. I’m an investigator. I’m on vacation right now. I spent a few years as a regular navy guy. I also spent some time as a navy seal, but I found my interest was investigations and undercover work. I’m also talking too much, so tell me what a beautiful woman like yourself is doing out here.” Charlie asked her, and wondered how to get her number without coming off like a creep.
“I’m a photographer. I was out here trying to get some work done. Actually, hold on, don’t move, the lighting is perfect.” She told him, and then stood back and took a few pictures of him with the sun high in the sky with him looking bewildered as she snapped a few pictures. “Perfect!”
“If you say so,” Charlie muttered.
“I have a consent form in my ca. I will just need a signature to use and sell these photos, if you don’t mind?” Shareena asked him and smiled in his direction, her teeth flashing between her lips.
“Only if you agree to go on a date with me,” Charlie told her and raised a brow as they reached his car.
She hesitated slightly. She barely knew him, but it was clear he was a bit of a trouble maker despite being navy intelligence with a background that she admitted had her fascinated. She’d never gone out with a military man before, of any sort. Normally she dated bankers, and intellectual types. This man had brute strength and reminded her of Hercules. Maybe a change of the type of man would be a good thing. She could at least use a little fun.
Handing him a release form and a pen, she nodded. “Deal, but I get to pick when and where.”
“As long as it’s within the next week, or I get to decide,” he told her as he filled out the paper and handed it back to her. “Can I use your phone now?”
“Sure, or I could give you a ride?” Shareena offered before she could stop herself. For some reason, she felt the urge to help him. Something about him had her drawn to him. Despite his size and his obvious military training, she wasn’t scared of him. His bad boy nature seemed to extend to acts of stupid, rather than scary.
“I’d offer to pay for your gas, but I’m missing my wallet.” He gave her a quirky grin and she laughed.
“I think I can afford the gas to help you out, as long as you pay for dinner.” She told him and got into her car, and started it. When he slid into the seat next to her, his blue eyes twinkled.
“I wouldn’t expect anything less. A gentleman always pays for a pretty lady’s meal,” he told her and winked.
“Somehow, you don’t strike me as much of a gentleman,” Shareena told him, then started to back out of the park’s parking lot to take him where he needed to go.
Shareena hadn’t intended to get overly involved in her wayward navy man, but the dinner date went so well and she had such a good time, she found herself agreeing to another outing. A picnic.
“You love nature so much, a picnic is the perfect place for us to have our next date,” he told her and cupped her cheek outside of the restaurant. He didn’t do more than kiss her cheek, which left her stomach in flutters. She had taken him for a more aggressive
type of man, yet he was holding back with her.
She wasn’t sure if she was flattered, or slightly offended. Amused either way, she smiled at him. And agreed to a time and date.
“I will see you then Charlie,” blowing him a kiss as she walked away from him and back to her car. She could feel his eyes on her back and knew he was watching her. When she got home, she fed her cat. She smiled at Frosty, her white kitty with blue eyes, and told him all about her date with Charlie.
The cat paused when eating to look up and tilt its head, as if he understood what she was saying, before going back to eating his food. Shareena stopped to pet him for a moment, then went about her business.
They’d be meeting again in three days. It was his next day off, and he wanted to take her back to the park where they’d met. He had joked about re-meeting under better circumstances there, and where she could get the pictures she’d missed since she’d stopped to help him.
She wondered what it would be like to kiss him, he had such soft, pink lips. He was hard in all the places that mattered, she’d describe him as stocky. He was solid, and looked like he could hold his own if he ever got in a fight. She liked his body type. She wasn’t exactly a tiny girl, but next to him, he made her feel downright feminine. His hands were huge compared to her. It made her wonder what else about him was huge. Smiling to herself, she fell asleep that night with images of them making love in the sunshine on a picnic blanket.
When the time came for him to pick her up a few days later for the picnic, Shareena took extra care primping in front of her mirror. She knew that he probably didn’t care nearly as much as she did, but she plucked and massaged until her face shined and there wasn’t a single stray hair out of place anywhere.