Page 31 of Sloane

“You look beautiful, baby,” he said as he dropped a kiss to my forehead before I moved so he could pass.

I studied him as he took off his boots. He looked tired and I knew it had probably been a trying day. The Marine Corps didn’t bring him halfway across the world to give him cookies and a pep talk. Even I understood his presence three weeks earlier than originally planned, and without the rest of his men, meant something. Either he was getting his ass chewed, which I hoped wasn’t the case, or he was being briefed on something big.

Whichever it was, it showed on his face.

“Long day, huh?”

He looked up at me with a tired smile as his second boot dropped to the floor. “You could say that.”

“Wanna talk about it?”

“I wish I could, sweetness,” he said as he stood, “but it’s classified.”

“I figured, but I thought I’d ask anyway.”

Without another word, he pulled me into his arms and held me against his hard body. I felt the tension leave his back as he let out a deep sigh and kissed my hair.

“You’re nice to come home to,” he finally murmured with his cheek resting against the top of my head, and I felt butterflies take flight in my stomach.

“I like you being here.”

After a few more minutes of just holding each other, he slowly pulled away.

“Ryan wants to have dinner at his place. I told him we’d be there. I hope that’s okay?”

“Of course. What does he need us to bring?”

“He said dessert.”

I smiled. “That’s perfect. I made a cheesecake today.”

“You made a cheesecake?”

“Yeah.” The corner of his mouth twitched, and I blurted out, “What?”

He shook his head. “Nothing. I’ve just never met anyone who actually made a cheesecake and didn’t buy it.”

“Well, I remembered you said cherry cheesecake was your favorite, and I had the ingredients, so...”

He pulled me into another embrace. “I can’t believe you did that for me.”

My shoulders hiked even with his arms around me. “It’s the least I can do after everything you do for our country.”

After another kiss to my hair, he released me.

“I’m going to get changed and then we can get going. The sooner we leave, the sooner we can get back, and have some quality time together.”

“I hope by quality time, you mean naked time,” I said cheekily.

“They’re synonymous, aren’t they?”

He winked at me as he reached behind his neck and pulled the camel-colored t-shirt off his body, leaving him bare-chested.

“I think so.”

My mouth watered as I stared at his broad chest and rippled abdominal muscles.

“Sweetness, you better stop looking at me like that, or we’re not going to get out of here.”

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