Page 25 of Natalie's Nighthawk

“Sometimes, no. Some of the people we rescue have been injured. That’s when we use the baskets.” He pointed to the human-sized litter propped up in the corner. The steel-framed piece of equipment could hold around nine hundred pounds and was outfitted with nylon webbing and straps to hold the victim in as they were extracted. The “victim” they used to train with, whom the team had affectionately dubbed Manny, lay slumped nearby. They’d put Manny through the paces too many times to count.

Her brow furrowed. “How … how dangerous is it … for you and your team?” She stumbled through her words.

He looked down, meeting her eyes that swam with apprehension. “I won’t lie and say it’s not dangerous.” He placed his hands on her shoulders. “But that is why we train. We work hard, so we are prepared for whatever we face. And my Nighthawks are some of the best. Some are former special forces members who have more advanced training than me. I’d trust any one of them with my life.”

Her expression relaxed as some of her unease quieted. “Thank you for showing me all this. And for helping me understand your life. I’ll still worry about you but not nearly as much now.” She smiled up at him, causing his heart to skip as he smiled back.

Noting it was close to dinner time, Graham slid his hands down her arms and entwined his fingers with hers, pulling gently. “Let’s go see what Chef Layla has come up with for dinner.”

She moved to follow him and tripped over the edge of one of the floor mats falling into him. He caught her, wrapping both arms around her pulling her closer to his body. She flushed that beautiful pink color.

She was gorgeous and like a breath of fresh air in this gym full of the stench of man sweat. The lavender aroma that had been torturing him all afternoon filled his senses. Unable to resist, he leaned in, burying his face in her neck just below her ear. Inhaling deeply, he groaned.

Drawing his lips up her neck to her ear, he whispered, “You smell so good.” He nipped her earlobe gently before pulling back to meet her gaze. Awareness flared just before he lowered his head to take her lips. He hesitated millimeters from her lips before she closed the distance meeting him in a scorching kiss.

Her arms snaked around his waist to rest on his back as she moaned. A sound he inhaled deep inside. He tightened his arms around her pulling her closer, her breasts pressed against his chest. Her hands clenched against his back, her nails digging into his back, but he felt no pain, only pleasure as he explored the wonders of her mouth. His hands moved of their own volition, discovering the contours of her body until they came to a rest on her ass. He squeezed the perfect globes before pulling her even closer.

Natalie gasped as he pressed his erection against her stomach. Graham thrust his tongue deeper into her mouth. Tasting and delving into every crevice. He couldn’t get enough of drinking her in, and she met his ferocity with a fervor of her own. Her desire for him was more of a turn-on than his own desire for her.

Knowing he needed to put a stop to this before he lay her down on the mats to have his way with her, he slowed the kiss down. Giving her lips one last nip, he raised his head. Her eyes drifted opened and the haze of desire slowly lifted. She placed her fingers against her lips as if stunned by what had just happened. Then her lips tilted in a dreamy smile.

Feeling more proud of himself than he should for putting that wistful expression on her face, he squeezed her in a tight hug. Graham rested his cheek against Natalie’s temple, enjoying the lavender fragrance of her hair until the annoying trill of his cell phone drew his attention away from her.

“Whitaker,” he answered after swiping to receive the call. Pausing to listen to the caller, he replied, “On our way.” Putting his cell back in his pocket, he kissed Natalie on her head and told her dinner was ready and waiting for them.

Again, Graham took her hand, and together they walked slowly back to the dining hall; neither of them anxious to end their time alone.

Chapter 8

Fridaydawneddullanddreary but did nothing to dampen Natalie’s disposition. She should question why she was in such a good mood, but she refused to delve that deeply. She was coming to appreciate the feeling of anticipation and the excited flutter her belly gave every time she thought about seeing Graham again.

It hadn’t been two weeks since they’d reunited. She needed to calm down. Today she needed to be a professional, not some lovesick schoolgirl. As she walked into the school building, the anticipation of being near him again had her grinning from ear to ear, especially with the goodnight kiss they’d shared at her car after her tour of Nighthawk flashing through her mind.

Dinner in the dining hall had been entertaining as the Nighthawks took advantage of the fact that she was there to tease their boss unmercifully. Each of them shared stories of their boss that ranged from funny to poignant. It was the latter that nearly had her in tears a few times as she came to understand how much of a hero Graham truly was. He and his Nighthawks were heroes and deserved every accolade.

But it was those kisses that refused to let her mind focus on her work. First, the scorching kiss in the gym, followed by one at her car as she prepared to head home. She had been so ready to offer to stay with him that night, even knowing it was too soon, his kisses had that effect on her. Her lips still burned with the memory of the passion.

“You look like the cat that ate the canary,” her principal, Letty Scott, said, having caught Natalie mid grin. Letty was the youngish grandmotherly type everyone wished they had. No one knew her true age; some thought her to be in her late fifties. Others placed her closer to retirement age, even as she stubbornly refused to ever leave her post. When asked why she hadn’t retired, her answer was always the same, ‘I’m not done yet.’ She treated all her teachers as if they were her kids, with love and respect while also being the battle-axe leader they all looked up to. Letty dressed like Mr. Rogers, with sneakers and a cardigan around her plump body. Somehow the look was endearing. “How can you be in such a good mood when it’s only October, and we are already expecting our first snow of the season,” she lamented. Natalie had forgotten that a few inches of snow were expected.

“Maybe I like snow.”

“I like snow too, but not this early!” Letty complained as she headed into her office, sneakers squeaking on the tiled floor. Natalie laughed, heading down the hall to her own classroom. Snow and Graham. Now there were two things that pleased her enormously.

Natalie turned the corner into the hall where her classroom was located, and there he was, leaning against the wall by her door, a large duffel bag at his feet. Cue the tell-tale flutter that always affected her when he was near. Handsome as always in a pair of tight-fitting jeans that hugged everything! The baby blue sweater he wore with the Nighthawk logo on the left did nothing to hide the muscles across his chest and arms and accentuated those ice-blue eyes that were fixed on Natalie as she walked closer to him.

He smiled at her as she approached. “Morning, Chickadee.”

She smiled back. She couldn’tnotsmile when he looked at her like that and called her by that sweet nickname; her heart raced. “Morning. You’re here early.”

She fidgeted awkwardly with her teacher ID lanyard, suddenly apprehensive. She was dressed nicely enough in her black slacks and green silk blouse, an outfit she had spent far too much time picking out. Usually, she didn’t care what she wore, but somehow when it came to Graham, she did.

“Thought I’d get the lay of the land before we started,” he said with a wink. “Got a few things I want to set up.” He indicated the bag at his feet.

“Let me set my things down, and I’ll take you to the café-audi-nasium.”

“The what?”

She laughed. “That’s what we call the gym that is also the cafeteria and the auditorium. It’s a multipurpose space.” She set her bag down on her chair and her Tervis cup on her desk.

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