Page 35 of Duke

I TRY TO walk lightly but that’s hard to do for a man of my size. I feel a trickle of sweat roll down my back under my Kevlar vest as I peek around the corner and signal Trev with my right hand. I pull the rifle up and look through the night vision scope, checking for hostiles as we clear house after house on this city block looking for weapons, enemies and her. A female Marine was taken last week and none of us will rest ‘till we find her.

“Clear!” I shout. My men move in behind me as we kick in the door to the next house.

The sound of rapid gunfire rages in the darkness. It came so fast all you could do was raise your own gun back in reaction and pull the trigger.

“I’m hit! Duke, I’m hit.”

Ducking low, trying to avoid enemy fire, I race to him.

Fuck.

Blood spurts from an artery in his leg. I move to tie off the wound and my gloves stain with his blood. The gunfire continues and the building shakes as a bomb detonates nearby.

The blast throws me back.

My ears ring.

Dust blinds me.

He’s gone.

Trev’s gone.

And I’m all alone in the smoky haze of hell where my nostrils burn from the smell of death around me.

“NO!” I scream.

But there’s no one left to hear.

“Duke?”

My Angel. She appears from the rubble and kneels before me. She takes my bloodied gloves off and kisses my hands.

Her fingers smooth over my face, finding tears.

“Shhh… I’m here. I’m here baby,” she whispers.

“Oh god,” I cry and let myself fall into her arms.

She feels safe. I can get lost in her.

I’ve found heaven in the middle of hell.

“Duke.”

She peppers kisses on my face, and I groan, pulling her soft body beneath me.

I can’t speak. My throat is too thick. I needed her, I needed this to replace the broken memories in my mind.

My fingers rip apart her thin shirt and my hands roam over her soft skin, cupping her full breasts. I groan, letting my hips sink into hers, feeling the warmth of her pussy warm my groins.

“Shanna!” I moan, sucking and kissing her neck before pulling back and taking her mouth prisoner.

She opens easily and for the first time—I don’t have to fight my way in. She’s surrendering. Our moans and sighs mingle with each taste, each touch.

I move my hand down to her shorts. My fingers slide through her folds, up and down, up and down and then I circle her clit, pressing down hard before pulling away and burying it inside her.

Her head thrashes on the bed and I move lower. My arms cage her in beneath me and as I pull one huge rosy nipple into my mouth and suckle her like a starving newborn.

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