“Why are you quitting, then?”
That was a fair question and one he’d asked himself countless times before he’d made up his mind. “If you’d asked me six months ago, I’d have said it’s because my will to live is too strong. I’ve done more missions than I want to think about. I’ve cheated death so many times it isn’t funny. Sooner or later your luck runs out, know what I mean? I had a hunch if I stayed much longer, mine would have. Once you start thinking like that, you’re no good to anyone.”
After a moment she nodded. “That’s what you would have said six months ago. What would you say now?”
He tugged her in closer. “That it’s time for me to find a wife and settle down.”
Before Sarah could answer that unsettling statement, Dan bent down and captured her mouth with his. This time his kiss was all business. They were alone and he’d evidently had enough of holding back. She’d thought his last kiss on the front porch was scorching hot, but it turned out Dan had been pulling his punches. This one had her sagging against him, kissing him back for all she was worth, and when Dan picked her up and carried her the rest of the way upstairs, she didn’t protest. She couldn’t. He had stolen her breath away.
But when he dropped her on his bed, kicked his door closed and climbed on top of her, Sarah came to her senses. She pushed him away. “No. Uh-uh. Not going to happen.”
Barred from her mouth, Dan moved his attentions to her neck, nuzzling and kissing her until she tingled all over. “Dan!”
“Metlin, you’re killing me!” He pulled back but remained straddling her hips. “What?”
“I already told you—I won’t sleep with you. I won’t be another notch on your belt.”
“Honey, no one notches their belts anymore. They just have sex.” He reached for the buttons of her blouse.
She batted his hands away. “I don’t want to have sex.” Her eyes blazed with anger and this time when she tried to rise, Dan let her go. He watched her climb off the bed and set her clothes to rights.
“Why don’t you want to have sex?”
“I told you. I want more. I’m not into flings.”
“And I just told you I want more, too.” He rose to intercept her.
“Right. You met me twenty-four hours ago, and now you’re going to propose?”
He ran his hands through his hair. “No, I’m not that crazy. I want to get to know you.”
“But we should have a fling first, right? Just to make sure we’re compatible. No sense talking about the serious stuff until we know if we work in the sack. Yeah, I’ve heard that before.”
“Sarah, come on.” He was rock hard and ready to go. Sarah’s tousled hair and swollen lips weren’t helping any. “You’ve been with some assholes, but I’m not one of them.”
“Really? Would we be having this conversation if I hadn’t beaten your ass in target practice?”
She had him there. “Maybe not. It’s because you’re my equal—in some categories,” he emphasized, “that I find you this intriguing. You’re the whole package, Metlin. You’re a soldier, so you understand my military background. You’re a terrific soldier, which means you share my desire to be the best. You’re intelligent, which means I won’t be bored when we’re not in bed together. And you’re hellaciously sexy, so I won’t be bored in it, either. So, yeah—I’m interested. Maybe in something more than a fling, but we’ll have to get to know each other to find that out.”
“Fine.” She headed for the door. “We’ll get to know each other, just not in bed.”
“At least there’s nothing competitive about sledding,” Regan said as they bundled up the following morning to hit the local hotspot for sledding fun.
Sarah nodded, but she wasn’t altogether sure that was true, and it didn’t take long after they arrived at the hill for her to be proven right. The entire gang from the Hall had come, along with several additional groups of friends. Sarah hadn’t been sledding since she was a kid and she was surprised that a group of grownups would think of it, but her first trip flying down the hill on a plastic toboggan reminded her just how fun it could be. The wide hill held a multitude of trails, with new ones being added all the time by enthusiastic kids and adults. Mason, Austin, Zane and Dan quickly got to work on building a crazy trail full of bumps and jumps, competing with each other to see who could take the wildest ride. Sarah stuck with Regan and Ella who, both being pregnant, were confined to a couple of gentle trails down the softly sloping side of the hill.
“I wish I had a camera,” Regan said as they stood at the top of the hill and watched Mason go flying off a jump halfway down the hill.
“Why, so you can film the moment he breaks his leg?” Ella said. “I can’t even watch!”