Radclyffe - Sheltering Dunes

His eyebrows rose, but he didn’t ask anything else. “Sure thing.”

Flynn headed outside and turned toward town, no destination in mind. She needed to walk off the agitation that had her nerves jangling all afternoon. She hadn’t expected Mica to run. She’d misjudged her or underestimated what was really bothering her. Mica had been scared, she knew that, and worried about her job, but something more than that had made her run. But whatever trouble was chasing her wasn’t Flynn’s concern. She wasn’t Mica’s priest. She wasn’t anyone’s priest.

Chapter Five

Reese leaned both arms on the wooden deck railing behind the house and watched the Boston ferry skim into Provincetown Harbor, its running lights casting bright flickering tunnels across the inky surface of the water. A full moon rode high overhead, illuminating the beach with the brightness of daylight. In the swath of bushes that separated the house from the beach, silvery moonlight reflected off the eyes of some creature rummaging in the undergrowth for dinner. Damp night air thick with the sweet scent of kelp and the tang of sea life misted her cheeks. Her T-shirt stuck to her chest with a combination of salty air and sweat. Even though the night was humid, she didn’t mind the dampness on her skin. After the desert, where the hot dry air evaporated every drop of moisture the instant it formed, leaving her eyes gritty and her skin sandpaper-parched, the dewy air was like a balm to burned flesh. She straightened at the sound of footsteps behind her.

“You’ve been awfully quiet tonight,” Tory said, resting her hand in the center of Reese’s back. She circled slowly, massaging the columns of muscles on either side of Reese’s spine.

Reese turned away from the harbor, slid her arm around Tory’s waist, and kissed her forehead. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be.” Tory fiddled with a button on Reese’s cotton shirt. “I’m not used to having you all to myself for a whole day. I’ll get spoiled.”

“Well, maybe we should try this again sometime, when we don’t have to fly to Boston to be together.”

Tory laughed and nipped at Reese’s chin. “That’s a novel suggestion.”

“Do you think the little swimmers are ready yet?”

“Nicely thawed and ready for action.”

Reese’s breath caught in her chest. The thunder in her head was a mere fraction of the panic that had gripped her when she’d first contemplated another pregnancy. Since then she’d had time to think, time to be rational, time to appreciate what Tory needed. She steadied her breathing, quieted her pulse. Nothing should interfere with this moment, especially her fears. “I think we should head upstairs, then. We don’t want to keep them waiting.”

“In a minute.” Tory settled into Reese’s arms, looping her arms around Reese’s hips and resting her chin on Reese’s chest. “First, do you want to tell me what Wendy said this afternoon that’s bothering you?”

Reese stroked Tory’s hair. “What makes you think—”

“Don’t even go there.” Tory swayed, her hips notched comfortably into Reese’s, their bodies fitting together seamlessly, as if they had always been two parts of one whole. “Ordinarily I’d wait, because I know you’ll tell me when you’re ready. But considering what’s on the agenda for tonight, I think I’d better know first.”

Reese sighed and rubbed her cheek on top of Tory’s head. “Just now, I was thinking about the desert.”

Tory stiffened infinitesimally and then relaxed again. “What about it?”

“I’m okay,” Reese said, knowing Tory would immediately worry. She was okay. She’d been okay from the moment she’d climbed out of the transport that had brought her home and stepped into Tory’s arms. Sure, she had nightmares, just like every other vet. She had regrets, guilt, and soul-deep remorse for the decisions she’d made that had led to the deaths of others. But she had been ready for the realities of war—she’d trained all her life for the sacrifice service demanded. She knew the price of war and that everyone—civilians and troops—paid, in one form or another. “Being here with you and Reggie is what gets me through every day.”

Tory kissed her throat. “Me too. And I can’t stand it when you’re hurting.”

“I’m not hurting.” Reese stroked the thick silky tresses and absorbed the quiet strength she counted on every day. “Sometimes I try to imagine what my life would have been like if I’d never met you. If I didn’t have you. If I didn’t have Reggie.”

Tory tightened her hold. “Why?”

“Maybe to figure out how I got so lucky. Maybe just to know what I need to do to be sure I never lose you.”

“Oh, love,” Tory murmured, pressing her mouth to the base of Reese’s throat. “I love you. You never need to worry about me not being here.”

“You know what I see when I think about my life without you?”

Tory trembled. “What?”

“Nothing. Silent cold darkness.”

“Darling, don’t do this to yourself. If my having a baby is going to torture you this way—”

“No.” Reese rubbed her hands up and down Tory’s back. “It’s not about another baby. It’s about all the things I can’t control. All the things that I can’t guard against.”

“You are a wonderful partner, an amazing mother, and a remarkable sheriff. You take care of all of us better than anyone I could ever imagine.” Tory slid a hand between them and unbuttoned Reese’s shirt. She parted the front, tugged Reese’s T-shirt out of her pants, and pushed it up. She kissed Reese’s chest in the valley between her breasts. “I love you. You’re the most amazing, beautiful woman I’ve ever known.”

Reese leaned back and gripped the railing with both hands. The cool night air teased across her nipples and they hardened. Her thighs trembled at the unexpected softness of Tory’s mouth against her skin. “Tor. We’re outside on the deck.”

“It’s dark and I don’t care. You’re mine, and I’ll have you any way I want you, when I want you. And I want you right now.”

Reese laughed. “You’re not even pregnant yet. This is going to be fun.”

Tory looked up, her eyes glittering. “You better believe it.” She licked Reese’s nipple until Reese groaned, toying with the opposite one at the same time.

“Tory.” Reese’s hips jerked, and she felt herself swell inside her jeans. “You know what you’re doing to me, right?”

“Oh, I hope so.”

Tory caressed Reese’s belly and grasped the button on her jeans. “You didn’t answer my question about what was bothering you.”

“I don’t like statistics. They don’t mean anything when you’re dealing with one person. Hearing there’s a ninety percent chance you won’t have the same problem you had the last time doesn’t make me feel any better. Ten percent is way too high, Tor.”

“I know. I agree.” Tory rested her cheek on Reese’s breast. “What else did you hear that’s worrying you?”

“Women who have had preeclampsia are likely to have it a second time.”

“That’s true. But we’re lucky—I work with a superb doctor every day. Nita will be watching me like a hawk over here, and I’ll be seeing Wendy at least twice a month from the fourth month on. I promise.” Tory popped the button on Reese’s waistband and worked her way down to the next one. “And at the first sign of anything going wrong…” Tory dipped her fingers into Reese’s briefs and pushed down, stopping just over her clitoris.

Reese sucked in a hard breath. “You can’t promise—”

“Yes, I can. I know what I’m facing. I promise I won’t let anything happen to me during this pregnancy. I won’t put you through that again.”