Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 73515 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 368(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73515 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 368(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
“Exactly.” I grabbed my glass and followed him into the kitchen, laughing softly when he started rinsing the plates he was carrying and opened the dishwasher.
He glanced over at me and asked, “What?”
“I kind of assumed that not arguing meant you were going to go along with the rule.” I bumped my shoulder against his arm. “But you’re still cleaning up so I must’ve been wrong.”
He grinned as he stacked the plates in the bottom rack of the dishwasher. “Old habits die hard, I guess.”
I handed him a glass after rinsing it in the sink and smiled. “Lucky for you, I’m really enjoying the two of us doing everyday stuff together like washing the dishes. So I won’t give you too much crap for bending the cleanup rule.”
After everything was in the dishwasher and we washed our hands, Huntley caged me in with my back against the sink. With his hands gripping the edge of the counter, he lowered his head to capture my mouth in a deep kiss. I twined my arms around his neck as our tongues tangled. Breathless and more than a little turned on, I whimpered in protest when his phone chirped and he pulled away. “Sorry, gingersnap. That’s the tone I have set for the rear admiral, so I can’t ignore it.”
I was disappointed for our kiss to end, but I understood his job meant he couldn’t ignore his phone. He’d made a commitment to the Navy, which I respected. Gesturing toward the phone, I said, “No apology needed. Take the call. I should probably check my phone anyway.”
“Thanks.” He brushed his lips against mine again before striding over to the table to grab his phone.
I listened to the deep tone as I padded upstairs to the bedroom. I hadn’t noticed last night, but my purse and jacket had been in the back seat of Huntley’s SUV. Cash, Deacon, and Stirling had been released by the cops much more quickly than we’d been. While we’d been stuck at the police station last night, the guys were busy smoothing things over for us. They got one of their friends to pick them up, headed over to the warehouse to grab Huntley’s SUV, and then went back to the bank to grab my stuff. I hadn’t even thought to question how his vehicle had gotten there until they texted him this morning.
I was dreading the conversation I needed to have with my parents about what had happened yesterday, but I couldn’t avoid talking to them forever. I didn’t worry too much about them hearing about the robbery and me being taken hostage on the news since I doubted my ordeal would make national headlines with all the crap going on in the world. But ever since they moved to Florida, we talked at least a couple of times a week.
After flopping down on Huntley’s mattress, I glanced down at my screen and heaved a deep sigh of relief when there weren’t any missed calls from them. Talking to my parents the morning after losing my virginity—and quite thoroughly at that—while wearing nothing but Huntley’s shirt seemed as though it would be even more awkward than having to tell them I could’ve died yesterday. I needed to go back to my apartment at some point today, so I decided to wait to call them until then.
I was scrolling through my social media a few minutes later when Huntley came into the room. As soon as I spotted his frown, I had a feeling I wasn’t going to like what he had to say. “What’s wrong?”
He scrubbed his palms down his face and sighed. “When you’re in the Navy, sometimes shit goes down and plans fly out the window. That’s why we always have contingency plans.”
“I’m assuming your call was about one of those backup plans?” I asked, patting the mattress as I braced myself for his answer.
“You could definitely put it that way.” He sat down next to me and laced his fingers through mine. “Even though we’ve only been back Stateside for a little less than seventy-two hours, they need my team to stand in for another on an upcoming mission.” His expression became a little wary as he finished with, “I have to head to the base. I can’t tell you when we’re leaving or how long I’ll be gone.”
I hated the thought of having so little time with Huntley after everything that had gone down over the past day, but the last thing I wanted to do was say anything that would make him worry about me while he was gone. His focus needed to be on what was important—making it back home alive. And he needed to know that I could handle this life. “Don’t worry about me, babe. You do what you need to do, and I’ll order a rideshare back to my apartment. The most important thing is that you keep yourself safe and come back to me.”