A Major Connection Read Free

things. But only if you’ll let me.” He winked. “I live to serve.”
    She liked that he found her attractive and knew to step lightly. “A funny guy, just my type.”
    “Then you’ll love me. I write sitcoms for television.”
    “No kidding?”
    They watched Lobo play while they chatted about his work on the West Coast.
    “I’ve been meaning to come out and visit the folks for a while. Glad I finally did.”
    “Me too.” She meant it. “It’s getting late. I’d better get Lobo in before he swallows half the ocean.”
    “That is one big dog.” Matt shook his head. “You’re braver than I am.”
    “He’s family, what can I say?” She couldn’t help comparing Matt’s response to the fact that Thorn hadn’t seemed to mind dealing with the dog. Ack. Get out of my head, you big Neanderthal.
    Lobo bounded over to them then made sure to shake his coat free of water, drenching them both in the process.
    Matt gritted his teeth. April swore.
    He blinked at her. “I guess you really are a Marine. You sure swear like one.”
    She grinned. “What can I say? Lobo has that effect on me.”
    They parted ways, and she took Lobo home, rinsed and dried him off outside, then settled in for the night. With her luck, she knew she’d dream about a certain obnoxious Marine with arms like cannons.
    But since it was her dream, she decided to add some fantasy to the mix and closed her eyes. Envisioning Thorn in nothing more than a tiny bathing suit, she ordered him to strip down to nothing, then crawl on his hands and knees begging her to forgive him in the best way he knew how. With his head between her spread thighs, his mouth working its own magic while never saying a word.

Chapter Two
     
    Thorn banged on her door the following morning at eight a.m. sharp. He knocked for a while, knowing she most likely wouldn’t be awake. Rumors at work had it that Major Hotness wasn’t a morning person. She had a sweet tooth, an intolerance for fools, and no bend in her whatsoever. Her way or the highway, though she could also admit to being wrong on occasion.
    Thorn could work with all that. Especially when that came packaged in shorts and a tee-shirt showing off a body that made his mouth water.
    Barking then swearing filtered through the cracked-open windows in front. Fool woman should know better than to leave her windows up overnight.
    She yanked open the main door, leaving only the screen door to separate them. Seeing him there, she gaped. “What the hell are you doing here?”
    “I’ve got a problem.”
    “More than a few,” she muttered. “Lobo, shut up!”
    Lobo whined and backed away, then came back shoving against her, his tongue hanging out while he pushed past her to thrust his nose against the screen.
    Thorn held his hand close for Lobo to sniff, which excited the dog into a new frenzy of dancing and wagging.
    April glared at the dog.
    April. He’d been thinking about her like that since she’d admitted to leaving the Corps. And damn if his dreams hadn’t been hot enough to wake him out of sleep with a hard-on the size of Texas. Sure he’d gone without a woman for a few months. The battalion’s op tempo had been crazy the past year. But he’d been celibate for longer stretches of time and not had such vivid fantasies of a woman before.
    “Cut it out,” April snarled when Lobo nudged her knees, almost knocking her over.
    “Whoa. Easy, Major. I come bearing gifts.” Thorn held up a cardboard tray holding two coffees and a bag of pastries. Even he had a tough time resisting the call of the sweet smells coming from the bag.
    She didn’t blink. “What do you want?”
    Hardball then. “Hey, I’m trying to be nice about this.”
    She mumbled something about the word nice he couldn’t quite make out. “What do you want, Gunny?”
    “Restitution.”
    She just stared at him. “Excuse me?”
    “You heard me.” He could wait her out. All damn day if he had to. To his bemusement, he realized that sparring