Uniform Desires (Make Mine Military Romance) Read Free Page A

few opportunities for it. Once—just this once—he would take the chance.
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    Shannon looked at herself in the mirror and drew in a deep breath. She looked good. No, correct that. She looked damned hot. The dress Cynthia had picked out for her had been fantastic. Red was definitely her color, and the design suited her fuller figure. Best of all, it was a dress she could wear again. And she would. Either to remind her of a great night, or remind her not to have stupid yearnings that would never come true.
    She groaned and grabbed a bottle of water. After taking a swig, she hoped that it helped cool off her raging libido. If history served, nothing would help. Not even her battery-operated boyfriend could relieve the fire that man started in her. She closed her eyes and tried to calm her heart. Just thinking about Kade had her body humming with anticipation. She was already driving herself crazy, and she had only been in her room twenty minutes. It took all of her control not to pace the room. It would be stupid to worry herself over the invitation she’d given Kade. Seriously, she didn’t expect him to show. Hoped, but didn’t really think it would happen.
    Oh, there was no doubt he wanted her. A man didn’t get that hard by just dancing unless he wanted a woman or had just had a handful of the blue pills. Shannon was pretty damned sure that Francis McKade didn’t need them.
    She stepped out onto her balcony and looked out over the water. The scent of salt filled her senses. She loved it in Hawaii. She would never be able to leave New Orleans, but she definitely liked it in Chris’s adopted home. While her hometown was always abuzz with activity, something she loved, she did like the slower pace of the islands. She liked to come here and gaze out over the water and just…breathe.
    But even that didn’t work. Being in the same hotel as Kade, she couldn’t think of anything else other than seeing him in her room, preferably naked. She needed something to occupy her time. If she didn’t, she would definitely tear into the bag of chocolate macadamia nuts. Her ass didn’t need that.
    She watched the surf as it rolled in, and she could see why her brother and sister had been drawn to Hawaii. This was a soothing place. Oahu could be a jungle, that was for sure, but there was something so...relaxed. She could never live here. It would take an act of war to get her out of New Orleans. She had rebuilt her bar after Katrina, and she wasn’t leaving any time soon. But she needed to find time to return to Hawaii. She had a niece or nephew about to make an appearance, and she was sure Jocelyn and Kai would have children soon.
    A little ping hit her heart harder than it ever had before. Thinking of her sister, her confidant, having a baby brought about yearnings she never thought she would have, not now. She thought they would come after marriage, but it was probably because the first Dupree grandchild would be arriving in five months.
    Shannon shook herself free of her funk. This wasn’t like her. She had men. Not a constant stream of them, and she did have the problem of her career. Her business took up a fair amount of her time, so it had been a long dry spell between men. But for some reason, she hadn’t felt the need to scratch the itch. Not until she saw her brother coming down the escalator at the airport with Kade.
    She closed her eyes and shivered. Damn, the man got to her. And if he didn’t take her up on her offer, she would write him off. His loss. She opened her eyes and glanced at the ABC Drugstore bag. She would throw away the condoms she bought and drink whiskey and eat the chocolate.
    There was a knock at the door, pulling her out of thoughts of rebellion by gorging herself. She drew in a deep breath and approached the door. When she looked through the peephole, she sighed. It was an older Asian man. She opened it, and he looked confused.
    The door across the hall opened, and a woman who was