Page 36 of The Long Walk Back

‘Good, because I have a son and a messy divorce to pay for. You can pay for breakfast.’

His mouth twitched, and he slowly followed her out of the lift onto the corridor. Once in the room, the door closed behind them, they both stood looking at each other. This was it. All those miles, all those hours, all those moments together… this was it.

20

COOPER

When the door closed, I had to catch my breath a little. I felt panicked, and I didn’t want her to notice. She probably knew anyway, she always seemed to read my moods, good and bad. The truth was, I had been in many hotels before, with women hoping to land a soldier. Attracted to the uniform, the danger, or just looking for someone to rescue them. Some people think that it’s us that are the skirt chasers, and we are, but we have to have skirt to chase in the first place. I never promised anyone anything. In fact, I was always honest to a fault.

Now, in this room with this woman, the woman who broke me down and helped put me back together, I was scared. This would mean something, something much more than just a night in this room. One look at her made me realise that she was thinking too. I never thought I’d bare this body to a woman, but if it was to be for anyone, it had to be her. I was falling, faster each day. Scared to vocalise it and scare her off, but she never ran from me. She met my fire, my pain, till they melded together in one beautiful mess. I trusted her completely, and truth be told, I was ready to fight again. Not for the government, or for the safety of others, but for a life of my own. I wanted to be in her corner; hers and Jamie’s. Putting up a barrier was something we both did, but now it was time to build our own, against the world.

I stepped up from my chair, slowly, and she watched me, not moving. She looked so perfect standing there, the sight robbed me of my breath once more. I steadied myself on my legs and held my hand out to her. She walked to me, and as our hands met, I felt the pull of her deep down in my gut. She reached out to touch my cheek, and I kissed her palm. She locked eyes with me and, not moving them from my face, she moved her hand down to my sweater. I watched her, transfixed, enjoying the feel of her touch on my skin. She lifted the material up, discarding it onto the carpet. She placed both hands on my chest momentarily before stroking them downwards. I sucked in a breath in surprise and her hands stilled. She looked worried, and I kissed it away. I could feel her hands press against my chest, so I stopped the kiss, but she grabbed hold of me and pulled me in deeper. Our mouths opened and I flicked my tongue against her lips. She moaned in response, and I felt a twitch in my trousers. She must have felt it against her body because she pushed against me harder. ‘Cooper, can you…’ She bit her lip, and it hit me. She’d come here, stayed with me without knowing if I could give her everything I wanted to. Everything she needed and deserved. That thought pushed me further into loving the holy hell out of this stunning, complex woman.

‘Let’s find out together, Missy,’ I teased, reaching for her, taking clothes off her body as quickly as I could, till she stood before me in her underwear. She shivered a little, and I took off my shirt, wrapping her in my naked chest.

‘You cold?’ I asked softly. She shook her head.

‘No, just nervous.’

I smiled at her then, grateful that this woman landed in my life. ‘Me too,’ I admitted. ‘We can go back, if you like?’

She shook her head, dropping a kiss onto my lips. ‘No, no more going back. Only forward from now on.’

I kissed her again.

‘I love you,’ I uttered, before I even realised I was going to. She looked at me, surprised, and in the moment before she spoke, I have never felt so exposed, so unprotected. I should have held the words back, waited. I was a patient man in everything but her. I held her tight, willing her not to panic, not to run. I should have known better. My girl was fiercer than that.

‘I love you too, Thomas.’

I didn’t need to know anything else. I kissed her hard, and she kissed me right back. I backed her up to the bed, slowly, carefully and she let me take the lead. Let me find my feet, take my own path, like always. I pushed her down so she sat on the bed, and I took a step back. She went to reach for me, but I held out a hand to stop her. I needed to do this. She had seen me before, at my worst, but I needed her to be aware of just what she was signing up for. Not as a patient, but as the man she might spend forever with. I undid my belt, letting my trousers fall to my feet. Kicking them off one foot, I removed them from my prosthetic and tossed them to one side. Taking a step towards her, I did the same with my boxers, before standing once more before her. She took me in, looking me up and down, pausing at the parts she had seen the least of.

‘You are perfect,’ she said. ‘Come here.’

I shook my head. ‘I need to do this as me, the new me.’

She placed her hands on her lap as a sign of waiting. I didn’t deserve this woman, but I was damn well going to earn her. Make her see that her words and actions, even the ones I had fought against like a foe on the battlefield, were worth it. Accepted. Cherished.

Moving forward, I steadied myself against the bed as I took off my prosthesis, then using the back of the nearby chair, I stood before her once more. She smiled at me, an open smile of admiration, and stood with me.

‘You never have to hide a thing from me,’ she breathed.

‘Back at you, baby.’

This time we came down to the bed together, kissing each other once more. We laid down and I looked down at her as I took her bra off. She shivered again as the chill in the air hit her, and I grinned as I ran my teeth across her collarbone. She sighed a little, breathing my name, and I couldn’t hold back any longer. We kissed passionately, running our hands over each other as we laid tightly against each other. I knew she could feel me against her body, and she pulled away suddenly.

‘Protection?’ she said, pulling a face. Shit. I groaned as I realised I hadn’t come prepared. I hadn’t even thought about it.

‘Sorry,’ I grumbled. ‘I can’t believe this!’

We both laughed then, and she kissed me again.

‘I am good if you are, Captain. I haven’t exactly been doing this a lot lately.’

I nodded with relief. I was clean too, and it meant a lot to me that she assumed that of me. Another reason why I loved her.

‘But what about…’ I started.

She shook her head. ‘I’m still on the pill.’

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