Page 118 of Peace Under Fire

The only cloud on her horizon was her sisters and their continued captivity. But even that cloud had shrunk. They’d met the wizened head of Shadow Mountain the night before, after they’d landed. He’d assured her that she was safe here and that she had a home with them for as long as she wanted. He’d also offered to find and possibly rescue her sisters. He hadn’t explained why he was willing to help her, or what he hoped to gain by offering this service.

Heck, maybe she was naïve to trust him. But she did. Everything inside of her whispered that Shadow Mountain might just be her strongest ally yet.

The base reminded her of that old science fiction show, Stargate SG-1. The people of Shadow Mountain had hollowed out a whole mountain and built their headquarters inside. The base had many of the elements from the old television show, too—like conference rooms, a cafeteria, gyms, clinics, research labs, and company quarters. But everything here was super high tech and more colorful. None of those dingy grays and blacks that had inundated the show.

She’d just turned to head back to the bedroom when the door to the apartment swung open and Jacob stepped into the room.

He stopped when he saw her and frowned. “Damn. I was hoping to get back before you got out of bed.” He was carrying two Styrofoam cartons—the carry-out kind—and a box of condoms.

“I can see that.” She raised her eyebrows and stared pointedly at the condoms, all the while fighting a grin. Nope, she wasn’t the only one wanting to further her education.

He laughed, an honest to God laugh from the dark cloud named Jacob. “Smart ass.” He strode over and swatted her butt. “I wasn’t talking about sex.”

Too bad.

“I was going to deliver breakfast in bed.” He lifted one of the cartons. “French Toast, scrambled eggs, and sausage links. With extra syrup. Alaska said it’s your favorite breakfast.”

Her eyes teared up. “You asked Alaska what my favorite breakfast was?”

“Yeah, this morning. I wanted to surprise you with breakfast in bed.” Alarm touched his voice. “What’s wrong? Why are you crying.”

“Because nobody’s served me breakfast in bed before.” Her voice wobbled. She threw her arms around his neck and almost strangled him.

He took the attack well, simply smoothing a hand down her back. She could feel the stiff edges of the condom box skimming her spine.

“I won’t be serving you breakfast in bed, either,” his tone was teasing, “unless you get your cute ass between those sheets.” The smack he landed on her butt turned into a caress.

They dug into their cartons of food while sitting up in bed talking. The whole time Mandy’s attention was locked on the loose condoms sitting on the table next to his side of the bed. He’d taken three out. Was that overkill? She had no idea.

How soon after breakfast could they even start their final lesson? Was sex like swimming, where you had to wait a couple of hours before diving in?

“I know you’ve been worried about Pipe,” Jacob said. “He’s fine. He dropped down in the bunker before the shooting started, stayed there until the woods cleared out. He never sealed the hatch, so he was able to climb back out. He says the cockroaches withdrew once we took off. He waited a while, monitoring the woods, before letting everyone out of the bunkers. By the time Brick and Alaska arrived back, everyone was cleaning up the cabins and lodge.”

Guilt squeezed her again. “Tell Brick I’ll pay for any damages to the Refuge.” She paused before adding, “It will have to wait until after we rescue Brenna, but once we put her talent to work, there will be plenty of money to cover the costs of any repairs.”

“Yeah.” Jacob shook his head. “I already made that offer. He said that’s what insurance is for. Doesn’t look like there was much damage anyway. Pipe unlocked all the cabins, along with the lodge and the barn, so they didn’t have to break down doors or go through windows. The bastards swept in and out without any damage.”

Mandy’s heart leapt up her throat. “The animals—”

“Are fine.” He smiled at her. “They left the animals alone.”

Thank God for that. “What about Mutt, Brick’s dog? Brick didn’t take him to the bunker.”

“Pipe took him into Los Alamos and parked him with Henley when he left the Refuge. She’s the therapist who helps at the lodge. Brick’s already got him back.”

The last of the guilt lifted from Mandy’s shoulders. According to Wolf, none of his men had sustained life-threating injuries, either. Everything had gone so much better than they could have—probably should have—expected.

After they’d finished their breakfast, Jacob took the empty containers and stacked them on his bedside table. Her eyes followed along, only to stop on the condoms.

Jacob cleared his throat. “Sweetheart, I can’t help noticing how preoccupied you are with those condoms. Are you worried about this next step? We don’t have to move on, not until you’re ready.”

She flushed but held his gaze. “My only regret is that I didn’t have my first orgasm with you fully inside of me. I want that. I want you.”

Heat blazed to life in his eyes. “You have no idea how glad I am to hear you say that. I would have held back—for you—but I would have spent most of the day in the shower as a result.”

It took her a moment to catch his meaning. When she did, her face caught fire.

“Here’s the deal, though, babe. The last few days have been hard, like fucking hard, on my self-control. Right now, that puppy’s on a tight leash. But it could break loose at any moment. So, we need to get you as wet and ready as we can, as fast as we can.” He paused, staring at her intensely. “I promise we’ll go slow and sweet next time, but this time—to make sure I don’t hurt you—we need to get you ready to fly.”

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