Page 75 of A Chance for Us
“Reckless,” I finish for him, feeling the stickiness between us.
He looks down, realizing the same thing that I just did. “Fuck! Shit! How the hell could I—”
“It’s okay. I have an IUD, so we don’t have to worry about that, and I’m clean. I get tested religiously.”
“I’m clean too.”
I sigh. “Good, then we have nothing to worry about.”
“Let’s get dressed and . . . see the house.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
Once we’re cleaned up, we grab the bags we left by the door and go deeper into the house. The view from the living room is breathtaking. There are floor-to-ceiling windows that take up the entire back wall of the house, giving an almost uninterrupted view of the ocean.
“This is amazing,” Oliver says, standing beside me.
“I love this house. She had it redone about two years ago so it was more in line with current trends. Even before she did that, this place was special. There’s something so calming about the ocean. It’s probably why I love where I live now.”
“My family owned a beach house in North Carolina my whole life. I didn’t spend a ton of time there. We went once a summer, but I’ve always felt more at home in the mountains.”
Another thing we’re opposites on. I tuck that little fact away for later when I try to remember why I shouldn’t want more.
“I loved the resort, but I can’t imagine not hearing the waves.”
He shrugs. “I can’t imagine not being in the forest. However, this, being here now, is really great.”
I lean my head against his shoulder. “Why is that?”
“Because I’ve been killing myself with the resort. All of us have been going nonstop for months, trying to get things done. Since I’m the only one who isn’t married with kids, I’ve had a heavier load to bear.”
Almost everyone at Cole Security Forces is married with kids. Jackson and Mark have growing families and put a lot of emphasis on how important it is to balance. Natalie works from home a lot of the time when Liam is deployed or when she just needs to be there for her kids. Gretchen and Ben are on rotating shifts so one of them is always home with the kids, and there are no set hours, so everyone just does what works best for their situation. The only thing they ask is that we show up when we’re needed.
It’s great, and I fully support their priorities, but being single—it sucks. I’m always there. I work a lot, and sometimes it feels like the expectation for me to fill the gaps is greater because there is no one relying on me at home. I can be available to the company.
“It’s hard when people think all you have is work, and that, because you’re single, you should always be the one to sacrifice.” I understand that sentiment all too well.
“They never say it is that way.”
“But you still feel it.”
He laughs once. “We’re a pair, huh?”
“Overachievers with a high sense of responsibility?”
“That’s one way to put it.” He wraps his arm around me, pulling me against his side. “How about for the next five days we don’t think about work or family or anything but having a good time?”
I look up into his blue eyes. “Do you think we can?”
“I think I can focus on much better things.”
My stomach flutters at the lusty look in his eyes. “And where would you direct all that attention?”
He shifts me so I’m standing in front of him, looking up at his face. “You.”
“Me?”
“You.”
