“I don’t mind, Sebastian. I could use some beach time—sleeping in the sun sounds perfect about now.”

Relief.

“Okay, cool! The surf isn’t great in the Med, but there are a few breaks that look like they might be rideable.”

I undressed quickly down to my skivvies, then jumped onto my bed, laying back with my arms behind my head, smiling across at her.

“Are you going to tuck me in?” I asked.

Caro shook her head and laughed. “I think you’re old enough and ugly enough to do that yourself.”

“Ugly?”

“Hideous. I can hardly bear to look at you.”

“You could close your eyes,” I offered.

“I could, Sebastian, but I might get the urge to peek.

Damn, she was turning me on. In fact the way she looked in her sleep shirt was making me hard. Again.

“Well, can I get a goodnight kiss?”

“Sure. I’ll ask Signora Battelli if she’s available.”

Fuck no! The pensione’s owner was at least seventy and must weigh 300 pounds. “I’ve never kissed a woman with a mustache.”

“First time for everything, Sebastian,” she laughed.

“Please, Caro,” I begged. “I’ll be good. Promise.”

“Hmm, I’ve heard your promises before.”

I gave her my best puppy dog eyes. They always used to work on her.

“Okay, one kiss. But that’s all!”

Fuck, yeah!

She stowed her laptop back in its bag and sat on my bed, allowing me to pull her down into a hug. She laid her head on my chest while my hands stroked up and down her back.

“We’re okay, aren’t we, Caro?” I asked quietly, seriously.

“Getting there,” she said softly.

Then she wriggled free and planted a quick kiss on my lips.

“Good night, Marine,” she said as she turned off her bedside light.

“Night, boss.”

I listened to her even breathing telling me that she was asleep. I rolled onto my stomach and pushed my hands under the pillow. It was like a dream for me to be with her again. I’d really fucked things up last night, letting a decade of bitterness and resentment ruin our time together. I saw a future with her, and I hoped that she did, too. I had 11 days of leave left to prove I was worth it.

But she was a successful journalist, and I’d be some unemployed grunt with a few language skills that weren’t going to be of much fucking use back in the US. I wouldn’t be able to get a job as a translator because I was shit at reading Arabic, let alone the Pashto alphabet. I was a good terp, but that wasn’t going to get me far. Maybe I could be a fitness instructor personal trainer—it wouldn’t take much to get those qualifications, and I thought the GI Bill would be good for that. I wondered if…

Suddenly, Caro cried out, scaring the shit out of me as she thrashed around, tangling the sheets around her.

I bolted out of bed, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her gently.

“Caro, wake up!”

She sat up quickly, wide-eyed and trembling.

“Fuck, Caro! Another nightmare?”

She nodded silently, tremors running through her whole body.

“Come here, baby.”

My heart hurt seeing her so scared when she was usually so strong. I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her in tightly so she was resting against my chest.

“What was it about, baby?” I asked quietly.

She shook her head. “Just a nightmare.”

“You can tell me anything, Caro.”

There was no reply, and much as it killed me not to know what was upsetting her, I couldn’t force her either. I held her in my arms, protecting her with my body, hoping that she knew I’d always keep her safe.

After a few minutes, her heart rate returned to normal.

“Scoot over,” I whispered. “I’ll just stay till you go back to sleep.”

She didn’t fight me this time, instead rolling over so there was room for me.

“Thank you,” she murmured.

I slid down next to her, my chest to her back, and pulled her in close. And then we slept.

I woke up to Caro lightly stroking my arms where they were still wrapped around her.

I stretched out slowly, enjoying the feel of her body next to mine. I rubbed my eyes and smiled at her, happy to have her next to me, although I’d rather have had her under me.

“Wow, I’ve got this beautiful woman in my bed. I really like this dream.”

“Actually, Sebastian,” she sniffed, trying to hide her amusement, “you’re in my bed.”

“Oh, yeah. You must be one of those fast women I heard about at boot camp.”

“Hmm, well, I think that lecture was supposed to warn you off them.”

“Oh, I guess I didn’t hear it right. Explains why I didn’t get into Officer Candidate School.”

She looked at me closely.

“Did you try?”

“Nah, not really. Not my thing. I took some college classes for a while, but then…” I knew you weren’t coming back, so I gave up caring. “I was already fucking around. Guess I pissed off the wrong people.”

“You’d make a good officer, Sebastian,” she said seriously. “Maybe you should think about it.”

Did that mean she wanted me to stay in the Marines? I shrugged. “I’m a Warrant Officer—highest ranking for noncoms.” Then I grinned at her sheepishly. “Yeah, you know that stuff. Sorry. I did get asked to join the Navy SEALs, though.”

“Really?” she said, her face lighting up. “That’s great! I mean, that’s a real honor, isn’t it? You’d like that—all that super-macho stuff.”

I smiled at her description and ran a finger along her arm. “I turned them down.”

Her jaw dropped open and she looked amazed. “Why?”

“Caro, there’s no way I’d join the same service that my father is in. Fuck that! Can you imagine if we ended up at the same Base?” My voice started getting louder as the old anger surged through me. “I’d end up killing the bastard.”

“Shh,” she said, resting a finger on my lips. “We’re in Italy; it’s a beautiful day, and we’re going to go and find some waves for you to surf.”

I took a deep breath and calmed the fuck down.

“Okay,” I said, letting my hand drift down her thigh, until I was tugging at the material of her panties. “You know what would make this day even better?” I asked.

“Oh no, Sebastian,” she said, shoving my hand away. “I’m not falling for that. I’m going to take a shower, and you’d better have some damn clothes on by the time I get back.”

She jumped out of bed, then stomped around the room picking out a clean shirt to wear. She was so cute when she was mad.

“Are you sure?” I asked, letting my hand disappear under the sheets as my cock started to throb.

She muttered something under her breath, threw me a look that should have scorched my eyeballs, and slammed the door as she left the room. I lay there, lazily stroking myself, imagining it was her hands on my dick, her fingers working the sensitive head. Desire and need spiked along my shaft almost immediately, and I groaned as a long stream of cum landed on my stomach. It was her fault I was so damn horny.

On deployment, most of us lived like monks. Unless you got lucky with one of the women working in the Motor T—the vehicle shop. I preferred not to hit on female Marines. Apart from anything else, I didn’t shit on my own doorstep. You fucked your CO’s wife, c’mon Seb.

I cleaned off as best I could, then pulled on a pair of jeans, waiting for my turn in the shower.

Caro’s temper didn’t seem to have improved as she stormed back into the room.

“You shouldn’t wander around like that,” she chided, trying not to look at my bare chest. “You’ll give Signora Battelli a coronary.”

She wasn’t fooling me. Looked like my tactics were working. I gave her a grin then headed out for my shower. I planned on having Caro back in my bed tonight.

When I strolled back, she was looking at a blog on surfing in Italy. Even though she was still punishing me by not fucking, she hadn’t stopped caring about me or what I might like to do on vacation. God, I loved this woman.