Page 109 of Army
A rumbling groan burst from deep within Army and he collapsed, his head resting on her chest, as both of them gasped for breath and their heartbeats thrummed wildly. Mia tangled her fingers in his hair, squeezing her legs tighter around him.
“Damn, babe,” he grunted.
“Army,” she whispered.
He pushed up and brought his face close to hers. “I love you so fuckin’ much,” he said, then covered her face with soft, gentle kisses before claiming her mouth.
Mia put her hands on each side of his face and pulled him up at bit. “I love you too,” she said softly then kissed him deeply.
They lay on the couch, entwined together until moonlight seeped in from the living room’s window, illuminating their bodies in a soft, shimmering glow. Mia looked toward the window and watched the streetlight in front of her house twinkle on, and she heard Mr. Stevens’ sputtering car drive by.
Army ran his fingertips across her bare skin and she shivered. He nestled her closer to him. “Are you cold, baby?” he asked in a low voice.
“Not really.” Mia didn’t want him to pull away from him. She wanted nothing more than to block out the world and stay in his strong arms—just as they were—forever.
“I can put on the fake fire.”
She looked up and scrunched up her face in feigned disapproval. “The gas flame is real.”
“Admit you hate your lame fireplace that gives shit for heat.”
“Okay …maybeI wish I had the real thing, but I love the easy cleanup with this one.”
Army chuckled. “So are you agreeing with me or not?”
“Kind of, but not a hundred percent.”
He laughed and held her tighter. “Damn I love you, woman.” Army swatted her ass, and Mia giggled.
Pumpkin and Snickers padded over and sat down right in front of the couch and stared at her. She reached out and petted them, then untangled herself away from Army. “The girls want to eat,” she said, pointing at the cats. Mia sat up then groaned as the right side of her face throbbed.
“The fuckin’ bastard,” Army muttered under his breath. “Do you have any pain pills?”
“Yeah, but it’s not that bad. I think I just got up too fast. I’ll take some ibuprofen. I wanted to make you a killer dinner but got sidetracked when Vic paid me that unexpected visit.”
“Don’t worry about it,” he said, a hard edge to his voice.
“I was thinking salad and pizza? Or we could order Mexican, Chinese, or Lebanese food from Chowtime. There’re some restaurants that use their service,” she said pulling her top on over her head.
“Pizza works for me, but if you want something different, then I’m cool with that too.”
“Let me give my sweeties their dinner, then we can decide what we want on our pizza.” She scooped up her skirt and underwear then went into the kitchen.
An hour later, they sat next to each other on the couch and ate a sausage, pepperoni, mushroom, and jalapeño pizza while watching a thriller. Pumpkin snuggled next to Army and Snicker burrowed by Mia. The wavering blue flame in the fireplace made Mia smile, and she craned her neck and kissed Army on the cheek. He looked at her sideways.
“What was that for?” he asked, his eyes twinkling.
“For being such a hunk who knows how to push my buttons.”
“Oh yeah?” He turned toward her and put his hand on the back of her neck, drawing her face close to his.
“Yeah,” she whispered.
The caress of his lips on her mouth sang through her veins, and she threaded her fingers through his hair. Army pulled away and winked at her, then he leaned over and grabbed another slice of pizza.
As Mia nibbled on her slice, she couldn’t remember when she’d ever been happier than she was at that moment. She loved him with a fire that could never be extinguished.He is my heart and my life.
She put her empty plate on the coffee table then rested her head against his shoulder as they watched the movie.
