CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Slate lay awake Saturday morning, simply watching Ashlyn sleep. Yesterday had been a tough day. He’d gone to the base and watched the body cam footage of what had happened a little over a week ago in Afghanistan. He’d definitely fucked up by trying to save the boy, but ironically, his actions had likely saved his life.
If he’d followed his team down the stairs, he likely wouldn’t have made it out of the house before the RPG hit. And he would’ve been closer to the side of the house that collapsed first, buried under far more rubble. As it was, being on the top floor, on the opposite side of the point of contact, had allowed him to escape the worst of the explosion.
It hadn’t been easy to watch his teammates frantically digging through the rubble, trying to find him, or to see them carrying his unconscious body through the hostile streets of the city as they retreated.
Slate had always known Mustang, Midas, Aleck, Pid, and Jag had his back, but seeing it firsthand, hearing the stress in their voices, and their absolute confidence in getting him back to the base safe and sound, made an already tight bond even tighter.
He had a different take on missions now. Yes, the bad guys still needed to be taken out, innocent civilians still needed to be rescued, captured comrades in arms needed to be liberated…but now, for the first time in his career, Slate was a little less willing to die in order to do any of those things. He’d still give his all to every mission, he still loved his country, but he now loved something, someone, even more.
Ashlyn lay curled against him, her breathing slow and deep. The love he felt for the woman seemed all consuming. How he hadn’t admitted it earlier, Slate had no idea. It was ridiculous that he hadn’t recognized his feelings for what they were, especially since he’d never felt like this before.
It had taken him getting hurt, and his jealousy, to finally make them both open their eyes and see what was right in front of them. Having Ashlyn come through the door last evening had been exactly what he’d needed to put the stress of the day behind him. He wanted them to come home to each other every single day.
He hadn’t been thrilled that James had given her twenty thousand bucks to take care of for him, but he was relieved the old man didn’t have that much cash in his house anymore. Today, despite James’s opinion on banks, he and Ashlyn would deposit the money into an account for safekeeping. He’d talked her into opening a separate account for James’s money, so there wouldn’t be any conflict of interest or questions about it.
Afterward, they had no plans other than to enjoy each other’s company. Slate was feeling surprisingly good after the slight swelling in his brain had subsided, and he’d be going back to work next week. But before that, he and Ashlyn had two full days to themselves.
It was hard to remember the time when he and Ash had done nothing but snipe at each other. But Slate thought of those days fondly. She stood up for herself, stood up to him, and stood up for what she believed in, and he loved that about her…just as much as it drove him crazy.
She’d give away the clothes on her back if it meant helping someone else. She’d keep an old man’s life savings safe if it made him feel more comfortable. She would always bend over backward to help others…which meant Slate had to make sure he always had her back. That helping someone else didn’t mean she put herself in a vulnerable position. Slate was more than willing to let her do her thing, but he’d pull her back when the situation warranted it.
He felt guilty for the flash of relief that went through him at the knowledge she didn’t have any vindicative ex-boyfriends. She wasn’t wanted by the mob. They didn’t have to worry about anyone wanting to hurt her because of something she’d done in the past. Slate didn’t think she had an enemy in the world, which was a relief. He couldn’t bear to think about her being in any of the situations her friends had been through.
Their life together would be as boring as he could make it, and they’d both be perfectly happy.
Ashlyn stirred against him, and Slate smiled as she slowly came awake. Her eyes opened a crack, and she looked from him, to the clock on the table behind him, then back to him. “It’s early. You sleep okay?”
“It’s not that early, and yeah, slept like a rock with you in my arms.”
She smiled sleepily. “Me too.”
Slate couldn’t help but snort. She slept like a rock every night. She was one of those lucky people who fell asleep fast and stayed that way. He loved that for her.
“Okay, I sleep like a rock every night,” she said, correctly reading his snort. “But I slept even better because you’re with me.”
Slate ran a finger over her nose and kissed her gently.
“Do we have plans today?”
“Other than going to the bank, no,” Slate said.
“And they don’t open until like, ten on a Saturday, right?” she asked.
“I think that’s right.”
One of her hands flattened on his belly and slowly inched downward. “So we have time to be lazy this morning.”
“Lazy?” he asked with a smile. “Oh no, no laziness for you. I did all the work last night.”
Her hand stilled and she frowned up at him. “No, you didn’t. I distinctly remember being on top and being in charge.”
Slate burst out laughing. “I think your memory is faulty, babe,” Slate told her. “You started out being in charge, but after that first orgasm, you couldn’t do anything but lie there, lost in a pleasure stupor, and I had to take over. You might’ve been on top, but it was me lifting your body up and down on my cock as I fucked you.”
Instead of getting mad, Ashlyn merely grinned. “Yeah, okay, you might have a point,” she said as her hand slipped into his boxers and she began stroking his morning woody into a full-fledged erection. “So this morning, you can be lazy and I’ll for sure do all the work.” She shifted, getting up on her knees and scooting down until she was between his legs. She pulled his boxers off, then bent above his very awake cock.
She smiled at him as she licked from base to tip.
If this was her idea of him being lazy, he was a damn lucky man. He shoved his hand into her hair as she lowered her head. Groaning, Slate refused to close his eyes as his woman went down on him. He loved her so damn much. He had no idea how he’d gotten so lucky.
Ashlyn smiled at Slate a couple hours later. Being lazy with Slate was awesome. She had a feeling she’d burned more calories in an hour that morning than she would the rest of the entire day. It wasn’t often Slate could stay in bed with nowhere to be, so they’d milked it for all it was worth. Next week, he’d be up at the ass-crack of dawn, working out with his team once more, so Ashlyn had to enjoy every second of their lovemaking and cuddling.
They’d just enjoyed a late breakfast, and were washing dishes together before heading out to the bank when Slate’s phone rang.
He frowned, dried his hands, and went to the counter to pick it up.
“Slate here,” he answered. “Yes, Sir. No, it’s okay, I can talk. Give me a second though? Thanks.”
He put the phone against his chest and turned to her. “It’s Commander Huttner. He has some questions about my statement of what happened last week.”