Not from him.
Chapter Six
Crew braced a hand on the wall next to the bulletin board, not even seeing the success stories or photos there.
His mind was back in a small kitchen with flowers on the damn cupboards and a woman rubbing her pussy against him through their jeans.
Fuck.He pushed off the wall and spun for the exit, needing fresh air. Needing escape from the desire that had him half erect since he backed away from Fern.
The soft expression in her eyes had almost ripped his control away, made him carry her to her bed and find out how far those freckles dipped between her rounded breasts.
Before he reached the exit, the door opened. Crew’s vision cleared and he settled his gaze on Willow backing inside, her arms piled with boxes.
His manners kicked in. “Let me help you.” He hurried forward, and she tipped the load of boxes into his arms.
“Just the man I was looking for.” She swiped her braid over her shoulder. As she did, the sunlight caught the small diamonds parading around her wedding band.
“Oh?” He hefted the boxes to one arm.
“Theo needs these boxes taken to the training facility. Would you mind?”
He gave her a simple nod. Having a task would help him recenter himself, and after kissing Fern—putting his hands on her—he could use it.
“I’ll take them.”
She smiled. “Thanks, Crew. Take one of the trucks.” She was already reaching for the door handle, in a hurry to get to the next task on her never-ending list. She held the door for him, and he gave her another nod of thanks as he passed through.
After he placed the boxes in the bed of the truck, he got in and settled his hands on the wheel, his mind still fogged from the feel of Fern’s hips in his grasp. His cock stirred behind his fly for the hundredth time since he’d touched her, and he gave it a nudge to alleviate the strain before starting the engine.
When he first came to the Black Heart, he didn’t drive. As he began to heal, the Malones gave him more and more liberty to move around the ranch and even drive to town. He realized how something as basic as driving made him feel normal. Right now, he needed to feel normal.
The road leading to the new military training facility was recently paved, a black line slicing through fields where cattle grazed. As he passed, a calf standing beside its mother nuzzled her underside to feed as the smell of grass drifted through the open window from the pasture. Ranch things. Normal things in his life now.
Beautiful, quirky women with freckles and a passion for gardening and kissing were so far from his comfort zone that they might as well be in another solar system.
Everything about her drew him to her. And when she got so upset over a dirty cup in the sink, he wasn’t prepared for his body going straight into protector mode.
She didn’t share her past with him, but he saw the telltale signs of a woman who’d been in an abusive relationship.
That alone should have stopped him from kissing her, but the minute she wrapped her arms around him, there was no stopping the pull of attraction.
He was so deep in his thoughts that when the training facility popped up in front of him, it was a surprise he reached it so fast. The complex occupied twenty acres of rough terrain with new buildings dotting the stark landscape. Barracks and tactical courses lined the east side. To the north was a row of climbing structures designed to break soldiers down and rebuild them for high-altitude warfare.
The facility looked like any other base Crew had ever been stationed on and gave him a strange, tight sensation in his chest. He rolled up to the main building and parked beside two trucks.
As he climbed out, Theo emerged from the building. He lifted a hand to shade his eyes from the glaring sun even though he wore a Stetson.
Crew jerked a thumb toward the bed of the pickup. “Brought the boxes. Where do you want them?”
“They go in the office. Do you mind lending a hand to unload the trucks?”
The back doors of both box trucks were rolled up, and were packed clear to the top. He shifted his shoulders. “No problem.”
Theo flashed a smile. “Appreciate it, man.”
At that moment, another guy walked out of the building.
Gabe Thorne was usually serious, but the moment he spotted Crew, his face broke into a smile. He stepped forward, offering his hand, and they fell into the familiar handshake shared by most of the men in the therapy program.
