“Fair enough. So, what should we do until the boys come back?” Cora asked putting a smile on her face.
Hannah liked Cora instantly. She was an easygoing girl and knew when not to push someone. Hannah could see them becoming fast friends.
Chapter Nine
Ben and his team had been gone for five days, and Hannahwas starting to worry. How long was he going to be gone for? She had hoped he would call her at least once to let her know he was alive, but she heard nothing. Cora, who had been keeping her busy the past few days, had assured her this was normal, and some missions went longer than others. Cora told her she justneededto be patient and have faith he’d come back. Hannah didn’t know if she could. Hundreds of scenarios ran through her head of what could go wrong. Was he alive? Dead? Injured? What if they got ambushed again? She couldn’t take the stress. How did so many military spouses do it? The worrying and the wondering.
“You get used to it,” Cora told her. “Each of these guys is highly trained to handle all situations that come their way. You must trust him to know what he’s doing and make it back. If you and Ben are going to try and make a thing of yourselves, you can’t freak out every time he goes out. He needs to be able to concentrate on the mission at hand. No worrying about you.”
Hannah knew Cora was right. She had seenBenin action. Even under an ambush, he had kept his poise. He hadn’t seemed concerned when he was going out on this mission. He was more worried about her than the actual mission. He had been in the Army forthirteenyears, so she knew this wasn’t his first mission, and it sadly wouldn’t be his last. Hannah didn’t correct Cora on her and Ben’s dating status. They’d had an incredible night of passion, but that didn’t mean they were together. She had wanted him to stay, not join the army when they were teenagers, and he fled her as fast as his feet allowed him. Seeing him in action, she was glad he didn’t stay. He was born to be in the military, she couldn’t take that away from him. She loved him. Always had and always would, so where did that leave them? She had to go back home and face her parents but what about after? Ben had heartbreaker written all over him. He had no room in his life for a relationship. And she didn’t think she could just sit on the porch waiting to see when or if he would ever come home.
Hannah didn’t know how long it would take Aaron, or Hound to his friends, Cora was teaching her their names to find the snitch. She had every intention of staying until the end.Benpromised to take her to her parents in Portland, but she didn’t know what she would do after that. That was the million-dollar question. She felt safe with Ben, and after several sessions with the base psychologist, she was feeling a little more like her old self. She felt things with Ben she had never felt before and doubted she ever would again. The only downside to being with Ben would be waiting for him to come home, and the fear if he didn’t. She loved him, but was her love strong enough?
“Is that what went wrong in your relationship with Liam?”
Cora’s features pinched, and she turned away. It seemed for once, Hannah asked her something she didn’t want to talk about. “No,” Cora finally said after a moment of silence. “It wasn’t the leaving. That I could handle. I grew up in a military family, so I was used to my parents being gone for months at a time. It was the secrets. Not the missions he went on. But there were times he was supposed to come over and bailed at the last second and wouldn’t explain why. Anytime I would ask he would dodge the conversation. I decided I couldn’t be with someone who lied to me all the time, so I broke up with him.”
“I’m sorry you had to go through that.” Hannah hugged her. Cora hesitated a moment then returned the embrace. It gave her strength to know that if she was willing to stay and make a life with Ben, at least she would have Cora to keep her company. It wouldn’t be easy always worrying about him, but Cora would help her get through it.
Cora shrugged the sympathy off and suggested they go out. Hannah wanted to remain here justin case Bencame home unexpectedly but knew she couldn’t revolve her life around waiting for him. It wasn’t what he would want for her.
She stillneededto call her family to, let them know she was alive. But every time she went to pick up the phone something stopped her. She no longer feared they wouldn’t accept her; no something else stayed her hand. She feared if she let them know she was alive then her little world with Ben and his team was over. She didn’t want to give that up yet. Her parents would never want her to leave their sight again not caring she was almost thirty-two years old. Ben would go back to California and she would be a prisoner in Portland at her parent’s home. They would probably want media to capture the moment. She shuddered at the thought. She hated the thought of being on the cover of magazines or newspapers. She just wanted to return to a quiet life. But could shereallyreturn to a normal life? Every time she went out with Cora, she was always looking over her shoulder. At Ben’s house, she listened for any sound out of the ordinary. The base psychologist told her it was normal, and that it would take time before she felt comfortable again. Hannah didn’t want to be patient and wait to feel normal again. She didn’t want to depend on Cora or Ben for who knew how long. If shewas going to tryand be with Ben, then sheneededto be normal now.
Ben and his team had been gone for eight agonizing days. Cora continued to keep her occupied and during the day it worked. Cora worked from home and could take breaks as often as she liked. At night was the hardest though. It was just her and her thoughts. Wondering where Ben was and if he was okay. She believed he would come back to her, she just didn’t know when. The wait was killing her. She slept in his bed in his t-shirts to feel a little closer to him. His pillow still smelled like him, so she held it close to her face at night imagining he was sleeping beside her.
She was just drifting off to sleep when she felt something was off. The hairs on the back of her neck were standing on end. It felt like someone was watching her. She hadn’t heard a sound though so what could it be? Hannah turned over and saw a figure standing over her. She opened her mouth to scream but the figure covered her mouth with their hand and turned on the bedside light. It was Ben. He was home.
Hannah flopped back on the bed feeling ten years had just been scared out of her. When she recognized Ben, he pulled his hand away. She punched him in the stomach and smiled when he made an oomph sound. “That’s what you get for scaring me.”
Benstood back up and took his uniform off and walked towards the closet to put it in the hamper. “I would have waited until morning to tell you, but someone was sleeping in my bed.”
Hannah blushed at being caught in his bed. What could she say to that? “I missed you, and I felt closer to you sleeping in your bed.”Bencame back out of the closet only in his boxers and what a sight he made. He smiled warmly at her and gave her an all too brief kiss. That’s all she got after not seeing him for just over a week?
“I need a shower,” he told her, sensing her inner pout.
Oh.
“Need help scrubbing your back?” She didn’t know who was more surprised at her offer. Him or her.
“Next time,” he promised. “I’ll be right out.”
Less than five minutes later Ben was clean and wearing only a towel. She couldgetused to this view. He went back into the closet and came back wearing a new pair of boxers. Even from across the room she could smell his body wash. It was spicy, just like him. It was why she had wanted to sleep in his bed. To wrap herself in his scent, to pretend he was there with her. Now, she didn’t have to pretend. He stood in front of her, and what a sight he was. She had seen his naked chest before, but with him further away she saw it in a whole new light. His bronzed skin looked chiseled. He was the embodiment of Greek statues. Hannah wanted to pout but knew boxers were easily removable. He slipped under the covers and pulled her to him. Hannah sighed in pleasure at having him home and in one piece.
“A guy could get used to this.” He said more to himself, but she agreed. She hated the waiting but if this was her reward for her patience, it could be worth it.
“Everything okay?”
Bentensed under her touch for a moment before relaxing it. “It was nowhere near as bad as the last mission but there was a hiccup at the end.”
Now it was Hannah’s turn to tense. “Was anyone hurt?” No one thankfully was last time.
“Cricket,” Ben growled out in anger. “Some little shit clipped him when we were leaving. It's superficial but still, I hate it when one of us gets injured.”
Hannah hugged him close, giving him her strength.
“What have you been doing while I was gone?”Benasked, steering the conversation away from his team and saying something he shouldn’t.
“Shopping, I’ve missed you terribly but your neighbor, Cora, has been a gem and has kept me occupied.”
