Sammy and Ilna, love you both for being the best of everything, especially friends.
REAL McRollers and readers, you warm my heart and soul. Thank you all.
Heart's Desire
Cammie moved past him on their way upstairs, padded onto her bed, and settled in contentedly for a nap after a hard-running game of catch. When Steve, however, returned to where he'd left a satiated and very relaxed Catherine, he paused at the threshold for a few seconds to relish the picture she made while supine across the bed with one long, slender leg slightly bent at the knee and a hand resting on her tummy. He hadn't been watching long when she blinked her eyes open, smiled slowly and pushed up to sit against the headboard.
"Mission accomplished?" Her voice, throaty from her nap, made her even more irresistible and he smiled a half smile as his eyes traveled over her body.
She chuckled at Steve's familiar look as he hastily shucked his boardies and said, "it will be. Naked day has officially resumed." As he crawled up next to her.
"I meant is Cammie settled and," she teased as he cradled her head and dove in for a passionate kiss. Her last words were muffled against his mouth. "Hmm, where's … mmm … my cookie, commander?"
Kissing her for another full minute before he pulled back slightly, he opened his hand to reveal two fortune cookies. Their lunch in bed had been takeout Chinese and as he'd removed the remnants on his way downstairs with the dog, Catherine had called out, "bring the cookies up," sleepily.
Now as he offered both cookies they shared a smile, each remembering the one she'd opened years ago. That fortune, Love is friendship set on fire was currently engraved with one part on each of their wedding bands.
Her fingers lingered on his as she chose a cookie, and her mind replayed how he'd smiled when she'd read it out loud in the break room that day. "Nothing's gonna top my favorite fortune," she said as she kissed him softly and pointed to the remaining cookie. "Open yours, too."
"Hmm." He kissed her back, said, "'kay," then added additional kisses to punctuate each word. "Same time?"
"Yeah." Her eyes sparkled merrily when as she broke her cookie, he simply crushed his. With a knowing head shake, Catherine placed the remains of both on her nightstand and turned back.
He'd unfurled his fortune and was waiting for her to do the same. When she did, they read together, "You've achieved your heart's…"
"You've achieved your heart's …"
Each stopped cold, eyes darting between the tiny printed words and the other's expression before Catherine finished with, "Desire." Her familiar head tilt in place as she watched him nod, affirming their fortunes were identical.
"That's…wow," she took his paper and compared the two.
"That's perfect." He leaned in and kissed her again, not stopping until they needed to breathe.
When he dove back to resume the kiss, she stopped him with her fingers over his lips. "Wait, wait, I want to save them." Sliding out of bed with a brilliant smile she crossed the room and added both fortunes to her keepsake box before practically pouncing the last few feet back into his arms. This time when Steve resumed their kiss, she pulled him down and deepened it as her smile dissolved into a soft murmur of his name.
Steve's eyes lingered on her skin as he ran a hand over Catherine's back when she sat up and stretched.
"Are you hungry?" She swiveled and bent to kiss him. "I'm starving. Feel like burgers?"
He grinned. "I remember us going at least a day without surfacing for food, but yeah, I'm hungry."
"That's because we'd need to get dressed and open the door for room service," she laughed. "Or actually go out and get something, but now, even on naked day, we've got access to a 'fridge full of food." Noticing his look, she patted his stomach. "You with me, Commander?"
He'd been marveling at how her laugh was still one of the most beautiful sounds he'd ever heard, and her hair brushing his skin when she bent towards him always felt like silk. "Always with you." He reached up and ran his fingers through her hair with a smile.
"Right back at you." She smiled, noting look in his eyes had changed. "Wanna check in?"
He shook his head. "I'm that transparent, huh?"
"Only to me." She kissed him quickly and slid out of bed. Grabbing a t-shirt for each of them after pulling her hair into ponytail, she tossed him his and pulled on sleep shorts.
He raised his brow.
She laughed again, it was naked day and Steve was nothing if not focused. "I thought we'd Skype with her."
He donned the shirt and grabbed his discarded boardies. "Skyping with our beautiful daughter is clothes worthy. Dial away."
Tossing Cammie the last bite of her burger, Catherine reached for the dessert she'd picked up at the international market the day before.
As the happy dog caught the post-walk, bedtime treat and settled on her bed, Catherine sighed and closed her eyes. "Hmmm, I haven't had Revani in…" she savored the sweet cake made from semolina and soaked in syrup that melted on her tongue.
"Fifteen years," Steve provided and leaned into kiss her. "Istanbul." He licked his lips. "Mmm, orange flower water."
She smiled and offered a bite, which he took. As he watched her slowly chew the cake, a smile crooked the corner of his mouth. He remembered watching her eat it from a street vendor in Turkey with that same expression.
"What?" Catherine asked when he suddenly sat up straighter against the headboard.
A memory had flitted into his mind and he blinked as it took hold. "I just thought of something. A guy in Syria said something and the Revani," He gestured at the cake, "and the fortunes made me remember it."
She swallowed and watched his face, waiting.
"We were meeting with a bunch of locals who had intel in this guy's house." His eyes looked bluer as he squinted, gazing into the past. "He was a Turkish national … Görkem. His name was Görkem. Anyway, we were waiting on the woman with the info and the guy's wife fed us. Everyone was trying to act normal and make small talk with a bunch of Americans in a mix of Syrian, Turkish and English and the wife, Emel, asked if I was married. I have no idea why she singled me out, maybe because she knew I was team leader, but one of my guys made a crack about me just coming off leave with a beautiful girl. And Emel said how lucky for me."
"2009," Catherine said with a nod.
"Right. You and I had been in Marrakech. So Wade told Emel and Görkem I couldn't find a more perfect woman because you'd flown out to meet me between missions." He shook his head at the memory. "Then Freddie jumped in and said 'Catherine's also way too pretty for him and he's incredibly lucky she's been putting up with his sorry ass for years.'" The image of his lost friend, head thrown back as he laughed at his own teasing flashed through his mind and he smiled.
"Anyway, the subject changed because that was when the woman with the intel arrived, but Görkem's grandfather who was there the whole time, gestures me over and whispers, 'Kalbinizin arzusuna sahip olduğunuzda neyi bekliyorsunuz?' You know I'm not fluent, but I got it."
"Ohh, that's quite a question." Catherine placed a hand on his cheek - she knew enough of the language to get by as well. The older gentleman had asked, 'What do you long for when you have your heart's desire?'
Steve nodded. "I thought about it later that night after the mission. I decided it was still you. Us, really. I wanted unlimited time with you."
He shrugged and as usual, Catherine knew what he didn't have to say out loud; even though they were happy with whatever time they had back then, he'd been almost afraid to hope for too much, lest that happiness be yanked away. She placed her hand in his and he continued.
"We never had enough time together then, so I figured that's what I still…longed for, even if I wouldn't have thought of it in those words." He lifted their hands and kissed her knuckles. "I just wanted you. You've always been all I needed. And now …" He made a small sweeping gesture and kissed her lips.
"You've got me." She had her hand on his cheek and ran a thumb over his bottom lip. "You wanna know what I long for since I have my heart's desire right here?" She tapped his chest and leaned in to press her forehead against his. "Forever with you."
"Forever." He knew her answer would be the same as his.
She nodded as he cupped her face and kissed her. "And ever."
# End thanks for reading
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