Chapter 14 - Another Day with You
Authors' Notes: Here is another update for your enjoyment! A chapter that is light and fluffy. We hope you are all keeping safe and we'd love to hear your reviews.
Rachel looked up from her desk to see a Tom coming in with blood on his head followed by his two worried-looking children."What happened?" Rachel asked, standing up and going over to meet them.
"The baseball that I hit struck his head," Ashley said, "Sorry Dad."
"It's okay, honey," he said.
Rachel led him to the examination corner.
"Sit down," Rachel said as she slipped on a pair of latex gloves. "Let me have a look at it."
"It was my fault, sis, I distracted him," Sam said beside his sister.
"Children! It was nobody's fault," he said. Then he added. "I'm very proud of you, baby. It was beautiful shot."
Rachel pressed her lips together to suppress the smile that threatened to escape her lips. Only a father would be proud that his daughter hitting him over the head with a ball.
She checked his eyes for signs of concussion. "Pupils are equal and reactive," she said.
Then she probed his head carefully and he winced as her fingers came into contact with the wound.
"He's going to be okay, right?" Ashley asked worriedly.
"I just need to clean and disinfect the wound." Rachel said, leaning a little closer to him. "He'll be fine."
Her scent teased his nostrils. It was the same perfume she had used during their first date. The same smell that remains on his uniform after he has her in his arms. A smell that remains in his memory even when she is not around.
She heard him take a deep breath. It couldn't be the pain, he had been through worse. He inhaled again as if he was… drinking. Then she understood. He likes the smell of her perfume. He let this information slip a few days ago when he was kissing her. And he has been doing this a lot lately.
He seems to have a hard time keeping his hands off her and she enjoys every second that they are together.
She sighed softly.
Focus, Rachel. You can think about it later when he's not bleeding.
"What's wrong?" Tom asked her when he sensed her quietness.
Head wounds bleed. A lot. But something didn't make sense in this story. The wound appears to have been done with something sharp. "Did a ball do this?"
"I hit my head on something sharp when I fell," he explained.
"When the ball hit him." Sam said, "Dad fell to the ground like a sack of potatoes."
Ashley covered her mouth with one hand but it wasn't enough to hide her laughter.
"Reflexes do slow with age," Rachel teased him.
"Hey! I'm not that old. " Tom groused at their coordinated teasing.
She couldn't believe how easy it was being with him. It felt so natural, so right. She was falling in love with him and for the first time in weeks she was not fighting it.
"Ancient," she added.
"Excuse me?"
"Long in the tooth."
"Ouch!" Tom jerked away from her touch and the antiseptic she was using.
"Mature," she said.
"You're walking on thin ice, Doctor," he warned teasingly.
"I think your father doesn't like being called old," she told the kids.
The children were laughing openly now.
She tossed her gloves into the bin and scrubbed her hands at the sink.
"Rachel, guess what?" Sam said. "We are going to visit the Evans' house and you are going with us. Dad said it would be easy to convince you."
"Really?" she asked, looking at Tom with an eyebrow raised.
"That's not exactly what I said, son," Tom chided Sam.
"You said that she thinks I'm cute and she couldn't refuse a request from me."
"I said he can't keep a secret, Dad," Ashley added.
Rachel laughed. "Thomas Chandler, have you no shame?"
"None." He winked at her.
It has been almost four weeks since they had officially started dating. The children were getting more and more comfortable around her. He couldn't be happier.
"I thought you were going to pick up the puppy next week."
Jake had found a dog with a litter of puppies. She recalled that Tom had promised his children a dog and asked if he wanted to adopt one of the puppies.
"Dad is going on a mission," Ashley clarified.
The girl was trying to look brave but anyone could see the fear in her eyes. Rachel looked at Tom, her eyes questioning.
"I'll be gone for four or five days," he said. "There's nothing to worry about, I just need to check the information."
The children had reacted to his departure with concern. Ashley had had a nightmare and Sam had made him promise that he would never leave, too.
"So…" Rachel said, trying to keep her tone relaxed, as though she weren't at all concerned too. "Have you chosen a name for the puppy?"
"Leia."
"Luke."
They said at the same time.
They didn't just differ about the puppy's name. Sam wanted a male dog and his sister a female dog.
"I made the mistake of introducing them to the original Star Wars trilogy," Tom said. She raised an eyebrow. "The Skywalker family saga. You don't know what I'm talking about, do you?"
"No." Rachel replied.
"Oh, you need to watch, you'll like it, there are spaceships, there's a very scary villain and there are lightsabers,…" Sam said, making noises and movements as if he had a sword
"Princess Leia is a badass," this came from Ashley.
"Language!" Tom chastised his children.
"She's strong, fearless, and she saves the guy and not the other way around."
"A princess who is not a typical damsel in distress," Rachel said. "I like that."
"But Luke is a Jedi," Sam said.
"You like him because he has a sword."
"Lightsaber."
"It's the same thing."
"It's not."
Tom looked at her as if to say, see what I have to put up with?
"OK, kids, we will discuss this later. Wait for me outside," he told them. "I need to talk to Rachel for a few minutes."
"Are you going to kiss each other?" Sam asked innocently.
Tom laughed. Rachel had to laugh, too.
"Go!" Tom said.
"If we ask again, will he let us bring two puppies?" They heard Sam ask his sister before they left and closed the door.
"What do you want to talk about?" Rachel asked.
"I just wanted to thank you," he said, lifting her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles.
"What for?" she asked, her voice unsteady.
He leaned closer, touching his lips against her ear as he whispered, sending a flurry of goosebumps chasing over her skin. "For being kind to my children. For not dying. For giving me a chance. For letting me kiss you…"
"Tom," she purred, squeezing her eyes shut. "We can't do this here."
"Why not?" he asked, gently biting her earlobe.
She tried not to react to his touch but her body apparently hadn't received the memo from her brain and was successfully ignoring her efforts.
"Should I remind you what happened the last time?" she said breathily.
Mason had interrupted them. It had been embarrassing because she was practically on Tom's lap. The boy was as red as his hair. He stammered, "Sorry, sir. Ma'am." She had never seen anyone disappear so quickly in her life.
"Don't worry, honey," he whispered into her ear, "no one will interrupt us again."
She rested both hands on Tom's chest. "We agreed. No physical contact, no hugs, no kisses at work."
"I would like to review the terms of our agreement," he said as he kissed the sensitive junction between her neck and shoulder.
He was rewarded with a gasp as her hands gripped his coat as if she needed it to anchor her.
She felt his smile against her skin.
"You don't make it easy," she said, pushing him a few inches to hold his head in her hands and kiss him passionately as she felt his hands roaming over her body.
"Dad, I'm hungry," Sam shouted from outside the door.
He let out a frustrated groan.
A breathless laugh escaped her.
"Dad! May I come in?"
"See you in about an hour," he said, walking towards the door.
"I'll be waiting," she said.
He already has his hand on the doorknob when she called his name.
"Tom!"
He turns around and looks back at her
"That was not a surrender. Our agreement will be maintained."
A wolfish smile spread across Tom's face. "We'll see."
Challenging him was a dangerous game. But she had to admit to herself that she liked the result.
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"No," he said, in what seemed like the tenth time in five minutes.
There were five puppies in the barn; he had to agree that they were adorable. But dogs grow up, they need care, attention and discipline.
"But Dad, they are so cute," Ashley said, taking one of the puppies, "Look at those little eyes, they are begging to come with us."
Sam was sitting on the floor with a puppy on his lap while others tried to climb on him. "Please, Dad."
Shit! One of them had just peed his shoe.
"This one is demarcating its territory," Rachel took the puppy, held it up against her bosom and stroked it gently. After a few minutes, she put it back on the ground.
"Which one do you like most?" Elena asked, trying to help the children.
"All of them," the siblings responded in unison.
"You can only take one puppy," Tom said, " We have talked about this and this is not negotiable, you two."
"You can visit when you want," Jake said, "We will maintain two puppies and their mother."
"Can we, Dad?"
"Of course."
"How about this one?" Sam asked, holding one of the puppies that had a warm caramel color
Ashley held the puppy up to her face, squealing as it licked her nose. "Hello, Sky," she said softly.
He barked at her, wagging his tail.
"I like him."
Tom breathed a sigh of relief.
After that, the children had fun riding horses, bathing in the river, playing with Duke. When they grew tired, they had a snack and were now taking a nap at the Evans' house. This gave him and Rachel a time alone. They decided to take a walk along the woods near the house.
He sat on the ground with his back against a tree trunk. He looked around at the landscape, calm and practically untouched by the chaos caused by the pandemic. Unfortunately, not everyone was safe.
"You are frowning again." Rachel said. "Worried about your mission?"
"I received a radio message from a community that has been isolated for months," he said, "They want to talk to me in person."
She knows that look. He's worried about something.
"Why you?"
"The person knows me."
They have reason to be cautious. Two weeks ago, the Immunes had tried to sabotage a shipment of vaccines. The aim was to tamper with the vials so that the vaccine would become useless.
"Do you trust that person?"
"Yes, I trust her."
"Her?" she turned toward him fully and the hand on his chest stilled.
"Veronica Gillard."
"Wait!" Rachel exclaimed, "Your Veronica?"
He laughed. "She is not mine. But yes, we are talking about the same person."
"If you know her what worries you?"
"In a mission, there are always variables out of our control," he said, pulling her gently to his chest. "I'll be fine, Rachel, I promise." He kissed the top of her head.
She closed her eyes and concentrated on the sound of his heartbeat, a steady, powerful, and comforting thump.
Slowly, she had told him. The problem is that after a few days, she had forgotten her own advice. Not only had she wet her feet in the ocean so to speak, she had dived headfirst.
Suddenly, an image floated before Rachel's eyes, a woman lying in her coffin, a rosary entwined through her fingers, her expression placid and calm as an angel. She blinked and the vision was gone, leaving in her wake a feeling of longing.
Unconsciously, she tightened her arms around his waist as if she could keep him safe.
"Hey, look at me," he said, waiting until Rachel reluctantly met his eyes. "Nothing bad is ever going to happen to me!"
She did not answer. Instead, she caressed his face, her fingers moving along his jaw.
She examined his face so intently that he felt exposed, not in a bad or uncomfortable way, but he wondered what she was seeing.
"What are you seeing?" He asks curiously.
"I see you," she said quietly.
"And?" he asked.
How could she explain it to him? How could she tell him that she had just remembered her mother? In a coffin. How could she tell him that she feared losing him? He was already tense with this mission; she does not want to be another burden on his shoulders.
"What does the military regulation say about a beard?"
This woman always managed to surprise him because it certainly was not the question he expected. "What? Any particular reason for your strange question?"
"Simple scientific curiosity."
"What does science have to do with it?"
"I have a hypothesis and to reach a conclusion I need to do some experiments," she said, her fingers still caressing his face. "And you didn't answer my question."
"Well, satisfying your curiosity. The manual says: The face shall be clean shaven unless a shaving waiver is authorized by the Commanding Officer."
"Good to know."
"What kind of experiment?" he insisted.
"Come back without any scratch," she ordered. "Then I'll tell you."
He cupped her face in his hands. His eyes held hers, the promise of all tomorrows shining in the blue depths and everything inside her calms down all at once.
"I'll come back for you, honey," he whispered, brushing his mouth against hers. "Always. Do you understand me?"
"Yes," she said shakily.
Then his lips covered hers. She shivered when his hands slipped under her blouse to touch her bare skin. His fingers barely brushed against her breasts. Then he slid the hands down her back, his fingers following the curve of her spine. As he caressed her skin, her hands unbuttoned his coat. Once his coat was completely unbuttoned, she moved her hands under his shirt and caressed his skin, exploring the strong muscles.
Unnoticed by the two lovers, a person approached slowly, the footsteps muffled by the grassy path.
"I told Jake that it was not a good idea to let the kids look for you two," an amused voice sounded above them.
"Oh God!" Rachel groaned, instinctively hiding her face in Tom's shoulder before trying to get up.
He uttered a muffled expletive.
"No," he said, holding her. She could feel his erection against her belly. She moaned again and hid her flushed face in the collar of his shirt.
"We're going," Tom said, but none of them moved to get up from their position.
"Maybe you should cool down first," Elena said.
They could hear her laughing as she walked away.
"We have to stop doing this," Rachel said.
"Not a chance in hell," he said into her hair. He loves the way she purrs when he touches her, it's so sexy. "I like to do this with you."
"Idiot!" She said, leaning on his chest to get up.
He also got up, trying to clean himself off from the lawn grass that stuck to his clothes. She also removed the dirt from the clothes and leaves that had stuck to her pants. Some of the buttons on her blouse had opened revealing her bra. Shit! She said, cursing under her breath.
"Black lace," Tom said while eyeing her revealed chest, a satisfied smile on his lips.
"Tom..." She warned.
His smile widens.
Alive. Whole. Healthy. Suddenly an image replaces that one. An image of him bleeding.
"Rachel!" He called her name out loud.
She blinks as if coming out of a trance. An omen or a memory, she wonders.
"What happened?" he asked.
She tries to smile at him. "It's nothing!"
"Don't lie to me, please," he said, holding her arms.
She took a deep breath. "You were bleeding."
"It may have been when you operated on me."
"It's possible. My memories are confusing, scrambled; it's a little scary without context," she admits.
She tries to close the buttons on her blouse, but her trembling fingers don't cooperate.
"Let me help you with those," he said, reaching out and gently closing the buttons on her blouse.
"Tom, I wanted to," Rachel began.
I think I'm in love with you. But, I'm not ready yet.
Rachel swallowed so hard he could hear it.
"Tell me when I get back," his voice is low, soft and he looks at her with such intensity that she thinks he knows what she wants to say to him.
She took Tom's face in her hands and kissed him, hard and deep.
"When you come back," she said.
"Yes, and you need to rethink our agreement. I don't know if I can last five days without seeing you, much less touching you..I'm going to miss you so bad…" Tom murmured to her ear as he hugged her to his side as they started their walk back to the house.
"Tom! Get your mind off the gutter...just come back to safely first…" she stopped and told him in all seriousness.
Tom seeing her serious and worried demeanor hugged her tight and kissed her before murmuring, "Nothing can keep me away from you, honey."
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