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PROLOGUE

How had he known she would be waiting on him, here of all places Rowdy Mackay steered the Harley into its parking spot before lifting his glasses fro the demon sprite as she moved from the wood bench to stand on the sidewalk in front of hi little T-shirts she liked so er shirts He had lost two more on this trip ho his shirts since she was sixteen--when herhis favorite bit of trouble right into his ho fro

He turned and tucked the sunglasses into the side of his Marine-issue duffel bag strapped on the back of the Harley before he bent his leg on the gas tank and watched her silently Dawg and Natches were supposed to be here soon Daas driving Natches over so he could take the Harley back, but they weren’t here yet There was no one to distract hi him crazy

She enty-three and her kisses were soft summer rain They slid over a et all wet and ith her, inviting hiht be a hell of a lot more than she could handle

She stepped from the sidewalk The low rise of her jeans didn’t even co shadow of her navel She made him sweat in the middle of damned winter But it wasn’t winter now, it was suain

And this time, he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he wouldn’t be able to walk away again This was his last year away fro her, without taking her or tasting her kiss, she s he didn’t expect

His chest tightened at that knowledge At the effort it was going to take to walk away froood-bye" She stopped beside the Harley, her dove gray eyes staring back at hiet to see you this time"

No, she hadn’t He had stayed as far away fro the six weeks he was back on the boat he kept at thecurls of her golden brown hair and tugged at the lush waves of silk he drea around his body He had dreahts on the boat Drea her beneath his body, and taking her until neither of the theured into his lust His stubborn body rejected the He could feel the need to pull her to hi the best of hi woman’s hope, her dreams, and all the passion he knew burned inside her

"You shouldn’t have coave in to the i her hair back to touch the soft warmth of it

He really wanted to crush it in his hands, pull her head back, and devour her Damn, he could do it too She would let him He could see it in her eyes

"You didn’t even say good-bye" It wasn’t just hurt in her voice then, there was anger

"If I had to say good-bye, I hed He was a ht be twenty-three, but she had no da into with him

He’d kissed her three years before Pinned her against the trunk of a tree and took her lips like the sweet drug they were He had marked her because he couldn’t help hih to think they could have Kelly And his cousins would one While the Marines took their final year of this tour and he decided what the hell he was going to do about Kelly

"You could have said good-bye," she whispered again

"I could have been shot by s I’d have done to you if I had just a measure of a chance" He tried to s to keep his hands off the soft curves of her ass instead

She washi him crazy for most of her life in one way or the other

"I would have coer over her lips when he wanted to lay his own lips over them Take theht at the lake

"No" He shook his head "You’re here now" He had known she would be Prayed for it

He lifted his finger from her lips as he lowered his head He didn’t kiss her lips, he couldn’t trust hier, his lust It was i on him, a job to finish, and he--

Sweet merciful God have pity on hioner His hands slid over the ripe curves of her ass and he clenched, lifting her into the cradle of his thighs as his hunger overruled all co over hers, and he swore he saw stars as the sweet taste of her exploded against his senses Blood began to pound in his veins as his thighs tightened, his dick thickened, and everything but the taste of Kelly receded beneath the force of his lust

Pure, raw pleasure That hat she was She made him hard, made him primal, made him want to show her all the reasons why he should have never touched her the first time

But she was his His wo but beg for , and God help theht well kill one of the to drive him crazy

Male catcalls and raucous voices had hilanced up to see several service hi lot of the airport ready to tear her clothes fro down, he watched her eyes drift open, saw the passion that clouded her gaze as she stared up at hiet me, Rowdy," she whispered as he set her back froo of her His hands clasped her hips as his forehead settled against hers

"Forget you?" he asked softly "Baby, you’re in every dreah et you?"

And that sucked He couldn’t forget her anyin baby, she had no idea what she was getting into

ONE

One Year Later