Hot SEAL, Confirmed Bachelor- Cynthia D'Alba Page 0,40
house felt empty and quiet after she’d gone. Holly wasn’t that much of a talker, but she had a presence that seemed to fill a room.
And no, he wasn’t falling for her. She would just be one in a long line of women who’d left a mark on him.
He parked his motorcycle at the curb of his CO’s house. A quick glance around confirmed that Holly hadn’t arrived yet, or at least he didn’t see her car, but then there were quite a few cars and trucks lining the street. When the CO held his annual Memorial Day party, smart SEALs—and that meant all SEALs under his command—knew to attend.
Instead of ringing the doorbell, Benjamin made his way to the wooden gate in the fence that surrounded the back yard. He’d attended this event every year and knew the activity was always outside. Newbies rang the bell. Old heads like him didn’t bother.
He spied his team and their dates as soon as he entered. It was hard to believe that four of his team had settled down with only one woman. Man, that wasn’t happening to him.
The Viking was there with one of his usual barely-legal-to-drink dates. That boy was trouble looking for a place to happen.
He acknowledged Ringer’s shout with a nod. “Getting a beer. Be right there.”
Ringer, Banger, and Viking all had young, thin, blonde dates, as though they’d called Rent-A-Blonde. Now, those ladies were certainly attractive, and there was nothing wrong with Benjamin’s eyesight and equipment, but he’d bet that talking with those ladies would produce narcolepsy within minutes. They were too young to have much of a life story…and when the hell had he started caring about a woman’s life story?
Get a grip, man. Love ’em and leave ’em before they can leave you. That was his motto, and it’d served him well his entire life.
He grabbed a beer from the cooler and stepped over to his CO to make nice. Plus, it would mark his attendance.
After a few exchanged greetings, and a reminder from his CO that he was still waiting for Benjamin’s decision regarding leaving teams, he made his way across the expansive yard to where his team had collected.
“What happened, C-Note?” Jacob asked. “Couldn’t get a date?”
Benjamin chuckled and lifted his beer to his lips for a draw. “She’ll be here. Probably running a little late.”
“More like she smartened up and ain’t coming,” Cowboy said.
He narrowed his gaze. “So, why don’t you all introduce me to these ladies who obviously have failing eyesight and poor taste in men.”
The ladies laughed.
One by one, each team member introduced his date, or in a couple of cases, fiancées. He tried to remember the names. Casey. Dani. Presley. Those were the ones in for the long ride with a team member. Beth, Suzi, and Ashley were tonight’s dates for Ringer, Banger and Viking. Knowing his guys, he figured he’d never see those three women again.
“Hey, Benjamin. Isn’t that your woman?” Viking said, pointing toward the French doors that led from the patio to the house.
He turned in the direction Viking had pointed. Standing in the open doors was Holly, dressed in a red, white, and blue sundress that was held up by two thin straps across her shoulders. The material fit snuggly across her breasts and flared out from there to end just above her knees. Her long hair hung down her back, and he wanted nothing more than to wrap his hands into her hair while at the same time, stripping that dress off her. Of course, that would take more hands that he had, but he was sure he could find some way to make it happen.
She was worrying her bottom lip with her teeth as her gaze swept the yard. When she saw him and their gazes meet, her face bloomed into a smile that made his heart explode.
“That’s her,” he said to Viking. “Excuse me.”
He strode across the yard toward Holly, his stride a little longer than usual. She stepped out and started toward him, meeting him a few feet off the rock terrace.
“Hey,” he said. “You look awesome. Love the dress.”
“I wasn’t sure what to wear.” She looked at his cargo shorts and polo shirt and then glanced around.
“Looking at what everyone’s wearing?” he asked.
“Yes. I didn’t want to embarrass you by over or underdressing.”
He slung an arm around her shoulders. “Honey, you could be wearing cut-off jeans and a halter top, and you’d still be the best dressed person here.”
She laughed.