Sergeant Jones’s directions proved to be quite good. Cory was able to find the base in uptown Port of Spain without any trouble. She’d never realized it existed even though she had passed there numerous times before. She also couldn’t believe that it was within close proximity to her own office. As she pulled into the military compound, the young, good-looking soldier manning the gateway immediately stopped her vehicle. Cory automatically rolled down the passenger window so she could speak to him.
“Good afternoon, ma’am,” the soldier said.
“Good afternoon, I’m here to see Second Lieutenant Adrian Mendez,” Cory announced.
“He isn’t here right now, ma’am.”
“Will he be here soon?” she asked hopefully.
“He usually is. If no emergencies come up.”
“Okay, well, can I take the chance and wait for him, then?”
“Sure, ma’am. You can wait over there if you like,” the soldier said, pointing with his hand to a parking area behind him.
“Thanks.” Cory ended the conversation and sent the window up again. She drove toward the car park that gleamed like a magnificent black animal from the scorching midday sun overhead. Cory noticed Adrian’s pickup and her mind immediately flashed to his sexy smile and that was enough to send her temperature soaring.
For now, she sat in the car and waited, amazed and thankful that all the car’s accessories were still in place — especially the AC. It kept her body cool. Cory knew one look at Adrian in the flesh and her body temperature might skyrocket to boiling point this time. It had happened to her twice. She nervously wondered if it would happen a third time.
As the minutes ticked by, her anticipation to see him again built. She felt excited, like a young school girl.
What if he didn’t want to see her? Well, it would serve her right. She hadn’t been exactly polite to the man after he was kind enough to offer her a lift in the first place. She’d practically bolted from him, as if he had attacked her or something, preferring to walk in the rain instead.
If only she could turn back the hands of time, she would have been a lot more courteous and gracious. This was the main reason she was here now, Cory reminded herself. She wanted to say a personal thank you to Adrian for all his help. She also needed to apologize for her very rude behavior the other day. But she was becoming more nervous by the minute. Was she ready to do this now?
“What the hell am I doing here?” Cory asked herself out aloud.
• • •
Adrian was sitting in the front passenger’s seat when he pulled into the base with the other soldiers and officers. The sentry on duty stopped them and came directly to him.
“LT, there’s someone here waiting to see you, sir.”
“Who?” Adrian asked, surprised.
“A young lady, sir. She’s in the car park waiting,” the soldier told him.
Strange. Adrian was wondering who his visitor could be amidst the snickering of the others. The only female he allowed to visit him here was his sister and usually she called him first.
Just as the driver started moving again, out of nowhere a car swung directly onto their path, braking mere inches in front of them. His driver had to slam on his brakes to avoid a head-on collision.
• • •
“Oh my God,” Cory screamed, clutching her chest. She’d hit her breaks so hard just now she swore all her curls would bounce right off her head. That was when she saw him. Her heart nearly gave way. Butterflies did a dance in her stomach. Adrian alighted from his vehicle and began walking toward her. Cory was breathing heavily. She didn’t know if it was from her near-death experience just now or from the sight of him approaching. She had to get it together. Fast.
Cory stared, her foot still mashing down hard on the brakes. It was her first time seeing him in full military gear. He struck a striking picture, from the beret on his head to the boots on his feet. Tall, handsome, professional, authoritative, strong and powerful — dangerous, even. A black bullet-proof vest was strapped across his broad chest and dark-green camouflage fatigues, his strong veined hand nestled firmly on the huge gun in front him.
Cory didn’t understand why at this particular moment she was so unbelievably happy to see him. Nor had she expected her reaction at seeing him again to be so lustful. And to think she had almost missed all this luscious manliness by choosing to leave in such a hurry. Maybe because she nearly died just now, Cory found him to be highly irresistible. What was it about this particular soldier that she found so damn sexy in that uniform?
• • •
As Adrian bent and tapped on the window of the nutcase who was driving the car, he saw crazy curls spilling everywhere. So she was his visitor? He couldn’t believe she was actually here in the flesh. No, he was more like shocked, but Adrian was so glad Cory Phillips almost crashed into him. What was she doing here? The last time he saw her, she all but ran away from him. And she had been on his mind since.
After getting a more-than-generous glimpse of those gorgeous legs of hers, he’d had some dreams about her. Most of them, he had to admit, were of an erotic nature. Hey, if he couldn’t have her in real life, at least he could have her in his dreams. There weren’t any rules against that, right? Adrian smiled at his erotic thoughts as he tapped her window again and she slowly let it down.
“Are you trying to get yourself killed, ma’am?” Adrian smiled down at her. The last time he’d seen her, she was so angry and sad. Well, this was no sad, crying woman but a rather happy one smiling back at him. He liked this new found cheerfulness in her. It suited her much better.
“Hi,” she flashed a sexy smile.
“Cory, what a nice surprise,” Adrian offered in return. He wasn’t lying. She was the last person on this earth he had expected to see here, today or ever.
Adrian forgot all about his men waiting in the vehicle. The driver honking on the horn brought his attention back to them. “Go around, man!” Adrian shouted at him.
“Oh, I’m soooo sorry about this,” Cory apologized.
“Don’t worry about it. Nobody got hurt. Especially you,” Adrian offered. “So I see you got your car back … finally.”
“Yeah, I just did. I asked Sergeant Jones where I could find you. I hope you don’t mind?”
Mind? Was she kidding? Adrian thought. She was the perfect distraction. “Well, I’m really happy for you, Cory. So … what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?”
“Umm, I just stopped by because I wanted to say thank you for all your help.”
“So what makes you think I had anything to do with this?” Adrian asked, still smiling sweetly at her.
“Well, for one, I think I received the royal treatment from your friends today.” They both laughed. Adrian believed her; he had asked Jonesie to warn his men to be nice.
Adrian walked to the back of the car, inspecting it. He had to preoccupy his mind with something, anything, other than being enticed by her heaving cleavage, a sight he was enjoying a bit too much.
“You need to get a new tail light, okay,” he said. “Other than that, I think you’re in pretty good shape. You’re a lucky woman, you know. Thieves usually scrap these as soon as they steal them. They probably just used yours for a robbery.”
“Well, I guess I am lucky.” Hesitating a bit, Cory continued, “Well, I also wanted to apologize to you for my very rude behavior the other day, Adrian.”
“Hey, everyone has their bad days. And no offense was taken,” Adrian assured her.
“Really? Well, please allow me to make it up to you, then. What’re you doing this evening?”
“Working.”
“Oh. So what time do you get off?”
“At eight. Tomorrow morning,” Adrian quickly added.
“What?”
“Yeah. We work twenty-four-hour shifts here.”
“My God, how do you work all day and then stay up all night, too?” Cory asked.
“Well, you get used to it after a while.”
“Okay. Well, I was about to ask you out to have some drinks with me. To show my appreciation and to apologize and everything. My treat, of course.”
Adrian was amused. “You don’t have to do that,” he said. “I have to shoulder part of the blame myself with some of the things I said to you.”
A look of disappointment crossed her face. She wanted to go out with him? “But let me get this straight. You’re asking me out?” Adrian was smiling again. “Seriously though?”
“Yes!” Cory answered. “You sound surprised. Has a woman never offered to buy you drinks before?”
“Never,” Adrian answered her with a grin. The women he dated in the past were more like friends of his friends or friends of his cousins and the like. Most were okay, but nothing he wanted to pursue. Some turned literally into the dates from hell where all he wanted to do was dive through the closest window to make an escape from them.
But he’d always done the asking, so he was stunned at Cory’s brazen invitation. Adrian knew he didn’t have a fighting chance with this woman, with her perfectly manicured nails and power suits. He figured he wasn’t her type. He was just a soldier in her book. Though a financially secure, educated, and well-traveled one at that. After all, she had made her feelings quite clear the way she felt about men like him the other day.
But the mere thought of Cory and he got excited. She stimulated his senses in every way. From her skin that smelled — and he imagined felt — like a floral bouquet, to her crazy hair, her smile, her sexy feminine saunter, those damn legs she often left exposed.
“Never? I find that hard to believe.”
Looking her dead in her eyes Adrian said, “But I’m always willing to try something new.”
Adrian lived his life taking huge risks in combat zones and overcoming challenges every day. Why should he hesitate to take up this one? Actually, this was one challenge he was looking forward to taking.
“So how about we do this tomorrow evening instead?” Adrian suggested.
“That’s perfect,” Cory replied. She gave him the name of the sports bar and the time to meet her at.
“Cory, why don’t you join me in my office for a while? It’s so hot out here,” Adrian offered. “I was about to have lunch.”
Cory quickly accepted his offer this time.