Born to Darkness by Suzanne Brockmann

thinking—”
    “Not because you’re blacklisted, Navy. I don’t give a shit about that,” she told him. “But medical records aren’t private anymore—something you should be aware of, as you adjust to life in the real world. There’s actually a Med Center where I work, where I can see a doctor and it
can
be kept confidential.”
    He nodded, looking up at her with those eyes, that face. “If you want, I can help you get over there.”
    Mac had to clear her throat. “I think it’s okay,” she said. “My foot. I think I just … Could use some help. Getting my boot, and these pants. Off. Kinda right now?”
    “But if you’re in pain—”
    “I am,” she agreed. “In pain. But it has nothing to do with my foot.”
    “That’s not good,” he murmured, so she pulled off her bra, and okay, sue her, but she adjusted as it went up over her head. She’d never be buxom, but there wasn’t a woman alive who didn’t have at least a
little
bit of extra body fat. Unlike most women, Mac had skills that allowed her to move it around and make it work for her, when she wanted.
    And with this man looking at her like that, she wanted.
    And he liked what he saw when her bra came off—that was clear. He was also surprised, although he tried not to show it. But he couldn’t help himself from glancing at the bra that she tossed onto the bed and saying, “Wow, those things really …”
    “Squash you flat,” she finished for him. Also not a lie. Not completely.
    And Mac knew he wanted to take his time and look at her, but he also wanted what
she
wanted, and that wasn’t going to happen until she got her pants off, so he focused on the task at hand.
    “How about I anchor your boot in place, and let you …” He did just that, bracing the bottom of her foot against his thigh, like the sexiest shoe salesman alive, while he held both sides of her boot in his big hands, careful not to twist her ankle. “That way you can do it as quickly or slowly as you like.”
    Mac was breathing hard. And not just because this was going to hurt, but because she could feel him, even through the thickness of her boot. His leg. His hands. What the hell kind of power did he have, that just by touching her, her own power was exponentially greater than?
    Like, one plus one equals four hundred and eighty-five.
    Like, if he touched her again, skin against skin, she was going to go up in flames. And since she didn’t want to jump this man with one boot on and her pants flapping around her leg …
    “Band-Aid pull,” she told him. “Hard and fast. Hold on tight, okay?”
    “You got it.”
    “For the record? Hard and fast works in other departments, too.”
    “Duly noted.” He met her eyes. “I find myself inspired enough to start using smiley face emoticons, so …” He gave her a big, happy, toothy smile.
    She was laughing as she yanked her foot free. “Oh, shit!
Shit!
” Tears rushed to her eyes, and she knew she’d really fucked up her ankle on those stairs, if it still hurt this badly despite her ability to block her pain. Of course the fact that she’d been walking around on it probably hadn’t helped.
    Shane was hovering now, afraid to touch her as he said, “Hey, hey, you okay? Let me see. May I see it?”
    Mac shook her head swift and hard, no. She didn’t want to take off her sock, because if just
thinking
about having sex with this man had made her injury heal to the point where she could run … And yeah, sure, her boot had been on, giving her the support she’d needed, but
still
 …
    Imagine what was going to happen when he pushed his way inside of her. Dear God … She unfastened her pants and shoved them down her thighs. “Help me.”
    “Mac, come on, I don’t want to hurt you—”
    “I’m fine. Just grab the legs of my pants, Laughlin, and pull!”
    He certainly was a good little soldier, because he followed her command, which left her flat on her back on her bed, wearing only her panties and that