Standby (Open Skies Book 4) by Becca Jameson (best sales books of all time .TXT) 📗

was standing in the hallway waiting for her when she came out.

She was startled to find him there, leaning against the wall across from the door, fingers in his pockets, gaze narrowed on her. For a moment they just stared at each other, neither uttering a word. Then Raeann motioned over her shoulder. “I should get back…”

Deacon reached for her hand and stopped her. “No. You should talk to me.”

She swallowed as she lowered her gaze. “There’s nothing to say.”

“Oh, there’s a lot to say.” He crowded her, his scent overwhelming her.

Why did he have to smell so damn good? And why did her heart rate have to pick up as his thumb stroked the back of her hand? And why did a flush have to crawl up her cheeks at the thought of other places he’d had his hands on her body a month ago?

“You can talk to me right here right now or wait until everyone leaves, but we’re going to talk before this night is over.”

She flinched at his demand. She deserved it, but part of her had hoped he would accept her ghosting and move on without pushing the issue. At the same time, part of her was glad he wouldn’t be so easily swayed.

It would be easier to walk away without a word. Safer. Tidier. Less stressful.

Lonelier.

An unexpected and uninvited tear slid down her cheek, and she quickly swiped it away. Why the hell did she have to start crying? Jesus. She sucked back her emotions and took a deep breath. “After. Please,” she murmured.

He cupped her cheek, tipped her head back, and met her gaze. “Okay,” he said softly, wiping another tear. “Did you drive here?”

She shook her head. “No. Heather did.”

“Good. Leave with me. We’ll talk.”

She looked away. That was the last thing she wanted to do. Leaving with him would end with her dumping on him, and she didn’t want to dump on anyone. She wanted to bury her problems and keep them to herself. That had been the problem with Deacon from the day she’d met him. He drew information out of her easily, and she wasn’t a sharing sort of gal.

They’d spent two weeks together, sort of dating, though they hadn’t slept together. Two weeks during which she pretended she was a regular person with normal relationships. Two weeks of blissful ignorance on his part.

She never should have gone out with him to begin with. She’d been caught off-guard the day he picked her up from the airport to keep her safe from Hawke Richman—the airline pilot who was stalking her roommate at the time, Shayla. It wouldn’t have been safe for Raeann to go home, so she’d gone home with Deacon.

The man was delicious. Six-three. Built. Dark hair still growing out from his Army days. His skin was tanned, and she’d seen evidence of tattoos that peeked out from under his short sleeves. He was also intense. His gaze bore into her as if he could read her mind. He was the sort of man women fell in love with.

She was not the sort of woman who fell in love with men, however. She had no intention of ever settling down with a man. It wouldn’t be fair to him. A month ago, for a pile of reasons, she’d cut ties and stopped returning Deacon’s texts and calls. It had been for the best. But she’d always known she’d eventually have to face him like this.

She’d sort of hoped he might be pissed-off enough with her to think she wasn’t worth the confrontation. Apparently not. And she wasn’t shocked either. After all, he was a good guy. A great guy. Not the kind who would easily walk away, nor the kind who would badmouth her to the other guys, nor the kind who would snub her after the fact, nor the kind who would express anger toward her.

Nope. Deacon Matthews looked genuinely worried and concerned. And he should. Her shit-pile of problems warranted concern. She simply didn’t want to share them.

Deacon lifted her hand and rubbed her knuckles against his cheek before letting her go. “If you leave without talking to me, I’ll follow you home.” He lifted his brows.

She nodded. “I won’t.” Damn. What a mess.

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Author’s Note

I hope you enjoyed the fourth book in the Open Skies series. So far the series has six books. If you’re wondering about Destiny and Trent’s story, you can read about them in Destiny’s Delta from Delta Team Three in Susan Stoker’s world.

Delta Team Three (Special Forces: Operation Alpha):

Destiny’s Delta

Open Skies:

Layover

Redeye

Nonstop

Standby

Takeoff

Jetway

Also by Becca Jameson

Surrender:

Raising Lucy

Teaching Abby

Leaving Roman

Choosing Kellen

Pleasing Josie

Honoring Hudson

Nurturing Britney

Charming Colton

Convincing Leah

Surrender Box Set One

Surrender Box Set Two

Open Skies:

Layover

Redeye

Nonstop

Standby

Takeoff

Jetway

Open Skies Box Set One

Shadow SEALs:

Shadow in the Desert

Delta Team Three (Special Forces: Operation Alpha):

Destiny’s Delta

Canyon Springs:

Caleb’s Mate

Hunter’s Mate

Corked and Tapped:

Volume One: Friday Night

Volume Two: Company Party

Volume Three: The Holidays

Project DEEP:

Reviving Emily

Reviving Trish

Reviving Dade

Reviving Zeke

Reviving Graham

Reviving Bianca

Reviving Olivia

Project DEEP Box Set One

Project DEEP Box Set Two

SEALs in Paradise:

Hot SEAL, Red Wine

Hot SEAL, Australian Nights

Hot SEAL, Cold Feet

Hot SEAL, April’s Fool

Dark Falls:

Dark Nightmares

Club Zodiac:

Training Sasha

Obeying Rowen

Collaring Brooke

Mastering Rayne

Trusting Aaron

Claiming London

Sharing Charlotte

Taming Rex

Tempting Elizabeth

Club Zodiac Box Set One

Club Zodiac Box Set Two

Club Zodiac Box Set Three

The Art of Kink:

Pose

Paint

Sculpt

Arcadian Bears:

Grizzly Mountain

Grizzly Beginning

Grizzly Secret

Grizzly Promise

Grizzly Survival

Grizzly Perfection

Arcadian Bears Box Set One

Arcadian Bears Box Set Two

Sleeper SEALs:

Saving Zola

Spring Training:

Catching Zia

Catching Lily

Catching Ava

Spring Training Box Set

The Underground series:

Force

Clinch

Guard

Submit

Thrust

Torque

The Underground Box Set One

The Underground Box Set Two

Saving Sofia (Special Forces: Operations Alpha)

Wolf Masters series:

Kara’s Wolves

Lindsey’s Wolves

Jessica’s Wolves

Alyssa’s Wolves

Tessa’s Wolf

Rebecca’s Wolves

Melinda’s Wolves

Laurie’s Wolves

Amanda’s Wolves

Sharon’s Wolves

Wolf Masters Box Set One

Wolf Masters Box Set Two

Claiming Her series:

The Rules

The Game

The Prize

Claiming Her Box Set

Emergence series:

Bound to be Taken

Bound to be Tamed

Bound to be Tested

Bound to be Tempted

Emergence Box Set

The Fight Club series:

Come

Perv

Need

Hers

Want

Lust

The Fight Club Box Set One

The Fight Club Box Set Two

Wolf Gatherings series:

Tarnished

Dominated

Completed

Redeemed

Abandoned

Betrayed

Wolf Gatherings Box Set One

Wolf Gathering Box Set Two

Durham Wolves series:

Rescue in the Smokies

Fire in the Smokies

Freedom in the Smokies

Durham Wolves Box Set

Stand Alone Books:

Blind with Love

Guarding the Truth

Out