A Wicked Persuasion: No Going Back / No Holds Barred / No One Needs to Know

“Yeah, I’d like that.” Turning toward Kate, he indicated one of the empty canvas jump seats. “Why don’t you sit there and strap yourself in? We should be airborne in just a few minutes.”

Kate did as he asked, fumbling briefly with the harness until Chase swept her hands aside and buckled her in himself. Kate told herself that her accelerated heart rate had to do with anticipation of the flight, and not with the way his hands brushed against her breasts. He took the seat next to her, and his hip pressed against hers in the narrow confines.

Kate watched as the two female soldiers slid the cabin doors closed and then took up positions at the open windows on either side of the cabin, their hands maneuvering the mounted machine guns with ease and confidence. Kate’s stomach did an uneasy roll, and she was suddenly glad that she hadn’t eaten breakfast. Glancing at the three male soldiers who sat in the other jump seats, Kate was relieved to see that none of them looked alarmed. In fact, one of them had tipped his head back against the seat and closed his eyes, apparently happy to sleep through the flight. Even Charity had settled down, curling up near Chase’s seat with a small whine.

The pilot twisted in her seat and gave both Chase and Kate a smile. “Welcome aboard. I’m Captain Larson and your copilot today is Chief Warrant Officer Costanza. We’ll be departing shortly. Our ETA at Camp Leatherneck is approximately 0900 hours. There’s some adverse weather moving into the region, so the ride could get a little bumpy, but nothing to worry about.” Her gaze touched briefly on Kate and then lingered on Chase. “Sit back and enjoy the flight.”

The rotors whirred into life, and Kate forced herself to relax as she listened to the pilots go through their checklists for departure. Chase pulled a mobile device out of his pocket and began scrolling through his messages, as if he had no concerns at all. The action was so normal that Kate found herself relaxing in spite of herself.

“You okay?” he asked without looking at her.

“I think so. So the flight will take about two hours?”

“Give or take.”

Even as he spoke, the enormous helicopter lifted from the ground. Through the window, Kate watched Bagram Airfield slide away beneath them. She found herself studying the two pilots and wondering what kind of woman would choose a career that endangered her life on a daily basis. Did Chase and Captain Larson have a romantic relationship? There was no question that the other woman was attractive, and Kate hadn’t missed the way she looked at Chase, or how pleased he had been to see her.

“Will Tenley and her band also travel from Bagram to Camp Leatherneck in a helicopter?” she asked.

He glanced up briefly from his mobile device. “All of the singers and their band members will be transported in a Chinook. They’re heavy-lift helicopters capable of transporting up to fifty-five people, so we should be able to get all of the performers in one trip, which means we have fewer helicopters tied up.”

Kate tried to envision Tenley in a military helicopter but failed. She’d be scared to death. She couldn’t picture her gentle sister over here, roughing it. How would she react to the sight of so many uniformed soldiers?

“Here, why don’t you eat something?” Chase said, interrupting her thoughts.

Kate watched as he opened his rucksack and withdrew a large thermos and two cups. He poured them each a mug of steaming coffee and then passed the thermos to the other soldiers. Kate curled her fingers around the cup and inhaled the fragrance of the coffee.

“You had this in your backpack all this time and didn’t tell me? Even though you knew I was dying for caffeine?”

Chase laughed softly and handed her a foil-wrapped Pop-Tart. “I can’t have you thinking I’m a complete dick,” he said, slanting her an amused look. “It’s not a gourmet breakfast, but at least it’s not an MRE.” Reaching into the backpack, he withdrew a treat for Charity and let her eat it from his fingers, rubbing her head in approval when she took it gently.

Kate unwrapped the pastry and took a bite. “I haven’t had a Pop-Tart since I was a kid.”

They ate in silence, and Chase took her empty mug and wiped it clean before stowing it back in his rucksack. At that moment, the helicopter dipped sharply, and Kate would have come out of her seat if not for the harness. She gasped and reflexively clutched Chase’s forearm.

“Relax,” he soothed. “Just a little turbulence.”

But when the helicopter suddenly dropped in altitude and shuddered violently, Kate saw that even the soldiers looked troubled. Charity lifted her head and gave a small whine, but Chase spoke to her gently and she dropped her muzzle back onto her paws. Instinctively, Kate clutched at Chase’s hand, gratified when he didn’t pull away.

“Are we crashing?” she asked, her heart slamming in her chest. “Maybe we should be wearing parachutes or something.”

“Folks, we’re encountering a storm front that’s moving over the area,” the copilot said over the intercom. “We’re going to try and fly around it, but expect some turbulence.”

“You see? Everything is fine,” Chase said, and stretched his legs out and crossed his boots as if there was nothing to worry about.

Kate sat rigidly at his side, her fingers still curled in his, certain that he was wrong, that the pilots were only trying to avoid a panic in the cabin before they plummeted to the earth. Outside the windows, she could see the distant mountains and the dark storm clouds that had gathered on the horizon. She was only mildly comforted by the fact they were flying away from those mountains, and not directly into the storm.

“Try and get some sleep,” Chase grunted. Pulling his hand free, he crossed his arms over his chest and dragged his baseball cap low over his eyes, effectively shutting her out.

Kate stared at him in disbelief. Even if she could relax enough to take a nap, the helmet and flak vest she wore made it nearly impossible to find a comfortable position. Her bottom ached from the angle of the jump seat, and the coffee and Pop-Tart sat heavily in her stomach. Looking around, she saw the other three soldiers had also closed their eyes, seemingly oblivious to the peril surrounding them.

With a deep breath, she sat back and tried to control her breathing, repeating her age-old mantra that when she had no control over the situation, she could at least control herself. But the flight took another nerve-racking two hours, where the helicopter occasionally bucked and dipped, and Kate only barely restrained herself from grabbing onto Chase again. It wasn’t until they began to descend that he finally stirred and opened his eyes, looking rested and relaxed.

“Did you manage to get any sleep?” he asked innocently.

Kate gave him a baleful look, and then saw the telltale dimple in his cheek.

“You know I didn’t,” she said through gritted teeth.

“We’ll be on the ground in just a few minutes,” he said, glancing out the window.

Following his gaze, Kate saw another military base that looked remarkably like the one they had just left. “Are you sure we didn’t just fly around in circles for two hours and land back at Bagram?” she asked doubtfully. Even the mountains on the horizon seemed exactly the same.

Chase chuckled. “I’m sure. Camp Leatherneck isn’t nearly as big as Bagram, but the conditions are actually better. I may have to leave you for a bit while I secure accommodations for you.”

Kate covered her mouth and yawned hugely. “As long as I can have another cup of coffee, I’ll be fine.” Reaching down, she patted her shoulder bag. “I have my book and my iPod.”

They were met on the helipad by two soldiers in a Humvee. As they crossed the tarmac to the waiting vehicle, the wind tore at Kate’s hair, dragging it loose from her ponytail and spraying sand against her exposed skin. Chase tried to shield her with his body, but the stinging wind was relentless.

“Oh, my God,” she gasped when she was safely inside the Humvee. “Are we in a sandstorm?”

Chase tossed their luggage into the back of the vehicle and climbed in beside her. “No. If that was a sandstorm, you wouldn’t be able to walk outside without face protection. This is just a storm front moving in. You can take off the helmet. Here, let me help you with the vest.”

Chase deftly unfastened Kate’s flak vest and helped her remove it. At the same time, the soldier driving the Humvee glanced at them in the rearview mirror. “We’re due for some pretty nasty weather later this afternoon and through the night,” he commented. “And you know what that means.”

Kate looked at Chase in time to see him send the driver a silent warning with his eyes. “What does that mean?” she asked, a frisson of alarm feathering its way along her spine.

“There’s a higher incidence of mortar attacks during bad weather,” he said. “But I don’t want you to worry. Even if we come under attack, the insurgents don’t have the technology to direct their mortars with any accuracy.”

Kate stared at him, appalled. “So a bomb could literally land anywhere on the base?”

“We have a good tracking system. The warning sirens will go off and we’ll have time to get to a bunker.” He tapped the helmet that lay on the seat between them. “But if you hear the sirens, make sure you don’t go out without this.”

Warning sirens? Kate knew her eyes had widened, but she hadn’t really considered the possibility that they could come under attack. “What about you?” she asked. “If I have your protective gear, what are you going to wear?”

“We’ll make a stop at the military supply office. They’ll have a helmet and a flak vest that you can borrow while you’re here, and we’ll review the protocol for how to respond if the warning sirens should go off.”

To hide her dismay, she stared out the window as they drove, pretending an interest in the buildings and military vehicles they passed. “Does that happen very often?” she finally managed, relieved that her voice didn’t betray her inner fear.

“Not too often. As I said, we have a pretty good surveillance system set up on the perimeter, but a strike could occur at any time, so it’s best to be prepared.”

“Of course.” She wondered what she would do if a strike happened during the night, when he wasn’t with her? “So just where are these bunkers?”

“They’re situated about every one hundred yards throughout the base,” he assured her. “Don’t look so worried. You’ll be fine. I’m not going to leave you, so if anything should happen, I’ll be right there with you.”

That’s what Kate was afraid of. She was more or less accustomed to being in the company of good-looking men, most of them associated with the music industry. But she wasn’t used to having male attention focused on her. Most of the men she knew were only interested in how her association with Tenley could benefit them. Kate had simply been a means to an end, or completely invisible. Having Chase’s full and undivided attention made her feel funny inside, as if she was either very fragile or very important. No man had ever acted as her protector before, or even indicated that he cared one way or the other about her well-being.

As the Humvee drove across the base, Chase pointed out various buildings along the way, including the base exchange store, a small post office, a recreation center and a fitness center.