Read Her Forbidden Marine (Hearts Ablaze: Men in Uniform Book 2) for Free Online Page A

bedspread and headed for the bathroom.  Becky was a graduate student, so since she’d returned home for the holidays, she was probably here on her winter break.  That was, what, a couple of weeks?  An entire month?  The thought of having her so close and not seeing her was eating him up inside.
    Matt stripped down to his boxers and after brushing his teeth, collapsed into a heap on his bed.  Sleep was the only reprieve he’d had over the past year, and amazingly it usually came easily every night.  Grueling workouts and early morning hours on base would do that to a guy.  His mom would probably say he was burning the candle at both ends, but his father, a fellow Marine, would understand.  Matt shifted in his bed and tried to relax, willing sleep to overtake him.  What was usually easy seemed evasive tonight, as thoughts of a brunette with luscious curves and a vanilla scent wafting around her invaded his memories.  Becky, he mumbled, before finally falling into a deep sleep.
     
     
    ***
     
     
    Matt groaned as his alarm went off the next morning, and he fumbled with it for a moment before the incessant beeping stopped.  Why had he set it for zero-dark-thirty on a Saturday again?  Ugh.  He sat up as he tried to shake off his deep slumber and suddenly memories of agreeing to an early morning run with Sam came crashing back to him.  Why he agreed to it had him questioning his sanity.  Then again, he wasn’t usually out so late the night before.  He’d just been in the middle of the best dream, too, kissing a gorgeous woman who tasted of vanilla, his hands tracing the curves of her ass as he pulled her closer and closer…. Awww hell .  He’d been dreaming about Becky?   For fuck’s sake.
    He jumped up quicker than he thought possible a moment ago, shaking off the memory of his vivid dream, and walked over to his dresser to grab some running gear.  Sam always showed up in shorts, even though it was winter.  Being California born-and-bred, Matt was not about to jog around without pants in thirty-degree weather.  Just because he was a Marine didn’t make him bat-shit crazy.  And maybe a little pounding of the pavement this morning would keep his head on straight and his dick in line.  He had no business dreaming about his buddy’s girl, and as soon as he got that shit straight in his head, the better off he’d be.
    A few minutes later, Matt climbed into his black Charger, listening to the engine roar to life.  It was a sweet ride, and now that he was stateside again and not deployed in the middle of nowhere, he intended to enjoy it all that he could.  He’d be here a couple of years on his tour of duty and then probably deployed back to the desert again.  Maybe his parents could garage this baby for him while he was gone.  Once his twenty years in the Marines were up, he didn’t know what he’d do.  His father had stayed in the Marines, eventually becoming a General, but Matt imagined eventually finding a defense contractor job for himself where his life didn’t revolve around PCSing and TDYing all the freaking time.  All those companies up in Washington were always looking for former military.  Why not him?
    Someday, he thought as he backed out of the parking lot of his apartment building and took the road to the edge of town.  He revved the engine, enjoying the feel of all that power under his control.  He’d have to make sure he didn’t get a speeding ticket zipping around like this.  Were cops even out this early?  No one should be up at this ungodly hour on a Saturday, he thought with a groan.  He’d rushed out so fast he didn’t even eat anything.  He sure didn’t have time now, but hell if he hadn’t slept like a baby last night.  That more than made up for the growling in his stomach.
    Matt pulled into the parking lot down near the park where he and Sam usually ran.  A paved trail traced alongside the river, which made it awesome for running most of the year but