Back from Baghdad [MF]

“Time is like a river. You can’t touch the same water twice, because the flow that has passed will never pass again.” – Unknown

Chapter 3 – The Home Front, 10 Years Later

Previous: [Chapter 1](https://www.reddit.com/r/gonewildstories/comments/nwar6i/first_night_in_iraq_mf/) [Chapter 2](https://www.reddit.com/r/gonewildstories/comments/nwpug0/baghdad_showers_mf/)

I smell her before I see her. Breezy, fresh, enchantingly floral. At first I thought it was my imagination, a flashback, conjured from the distance. Turning around, flesh was made whole–my goddess, smiling at me again.

Before I even knew what I was doing, I was on my feet and she was in my arms. Tight, full body hug. I lift her slightly so her feet are off the ground. “Sorry, my flight was late,” she says against my chest.

I release her back to the ground and stand back to look at her. Floral print skirt, form-fitting top with bare arms. The last decade and motherhood have served her well. She has filled out in amazing and sexy ways, becoming even more luscious. Her hair is out of her normal pony tail, dark curls falling over her shoulders.

Baghdad Showers [MF]

“Nothing in life is so exhilarating as to be shot at without result.” – Winston Churchill

For those who missed [Chapter 1, available here](https://www.reddit.com/r/gonewildstories/comments/nwar6i/first_night_in_iraq_mf/), Paula and I were on a small military team serving in Iraq. We arrived in Iraq in April 2003, and would spend the next year there. The first night during the drive north gave us a chance for an appetizer, but that started a frustrating period of waiting and teasing.

Over the next few months, we moved constantly. Supporting first one area, then getting shuffled to the next. We had minimal privacy, and Paula and I had not had a chance to be alone since April. We touched when we could, stolen kisses or lingering gazes. We discussed fantasies and kinks, and I learned she was on birth control–thank goodness! She often found a way to set up her sleeping area near mine so we could see each other (even woke up one morning to see her staring in my eyes as she touched herself under her poncho liner blanket).

First Night in Iraq [MF]

“Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for a while, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never, ever the same.” –Flavia Weedn

April 2003. Baghdad had just fallen, Saddam was on the run, and coalition forces were converging to secure the city. I was 23 years old, in the Army, and waiting with my unit in Kuwait for our turn in the convoys.

My unit had both men and women, and we were arranged into teams of 6-8 that worked and lived closely together. Training, living, laughing, and arguing for months both back in the U.S. and now in Kuwait.

One of my teammates was Paula. Even 18 years later, I still remember the first time we looked into each other’s eyes. The energy when our eyes met was instant and endless. She cocked her head to the side a bit and smiled, and I think we both knew what would happen.

Paula was only a few years older than me. Shorter by about 8 inches, dark hair, cherub smile. Hair normally pulled back in a pony tail, minimal makeup. Amazing body that had to be hidden under desert camo.