Chapter 1 #2
“I won’t faint,” she said with a grin. “I’m built for hurricanes, and you’re not that scary.”
His mouth twitched, and she wondered if he meant the disapproval he was expressing.
Cal directed personnel to the Salt & Steel headquarters at the boathouse for debriefing.
Ten minutes later, the group stopped talking as Letty and Cal stood in front of the diverse group. Volunteers, first responders, and Cal’s men focused on him as he spoke.
“Everyone will get a chance to offer feedback on the drill. Practice gives us the opportunity to save more lives when a real emergency happens.” He nodded. “And they do.” He changed his stance to turn his body toward the doctor. “Dr. Duval has some immediate feedback.”
Letty held her clipboard to her chest. “I haven’t seen this group in action before, so I don’t know if this response was typical.
A single injury and only one piece of malfunctioning equipment led me to call this exercise a success.
I would expect, however, that the next drill would be without injury or malfunction. ” She looked at Cal, who nodded.
Letty lowered her clipboard and spoke, covering her observations as heads bobbed throughout the group. She summed up her comments as she held up her clipboard. “Just so we’re clear, this exercise is one of the best trainings I’ve evaluated.”
Cal thanked her, and she lifted her head as she walked by Wyatt.
WYATT
Dr. Duval caught his attention without even trying. He watched her walk away, braid swinging, with a straight posture despite the chaos around her. She moved as if she were someone used to command. His mind reminded him that women were dangerous in a different way than a disaster.
Wyatt’s phone rang. He didn’t look at the caller, just answered. “Boone.”
“Roper.”
Wyatt smiled. “Maxim, how’s it going?”
“Good. You seem distracted.”
“Yeah. We had some woman consulting on our training today.”
“Oh?” Maxim cleared his throat. “You know Banner always says women make it go sideways.”
“Sure,” Wyatt grumbled. “Do you need something, or did you just call to bust my balls?”
“Banner’s got an issue with a friend in Virginia. He was hoping you could be on backup if we need you.”
“Of course. What’s going on?”
“Do you remember Olivia? Commander Callahan’s wife?”
“Yes. Is she okay?”
“There was an incident. Banner got her to safety, but someone is looking at our SEAL team.”
“That sounds ominous. We’ve all been out for a while now.”
“It’s the only thing that makes sense with what was disturbed at her house,” Maxim said.
Wyatt’s jaw tightened. “Let me know if you need me. Calder won’t have an issue.”
“Thanks,” Maxim responded. “Try not to fall in love with that woman.” He chuckled as he hung up the phone.
“Asshole.”
Letty strolled up. “Talking about yourself there, Roper?”
“Dr. Duval.” He dipped his head. “A friend. Call me Wyatt.”
She nodded. “Make sure I get that list of scars and injuries. Cal said it was emailed to you earlier.”
“Of course, doctor.” Wyatt cringed inside, regretting the snarky tone.
Dr. Duval sauntered away, leaving Wyatt to stare after her.
LETTY
Letty retreated to the quiet edge of the dock once the group disbanded, her heart still thudding harder than it should.
Grabbing her phone, she snapped photos around the dock, the boats, and the ocean.
If there is ever an emergency here at the dock, we’ll be ready to go.
She flicked through the photos from before their training, comparing them to what she had just taken.
Once done, she exhaled and dialed on instinct.
“Callahan?”
Letty’s shoulders relaxed. “Hey, Livvy. Tell me why I thought coastal field research was a good idea.”
Her sister laughed. “Because you don’t do safe, Letty, and you know people need help in natural disasters near the water.” She paused. “How’s Tidehaven?”
Letty’s gaze drifted back to Wyatt Boone, Roper, who was laughing with Cal, the easy confidence in his posture completely at odds with the scars she’d already noticed.
He rolled a silver dollar over his knuckles like a nifty trick.
“Complicated.” She stared for a moment. “And I think I just met a man who’s going to be trouble.
He’s the kind that makes your life more complicated the moment he walks into it. ”
Livvy hummed. “The good kind or the hospital kind?”
Letty swallowed. “Probably both.” And for the first time since she’d arrived in South Carolina, Letty believed she might have found a family. She turned her focus back to her sister. “What’s new?”
“Um.”
“Livvy?”
“I had an issue.”
Letty scowled. “What kind of issue?”
“Someone broke into my house when I was at work.”
“Oh my God, why the hell didn’t you call me?” Letty barked. “I’m coming to you.”
“No, wait! I called a friend.” Livvy fell silent.
“What friend?” The long pause tightened Letty’s gut. “Livvy?”
“Banner Campbell. You know from… the SEAL team.”
“Livvy. Is that a good idea? You said he wasn’t relationship material.” She sighed.
Her sister exhaled hard. “I know, but he’ll get to the bottom of it and figure out what happened.”
Letty cocked her head. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“I think he’s going to want me to come to Dallas until he figures everything out.”
“Damn, Livvy. Can your heart handle that?”
“I don’t think I have a choice…” She inhaled and held it. “Letty… you be good with the man,” her sister snickered.
Letty laughed. “You too. Keep me updated on what’s going on with you. I’ve got an in with a security team.”
Livvy chuckled. “Funny, Banner owns one in Dallas.”
“That’s eerily convenient.”
“It is. I love you, Letty. Be careful,” Livvy said.
“Back at ya.” She inhaled hard. “Heard from Tessa?”
Livvy swallowed. “She took some private chef job in the Gulf. She left the baby with Grams.”
“Okay, tell her to call me the next time you talk to her.”
“I will. Bye.” Livvy ended the call.
Letty’s eyes gazed over at Cal and Wyatt before she collected her things to go home.