5. ALEX
I knew Danielle wasn’t happy with my decision about Cody, but honestly, I didn’t have the pleasure of giving a shit.
Her safety was a priority. It had been since the day our parents died, and I wasn’t going to stop making it one now, especially not after what that piece of shit did to her.
One day, maybe she’d forgive me for forcing this on her.
For now, it didn’t matter. I could live with her hating me temporarily as long as it meant she was alive/
After breaking the news to Danielle, I left the hospital and headed home to talk things over with Cody. The house was dark except for the flicker of the TV, and there he was, sprawled out on the couch, eating Chinese food in nothing but his boxers.
“Okay,” I said with a half-laugh, “rule number one with my sister: no watching TV in your boxers.”
Cody snorted, tossing the remote aside. “I’m guessing no leads on Landon yet?”
“Unfortunately, no.”
He sat up and shut off the TV, and the mood in the room shifted immediately. He understood what I had come home to talk about. “So, this is really happening?” he asked, barely managing his words as he stared at me with an incredulous look on his face.
I hesitated to answer him. What I was asking of Cody was more than anyone should expect, and I’d half-expected him to refuse, to tell me I was out of my mind.
I wouldn’t blame him if he did. He’d already saved my life once by dragging me out when everything went sideways on our last deployment, and yet here I was, asking him to step into danger again, but this time for my sister.
I must have drifted off into my thoughts because the next thing I knew, Cody was standing in front of me, staring at me head-on with a serious, yet understanding look in his eyes, ready for whatever I had to say.
“Alex, it’s okay. I’m okay with this. I’d do anything for you, you know that.
You’re my brother,” Cody said, flashing a reassuring smile as he wandered into the kitchen and rifled through the fridge.
“Besides, it’s not permanent. I’ve never really stayed anywhere this long anyway.
That’s half the reason I joined the military.
Home is wherever you hang your hat, right?
I’ll just hang it in the middle of nowhere for a while. ”
I ran a hand through my hair and let out a long, drawn-out sigh. I should have felt relieved, but I only felt more guilt. “I really don’t know how to thank you, Cody. You’re the only person I trust with this.”
He looked over, dropping the smile for a moment. “You have my word that I’ll protect her with my life until this is over. I mean it.” And I believed him. Cody and I were as close as brothers, and by extension, that made Danielle his family too.
“I’m paying you.” I forced the idea on him. It wasn’t a question, either.
“No, you’re not.”
“Don’t be stupid. You’re leaving your job. You’re doing me a bigger favor than I could ever repay.”
“Alex, no offense, but on your salary, you’re not paying me.”
“Cody, no offense,” A smirk tugged at my lips as I fired back, the comeback already waiting, “I’ve got money from our parents. A lot of it, actually. I never told Danielle about it. I wanted it to be an emergency fund for her, and well, this classifies as a damn good emergency.”
Cody didn’t respond because he knew I wouldn't take no for an answer. And even if I did, I’d just do it anyway.
It took a second before I noticed he was still standing there in his boxers, forking cold Chinese food straight from the container.
I almost forgot we were supposed to be leaving to bring Danielle dinner.
Shaking my head, I marched into the kitchen and snatched the container from his hands. Cody stared at me, scandalized, as if I’d stolen the last bit of food on earth. I burst out laughing.
“Get dressed, man. I promised Danielle we’d bring her dinner, not a Magic Mike show.”
“We?” Cody looked confused.
“What, you thought I was just going to keep her a mystery until the day you drove her off into the sunset of hiding? We’re leaving in fifteen minutes, so hurry up.”
While Cody disappeared upstairs to get dressed, I collapsed onto the corner of our well-worn couch and pulled out my phone to text Danielle, asking her what she wanted for dinner. Her reply came in seconds, like she was waiting to start a fight.
Does this really have to happen?
God damn, she was stubborn. I couldn’t help but feel even more guilty than before for not warning Cody about just how much Danielle wanted nothing to do with this plan. Maybe, if they spent some real time together over the next few days, leaving with him wouldn’t seem so bad to her.
A few minutes later, Cody reappeared wearing what had to be the rattiest jeans I’d ever seen and a plain black t-shirt. I shook my head but didn’t say a word. We got into the car and headed out, dinner plans in hand, and an uncertain future riding in the silence between us.
I could tell Cody was nervous. Hell, probably even more nervous than Danielle. He’d always been shy, more comfortable fading into the background.
In the eight years we served together, he had never brought a girl back to the house, never met anyone extraordinary enough to mention to me, nothing.
Most of the other guys went wild on leave, chasing women and blowing off steam, but Cody was different.
He was better looking than most, and hands down the most well-mannered and chivalrous.
Still, instead of joining the crowd, he stuck with me.
We spent our nights out sightseeing, sampling local food, and trading stories about what life might be like when we finally got out.
Come to think of it, I wasn’t sure Cody had even gotten close enough to anyone to consider them a girlfriend since that day. I remembered how it nearly broke him when he got the letter that his high school sweetheart, his first love, had been killed by a drunk driver during our first deployment.
He’d lost his parents when he was just a kid, and she was all he had left. That kind of pain, the gut-wrenching heartbreak, was something we shared, and it was what brought us together.
“So, uh, what’s she like?” Cody asked with that nervous, kind of beat-around-the-bush tone in his voice.
I almost smiled; he sounded like a teenager working up the nerve to ask out his first crush.
It was strangely endearing and reassuring.
Danielle would be perfectly safe with Cody.
If there was anyone in absolutely no danger of falling for him, or being swept off her feet, it was my sister, the Ice Queen herself.
And if there was any guy less likely to try, it was my best friend.
“Well, she’s a stubborn ass with two broken legs,” I grinned, hoping a joke would help loosen Cody up before Danielle had a chance to rip him to shreds.
I glanced over at him as I continued. “There’s going to be a lot of care instructions for the next few months.
I know it’s a lot, but it’s important to make sure she heals right.
She’ll probably need a walker or a cane for at least the first month, until she gets her strength back. You’ll need to help with her rehab.”
Cody waved his hand, dismissing me. “Alex, relax. I didn’t mean it like that when I asked what she was like.
That stuff, I can handle.” He gave me a sideways look, his lips curving into a small, almost mischievous smirk.
“I meant her personality. What’s she interested in?
If I’m going to be living in some weird version of solitary confinement with your sister, I should at least know how to get along with her. ”
I squinted at him, trying to determine if he was still nervous or just being a smart ass now. “Oh no, Cody. Not a chance.”
He widened his eyes in mock innocence. “What?” He tried to sound shocked, but I could see the mischief behind his question.
“She’s my sister, Cody. She’s off limits, so don’t even think about playing house. As soon as Landon’s caught, you’re both coming straight back here. That’s non-negotiable.”
Cody burst out laughing. “Jesus, Alex, I didn’t mean it like that. I just want her to feel safe and comfortable. She’s going to be scared, and if she’s anything like you, probably pissed as hell. If there’s anything I can do, or get for her, something that feels like home, I want to know.”
I hesitated for a moment, feeling a little foolish for misjudging him. Cody would never try anything. He had always been about loyalty and doing the right thing. In his own awkward way, he was trying to take care of her, just like he did with me.
“Penguins,” I finally caved.
Cody blinked in surprise. “Excuse me?”
“Penguins.” I repeated, managing a small smile. “She’s obsessed with penguins.”
Cody grinned and nodded, probably already plotting how to use that little piece of information to break the ice.
“Penguins. Got it. Those should be easy to find in the middle of nowhere.”
Cody sat back in his seat and didn’t say much else as we picked up food and headed to the hospital for what I could almost guarantee would be the most awkward dinner I’ve ever eaten.