Chapter 15
“Are you sure we’re allowed to be in here?” Carly asked Kenna as they entered the lobby of the Coral Springs condo complex.
She chuckled. “I’m sure.” But Kenna couldn’t blame Carly for being uneasy. She’d felt the same way when she’d come back the first time by herself. Robert had been working, and he’d recognized and welcomed her, making her feel much better about being there.
She’d stayed at Marshall’s condo several times in the last month.
It made her feel closer to him. She hadn’t expected him to be gone so long.
For some reason, she thought the SEAL team would dash into whatever country they were deployed to, take out their target or rescue whoever they were there to rescue or find the information they were going to find, whatever their mission was, and be back within a week.
When she’d finally given in and sent Elodie a text to ask if it was normal for them to be gone so long, she hadn’t been comforted when the other woman replied they’d never been gone this long before. At least, not since she and Mustang had gotten together.
So Kenna decided the girls’ night Marshall had suggested was long overdue.
She should’ve done this a couple weeks ago, but was reluctant since the condo didn’t belong to her.
But she’d finally gotten over that, and had asked Elodie and Lexie if they wanted to spend a night at Marshall’s place with her.
And when she’d asked Lexie if she thought Ashlyn might want to come, Lexie had said she’d be thrilled.
It seemed a little junior high-ish to arrange a sleepover, but Kenna was almost giddy with excitement about it nonetheless. She’d gone a little overboard in buying drinks and snacks, but didn’t feel a bit embarrassed. She wanted everyone to be comfortable and happy.
Kenna had just met Carly outside and was escorting her in.
“Good afternoon, ladies,” Robert said with a smile.
“Hi, Robert. This is my friend, Carly Stewart. She’s gonna be spending the night with me in Marshall’s condo.”
“Got a fun night planned?” Robert asked with a twinkle in his eye. Kenna estimated him to be in his late forties to mid-fifties. He was always smiling, so friendly and helpful. The more she got to know him, the more she liked him.
“Yup.”
“Well, if you need anything, you’ve got my number,” he told Kenna. “If you want to use some equipment on the beach, or reserve one of the barbeque grills on the plaza, just let me know.”
“I will. But I think we’re gonna stay in tonight,” Kenna said.
“We’ve got a whole room of DVDs, if you prefer. No one really rents them out anymore, now that there are so many subscription services on TV, but if you get bored and want a specific movie, I’m sure we probably have it and it can be brought up.”
“Thanks,” Kenna told him.
They got Carly signed in and headed up to Marshall’s penthouse. When Kenna put her palm on the panel next to the door, Carly couldn’t keep quiet anymore.
“Wow! This place is super fancy!” Carly exclaimed with wide eyes as the door automatically unlocked.
Kenna grinned. “Believe it or not, you get used to it.”
“So, you’re no longer a bons?” Carly asked.
Kenna burst out laughing. “Apparently not. I’ve found there are definitely perks to having money.” She gestured for Carly to enter the condo first, knowing exactly what her reaction was going to be when she walked in.
And she wasn’t disappointed. Carly gasped and made a beeline for the balcony.
Laughing, Kenna followed and they both went outside.
“Holy shit, girl,” Carly said. “This is…I don’t know what this is. It’s amazing. Stupendous. Awesome. Incredible. And every other superlative adjective you can think of.”
“Right?” Kenna asked. “I told Marshall I was moving out here the first time I saw it. That I was going to put a mattress in the corner and live here.”
Carly turned to her friend. “I’m happy for you.”
“Because my boyfriend has money?” Kenna asked.
“No. Well, yes, that doesn’t hurt. But more because you’re so happy. Content in a way I didn’t really notice before you met Marshall. And before you get all weird on me, I’m not saying that you need a rich guy to be satisfied. You guys just fit. You’re perfect together.”
“Thanks. I miss him so much, but I’m also damn proud of him at the same time. And yes, I feel settled.”
They smiled at each other for a moment before Kenna headed back inside. “Come on, help me get everything organized before the others get here.”
An hour later, Kenna headed back down to the lobby to meet Elodie, Lexie, and Ashlyn. After getting them checked in with Robert, they all headed back up to the penthouse.
The second they entered, Elodie sighed and said, “I’ll never get over how much I love the view from up here.”
“Me either,” Lexie chimed in.
“Wow!” Ashlyn exclaimed as she walked toward the balcony as if in a trance.
“And another one bites the dust,” Kenna quipped.
Everyone laughed.
“I thought you, Elodie, and Lexie could stay in the guest room together. Marshall’s got a king-size bed in there, so you’ll have plenty of room. Carly, do you want to stay with me in the master?” Kenna asked.
“Um, not only no, but hell no,” her friend retorted.
“What? Why not?”
“Because that’s where you and Aleck do the nasty,” Carly explained, wrinkling her nose.
Kenna nearly choked, while everyone else burst out laughing. “For your information, Marshall and I haven’t ‘done the nasty,’ as you called it. Not that there would be anything nasty about making love with that man.”
“Holy shit, you haven’t?” Carly asked. “I just assumed you had.”
“Yeah, well, we were planning on it the day he left. I decided I was enjoying the anticipation and foreplay too much to jump his bones the second we got back from the swap meet. So we went to the store, made dinner, and were working our way up to what I know would’ve been the most amazing night of my life… but then his phone rang.”
“Shit,” Lexie mumbled.
“Yup,” Kenna agreed with a sigh.
“Well, that sucks, but I’m still not sleeping in his bed with you,” Carly said.
“And I’m not either,” Ashlyn piped in. “I mean, I like you and all, but now that Carly’s brought it up, I don’t want to think of a naked Aleck lying in the same bed I’m in.”
Kenna wanted to tell the other woman not to think of a naked Aleck any time, but decided that might be a bit too cantankerous.
“Fine, you guys can each take one of the couches out here. Marshall has a ton of sheets and blankets, so it should be comfortable enough.” She didn’t bring up the fact that it was likely Marshall had probably sat on all the furniture in his condo butt-ass naked at some point.
He was a guy, after all, and in her experience, guys were much less self-conscious about walking around without any clothes on. Especially if they lived alone.
“That’ll work,” Carly said with a smile.
“We can leave the balcony doors open and get some fresh air too,” Ashlyn said in excitement.
Yep, Kenna should have done this sooner. She liked seeing her friends so happy.
After Lexie and Elodie had put their bags in the guest room, and Carly and Ashlyn had stashed theirs against the wall out of the way, they all headed into the kitchen to grab drinks.
For the next few hours, they sat on the balcony, eating snacks and drinking the wine Kenna had bought.
When they went inside to make dinner, Lexie ended up kicking Elodie out of the kitchen because she kept trying to make their simple meal of baked chicken and a salad too fancy.
Luckily, she just laughed about it—but she didn’t stop trying to take over from her spot at the table in the dining room either.
Dinner was filled with more laughter, and by the time they all wandered back out to the balcony, Kenna was tipsy, feeling relaxed and mellow.
It was after they’d oohed and ahhed over the sunset—which was even more brilliant and beautiful because of the number of clouds in the sky—when the elephant in the room was finally brought up.
“I miss Scott,” Elodie said somewhat sadly.
“Me too. Well, not Mustang, but I miss Midas,” Lexie agreed.
“Do you think they’re okay?” Kenna whispered. She figured it was a given that she missed Marshall and there was no need to actually say it.
“Yes,” Elodie said firmly. “They’re so damn good at what they do. I’ve seen them in action firsthand.”
“But didn’t Mustang say that you saved his life? That if you weren’t there, that pirate guy would’ve shot him?” Lexie asked.
“I did, but if I wasn’t there, they probably would’ve cleared the engine room faster and would’ve found that guy, and he wouldn’t have been able to sneak up on him,” Elodie argued.
Kenna hadn’t known Elodie had actually saved Mustang’s life, and it was definitely a story she wanted to hear. Later.
“If something happened, wouldn’t the Navy call you?” Ashlyn asked.
“Probably not me, as Midas and I aren’t married, but they’d definitely call Elodie,” Lexie explained.
“And I’ve gotten no calls,” Elodie pointed out.
“Which means they’re probably fine,” Carly said.
“I hate that word, probably,” Kenna muttered.
“Yeah,” Elodie agreed.
“We have to think positive,” Ashlyn announced. “The guys are good, they’re doing their thing, and they’ll be back to annoy us before we know it.”
“So…Slate annoys you?” Kenna asked, preferring to tease Ashlyn and Carly about their non-relationships with Slate and Jag than think about any of the guys being hurt or killed.
“Duh. Yes,” Ashlyn said.
Everyone chuckled.
“What are you all laughing about? He is annoying. And impatient. And bossy. Did you know he called me before he left and scolded me about driving food out to people who need and request it?” she asked. “He flat-out ordered me not to do it.”
“What’d you say?” Lexie asked with a smile.
“I told him he wasn’t the boss of me, stuck my tongue out at the phone—not that he could see it—and hung up,” Ashlyn said.
Everyone laughed harder.
“And what’d he do?” Lexie asked.