Chapter 26
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H ow did your breakfast go with Jordan’s family?” Brynn asked as she sat on Tucker’s bed. His dress uniform hung on the open closet door.
He shucked his pants and shirt. “Nobody really ate much. That’s why I brought lunch.”
She suspected the reason for the take-out lunch was he was concerned about her driving alone. He’d urged her to keep her car in the garage out of sight.
He slid his belt through the loops on his white uniform pants and reached for his jumper. “His mom and dad held it together. But they’re really wrecked, and his brother’s angry.”
He was, too. Every time he said Jordan’s name, there was an underlying tone to his voice that blended pain with grief and grief with anger.
Tears threatened, and she turned her face away so he wouldn’t see them. She empathized with him. She’d felt that same rage and grief after Chad’s arrest. Because no matter what punishment he received, none of it would give her back what she’d lost. She’d moved on but would never be as…free…as she’d once been.
Tucker had an added issue. Until they caught whoever was tampering with the chutes, he had to wait and wonder. Every time he jumped out of a plane, he would think of his brother-in-arms, but he’d also wonder if he was next.
“Did you hear from Ahmad’s father?” she asked.
“Yeah. He contacted San Diego PD and reported Ahmad missing.”
She turned back just as Tucker tugged the shirt in place and then raked his fingers through his hair to smooth it.
Brynn’s first thought was, did all women’s hearts skip a beat when they saw a man in uniform? Possibly not, but hers certainly did. The blinding white of his summer dress uniform set off his lightly tanned skin. His jumper, or shirt, as she thought of it, stretched across his broad shoulders. She was more than impressed by the trident, ribbons, and medals that covered one side of his chest and the dark eagle and chevron strips that decorated the upper part of his sleeves.
He’d lamented that he’d forgotten to get a haircut, so she’d trimmed his hair the night before. His waves and curls were tamed a little, but she hadn’t had the heart to cut them as short as he’d have liked.
“You look very handsome,” she said as she watched him expertly tie his neckerchief.
He looked up in the mirror and met her gaze. “We rarely wear dress whites. They’re reserved for weddings, funerals, or the rare official ceremony or benefit.” He grabbed his hat from the dresser and moved to the bed, where she sat cross-legged. He perched his hat atop her head. She reached up to adjust it.
He grabbed his phone from the nightstand and took her picture.
“Why did you do that?” she asked.
“Because I want a picture I can look at on my phone when you’re not with me. Something that says we’re together.”
He just kept hitting that soft spot he’d uncovered that made her ache for more. “You can take a better picture if I cooperate.” She fluffed out her hair and cocked the hat sideways and smiled.
He grinned, raised the phone again, and took two more. “That wasn’t too painful, was it?” he asked.
She shook her head. She nabbed her phone off the nightstand and got off the bed. “I want one with you in uniform. It will give me something to drool over when you’re not around.”
He laughed, and she snapped the picture. She turned the screen to share it with him.
“Not too shabby.”
She took off the hat and handed it to him. “When you’re doing what you need to do today, don’t think about all you’ve lost, but all you’ve gained through being Jordan’s friend. Hold on to that.”
He drew her in close. When she looked up, he cupped her cheek and studied her face in a way that made her legs weak. He brushed her lips with a kiss. “I’ll be back ASAP.”
“I’m good. No worries.”
*
Tucker exited the house through the front door and walked down the sidewalk to his car. He paused beside the vehicle, withdrew the burner phone, scrolled down his contacts, and hit the one he needed.
“Everything okay?” he asked.
“Yeah, everything’s quiet,” Denotti’s answered.
“I owe you.”
“No, you don’t. You’d do the same for me.”
“Yeah, I would.”
“You have the trident I gave you?” Denotti asked.
“Yeah, I do. It’ll go on the coffin next to mine.”
“I didn’t know him, but he’s a brother.”
The fact that he used present tense hit him, and he fought back emotion. “Thanks, Knotty. If something happens—”
“I’ll call, and then I’ll take care of it.”
“I won’t say be careful…”
“Good. Later.”
He got in the SUV, buckled up, and started the vehicle. Brynn would be in good hands until he got back.
*
Brynn hit a key on her computer. The backup countdown had finished. All the files on the SSD drive were once again backed up on a physical drive. It was probably redundant and obsessive, but it gave her peace of mind.
She had rebuilt herself in the last three years. Survived being alone during that time. The few friends she’d kept after the trial had stayed in touch. They were her family. And she was adding to her tribe. Making friends. Opening herself to new things and pushing away the fear. Finally.
Having someone in her apartment only half an hour after she’d gone to get Martin the pain medication… What if they’d come in while she’d been getting the meds and she’d been alone?
She needed to block these thoughts and stay busy.
She set up a light and worked out a script for her next podcast. Her subject needed to be about how diving affected her post-trauma recovery. She went into how diving suspended time and helped her leave everything behind. But also, it was a foreign environment like being on a distant planet surrounded by creatures. It was both dangerous and beautiful—and it was a challenge. But diving also brought her peace. She dropped in some of the pictures she’d taken during the dive. After finishing the podcast and publishing it on line, she poured a glass of iced tea and sat down to brainstorm some other subjects she might want to explore before her trip to Australia.
She opened her email and found a message from Liam Bryant. Out of curiosity, she opened the link to his investment firm. The website was streamlined and well done but needed more color and lacked a personal touch to draw people in. Customer comments and biographies of the people who worked for him and their qualifications would help.
She glanced at the clock. Tucker would probably be back in another hour or so, and she needed to think about what she might fix for dinner. He’d be emotionally exhausted. Food might help. She went to the fridge and looked in to see what he had on hand.
She was thinking about cooking again even though she hated it. But she didn’t hate cooking for him. He did so much for her that she wanted to care for him. Like he’d done for her yesterday and last night.
She closed the refrigerator door and withdrew her phone from her pocket. She brought up the picture she’d taken that morning. His uniform looked snow-white against the tan of his skin. His eyes looked as green as the ocean at sunrise. He’d laughed when she’d told him she’d drool over him in his uniform. But right now, she was doing just that. But it was more than that.
The phone rang in her hand. Seeing Jess’s familiar number, she hit the button.
Jess sounded out of breath as she said, “I hate to bother you, but can you come get me? I have a flat. Oliver is working a double shift and can’t leave to come pick me up, and it’s too far to walk.”
“Wow, you two are having a run of bad luck with the cars. Where are you?”
“I pulled over at the grocery store just up from the apartment complex.”
“Okay. Where are you in the parking lot?”
“Toward the back of the lot. Just off the highway.”
“It will take me a few minutes to get there. I’m still at Tucker’s.”
“Okay. Be careful.”
“I will. See you soon.”
She hung up and texted Tucker that she was picking up Jess and why, then grabbed her purse and keys.
Traffic was heavy, and it took forty-five minutes to get to the grocery store. She turned toward the back of the lot and saw Jess perched on the hood of her car. She parked beside her dark blue Nissan, turned off the engine, then exited the car. She locked her purse inside her car and pocketed the fob.
“Have you got a temporary tire?”
“Yeah.”
“Let’s get that on, and you can take the car to a repair shop and get the tire plugged or replaced.”
“You know how to do that?” Jesse asked.
“Yeah. My brothers taught me before I started my cross-country trip. I’ve had to change a couple of tires since then. Pop the hatch.”
Jess removed the key fob in her pocket and pushed it. The hatch rose.
“Watch while I do this, so you’ll know how to do it next time,” Brynn said.
She positioned the jack, fitted the handle in the slot, and started pumping. The car started to rise.
“Need some help, ladies?” a voice came from behind them.
Recognition brought Brynn’s head around with a snap. Her breath caught as Tim Garner pointed a black pistol at them.
“Cooperate, and no one will get hurt,” he warned.