CHAPTER EIGHT
Monday, April 9th
Daphne waited in the courtyard of the apartment complex and sipped her coffee. Why she had agreed to have breakfast with Bryce at six in the morning was still something she didn’t understand.
Smoothing out her uniform pants, she knew that wasn’t true because it was his pleading and smile that had made her give into having a crack of dawn meal together. He’d worn her down last night when he showed her the beautiful bouquet of almost dead flowers that he’d gotten her on Saturday.
She heard a door open and looked up to see him coming out of his place with his bag slung over his shoulder. Seeing him in his BDU’s sent a little shiver of attraction through her body and she hoped she wasn’t like every other woman on base who fell for a handsome SEAL.
Sitting up, she firmed her posture and resolve and knew she would let no such thing happen. A strong woman wasn’t swayed by a pretty face and rock-hard body, and she was definitely strong. Seeing his easy gait and confidence as he moved toward her was nothing that she couldn’t handle.
His smile, though, could be a whole different story.
“Good morning,” she called out as he got close.
“It sure as hell is.” He leaned down and gave her a kiss on the cheek and grinned. “We finally are having a date.”
Standing, she slung her bag over her shoulder and then handed him a travel mug. “This isn’t a date. This is friends having breakfast.”
Taking the mug, he shrugged. “Okay, if that’s what you want to call it, then it’s fine by me.” Taking the lid off, he took a big slug. “But as far as I’m concerned, this is a date. You wouldn’t make coffee for just anybody, so there it is.”
“I had extra and didn’t want it to go to waste.”
Taking her hand, he started walking toward the garage. “Whatever you say.”
“Bryce.”
Stopping at the gate, he looked down and grinned. “Yes, darlin’?”
She looked from side to side and tried to come up with something that would put him in his place and found her mind was blank. “Never mind.”
“The way you start your Monday is the way your week is going to go, and since you and I are having our morning coffee together, I can only dream of what we might be doing by Friday.”
“Does this southern charm thing work for you very often?”
“Don’t know because I haven’t pulled it out since college. That was the last time I had a girlfriend, so it may take me a while to knock the rust off and really get it going. What we’ve got going on this morning is just a warm-up. You give me a couple of days and I’ll be running on all cylinders.”
“Lord have mercy, not sure I’m ready to see what that looks like.” They walked down the stairs to the garage and headed toward Bryce’s truck and he opened the door and waited. “I hope you don’t hit me full blast with it.”
“I can’t guarantee that because once I let it loose, it has a mind of its own.” He helped her into the truck and then looked around. “Is your car still at the base?”
“Yes, I tried to go and get it a bunch of times this weekend and it never worked out.”
“That’s on me, I was going to take you Saturday morning, but screwed up before I could.”
“It was up to me and no one else.” He gave her a funny look and then dropped his bag in the back and climbed into the truck.
“What did you mean by that?”
“Exactly what I said.” When he shook his head and started the truck, she hoped he’d leave it alone. There was no way she wanted to go into her whole childhood and adolescence and the adult she turned into. It was too much for most anyone and she certainly wasn’t going to reveal anything to someone she hardly knew.
As they pulled out of the garage and headed through the streets of their North Park neighborhood, she thought about what her week was going to look like. There were several pending projects on her desk, and she hoped to get through them before something urgent came up for the Teams.
Which wasn’t likely, considering conflicts around the world were heating up and evolving on a twenty-four-hour cycle. She’d gotten a flavor of it at AFRICOM, and now that she was involved with developing intelligence globally, it was even more true.
The Teams didn’t operate in the old geographical confines as often as they used to, and that meant that the intel she developed and refined could come from any corner of the world.
Which is exactly what she had hoped for when she had decided to join the Naval Intelligence community.
“I thought we’d have breakfast on the island. What time do you have to be in today?”
“O800,” she replied as she looked out the window. “What is your down cycle like? Do you have to report at a certain time?”
“We have the usual training, and we operate by the rule that if you don’t have anything to do, don’t do it here. So, it’s loose right now, and all we have to do is keep up our skills and sharpen our specialties.”
“What’s your specialty?”
“Communications and I’ve started to work on my medic qualifications.”
“I think that’s one of the coolest things about being in the SOF community; you always get to learn something new. No two days are the same, and the possibility of stagnation is impossible.”
“Is that something you’re interested in?”
“No, I like knowing what to expect and having clear objectives that I can meet on a daily basis. I had enough surprises and change when I was growing up, so NI is the perfect place for me.”
“I think that’s the key to finding happiness; know what you need and want and then make sure you find an environment that supports it.”
“That may be the key to happiness in a nutshell.”
He looked over as they got on the highway and then took her hand. “And have someone who you want to go through the circus with.”
“Doesn’t hurt to have a partner in crime.”
“No, it sure doesn’t,” he replied with a smile.
Deciding that it was best left alone, she looked out the window and wondered if she should take her hand away. If she did, it would mean she felt something, and if she didn’t, then it meant she liked it. There was no good answer, so she chose just to enjoy it.
***
Grabbing two stools at the counter of Claytons, Bryce waited for Daphne to be seated before he took his own. Their cups were instantly filled with coffee, and they had two menus pushed in front of them before a minute passed.
Which was his kind of place.
Glancing at the menu, he decided quickly and then put his arm on the back of Daphne’s stool. “What are you having?”
“I’m going to try the French toast.”
“Perfect, that way I can steal some from your plate.”
“Not sure I’m going to let that happen, depends what you’re offering up in exchange.”
He ran his hand over her shoulder and winked. “I’m going to have the garbage omelet and a bowl of fruit. I’d offer to add some kisses to the deal, but I’m not sure if that would help or hurt me.”
Turning in her seat, she studied his face. “I can’t tell if you’re serious or just flirting for the sake of it.”
“I’ve been chasing you since the moment I set eyes on you back in Djibouti and, even though it hasn’t been all that smooth, there’s no way you can mistake my interest.” Before he could say more, the waitress stopped by and they placed their orders. Once she left, he took Daphne’s hand and ran his finger over her soft skin. “I’m sorry about telling you to cancel your date on Saturday. I was being pigheaded and selfish because it made me crazy to think that you were interested in someone else.” Seeing her mouth open, he held up his hand and shook his head. “Please, let me get it all out, and then you can give me your verdict.”
“Okay, go on.”
“I knew I screwed up pretty quickly and was ready right away to apologize, but then when I saw you and you blew me off and didn’t acknowledge me, I backed off. When I went to try again, I saw you get on a motorcycle with a guy and figured there was no chance for me. Now that I know you have a twin, I’m pretty sure it was Selah that I saw and not you.”
“So, what are you trying to say, Bryce?”
“I was a fool and I’d like a do-over, so we can start fresh. If you want to date a bunch of people while you get to know me, then I’ll find a way to handle it. I’m pretty confident that there could be something great between us, and I believe we’ll end up together.”
“Can I say something now?”
Nodding, he laced their fingers tighter. “Yes.”
“Thank you for telling me how you feel because it makes your behavior understandable and I’d like to be friends.”
“Any chance you might want to be more than friends?”
“The way you kissed me Saturday tells me I’d be a fool not to explore our chemistry, but there are a couple of red flags that are making me nervous.”
“I won’t tell you what to do, and I promise to keep my jealousy in check.”
“Let’s just be friends for now and see what happens.”
Grinning, he nodded. “I think that’s the best answer I could hope for.”
“I’ve only had one boyfriend, and that was back in college, so I don’t have a ton of experience and don’t know what to make of the signs of crazy you’ve been showing me.”
“Let’s think of it as unbridled enthusiasm and not crazy.”
“The rope is swinging toward crazy, but I guess I’d like to see where it lands.”
“Damn girl, you just made fall a little harder for you.” Lifting her chin, he captured her mouth with his. When she relaxed into him, his heart pounded wildly as he took in every nuance of her soft, warm lips and unique taste. Being deliberately gentle, he released her mouth and cupped her neck as he rested his head against hers. “Doesn’t matter how slow we go or how long it takes, I’m in.”
She let out a small laugh and then moved away from his hold. “So, we’re friends that kiss?”
“I’m hoping like hell that’s possible.”
“Why do you have to be so good at it? It makes you very hard to resist.”
“Chemistry is a powerful force and we seem to have it, so maybe if we don’t fight it, we’ll have a chance of surviving.”
“That’s an effective rationalization and one I can live with.”
“Thank God.” He sat up straight, looked around the busy restaurant, and decided a Monday morning kiss was not a bad way to start out the week. “Would you like to go out to dinner tonight?”
“That sounds lovely, but I planned on making a big pan of lasagna. I usually do meal prep on Sunday, but with my sister staying with me, I didn’t get a chance.”
“Okay, just let me know when you’re available.” Their food was delivered, and he knew he shouldn’t be disappointed, but sure felt the air leak out of his balloon of happiness. He was hungry for her company and just because she didn’t seem to be at his same level didn’t mean they wouldn’t end up together. He cut into his omelet and felt her hand on his arm and turned. “Yes, darlin’?”
“If you want to come over tonight for dinner, I’d like that.”
“There is never an if when it comes to you. I would love to come, and I’ll grab something for dessert, so we can have it while we start on Narcos.”
“The man with a plan.”
“Always.” Watching her smile while she started in on her French toast let him know they were back on track. “I haven’t had a chance to ask you about Kiasa; have you gotten any pictures?”
Setting her cutlery down, she wiped her mouth and then smiled. “She is growing so fast.” She pulled out her phone and held it up. “This was taken last week.”
He grabbed it and studied her screen saver. The eight-month-old elephant was holding her bottle on her own. “That’s impressive.”
Nodding, she took back the phone. “She’s finally hanging out with the other elephants, and that’s a great sign because it means she’s worked through some of her grief over losing her elephant family. When she first got there, she kept herself separated from the other ones because of her sadness and mourning. She became attached to the keepers, which I’ve learned is normal because they crave the attention, love, and gentle care that the humans give them. The other baby, Maktao was hooked on the keepers as well and was possessive and jealous, but Kiasa was no pushover and ignored him and stood her ground.”
“Has she started to settle in?”
“Yes, she’s not trying to return to the stockades during the day anymore and sneak away from the group, and Tagwa, who is her favorite keeper, has got her settled into a routine.”
“I’m glad that the fostering worked out so well; I wasn’t sure if you’d be into it.”
“I’ve got no control and have fostered one more.”
“You did?”
“Don’t look so surprised. If you spend more than ten minutes on the site, you can’t help yourself. I’m fostering Ajali, who is an older bull. He was hit by a car and his road to recovery has been long and arduous. He was traumatized not only physically, but emotionally, and is only just now well enough to join the orphans out in the bush on their daily routine.”
Taking her hand, he nodded and felt like he’d been right about her all along. She had a big heart and clearly was compassionate, and he found those qualities irresistible. “I’d love to see their pictures tonight when we get together.”
“You better be careful what you ask for because I have quite a few. I set up an Instagram account for them, just so I’d have someplace to post all the updates without annoying everyone. According to my sister, I elephant spammed people the first month.”
“You’ll have to set me up tonight on Instagram so that I can follow you and the elephants.” He let her hand go and then leaned over and kissed her cheek. “Maybe it’s about time I fostered my own elephant.”
“I think that’s a great idea. They need all the love and care that they can get. After all, they’ve been left alone in the world and if it wasn’t for Sheldrick Wild Life Trust, they wouldn’t have made it.” She picked up her fork and then set it down. “Elephants are not only the largest land animals on the planet, they are also among the most exuberantly expressive creatures. Joy, anger, grief, compassion, and love are some of the finest emotions and they experience all of them. They’re also capable of complex thought and deep feeling, so I think we should do everything we can to protect them.”
“I couldn’t agree more.” He handed her the fork and nodded toward her plate. “We better finish up, so I can get you to work on time.” As he dug into his food, he ran her words over in his mind and wondered who protected her, if anyone.
There was something about the way she held herself that suggested no one had in a very long time, and he hoped that maybe someday it could be him. Because as far as he could see, it would be a privilege if he got to be the one who stood between her and the world.