CHAPTER TEN
SO, DID YOU and Wes take care of that obligation you had?” Dalton asked casually as Holden moved the hot dogs over to the side of the grill, then flipped a few of the burgers. His friend still hadn’t said a damn word about what he’d had to do in return for the equipment they’d used to break into JASCO, and Dalton couldn’t help but worry. Holden and Wes, on the other hand, had shown up at Kimber’s parents’ house an hour ago with a few bags of chips and some sodas, acting like nothing had happened.
“I did some stuff for the people I got the gear from,” Holden said without looking up. “A favor for a favor, so everything is square now.”
Dalton didn’t think he’d get anything else out of Holden, but he waited a few seconds before digging for more, just on the off chance he was wrong.
He wasn’t.
“This favor you did,” he prodded. “Any chance it’s going to come back and bite you and Wes in the ass someday?”
Holden still didn’t look at him. “I kept Wes out of it for the most part. As far as anyone knows, he was never there.”
Dalton cursed silently. “I’m thrilled for Wes, but what about you? You told me once that it had been hard for you to walk away from your past. Are you right back in it now because of what I asked you to do?”
Holden shrugged. “I knew what I was getting into when I agreed to help you. It’s nothing I can’t handle on my own.”
“Dammit, Holden. That’s the point! You don’t need to handle this on your own. If you got yourself in trouble because of me, I’m going to be there to get you out.”
“I know that.” His teammate flashed him a quick smile before turning his attention back to the grill. “You ever hear from those CIA agents who questioned us at JASCO? One of them said they’d let us know when they figured out what those Chinese spec op guys were after.”
Clearly, they’d reached the end of the conversation on whatever shady crap Holden had gotten himself involved in.
“Hell, no. Not that I thought I would,” Dalton said. “But Chasen talked to Charlie Shaw, that CIA operative Nash and I worked with down in Mexico. He dug around a little and found out that chip the Chinese wanted was some kind of advanced processor for networking smart weapons.”
Holden looked at him in confusion. “I have no idea what that even means. What, the chip lets you download Netflix on your M4?”
Dalton chuckled. “Not that kind of weapon. Munitions like bombs and missiles. The chip lets the ordnance communicate with the aircraft that launches it, even after the plane releases them. The pilot—or someone in a plane a hundred miles away—can change the target or direct a low-level attack angle. The chip will even let munitions talk to each other so they can autonomously coordinate their strike. It’s supposed to be the next big thing in weapons, which is likely why the Chinese were so eager to get their hands on them.”
Holden looked dubious. “Probably, but the whole thing sounds creepy to me. Isn’t this how Skynet started in the Terminator Series? Somebody thinking it would be a good idea to let machines think for themselves?”
Dalton couldn’t necessarily disagree with that logic.
“Not to change the subject, but I couldn’t help noticing you and Kimber look good together,” Holden said as he moved the burgers off the heat, then loaded the top level of the grill with the buns so they could toast up a bit. “Is this going anywhere or are you just messing around?”
Holden was always direct, even if the question had come out of nowhere, so Dalton wasn’t offended. The truth was, most of his SEAL teammates were the same. Getting shot at all the time made the idea of sugarcoating the silly shit seem like a waste of time, so why do it?
Dalton glanced over to see what Emma was up to. He smiled when he saw she was back over with Wes and her grandfather, playing with the stuffed toys he’d bought her. He’d been worried the cookout with Kimber’s parents would be awkward, but it hadn’t been like that at all. Her mother and father had welcomed him and his buddies like they were family. Her mother, Jessica, had given each of them a hug and thanked them for saving her granddaughter, while her father, Matt, had talked about sports like they were old friends. Neither one had asked a single question about what was going on between him and their daughter.
Which was a good thing, since Dalton didn’t really know.
“I know this is going to sound lame,” he said after giving his friend’s question some serious thought, “but I don’t have a friggin’ clue where Kimber and I are going. I mean, I just found out a couple days ago that I’m the father of an amazing little girl. I guess I’m still processing it all.”
Holden threw him a curious look. “Okay, forget for a minute that you have a kid, as difficult as that is to do, and focus on Kimber. Where do you want this thing with her to go? Do you want to get back together?”
Dalton opened his mouth to say he wasn’t sure about that, either, but then he stopped because that wasn’t true. He knew what he wanted, only he wasn’t sure if it was possible.
“Kimber is amazing,” he said. “She always was. In some ways, she’s even more incredible now. The lengths she’s willing to go to for Emma takes my breath away.”
“She sounds like an awesome mother,” Holden agreed. “But that wasn’t the question I asked. I wanted to know if you want a future with her as a woman, not merely as the mother of your child.”
Dalton chuckled. “When did you turn all Dr. Phil on my ass? Should I be lying down on a couch while you finish those burgers?”
Holden didn’t laugh. “You still haven’t answered the question.”
Dalton sighed. No, he hadn’t. “I like being with Kimber…a lot. I’m not exactly the introspective type, but lately I’ve started being honest with myself, and it’s forced me to realize I’ve spent a good part of the past five years trying to replace her. I went through a lot of women, every one of them tall, blond, and athletic just like her.”
He expected Holden to say something snarky, but his friend only regarded him thoughtfully. “That explains why you’ve been so cynical about Nash and the other guys getting into long-term relationships.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Just that at some level you’re a little jealous of them.”
Dalton’s first instinct was to say he wasn’t jealous about any of the other guys on the team finding someone. On the contrary, he was happy for them. But then he realized that would be a lie. Damn, how many of the other guys on the Team had noticed.
“I guess you’re right,” he admitted. “Pretty shitty of me, huh?”
Holden shrugged. “Not really. You had something good with Kimber. You lost it and that affected you. Nobody is going to hold it against you. Besides, none of that matters now.”
“It doesn’t?”
“No,” Holden said firmly. “Because you’ve been given a second chance with her. Which once again brings me back to the same question. Do you want to get back together with Kimber?”
“Yeah,” he said without hesitation. “I mean, when we’re together, it’s kind of amazing how easy it all seems to work. We just click.”
“That sounds like a good start,” Holden said. “Next question. Do you think Kimber would be willing to move down to San Diego with you?”
Dalton considered that. “I don’t know. She has a good job and an even better support system with her parents around to help raise Emma. I’m not sure she’d want to move.”
“Would you be okay with the long-distance thing?”
The honest answer was that he wouldn’t like it at all. To him, a relationship meant seeing each other all the time. Making love. Being there for each other…and for Emma. He couldn’t see the San-Diego-to-San-Francisco thing working out, but he might not have a lot of say in the situation.
“It wouldn’t be my first option, but if that was the only way Kimber would agree to let me into their lives, then that’s the way it would have to be, I guess.”
Holden transferred the burgers, dogs, and buns off the grill, loading up a big tray with them. “It sounds like you and Kimber have some serious talking to do.”
All Dalton could do was nod, wishing he had a clue exactly how he’d tackle that conversation.