When Jake meets a woman at the Hard Deck, the last thing he expects is for her to be a Navy Seal. And not just any Seal, the Commander of Seal Team 3. She's beautiful, smart, dangerous, and everything about her just makes him want to get close. Her...
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The next few weeks were busy. Between organizing information, running exercises, and trying and failing not to drool over Hangman, Bear was scattered. The night before she had taught the pilots a little about handling the paintball guns they used for training and organized a paintball competition with everyone. She could hear the laughter and the teasing that had echoed loudly through the warehouse and it made her smile. Bear loved how easily her people and the pilots had come together, forming their own little pack. She had promised to look after them and seeing that their support systems were growing filled her heart with joy. A knock at her office door broke her from her thoughts. "Come in."
"Hey Bear. Hope we didn't interrupt anything." Bob and Rooster were standing in the open doorway.
"No, not at all. I was just finishing up. What's going on?"
Bob replied simply. "Us and a few of the others are heading out to the bar for a bit before we ship out tomorrow. You feeling up to joining us?"
Bear smiled softly. "Wish I could, Bobert and Chicken. I still have to finish my packing — well actually start my packing. Plus I need a night to just take it easy for a bit. But I appreciate the offer."
"No worries, just wanted to see if you were interested," Bob told her, giving her a wave. "Pretty sure Hangman's going to be disappointed though."
Bear's mouth fell open in shock. "I-what? Where did that come from?"
"We all see how you look at each other," Rooster added. "And honestly, Bug and I were chatting yesterday, she thinks that it would be good for you. I do too."
"Boys, come on," Bear sighed in defeat. "Nothing can or will happen there. The fact of the matter is that I am a superior. There's rules against this sort of thing."
Bob gave her a sympathetic smile. "But you aren't his direct superior. Especially once this mission is over. It could still happen. Doesn't mean that you have to, but just think about it," he said gently. "But we will leave you to finish up, and we'll see you bright and early tomorrow morning."
"Have a goodnight, Bear."
"Thanks guys, you too. Have fun tonight," Bear said quietly. Her mind was whirring. Somehow, the Daggers and her team knowing that there was mutual interest between her and Hangman made it worse. Her thoughts about the blonde pilot were all jumbled together. It would take a madwoman to sort through them and she just couldn't handle that on top of everything else she had to deal with. So she stuffed them down. She could sort them out later. Hopefully he'd understand.
Bear shut off her computer and packed her bag in a daze. A part of her wanted to see Hangman before they shipped out, but she knew that she'd see him tomorrow, so with a muddled mind, Bear left her office.
She was intercepted halfway to the parking lot by Fanboy and Fireball, who asked her the same question as Bob and Rooster had only minutes before. She turned them down, just like she had earlier and gave them a wave. Once in her car, Bear let her head thunk against the steering wheel, trying to shake off the haze of her thoughts. Taking a few deep breaths, the fog cleared and she drove home, humming along to a random song playing softly through the radio.
