“I have a favor to ask.” Deadeye pauses and Hawk nods for him to continue. “See if you can get me any information on the family of the young girl from the refugee camp that was killed the day we rescued Elise.”
“Of course, Deadeye. I will see what I can find out for you.” Hawk gives him a bro-hand shake before turning away to take his family home.
Chapter 15
Deadeye is standingin his kitchen at 4 in the morning waiting for his coffee to brew. It’s been another sleepless night thinking about Elise and worrying about what she is going through. It’s been almost two weeks since he walked away from her. Worst mistake of his life. She has text him every day. Seems Charlotte gave her his number. Damn Charlotte, always meddling, but he was thankful for it. His heart has beat overtime every time his phone pings with an incoming message. He lives for her short little messages, letting him know how her day went. He hasn’t answered her even though he wanted to so badly.
Hawk had cornered him yesterday at the end of their last meeting of the day. He called him out on not being focused during PT, training classes, and team meetings. Deadeye knew Hawk was right, but it did sting that his commander and friend had to call him out. They sat down and had an intense chat after everyone else had left for the day.
“Hey man, talk to me. I know you are having a hard time since Elise went home with her parents, but you have got to pull your head out of your ass before you damage your rep with the guys, or worse your career.” Hawk admonishes him with a kind smile.
“Hell, I know Hawk. I just can’t get her out of my head. She has been texting me every day, but I haven’t answered her. I’m trying to give her some space. Let her think things through. Am I doing the right thing? Maybe she thinks I don’t care, but that’s the farthest thing from the truth. Hell, I care too much. That’s the damn fucking problem.”
Hawk laughs out loud. Deadeye growls while giving Hawk the stink eye. Once Hawk has gotten himself under control, he advises Deadeye about love. “You can’t care too much, big guy. You are doing what you think is best. She understands.” Hawk pauses then continues. “I probably should have told you before now, but she and Charlotte have been talking every day. You know what Charlotte went through after we rescued her. She wanted to help Elise, be a friend that understands what she went through. She told Charlotte she knew why you weren’t answering her. She wasn’t upset because she knew you were reading every word she wrote. She told us about the threats her father made that day after the press conference. You know I would have defended you. I would never let them ruin your career.”
“I know, Hawk.” Deadeye says with a heavy heart. “I just didn’t want you getting dragged into my mess. It just seemed like the right thing to do at the time, but I have regretted it every moment since.”
“Look, I can’t tell you what to do, but here’s my advice. Next time she texts, answer her. Let her know you are here for her and how much you care. Encourage her to stay with her parents for a while longer.” Hawk holds his hands up when Deadeye starts to protest. “That will allow both you and her parents to know that you are both serious about this relationship. While I think her parents should stay out of it, I can understand their concern about her state of mind after what happened. Give it some time and when she is ready, be there for her.”
“Alright, Hawk. That is actually good advice.” Deadeye smirks at Hawk. “I guess being married to Charlotte has rubbed off on you, huh?” Deadeye laughs at his own joke.
“Yeah, Smartass. She has been a good influence on me. She showed me I could love and be happy. That I wasn’t doomed to a life of solitude after my devastating first marriage.” Hawk replies reflectively. “She makes me better. I will be forever thankful we were in the right place at the right time to save her.”
“I’m happy for you, Hawk. She has been good for you and Brian.” Deadeye says with sincerity. “You have been good for her and her children, too. And don’t get me started on the bright light those twins of yours are to all of us. The whole team loves those boys and we can’t wait to find out what Charlotte is carrying this time. How’s she doing?”
“Tired all the time. I know that’s normal in the beginning. Remember how easily she would fall asleep with the twins, but this seems different.” Hawk sighs. “I worry because of her age and getting pregnant again when the boys were only 6 months old. I’m an ass for knocking her up again so soon, but we thought since she was breast feeding, we would be ok. Even the OB said it should have taken a few more months, but I guess it was just meant to be. Just like us being together.” Hawk smiles then. “That’s enough sappy talk. Go home get some rest and come back tomorrow with your head in the game, alright?”
“Yeah, Hawk. I’ll get my head in the game.” Deadeye smiles at his friend. “Thank Charlotte for me. I would never have made it this long without her text messages. I would have gone to Maryland and ended up in jail for putting her parents in their place.”
“I will. We can’t have you going to jail. Now, go text your woman.” Hawk slaps him on the back as he stands to leave. “On second thought, just Facetime her. That way you can see her.”
“Thanks, Hawk. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Deadeye heads out of the conference room and makes his way to the parking lot to his 2010 Toyota Tacoma. It wasn’t the newest vehicle on the road, but it was a highly reliable piece of transportation. Despite having over 200,000 miles he was never concerned about it not starting or getting him where he needed to go and back.
The drive to his apartment was short and uneventful. Once inside he ate a light supper before hitting the shower and making his way to his bed. He had a hard time falling asleep. He had so much on his mind and was still uncertain what he was going to do about Elise.
He had spent a very restless night. Awaking from another dream of Elise at 3:30 am, he got up and showered again. He decided he would just get up and make his coffee before heading to base to begin his day. He was staring at his phone thinking about pulling up her last message when his phone pinged again. It startled him because of the early hour of morning.
Hope I’m not waking you. I can’t sleep and I was missing you, so I had to reach out to you. I know you can’t respond because of my father’s threats, but I wanted you to know that I still care for you. ~Elise
I don’t give a shit about your father’s threats. I miss you too, sweetheart. I’m sorry I haven’t been answering you. I just wanted to give you some time to think about everything that happened and figure out how you really feel.” ~Warren
Warren, I know how I feel and what I want. I wasn’t confused, but I can understand where you are coming from. I know I was in shock part of the time we were first together, but what I felt was the most real emotions I have had about any man.” ~Elise
“It would not be unreasonable to be confused about me…us. You had been through Hell and I didn’t ever want you to wake up someday and feel that I took advantage of you and your situation. I told you before I will be here when you are ready for more.” ~Warren
“I’m ready now, but I want you to believe that this is real, too. How long will it take to convince you?” ~ Elise
“For now, we will text and Facetime until your therapist thinks it’s ok for you to come see me. I would come to you, but I would hate to get shot on US soil after surviving so many dangerous situations overseas. Lol!” ~ Warren
“I would hate that, too. I need you in my life for a long time. I’ll try not to drive you crazy, but sometimes I just can’t help myself. I need to talk to you.” ~ Elise
“I need to hear from you, too. I’ll talk to you soon. Be safe. Call or message me anytime. I mean that. If you need me even in the middle of the night when the nightmares come, call me.” ~Warren
Deadeye was amazed at the relief he felt after answering her messages. He knew he was doing the right thing. He was giving her space that would let everyone know that their attraction is real. He would wait as long as needed for her to be ready for them to move forward. He is surprised at himself. In the past he would never had considered such a thing, but with Elise it’s all he can think about. Smiling to himself as he drinks his coffee, today is going to be a great day. He heads to the bedroom to get ready for his morning training and briefings. Definitely going to be a good day.
Elise’s heart is about to burst. He has finally responded to her. Charlotte had assured her that he was in agony over not answering her, but she had had her doubts. Thankfully Charlotte was right. She had told her just last night that Hawk had talked to him and encouraged him to stop holding back. It seems he had taken Hawk’s advice. Maybe they would be able to make this work after all.
Elise hated to admit it, but she was having a hard time getting over her week of captivity. Her parents were even more smothering than before which made her feel like she was being held captive all over again. The nightmares were the worst. She often dreamed of Lakia and her horrible death. So much blood, her lifeless eyes staring at nothing. She has not talked with her parents yet about what happened to her and all that she saw, other than the debriefing they had sat in on. She knew they had questions and wanted to protect her from Warren, but what they didn’t understand was he was the last person she needed to be protected from. Warren is a good man. He proved that by sending her away to give her time to figure out what she wanted and needed. He could have easily encouraged her to stay with him, but he sent her away so that he didn’t influence her decisions. She loved him for that.
