“His name is David. I have no idea what your nickname is for him. Here, let me show you a photo.” Amira whipped out her phone and clicked on the screen a few times before turning it to face him. “This is David.”
“Oh, I work with him. That’s Bang.”
She rolled her eyes. “Why do you call him Bang?”
“Because he threw a flash bang in training and it bounced back at us.”
She smirked. “That sounds like him. I mean I love him, but he’s ten years younger than me and was a pain in my ass when we were kids. I guess he grew up well, but I still see him as the little kid who liked to annoy the heck out of me.”
“He’s a good guy.”
“That’s good to hear. When he first went into the Navy, I worried about him. He was such a skinny little kid when he turned eighteen, I thought for sure he would be eaten up and spat out like chewing gum.”
Jump laughed. “I was woefully unprepared.”
“Well, you ended up in a good place. If you like that kind of thing.”
“I do.”
“Hey, is that your girlfriend out there? She can come in here if she wants. The place is empty today, so she won’t get in the way.”
He glanced out and spied Blakely with her forehead crinkled in concentration. “When she looks up, I’ll wave her in.”
“You keep doing your exercises and I’ll ask if she wants to join you. You’re almost done. Just need to ice your arm.”
Blakely laughed at something Amira said as they stepped into the room. They seemed to instantly get along. He smiled as they approached.
“You shouldn’t be smiling,” Amira said. “Maybe I’m getting soft. I should make sure to up your exercises.”
He chuckled and shook his head. “Seeing Blakely makes me smile. You could be torturing me and I’d still smile.”
Amira shook her head and Blakely put her hand on his good shoulder. Warmth spread through him. He liked having her close like this.
“Amira said you were almost done.”
He nodded. “She told me that, too, unless she decides to do more sadistic stuff.”
Amira laughed and pulled an ice pack from the chest in the corner. “It’s time for ice. Take an anti-inflammatory. I need the swelling to go down.”
“I’ll make sure he takes something.”
“Good. Keep him honest about what he’s doing. Military guys tend to overdo it and end up worse off than they were before.”
Jump huffed out a breath. “You know, I’m right here.”
Amira raised her eyebrows. “I have a brother who is Navy, and I was Navy. I know how you all are.”
He laughed then sighed as pain traveled up his arm to his neck. He needed this to heal fast, or he would end up in real trouble.
After his appointment they headed to the museum. It was fun watching Blakely get excited when they entered a new exhibit room. She loved the gems and the fossils. She stayed in the whale room for a long time.
“I had no idea whales were so big.”
“They are huge. I was on a ship early in my career and we spotted whales to the south. It was amazing. They were so big and beautiful.”
“Did you like living on a ship?”
“Heck no. I put up with it when I have to, but I don’t like it.”
