Page 28 of Keeping Penny

“You look…happy.”

“I feel as if I’ve had a four-hundred-pound weight taken off my shoulders.”

“Good. Our time in the room is almost up. How about we go to the commissary and get you and Bowie some shoes.”

“We’re okay with what we have,” she felt obligated to say.

“I know you are. But I want to do this for you. Please.”

How could she say no to that?

She couldn’t. “Okay,” she said shyly.

To her surprise, Pyro brought the hand he’d been holding throughout their conversation up to his lips and kissed the back of it. “Thank you.”

Penny knew she was blushing, but she couldn’t help it. This man…he was…

He was literally everything she’d dreamed about in a partner, when she let down her guard long enough to think about things like that. Which had been ages, since she’d been so busy trying to make it through each day, one at a time.

Being evacuated from Libreville via helicopter had been terrifying, but in a weird way, it was the best thing that had ever happened to her. She and Bowie had met Pyro, and for the first time in years, she looked forward to the future.

To her surprise, Pyro didn’t drop her hand as he walked them through the library toward the exit. It was crazy how right her hand felt in his.

Penny couldn’t keep the smile off her face as she walked next to Pyro through the corridors of the large ship. Today felt like a new beginning…all because of the man at her side.

CHAPTER SIX

The shoes Pyro bought for Penny and Bowie were a huge hit with the little girl. They weren’t anything special, weren’t even that expensive. But Bowie loved them so much, she refused to take them off that first night when she went to bed.

That was five days ago. Penny had warned him that Bowie was “a lot,” but the reality was that she was a very well-mannered child. She was actually quiet except when she got to talking about something she was interested in. Then she could ask a hundred questions and still not be satisfied.

Pyro hadn’t expected anyone else to help entertain Penny or Bowie, but his fellow Night Stalkers had really stepped up. Chaos had built a kind of fort around Bowie’s bunk with a couple of sheets, both so she had some privacy and to help muffle the sounds in the room, since she went to bed earlier than the rest of them. Buck had taken her to the library a couple of times to read to her, giving Penny short breaks.

Obi-Wan sat with her for an entire afternoon as they both researched braille. Amazingly, the sailor in charge of the library had found one single book in braille. Bowie had never had the opportunity to learn it, and Obi-Wan was enjoying the challenge. He’d printed off the braille alphabet and the two had spent an afternoon translating the book in braille from the library.

The others had done their share of babysitting, as well. Taking the little girl on another tour of the ship, playing board games, or simply sitting with her in their bunk room, giving Penny more free time.

Seeing the little girl blossom under the positive attention she was getting from the adults was heartwarming…but Pyro couldn’t help but be pleased that he was the one she always wanted to sit next to in the chow hall. That it was his hand she held as they walked from one section of the ship to another. And when she asked him to read the Little House on the Prairie book he’d downloaded onto his tablet, after Penny told him Bowie was into chapter books.

He was smitten. How could he not be? Bowie was an incredible little girl. Smart as a whip and fascinated by everything around her. It was hard to believe she’d never had any formal schooling. That everything she knew was what her mom had taught her.

And as much as Pyro loved hanging out with Bowie, her mom held his attention even more. Penny was not only a great mother, she was friendly, intelligent…and when she was with him and his friends, gave Pyro all her attention. It was a heady feeling, especially for a man who’d grown up largely ignored, and who’d never had anyone focus completely on him.

Spending time onboard was sometimes boring, especially after a mission, when they’d already done their AAR and didn’t have another assignment pending. They essentially had no job on the ship and had to find ways to pass the time. The addition of Penny and Bowie to their little group was more than enough to stave off boredom, which was a relief.

Tomorrow, they’d finally arrive in Norfolk…and Pyro wanted to have another talk with Penny about what her next steps would be. He’d offered a few choices, and he’d do anything to keep her from having to go to a shelter.

Casper and Laryn took Bowie to the hangar after lunch, where they would be giving all the evacuee children a helicopter tour and letting them see the interior of a fighter jet. The carrier air wing commander had given his blessing for the tour, and Bowie couldn’t talk about anything else all morning.

Pyro would’ve loved to have seen the little girl’s reaction to touring the aircraft, but Casper promised he’d take lots of pictures and share them later. He and Penny weren’t attending the tour because he needed to tell her what he’d found out about Colvin Jackson. He’d also use that time to ask what she’d decided about her living situation when they arrived in Virginia the next day.

Truth be told, Pyro was nervous. About her reaction to the intel he’d gleaned about the man who’d made her life difficult back in Gabon, and her future plans.

Casper had arranged for them to talk in a small conference room they sometimes used when preparing for a flight. It had a circular table and office chairs that weren’t the most comfortable, but privacy was hard to come by when the carrier was at full capacity, so Pyro wasn’t going to be picky.

After leaving Bowie in Casper and Laryn’s capable hands at the hangar, Pyro led Penny to the conference room. He sat next to her at the table, turning his chair slightly so he could see her face as they talked.

“This week has been so great,” Penny told him with a small smile. “Bowie’s never had so much attention before. She’s going to be spoiled.”