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Shark watchedher carefully as she ate all three of the power bars. She was still a little bit out of it. Her bruised and worried eyes went back to Easy over and over again, shifting to the coffin, then taking in all their faces. Then ultimately going back to Easy. Crazy Choos was in love with his teammate.
Easy would want her to be comfortable and cared for. He pulled the blanket that had slipped off her shoulders back up around her and tried to drape it around her body, but she stood, shrugging it off, and headed for the gurney where Easy lay.
Shark rose. With single-minded purpose she stopped near him, her hand reaching out, she brushed her fingers across his forehead, displacing some of his hair, then bent down and placed a lingering kiss there.
Twister had cleaned him up nicely, but Easy’s face was swollen and getting worse, and bruises were forming. Twister had applied ice packs to both cheeks, his right eye, and both knuckles. He remembered that beating, but he’d been prevented from intervening. There were just too many of them and they were just too close to Easy. He risked killing his buddy, and he knew Tex and the team would arrive any second.
Suddenly, she covered her face with her hands, and he watched her come apart piece by piece. For a moment, everyone froze. Finally, Shark put his arms around her and drew her against him, rubbing her back as she cried for a long time. Twister moved closer and patted her back.
Finally, her crying abated and he let her go. She looked up at him, her eyes puffy and red-rimmed, her cheeks wet from her tears. Swallowing hard, she wiped her face with the heel of her hand. “Could you please introduce me to the rest of your team?”
“Of course,” Shark said. “You met our LT and senior chief, and Twister.”
She smiled at his teammate, and without any warning, hugged him tight. “Thank you for what you’re doing for Easy…Matt.”
Shark took her around the plane, introducing Kade Hollis, Dagger, offering her condolences for his brother’s death and grateful for his saving her from being raped. If he hadn’t shown up when he did, things would have been entirely different. Then there was Christian Beckett, Brawler and Beast, and Jae Shaw, Flash.
She shook each of their hands. Then she turned to him. “Your name?”
“It’s Bale Maddox.” She lifted up and kissed the side of his cheek.
“Thank you, Bale.” She walked away from him and said some quiet words to Juan, who nodded and smiled. She kissed his cheek too. Then settled in the seat, wrapping the blanket around her, and stared at Easy until the fatigue dragged her into sleep.
So, Crazy Choos turned out to be one hell of a woman. She deserved Easy. When he looked over at his buddy, the guilt he felt tightened his gut and he didn’t make eye contact with Twister.
17
The viewof the White House and Washington Monument from the posh Trasker Presidential Hotel was spectacular. Astraea stared out the floor-to-ceiling windows of her private suite as she sipped on a glass of Bailey’s, taking in the twinkling lights of the nation’s capital. It was an exceptionally clear, cloudless night, and she wished her mind and thoughts were just as calm and untroubled.
She’d talked to her family. Her father and sister had been supportive, but her mother overwhelmed her with questions about her stupid job. Astraea had cut her off and said she would visit as soon as she was done at the State Department.
They had landed at Joint Base Andrews, and Twister had checked Easy’s vitals as the ambulance halted just beyond the cargo ramp. Before she could even unbuckle her seat belt, they put Easy in the ambulance and, along with Twister, sped off.
She was still feeling the effects of all that adrenaline overload, cranky from lack of sleep and worry over Easy.
Although she was aware he was going to recover, there was something in her chest that ached because she hadn’t had a chance to even thank him. She wanted to kiss him, hold him, reassure herself that he was alive. She wanted to tell him that she loved him more than she had ever thought possible to love a man. But the military was a machine and it worked fast and urgently when one of their own was injured.
She really hadn’t had a moment to recover from Easy’s abrupt departure when a woman called her name. Astraea turned to find someone else she didn’t know reaching out her hand. “Hello. I’m Lena Porter, the secretary’s chief of staff,” she said in a bubbly voice. “We are so happy to have you back safe and sound, Miss Devers. She turned to the black limo at the cargo ramp. “I’m afraid the news has broken about your rescue, so reporters are out en masse. But if you’ll follow me, I’ll get you to the State Department without too much fuss. But first, let’s get you to the hotel where you can clean up, change, get a meal, and a good night’s sleep.”
“I don’t want to go to the hotel! I want to go to Walter Reed,” she snapped.
The woman dropped her hand, concern on her face. “I’m so sorry. I know this must be very difficult for you.”
“You have no idea what I’ve been through and the only person who does has just been taken away. I want to see him, be with him.”
“You’re right, Miss Devers, I don’t—
“Astraea,” she said, rubbing at her temple, suddenly noticing the fatigue lines around her mouth, her bloodshot eyes, and how her black suit looked a little worse for wear. She had obviously been up for a long time. It had to be close to one a.m.
“Astraea,” she repeated, her face softening, her eyes very kind. “You’re right. I don’t know what you’ve been through. Let’s tackle those questions you have.”
Astraea wrapped her arms around her torso, sighing heavily.
“To be frank, you’ve been through hell, and we just want to accommodate your needs. It’s important that you take care of yourself right now. As for your request to be with SO Hitchcock, I’m afraid that’s the Navy’s purview. I can’t override or get you in to see him, now, but I’ll work on that tomorrow. I do know that his family is on their way here from Florida. He will be well taken care of.”
“That’s just not good enough,” she said wearily, then brushed past her, heading for the ramp.
The limo had whisked her away from the roar of voices calling her name while cameras flashed. True to her word, she’d been shown to this suite where several outfits had been laid out for her choice along with bras and underwear. She fingered the material of the black linen pants. Jack would have gone for these, but she picked up the soft denim capris with the double stitching around the hem, an ivory silk shirt with eyelet stars, a barely-there sheer ivory bra and panties, and a pair of flat, racy navy-blue sandals. She couldn’t help remembering the simple things Easy had picked out for her and was now in a cheap, rough bag somewhere in the jungle of Venezuela. She smiled softly; how she cherished that memory.
