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Tag rode the basket back up to the chopper, the empty gas can sitting pretty beside him. It felt like riding one of those fair rides, the litter swinging back and forth as the wind picked up, dotting the ocean surface below with little whitecaps, until Daeg pulled on the trail line, smoothing out the ride. Two minutes later, he was sliding inside the helicopter, and Daeg was breaking down the litter.
Cal’s voice came on over the headset. “Is our A One Anna Tuna back in business?”
“Yes, mission complete.” Tag shook his head wryly. The names people gave their boats never failed to amaze him. What was wrong with naming a boat something straightforward like Bob? He could have the Bob I, Bob II, maybe even a Bob III if the rescue business turned out to be a gold mine, or he was a really bad driver and burned through boats.
Daeg didn’t share his enthusiasm when Tag voiced the thought. “You can’t give a boat the kind of name you give your dog or your kid.”
“Are you stockpiling baby names?”
Daeg didn’t say anything, and that said it all, didn’t it?
“A One Anna Tuna is pretty bad,” Daeg finally admitted. “Thank God I’ve never been partial to Anna as a name.”
“Gets stuck in your head, doesn’t it?” He laid back on the floor, watching the crazy swing of the sky outside the open bay.
“You bet.”
Grinning, Daeg gave Tag a sly wink. “By the way, how’s your weekend rescue doing? Did your Harley survive the sick up?”
“Five bucks it was too much tequila,” Cal said over the radio.
Mia. “Beer’s on you, then. It was motion sickness. She’s a vet.”
“One of those traumatic brain injury things?” That was classic Cal. Cut his leg off, and the man would swear he was okay. Tag didn’t know who Mia had seen, but he didn’t like the idea of her passing on a medical assist because of some misguided notion that real soldiers didn’t ask for help.
He looked down at the ocean one more time, but the A One Anna Tuna’s crew had this. Plus, the Coast Guard was on their way to offer a tow if needed. He signaled Cal to head back to Discovery Island and dropped his head back onto the floor. Jesus. He needed a good night’s sleep sometime this century.
“Yeah,” he admitted. “She was Army and flew choppers.”
“IED,” Daeg said. “You’ve got the money shot right there. You drive over one of those, and, boom, it shakes your brain inside your Kevlar like a martini.”
“Did you hook up with her friends?” Cal asked. “Take her to see Doc Evan?”
Discovery Island had an emergency clinic with a part-time doctor and a full-time nurse. The place kept business hours, though, and there had been nothing a doctor could do anyhow.
“She was alone.” Because somehow an entire bridal party had failed to realize they’d left Mia behind.
Daeg turned his head and eyed him. “So...million dollar question. Where did you leave Hurling Beauty?”
“I took her home with me. Loaned her a shirt and a toothbrush.”
“Jesus. Why’d you do that?” Cal’s surprise came through loud and clear even over the headset.
Hello. “Because she was alone on a beach with most of her stuff on a cruise ship two hundred miles away?”
Daeg made a rude gesture. “Bring her to Sweet Moon’s. Dani’s grandparents can always use the business, and I guarantee it’s not going to raise eyebrows.”
He’d wanted her to stay at his place. Stupid, but there it was.
“Even I know you can’t bring a total stranger to your place.” Cal sounded irritated. “Even if she’s not a slice-and-dice kind of gal, she’s not going to feel comfortable spending the night with a random guy. Even if nothing’s happening,” he added hastily.
And...plenty had happened. “We’re not strangers,” he admitted. “We met in San Diego. We have some history.”
History he was not sharing the details of.
“Where is she now?” Cal interrupted.
Daeg grinned. “Halfway to Mexico, if she’s smart. Cabo’s way more fun than Discovery Island.”
“With me.” He waited for the fallout.
Daeg shook his head. “You meet her on the beach and you take her home just like that?”
The chopper banked left in a lazy circle. Out of the open bay door, Tag could see Discovery Island growing closer. They’d be home soon.
“Tag—” Cal took them down nice and easy, heading for the landing zone. “You have to remember one thing.”
