Page 50 of Logan

“Did you have to get out?”

“Even after surgery, my knee was never going to be strong enough for me to jump outta planes anymore or even swim as long as I needed.”

“They kicked you out?” she cried with indignity.

“No, babe. I got out. I could have stayed in the Navy and worked a desk job. Even trained new SEALs. But the more I thought about it, the less I liked the idea.”

“And the farm?”

Shaking his head while chuckling, he said, “It was never for me. When I left for SEAL training, I told my parents that it needed to go to someone who loved it as much as they did. I have a younger sister, and she stayed there. She married a good man whose dad owned a farm nearby. They’ve got both farms now and kids, two boys and two girls. They’ll have someone to keep it going.”

“But it was your legacy?—”

“Nah,” he countered, conviction in his voice. “It was never my legacy. I loved the farm, loved growing up there, but farming’s not in my blood. It’s got to be inside you every second, and for me, that was being a SEAL.”

“Where did you go?”

Leaning back with a grin, he replied, “Montana. Cut Bank, Montana. Out in the boonies. I got acres out in the middle of nowhere. I built a house and a large hangar for my helicopters. I made a business out of flying tourists around and doing rescues.”

She heard all the words he spoke, but her mind was stuck back on Montana. Blinking, she tried to understand his reasoning. “Montana?”

Throwing his head back, he laughed. “Yeah, Viv. Montana.”

Kicking him softly with her leg, she said, “But why Montana? It’s not near the water…it’s not near anything.”

His mirth slowly faded, and his eyes held hers. She nodded slowly as understanding dawned. “You didn’t want to be near the water. You didn’t want to be near people.” She knew she’d hit the nail on the head when he nodded slowly.

“I was never very sociable. Figured seeing the ocean every day would always remind me of what I lost. So Bumfuck, Montana, seemed like a good idea.”

Sitting in silence, she considered his words. His downward turn of lips and dullness in his eyes made it obvious that flyingtourists wasn’t his passion. “What about your company now? Where did you move to?”

“Still Montana. The original Lighthouse team is in Maine, and one is in California. That’s the West Coast group. And mine is in Montana.”

She remained quiet, wanting to know more but unsure if he would give her anything but the basics. A yearning deep inside grew, consuming her, but she forced the words to stay unspoken. Barely breathing, she felt the air leave her lungs when he finally continued.

“A man who had served in the Army Special Forces and then as a CIA special operator got out and started his own business. That’s the original Lighthouse Security Investigations. Located in Maine, they grew a respected reputation and work with the government and private requests for security work as well as taking on the investigations that stymied or overtaxed law enforcement. They’re known as Keepers, for the old lighthouse keepers who guided people to safety.”

She watched as the shine returned to his eyes, and his voice held pride. She leaned forward, eagerly awaiting more.

“Then he partnered with a fellow special forces man who had a security-to-the-stars business in California but was destined for so much more. He made the change to the LSI kind of security and investigations and built a team.”

“That’s the West Coast group, right?”

He grinned. “You remember.”

She just smiled and nodded. His smile slowly ended, a look of indecision crossing his face. She held her breath again, hoping whatever he was thinking, he would voice.

“While running tourists and doing rescues, I also took on a few covert jobs for DHS. Worked solo.” He shrugged. “I liked the planning. I liked just relying on myself, not having to worry if a teammate was injured or going to be killed on a mission.”

“As physically unsafe as it might be, you felt emotionally safe.”

His eyes widened as his gaze shot to hers, and he exhaled forcefully. “Damn, Viv. That’s exactly what it felt like.”

She tilted her head slightly, curiosity about thenowLogan since she understood more of his past. “So your new company has people working with you, right? The ones you’ve been talking to. The one who flew here with your equipment.”

A deep chuckle erupted as he nodded. “Yeah… completely different change for me… again.”

“But more like the SEALs?”

---