Page 17 of Twister

She nodded.

He cleared his throat, not looking at her. “That was an interesting response to a panic attack,” he said, deadpan. “It would take the world of therapy by storm.” His eyes lit as he nearly smiled, and Sadie felt her knees go weak. She wanted to get a full smile out of him, but the humor was oh-so-charming.

“I have a PhD in flying by the seat of my pants.”

He laughed and she got the full force of that disarming and heartstopping smile. Okay, he had a sense of humor. Thank God. He shook his head, the amusement fading way too soon at her next words.

“I see someone that needs help, and I come up with a solution.” Her tone went serious.

“That was one hell of a solution,” he said under his breath.

“If you ever need to talk about it?—”

“I won’t,” he said. “It’s under control.”

She bit her lip and wanted to say more, but his whole demeanor warned her off. “The invitation stands,” she said stubbornly, knowing he was in denial big time.

He looked over his shoulder at the guys finishing up with airport security, then, his voice compressed, said, “You won’t say anything to my?—”

“Of course not. That’s not my place or my business. My lips are sealed.”

At the mention of her lips, his gaze dropped to her mouth, and he looked like he wanted to devour her, but his defenses were now firmly in place.

Beneath that undercurrent of sexual chemistry was a cool, calculating mind, and there was a wariness that hadn’t quite gone away, buried in that look of deep, aching loneliness she’d glimpsed.

He set a bandage over her cut. Then Tex was calling them over, and it was time to go to their barracks. She pushed up,exhaustion pulling at her, and followed Twister to the team, then they all left the airport in a van provided by the government.

There was very little conversation. The oppressive events and their weariness took them all over.

The driver navigated through the heart of Denpasar, wading through the heavy traffic of the major capital and a bridge to the other pleasure centers of the province. The city was made up of tightly knit villages with Hindu temples surrounded by communal family compounds. They passed the shopping district featuring lively street markets, department stores, and trendy boutiques. They went through a square, past the governor’s office, the Bali Museum, and a number of hotels and banks to a compound that looked like a former recreational center. It was closest to Serangan Port, where they would be ferrying back and forth to the USSKittiwakewreckage.

With the reminder that she was here for a job, she shifted gears in her head, her body was much more reluctant to cooperate, and she pushed away that craving to get closer to the man who sat a seat ahead of her.

She was here for a job, a very important job. There was a possibility that she would recover the remains of her great-grandfather, and the urge to give her grandmother some peace before she passed surged up in her.

Their family had been waiting such a long time for word about him. It was time to bring all those boys home from a war fought seventy-nine years ago, one that set the course for how the world had formed in the wake of evil and devastation.

She was part of a force that worked to keep everything in balance, and she wasn’t about to shirk even one iota of the work required to raise theKittiwakeand repatriate the sub and hopefully everyone aboard.

She thought about what the last moments must have been like for her great-grandfather, aching that he had died in suchterror, aching that she never got to know him except through pictures of a young man in a Navy uniform. Proud that he had served his country and given the ultimate sacrifice so that her mom, aunt, and their children would grow up in a world that had been rendered safe from Nazism.

When the van stopped, she rose and stepped to the door. Twister was there to offer her his hand, and she took it, feeling that same electric sizzle from his touch.

Inside, Tex said, “Get some rest. I don’t want to see any of you until oh-seven hundred for PT.” There was a grumble of assent, and they went through the simple lobby to the elevators that took them to a floor where they had their sleeping quarters. She was at the end of the hall, and as one of the sailors working with the SEALs hauled her bags into the room, she closed the door. The room was sparse, with a dresser, large bed, and nightstand, but it was all she needed. She wouldn’t be spending much time here.

She wanted to fall on the bed and collapse, but she couldn’t stand being so dirty. There was still grit on her skin and some dried blood.

She jumped into the shower, washed thoroughly, donned a fresh T-shirt and underwear, and made a beeline for the bed, but there was a sudden knock on her door.

She frowned and sighed, quickly grabbing up a pair of shorts and stepping into them. Her heart was pounding when she reached the door and turned the knob. Twister was there, a hard look on his face.

“What—”

Before she could even get the words out of her mouth, he pushed his way into the room and closed the door behind him. Then she was up against the wall, and she locked her arms around his neck, her breath catching as he claimed her mouth again, his thick hardness fused against her.

He smelled heavenly, freshly showered, his hair still damp. “I don’t have time right now, but we’re going to talk about…things later. I have lights out, and Tex doesn’t tolerate delinquent SEALs. But he always leaves the punishment to Bondo, and that exacting bastard doesn’t pull any punches. Tell me right now if what happened between us is something you’d rather forget, and I’ll back off completely.”

Her response was instantaneous. Sadie’s heart started pounding, and it was impossible to breathe. Pulling his head down, she brought his mouth into full contact with hers.

---