Page 78 of Tempest

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Saturday

Ryan loaded the car with their bags and waited for Ivy to say goodbye. Colin was staying with Phoebe and Grace while they continued to work on restructuring Bellows Energy. Ryan and Ivy were going home for Grams’ birthday lunch tomorrow, and then flying out to Florida in a week. As he watched her hug everyone goodbye, he thought about why the person who’d taken a shot at her had not resurfaced. It didn’t make any sense. Who else in Bill Bellows’ life was pissed enough to shoot at his daughter? It had been sitting in the back of his brain for a week, and he hadn’t come up with an answer yet.

Ivy finished with her goodbyes and walked toward him with a smile. It always gave him a little jolt of pleasure when she looked at him that way. If he played his cards right, he’d get to keep seeing her smile like that every day.

“Let’s get on the road. We have five hours of driving,” Ivy said as she patted his chest. “Actually, you have five hours of driving. I’ll be napping.”

He held her door and waited for her to climb in. “Did I wear you out last night?”

“Yes, you did,” she called out as he got in and started the car. “You never let me out of the room last night. We got home and you made good on your promise of taking me up against the wall.”

“I never make a statement that I don’t plan on following up on. I am a man of my word.”

“Yes, you certainly are.”

He glanced over before he turned onto the main road. Her face was pink, and she was looking out the window. “Are you thinking about what we did? Your cheeks are pink. So you’re either embarrassed or turned on. Maybe both.”

“Both,” she answered quietly.

“Good. I want to make sure that you’re as defenseless as I am in this situation.”

Smoothing out her skirt, she shrugged. “I hate being in control, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out why. I’ve made most of the decisions in my life based on how much security they were going to give me. My major in college, my job choice, and the men I dated. You, Ryan Cordell, are anything but certain. What’s happening between us is scaring me to death. I vacillate between utter happiness and sheer terror. I’m so far outside of my comfort zone that I don’t know what to do most of the time.”

“As long as we both admit our feelings, it will work out,” he said as he grabbed her hand.

“Is the easy part coming anytime soon? I could sure use it.”

“Not sure. Guess we’ll just have to hold on to each other and wait until it does.” Lifting her hand to his mouth, he brushed a kiss over her knuckles.

“I’m taking a nap,” she announced as they got onto the highway.

“I’ll wake you up in a couple of hours and we’ll stop for lunch.” When she didn’t respond, he looked over and saw that she was already asleep. Guess he did wear her out. His need for her wasn’t going away. It was, in fact, getting worse. Nothing like this had ever happened, and he knew it was because she was the one. When he’d gotten the text from Grace on Monday about William and the gun, his heart almost stopped. Why were there so many people who had guns pointed at Ivy? Most people went their whole lives without having one. It was good luck that she knew how to use one and could defend herself. The shot she’d taken at William had incapacitated him but not given him any long-term damage. It wasn’t easy to point your gun and shoot another human being. He knew that better than most. Ivy had done it because she was going to protect the other women in the room and the dog. Everything he’d suspected about her character turned out to be true. She’d defend those people who were important to her without a second thought. They were more alike than she thought, and he prayed that was going to work in their favor.

***

They’d stopped in Eldorado for lunch, and as they walked toward the diner, Ryan saw the town square filled with flags. Tomorrow was 9/11, so they must be getting ready for some sort of celebration. Always a hard day for those who have served in the military. Most every person remembered where they were and how the events that unfolded that day marked their lives. He was about to say something when Ivy spoke up.

“Where were you when you heard the news about the towers being hit?”

“I was just thinking about that because I saw the flags over there. I was a junior in high school and I was sitting in chemistry class. Where were you?”

I was a freshman, and I was in English class when the teacher picked up the phone and then started crying. Did you know then that you wanted to join the service?”

“Not really. I guess in the back of my mind I thought about it in some vague way. The idea didn’t crystalize until I was in college. Senior year came a lot faster than I was ready for, and I had no idea what I wanted to do. I majored in political science and knew I was never going to do anything with the degree. I had the option of going home and working at the winery, but that didn’t appeal to me.” Laughing he shook, his head.

“I was home for winter break, and one of my dad’s friends came over, and we got to talking. It turned out that he’d just retired from the Navy, and I got the chance to hear his stories about all of the things he’d seen and done. I knew then that I wanted to join.”

“Was he a SEAL?”

“Yes, he’d been on the Teams for over twenty years and then went on to become an instructor down in San Diego. It’s almost unheard of for someone to last that long in active duty anymore. The war on terror has kept everyone on heavy rotations for the last ten years. The old guys didn’t see the constant action that we’ve seen since 9/11, so they lasted longer. Anyway, I knew that I wanted that kind of experience. So when I graduated, I applied, and got accepted into the officer candidate school. I was lucky because they were looking to expand the Teams about the time I wanted to join.”

They stepped into the diner and found a table. After they ordered their lunch, Ivy took his hand. “How much do you miss it?”

“When you met me in that bar, I was in bad shape. I had been retired for several months and I hated every second of it. I thought that I would never find anything I loved as much. Going to work at SAI has given me hope. I had only a couple of weeks in Florida, but it was enough to let me know that I’ve found a place I belong. When we were on that rescue op up near Jacksonville and we found that girl, I knew that I could do that and be happy. Sitting in the open door of a helicopter with my feet planted on the rails and my rifle in my hands is where is I feel most comfortable. I’m not done yet and I still have a lot to contribute.”

“Why did you retire?”

“Because I took a bullet that gave me enough lung damage not to be able to dive. If you can’t operate effectively in the water, you can’t stay on the Teams. I had ten years and I’m lucky.”

“I’m sorry you’ve been stuck in Texas for the last two weeks. You can fly back to Florida early, because I know they need you. Every office has more work than they can handle, and Joel and Grady need you back there.”

The waitress delivered their drinks, and Ivy sat back and folded her hands. When they were left alone, he stood, walked to her side and sat down. “I wouldn’t want to be anyplace else. I still don’t know who took a shot at you, and you’re stuck with me until I know you’re safe.”

“It feels selfish. I know how to protect myself, and I’ll bet whoever did it isn’t coming back.”

“Sorry, honey. I’m the gum that’s stuck on the bottom of your shoe. No getting rid of me.”

Their food was dropped off, and Ivy started eating before answering him. So he followed her lead and ate. She could think whatever she wanted, but he wasn’t going anywhere. As far as he was concerned, they were joined at the hip. They didn’t know who instigated the well fires and they didn’t know who shot her, so he was staying put until they did. The sooner she accepted that, the better.

---