Page 1 of Protection for Rowan

Chapter 1

Dwight “Shine”Boon jerked awake, gasping for breath as he sat up, reaching for her hand. She wasn’t there. He blinked and realized he was at home in his own bed. They’d survived.

“A dream.” He shook his head, trying to get out from under the weight of the memory.

He cursed as he wiped his hand over his face, disgust filling him. Just another freaking dream, that was all. He had to get it under control.

It had been years since his mind had twisted and tied itself in knots over that memory. The nightmare felt all too real, but the events happened long ago. That memory should be long buried. Deep down, he knew it never would go away because the emotions tied to that plane crash still rose when he remembered her. What had triggered his mind to recall that terrible night?

He stood and stretched, trying to clear out the weird feelings. Years had passed since he’d woken in a sweaty mess, trying to fight for their survival.

After he brushed his teeth, he stood at the mirror,staring at his reflection. How had he survived? How had they both survived? That one night was forever imprinted on his mind, twisted into the emotions he kept buried deep inside. One thing the crash had given him was the confidence he could get through BUDs. He had survived the impossible and knew he could survive BUDs. It had kept him going, kept him alive during difficult missions. He was grateful for that moment when he'd almost lost everything but, against all odds, survived.

No matter how much he appreciated the confidence that one moment gave him, waking up after dreaming the woman he'd shared his first kiss with was dead shook him to the core. He had no idea where she was or what she was doing, but he couldn't get the idea she was in danger out of his mind.

He pulled on underwear and headed to the kitchen, making note that he needed to repack his go bag. His last mission had been a shit show. Maybe the dream had crept in because everything had gone to total shit, and they'd had to go from plan A to plan D, or maybe it was E just to survive. Or the dream could have been some random firing of neurons with no real meaning. He needed to chat with someone, but no one currently in his life knew about the crash, and he didn't want to get into it with anyone he worked with or saw on a regular basis. People always had questions that he didn't want to answer. He needed to find someone he could talk to who wouldn't keep bringing it up.

After he drank his first mug of dark brew and ate some breakfast, his phone rang, and he answered, putting it on speaker. "Yo, Sharp. What's up?"

“Just wondering if you wanted to go for a run or something. Nothing heavy. Just something to get outside and clear your head.”

“Shit. You fucked up, too?”

Sharp grunted. “I’m going to check with everyone else and see what they think.”

“I’m up for whatever, just nothing too long. I’m still sore.”

“Sure. I’ll text you the details.”

“Hey, Sharp.” For a half second, Shine thought about saying something about his dream, but he pushed the thought away.

“Yeah?”

“Nothing. I need this run. Thanks for asking.”

“Sure, I’ll send you the details.”

He poured up more coffee, then drank it as he stared out the window. That girl on the plane, the one he’d met the last week of camp. Where was she now? Did she have a good life, or did what happened to them still haunt her?

After getting out of the hospital, he’d moved on, not looking back. He knew her name, Rowan. It was hard to forget someone when you lived through a plane crash after spending time at the same summer camp. They lived in different states. Their lives had never crossed before and hadn’t crossed since. He’d been content to just let her slip away. That wasn’t true. What choice did he have back then? They’d been sent to different hospitals, and he didn’t have her number because his phone had been destroyed.

But now, years later, he wanted to know more about her and how her life had gone. He should have contacted her years ago, but every time he thought about it, he dismissed the thought because who would want to have that type of reminder in their mind playing back over and over again?

He pushed away thoughts of her and grabbed a pair of shorts and a T-shirt to work out in. They weren't doing an official run. It was just guys getting together to blow off steam. Thank goodness they'd come back from thatmission. It had sucked majorly. He bet Sharp was feeling the pressure today. The ambush had almost taken them all out. Now, they had to move on and get their head right to get back in the game. It was the only way to survive as a SEAL.

Chapter 2

Rowan Kays narrowed her gaze,trying to figure out if the guy outside in the parking lot was going to come into the office or leave. Normally, she didn't pay attention to what went on outside her office, but life had turned tense recently. She had concerns after she failed to recommend a client could continue to be an air traffic controller.

She had no idea how he'd become a controller in the first place. His answers had given her a huge dose of concern, and she'd responded appropriately, denying him access to a job he said he desperately wanted to keep. Denying a pass was one of the hardest parts of her job but also one of the most important. She was one of the few people who were the final gateway that kept the public safe.

The man hadn’t taken her assessment of him well. He’d made threats before leaving her office, not enough to get him arrested, but enough to make her take a second look at her safety. Being threatened had happened before, but this guy seemed to be more intense than most of the people she couldn't recommend for the job.

Then there was the fact that one of her colleagues had been killed by a patient a few months ago. That had been hard to take. After his death, she’d started taking precautions more seriously.

Perhaps she needed to move office buildings. There were high rises with security watching all the time. For now, she was in this building, trying to make the situation work. Her lease was up in a few months, but she had time to think about where she wanted to be.

At least none of her patients knew where she lived. That would create a whole new can of worms that would be absolutely terrifying. She’d learned in school not to mix business with pleasure after seeing another student do just that and pay dearly for their actions.

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