Page 28 of Luck Be Mine
Hunt closed his eyes to mask the roll, then shook his head and smiled. “It’s a good thing we’re friends.”
“Always have your back, LT.”
“Uh-huh.”
§§§§§§§§§§
◊ Mission Time ◊
Cait shifted her weight on the kitchen chair to ease the discomfort in her hip, scribbled on her paper, and stayed on hold while the personnel sergeant at her old unit worked through a moving request on her household goods. She couldn’t wait anymore. The bigger apartment would require more furniture. She needed her furniture.
She fingered the chain Hunt had put around her neck on Valentine’s Day and waited. Still on the list was to sign a new lease together, get keys, and get the guys to make it happen. She couldn’t suppress a sense of urgency. Hunt had been staying at work longer and longer. Mission time was coming fast. Red Baby wasn’t moving by itself.
The sergeant came back on. His measured tone was typical of the man. “You sure you want to do this, Captain? If you transfer your household goods, the Army won’t pay for a move when you get assigned to a new duty station.”
“I’m sure, Sergeant. Thanks. Do I need to sign it?”
“No. I can submit without it. You do have mail here, though.”
“Me? Mail? From whom?”
“Looks like an official envelope, but I can’t find any division on it. I can send it along with the paperwork to begin separation. Your personal gear arrived from Afghanistan, too. Send to this new address?”
“Yes, thank you.” She didn’t have a clue what Hunt would say about all this, but she couldn’t wait like they agreed.
“No problem, ma’am. When you decide the timeline on your separation, follow what’s outlined and call me with questions. Commander has to approve them, too.”
“Yes, I’ve talked to him.”
“Sorry you got hurt, ma’am.”
“I did my job. It’s time for somebody else to.”
“It’s the way it’s worked for decades, ma’am. I’ll get this in the mail today.”
She disconnected, turned her phone face down on the counter, and clasped her shaky right hand in her lap. “Out processing begun. Furniture shipping started. Let’s find a storage unit.” She lifted her phone and scrolled through local choices, identifying one three blocks away.
The front door squeaked open. She turned to find Hunt standing in the doorway. Middle of the day?
His face grim, Cait’s stomach took a nosedive. “You’re going out.”
“Yeah. I have two hours to report.” He came to the table, sat, and took her hands. “Sorry.”
Cait let a small laugh out. Only she knew it was caused by impending hysteria. “No, you’re not. You’ve been anxious to get back out there since we got home.”
He sat back in his chair and studied her face. “Why are you so calm?”
She wasn’t, but dammit he was not taking worry about her out there with him.
Too flipping dangerous.
Shoving aside emotion and finding her practical side was a hard sell to her body, but she did it because she didn’t like the expression on his face. “It was inevitable. I’ve been working hard to be organized for this. Might not be as prepped as I wanted to be, but Adele is here for a while longer. Between the two of us we can figure it out.”
“The move?”
She wanted him reassured so she gave herself a minute to settle. “I’ll hire somebody. Just tell me about your gun safe. That’s the biggest thing I need to understand.”
Hunt dropped his head and stayed silent. “I e-signed the lease, today. I’m guessing yours is in your email. I have someone who will move the safe. Leave it to last. I’ll ask him if he can bring a few guys and do it for me. It shouldn’t be moved with the weapons in it. It’s too heavy.”
