survivors, all but two under the age of four. The rest—” She stopped to swallow and he felt a tremor pass through her. “Clay, our rescue swimmer, refused to abandon the dead to the ocean...or the sharks. It was his first body recovery operation, and it was about as nasty as it could get.”
* * *
She took another deep breath and Stillman felt as much as saw her resolve harden. “He did a phenomenal job. Joe, our hoist operator, and I submitted Clay for a commendation. Joe saw him smacking sharks with pieces of the boat to keep them away from the babies.”
Her voice cracked, but she didn’t fold. “We’re all pretty shook up over it, but Clay’s struggling with guilt, and dammit, there’s nothing I can do about it.” She hooked a length of hair behind her ear and glared at him. “Men and their stupid egos.”
“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean?” He slipped his hand from between her breasts, with only a halfhearted nudge of plump flesh, and pulled her closer.
She smiled at his adolescent slip. “Ryan’s convinced Clay has a crush on me, so I’ve been ‘instructed’ to keep my distance. It sucks. The kid’s hurting, and he’s part of my crew, and—”
Stillman stopped her with a quick kiss. “He’s right. Hell, your whole crew’s probably half in love with you.” And didn’t that just bite the big one?
He studied her troubled expression. “Want me to talk to Clay? I’ve had a lot of experience with what he’s going through.” Dealing with dead and dying children had been especially hard his last tour of duty in the Middle East, but he’d gained some perspective. And a sense of quiet acceptance he could share with the kid.
Her small frown smoothed out and her eyes lit with a tentative, relieved smile. “Yeah, I’d like that. As an ER doctor, I bet you’ve dealt with lots of hopeless situations.”
Now probably wasn’t the time to bring up his army career. But sooner or later he’d have to tell her.
And find out just why she refused to date men in the military.
* * *
Caitlyn slid into the booth beside Ryan as Stillman led the decidedly subdued rescue swimmer away from their table.
“What’s up?” Joe asked craning his head over his shoulder to watch Clay disappear through the doorway to the patio.
“He offered to have a talk with Clay about what happened. Try to give him a different perspective.” Caitlyn picked up a tortilla chip and loaded it with spicy ground beef, salsa, guacamole and a dollop of sour cream. “I thought with his medical experience maybe he could relate better than we could.”
Funny, she hadn’t been hungry when Joe ordered the assorted plates of appetizers, and now she was starving.
“His war experience is probably more relevant,” Ryan said before stuffing a quesadilla in his mouth.
Caitlyn choked on her nacho and he slapped her on the back several times. “You okay? Did you get one of my jalapeños?”
“What war experience?” Joe asked. He looked from Caitlyn to Ryan.
“Yeah, what are you talking about?” Caitlyn half turned on the bench seat.
“He didn’t tell you? He’s an army slug driver. In the Reserves and just back from Afghanistan. But he was full-time during....” He stared at Caitlyn. “Shit, he didn’t tell you.” He looked away and took a long swig of his beer.
Shocked, Caitlyn sat back. That son of a bitch flew Black Hawks? Her stomach rebelled over the nacho she’d just swallowed. She was familiar with the term “slug driver” because that was what her uncle had been in the Iraq War.
How he’d died.
She grabbed Ryan’s beer out of his hand and finished it for him. “No, he didn’t tell me.”
In war situations, helicopter-pilot life expectancy was notoriously short. She slammed the empty bottle on the table. Dammit, why the hell would the army waste a doctor’s skills on flying in the first place?
* * *
Stillman sat across from Ryan when Caitlyn dragged Joe to the dance floor. Clay followed them
* * *
She took another deep breath and Stillman felt as much as saw her resolve harden. “He did a phenomenal job. Joe, our hoist operator, and I submitted Clay for a commendation. Joe saw him smacking sharks with pieces of the boat to keep them away from the babies.”
Her voice cracked, but she didn’t fold. “We’re all pretty shook up over it, but Clay’s struggling with guilt, and dammit, there’s nothing I can do about it.” She hooked a length of hair behind her ear and glared at him. “Men and their stupid egos.”
“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean?” He slipped his hand from between her breasts, with only a halfhearted nudge of plump flesh, and pulled her closer.
She smiled at his adolescent slip. “Ryan’s convinced Clay has a crush on me, so I’ve been ‘instructed’ to keep my distance. It sucks. The kid’s hurting, and he’s part of my crew, and—”
Stillman stopped her with a quick kiss. “He’s right. Hell, your whole crew’s probably half in love with you.” And didn’t that just bite the big one?
He studied her troubled expression. “Want me to talk to Clay? I’ve had a lot of experience with what he’s going through.” Dealing with dead and dying children had been especially hard his last tour of duty in the Middle East, but he’d gained some perspective. And a sense of quiet acceptance he could share with the kid.
Her small frown smoothed out and her eyes lit with a tentative, relieved smile. “Yeah, I’d like that. As an ER doctor, I bet you’ve dealt with lots of hopeless situations.”
Now probably wasn’t the time to bring up his army career. But sooner or later he’d have to tell her.
And find out just why she refused to date men in the military.
* * *
Caitlyn slid into the booth beside Ryan as Stillman led the decidedly subdued rescue swimmer away from their table.
“What’s up?” Joe asked craning his head over his shoulder to watch Clay disappear through the doorway to the patio.
“He offered to have a talk with Clay about what happened. Try to give him a different perspective.” Caitlyn picked up a tortilla chip and loaded it with spicy ground beef, salsa, guacamole and a dollop of sour cream. “I thought with his medical experience maybe he could relate better than we could.”
Funny, she hadn’t been hungry when Joe ordered the assorted plates of appetizers, and now she was starving.
“His war experience is probably more relevant,” Ryan said before stuffing a quesadilla in his mouth.
Caitlyn choked on her nacho and he slapped her on the back several times. “You okay? Did you get one of my jalapeños?”
“What war experience?” Joe asked. He looked from Caitlyn to Ryan.
“Yeah, what are you talking about?” Caitlyn half turned on the bench seat.
“He didn’t tell you? He’s an army slug driver. In the Reserves and just back from Afghanistan. But he was full-time during....” He stared at Caitlyn. “Shit, he didn’t tell you.” He looked away and took a long swig of his beer.
Shocked, Caitlyn sat back. That son of a bitch flew Black Hawks? Her stomach rebelled over the nacho she’d just swallowed. She was familiar with the term “slug driver” because that was what her uncle had been in the Iraq War.
How he’d died.
She grabbed Ryan’s beer out of his hand and finished it for him. “No, he didn’t tell me.”
In war situations, helicopter-pilot life expectancy was notoriously short. She slammed the empty bottle on the table. Dammit, why the hell would the army waste a doctor’s skills on flying in the first place?
* * *
Stillman sat across from Ryan when Caitlyn dragged Joe to the dance floor. Clay followed them
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