“Some of the missions can be over pretty quickly, while other times, we can be out of the U.S.and undercover for months.Our work sends us into countries we’re not allowed to mention, and we perform missions that, as far as the rest of the world is concerned, never happened.”
“Is that why you don’t have a military haircut?Because you were undercover?”
Nodding, he ran a hand through his hair.“Yup.But I can’t tell you anything about it.The key to the SEALs’ ongoing success is the silence of its members, and it’s the reason our teammates are so close to each other.We can’t discuss our operations, successes or failures, with any civilians or members of the military outside of our own teams.We use each other as our own personal psychologists for any subject involving our missions, instead of our families, wives, or girlfriends.Unfortunately, some women have problems with it, so a lot of our guys are single.”
“Do you have one?”
His brow furrowed in confusion.“One what?”
“You’re obviously not married, but do you have a girlfriend?”
Now why the hell did I ask that question?
Moriah gave herself a mental smack on the back of her head.She wasn’t interested in him ...was she?Well, it wouldn’t make any difference if she was or not—he would be gone in four weeks, and she would probably be leaving even sooner.
“No,” he answered, staring at her intently.“I’m unattached and have been for quite a while.”
Moriah swallowed hard under his scrutiny and changed the subject back to something safe.“You sound like you love what you do.”
He silently considered her for a few moments longer before answering.“I do, but like I said, I think it might be my time to move on.”
“What will you do if you leave the Navy?”
After taking a sip of wine, he shook his head.“Well, I wouldn’t exactly be leaving the Navy, just my team.I’ve been offered a training instructor position at the base in Little Creek.I’d be training the younger guys.”
Her eyes widened.“Wow, that’s great.I think you would be a fantastic instructor.”
“You do?Why would you think that?”
Pointing to herself, she giggled.“Well, look how well you trained me to shoot today.I couldn’t hit the broadside of a barn, as they say, before I met you.”
He grinned.“That was easy.I told you, you’re a natural.”
“That may be, but I still think you’re a great instructor.”Tilting her chin up, she all but dared him to argue with her further.“You should go for it.”
His gaze fell to his wine glass, and he let out a little chuckle.“Thanks.Maybe I will.”
“Good.Now that I’ve given my unsolicited opinion about your career change, let me clean this up.”
When she stood, KC started to rise from his chair as well.“I’ll help.”
“No, I have it.”She waved him back to his seat.“You cooked.Besides it won’t take long since we only used the two place settings and no pots or pans.I’ll put on some coffee.”
As she carried the plates and utensils into the house, Moriah tried to push the feelings of domesticity from her mind.This had been the best evening she’d ever spent with a man, but dinner and conversation were as far as it could go between them.Even if she wasn’t on the run, she doubted KC would be interested in her.She was eight years his junior and had come from nothing.He, on the other hand, had a career and plans for the future.Her only plan was to still be alive to wake up every morning—not exactly something to attract a man with.
Chapter8
KC settled into his chair again as Maura cleared the table.After she had carried the plates inside, he stared out over the ocean and thought about what a pleasant meal it had been.It had been a long time since he’d simply enjoyed talking to a woman.Aside from his attraction to her, he felt at ease in her presence, which would make the next four weeks enjoyable—as long as he could keep his dick out of the equation.She was recovering from an abusive relationship and didn’t strike him as the type of woman who would go for a short fling, therefore, she was off limits.Or was she?Maybe things didn’t have to be temporary.They had four weeks to get to know each other better.Maybe something good would come out of this.Only time would tell.
The temperature outside was beginning to drop now that the sun was setting, but he didn’t want this peaceful feeling to end.He stood and headed downstairs to the patio, where there was an outdoor seating area surrounding a black metal fire pit.A nice roaring fire, coffee, and some more conversation would be the perfect way to finish the day.Crouching down, he reached to retrieve a few logs that were kept under the cottage to keep them dry.He heard Maura come back out of the house above him and figured she’d be wondering where he went.“I’m down here.”
“Do you want—?”She stopped short.“What are you doing?”
His head snapped in her direction at the sharp tone of her voice, and he found her staring at him with an odd look on her face.She seemed almost ...well, scared.“I’m just getting some wood to start a fire.I thought it would be nice to sit down here for a bit.Is there a problem?”
Maura shook her head.“Oh, no.I ...um ...I just didn’t notice there were logs under there.”She paused and then added, “You might want to be careful, though.I saw a snake near there the other day.”
“Really?”His brow furrowed in bewilderment as he stood.“That’s odd.You rarely see them this close to the beach.”
