Bran scrubbed a hand through his dripping, wavy brown hair and nodded his thanks. Before he could say anything, however, a larger than average wave rolled beneath the ship.
“Erp.” Cami lifted a hand to her mouth, her skin paling instantly. But she was quick to drop her fingers and make a face at Bran. “Sorry. I promise thaterphas nothing to do with your lasagnas. They look and smell delicious.”
Doc crossed his arms and leveled a censorious look on her. The woman got seasick in a bathtub. And somehow she’d agreed to take on a job representing men who made their living on the ocean. “You didn’t take that Dramamine pill I gave you, did you?”
She bristled and he imagined her as a black cat, back arched and hair raised. “First of all, you may be adoctor, but you’re notmydoctor. And second of all, Dramamine makes me sleepy. I didn’t want to nap my way through all of this.” Again, she threw out an arm to indicate the treasure.
“And now you’re paying the price.” His censorious look deepened. “You are themoststubbornwoman to ever pull on a pair of pants.”
Her chin jutted out. “You’recallingmestubborn? Oh, that’s rich.”
LT sighed heavily—LT was the nickname everyone used for Leo; it was a nod to his former rank. “Have they been at it like this all afternoon?” he asked Romeo. But before Romeo could answer, he shook his head. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter. We have more important things to deal with than the ongoin’ animosity between our attorney and our resident malcontent.”
“Hey!” Doc objected, snatching the toothpick from his mouth. “I’m not a malcontent. I’m just…” He stopped, searching for the right word.
Perhaps hehadbeen a malcontent. Once upon a time. In the years following his tragedy. But recently he’d been feeling so much better.
What had caused the change in him?
When it occurred that the better question waswhohad caused the change in him, he decided it was best just to shut his mouth and leave his sentence dangling.
LT rolled his eyes and turned to Bran. “Go grab everyone and bring ’em here, will you, Brando? We need all hands on deck for this discussion, seein’ as how our decision on what to do next is gonna affect us all.”
“I take it you weren’t able to finish.” Doc narrowed his eyes at his former lieutenant.
LT shook his head, causing water droplets to drip from the ends of his sun-streaked hair. “But let’s wait to talk about it ’til we got everyone.”
Doc recognized LT’s tone. It was the same one LT had usednumeroustimes when they’d found themselves all the way in harm’s way, in the place where metal meets the meat. And hearing that tone now made Doc’s stomach sink.
Of their own accord, his eyes tracked over to Cami. She too had picked up on the ominous ring in LT’s voice, and the expression on her face pretty much mirrored everything Doc was feeling. He was suddenly hit by the oddest urge to throw a comforting arm around her shoulders.
Then again, maybe the urge wasn’t odd. Because as much as she vexed him, helikedher.
Liked her swift mind and sharp tongue. Liked the ornery sparkle in her eyes when she was arguing with him. Liked the way her laugh sounded like pure delight when he said something to tickle her.
In fact,were it not for her chosen profession, he could’ve imagined them becoming friends. The kind of friends to feed each other heaping helpings of shit on the reg, of course. But friends all the same.
And in the eternal words of OMC,he thought,‘how bizarre.’
With the exception of the wives and girlfriends of his teammates and partners—who didn’t really count because theywerethe wives and girlfriends of his teammates and partners—he’d only ever been friends with one other woman.
Thewoman.
Hiswoman.
Thankfully, he didn’t have time to ponder the hows and whys of just what that meant before the computer room filled with people.
LT’s wife, Olivia, wore the frilly apron LT had gotten her for her birthday. And considering she was a former CIA agent, as comfortable carrying a loaded weapon as she was wearing a wire to a meeting with international drug dealers, it was an odd thing, indeed, to watch her flitting around looking like Betty Crocker.
Bran’s wife, the minuscule Maddy, looped an arm around Bran’s trim waist and smiled up at him when he bent to drop a loud, smacking kiss on her temple. There was so much love in Bran’s eyes when he looked down at his wife that Doc’s own heart melted. Just a little.
Chrissy and Wolf found a spot beside Uncle John at the emerald table. Chrissy’s diving skills were as good as any Navy SEAL’s, so she’d been helping them haul up the treasure. Her ponytail was still wet from being down at the dive site, and Doc watched as Wolf absently twisted the damp, blond rope around his long, tan fingers.
Mia Ennis, the brilliant marine archeologist they’d brought on to oversee the excavation, went to sit on Romeo’s lap. The couple was still in the honeymoon phase of their relationship, and Doc had to refrain from groaning when they made googly eyes at each other.
And last but not least there was Alexandra Merriweather, the historian they’d hired to study the old documents relating to the Spanish fleet. She broke a strawberry Pop-Tart in two and handed half to Mason.
Peas in a pod,Doc thought as he watched Alex shove her tortoiseshell glasses higher on the bridge of her nose so she could grin up at her fiancé as they both laid into the pastries. Or maybe it was more apt to say Mason and Alex were two sides of the same coin. Because as chatty as Alex was, that’s how closed-mouthed Mason was. And yet they belonged together,complementedeach other.
