Link wouldn’t be here, and she would miss him, but she wasn’t going to feel sorry for herself. Being with Link would mean a lot of time spent alone. She would have to get used to Link being gone.
She liked cooking, liked listening to music, and she would enjoy the time alone. She’d planned on replying to emails from friends in the morning, but she had time tonight. After she ate, she would turn on a movie she’d seen before and spend time catching up.
It would be good. She was strong and independent and could deal with changes in their schedule. The food was done, and she sat down at the table, vowing not to get sad about being alone.
Maybe she needed to find friends here. So far, all her friends in town were Link’s team members. They were great, but they were gone, too, so she would be on her own until Link returned.
She took a bite of the food, thinking it tasted delicious. Maybe she would take a cooking class or do some group workout. Something to fill her time while Link was away. The last thing she wanted was to get bitter about his job. She'd seen that while in the Marines. They'd go out for deployment, and the people left at home would be angry. Sure, some of the guys and women she deployed with were idiots, and probably hadn't been good in their relationships when they were at home, but some of the people who caught hell while on deployment were good spouses and partners.
She needed to find something to fill her time while he was away. Maybe a book club would be good.
Chapter 38
Some missions wereshit shows from the moment they took off. This seemed like one of them. They were wheels up, a little more than midway across the Atlantic, when they received news that the mission they were on was scrubbed. The decision was made that they needed to land in Germany to refuel.
Stanley let go of a string of curse words. Chase rolled his eyes.
"Dude, calm the fuck down. We're still getting paid, and now you can get another long nap on the way home."
Keel scoffed at Chase's words. "You're pissed, too. You're just trying to act like you're calm."
Chase crossed his arms over his chest and leaned his head back, closing his eyes like he was going to go to sleep.
Bean kicked Chase’s foot. “Don’t pretend like you’re sleeping. Do you think we’ll get time to go out in Germany?”
“No,” Chase said.
“Why not?” Bean asked.
“You don’t need to go hunting pussy in Germany by base. It’s too risky. They don’t want us there sleeping with their women,” Chase said.
Bean groaned. “I know. I know. I need to go to Florida or New York and find someone to hook up with.”
Scott grunted. “Notice Link ain’t saying a thing?”
Link looked up, his eyebrows raised. “I’ve got nothing to say.”
“Because you have a woman,” Bean said.
Link tried to suppress the smile, but he totally failed. "And she's amazing, and I'm probably going to marry her, so watch what you say about her. She's going to be in my life for a very long time, so you're going to have to face her and own up to the words you're about to speak."
Bean raised his hands. “I’ve got nothing but praise for that woman. She’s amazing. You’re in a much better mood since you’ve been with her.”
“Yeah, you are,” Mick said.
The other guys all nodded, and Link had a momentary flash of anger, but they were right. He was happier. It wasn't just the sex either. He was glad to have Ansley in his life.
She made a difference in his life, all of it. He enjoyed having someone to talk to, to watch movies, to enjoy meals, and to just hang out.
“She makes me a better person. If you find someone who makes everything better and makes you feel better about yourself, you should go after them.”
Stanley chuckled. “How do you even know?”
“You’ll know,” Link said.
Link met Keel’s gaze and noticed the man’s frown. Keel had thought he had a lifelong partner, but their relationship didn’t last. Link knew a little about Keel’s past, but not everything. It was sad that his friend thought he had forever, but that future had withered and died.
They landed in Germany and headed into the shower. He was disappointed that they weren't doing a real mission. Ansley would be happy he was home relatively quickly, so that was aplus. He was about to sit down to eat when Chase came in and signaled for them to join him.
