When we were stopped at a light, Brent looked my way. “It must be nice to have a close relationship with your kid. You’ve always got someone in your corner.”
There were so many red flags pinging in my head. My degree in psychology had almost taken me down the path to becoming an intelligence profiler, but the SEALs had won out.
“It is,” I said holding his gaze. “Laura is amazing. Beautiful and smart as a whip. Has no problem telling me what she thinks. Tells it like it is.”
“Sounds familiar,” he teased as he drove on. “What’s the last thing she told you?”
I shifted, wanting to see his face when I answered him. “She told me to take the job here. And to find what made me happy.”
He glanced at me out of the corner of his eye. “And you think whatever that is, is here in Portland?”
I smiled at him, then looked out the front window. “I know it is.”
We listened to the radio the rest of the way until he pulled in and parked in the hourly parking lot. Climbing out of the Tahoe, I grabbed my bag and slung it over my shoulder. He locked the doors, and we walked side by side to the terminal.
Once we were checked in, we headed toward TSA to go through security. I had TSA Pre-Check, but I didn’t know if he did. So I pulled out my wallet and retrieved my military ID to hand over.
The security officer looked up and nodded his head. “Thank you for your service, Commander Langdon.”
I smiled and nodded. “Thank you. Yours too.”
The man smiled appreciatively as I deposited my bag in the plastic bin for the scanner.
When I was through security, I waited as Brent finished up before heading to our gate. Our conversation had been limited since the car, and I needed to change that. So when we found seats at the gate, I struck up a conversation with him.
“Ever been to San Francisco?” Lame. Just lame. I sucked at small talk.
Brent grinned at me. “Yes. Have you?”
I nodded. “Yep. But never to the Castro.”
“You’re going to love it. There is some fun as hell clubs we can go to.”
I nodded. “As much fun as the one in Vegas?”
He stared at me a moment, then smiled. “I’m sure we can find out. If you’re up for that.”
“Depends on if you understand who you’re going home with.”
Did I just fucking say that? Was I going to get into this here and now at the goddamn gate?
Brent looked over at me as I stared him down. I refused to show anything but confidence to him because somewhere deep down, I knew he needed me to be strong. Liked it even.
“I’m assuming that’s you. Right?”
“Exactly.”
His smile widened, and I could hear my heart beat in my ears. “What do you remember about Vegas?”
He sat back and propped his left ankle over his right knee. He was the picture of relaxation. “What do you mean?”
“What do you remember about that night?”
He licked his lips and nodded. “The truck. I definitely remember the truck.”
“Do you remember what happened after that?”
He let out a breath and ran his fingers over his lips. “We went back in to dance. And got another drink.”
