"That's all I can ask." Mara leaned over and kissed him. Long and deep and full of everything she couldn't say in an airport parking lot. When she pulled back, both of them were breathing harder. "I love you."
"I love you too." Logan's thumb brushed her cheek. "Go. Before I convince you to miss your flight and stay another day."
"Tempting. But Sloane's expecting me back for the Houston debrief tomorrow." Mara grabbed her bag from the back seat. "Call me when you can?"
"Every chance I get."
Mara got out of the truck and headed for the terminal. She turned back once and saw Logan still watching. He raised a hand in goodbye. She waved back, then walked inside feeling the familiar ache of leaving but also the certainty that they'd see each other again soon.
This was their life. Long distance. Complicated. Full of goodbyes and reunions and making the most of limited time. But it worked. Against all odds, despite the deployments and the danger and the two careers that should have made a relationship impossible, they'd made it work.
And they'd keep making it work. One visit at a time. One deployment at a time. One mission at a time.
Whatever it took.
Because some things were worth fighting for. Some people were worth the distance and the worry and the complicated logistics.
Logan was worth it. They were worth it.
And that was enough.
Fort Liberty - Two Weeks Later
Logan finished packing his deployment gear and checked his phone one last time. Mara had sent a message an hour ago. "Be safe. Come home. I'll be waiting."
He'd responded immediately. "Always. Love you."
Now his team was loading onto the C-17 for the flight to Afghanistan. Hawk was doing final checks. Bulldog was giving him grief about the amount of time Logan spent on his phone. Ghost was coordinating communications protocols. Risk was triple-checking medical supplies. Joker was complaining about the MRE selection.
Normal. Routine. The kind of pre-deployment chaos Logan had experienced hundreds of times.
But something was different this time. Logan was leaving someone behind. Someone who mattered. Someone who'd be worried until he came home. Someone he'd miss every day he was gone.
"You good?" Hawk asked, coming over.
"Yeah. Good." Logan shouldered his pack. "Just thinking."
"About Mara?"
"About how much easier this used to be. When I didn't have someone waiting for me to come back."
Hawk smiled. "Easier maybe. But not better. Having someone worth coming home to, that makes you sharper. More focused. More determined to survive." He clapped Logan's shoulder. "You've been different the last six months. Better. The team's noticed."
"Different how?"
"Lighter. Like you finally figured out there's more to life than just the mission." Hawk headed for the aircraft. "Come on. Let's go do our job so you can come home to her."
Logan climbed aboard the C-17 and found his seat. As the aircraft taxied for takeoff, he pulled out his phone one last time before they'd be out of range. Sent Mara a final message.
"Wheels up. Talk to you when I can. Love you more than beignets."
Her response came as the plane started moving. "That's a lot. Love you more than bayou sunrises. Come home to me."
"Always."
The plane lifted off and Logan watched North Carolina disappear below. Ahead was Afghanistan. Four to six weeks of operations. Of danger and adrenaline and the work he'd trained his whole life to do.
But after that was home. Was Mara. Was a trip somewhere they could just be together. Was a future that looked different than he'd imagined but better than he'd hoped.
