Page 37 of Fire and Rain
Just like your daddy.
And it hit her again—how much of Maverick’s life Justin would miss. Her heart sank, a hard lump in her throat.
The thought stayed with her for the rest of the swimming lesson. It stayed with her while she and Maverick ate lunch. It stayed with her while she showered away the chlorine and Maverick took his afternoon nap.
On its heels came another thought.
Was she truly interested in Sean, or was she just lonely?
If only God could return Justin to her. She would take him back in a heartbeat, her brave, wonderful man. During the years they’d been together, she’d never wanted another man, not even Sean. He had been a good friend to them, like a brother.
But Justin wasn’t coming back, and Sean…
Eden was twenty-eight. As much as she still grieved for Justin, she didn’t want to spend the rest of her life alone. She wanted to share her life with a man. But not just any man. She wanted Sean.
How could one person have so many conflicting emotions?
* * *
June 8
Sean walked to the gym,grateful to have finally gotten some sleep. It had been one hell of a weekend. Since Friday, he’d flown on eight SAR missions, all of them on the water. At one point, they’d had every helo on station in the air, and they’d had to bring in flight crews that were on their day off. He was certain it must have been just as busy for the boat crews. In the end, their missions had been successful, and that’s what mattered.
He left his gym bag in a locker, grabbed a towel, and walked to the weight room. Trey and Wade were there, along with Dalton and some of the new AETs, classic rock coming from the speakers.
Trey saw him first. “Hey, man, did you get some sleep?”
“Yeah.” He’d had another nightmare, but he didn’t say that. “You?”
“I’m good to go.”
Sean couldn’t remember if this was an upper body, core, or legs day, but since he had time, he decided to do a full-body workout, starting with upper body. Since he didn’t have a spotter, he chose the machines over free weights. He’d only been here a few times since getting his arm out of the brace, and he couldn’t shake the sense of loss. He and Justin had always tried to work out together, spotting for one another, and being here without him…
It gave him just an inkling of what life must be like for Eden.
Sean set the weight for the bench press machine, pushing himself to muscle failure, his mind on Eden—again. He hadn’t called her since they’d gone out on her boat, mostly because he hadn’t had time. When he hadn’t been in the air, he’d been handling the basics—meals, showers, and shut-eye. Still, some part of him seemed frozen in time, stuck in that moment when she’d raised her lips to his—and he’d turned away.
What kind of an idiot are you?
He was the kind of idiot who tried to do the right thing.
“Hey, McKenna, I heard you on the radio on Friday,” Trey called to him. “You rescued some mariners, man. Are you thinking of moving to the boat crews?”
Sean chuckled. “Not a chance.”
“He rescued some mariners?” Dalton turned Sean’s way.
Sean got up from the machine, shook out his arms. “I was out fishing with Eden Koseki and the call came in over the radio from a small boat that had lost its engine. We were nearby, so we got their location and towed them back to the harbor.”
James walked in, acknowledged them with a nod, and walked to one of the treadmills. He looked like he hadn’t slept in a week.
Dalton’s expression changed. “You were with Eden? You’re spending a lot of time with her. Foraging. Dinner. Crab Fest. And now fishing?”
Sean moved to the triceps press machine. “I had no idea you were so interested in my schedule. Are you writing my unauthorized biography or something?”
Trey and some of the AETs laughed.
Dalton didn’t. “It just seems like you spend a lot of time with her.”
