Page 35 of Searching for Bristol
She almost choked on her coffee and studied her host, trying to decide if he was fucking with her or not. When he gave her a sheepish grin and shrugged, she shook her head, deciding he probably reallydidknow the former president.
“Oatmeal okay for breakfast? And yes, I know you like lots of brown sugar, and I thought I’d put some blueberries in it as well. I’ve also got some fresh melon Doc Snow brought over yesterday when he came to check out your progress.”
“Sounds delicious.”
As she drank her coffee, Bristol watched Rocky move around the kitchen. It wasn’t a large space, and him being a big man made it even smaller, but he moved efficiently and, before she knew it, he was carrying a bowl over to her. He picked up the large coffee table book on wildlife in Alaska that she used as a pseudo tray and placed it and the bowl on her lap. “Good?” he asked.
“Perfect,” she told him. It really was hard not to thank him every other second, but she was getting the hang of avoiding those words and showing her appreciation in other ways. By finishing whatever he brought her to eat, by looking him in the eyes as she accepted whatever he was doing for her, and hopefully with her body language.
“I’ll get the fruit,” he told her and went back toward the kitchen.
Bristol waited until he was sitting on his couch next to her with his own breakfast before digging in. He’d told her she didn’t have to wait for him, but there was no way she was going to shove food in her face while he was still getting situated.
They ate in silence, and when Bristol was done, she asked him a question she’d been thinking about for a while. “Are you going back to work today?”
He looked up at her and narrowed his eyes. “Sick of me already?” he joked.
But Bristol could tell he was genuinely concerned about that exact thing. She chuckled. “Um, no. No way. But you’re getting antsy. I can tell.”
“Yeah?” he asked.
“Uh-huh. I’m assuming it’s not normal for you to sweep and vacuum every inch of your floors like you did yesterday.”
He shrugged. “I like to stay busy.”
“Right. So when are you going back to work?”
He stared at her for a long moment. “If you truly don’t mind, I might venture out tomorrow. I don’t want to leave you alone all day, but there are a few jobs I could take that aren’t too time-intensive.”
“Rocky, I appreciate what you’ve done for me more than I can say, but you don’t have to babysit me all day. Besides, there have been a steady stream of people coming by since I’ve been here. I’m guessing I wouldn’t be alone while you’re out earning a living. And if someone else gets lost in the woods, you’d have to go look for them with your team and I’d be alone anyway.”
Rocky shook his head. “No, I wouldn’t. I’ve already talked with the guys, and if we get called out, I’m not going. There’s never any telling how long we’ll be searching when we go out, and no one was comfortable leaving you by yourself for an indeterminate period of time.”
Bristol stared at him, honestly shocked. They’d had long conversations about some of the searches he’d been on, and how much satisfaction he got from them. How he felt as if he was using some of the skills he’d learned as a SEAL and giving back to his community. Granted, it wasn’t as if her being here meant he was giving up his place on the search team altogether, but still.
“What? What’s that look for?” he asked, scooting down the couch a bit so he was closer to where she was sitting.
“I don’t want you to give up something you love because you have to babysit me,” she said after a moment.
“I’m not giving it up,” he said without hesitation. “Missing one or two searches isn’t a big deal. To be honest, if I went, I’d probably be worrying about you more than paying attention to what I was doing…which isn’t safe. Until you’re back on your feet and more mobile, I’m not willing to just leave you on your own. Even if I arranged for Lilly, Elsie, or someone else to come by, you wouldn’t be able to get up to see who was at the door. You’d also be vulnerable to anyone who thought they could come by and take advantage of you because of my absence.”
Wow. Bristol wasn’t sure what to say about that. All she knew was that it made her feel really good.
“Besides, I don’t see it as babysitting. Ilikehaving you here. Having the guys come over more often has been nice.”
“You guys don’t do that normally?” Bristol asked.
Rocky shrugged. “Not really. I mean, we get together at On the Rocks, or have lunch together, but we’re all usually pretty busy with our jobs and stuff, and haven’t taken a lot of time to just hang out together like we have in the past week. Thankyoufor that.”
Bristol took a deep breath. She had no idea if Rocky was just saying those things to make her feel less like a burden, but she definitely felt good that she was playing a small part in reinforcing the amazing friendship the men of Eagle Point Search and Rescue shared. “Am I mistaken, or did you just thank me?” she asked, trying to lighten the mood.
It worked. Rocky chuckled. “Right, sorry, forget I said that.” He met her gaze and said, “And don’t think I haven’t realized how hard you’re trying to keep your thanks to a minimum. I like having you here, Punky. I definitely feel as if I should be thankingyou. Not for getting hurt, never for that, but for trusting me.”
“I do,” she said seriously. “And I’m not the most trusting person. I mean, look what happened with Mike,” she said ruefully.
“Mike’s an asshole,” Rocky said, the force behind his words making Bristol blink in surprise.
“Seriously, what the hell was he thinking? One, if a woman says she wants to be friends, a man needs to get with the program and move on. Thelastthing he should do is think he can change her mind by asking if she wants to participate in a damn orgy.”
