Explosive Alliance (Wingmen Warriors 9)

Except, if she was eighteen that would make Bo Rokowsky all of eleven or twelve. Ugh.

And bottom line, she wouldn't trade her daughter for a million do-overs with guaranteed happy endings.

Paige angled herself away from visions of the plane and its pilot. Five-week-old Brownie collapsed against her thigh with huffy exhaustion. Draping him over her leg, she stroked the tired puppy to sleep while two more chewed on each other's ears. The remaining four settled against Waffles for supper.

Nice. Normal. Exactly the sort of grass-roots-values life she wanted for her daughter.

A double shadow stretched, easy to distinguish the two even without glasses, her hulking brother and a certain lanky pilot.

Vic strode past to scoop up a puppy scampering close to the exit. "Baby sister, I don't know what you did to convince this guy to help out, but we'd be idiots not to pounce on his offer." He thrust the squirming mutt toward Bo. "Let me wash off. Then I'll drive you back out to base so we can discuss scheduling." He thumped Bo on the back. "And thanks for the heads-up."

Without another word, her brother lumbered away. Leaving her alone with Bo? What was up with that?

Great. The only thing worse than Vic in overprotective mode was Vic in mega-consent mode. And wasn't she quite the contrary brat today? Darn Bo Rokowsky for making her all itchy.

She patted the snoozing puppy in her lap. "So we're all set?"

Bo dropped down beside her, cradling his mutt in one hand and rubbing it with the other.

"I'll make the arrangements with my commander to take leave while I'm here. I'll still be on call if Mako needs me to fire up the plane for a test, but otherwise, I'm free. I'll start after the paperwork's filed Monday."

Paige watched his big, scarred hand rub over the downy fur. She swallowed hard to erase the visions of how painful the injury must have been to require such intricate incisions.

"You like dogs?"

"Who couldn't like this dog?" He lifted the puppy eye level.

"It's not a purebred."

"Neither am I."

He said it to be funny, but she wasn't sure he thought so. "What kind of dog do you have back home in Charleston?"

Bo rested the animal on his thigh again, shadows masking his expression as the sinking sun brought the anonymity of night. "I'm gone too much to have a pet. Wouldn't be fair to an animal, boarding him for months at a time."

An insightful statement, which made the guy hot and funny and sensitive. Man, she really needed him to say something jerklike soon or she'd be sagging in his hand like that happy puppy. "You're gone that much?"

"Over half the year on a regular basis, even more lately with all the commitments overseas."

"Wow, that's rough."

"I'm seeing the world, playing with the coolest toys the U.S. Government has to offer.

Retirement comes around fast enough. I'll have a dog then." He nodded to the sleeping pup on her leg. "Although it looks like the animals boarded here aren't lacking in attention."

"We try to play with them and let them out as much as possible. Cuts down on the cage cleaning, too. Kirstie helps with the walks and treats."

"Seems she's looking to follow in her mama's footsteps."

"Maybe she will." Paige toyed with the dog's ear. "Better than following in her father's, I guess."

Oh, God, why had she said that? She wanted to gobble the words back down and let the acid in her stomach burn them away along with so many painful memories. She forced her eyes to stay on the puppy and hoped Bo would ignore her slip.

"What does a person do to become a veterinary technician?"

Thank you. "I have an associate's degree in veterinary technology. It's a two-year degree, much like a two-year nursing degree. I can do lab work, testing, start and maintain IVs, catheters, take X-rays, perform anesthesia on animals, and such. I can give injections even pick up some emergency calls if Vic is out, but can't prescribe medicine or diagnose. And I can't do surgeries." She leaned toward him with a wicked smile of her own. "Although Vic has let me neuter cats on occasion."

"Neutering, huh?" He grimaced.