Fully Engaged (Wingmen Warriors 12)

“I hear you.” He rested his chin on her head, the sweet smell of flowery shampoo teasing his nose. He scuffed his boot against the dusty ground and set the swing into motion.

“You were something, the way you brought him down in the water.” She wrapped her arms around his waist.

“I figured the water was my best bet at leveling the playing field.”

“I know. I saw that in your eyes.”

He’d thought they communicated there in that moment, but he hadn’t been sure. Now he knew she felt the same connection. They had something special and he intended to hold it fast.

She hugged his waist tighter and pressed a kiss to his neck, snuggling closer. They stayed linked like that for…he wasn’t sure how long but the familiarity felt so good he went with it until the moment seemed right to continue.

“I like your place here.”

“You do?” She smiled against his neck. “Are you angling to take up a permanent residence?”

He’d already asked her to tie the knot in the adrenaline surge after knocking out Chavez, but he understood this practical woman needed details. Grounding. And maybe because she was a warrior, too, she understood the primal desire to stake a claim on life after a battle with death. Maybe she didn’t know if she could trust his off-the-cuff proposal.

She would find out soon enough.

“I’m not much for being a kept man. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking out here tonight. It’s amazing how fast plans can come together when you think you might lose everything that counts.”

His arms convulsed around her, though he tried not to hold her too tightly. It was tough when his brain kept replaying the horror of seeing a gun pressed to her head, to his daughter’s head. His whole world had almost been blown away tonight.

He forced himself to relax and continue. He wouldn’t let this second chance slip away. “I’ve got a plan for my future. Or at least the start of one. I’m in a unique position. With my disability pay, I don’t need to make big bucks. I can pick any profession. I want to train volunteer search-and-rescue teams out of that small airport where we flew on Thanksgiving. I’ll even be able to do some jumps on occasion once my body finishes healing.”

“Where does that leave us with moving in together?”

Her fingers traced over his heart, shaking ever so slightly. He clasped her hand and brought it to his mouth for a kiss, linking their fingers before continuing.

“I would have to contribute something to the equation. I spent so much time on the road, I never spent much on myself. I’ve got some money saved up.” He gestured out to the water’s edge. “Maybe I could put in a dock there.” Then over to the large stretch of patchy lawn where grass never seemed to grow well. “Perhaps a pool here.”

“Lauren would like that,” she said with unmistakable nudging.

“Yeah, she would.” And here things got complicated. “What would you think if she came to live here for a trial semester?”

“I would think that would be great for her.”

“What about for you?” He wanted her to be a part of his life and still she hadn’t mentioned his impromptu proposal when he’d hauled himself out of the water.

“That girl has a way of working her way into a person’s heart very quickly.” Nola eased back to look up into his face with what he hoped was love in her eyes. “Very much like her father.”

Time to take a leap bigger than any he’d ever attempted, and he’d managed some mighty death-defying jumps in his time. “I meant what I said there at the end. That wasn’t adrenaline talking.”

Her gaze skated out to the murky waters. “It surely made for a memorable proposal.”

He mentally thumped himself as he realized perhaps he should have given this more thought. “Would you like something more romantic?”

She shook her head, her damp curls beginning to dry and rustling around her face. “We haven’t done anything conventionally from the start.”

“You’ve got me there, lady.” He’d read her eyes so well in bringing down Chavez and Rick thought he could read her now, still he wanted to hear the words. “You still haven’t answered.”

Then it hit him. He still hadn’t given her much of a real proposal, either. Just the under-pressure “I love you” they’d shared in passing.

He stopped the swing. Stared into her eyes. He needed to make this count. “All of these plans, they feel right, being a part of a group, something big again. But without you, I wouldn’t have been able to wrap my brain around the possibility. God, Nola, you’ve given me so much. I just hope I can give you as much in return, because without you none of it means anything.”

He cupped her face. “Nola, I love you. I wish there were fancier words, but I’m a plainspoken man. I’m also a man you can count on. I don’t quit. My love for you is forever.”

“Wow.”