SEAL Brotherhood 06 - SEAL My Destiny (19 page)

Tyler whispered something to Fredo, who nodded. Being the senior member of the group, not in terms of rank, but in terms of years of service, he spoke with authority.

“Okay guys. We go for a swim, and anyone who objects does some fuckin’ wet and sandy.”

Luke wondered what the difference was, since it would be freakin’ cold out there right now. Fredo had drilled him a look and, amidst the grumbles and curses, the group put on their jackets and began to file out of Sanouk’s apartment.

Jones hated the midnight swims the most. He turned to Sanouk. “You should come.” It was all the Thai youth needed. “Hell, yeah!” the kid said. He carefully put out his cigar and dashed to the bedroom, coming back shirtless, but with a towel draped over his neck.

The poker game remained exactly where and how they’d left it. There was a good chance they’d continue the next day.

Luke was especially
cold tonight. The aches from the long car ride and his lack of sleep in the last twenty-four hours were catching up to him. He teamed up with Jones, the slowest swimmer on the Team. They all shed their pants and shoes in one communal pile. Some took off the T-shirts underneath whatever else they’d worn, which included Fredo, who had been wearing a bright red Hawaiian print. Some, like Jones and Luke, left their shirts on for added warmth.

The nearly full moon reminded Luke of a BUD/S training on the other side of the island, in an un-gated area of public beach separated with orange plastic netting for a makeshift divider. He’d looked at the moon during the training and imagined it was warming him. Now, as he headed to the water with the rest of the Team, he wondered what the fuck he’d been thinking.

The water was chilly, but not as bad as he’d expected. It did clear his head right away. Jones took off in a slow crawl, following Fredo and Sanouk, who were in the lead by a considerable margin. Luke worked to catch up to Jones, and the two men began a swimming-in-tandem exercise like a couple of porpoises. The inlet was choppy and just as dirty as usual. He could taste remnants of diesel fuel and whatever else had sloughed off the Navy cruisers and small craft. In the daytime the water looked much better than it tasted at night.

Tyler, Rory and a new guy were in the middle of the pack. On cue they turned on their backs and eyed Jones and Luke bringing up the rear. Apparently satisfied, the trio rolled over to their bellies again and took off, leaving him and Jones behind.

At one of the light buoys Fredo, turned and then headed back. He didn’t look up when he passed Jones and Luke going in the opposite direction, but did give them the finger.

They swam for nearly an hour. Luke knew the others didn’t much want to be in the water, and were probably cold as he was, but they were making damned sure Luke worked off some of the negative energy he hadn’t been able to conceal. They were probably cussing him out, he thought. But the simple act of taking him on this swim and not leaving him alone in his misery was what you did for one of your own. Nobody got left behind.

Ever.

The sand of the little park glowed white in the moonlight when he and Jones collapsed next to each other, staring up at the stars until they could catch their breath. It felt good to be totally exhausted.

Luke knew he’d be able to get a good night’s sleep now. Maybe even sleep in, if he could keep his room dark enough. Tyler punched Luke in the arm with a “Later, dude,” but his arms were so frozen, he barely felt the sting.

The others climbed into several vehicles and began to leave the parking lot. Fredo hung back.

“Luke, maybe you fuckin’ come on over to my place for the evening, okay?” the short Mexican SEAL barked it more like an order than a question. “Mia’s gone to PV with her girlfriends until the weekend. I could use the fuckin’ company.”

“Nah, I’m good,” Luke said.

“I think, if it’s all the same to you, tonight you should come over. Shit, my place is way more quiet than yours.”

“You fuckin’ don’t have to keep an eye on me, Fredo. But I appreciate it.”

“Shit, Luke. I’m gonna sleep, not watch your sorry ass. Just come over, okay?”

“But I sleep better in my own fuckin’ bed, Fredo. Just leave me the fuck alone.” There was no point in asking Fredo to come to
his
place, since he didn’t have a couch, and it was out of the question for two SEALs to share the same bed. So he would have to give up his bed for the floor.

“You call Kyle in the AM then, my man,” Fredo commanded.

“Roger that.”

Fredo had finished drying off with his Hawaiian shirt. Then he slipped it over his shoulders and wet undershirt. At least their pants were dry, but wouldn’t be for long, since their wet boxers would soon soak through. It did kind of guarantee Fredo that Luke wouldn’t be making the rounds of the bars on Coronado Island, not with pants looking like he’d pissed them. Going home to change and then returning to the party scene just seemed like too much damned work.

“You call me if you get any fuckin’
thoughts
.”

“Doubt I will. I’m fuckin’ completely spent,” Luke said.

“No, not technically,” Fredo objected. “Spent is after you’ve fuckin’ been with your woman for a few hours, bro.” Fredo punched him in the arm. “You good?”

“Fuckin’ fantastic. Not fuckin’ cold either,” Luke lied back to him, which was the answer Fredo had probably been looking for.

And like a good pair of shoes he’d misplaced and suddenly found, he was relieved he was able to sync in with Fredo and the other SEALs in the use of the word fuck, and mean it.

It was a very fuckin’ good sign.

‡

J
ulie made it
into her apartment, lugging the rolling duffel behind her. The bridesmaid dress was in a bag slung over one arm. The chiffon made the crinkled paper noise, which still sent a shiver up her spine, in spite of the ache in her heart.

She managed to smile at a couple walking past, hand in hand. She told herself she was okay with seeing lovers. This wouldn’t bother her, she was “fine”—the word seemed to brush aside painful emotions, and although it made her tense, she felt more in control.

That is, until she closed her front door. Dropping the dress bag on the floor, she released the duffel handle and let it flip forward. She slumped to the floor next to it. When she saw the vacantness of her normally bright and cheerful apartment, she nearly burst into tears. She hadn’t turned on the lights, but water from the large pool area below was reflected on her walls, and she could see lights at the little harbor beyond and the Bay glistening under a full moon.

She righted herself, but stayed seated, watching moonbeams dance like faerie wings against the apartment walls. Tall palm fronds waved outside her balcony slider, their shadows clacking to an unknown rhythm against the sheet-rocked walls.

That’s when the tears came. And when they came, her chest heaved, and her inhales were choppy, like she couldn’t get enough air. The vacant hole in her heart was unbearable. She’d told herself it would be hard, but damn, she didn’t expect it would be
this
hard. There was no way she would be “fine” today.

She’d told him she’d stay the course, and all she asked in return was for him to not walk out, not give up on them.

But that’s exactly what he’d done. And no matter how much she ached, she knew the only thing for her to do was set aside the pain, and throw herself back into her classes. She had things to prepare for the brief summer session she was scheduled to teach, and she’d offered to do it so she could help some of her struggling students.

In the dark, and all alone, she vowed it was time to get busy and not pine for him. After all, there was no future with Luke, and thus it wasn’t helpful to keep brooding about it. Eventually the feeling part would fade and she’d be able to see him again at family gatherings or hear about him and not feel the hole in her chest yawn open again. But she vowed, sitting on the floor watching the reflections of the night and water lights, someday the right guy would come along. He’d be the real deal, the real package, and he’d be available to her.

Because Luke was
not
and might never be.

Julie’s summer school
session was due to start in a week. She kept her appointment with the principal the next morning to go over a couple of items he’d wanted to discuss prior to classes starting. She needed to get her room in shape for the new class, simplify it by removing some of her history and math modules. It was going to be a combined group of slow readers from second through fourth grades. Slow readers had trouble focusing and concentrating sometimes, and too much stimulation could be counterproductive.

Dr. Connors was early, and poked his head into the room as she was removing a large math chart.

“There you are, Julie. Mind if we have a little talk?”

Julie stepped down off the wooden chair, rolled up the chart and placed it in a large white storage tube with her other posters. “Sure,” she said, dusting her palms together. “You want to sit here?” She offered him her desk chair.

“Um,” He was searching her walls, trying to be casual, but Julie could see he was a bit tense. “Let’s go into my office. Then we can speak freely.”

Which was alarming. She was uneasy that he’d wanted privacy. But, unlike some of his colleagues, Dr. Connors wasn’t especially close to any of his teachers, so they’d all gotten used to his more formal ways without reading anything into it. Still, it was obvious he had something on his mind.

A cold wind whooshed down the concrete halls of the nearly abandoned school. The parking lot had only a handful of cars. It would get busier later in the week, when those teaching summer school returned to do their prep work. It would get the busiest just before school began in earnest in the fall.

She followed the principal, who had a runner’s build and a loping gait. He didn’t walk with her, so she followed behind and said not a word.

After sitting behind his desk, he motioned for her to take the chair she always sat in for his one-on-one discussions. Although she tried to engage him, his lack of eye contact was disturbing.

He leaned back, linking his fingers behind his head and glanced at the ceiling while he inhaled. At last he came forward, placing his forearms on the desk, and leveled a look at her, which froze her.

“The Millers are going to be a problem, Julie.” He searched her face, lips pursed, and a slight frown to his bushy eyebrows. “The District does not want a lawsuit, but it’s beginning to look like things are headed there.”

Julie was surprised at the term “lawsuit,” but wasn’t surprised to learn the Millers would be a bigger problem than Connors had hoped. They’d given the sweet, elderly kindergarten teacher a hard time, too. The first grade teacher had left early in the school year to have a baby. The long-term sub never had a chance. It was her first year of teaching. Dr. Connors, who had himself just arrived this year, knew about the previous years of complaints about the Millers, but for some reason didn’t take them seriously enough, Julie thought.

Until now.

“I just don’t see how they could have much of a case, Dr. Connors. I really don’t.”

“Well, just defending the district against accusations is expensive and isn’t what we want to do. I have negotiated something I hope will help defuse the situation.” Now Connors was beginning to look smug. Julie didn’t think she was going to like anything he said next. And she didn’t.

“I’ve told them she will pass to the third grade, provided she gets some special tutoring this summer.”

“I think it’s an excellent idea, Dr. Connors.” Julie was actually relieved before she noticed he was eyeing her carefully.

“Mr. Miller wants her in your classroom this summer.”

“But—” Connors wouldn’t let her continue.

“And he says he’ll pay for extra tutoring, if it is
you
who does the instruction, so it dovetails into the curriculum here.”

Julie stood. “No. You have to understand how this could be. They’ve already complained about my teaching methods. I think another—”

“I’ve already agreed to it,” Connors stated flatly.

“But not the tutoring. Surely not the tutoring.”

“That, too, although you two can negotiate the times and salary.” He got up and came over to stand next to her. “This is your opportunity to make things right, Julie. In order to keep your job, I’m asking you to do this for the District, and for yourself. Consider your career.”

“But my union rep—”

“Has already been contacted.”

This was so
wrong on so many levels. She left a message for her rep, who wasn’t answering. She called a co-worker and didn’t get an answer, either. She lingered around the doorway of another teacher who was also preparing her room for summer school, but all three of the kids in the classroom with her were helping. Julie didn’t want to expose them to anything about the Millers.

She returned to her room, quickly removed the remainder of the items she’d planned to take down, stored them, and left.

Mr. Miller was leaning against her car in the parking lot as if he’d been waiting for her. She was so surprised by his boldness, it took her a minute to compose herself.