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CHAPTER TWENTY

Casper was done.

The last week had been full of nonstop debriefings.

He’d gotten his ass chewed for taking a civilian on that flight to extricate the SEALs.

He’d argued that Laryn wasn’t exactly a civilian, but since he was still kicking his own ass for not kicking her out of his chopper and taking his chances with the FLIR, he didn’t protest too much at the reprimand.

When they’d arrived back in Norfolk, the meetings didn’t stop. He had to meet with the colonel, explain what had happened in detail.

And amazingly…he found himself face-to-face with none other than Tex. The man had actually come down from his home outside Pittsburgh to meet with him personally.

The legend was actually pretty chatty, which was a surprise. He’d actually been listening in while they were rescuing Laryn, and he’d had no problem speaking up when needed during the mission. It might’ve been annoying, but instead, looking back, it was somewhat amusing.

Tex had been positively gleeful at the intel Osman gave up. He encouraged Casper to keep him talking, to not kill him too soon. And once Tex felt he had what he needed to start tracking down the other moles Osman had paid off, he simply said, “War my ass. Kill him.”

Casper hadn’t hesitated. He’d shot the asshole through the heart…and it had been so satisfying.

In the meeting on base, Tex had a lot to say about the information he’d dug up on Osman and how he’d found the men and occasional women who were feeding him intel.

Those soldiers and sailors were now in the process of being charged with treason, including the sailors who’d been onboard the destroyer.

Mustang had called from Hawaii, wanting to check on Laryn, and he sent best wishes from himself and his team, and of course their families. He’d extended an open invitation to Casper’s team to visit them if they ever found their way to Oahu.

The one thing Casper hadn’t gotten enough of since returning home was Laryn.

She’d been just as busy. She had her own share of debriefings to attend, as well as meetings with one of the psychologists on base who specialized in military personnel who’d been POWs.

Technically, her situation couldn’t be categorized as a prisoner of war, but she’d still been held against her will, tortured mentally by being dumped in that shithole of a cell, and tortured physically by that asshole keeping her hungry, thirsty, dirty, and sleep-deprived.

One morning, when she’d woken up after a nightmare around three o’clock, she’d finally opened up to Casper about everything she went through.

She’d admitted that the worst had been the hood she was forced to wear for several days as she was transported through the mountains to the city.

She’d cried, and Casper had felt helpless to do anything but hold her as she let out the emotions she tried so hard to keep bottled up.

They slept in the same bed each night, but they hadn’t made love since returning to the States.

The timing wasn’t right, and with Laryn still recuperating from her ordeal, the last thing Casper wanted to do was add the pressure of sex.

He’d been overwhelmed with relief when she told him that she hadn’t been sexually assaulted.

It didn’t really make the other things she’d been through any better, but he was very thankful she didn’t have to deal with that additional trauma on top of everything else.

Besides the timing being off, they were both dead on their feet by the time each evening rolled around. So they’d eat dinner together, then cuddle on the couch. Before long, one or both of them would end up nodding off.

It was more than time for them to get a break from work; from everything that had happened.

Laryn was already retrofitting another MH-60 for him and Pyro, and he knew from experience that her exhaustion wasn’t going away anytime soon.

She prided herself on being able to get the chopper mission ready faster than any other mechanic team in the Army.

He’d cleared a day off for her with the colonel, and his plan was to take her home and keep her there for a full twenty-four hours. No meetings, no talk of MH-60s, nothing but enjoying each other’s company and making sure she knew where they stood.

As far as Casper was concerned, they were two people well on their way to spending the rest of their lives together.

To getting married and starting a family.

He wanted that. With her. And he wanted to make sure they were on the same page.

Yes, she’d had a crush on him; yes, she’d admitted that the reason she’d looked into taking another job in the first place was because she didn’t think he’d ever see her as anything other than the mechanic who worked on his choppers.

But that didn’t mean she truly believed him when he said he wanted to be with her, and only her.

It was past time to erase any lingering doubts she might have.

Casper strode across the hangar and couldn’t help but smile at the ass-chewing she was giving one of the junior enlisted soldiers who’d just joined her team.

“Around here, we don’t watch the clock. We do what needs to be done, when it needs to be done.

You want to know why?” She didn’t wait for him to ask.

“Because these birds aren’t carrying spoiled tourists who want a glimpse of a fucking whale.

They’re holding the bravest and craziest and most talented pilots we’ve ever seen.

They transport the SEALs and Deltas who keep our country free.

Who are doing the most dangerous things you could ever imagine.

So staying an extra ten minutes to finish whatever we’re doing before heading home isn’t a big deal.

It's not a sacrifice on our parts. And if you think it is, you need to find a new place to work, and definitely a new job. You got a problem with that, private?”

“No, ma’am.”

“Good. Look, I’m a hard boss. I admit it. I expect perfection from everyone who works with me. And loyalty to the men who fly these machines. Their lives depend on us tightening every screw and something as simple as making sure every fuse is properly installed. Understand?”

“Yes, ma’am,” the young man said again.

“All right. Go home. Think about what I said. If you decide to stay, I can tell you that you’ll never be prouder to have a part in making sure our brave special forces soldiers and our Night Stalkers make it home safe and sound after every mission.

If you want to leave, find somewhere else to work, no hard feelings.

Think about it and we’ll talk tomorrow.”

“Not tomorrow,” Casper cut in, making himself known for the first time and straightening from where he’d been leaning against a box of parts waiting to be installed on the shell of the MH-60 in front of him.

“The day after. Tomorrow, you have the day off.” He glanced at the young man.

“And I’m thinking if you make any decision other than to stay, you’re an idiot, private. ”

“Yes, Sir,” the kid said, before saluting Casper, then hurrying away from them as fast as he could without actually jogging.

“What? I don’t have tomorrow off,” Laryn said, her hands on her hips.

She’d filled out a little since they’d returned a week ago, mostly because Casper had been doing his best to keep her fed.

Her hair was shiny once more, even though no one but him really saw it since, while at work, she kept it in the usual tidy bun at the nape of her neck.

She smelled like her familiar sweet vanilla cookie self, which pleased them both beyond measure.

Her showers were a little longer than they’d been previously, but Casper completely understood.

Being clean wasn’t anything she’d ever take for granted again.

As she stood in front of him, irritation making her practically vibrate, Casper couldn’t help but be thankful she was in his life. That she was here in front of him. Healthy and back to her normal bossy, prickly self.

“You do,” he countered. “I talked to the colonel and he agreed that after everything, we’re both due some time off.”

“We?” she asked, her tense demean0r relaxing a fraction.

“Yup. You okay with that?”

“Are you kidding? Yes! Wait…are we going to be spending our time off together ?”

“Of course. I have plans that include, food, a bed, and us not leaving it for at least eight hours.”

“Ooooh, you’re such a dirty talker. I can’t wait to sleep for eight hours straight.”

Casper burst out laughing. This woman was going to keep him on his toes, and he’d love every second of it. Closing the distance between them, he pulled her into his embrace and kissed her. The kiss wasn’t as deep or passionate as he wanted, but they were still at work.

“Tate, you can’t do that here!” Laryn protested, but she didn’t pull out of his arms .

“I can and will. I’m done pretending I’m not crazy about you while we’re at work. It’s not forbidden, since you aren’t enlisted and don’t technically work for me. And after everything that happened, I refuse to not show you every chance I get how important you are to me.”

“Tate.” This time her voice was softer, full of affection. “Did you really talk to the colonel? Do we really have all of tomorrow off?”

“Yes to both.”

“Awesome.”

“In fact, our time off starts now. You at a point where you can get away?”

“Yes. I just need to talk to Chuck and let him know what needs to be worked on next. And since I won’t be here tomorrow, tell him to check the engine mount to make sure there aren’t any cracks or weak spots, since we’ll be installing the engine in the next week.

Oh! And I want to discuss calibrating the Engine Control Unit.

The last thing we need is the freaking engine failing in the middle of a test flight because it wasn’t calibrated right?—”

“Sergeant Wells!” Casper yelled across the hangar, toward a group of men standing around.