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T he scratch of Rhae’s pen on the notepad filled the office, punctuated by the occasional gurgle or thump of a tiny body moving across the floor nearby.

Her gaze flicked between the observations she was writing about the last client to where Navy rolled on her stomach. The baby pushed onto her hands and knees and took off quickly toward a stuffed lion, her favorite toy.

She latched on to its ratty tail and dragged it over to her. When she rolled into a sitting position and flapped the lion, a smile crossed Rhae’s face.

The baby was always active at this time of morning after waking from her morning nap, half of which she took in Kyle’s arms as he fed her a bottle.

With Navy occupied, she returned to her notes.

Kyle made steps forward and back all the time, but the past few weeks, she’d noted a trend toward progress.

He was getting more involved around the ranch and finding a support system in the other guys he worked with.

She was really pleased with his progress.

She turned to filling out a form the program needed for funding, but it was difficult to concentrate on the mundane document with a bubbly bundle of joy that kept drawing her attention.

A knock sounded, and before she could respond, the door opened. Denver stepped inside. For a moment, he paused in a pool of sunlight slanting through the window, and Rhae’s breath caught.

Every rugged line of his body was highlighted by the sunlight, from the sharpness in his eyes to the angle of his jaw, all the way down his carved body to the toes of his dusty cowboy boots.

Her lower belly clenched at the memory of what that machine of a body did to her.

Then her gaze roamed back to his shoulders, taut with the weight of something unspoken that he carried with him since the first time he ever stepped into her office years ago, in another office in another part of the world. Then, he had just come out of the hospital following a head injury.

Her stare moved over his face as if she could see his reason for leaving his SEAL team etched there. But she only made out the faint lines of fatigue around each gray eye.

He closed the door. “Hey.” His gaze traveled to Navy, who gave a delighted squeal and slapped the floor with her chubby palms.

He swayed his gaze back to Rhae. “It’s almost lunch.”

“Yes. You planning on stealing me away to the cafeteria? I think it’s chili day.”

His lips quirked at one corner. “Probably.” Instead of moving toward her, he crossed the room to Navy.

Used to receiving all the attention every time the office door opened, Navy looked up at him, interest in her eyes as she watched her daddy sink to the floor in front of her.

Rhae’s throat tightened as she looked on, pen and paper forgotten.

“Hi, Navy. What’s this?” He picked up the lion and held it in front of her. She reached for it. A deep rumble that came up from her belly burst from her as she mimicked the lion’s roar.

Denver laughed, looking at Rhae. “You teach her that?”

She nodded. “She loves animals and picks up all the sounds quick. The only one I’m stumped about is the turtle.”

He huffed with amusement and handed the baby her lion.

Rhae leaned back in her seat, arms wrapped around herself, watching without interruption. He needed this time with Navy in an even bigger way than the other guys did.

Navy tossed the lion, and he caught it out of the air, raising a giggle from the baby. Denver’s smile echoed the simple joy they gained from being with each other.

He threw it back to her, and she squealed, scooping it up. The dimple popping in her cheek matched the one in his.

They played this game for a few minutes, tossing the lion around. Finally, he cupped the baby’s head in one broad hand. Navy blinked up at him in awe.

Denver began to speak, voice low and rough. “You know, Navy, I used to think I knew what mattered in my life. My team, my mission. I had purpose.”

Being the therapy baby made Navy quiet and alert whenever one of the men started talking to her like this. She stilled, listening to the lull of her father’s voice.

“But then I got hurt.”

Rhae held her breath, listening, searching his body for signs of injury. If he had suffered some physical injury, she would have seen it last night when they were intimate. The scar she’d felt on his back was healed.

“I couldn’t do my job the way I used to.

It became apparent to my teammates too…” He swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple a jagged lump bobbing up his throat before dropping low again.

“I was medically discharged. Got a signature and a pat on the back for years of service. They just hand you a folder and tell you to find a way back to the world of the living.”

He bowed his head, struggling to speak, and Rhae’s vision blurred with tears for what he had been through. Was still going through.

He reached out and took Navy’s little hand. The sight of him squeezing it lightly made Rhae’s heart squeeze too.

“The worst part,” he continued, “was leaving them behind. My brothers.”

Long seconds ticked by in silence. Rhae fought to control the tears that threatened to flood out of the dam Denver broke.

“We were in the middle of tracking a real bad guy. Someone who does things that keep you up at night. I had to leave them to face the threat without me. I can’t have their six anymore.”

Rhae brought a shaking hand to her lips, pressing down hard to trap in any sound of despair. Denver had to keep talking. He needed this.

“They don’t talk to me anymore. Probably can’t.

Operational silence, maybe. Or maybe they blame me for getting that last head injury.

I could have stayed back behind the line, let somebody else lead and I wouldn’t have gotten hurt.

” He let out a low sigh. “It’s…hard. I gave everything to that life. ”

He looked up at her then, and Rhae saw it—the ache, the guilt, the isolation he never let anyone see but she always sensed in him.

A heartbeat ticked by, then he ruffled the light hair on the back of Navy’s head. “But I have new jobs to do. A job that matters more than I ever thought possible.”

Rhae opened her mouth to tell him that he hadn’t let down anyone. But at that moment, the baby lurched across the floor on hands and knees.

She grabbed on to a side table. Chubby fists gripped the wooden bar between the legs, and she pulled herself to a standing position.

A grin stretched over Denver’s face. “Look at you,” he said quietly.

Navy’s legs stiffened, holding herself upright for one beat, two…then she let go.

Rhae’s heart shot into her throat as she wobbled for a moment then started to pitch sideways.

Denver reached out, catching her in his strong, sure hands. He pulled the baby into his arms and grazed the top of her head with his lips. “I got you,” he whispered.

Rhae exhaled a shaky breath. “Your job of protecting the world isn’t over, you know.”

He looked over, understanding dawning in his eyes.

She smiled a small, teary smile. “It just looks different now.”

He nodded slowly, cradling Navy against his chest. She rested there like she always knew where she belonged.

“Want to grab that lunch now?” He sounded lighter after purging.

Rhae nodded and set aside her notebook. She locked the papers away in her desk drawer and hooked the diaper bag over her shoulder. Denver reached the door with Navy in his arms, holding it open for Rhae.

They walked out of the office together and navigated the corridors slowly as a unit. Dare she think of them as a family?

She didn’t speak her thoughts but let them roll around in her mind as they reached the cafeteria. As soon as the guys eating lunch saw her and Navy, they threw her hesitant waves. She smiled back and grabbed a tray.

Denver shifted the baby to one arm and took a tray too, while Navy latched on to his dog tags. They moved slowly down the small lunch buffet. He grabbed the chili and a few packs of crackers, along with a sandwich, and Rhae chose the chili as well.

Rhae threw him a look. “You know, I’m jealous of your coordination. It took me weeks to figure out how to hold a baby and fill a tray with food.”

He smiled, but his eyes were sad. “I missed so much.”

She hesitated, gaze steady on him. “But you’re here now.”

They set their trays down, and she took the baby while he fetched the high chair against the wall that was here for Navy and any other child who came to visit the patients on the Black Heart Ranch.

Navy smacked her hands on the tray with a demand that made them both laugh.

Rhae took out a jar of baby food and a rubbery spoon. She also dumped a handful of Cheerios on the tray for the baby to feed herself. Denver watched all this.

“You look like I’m dealing with a matter of national security.”

He reached out a hand. “Can I try to feed her?”

Touched deeply, she passed him the spoon. He read the label of the baby food jar. “Mushy mush.”

She laughed. “It doesn’t say that.”

“Might as well.” He gave the grayish pink goo a dubious look before sniffing it. “Smells like fruit.”

“Because it is, silly. Navy loves it.”

He scooped up a big spoonful and before he could get it to Navy’s mouth, she grabbed his hand and guided it to her eager lips. They laughed again and soon he got the hang of feeding her, taking intermittent bites of his own meal.

Companionable silence settled over them. After a while, Denver cleared his throat. “You know…I’d like to hold a family meeting.”

Rhae raised a brow. “A meeting?”

He nodded. “And I want you there, Rhae. You and Navy.”

The weight of his words was an anchor in her chest. She knew what he meant by it—inclusion, commitment.

“Then we’ll be there,” she said softly.

His smile was slow, but it reached his eyes.

In that moment, Rhae knew. This was the beginning of something stronger. Not perfect…not easy. But real.

And just like Denver didn’t know where he stood in a world without his SEAL team, she didn’t exactly know where she stood with him.

But she would fight like hell to keep it.

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