Beyond What is Given(117)

Paisley’s father took the podium. His remarks on loyalty, bravery, and accomplishment were short, and I heard next to none of them over the steady pounding in my heart. It didn’t matter. First in my class or not, I’d gotten my duty station. The actual class ranking shouldn’t matter to me.

Except it did.

Major Davidson announced the Chinook class first, and we all clapped. Then the Blackhawk class.

“It’s cool Josh is graduating with you guys,” Sam whispered.

“Yeah, they should have been done a while ago, but they needed the aircraft during the tornado relief and it set them back long enough to coincide with us. I’m not complaining.” There was a sense of poetry to going out together.

“Distinguished honor graduate from Blackhawk class 1509 is Second Lieutenant William Carter.”

I clapped a little harder and toasted my water charger when he smiled over at me. Not second-choice Carter anymore. Maybe Sam had made me soft, but even that ass had grown on me.

Sam took hold of my hand and wove her fingers through mine until they fit in that perfect space of familiarity. Here we go.

“Distinguished honor graduate from Apache class 1506 is Second Lieutenant”—Jagger Bateman—“Grayson Masters.”

My breath stalled.

Sam kissed my cheek as the crowd applauded again. “You did it. I’m so proud of you!”

Jagger clapped me on the back. “Congratulations, man!”

“It should have been you.”

He shook his head. “You kept up with me test for test academically. Trust me, I paid attention. And in the cockpit, you’re a better pilot. Take the f*cking accolade, Grayson. You earned it.”

I pulled Sam under my arm and kissed her forehead and then her lips, putting all my joy, incredulousness, and hope into it. This moment was perfect.

“Now, soon-to-be aviators. We all know that you didn’t get here alone. In Army Aviation, we have a tradition. You ladies put up with late nights, early mornings, absent spouses, irritated, worried, over-stressed spouses, and I’d bet that more than a few of you know the 5&9s as well as they do.” Laughter rolled over the small crowd. “So, gentlemen, invite your ladies to stand, and pin them. They’ve earned it.”

Fuck. What was I going—My velvet box appeared in front of me. “You didn’t think I’d actually lose Paisley’s wings, did you?”

“You knew. Asshole.” I was too relieved to have her wings to actually be angry.

He had the audacity to wink as we stood. I offered my hand to Sam, and she stood slowly, unsure of herself. “I’m not your wife.”

“Not yet.” I grinned at the way her jaw dropped. My fingers fumbled with the chain, finally working the tiny clasp and securing it around her neck. The wings rested exactly where I knew they would, in gorgeous contrast to her perfect skin. “I wouldn’t have made it through without you.”

She laughed. “That’s not true. If anything I was a deterrent when I was here, and I’ve been gone over two months. This one is all you.”

“First, you became my motivation.” I bent down to her ear. “Second, you play a mean game of strip 5&9,” I whispered and kissed the delicate shell. She shivered, and I tried to remind my dick that we’d agreed to no sex. Her lips parted as I kissed her gently. “And just because you weren’t here doesn’t mean you weren’t with me every day.”

Applause sounded in the room, and we were dismissed to begin dancing as the music came to life through the speakers. Couples headed out to the floor, but I didn’t care. I was too busy kissing the woman I was completely and utterly in love with.



“Gray.” Dad’s voice met us as we walked up the sidewalk to the house after the ball.

I stopped mid-step, Sam tucked under my arm, wrapped in my dress blues jacket to keep her warm.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

His gaze flickered to my friends, and he shoved his hands in his pockets.

Paisley spoke up. “How about we all head inside where it’s warm?” The group mumbled assent, and Sam looked up at me.

“Do you need me?” she whispered.

“More than you’ll ever know, but I can handle this. Want to go wait in our room?” Our. Yes, I said it on purpose.

“Okay.” She kissed my cheek and turned back to my dad. “It was nice to see you again, Mr. Masters.”

He gave a genuine smile. “I am relieved to find you here, Sam.”

I waited until she’d shut the door before I spoke to him. “Well?”

“You graduate tomorrow.”

“I am aware.”

He pinched the bridge of his nose. “Why do you make everything so hard?”

“I get it from my father.”

“Just because I don’t approve of what you’re doing doesn’t mean that I don’t love you, that I’m not”—his throat worked—“incredibly proud of you, and what you’ve accomplished. My worry doesn’t diminish that.”

“You almost ended my career.”

“For which I am incredibly sorry.” The apology was enough to stun me. “Look, Gray. I should have believed after the accident. I should have believed you when you told me you could handle flying. I should have trusted you, and I didn’t. I was so busy trying to protect you that I didn’t realize I was suffocating you. Did I want you to come home and work at the shop? Of course. Do I realize that Joey will probably surpass us both in boat design? Absolutely.”