Finding Carly (SEAL Team Hawaii #5)(35)

Jag shook his head. “No. I don’t want that.”

“Neither do I,” Mustang argued. “You think I want to go on a mission without you? Fuck no. But most of us have learned that shit can go sideways in a blink. And our women come first…well, as much as they can when we’re employed by the Navy. But let’s not borrow trouble. Knock on wood, shit’s been fairly quiet recently. We’ll take things one day at a time.”

Baker nodded at them all and stood. “I need to get going. Redmon’s shift ends soon and I want to be sure to catch him before he heads home. Later.”

Jag gave the other man a chin lift and the others stood up to head out as well. Slate caught him before he left.

“I was serious,” Slate said. “You need me to play bodyguard, I’m more than happy to.”

“I appreciate it,” Jag told his friend.

“You’ll let us know when you’ve set up the sessions with Senior Chief Petty Officer Albertson?”

“Yes. I’m hoping to get that started soon.”

“Good. Thanks.”

“Things okay with you and Ashlyn?” Jag ventured. He wasn’t one to pry into anyone’s relationship, but his friend had seemed a bit stressed recently, and he was worried about him.

“As good as they can be. I think she hates me most days, and she’s stubborn as hell. And won’t listen to me when I tell her that it’s not safe to be driving all over the island, including to some of the worst neighborhoods, to deliver food.”

“Maybe she does hear you, but instead of telling her over and over that she’s making a mistake, you can try to offer alternatives or suggestions on how to do her job safer?” Jag said hesitantly.

Slate sighed. “She’s driving me crazy,” he admitted.

Jag couldn’t help but smile. “Welcome to the club.” He clapped Slate on the back.

He merely shook his head. “I’m headed down to Food For All to see if she’s back from today’s deliveries. I’ll tell her about the self-defense classes.”

“A suggestion?” Jag said. “If possible, make it seem like it’s her idea to go. I’m guessing that’ll go over better than ordering her to do anything.”

Slate thought about that for a moment, then nodded. “Good point. Maybe I’ll tell her that Carly’s not sure about going by herself. She’ll definitely volunteer to go with her then.”

Jag nodded. “Exactly.”

“Thanks. Hey…who do you think Baker stayed with last night? I mean, I wasn’t aware that he was all that close with anyone on this end of the island.”

“I have no idea. But Baker’s got connections everywhere. For all we know, he bunked in with the base admiral,” Jag said dryly.

“True. It’s probably better if we didn’t know. I’ll see you at PT tomorrow. Call if you need me,” Slate said.

Jag nodded and took a moment to gather his thoughts. He wasn’t sure he’d learned anything new in the meeting with Baker, but it did feel good to know his team had his and Carly’s backs. Not that he’d expected anything different.

Despite that, his belly churned with anxiety. He hadn’t felt like this in a very long time. Not even in the middle of a mission when things had gone completely fucking sideways. He had more to lose now. It wasn’t his life on the line, it was Carly’s. And somehow, Jag knew her ordeal wasn’t over. She’d have to be strong to get through whatever was coming…and something was coming.

He’d learned over the years that he couldn’t control other people. He could only control himself and how he responded to whatever was happening around him. The same applied to Carly. Ultimately, they might not know who was working with her ex until it was too late. All he could do was give Carly the tools to deal with whatever happened.

The thought of some asshole getting his hands on her made his skin crawl, but no matter what happened, his Carly could handle it. He had no doubt. Working with the Naval security officer would hopefully give her confidence in her own abilities against someone taller and stronger than she was. That, along with the knowledge that he’d do whatever was necessary to get to her, would hopefully get her through anything that might happen.

The hair on the back of Jag’s neck stood up, and he realized he’d been standing in the conference room for too long. He needed to get moving. Get to Duke’s and to Carly.

As he walked quickly out of the building and toward his Jetta, he thought about his sometimes overwhelming inner turmoil. Some men might be more positive in his shoes. Might trust the police when they said they couldn’t find any evidence of a threat. But just because no one knew something was wrong, didn’t mean all was well. He’d learned that firsthand when he was just eleven years old.

Trouble was coming, and just because he and Carly didn’t know from which direction it might appear, didn’t mean it wouldn’t eventually catch up with them.

Determination rose within Jag. He had no idea if he and Carly would last as a couple, but he was going to do everything possible to make sure she not only made it through this blip in her life, but that she flourished.

That meant giving her the confidence to live her life. Baby steps. That’s all she needed. And while she was learning to fly once again, he and his team would have her back, doing what they could to give her the space to thrive.