Finding Carly (SEAL Team Hawaii #5)(99)

Her phone was sitting on the kitchen counter, where Jag had left it when they’d gotten home. His teammates had retrieved it from her car after locating it in that parking garage. She picked up the cell and saw she had several text messages from her friends. They were all expressing their gratitude and happiness that she was home. Even Monica had sent a short text letting her know how relieved she was that she was all right, which meant the world to Carly, because she knew the other woman wasn’t exactly a “texter.”

Kenna had also started a group text about what everyone should bring to the barbeque that weekend and was being her usual bossy, organized self.

Carly would respond to all her friends later, but first she had more important things to do. She didn’t even hesitate to click on the name in her contact list. It was late, or early, but she instinctively knew it wouldn’t matter.

“You all right, Carly?” Baker said quietly when he answered after only one ring. “Where are you?”

“I’m fine,” she said softly, sinking down onto the couch. “I’m home.”

“Then why are you calling?” Baker asked.

“Where are you?” she countered.

He sighed. “I’m sitting on the beach up here at the North Shore.”

“If you’re sitting there obsessing about what you think you should’ve done differently to find Gideon or to prevent what happened, I’m gonna be pissed,” she told him.

But he didn’t laugh. “It was my fault, Carly.”

“That’s such bullshit,” she insisted. “Do you control what everyone does or says these days? Because I didn’t get the memo.”

Baker was silent on the other end of the line, so Carly continued.

“I know everyone is kind of scared of you, and that you’re this big bad former SEAL who everyone relies on when shit hits the fan, but you’re human, Baker. You eat, drink, and shit the same way we all do…unless you don’t and no one’s told me…but that’s neither here nor there. The only people to blame for what happened are Shawn and Gideon. No one else. You aren’t Superman. You couldn’t have prevented what happened.”

“I should’ve figured out that Gideon was the accomplice,” he said quietly, the agony easy to hear in his voice.

“How? Osmosis? The guy was sneaky and smart. It’s likely he tailed Jag and me for months, and we had no clue. And there was no way you could’ve interviewed every single one of his coworkers and people he saw on a regular basis to find out about the boat he borrowed. If he was the only suspect, then maybe you could’ve seen behind the bullshit fa?ade he showed the world, but he wasn’t. There were plenty of other people you were looking into. I’m not good at math, but if there were a hundred friends and acquaintances you had to investigate for each of the people who were close to Shawn, it would’ve taken you forever.”

Baker grunted. Carly was taking that as a good sign.

“You want to know why I’m up right now?”

“Yes,” Baker said immediately. “You should be asleep. Is your head hurting?”

“Not my head. My heart,” Carly told him. “I just knew my friend was blaming himself, and there’s no need. As I told Jag earlier tonight, I would go through the same thing all over again if it meant I ended up exactly where I am right now. Let it go, Baker. Please. No one thinks less of you because you didn’t figure out Gideon was Shawn’s accomplice before he took me. Not me. Not Jag. Not anyone. Cut yourself some slack. If you don’t, I’m gonna continue to lose sleep, and I’ll probably get a complex and be paranoid and won’t be able to function. I’ll lose my job and become a burden on society.”

Carly was laying it on as thick as she could, and to her relief, she finally heard Baker chuckle.

“Right, wouldn’t want that.”

“I’m serious. Get over yourself. That’s an order.”

“Yes, ma’am. Now how about you march your ass back to bed and rest? I’m guessing your head is throbbing and it probably wouldn’t hurt if you took another pain pill.”

Carly laughed. “I will, if you march your ass back to your own bed and get some sleep. It’s not safe on the beach this time of night…or morning.”

Baker chuckled again. “Right. I’m a surfer dude. The beach is my second home.”

“Whatever. Then go back to your first home and sleep,” Carly told him.

“I will. Carly…”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Later.” Baker hung up without another word.

Carly stood to do just as he suggested, to snuggle back in bed with Jag, but jolted in surprise when she saw him leaning against the wall just inside the hallway that led to the bedroom.

“You scared me,” she said.

“Baker?” Jag asked, nodding to the phone she’d just put down on the coffee table.

Carly nodded.

“He good?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. I hope so.”

“He’s good,” Jag said firmly, then held out his hand.

She walked toward him and took it, sighing in contentment when Jag pulled her against him.

“How’d I get so lucky?” he murmured into her hair. But he didn’t give her a chance to answer his question. He turned her and hugged her against his side and walked them back into the bedroom. He got her settled under the covers once more, then went into the bathroom. He came back out with a pill in his hand and a glass of water.