Montana SEAL (Brotherhood Protectors #1)(24)
He found Sadie in the kitchen, settling steaks and chicken breasts on a tray. “Grill?”
She nodded, handing him the tray. “You know where to find it.”
Hank cranked up the gas grill and placed the steaks and chicken on the grate. When he returned to the kitchen, he stood at Sadie’s side, chopping lettuce, tomatoes and sweet onions for a salad, while she cleaned the ears of corn on the cob and wrapped them in foil to go on the grill.
“When did you learn to cook?” Hank asked as he tossed the salad in the bowl.
She smiled. “When I was a starving waitress in LA, trying to break into the movie industry. I couldn’t afford to eat out, and I needed all my tip money to pay my rent. I even learned how to make Ramen Noodles taste good.”
“Hey.” He twisted a damp dishtowel and popped her bottom. “Don’t be talking bad about Ramen Noodles. I’ve eaten them more times than I can count, out of pure self-preservation.”
They talked and moved in and out of the kitchen checking the food as it cooked. By the time the chicken breasts and steaks were ready to come off the grill, Fin showed up.
He stopped beside the grill and sniffed the air. “Something smells good.”
“Go get cleaned up while we put this on the table,” Sadie said.
The pure domesticity of working in the kitchen with Sadie made Hank long for more experiences just like it. It was what it would be like if they were married. Living under one roof, cooking in the same kitchen, sleeping in the same bed…
“Why the big sigh?” Sadie asked.
Hank hadn’t realized he’d even done it. “Just that it’s a beautiful evening, and I can’t think of a place I’d rather be.”
She nodded. “I was thinking the same thing.” She took one of the plates full of steak and chicken up the steps of the back porch.
Hank followed. As they entered the house, the telephone rang. Fin’s voice sounded in the hallway, “Hello…Oh, hey, Joe… Tonight? Sure, I’d love to meet you there… I’ll check with them. Either way, I’ll be there after supper. See ya.”
Sadie set the bowl of salad on the table and glanced up as Fin entered the kitchen, shaking the water out of his hair. “I jumped in the shower since I smelled more like a horse than a man.” He padded to the table barefooted, buttoning his shirt. “That was Joe on the phone. He’s off duty and headed to Blue Moose Tavern for a beer after dinner. He wanted us to join him. He said something about the state crime lab identifying the bullet slug they pulled from Patterson.”
“We’ll go,” Sadie answered, then looked to Hank. “If that’s all right by you.”
“I’ll go wherever you go,” he said, without adding, After all, I’m just your bodyguard.
She gave him a grateful smile and waved at the table. “Gentlemen, don’t let the food get cold.”
Hank held her chair while she seated herself. Then he and Fin took their seats and dug into the food. The steak was so tender it melted in his mouth. “Is this from one of your own?”
Fin nodded. “It is.”
“Best I’ve ever had.” Hank went into a long discussion with Fin over the merits of different breeds of cattle. Sadie joined in, laughing and smiling as they shared memories of growing up on ranches. By the time they finished the meal and cleaned the kitchen, darkness had settled around the ranch house while the stars made their grand appearance.
Fin patted his belly and stretched. “I just have to pull on a pair of boots and a jacket, and I’ll be ready.”
“I want to change into something fresh.” Sadie hurried after Fin, leaving Hank in the kitchen, drying the last plate.
He wandered into the hallway where the photographs of the family had hung ever since he could remember. When he’d visited Fin and Sadie, he’d waited in the hallway, staring at pictures of the McClain family, working the cattle, playing football, on vacation or gathered around the Christmas tree, smiling and laughing.
Hank had vague memories of a time when his family had been happy. When his mother was still living. She’d been the life force that held the family together. After she died, his father had gotten meaner and crankier, never finding anything nice to say about anyone. Especially Hank. No matter how hard he’d tried, he couldn’t please his father. For many years, he’d busted his ass for his father’s acceptance. Now that he was grown and had gone through all he had to become a SEAL, he had to give the credit to his upbringing. If his father hadn’t been so hard on him, he might not have made it past the first week of BUD/S training.
Pausing in front of Sadie’s senior picture, his pulse quickened and a rush of longing filled his chest to the point he felt it might explode. This was the photograph he’d carried in his vest for years until it disintegrated. Sadie was the woman who’d held his heart and gave him a reason to live through the worst firefights. Even knowing he couldn’t compete with her co-stars, he dreamed of being with her some day. Never had he thought it would be so soon. Now that he was with her, he didn’t want their time to end.
Fin appeared beside him. “She was such a brat back then. I don’t know how you put up with her.”
“Hey.” Sadie joined them in the hallway and slapped her brother’s arm. “That’s no way to talk about your sister.”