“Be alert. I wish I had more than that to direct you… I swear the minute I have something concrete, I’ll pass it along. You have to know I wouldn’t leave you in the dark unless there was no other choice.”
“Call me if you need anything.” Wade clapped him on the back.
“I won’t need you.” He slung the duffel over his shoulder. “But thanks.”
“Me? Hell no.” He laughed. “I’m talking about Sunny. That woman’s so resourceful, she can create a generator out of bubble gum and vegetable oil. She’s like an eco-friendly MacGyver.”
At least some guys got it right the first time. “She’s a keeper.”
“You don’t have to tell me. Enough of the sweet flowery love stuff.” He squatted down in front of the open safe again. “Let’s talk extra ammo.”
Chapter 9
Rachel cradled a mug of coffee between her palms, killing time until Liam armed himself to the teeth. Gulp. Ouch. She blew into the coffee. “It’s beyond nice of you to let us just walk into your home in the middle of the night.”
The sun was just starting to tease the watery horizon visible through the open kitchen window. A fan kicked up a breeze, and while there were AC vents in the bungalow, apparently the Rochas preferred the morning breeze.
Sunny poured a cup of coffee for herself as well, looking surprisingly awake in running shorts and a tank top. Her brown hair swung loose, with a feather woven into the strands on one side. “It’s nothing. Seriously. This is what we do for each other.”
She placed a plate of pineapple-mango muffins on the table. Home baked. Clearly.
Even if she hadn’t seen the muffin tin slotted in the dish dryer by the sink, she would have known. Everything about this place spoke of eco-friendly creativity, from the repurposed walnut table to the natural-fiber curtains. Rag rugs were scattered in front of the sink, by the door, in the hall.
Being here, bringing danger to their doorstep, felt so wrong. “I’m sorry.”
“For what?” Sunny sat across from her and scooped up a muffin.
Rachel’s mouth watered and she grabbed a muffin for herself, as good an excuse as any to give herself a moment to come up with a neutral answer. She thought of Liam’s insistence that they wouldn’t ask questions, which meant she should respect the need to keep them as uninvolved as possible. So what was she supposed to talk about?
The flippin’ weather? “Your home is beautiful, like you’ve found Florida’s little best kept secret nestled back here.”
“It’s a temporary place, just for their short stint.” Sunny thumbed a crumb from the corner of her mouth. “Some folks think I’m crazy for not picking an inexpensive condo and a more flashy setting, but I value my privacy.”
Short stint? Liam was moving soon? Suddenly sitting here was more than about killing time. Sitting here offered her an inside peek at what life would be like with Liam. Forget about denying she could ignore whatever it was she felt for him. She’d been trying that for six months and it hadn’t worked. “What do you mean about a short stint?”
“The guys are filling a billet here because the reserve squadrons were undermanned. They’ve been working on some special project. It’s all temporary, which isn’t that unusual in the military, from what I understand so far. We’ll be moving soon.”
“Where to?” And why was she already considering options for expanding the therapy dog operation?
“Haven’t heard yet.” She sipped from the earthenware mug.
“That doesn’t bother you? Not knowing where you’ll be living next?” Rachel had made a point of being in control of her life since Caden died.
“Would it do any good if I let it upset me?” She broke off another bite of pineapple-mango muffin. “There’s nothing I can do to change the way things are. To live with the man, I have to live with the circumstances.”
“Must be nice to have a marriage that solid. Um, I assume you’re married. I thought Liam said you were. Sorry if I—” She stuffed a piece of muffin into her mouth, chewing extra long on the sweet bite of pineapple.
Sunny shoved to her feet. “Don’t worry. We are married. I am officially Sunny Rocha. So my name is basically Sunny Rock.” Grinning, she filled two dog bowls with water. “But Sunshine Rock would be even worse, and there you have it.”
This woman was such a natural, at ease in her skin and so nonjudgmental. She was going above and beyond, and they’d never even met before. Rachel’s hands gripped the mug until they numbed. The enormity of it overwhelmed her. “Thank you for helping us, no questions asked. Liam’s lucky to have friends like you two.”
“I believe the both of you will manage just fine on your own. You used to work search and rescue stuff, right?” She placed one of the water bowls on the floor for Disco, the other for her dog.
“With my dogs. Yes. How did you know?”
“I’ve heard about you.”
“But I just got here yesterday…”