Hard Landing

by Davies, Shirleen

  Trey dried his hands, grabbed a bottle of water, then settled into a large, comfortable chair in the living room. Paul followed him in and took a seat before punching the channel changer.

  “Fishing channel?” he asked Trey.

  Trey closed his eyes and nodded, not caring as long as he got to relax for ten minutes. They could hear the sounds of Trevor enjoying his bath—splashing and laughing. All three had learned to strip off their shirts when giving the kid a bath.

  It had been several weeks since Trey had flown to Florida to pick up his son. He’d called Oliver Egan a couple of times, asking how Sydney was doing, hoping that there might be some improvement, yet knowing her situation was beyond human help. Mr. Egan had assured him that the doctors were keeping her as comfortable as possible. They didn’t expect she’d last much longer.

  Trey opened his eyes to glance at Paul, debating whether to say anything or keep his mouth shut. He was tired of keeping his thoughts bottled up.

  “How’s she doing?”

  “Good.” Paul didn’t have to ask who Trey was referring to.

  “Keeping up?”

  “Better than that.”

  They fell silent for a long minute.

  “And Nate Colvin?”

  Paul did look up this time, confused by the question. “Nate? Yeah, he’s good.”

  “He get along well with her?”

  Now Paul got it. Trey must have noticed Nate and Jess at the base, joking and laughing. He knew there wasn’t anything going on between the two, they were just friends. Paul wished Jesse and Trey would screw their heads back on and work this thing out. Paul was ready to get their old life back, plus baby. First, he wanted to mess with his hardheaded roommate.

  “Other than he’s got a hard-on for her, yeah, they get along great.” Paul got the reaction he expected.

  Trey’s head snapped toward him. “That a fact?” Trey ground out.

  “Pretty much. I don’t think Jesse has a clue that she’s causing the man great discomfort. She does her job and heads home.” Paul clicked the channel changer a couple of times, settling on the Discovery channel. “Course, I did hear Tony and Benny talking about wanting a fourth roommate. I think Ben mentioned it to Nate.”

  “Shit,” Trey muttered and pushed himself up from his chair. “I’m heading upstairs.”

  “Sure, man. See you in the morning.” Paul hid a grin at the disgust in Trey’s voice. He thought someone had to light a fire under one of them. Might as well start it now.

  Chapter Ten

  “Welcome, Cam.” Trey opened the door, grabbed his stepbrother’s hand, and pulled him into a brief hug. “Great to see you.”

  “Same here.” Cameron looked around as he stepped into the small entry. “Nice place.” He set his bag down.

  “Thanks. What can I get you?” Trey asked.

  “I’m good for now.” He followed Trey toward the sound of a little boy’s giggles. “Wow. So this is Trevor.” Cam’s eyes had grown wide as he took in the newest MacLaren. “Jesus, Trey, the kid looks just like you.”

  “Yeah, ain’t it great?” Trey joked, and got a punch in his arm for the effort. “Go ahead, pick him up. He hasn’t bitten anyone in several days.”

  Cam rolled his head in a circle to stretch the tight muscles, squared his shoulders, then leaned down. “Hey there, Trevor. I’m your Uncle Cameron. Can I hold you?”

  Trevor’s eyes darted to Trey, then back to Cameron.

  “It’s okay, Trev. Go ahead and let Uncle Cam pick you up.”

  Cam reached out his arms as Trevor reached for him. “Wow, you’re a heavy little guy,” he joked.

  “Come on,” Trey said, grabbing Cam’s bag, “I’ll show you where you’ll be sleeping.”

  Paul and Reb had moved Trevor’s crib into Trey’s bedroom while Trey had made up the hide-a-bed in his son’s room.

  “You’re in here. Hope that’s okay.” Trey dropped Cam’s bag on the floor.

  “Dada,” Trevor squealed, reaching for his father.

  “No, Trevor, it’s not your bedtime. Uncle Cam is sleeping in here tonight. That all right?”

  “Dada,” Trevor repeated.

  “Now you’ve heard about one-third of his vocabulary. He also says ball and down—sort of. The second one’s not as clear. He also says Mama, but I haven’t heard that one in quite a while.”

  “You mentioned when I called that she has terminal cancer. Must be hard,” Cam said as they made their way downstairs and into the living room. He set Trevor on the floor and rolled a ball toward him.

  “Ball,” Trevor said and leaned toward the toy.

  “Sydney, his mother, wouldn’t let me see her when I went to pick up Trevor.” Trey shoved his hands in his pockets and continued to stand, watching his son play with the ball. “Anyway, I’ve called a couple of times. She’s still hanging on, but her attorney says they don’t expect her to last much longer.”

  “Well, seems like this was a good time for me to drive over.”

  Both men looked toward the door at the sound of voices. Paul walked in, followed by Reb, Tony, Benny, and Nate.

  Trey looked at Nate, his face impassive. He introduced everyone to Cam, scooped Trevor up from the floor, and strolled into the kitchen. “Who’s here for dinner and who’s not?” he called over his shoulder.

  “We’re heading out, Trey. Just stopped by to grab some things,” Reb yelled back as he ran up the stairs.

  “Yeah, big night out. Bowling.” Paul grabbed a beer out of the refrigerator, popped the top, and took a long swallow. “Dinner at Bud’s.”

  “Hey,” Benny said, following Paul to the refrigerator. “I like Bud’s.”

  “What more could a bunch of single guys ask for on a Friday night besides burgers and bowling? As long as there’s beer with it, I’m fine.” Nate leaned against a wall, crossing his arms over his chest, eyeing Trey. He knew the history Trey had with Jesse. Even though Nate liked Jesse and would love a chance with her, he knew it was out of the question. First, because they were in the same squadron, and second, because you just didn’t do that to another pilot—not unless you were a complete jackass.

  “All set,” Reb called. “Good to meet you, Cameron.”

  “Same here,” Cam called back as the five filed outside.

  A couple of hours later, the two sat on lounge chairs on the back patio.

  “Tell me what’s happening with you and Jesse,” Cam said after a while. Trey shot him a look. “Mom asked,” Cam clarified and offered a half-smile.

  “Ah, yes, that would make sense. Annie and Jesse struck up a friendship when we were out there a few weeks before the wedding.” Trey rolled a bottle of water between his hands, then set it on a table next to his chair. “Things between us went to hell the day before we were supposed to fly out for the wedding.”

  “That’s about the time you heard about Trevor?”

  Trey nodded. “When I got back from the wedding, she moved out. Two of the guys you met tonight, Tony and Benny, are her new roommates. Rumor is that the third one, Nate, may be moving in also.”

  “No explanation?”

  “None that I understood or wanted to hear. Something about not wanting Trevor to get attached to another woman, thinking she may be a mother replacement, and how he’d handle it if things didn’t work out between us.” He scrubbed a hand over his face. “Hell, I don’t know, maybe she was right.”

  “Maybe,” Cam replied. “But sounds to me like she wasn’t as committed to the relationship as you were. Or she was just plain scared. You know, things moving too fast and all that.”

  “Maybe. She stopped by a few weeks ago, wanted to talk and try to explain. I blew her off.”

  Cam remained silent. His track record with women was spotty at best. His last one had ended about the same time as Trey’s.

  “I’m not great at this relationship stuff, but it seems to me you’ve got Trevor to think about, and a demanding job. It may not be your time.”

  Yeah, ti
me, Trey thought. Cam may be right, yet Trey couldn’t shake the feeling that he and Jesse weren’t through. His gut told him what he really needed was to find a way to talk things through and see if they still had a chance at a future.

  ******

  Trey, with Trevor in tow, gave Cam a tour of the base the following day, including a look inside his fighter jet.

  “Cowboy. That you?” Cam asked when he saw the name on the outside of Trey’s plane.

  “Yeah. My call sign. Reb’s is, for lack of imagination, Reb, and Paul’s is Growler.”

  “Growler?”

  “You’ll get it if you spend any time around him.” Trey grinned and walked toward another area to show Cam the helicopters. He knew Cam had his private pilot’s license and had talked about getting one for helos, although Trey didn’t understand why. As the head of the Information Technology department at a large company in the bay area, he couldn’t see where Cam would have a use for it.

  “These are something,” Cam breathed out as he walked around the Sikorsky Seahawk, part of the Search and Rescue—SAR—team at the base. “Any chance I can see inside?”

  Trey looked behind him and saw a civilian mechanic working on another helo. He signaled to the man.

  “What can I do for you, Lieutenant?”

  “Any problem showing my brother the inside of this one?”

  “Don’t see why not.”

  A couple of minutes later, Cam sat inside the large helo, fascinated by the controls, which were so much different from the small, fixed-wing planes he’d flown. After ten minutes, he climbed down, looking at the cockpit once more before turning to Trey.

  “Thanks, man. That was great.”

  Trey could see the pleasure in Cam’s face and wondered, once again, what had him so interested in helicopters.

  “It’s getting late. Best we get this big guy home and feed him, right, Trev?” Trey bounced his son a couple times in the air, initiating a surge of laughter that had the brothers grinning.

  ******

  “Grab a seat and relax,” Reb called from the kitchen as Cam, Trey, and Trevor walked in. “I’ve got dinner under control.”

  “Missed you at the ball game, Trey.” Paul sat by the television, flipping from one channel to another.

  “How’d you do?”

  “Killed ‘em. What else?” Paul never looked up. “It was a bitch though, without our best pitcher.”

  “Sounds like you survived and conquered,” Trey commented as he took a seat and set Trevor on the floor.

  “Played against Jesse’s team.”

  That brought Trey’s eyes up, but he didn’t respond. She’d been a member of their softball team until she’d moved out. No one had asked her to change. As with all of her latest actions, she’d made the decision without a thought to anyone else.

  “Glad you prevailed,” Trey whispered as he watched Cam pull a ball from behind a chair and roll it to Trevor.

  After lunch the following day, Trey watched Cam throw his bag into the back of his SUV.

  “Thanks for having me,” Cam said as he walked back to stand by Trey.

  “Anytime. Maybe we can make this happen every few months. You come here or I’ll drive over,” Trey suggested.

  “I’d like that.” Cam clasped Trey’s shoulder. “Take care of this little one.” He smiled at his nephew before climbing behind the wheel. “Keep me posted,” he called, knowing his meaning wasn’t lost on Trey.

  Chapter Eleven

  Jesse let Shelly pull her through the women’s department at a downtown store, trying to find the right dress for a dance the following weekend. It was an annual event, held at a local country club. Locals and base personnel were encouraged to attend the black tie event, and since it wasn’t sponsored by the Navy, formal uniforms weren’t required.

  “Here we go,” Shelly said when they’d gotten to the evening dress section. “What size?”

  “A six, I guess. It depends.”

  Shelly whizzed through the dresses, looking at colors first, then style.

  Jesse hadn’t been dress shopping since she’d arrived at the base. She appreciated Shelly’s efforts, but this just wasn’t her thing.

  “Try these, then this group.” Shelly held up what she’d found.

  “All those?” Jesse groaned.

  “Every single one. Sometimes there’s a sleeper that looks better on. You never know.”

  “Why can’t I just wear my uniform? The invitations said formal military attire would be fine.”

  “Yes, and formal, non-military apparel is fine, too. This is your chance to flaunt your stuff.”

  Shelly knew Jesse didn’t see herself as others did. She believed herself to be average in every way, except when she flew. Jesse had no idea how men’s eyes followed her when she came into a room or passed by them in the store. At five-feet-six inches, she was slim, with a great shape. Her short, golden brown hair, and brown eyes with copper colored flecks, set off her smooth, creamy skin. The few freckles across her nose added character, although Shelly knew Jesse would just as soon get rid of them.

  Jesse shook her head, grabbed the clothes, and found a dressing room.

  She first slid into a slinky, black dress that fell to just below her knees. It had long sleeves and a scooped neckline. Jesse liked it, but Shelly had given it an immediate thumbs down. It was the only black dress in the bunch. Next was a teal green, followed by a deep peach, which Jesse liked—Shelly crinkled her face.

  There were only three left. Jesse selected one of the red dresses. It was a strapless, floor length, chiffon sweetheart dress with a slit to her mid-thigh. It draped in front and back, and was, quite simply, the most gorgeous dress Jesse had ever seen. She took one more look, then walked out to show Shelly.

  “Oh my.” Shelly jumped up and put a hand to her mouth. “That is stunning.” She cocked her head and moved around Jesse in a slow circle. “It doesn’t need a thing done to it. It’s perfect.”

  Thirty minutes later, they left the center with her red dress, new shoes, glittery shawl, and small handbag.

  “Now, all you need is a necklace and earrings, and I have just the set.” Shelly smiled at Jesse as they pulled out of the lot and drove to a small restaurant, popular with the locals.

  “Turkey on wheat,” Shelly ordered.

  “The same for me,” Jesse told the waitress and sipped at her diet soda. She liked Shelly and was grateful that Reb’s friend had thought to invite her along to shop for dresses. Jesse would’ve opted for her dress whites, even though she knew most of the guys would be wearing civilian clothes as a change to the Navy formal wear they’d worn so much over the last several years.

  Shelly kept up the small talk until their food arrived. They lapsed into silence before she broached the subject both knew had been hanging between them.

  “I didn’t get a chance to introduce you to my cousin, Paige, when we saw you at the steakhouse. I’m sorry if it was awkward for you.”

  “Don’t worry about it. We all knew Trey would meet someone else. I just hadn’t expected it to be quite so soon.” Jesse had lost her appetite and played with the fries piled on her plate.

  “They aren’t a couple. Paige doesn’t even live here.” Shelly continued when she saw the confusion on Jesse’s face. “Like I said, she’s my cousin. She flew up from San Diego for a weekend, to get away from her grueling schedule. Paige is working on her doctorate. Poor thing never gets out, knows almost no one, and walks the beach alone for fun. What kind of a life is that?” Shelly ate the last bite of her sandwich and wiped her hands on a napkin.

  “Not much, I guess.” Other than flying, Jesse didn’t have much of a life either.

  “I told Reb that I would only go out if he found a date for Paige. He drafted Trey, who wasn’t happy but played the gentleman anyway. She had a great time, Jesse, but there wasn’t anything more to it.”

  Jesse looked out the window at the vast expanse of flat land. She could hear the occasional rumble of a
semi, moving along the freeway. Other than that, it was a pretty quiet community.

  “I’m here if you want to talk. I know it must be tough being around guys all the time, but you do have at least one female friend.” Shelly offered a warm smile.

  Jesse glanced at the woman across from her. Yes, Shelly was probably the one female friend she had, other than Anita, who was stationed at Virginia Beach. “It’s my fault, not Trey’s. I’m the one who walked out.”

  Shelly didn’t respond, waiting for Jesse to continue.

  “I went back to the house a few weeks later when I knew he was alone, and tried to explain. He brushed me off—wouldn’t even let me inside.”

  Shelly rested her elbows on the table and leaned forward. “Reb says he’s still in knots over what happened. That doesn’t sound like someone who’s over you.”

  Jesse thought about that for a long minute. “You should have seen his face the day I left. I’ll never get that look out of my mind.” She looked up. “I’d give anything to take that day back, to be the way we were.”

  The two sat in silence for several minutes, Jesse more playing with her fries than eating them, and Shelly sipping her drink.

  Jesse pushed her plate away and let out a long breath. “I need to face reality. Trey isn’t the kind to forgive and forget—at least not with me. Even if he gave me the chance to explain, it probably wouldn’t make a difference. I need to accept the fact that he’s moved on, and that’s what I need to do too.” Jesse grabbed her purse and stood.

  “Well then, that’s exactly what will happen Saturday night,” Shelly replied, as they made their way outside.

  ******

  “Who’s watching the squirt tonight?” Reb fiddled with his tux. “Damn, I hate these things,” he mumbled as he hooked the bow tie in place.

  “But you look so handsome,” Paul smirked, while he pulled on his coat.

  “Stuff it,” Reb replied.

  “Did you ask me something?” Trey walked from the kitchen, holding Trevor.

  “Who’s watching Trev?”

  “The twins, Marissa and Miranda, from down the street. The ones who watched him when we went to dinner at the steakhouse.”