by Rachel Hanna
“You should probably check that,” she said against his lips, refusing to step away.
“They’ll leave a message,” he answered, looking around for signs that anyone was watching before pushing Madison up against the wall and kissing her harder.
As if on cue, his phone sounded with a text. He fished it out of his pocket and turned it over in his hand so he could power it off, not wanting to be disturbed, but the text on his home screen stopped him in his tracks.
Surfer found alive. Jake injured in mission. Call ASAP.
Chapter 12
It took all his strength not to hurl the phone against the wall, but from where he was seated in the waiting room, Angel knew he’d do more harm than good. He’d had years of practicing having to hold himself together in stressful situations, this was just another one of many.
“Anything yet?” Madison asked, slipping up behind Angel and setting a cup of coffee on the low table in front of him.
“Nothing,” he said with a snarl. It wasn’t her fault and he knew it, but he’d never had to go through anything like this with other people around to ask questions. “Nobody’s picking up the phone at headquarters, and their cell phones are all going to voicemail. Something’s not right, and I don’t just mean Jake getting hurt. Jake’s careful, he’s never like this...he’d be the last guy to get hurt.”
Even as he spoke the words, guilt stabbed at his heart. Angel knew better. Jake was only as risky as Angel let him be, so without him there to make him see reason, there was no telling what Jake had done.
“Then, you’ve got to go home,” Madison said, sitting down next to Angel and putting her hand on top of his. “Your mom is making good progress, your sister’s here, I’m here… it’s okay to go back.”
“I can’t leave her,” he whispered urgently. “Or you. The last time I left you for my team--”
“It won’t be like that this time. We’re older now, we know what we want out of life. We’re less unsure of ourselves. Besides, it’s not the other side of the world, it’s just California.”
“And what if it is the other side of the world?” he pressed. “I’m not done with military, I’m just on reserve status. They could call us back up tomorrow, and then what would you do?”
“The question is, what would you do? Do you want them to call you back to active duty?” Madison whispered.
“I don’t know. I worked hard for that job, I gave it everything I had and more. I gave up my family and my home… and you. And I really love the job we do now, but S&R is dangerous work too. I think Jake just proved that.” Angel let his head drop to his hands now that the words were finally out of his mouth. He was sitting in a waiting room in Texas while his buddy might already be dead. He knew where he belonged, but he couldn’t give up everything he’d gotten back just to go there.
“I made you choose before, Angel, and I won’t make you do that again. Your job and me, they’re not either-or this time.” She took his hand and pressed it to her lips, holding it there while a tear slid down her cheek. “So go find your friend and make sure he’s okay. Give me a call and keep me posted, but I promise, we’ll make this work somehow. I love you, Angel. I always have, and I need you to believe that it’s enough for me this time.”
“I love you, too,” he managed to whisper before taking her face in his hands and kissing her softly. “And I’m coming back to you. I just need to know what’s going on with my team.”
He held her close for a long time, his mind reeling with all the possibilities of Jake’s accident, of his mom’s precarious health, and of his rekindled love for Madison. Somehow, of the three, Madison seemed the most tenuous. He couldn’t shake the feeling that if he left the hospital, she wouldn’t be there when he got back.
His phone jumped on the table as it rang, clattering against the smooth, industrial surface. Angel reached for it and glanced at the number before answering. “Knox! What’s going on? Where’s Jake?!”
Madison held her breath while Angel listened, wide-eyed, to the report. He closed his eyes once, and she felt her pulse quicken at the thought that it was bad news. Finally he slumped back against the seat, letting his shoulders slump. He nodded, then said, “Yeah, keep me updated. And tell that moron to make sure he’s clipped in next time.”
Angel hung up and turned to Madison, smiling thinly. “You know, I spent years chasing down brutal killers like it was just another day at the old nine-to-five. But one car accident and one idiot who didn’t hang onto his hoist rope and ended up with a broken femur and a concussion are just about to wear on my last nerve.”
“Now you know why I work in ICU,” she laughed. “I can break through your ribs and manually force your heart to beat, but some kid comes into the ER with a splinter in his foot and I lose my lunch! I guess we’re the same, huh? If it’s not crazy dangerous, we want nothing to do with it.”
“Speaking of crazy dangerous,” he began, turning serious again, “how are you at performing CPR while dangling from a helicopter?”
“I can honestly say I’ve never tried it,” she answered skeptically. “Why do you ask?”
“Because S&R just lost one of its team members for about four months, and…” He leaned in and kissed her fervently again. “...and I’m not letting you out of my sight.”
“And after four months? Or if you get called back up again?” Madison asked hesitantly, already knowing her answer.
“We’ll cross that bridge when we get there. I just know that I love you, and I can’t let you go again.”
“It’s a good thing that I love you too,” she answered, twining her fingers with his, “because it means you won’t have to let me go ever again.”
Copyright © 2016 by Rachel Hanna
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