by Paige Tyler
“You’re coming to Layla’s graduation party next weekend, aren’t you?” her mom asked. “Everyone’s going to be here and they all want to see you. Including your father and me.”
That was her mother’s way of saying she hadn’t visited in a while. Ivy chewed on her lower lip as she put a box of cereal in the cabinet. Her parents lived in Virginia, so it was close enough for her to stop by and see them on a regular basis, but things had been crazy since Dave died. She couldn’t tell her mom she’d been busy with endless psych evaluations for the past couple of months.
“I’ll try to make it, Mom, but I’m breaking in a new partner again, so I’m going to be insanely busy at work.”
Which was a pain. She really wanted to be there for her sister’s party, especially since she hadn’t been able to go to Layla’s college graduation. But she had no idea how long training with Landon would take, or if Todd and Kendra would make them work through the weekend.
“Again?” Her mother’s voice took on a note of disapproval. “I don’t understand why they keep changing your partners. It doesn’t seem very efficient. How are you supposed to get to know any of them?”
Mom had always been big on Dad bonding with his partners, too. Ivy opened the freezer and put a stack of frozen dinners inside. “I know, Mom. Hopefully, this will be the last one for a while.”
“Well, will we at least get a chance to meet him? Or is this new partner a woman?”
“It’s a guy. I don’t know about you meeting him, though. We’ll see.”
It was a lie, but it placated her mother, who launched into a funny story about how hard it had been finding the perfect graduation gift for Layla. Ivy laughed, relieved to talk about something besides her new partner. She wanted to keep work—and Landon—as separate from her personal life as she could.
***
The same guy who’d picked Landon up at the airport drove him and his bags to a furnished apartment in Alexandria. In addition to finding his Ford F150 parked in a space out front, he discovered half a dozen pairs of black Army Combat Uniforms, four duffel bags, and a stack of boxes in the center of the living room, along with the keys to his truck. It was his stuff from Fort Campbell. Well, the DCO was nothing if not efficient.
He looked at the small pile of possessions. It was pitiful. But he’d never been big on material stuff. If he had a bed, a couch, and a television, he was good. Based on what Todd and Kendra had said during the briefing, it didn’t sound like he was going to have any more free time working for the DCO than he’d had with his unit.
According to the two training officers, he and Ivy were going to be doing a lot of training over the next few months. That wasn’t a big deal. Special Forces had pretty much cornered the market when it came to training. Between Basic, AIT, Airborne School, Special Forces Assessment, SFQC, SERE, and LET, it took two years to become a Green Beret, so he didn’t have a problem with that part. He was surprised when Todd said there was no way of telling how long the training would take. If he and Ivy did well, it would be weeks. If they did poorly, it was going to be a hell of a lot longer than that. All Landon knew for certain was that he and Ivy would be staying at the DCO training complex in Virginia for the duration of it. He was more interested in what kind of work he and Ivy would be doing anyway, and found out they’d specialize in infiltration, recon and surveillance, intel acquisition, and “elimination” work.
Landon sighed and looked at the boxes. Unpack or not to unpack. Not. Definitely not. He was way too tired. All he wanted to do was shower, crash, and make up for two weeks’ worth of sleep deprivation. But there was something he had to do first.
He took a quick shower, then pulled on jeans and a T-shirt. Grabbing the keys to his truck, he picked up his cell phone and googled directions to Walter Reed Military Medical Center in Bethesda as he walked out the door. It was going to be hard, but he needed to face the demons that had been haunting him and go see Jayson.
It was always rough when a brother went down in combat, but he and Jayson Harmon had bonded the moment the lieutenant had become his assistant detachment commander two years ago. Next to Angelo, the other officer was his closest friend. Which was why the idea of Jayson lying in a bed broken hurt Landon so much. That and the fact Landon was responsible for him being there.
Landon kept thinking of the ambush that left Jayson injured. The brutality of it gave many soldiers flashbacks and left them in a cold sweat, even now. He swore under his breath, quickly squashing the images. He couldn’t go there right now. He needed to walk in that room and be strong for Jayson, not tearing up like a teenage girl.
He only wished he knew what he was walking into. Unfortunately, he and his teammates hadn’t been able to get many details about Jayson’s condition after he’d been medevaced out. But they knew it had been bad. Then again, people with hangnails and paper cuts didn’t get sent to Walter Reed Military Medical Center. The only soldiers who went there were the ones with severe injuries.
The facility was bigger than he thought it would be. It took Landon a while to find Jayson’s room. When he got there, he didn’t go in right away. He stood outside the door, psyching himself up and rehearsing what he wanted to say.
Hey, Jayson. Just stopped by to see how you’re doing. Since the doctors dug all that shrapnel out of your back, I mean.
Yeah, that was what Jayson needed. A reminder of what happened to him. As if he wasn’t reminded every time he looked down at his useless legs.
Landon took a deep breath. Stop being such a coward and get your ass in there.
Not wanting to disturb Jayson if he was sleeping, Landon didn’t knock, but instead slowly pushed the door open. He hadn’t been sure what to expect—that Jayson would be lying flat on his back in bed, he guessed—but his friend was sitting in a chair by the window overlooking the common area. He looked thinner than the last time Landon had seen him and had a serious case of bedhead, but otherwise, he was the same as Landon remembered.
Landon knocked softly on the open door.
Jayson turned at the sound, doing a double take when he saw Landon.
“Captain! Damn. What are you doing here? Come in.”
Landon hoped he was wrong about Jayson’s legs, and that his friend would get up and meet him halfway, but then he saw the walker by the chair. Jayson probably couldn’t stand on his own much less walk. It could be worse. He could be in a wheelchair.
Jayson’s handshake was just as firm as it had always been. That was something.
“I’d get up, but…” He nodded to the other chair by the window. “Sit down.”
Landon took him up on the offer. The place didn’t look like the usual hospital room. There was no obvious disinfectant smell lingering in the air or dingy curtain hanging from the ceiling ready to shield the bed. No medical equipment, either. Instead, there was a twin-size bed, a writing desk, a corkboard on one wall, and a TV mounted on the other. If Landon didn’t know better, he’d think he was in the barracks on an army post.
He and Jayson sat in silence, like they were two strangers instead of friends who’d gone to battle together. It was uncomfortable, but Landon couldn’t think of anything to say. Even if he could come up with something, he was so choked up he probably couldn’t have gotten the words out.
“So, what are you doing here?” Jayson finally asked. “Did the unit rotate back early?”
He shook his head. “No, the guys are still on deployment. I came down on orders to DC.”
Jayson frowned. “In the middle of a rotation?”
“I know. It surprised the hell out of me, too.”
Jayson was silent, as if he was trying to come up with something else to say.
“You’re at the Pentagon, then?”
Landon hesitated. His training officers said he couldn’t tell anyone he was working for the DCO. They hadn’t said he couldn’t say he was working for the Depa
rtment of Homeland Security.
Jayson’s eyes went wide at that. “The Department of Homeland Security, huh? Wow. You’re moving up in the world, I guess.”
Landon cringed. Jayson was sitting here wondering if he was ever going to be able to get around without using a walker, and he was boasting about a new job. Would it make it better if he said it was a crap assignment and that he’d rather be back in the unit? Probably not.
“How’re the guys?” Jayson asked, filling the god-awful silence again.
Landon grinned. “Diaz met a girl on Facebook and thinks he’s in love. Mickens still thinks the meatloaf in the MREs is made of dog food. And Angelo…well…is still Angelo.”
A ghost of a smile appeared on Jayson’s face, only to fade just as fast.
Silence filled the room again. Landon cleared his throat. “How’s the rehab going?”
Jayson shrugged. “Okay, I guess. I had to do the wheelchair thing for a while, but they’ve got me up and walking around using this thing now.” He jerked his head at the walker, then looked out the window, his gaze suddenly distant.
Landon felt his throat clog up. Why did Jayson have to be so nice about it? He’d gotten the guy blown up for Pete’s sake. He swallowed hard. Dammit, it should be him sitting in that chair, not Jayson.
He wanted to say something reassuring, but “I’m sorry,” wasn’t going to cut it. What do you tell a guy whose life has just derailed? If not for the accident, Jayson could have risen through the ranks all the way to general, like his father.
Luckily, a knock on the door saved Langdon from having to come up with some kind of meaningless platitude.
“Sorry to interrupt,” said a redheaded nurse from the doorway. “I didn’t know you had a visitor, Jayson. I’ll come back later.”
Landon got to his feet a little faster than he intended. “No. Stay.” He practically shouted the words. “I should be going anyway.” He looked at Jayson. “I’ve got training tomorrow, but I’ll come back to see you when I can.”
Out in the hallway, Landon leaned against the wall, closed his eyes, and pinched the bridge of his nose. Inside the room, Jayson and the nurse were talking, but their voices were too soft for him to make out what they were saying. Something about a sleeping pill, he thought.
Whatever it was, it didn’t keep the nurse in there long, and Landon intercepted her when she walked out.
“Got a minute?”
She smiled up at him. “Sure. What can I do for you?”
“How is Jayson?” he asked her. “Really.”
“Are you family?”
“No, but I’m the closest thing he’s got to one. His parents are both dead,” Landon said. “I was his commanding officer.”
“Oh.” She sighed, her smile disappearing. “Physically, he’s doing exceptionally well considering the amount of nerve damage he has. Mentally and emotionally? Not so much. A good portion of physical therapy is mental and emotional, so he’s not doing as well as he should be. As you’re probably aware, there isn’t a lot motivating him right now. Hopefully, with you coming by to see him, that will change. Something has to get him up and moving or he may never walk on his own again.”
Damn. Now Landon felt even guiltier.
***
When he got back home, Landon undressed and fell into bed, too exhausted to do anything. But instead of falling asleep, he stared up at the ceiling.
He’d been deployed for so long, he’d forgotten what it was like to sleep in a real bed. It felt strange, especially not being around his teammates. Had they gone back to Qari’s compound after he’d left? If so, had they all made it out okay? Bennett had taken over command to finish up the mission they’d been on, but who was going to lead the team for the rest of the deployment? With Jayson sitting in a hospital, that left only Master Sergeant Johnson and Angelo. Both of them were born leaders, but the battalion would probably assign another officer to take charge. He ground his jaw. He’d spent the past four years training the team to be the best damn Special Forces unit in the Army. He didn’t want some staff weenie going in there and fucking around with his well-oiled machine.
Landon gave himself a mental shake. He had to stop thinking about them as his A-team. He was part of a new team now.
His mouth edged up as he thought of Ivy. He’d never seen a woman so sexy in his life. It wasn’t only her exotic good looks, sultry dark eyes, and athletic body that got his pulse racing. She exuded sensuality in everything she did—from circling around him before they’d sparred to walking away from him after they were done. When they’d been fighting and he dragged her down on top of him, it had felt amazing. Her body was curved in all the right places, and those curves molded to his body as if she’d been made for it. Just thinking about it made his cock stiffen.
He swore under his breath.
Get a grip, jackass. You’re not some horny teenager!
Tell that to his dick.
Landon groaned. If he wasn’t so tired, he’d jerk off and be done with it. He could control his physical attraction to Ivy, especially since he had good reason not to act on it. What he couldn’t control was his curiosity about these special talents of hers. His gut told him it was more than her martial arts skills.
He ran his fingers over the scratches on his chest. The raised welts were still there, but they didn’t sting anymore. He couldn’t believe her fingernails had done that. He’d snuck a glance at her delicate hands during the briefing to see if her nails were sharpened to points or something. But no. She had nice, normal, feminine fingernails, not overly long, but not short, either. And they certainly weren’t sharp enough to rip open his shirt and claw his chest.
The proof was there, though, in the form of four diagonal marks. And when he saw Ivy tomorrow, he was going to ask how she’d done it.
Chapter 3
Landon felt like a soldier of fortune as he drove to work in the DCO-issued black uniform the next morning. It had no name, no rank, no nothing. He was more uncomfortable than if he was driving his truck naked.
Ivy was waiting for him in the lobby when he walked in, looking as cool and standoffish as she had yesterday. But damn if she wasn’t Lara Croft sexy in that black uniform with her hair in a ponytail.
“Ready to head to the training complex and get settled in? Kendra thought it would be easier if you just followed me there.” She glanced over her shoulder as she started for the door and looked him up and down. “See if you can keep up.”
Landon refused to let her get to him. She wanted to play the bitch, fine. “Not much you can do without me, I’d imagine,” he drawled.
At that, she turned and strode down the hall, while he took great pleasure in watching her ass every step of the way.
The training complex was south of DC, near Quantico. Once they got through the guarded checkpoint, he followed her to a two-story building and pulled into the empty space beside her.
“These are the dorms,” she explained. “We’ll be staying here during the main phase of our training. It’s easier to park here and jog over to the training areas. We don’t have to meet Kendra and Todd for another thirty minutes yet, so I’m going to bring my bags up. You might want to do the same.”
Landon grabbed his duffel bag from the seat and followed her inside the building and up to the second floor. The stairwell opened onto a landing with two doors. Ivy headed for the one on the right. He wasn’t sure what he expected to find when he walked inside, but the small living room/kitchen combo complete with a microwave oven, full-size fridge, comfy looking couches, and sweet LED television were a nice surprise.
When she’d said dorms, he envisioned the open barracks room he’d called home for the nine weeks he’d been in Basic Training. It had been a huge room with ten to twelve beds separated only by wall lockers. Perhaps this training wouldn’t be so bad after all.
Ivy gestured to a door on th
e other side of the living room. “Bathroom’s in there. I’ll take the room on the left. The other’s yours.” And with that, she hustled away to unpack her gear.
Landon put his bag down on his designated bed, then went back into the common area. Ivy was in the kitchen checking out the contents of what was a surprisingly well-stocked fridge. He’d sure never been in a dorm that came with food.
“Don’t even have to go to the grocery store. Looks like the DCO thinks of everything,” he remarked.
She shut the fridge door. “They usually do.”
Which was either a good thing or a bad thing. He leaned back against the counter.
“I get the feeling you’ve been through yesterday’s briefings before,” he said. “How many partners have you had?”
From the look on her face, he might as well have asked how many guys she’d had sex with.
“Two.”
“Things didn’t work out?”
“No.”
He waited for her to give him a few more details, but she didn’t. He thought that was her way of saying she didn’t want to talk about it. He wouldn’t push, but he was curious.
“John mentioned you have some special skills,” Landon said. “I’m guessing martial arts is one of them. What are the others?”
She didn’t answer, her dark eyes unreadable. He was about to prompt her again when her cell phone rang. She glanced at the call display, then held it to her ear.
“Hey, Kendra,” she said, then listened for a moment. “We’ll be right there.”
Ivy looked at him as she slipped the phone back in her pocket. “Kendra and Todd are waiting for us.”
Landon caught her arm when she started for the door. “You didn’t answer my question. About the special skills you have.”
Her lips curved into a smile. “You look like a smart guy. You’ll figure it out soon enough.”
