SEAL Forever

by Anne Elizabeth

  Spitting out a mouthful of dirt, Leaper said, “Yummy! So very delicious!”

  Declan grabbed the back of Leaper’s harness and hauled him to his feet. “Maybe we’ll make a new beer flavor for you. Essence of Dirt.”

  Leaper pointed to the place where the terrain changed back into sand and batted his eyes. “Can we make it sand, please?”

  “Mercy.” Declan laughed as he and the rest of the Team double-timed it back to the extraction point. After their success, they were all eager to get back home early and receive their bravo zulu for a job well done.

  * * *

  Teaching gymnastics was not Maura’s original dream, but it was close. Her favorite part of the whole world had been competing as an individual gymnast. When that ended for her, she’d found showing others how to reach their potential touched on some true happiness, and for now that had to be enough.

  Super! read the sign on top of the building. The gym was tucked into the back of a row of restaurants. A parking lot was in front of it, and to the sides were slabs of dirt filled with litter and crushed cans. The outside was painted bright orange, and the sign on the door simply stated Froggy Squats.

  Maura hummed to herself. She’d been kissed last night, and by none other than Declan. Life was getting interesting. She’d discarded that last bit of shyness as she lay in the tub naked. She felt renewed, as if she could be the bold, modern woman she’d always wished to be. It was hard to fathom how amazing it had been. That man knew how to lock lips. Yet he’d seemed to…what? Want to talk? Want more?

  The kiss was the culmination of everything she’d personally ever wanted to say to him—all put into one physical action, and he had done it. Reached down and kissed her. And she had been naked. The desire had been evident in his eyes, and yet he’d been a gentleman. Maybe…he really wanted the girl next door.

  How awesome was it that he had been running this morning? Fate was definitely flowing in her favor.

  A voice broke into Maura’s reflections.

  “Morning,” said Sue Kolls as she walked past Maura toward the gym door. “Just so you know, I confiscated two DSes. They’re on your desk.”

  Froggy Squats was an electronics-free zone, no phones or video games on the floor. Personally, Maura loved online gaming and had a list of favorites. But being at the gym made her want to get something out of the place that she couldn’t get at home, so she’d readily supported the membership rules. Using electronics for music was okay, but the members—mostly parents—wanted their kids to unplug and exercise. Oftentimes it was the only physical challenge they received during the day. So her job was to think up ways to engage the kids and adults. Thus far the programs had been working well.

  “Thanks. And good morning to you too,” Maura replied with a chipper tone and an upbeat smile, even though she was still not ready to jump into the chaotic place. The gym was packed with early birds in mid-workout mania.

  She flicked off a stray hair from her shirt and bounced toward the door. It was time to work.

  Bosco Russo, a regular who looked as if he’d just stepped off the set of The Sopranos, walked out the door and nearly ran into her. “Hello, Maura.”

  “Hey.” She smiled tentatively, then slipped past him and through the door he was holding open. Right. Concentrate on the present. There’s a lot going on. You’re about to walk into your future. There were more important things on the docket, like the gym…and the fact that she was officially about to take over. Me! The owner of a giant place like this. Go figure!

  She resisted the urge to sigh over the list of worries and concerns that might have held her back. She seriously did not want to mess up this opportunity.

  “Bob? Where are you?” Maura walked along the edges of the mats. Her eyes scanned the expanse, searching for the current owner. She was actually doing it. She was taking the plunge and buying the gym. She just had to make it through the next six months.

  The idea to purchase the place had come from her brother Michael. The owner, Bob Lepke, was Mike’s college roommate, and he wanted to move to the East Coast. Seemed like a good idea when she packed up her whole life and headed out this way. As a child, teenage, and college gymnast, she’d spent most of her life in and around gyms. She knew she could handle it.

  “Hey, Maxwell, the keys are in the office. Good luck!” Bob didn’t even give her a chance to object. He was leaving the gym in her hands for six months, half of a year, while he and his wife drove to Florida to visit her grandparents. Some kind of family reunion, though why they would be gone so long was beyond her understanding. This was her test run, and if she could handle it, the place was hers at the current asking price. She just wanted to be sure before she took the plunge.

  “You’ve got my cell.” With a final wave, Bob Lepke went out the door.

  “Wait!” She coughed out the word, choking on her own indecision. She didn’t know whether to be excited or scared. Her dad preached the concept that courage requires a leap of faith. Could she be brave for five minutes, long enough to watch Bob leave?

  The gym had been up for sale for a year and a half, and Bob had inherited it from his uncle, who had been killed in a surfing accident in Mexico. Did that mean this place had good karma or bad? Did it matter? Not really.

  If she was being honest with herself, she really liked this place. Endlessly easygoing and laid-back, people here smiled a lot. Also, its California Art Deco decor, spare and sparse with a multitude of heavy mats, and a black-and-white color scheme with bursts of color here and there pleased her aesthetically. Yes, her solace was here on the West Coast.

  Besides, she’d found community here. The members liked her programs, and most of the single gym rats had brought in more friends, which had meant more business and more classes for all the instructors. Plus, she could play retro music softly in the background, indulging her love of ’80s music.

  The gym’s perpetually upbeat attitude jibed with hers too. It felt good to hang with people of a similar ilk. Maura was looking forward to chatting with a few of the kids before their next class. As she drew closer to the group, one of the kids separated and ran toward her.

  “Miss Max’ell, Miss Max’ell, I have a new trick,” said Tats, a small charmer who’d recently lost his two front teeth. “Want to see? It’s really super.”

  “Yes! Please, show me, Tats,” she replied, following him into the center of the gym, where the heavy-duty, triple-lined mats were stacked.

  Tats did a backflip. This trick had eluded him for weeks.

  She was proud of him. “That’s amazing! How did you learn it?”

  “I practiced with the harness, and yesterday Joe helped me work it out. I know just the right amount to torque and tuck.” He beamed with pride.

  She hugged him. “Do you think we should add it to your superhero chart?”

  “Yes!” he said.

  They walked over to a wall where there were pictures of kids, teens, and adults—all shapes and sizes—and each person was dressed in a superhero costume. There were names such as Super-Genius, Heroically Happy, and other unique heroes created by individuals. Underneath every picture was a list of their superpowers and another list of their super accomplishments, everything from walking ten steps to ten miles, skipping rope, walking the balance beam, and so on. The superhero concept had been her brainchild, and over the past four months, it had transformed the gym into a superhero league and quadrupled their memberships for families.

  The kids’ program was her favorite, and Tats was a regular. She watched him write down his accomplishment and then decorate the achievement with stickers.

  “Maura?” A woman tapped her on the shoulder. Mrs. Bolijier, Tats’s mom, asked, “Can I talk to you a minute in private?”

  “Sure.” She patted Tats on the back. “Good job, buddy. Take your time with the spiffy decorations. I’m going to the office to chat with your mo
m.”

  “Okay!” The happiness radiated from the kid as if he’d just won the Olympics. Who knows, maybe someday he would.

  They walked the few steps to the glass-enclosed office. The desk was mostly clean, but as everyone tended to use the space, it could get cluttered.

  “What can I do for you?” Maura gestured to a chair and they both sat down.

  “I can’t afford to pay for Tats to come here anymore.” The woman wouldn’t look her in the eye, and her hands were shaking.

  Maura touched her fingers to the woman’s hand. “What’s going on?”

  A tear-filled gaze held Maura’s. “I cut everywhere I could. Beni left, and with Tats and Simi to care for and no job, I cannot hold it together.”

  “Do you have a place to stay?” Maura didn’t dare move. She didn’t want to break the connection, but maybe, just maybe, she could help.

  “Yes, we own our apartment. You know it is only two blocks away. It was my mother’s.” Her bottom lip shook. “But I can’t get work.”

  Maura wracked her brain. “What do you do again?”

  “I do bookkeeping and accounting, and…”

  “Accounting! Really?” Maura tapped a finger on the desk, did some mental math, and came to a conclusion. She could still keep herself solvent and hire Mrs. Bolijier. It meant a pay cut for her, but for now it would work. “I could pay you for accounting on a temporary basis, or we could barter your accounting services for membership.”

  Mrs. Bolijier was out of her chair and hugging Maura. “Thank you. I had no idea you would say this. I will work hard. This will get us back on our feet. I will take the first option with a hope of moving to the second by the end of the year.”

  Maura hugged her back. “No worries, and promise you’ll keep looking for work. If something better paying comes along, take it, and no hard feelings.”

  “Oh, this is so much better. Thank you!” Mrs. Bolijier clapped her hands. “My Tats loves it here, and Simi has just started classes. I will make it work, and yes, I promise to keep looking in a little while. For now, I celebrate.”

  Maura still wasn’t sure it was going to be enough money for three people to eat and pay bills with, but she was thrilled that she could help in some small way. The economy was a tough place right now; even the military was taking cuts. What would it mean for the future of their country?

  Closing her eyes, she breathed in the aroma of the gym. She’d come to love the smell of running shoes and sweat. This was the scent that made her want to be a better athlete, to run and sprint faster and push herself beyond her comfort zone.

  Maybe that was what the gym would do for her, push her to get past all of her limitations and to go beyond what she imagined for herself. Having Mrs. B. here would make her stick to that promise. She wanted everyone who came here to be part of a gym family and to be striving to become the best version of himself or herself.

  * * *

  At home in her apartment…so much for an enlightened attitude of going with the flow. Now she was being paranoid. Maura checked the blue polka-dot backpack picnic basket for the third time. She took everything out and then repacked it again to reassure herself that she had included everything important. Yes to the corkscrew, California Chablis, and wineglasses, along with plates, napkins, silverware, and the giant containers of food. She didn’t know why she was so panicked.

  She toyed with a plastic vase, putting it in, taking it out, and then putting it back in the basket. Would it be romantic to include a flower, or was that dorky? She picked up the single yellow rose she’d bought on her way home from work and breathed in its sweet essence. Mmmm. It smelled so good.

  Was she overthinking this dinner? Was that her problem? She’d been known to do that. Of course, it had been nearly five years since she’d been with someone. That was enough time to throw a few doubts into a first date.

  “Chill, Maura.”

  What would she do if Declan didn’t like her choices? Did he eat meat? Who was she kidding? He was a SEAL. He probably ate…like a cow every day of his life! Was a whole rotisserie chicken going to be enough? She tapped her foot nervously.

  She seriously needed to get herself together. She purposefully sat down, closed her eyes, and performed a relaxation exercise. It helped her feel centered. Her dear friend, Shannon, had taught her that trick in high school. Who would have thought she’d still be doing it today?

  A sharp knock at the door made her jump.

  Laughing at herself, she smoothed down her hair and walked calmly to the front door. Well, her heart was racing like a car in the Grand Prix, but Declan didn’t need to know that.

  She threw open the locks and turned the knob. And there was Declan, holding a bouquet of daisies and yellow roses. She couldn’t stop herself from blurting out, “How did you know?”

  He smiled, a slow seductive movement of lips that drew her attention to that sumptuous mouth of his. “I saw the pictures on the bookcase. Most of them have you with medals or trophies, holding bouquets of one or the other. I took a logical leap and put them together.”

  Maura took the flowers from him, walked to the kitchen, and heard him close the door. She hoped tilting her head down would keep him from noticing the hot flush on her cheeks.

  Giving herself a little breathing room, she searched through several cabinets before she chose a vase to hold the lovely flowers. Then she unwrapped the bouquet, snipped the ends, and placed them one by one into the vase.

  When she finally looked up at him, he was right there. He reached for her, tilting her chin up toward him, and he lowered his lips onto hers.

  It was a gentle brush of lips. Such a soul-searing caress! It made her cheeks hot again.

  His grin widened. “I did that on purpose. You shouldn’t try to hide a response from me. I like seeing how”—he kissed her again—“I make you react.”

  She gave herself over to the kisses and the sensations as his arms wrapped around her tightly. Her height made it easier for her to reach him. On tiptoes, she wrapped her arms around his neck and held him in the perfect position for her response, a truly mind-blowing kiss.

  His hands molded their bodies to each other. The fit was extraordinary. Where he was hard, she was soft, and where there was need, there was a definite want. Hearing him moan made her smile. She could stand here all night.

  An alarm sounded on her phone. She pulled back and looked at him. “That’s my phone. We have to go.”

  He looked taken aback. His eyebrows lifted. “Are you sure?”

  Nodding her head, she calmly turned away from him and picked up the phone, her purse, and the picnic basket. “Absolutely! It took me ages to get this appointment. It’s a surprise. C’mon, let’s go.”

  He pursed his lips. “Just…uh…give me a minute.” He leaned against the counter, obviously unhappy about her choice. Taking a few deep breaths, his eyes bored into her head as she walked around and headed for the front door.

  She laughed softly to herself. Now, that was cool. It was Declan’s turn…to take a little time…to meditate.

  Chapter 4

  Standing on the sheer cliffs at the Torrey Pines Gliderport in La Jolla was humbling. This place made her feel like a tiny pebble among giant boulders, and she had to shake off the queasy sensation in her stomach when she looked down. Maura knew she wasn’t a woman who gave in to the fear of heights, but this was seriously high. It wasn’t a backflip off a balance beam with foot-and-a-half pads to land on.

  Below her, she could see people playing volleyball, like ants in the dirt. Their small dot-like representation was probably better suited to her sensibility, as that was a nudist beach. So if she plunged to her death while paragliding, she guessed the view would probably be good, or at least amusing.

  She pulled on the sleeves of her long-sleeve shirt. It wasn’t that she was hiding her scars. She’d long ago made peace wit
h that. Rather, she was preparing for the temperature to drop as the sun set.

  “Maura, are we paragliding?” Declan walked over to where she stood and slung an arm around her shoulder. “Why did you choose this activity?”

  “It’s on my bucket list. And since yesterday’s experience, I thought I should stop dithering and start working on it.” A nervous feeling surged through her, and she wondered if she should rethink this evening’s entertainment. When she made this appointment, she’d been being brave; something about being in danger had spurred her to be more adventurous. Now, actually faced with the task, her stomach roiled. Maybe she should leave it on the list and they should go do something else. “But only if you want to…”

  “Sure.” He shrugged his shoulders. “Let’s go glide before we eat. No fun blowing chunks at altitude.”

  “What an image…” She rolled her eyes.

  Declan took her hand and led her up the hill. “It’s not that bad. Paragliding has its moments.”

  “That’s all you’re going to say? How about giving this experience a little more enthusiasm?” Maura said flatly. She’d put a lot of work into this date.

  “Hooyah!” he said with a half smile and a wink.

  Maura sighed and shook her head. Was it good or bad that this man could be just as annoying at times as her brothers were? She trusted her family; they had never led her astray. And upon reflection, she realized she trusted Declan too.

  He gave her hand a little squeeze, and she relaxed. Her gut agreed that Declan was a good guy.

  Of course, there was still the paragliding to get through. Should she admit to him now or later that she was just the slightest bit afraid that the flimsy contraption would smack into the cliff wall and plunge them to their deaths? Later was probably better.

  A squat man with broad shoulders and a ready grin stood in front of the sign-in counter. “Hey, good to see you, Master Chief.”

  Declan shook hands and grinned back. “Hi, Chad. How’s it hanging?”