Beyond Valor

by Lindsay McKenna

  Mentally, Megan ticked off items that had to be done or things she needed. Luke came to mind because he was the company scrounger. She’d have a list for him tonight.

  “What do you think?” Mina asked. They halted in the waiting room, which had Persian rugs spread across the floor, along with chairs and pillows.

  “You’ve done a great job, Mina,” she said, gratitude in her voice. “I need to go back to the compound and get my medical supplies and start getting set up here.”

  The widows were already hard at work finishing the cleaning of the floor.

  “And tomorrow morning, you can receive patients?”

  “Yes.”

  “Good. What else do you need that is not here, Megan?”

  Not wanting to insult Mina, Megan lied and said, “Everything I need is here.”

  A look of relief crossed the woman’s face. She touched Megan’s shoulder. “I know this is a developing country, but once I was informed you were coming, every family in our village donated something they could not spare in order to create this clinic. For you, a wooden chair may be commonplace. Out here, it is a luxury because there are no longer forests to cut down wood in order to make one. The rugs you see on the floor are a hundred years old and were given by families who know each one’s long history. Every cup, plate and hand-embroidered tablecloth is meaningful to its owners.”

  Touched, Megan whispered in a choked tone, “I understand. And their gifts won’t go in vain. We’re going to improve lives here, Mina. You have my promise....”

  * * *

  Toward dusk, Luke found Megan busy at their house. He’d just come back with a group from the village after holding the weekly clinic for the men and boys. Dropping his large medical pack next to his cot, he saw her smile a hello in his direction. It touched his heart and he felt dizzy for a moment. Her lips were soft and the corners of her mouth curved. What would it be like to kiss that mouth of hers? The thought burned through him.

  “How did your day go?” he asked.

  “Great.” Megan sat at the table, writing in her notebook. “I just made a pot of coffee.” She gestured toward the corner.

  “Good, I need some.” Luke walked over and poured himself a mug. “When did you get back from the village?”

  Megan closed the notebook and watched him approach the table. He had a boneless grace that spoke of just how athletic he really was. “Shorty has been driving me back and forth all day. Mina had the house next to her home set up as a clinic for me. I’ve gotten all the medical supplies hauled over to it so I can open it up tomorrow morning.” She watched him sit down, feeling an invisible energy between them. When his large hands wrapped around the mug, a tiny shiver went up her spine. Megan was stymied by her instant attraction to him. She wasn’t looking for a relationship, but she couldn’t resist the merriment in his hazel eyes.

  “You look exhausted.”

  “I just finished my fifth run a half hour ago. I’m whipped.”

  He sipped the coffee, grateful for this time alone. “What were you writing?”

  She touched the notebook beneath her hand. “I’m creating a list of things I need for the clinic. Do you think you’d have time to look at them later?”

  Luke glanced at his watch. “Sure. We’ll be expected over at the chow hall in twenty minutes.”

  Megan nodded. He looked tired, too. “How did it go today for you?”

  “Busy. But it always is. I hold a clinic twice a week. Today, there seemed to be twice the number of patients than usual.”

  “Mina told me when I open up the clinic at 0800 to expect half the women of the village to be standing in line waiting for help.”

  “You’re going to be slammed,” Luke agreed. “I wish I could help you. You’re going to need a second pair of hands.”

  Megan smiled. “I’m used to the rush. In Iraq, it was the same.”

  “Is anyone able to assist you?”

  “Mina has four widows who will be helping me out. I’ll teach them as I go.” She told Luke about Mina’s impressive background.

  “They’re lucky to have Mina,” he said. “I’m sure she’s a joy to work with.”

  “She is,” Megan agreed, tearing a piece of paper out of her notebook and handing it to Luke. “My wish list,” she said, her grin growing even wider.

  As Luke reached out for the paper, their fingers briefly touched. He felt like a sneaky coyote stealing a touch from her. While they worked together, Megan could never know he was drawn to her. Focusing, he studied the list. “This is a helluva list, Megan.”

  “I know it is. I’m asking for the moon.”

  Grinning, Luke looked up and held her softened gaze. “Sort of...”

  “They need so much out here, Luke....”

  “I’ll see what I can do. I know a sergeant in medical at Bagram Air Base. She’s really good at getting things that women need. I think she can fill some of this for you.”

  “Wonderful!” In that moment, Megan wanted to walk around the table and throw her arms around his broad shoulders. The need was visceral, especially with the air so charged between them. She saw his eyes narrow slightly, as if he were reading her mind. Her heart pounded for a second and warmth swept up from her neck into her face. Oh, God, she was blushing! Megan looked away and fumbled with the notebook. She scrambled to break the sudden sexual tension between them.

  “Sorry,” she muttered, “I get all giddy when I’m excited.”

  Luke managed a weak smile. She made him feel desired and powerful. The attraction took him by surprise. “It’s okay. I like it.”

  Megan could see the warmth dancing in his eyes and the way his mouth curved wickedly. “I’m going to call my cousin Emma Cantrell-Shaheen. She was an Apache pilot in the Army before she got injured and couldn’t fly anymore. Now she’s a civilian working out of Camp Bravo with her husband, Captain Khalid Shaheen. He’s very rich and they run a foundation to help people just like Mina and her village. Emma knows I was assigned out here, and she told me their foundation would foot the bills to get the things this village needed if the military couldn’t.”

  Raising his brows, Luke murmured, “Hey, that’s good news. They’re an NGO?”

  “Yes. Khalid and his sister set up the foundation a couple of years ago to bring books, desks and teachers to the border villages. It’s working really well and they’ve enlarged their scope to include medical supplies, as well.”

  “That’ll be good news for Lar Sholtan.” Luke watched her as she released her red hair and it curved sensually about her shoulders, a perfect frame for her soft face. She was gentle. The toughness of being in the military had not eroded her unique personality in the least. His heart and body responded simultaneously as the low light gleamed in the strands of her hair. Megan was off-limits. She had to be.

  He was going to spend a year here with her, and fraternization would not be tolerated. Even though they were both enlisted personnel and the same rating, a relationship would never fly. Every man in this company had loved ones back in the States. An attraction would be the worst kind of distraction and could put them in danger. No, he had to keep his distance.

  Luke had a faraway look in his eyes, and Megan wondered what he was thinking. “I know this list is extensive,” she offered with apology.

  “No, no, it’s okay. I’ll look at it after chow tonight.” Luke glanced at his watch. “Let’s go eat. Charlie, the Navy cook, hates it when we show up late.”

  “Sounds good.” She walked over to retrieve her desert camouflage utility cap and settle it on her head. “Do I take my rifle?”

  “No, leave it here. Always wear your pistol, though. The last company here said they were shelled at least once a month. One time, al-Qaeda tried to take over the compound. Always keep a weapon on you, whether you’re inside or outside the fort.
” Even in her bulky desert utilities, he could see her shapely body.

  “Roger, read you loud and clear.” She placed her cap on her head after pulling her hair into a ponytail once more.

  Luke felt sad as she gathered up her thick red hair and tamed it behind her back. She was incredibly beautiful with that crimson frame showing off her oval face. Those huge blue eyes were compassionate and alert. “Okay, let’s saddle up.” He pulled his keg away from the table and stood up.

  * * *

  Megan prepared herself for the stares when they walked into the cramped, busy chow hall. The largest adobe building served as a central place to feed the company. There were many wooden picnic tables squeezed in close together filled with hungry Marines. The noise level was high, and the constant chatter and laughter liftied her spirits. She spotted Captain Hall eating with Lieutenant Speed near the rear of the large room. The odors of spicy chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy made her mouth water. Real food was a luxury not to be wasted.

  She and Luke were invited over to the Motor Pool group of Marines. Shorty, their driver, grinned a welcome as Megan sat opposite him. Luke sat at her elbow. Proudly, Shorty introduced her to the other four Marines. None of them seemed to consider her an outsider. Instead, the meal conversation surrounded the new women’s clinic.

  “Hey,” Shorty said, “you know we got ten other picnic tables that are broke? I can get some of the grunts to scrounge up enough wood to repair them. That way, you’d have some tables where the women could sit down and wait instead of standing in line in the hot sun.”

  Megan was touched by the Marine’s sensitivity. “That’s a wonderful idea, Shorty. I’ll take you up on it.”

  Shorty gave Luke an evil grin as he spooned the potatoes and gravy into his mouth. “Maybe, if we do a little nation building with these folks, there will be fewer IEDs for us to find every morning along the road.”

  Megan chuckled. “When you treat people well, Shorty, they usually aren’t out gunning for you.”

  The Marine grinned widely. “Amen to that, sister.”

  Heartened by the camaraderie, Megan felt a part of the group. She’d worried about her arrival in an all-male combat company. So far, so good. Still, she was glad Luke was sitting next to her, their elbows brushing each other’s occasionally.

  Luke had a lot of depth, she decided. He always seemed in a good mood, easygoing, cracking a joke or making the Marines feel better, but she saw more in his eyes. Megan swore she could tell what he was really feeling and thinking. This man didn’t miss much. She ached to have more time just to talk with him, to explore him as a man, not just as a field medic. Would that ever happen? Megan doubted it, feeling sad about the loss without ever having experienced it.

  As they walked in the dusk away from the chow hall, Megan looked around. She slowed and so did Luke. At four positions around the compound were twenty-foot towers manned by Marines with .50-caliber machine guns. They wore night goggles so they could spot anyone trying to sneak close to the outpost. The wind was cold and she was glad for her warm thick jacket over her Kevlar vest. Luke seemed pensive as they slowly made their way toward their house.

  “You’re well liked,” he said.

  “That’s nice to hear. I was hoping I would fit in—and not out.”

  “I’ve never met a field medic who wasn’t instantly embraced by the Marines.”

  “Comes with the job, maybe?”

  Luke glanced over at Megan’s profile. She was a few inches shorter than he was. A silent joy expanded his heart as he hungrily took in her darkened features. Her lips were full just above a stubborn chin. He pushed down his desire. “I’ll bet you’re like most of the grunts here. You have someone at home waiting for you?”

  “Ugh, that’s a sore topic,” Megan muttered. She gave Luke an apologetic look. His face was unreadable except for the glint in his eyes. “My life is complicated.”

  Luke halted at the house and opened the door for her. “Whose isn’t?” he teased.

  They were alone, although Megan knew the other four Marines would be wandering in sooner or later. She wished much later. She pulled off her jacket and heavy Kevlar vest. “Just between us,” she said in a low tone, “I stupidly fell in love with an officer over in Iraq a number of years ago. It just happened.” She hung up her jacket and vest on two hooks on the mud wall. “Please don’t tell anyone. I’m still embarrassed by it. An enlisted person like me is not allowed to fraternize with an officer. Period.”

  Luke sat down on his cot. “How old were you?”

  “I was twenty-three and knew better,” she said wryly. Sitting on her cot, she realized Luke’s head would be near her own when they slept. Somehow, the idea of him being so close made her feel safer. “He was a doctor. A wonderful surgeon. He knew I was a registered nurse and had four years of college under my belt.”

  “In his eyes, you were an officer even though you chose the enlisted route?” Luke guessed.

  “Yes.” Unwrapping her hair, she ran her fingers through it until it settled like a cape around her shoulders. “He was a lot like you, Luke. Warm, funny and compassionate. About two months into our relationship, we tried to hide it from everyone. I got called on the carpet by the X.O. of the facility. He told me to break it off or face court-martial.”

  “Ouch.”

  “Yes.” Megan winced. “I ended it. And it broke my heart and his. I have such high standards for a man in my life. My sisters always tease me that I’m too picky. But I know I’m right.”

  “I’m sorry it didn’t work out. He sounds like a fine person.” Luke had to stop himself from standing and going over to sit next to Megan. He saw suffering in her eyes, the way her mouth was pursed as if to stop feeling the grief she still carried.

  “Norm died a week later,” she whispered. “A sniper’s bullet. He died instantly. I heard about it on the radio at the facility as the medevac was flying him in. It was such a shock....”

  “That’s tough to take,” Luke agreed quietly, wanting to lighten her sadness. “Hey, at least we have one thing in common.”

  Lifting her head, Megan stared over at him. “What’s that?”

  “I had a high school sweetheart. Hope. We waited until we graduated before we got married. I had already joined the Navy and was leaving for boot camp right after our honeymoon. My dad is a cardiac surgeon and my mother is a registered nurse. They tried to talk me out of marrying Hope. My father, who had been a U.S. Navy doctor, warned me the separation would be too hard on her.” Luke gave her a wry look. “I should have listened. With boot camp, then medical schooling, I’ve been overseas for the last six years. I’d go home on leave for two or three months and turn around and come back to Iraq or Afghanistan. Hope divorced me because it just wasn’t going to work out. I was gone for too long a time.”

  “A lot of marriages have broken up because of the constant duty rotation. I’m so sorry, Luke. She must have been a terrific person for you to fall in love with her,” Megan said.

  “She was, but two wars got in the way.”

  “Any children?”

  He snorted. “I wasn’t home long enough to get her pregnant.”

  “And now?”

  “Single. You?”

  “Oh,” she said as she sighed, “single. I’m still not over Norm’s death. Some days I think I’m ready for another relationship, and then I change my mind the next day.”

  “Grief has its way with us,” Luke said gently. He smiled warmly at her and saw Megan respond. Her lips parted slightly. It was enough to make his heart speed up. If only... Wrong place, wrong time, he warned himself.

  “I’ve decided to put relationships on hold until after I’ve finished my six-year enlistment. I can’t handle another heartbreak. When I leave the Navy, I’ll allow myself the luxury of trying to find the right man.”

  “
Not a lifer?”

  “No.” Megan smiled a little. “I’m an R.N., and a good one. I want to go back into civilian life and pursue what I love so much. I’m doing six years in the military because of the Trayhern family tradition.”

  “And what an incredible tradition,” Luke said, secretly elated Megan was single. That powerful connection with her was growing. Above all, he’d have to be her friend. Not her lover. Somehow, he had to control himself....

  Chapter 4

  Megan was torn out of her sleep by a bomb blast. Disoriented, she automatically rolled off the cot and onto the floor of the darkened house. Outside the window, red and yellow colors flared into the night.

  “Attack!” Sergeant Payne yelled. “Everyone to their stations!”

  More grenades were lobbed into the compound.

  Megan scrambled to her feet, bumping into two other Marines who had been sleeping. The door jerked open, and the sergeant hightailed it out into the night.

  Another explosion detonated. The house shook, knocking her off her feet. Completely disoriented, Megan felt fear overriding her ability to think.

  “Down,” Luke yelled, grabbing her by the shoulder and pushing her to the floor. “Get your gear on!”

  Breathless, fear racing through her, Megan heard yells and orders overriding the attack. This wasn’t what she had expected. Fumbling in the dark, she found her helmet. Where was her Kevlar vest? Already, the house was empty, the Marines in full gear, running to their assigned positions. Megan hadn’t been told where to go.

  She had no idea what time it was, and the darkness only amped up her anxiety. Megan finally found her vest. She sat up and, with shaking hands, pulled it over her utilities. Gulping, she crawled to the corner where her weapon was propped up against the mud wall. While she grabbed it, Megan tried to think. She winced as return fire and the heavy boom of artillery began from within the compound. Glancing out the door, Megan saw muzzle fire flashes on the dark mountain. She shoved on her boots and rose unsteadily. Somehow, she made it to the door.