Pulling the charger from her phone, she swiped the screen and frowned, not seeing any messages.
“Everything okay?” Michelle asked, poking her head in the room.
“Yeah, I just—just wanted to check and see if Jacob had texted,” she said lightly.
“He didn’t tell you he was leaving?” Michelle asked, raising her eyebrows.
“Nope. Not that he needed to. We hung out last night,” she said with a shrug. “We made tentative plans for later this week but didn’t set a date or time or anything. Maybe he’ll be back before then.”
“Yeah, probably. I’m not worried.”
Jessica resisted the urge to roll her eyes as she followed Michelle back to the kitchen. Of course, she wasn’t worried—she’d just slept with Ryker. And showered with him. No doubt he wanted to see Michelle again if the interest in his eyes was any indication. Plus he’d stayed all night, not snuck out after they’d had sex.
But Jacob?
What was he supposed to do—call and say he’d be gone?
A text or something would’ve been nice, but whatever. She’d see him when he got back. Maybe.
“So anyway,” Michelle continued, and Jessica realized she hadn’t been paying attention. “We’ll hit the beach later on and then check out that place for drinks that Bailey was telling us about.”
“Sure, sounds good. Is she even working tonight?”
“I’ll text her and find out,” Michelle said, pouring a ton of creamer into her coffee.
“You got her number, too?” Jessica asked in disbelief.
Michelle paused mid-sip. “Of course. How else can we make sure to go when she’s bartending? Her boyfriend is one of the SEALs. Maybe she can tell us when they’ll be back.”
“Yeah,” Jessica said dryly. “I’m sure they tell her all their Top Secret plans.”
Michelle shrugged. “So stay home then. I figured you’d appreciate some details if you wanted to go out with Jacob. I know I wouldn’t mind getting the dirt on Ryker.”
“Fine, we can go,” Jessica conceded.
“Awesome.”
Jessica glanced out the window at the picture-perfect blue sky and waves crashing on the shore. Funny how their peaceful little summer vacation had suddenly gotten a lot more interesting.
Chapter 6
JACOB FROWNED, CROSSING his arms as he leaned back in his chair in the bullpen. His desert-camo fatigues and combat boots weren’t exactly what he’d planned on wearing this morning. Such was the life of a SEAL. He served God and country first—everything else had to be put on the back burner. One of the SEAL team commanders, Ryan Mitchell, stood at the front of the technology-laden room, pulling up satellite images onto the massive TV screen before the briefing began.
Ryker slid into the seat beside Jacob, smirking.
“Looks like someone got laid last night,” Noah quipped from across the table as the other men chuckled. “Nothing else would put you in such a damn good mood.”
“Did you stay at their place all night?” Jacob asked, raising his eyebrows. Ryker and Michelle had seemed more than happy when he’d said goodnight to Jessica yesterday, letting her walk him to the door. The last he’d seen, Michelle had been leading Ryker down the hallway, presumably to her room.
“Fuck yeah,” Ryker said. “Nearly scared your girl to death this morning though—guess she wasn’t expecting to see me first thing.”
“Hell,” Jacob muttered, a tiny twinge of jealously working its way through him. He would’ve been more than happy to stay the night, even if it meant just holding Jess in his arms. Feeling all her soft curves up against his muscles would’ve been torture—yet one hundred percent fucking worth it.
And now to know that she’d seen Ryker before they deployed on their op? That he’d gotten to see what she looked like first thing in the morning? Regret churned through him.
Seeing Jessica’s tousled brown waves, what she’d slept in the night before, how she’d look with no makeup on—that was supposed to be for his eyes.
And hell.
He should’ve sent Jessica a text and told her that he’d be gone for a little while. She knew he was stationed at Little Creek—that he was in the military. She’d understand why he couldn’t give her details of where he was going.
But now Ryker of all people had told the women they were leaving?
Fucking perfect.
Mason cleared his throat across the table, and Jacob glanced back at the front of the room where their commander stood.
“We just received word from the Pentagon that an American who was TDY in Afghanistan went missing yesterday at oh-five-hundred local time. Sat imagery shows unusual movement around insurgent camps outside of Kabul. We have reason to believe this is where the woman is being held.”
“Woman?” Jacob asked, his ears perking up.
“Affirmative. She’s with State and was traveling with only one bodyguard and a local guide.”
“Fuck,” Hunter muttered, pounding his fist on the table. “Why the hell would anyone allow that?”
“Clearly it’s not standard procedure,” Ryan said. “It goes against all protocols. She should’ve had an entire security detail. But State was trying to maintain a low profile as she moved around.”
“A low profile—by getting her goddamned kidnapped?” Noah asked in irritation. “Even troops on the move travel in a damn convoy. Now every mother fucker in the area will want to get his hands on her. An American woman—and a government official at that?”
Jacob clenched his jaw. “So what’s the op? We go in and grab her?”
“Affirmative,” Ryan said, clearing his throat. “Wheels up in one hour. We have reason to believe they’ll be moving her to another camp located nearby—a high value target is there.” He pointed to a small section of the map on the big screen. “The leader of the terror cell would be very much interested in an American woman. We’ve been tracking his movements thanks to a tip from an informant. The Alpha team may be deployed soon to grab him—but our priority is the State department official. We’ll ambush them as they’re traveling west. It’s likely they’ll make an announcement to the world that they have her—and we’re trying to avoid exactly that.”
“And we’re positive on her last known location?” Colton asked.
Jacob narrowed his gaze as their commander moved through a series of additional satellite imagery.
“Are they being tracked by UAVs?” Hunter asked, referring to the Unmanned Air Vehicles flying reconnaissance.
“Affirmative. We’ll know precisely when they’re on the move. Troops in the area can intercept if necessary, but the Pentagon wants a SEAL team moving in on this to avoid any mishaps.”
Mason crossed his arms, a frown on his face. His girlfriend Taylor had recently been kidnapped by her ex-boyfriend’s accomplices—no doubt this reminded him of that situation. None of them took the idea of a woman in harm’s way lightly. Their job was to defend and protect the innocent—and while women were more than capable of handling themselves on the battlefield, this woman wasn’t a soldier. She was a U.S. Government official. She might not know the first thing about defending herself against the enemy.
“It’s not in the media yet,” Jacob said. “Which is a good thing.”
“Agreed,” their commander said. “We’re anticipating they’ll make an announcement after she’s with the leader of the terror cell. And we want to prevent that from happening.”
“So they don’t know she’s U.S. government?” Colton asked.
“We can only speculate. It’s probably assumed she’s military at this point.”
Jacob nodded, grim. It was no secret how the Middle Eastern terror groups felt about western women. He hoped they were treating her well, but it was quite possible she’d end up raped or tortured. Killed.
Getting her out of the situation ASAP was imperative.
“Was she TDY from Washington or stationed at an embassy?”
“My understanding is that she�
��s from DC. The Pentagon hasn’t given us much detail yet about her position or reason for being there—and that doesn’t matter. We’re being sent in to get her home safely. That is our mission and primary concern.”
“Understood,” Hunter said, all business. “What else do we need to know?”
Ryan delved into additional details as the men watched him move through more specs on the screen. Jacob felt uneasiness in his gut. They’d conducted plenty of rescue missions before. It wasn’t that that was bothering him. Briefly, Jessica’s face flashed through his mind.
Hell. No wonder he never dated. He barely even knew her yet couldn’t get her out of his head.
Chapter 7
“ANOTHER ROUND?” BAILEY asked the next night as Jessica sat at the crowded bar with her best friends. Music blared from the speakers, salty air drifted in through the open doors, and loud conversations went on around them.
“Sure, why not,” she said, watching as Bailey took their three empty glasses.
“All right. Three more margaritas, coming right up. I’m glad you ladies came tonight when I was on shift. There’s a good crowd here every night, but it’s nice to see some familiar faces.”
“It was worth the drive,” Michelle said, brushing her blonde hair back over her shoulder. “Those margaritas were fab.”
“Agreed,” Amy said. “They were to die for.”
“It’s my own special concoction,” Bailey said with a wink, her eyebrow ring gleaming in the overhead lights. “I only make them for my favorite customers.”
“We’ll drink to that,” Michelle giggled, her gaze drifting toward a group of rowdy guys standing nearby.
“This is definitely where all the action is,” Bailey said with a laugh. “The north end is quieter, up where you guys are renting a place. But we’ve got concerts down here, tons of popular bars. The locals all know where to come. As soon as the sun begins to set, this place is always packed.”
“Don’t worry, we’ll be back,” Michelle said confidently.
“Can I buy you ladies some drinks?” a deep voice asked, and the women all turned to see a sunburned guy leering at them.
“No thanks,” Amy said smoothly.
“Aw, come on,” he said, staggering closer. “I like brunettes and blondes, so you three are perfect.”
“Charming,” Jessica muttered, rolling her eyes.
“You’re not our type,” Michelle said, ducking out of the way as he reached out toward her.
Bailey nodded at someone in the distance, and Jessica watched in surprise as a beefy guy appeared out of nowhere, hauling the drunk guy away.
“Wait, I need another beer,” he slurred.
“More like a cab,” Michelle said. “How do you deal with idiots like that all day?”
“Nature of the job,” Bailey said with a shrug. “I love bartending and meet some cool people—it makes up for the drunks that come in here. Or the tourists that have a few too many.”
“Is that how you met Noah?” Jessica asked. “Or wait—you’re friends with Taylor.”
“Yes and yes,” Bailey chuckled. “She was dating Mason, so I sort of knew Noah. He happened to come in here one night to meet up with some friends, and the rest is history. Well, there was that time we got stranded on a deserted island together....”
“What?” Jessica asked, her mouth dropping open.
“It’s kind of a long story,” Bailey said. “And I need to get your drinks. Remind me to tell you about it later on,” she said, hurrying off with their empty glasses. The second bartender working tonight was rushing around as well, and Jessica watched as more people streamed in through the door.
“Well, that sounded crazy,” Amy said.
“Says the woman who nearly drowned,” Jessica pointed out.
“Touché. No more spontaneous evening swims for me. I’m going to have an unadventurous summer from here on out.”
“I’ll drink to that,” Michelle said.
A few minutes later, Bailey came back carrying three large margaritas. “Here we are, ladies,” she said, setting them down on the bar. “One frozen and two on the rocks with salt.”
“Yum,” Michelle said, taking a sip of her margarita. “So, I know it’s crazy in here tonight, but quick, give me the dirt on Ryker!”
Bailey smirked. “He’s a handful.”
“A very delicious handful,” Michelle said as the other women laughed.
“There’s not much to tell. He’s got a new woman with him all the time,” Bailey said. “I’m not sure he’s really the settling down sort, if you’re looking for that sort of thing.”
“Well neither am I,” Michelle said. “We’re just here for the summer, right girls? It sounds like a match made in heaven.”
“She’s not wrong,” Amy joked, playfully elbowing her friend.
“And what about Jacob?” Michelle asked, winking at Jessica. “Tell us about him, too.”
Bailey grinned, and Jessica felt her cheeks heating. What did she care what Bailey had to say about Jacob anyway? They hadn’t even gone out on a date yet, and now the guys were gone. For all she knew, she’d never even see him again.
“He’s a flirt,” Bailey said, “but a sweet guy. Honestly, now that all of his friends have girlfriends, I can totally see him wanting one, too.”
“I’m not looking for a boyfriend,” Jessica hastily said. “Like Michelle said—we’re just here for the summer. I don’t need a summer fling or anything like that.”
“He’s a good guy,” Bailey insisted. “And the other night, he seemed really into you.”
Jessica felt her cheeks redden. “He’s gorgeous—yes. But like you said, he’s a flirt. If he wasn’t flirting with me the other night, I’m sure there’d be another woman around to catch his attention.”
Bailey shrugged. “What does it matter if you’re the one he’s into now? I wasn’t expecting to get together with Noah. I knew him a little bit because of Taylor—knew about him at least. But neither of us was looking for anything serious, and look what happened?”
“So where’d they go, anyway?” Amy asked. “I guess you probably don’t know the details. I was kind of hoping to thank them for rescuing me the other night. Being out there in the ocean, too tired to swim back, was absolutely terrifying.”
“I don’t know where they are,” Bailey admitted. “That’s life with a Navy SEAL—they can’t talk about their missions and probably never will be able to. I’m okay with that because I trust Noah and the other guys.”
“Saving the world isn’t a bad thing,” Jessica said.
“It is when Ryker could be here fucking my brains out,” Michelle said.
Jessica nearly spat out her margarita.
“Amen, sister,” Bailey said. “But they’ll be plenty of time for that when they get back. If he spent the night with you, he must’ve been interested. Ryker’s usually more the love ‘em and leave ‘em type—sneaking out before dawn and all that.”
Michelle grinned. “And here Jessica sent Jacob packing the night before.”
“He knew nothing was going to happen—we were planning to meet you guys at the ER. When we found out Amy was getting discharged soon, he said he’d wait with me. It’s not like we were making out on every available surface or something.”
“Well, when all of them do get back, I’d like to say thanks,” Amy said.
“I’m sure you’ll be seeing more of them,” Bailey said. “Excuse me, ladies. I’ve got to tend to some of the other customers. The natives are getting restless,” she said, rolling her eyes as a group of rowdy guys across the bar tried to get her attention.
An hour later, the women walked out of the bar to catch a cab back to their house. Michelle took a deep breath, inhaling the salty scent of the ocean air. “God, this is soooo much better than Blacksburg. Why do we live there again? Virginia Beach has the ocean, the hot military guys—”
“The more expensive ocean front real estate,” Jessica said, brushing a strand of hair back behi
nd her ear.
“Well, I’m not looking to buy a place right now,” Michelle muttered, hailing a cab.
“I’m not today,” Jessica said as the women climbed in. “But someday, yes. Eventually.”
“There are schools around here you know,” Amy said. “We could move out here and teach.”
“Now you’re talking!” Michelle said excitedly.
“Where to?” the cab driver asked as they pulled back onto busy Atlantic Avenue, the road that ran up and down the Virginia Beach strand, parallel to the ocean.
“The north end,” Jessica said.
“We’ve got an amazing beach house there,” Michelle told him. “Amazing. Like, it’s totally to die for. We’re here for the whole summer.”
Jessica elbowed her in the side, exchanging a glance with Amy. “How many margaritas did you have?” she asked.
“Just two. Plus those two shots of fireball.”
“When did you do shots?” Jessica asked in disbelief.
Michelle grinned. “When you two were in the bathroom. I may have had a bit too much—possibly. Which is why it’s good we’re taking a cab,” she said, laughing hysterically.
Jessica shook her head, giving the cabbie their address. “God, remind me to keep an eye on her the next time we go out,” she told Amy.
Michelle slumped into her seat, pouting. “It’s not like I nearly drowned in the ocean like some people I know.”
The cab driver glanced at them in the rear-view mirror, raising his eyebrows. “You nearly drowned?”
“That would be me,” Amy admitted. “I got caught in a riptide yesterday and couldn’t swim back.”
“Some Navy SEALs rescued her,” Michelle said. “And then I fucked—”
“Enough,” Jessica interrupted, putting a hand over Michelle’s mouth. “Some of our friends rescued her.”
The cab driver let out a low whistle, shaking his head. “You gotta be careful around here. The ocean can be dangerous.”
Summer with a SEAL Page 5