“Awwww.”
“And,” he continued, fighting what looked suspiciously like a smile, “present these.”
“These” I saw when he reached into his pocket, were two shiny silver bars sitting side by side in a dark blue velvet case.
“Congratulations, Lieutenant. You’ve completed the time in grade and met the requirements of honorable service to qualify for promotion to the rank of first lieutenant.”
“You’re kidding!”
His bemused expression said he sort of wished he was. But he made up for that momentary lapse with a firm shake of his head. “No, Samantha, I’m not.”
My team jumped in to offer congratulations. They ran the gamut. I got a fierce hug from Pen, a hoot and high five from Dennis, an awkward back pat from Rocky, and an unintentional bone-crunch of a handshake from Noel.
“By the way,” Dr. J let drop when the noise died down. “We need to make this official, so I asked the deputy post commander to assist me in pinning on your bars this afternoon.”
“Colonel Roberts?” I squeaked. “You asked Iron Butt Roberts to pin me?”
“I did.”
“What did he say?”
Dr. J’s smile widened to a full-fledged grin above his polka-dot bowtie. “Something along the lines of ‘God help the United States Air Force.’ ”
Berkley Prime Crime titles by Merline Lovelace
ALL THE WRONG MOVES
NOW YOU SEE HER
CATCH HER IF YOU CAN
Catch Her If You Can Page 18