The Peaceful Warrior: Navy SEAL Romance

by Daniel Banner

  When the dining car attendant came through taking dinner reservations, she felt a rush of excitement when he confirmed that there were still six-o’clock slots open. Daisy went back to work with a renewed rush of energy. The book was fascinating, which made it easy to get into, but with the prospect of seeing her former fake boyfriend again, she was energized.

  The book was a thriller by Camille Jackson about two sisters, separated at birth and ignorant of the other’s existence. When one commits murder, the other is charged for it based on DNA evidence. The writing was impressive, the motives made Daisy feel torn, and the characters themselves were complex and gripping. The big flaw with the book was that it was based on outdated science that said identical twins had identical DNA, which had been solidly refuted in recent years.

  It wasn’t Daisy’s job to solve the problems, just point them out. Knowing Camille, she’d find a solution that was even more brilliant than her original premise.

  When they started calling dinner reservations at 5:00, Daisy couldn’t believe how late it had gotten. The sun was thinking about dipping behind the horizon and sunlight was blaring in through her window. Without even realizing it, Daisy had taken up a stance to block the sun from washing out her screen by putting the back of her laptop to it.

  For the next hour she worked her way through the lives of Robin and Rebecca, but by the time the six o’clock call came, she was right in the middle of the climax. She closed her laptop and stood to stretch as much as her room would allow, and remembered she hadn’t dressed for dinner yet. She only had the one sun dress with her, but she had enjoyed dressing up a little for the formal dinner, and even though she might not fit in with the random dinner companions she ended up with tonight, she still put the dress on. And touched up her makeup. And ran a brush through her hair. And popped a Tic-Tac in.

  By the time she approached the dining car, it was 6:10. As soon as she walked in to the car, she saw Miss Dee sitting at the first table on the left, this time wearing a gray business suit with a skirt. It took half a second for her to place Daisy, but when she did, she smiled warmly. Pasha was next to her, and noticed her next.

  “Daisy!” Pasha looked briefly for an escape route to come hug her, but settled on a big wave. She was wearing a gorgeous red dress with roses on the bodice and a bow on the high waist.

  “Hey, sis,” said Daisy, coming to stand next to the table.

  She approached slowly on purpose, savoring the anticipation of seeing Cannon again. And there he was. His suit was black again, and he looked even more like an international spy than she remembered with his good looks, great style, and relaxed air.

  Her plan had worked! She almost jumped into the air right there in the dining car.

  For half a second he looked pleased to see her, then his smile shifted slightly to become … suspicious. “Daisy,” he said, with a tip of the head. He looked her over, but not in the creepy way a guy would check her out. Now that she knew who he was, she knew she was being scanned more thoroughly than a TSA security check. Good thing she had left her bazooka back in L.A.

  “Hi, Cannon,” said Daisy. “Miss Dee.”

  “Hello,” said Miss Dee.

  “I was hoping you’d come,” said Pasha.

  “Me too,” said Daisy. “I want a Connect Four rematch with you.”

  “If you want to,” said Pasha, “but I don’t know if it’ll be fun. I figured out how to win every time, even against Miss Dee, but only when I go first.”

  Cannon rose from his seat and Miss Dee said, “Would you please join us?”

  “Oh, I didn’t want to impose.” Why had Miss Dee been the one to offer if Cannon was the one making room for her? She hadn’t seen any unseen signal pass between the two of them.

  “Pleeeeease,” said Pasha, but on a look from Miss Dee, she amended it to, “We would be very pleased if you joined us for dinner.”

  “How can I say no to that invitation?” asked Daisy, sliding in to the window seat.

  And just like that, she found herself side to side with her new boyfriend and across from her charming little sister. Again, Pasha interviewed her over dinner, but this time she was prepared. And this time, she was sitting next to Cannon, which was electrifying. It was harder to see him, but his mere presence had her buzzing inside.

  She focused on the well-crafted questions she’d prepared to learn more about her train boyfriend. “What do you want to be when you grow up?” asked Daisy.

  “Either President of the United States or a pediatric surgeon.”

  That was much more specific than Daisy had imagined. It almost knocked her off her game, but she responded, “I would vote for you. Or take my kids to you if they ever needed surgery.” Before Pasha could go on to another question, she asked, “Do you know where you want to go to college?”

  “Probably Harvard or Oxford,” said Pasha confidently.

  Daisy struck with her follow up question before Pasha had a chance to get the interview back on track. “What about Miss Dee and Cannon? Where did they go to college?”

  “Miss Dee went to ...” she considered for just a moment, then said, “Norland College. It’s in England and it’s the best school for nannies in the world. That’s why she’s such an amazing nanny. And Cannon was a soldier before he became my best friend.”

  Ex-military. That made sense. Of course if he’d been in the Marines then it would be former Marine, since Once a Marine always a Marine. The things she picked up editing.

  “What are your hobbies?” asked Pasha.

  Daisy had lost the upper hand. “I love reading. Swimming in the ocean. But my favorite is probably singing.”

  Pasha responded, “I enjoy playing games, I enjoy hosting tea parties, and I enjoy coloring anatomy coloring books.”

  Wow, this girl was ready for life, no matter which profession she chose. “What about Miss Dee and Cannon?”

  That one was tougher, and Pasha had to consider. “I believe Miss Dee likes to do gardening because you should see her flowers at Mother’s house. And she is really, really good at cricket. She even taught me how to play. And golf, wow. If she wasn’t my nanny, I know she’d be an LPGA. She plays the flute, too, and it is beautiful. Like a choir of birdies.”

  Oh was that all? Daisy didn’t feel intimidated at all.

  “Oh,” said Pasha, “and she likes to paint. She gave a painting to … The Queen, and the Queen hung it up in her palace. She’s teaching me to paint. Even though I can beat her in Connect Four now if I go first, I don’t think I’ll ever be as good at painting.”

  “Thank you, Miss Pasha,” said Miss Dee. “That’s very kind of you to say.”

  Daisy wondered if she had to prompt Pasha to tell her about Cannon, but Pasha was a strong enough conversationalist that she went back on topic.

  “Now Cannon,” she said, sounding like an exasperated adult. “He doesn’t really do anything other than look around all the time. Sometimes he plays games with me, but he’s always so distracted he’s not very good.”

  “That’s not very nice,” said Miss Dee.

  “I’m sorry, Cannon,” Pasha told him. “What I meant was, he has other strengths beside playing games. Oh! You should hear him sing. He’s even better than the guy who sings the Toy Story song, ‘You Got a Friend in Me’.”

  Cannon chuckled, a rare break in his demeanor. Was he blushing? Daisy was pretty sure he was.

  Pasha rolled her eyes. “I’d ask him to sing now, but he never does except at bedtime.”

  “A soldier and a singer?” said Daisy. “That’s every girl’s dream guy right there.”

  Daisy studied him and noticed a slight squirm to his normally soldier-straight posture and there were red spots showing up on his cheeks. Miss Dee raised an eyebrow at him in a very British way, killing the connection between them. It was Miss Dee who Daisy needed to get out of the picture, not Pasha. Well, not get out of the picture like that. She just wanted more alone time.

  Pasha didn’t notice any of the
exchange. She grinned lovingly up at Cannon, who said, “I’m lucky to have such a smart, polite, and pretty best friend.”

  Pasha looked at Daisy and said, “I don’t know what Cannon does when I’m at Mother’s or Father’s house.” In a fake whisper with her mouth covered with the back of her hand, she said, “I think he just sits there and looks around the room.”

  Again he laughed along with Daisy.

  For the rest of the meal, she continued to pick up tidbits about her on-again boyfriend, but since Pasha only saw him on the train, she knew surprisingly little about him. Still it was an enjoyable dinner in the company of this little pseudo family that had taken her in.

  After dinner, Pasha performed a short poem—“Ridiculous Rose” by Shel Silverstein—and did it in an entirely different character than she’d done “Jabberwocky”.

  As they stood from the table, Pasha invited Daisy to watch Frozen with them. It had been years since Daisy had seen it, and even in his reticent state, Cannon was fun to be around, so she put off the twins and their legal and familial issues to join them. Pasha showed up in Frozen pajamas, but Cannon and Miss Dee both wore their normal business attire. Daisy was thinking like Pasha and wore sweat pants and a sweat shirt.

  As expected, Cannon sat in the back corner of the room and didn’t speak to anybody. Even though Daisy never felt unsafe on the train, having him back there guarding the room make her feel all warm and protected. After the movie, they went their separate ways. And as before, there was a hug and a goodnight from Pasha but nothing but a momentary glance and a smile from Cannon.

  Was it just her or was he colder toward her than the last train trip? Did he see her as a bother? A threat? Despite her intentions, maybe she really had imposed on their hospitality, even though she was paying her own way this time.

  Oh well, at least the twins were waiting for her back in her room.

  Chapter

  Cannon sat staring down the dimly lit hallway of the sleeper car. He couldn’t believe Daisy was back on the train with them. It’d been like a Christmas morning surprise when she’d popped in at dinner, and he’d learned even more about her than last trip, but not being able to interact directly with her was taking all of the discipline he could muster, and that was saying a lot for a former SEAL. She was an entirely different distraction than anything he’d ever faced, and he was starting to wonder if someone was behind it. Not as a way to get to Pasha, merely to find out what it would take to get his defense of Pasha to drop.

  Rasmus Gold was shrewd and smart enough to try something subtle like this as a test. Heck, Sutton might even throw something like the perfect woman at him.

  From everything Cannon knew about Daisy, she was everything he wanted in a woman: intelligent, kind, playful, great with kids, and gorgeous. But more than anything, it was easy for him to see the good in the world when she was around. He still didn’t know why or how, but she made him all giddy inside. He’d never even thought that word before, but it was the only way to describe how she made him feel. She was pure and childlike and innocent. Again, like no one he’d ever known.

  Maybe it was because there was no darkness in her that he was able to only see the good in the world with her around.

  Someone was coming down the stairs. At midnight, it was probably a passenger from the upper level up for a bathroom break. There was a bathroom in the upper level, but it got more usage than the downstairs restrooms, so quite a few people made the trip down where there were two restrooms to split the customers and fewer sleeper rooms down here to begin with. Therefore, cleaner restrooms.

  The rhythm of the steps was familiar. A large person, but with quick, comfortable steps. It was a game he played, trying to guess as much as he could about the person before he saw them.

  This one was easy—Terrell, the attendant. Cannon knew it before he came around the corner.

  Sure enough, the big guy rounded the corner, holding a pot of coffee. “How you doing, my man?” he asked Cannon. No one else was up and about in the car.

  Cannon kept one eye on the hallway as he talked in low tones with Terrell. “It’s another beautiful night. How bout you?”

  “I’m going to catch a few hours sleep. Thought I’d top you off.”

  “Thanks, man,” said Cannon, removing the lid from his cup and holding it out. The dark coffee steamed as it filled Cannon’s cup. The aroma worked wonders on Cannon’s weary mind. During the day there was always coffee available upstairs, but Cannon was tied to his post down here and Terrell knew that. He also knew Cannon would be awake through the night, so he kept the coffee on longer than he did on typical trips and came down every few hours.

  “No cream or sugar?” asked Terrell. He knew Cannon took his coffee black, but always offered anyway.

  Cannon shook his head.

  “Aight, anything else you all need?”

  Not unless you can take my post for the night so I can go find Daisy and see if she’s up for a late-night conversation. “Nah, we’re good for tonight.” He capped his coffee cup and cheers’d him. “Thanks, Terrell.”

  He grunted as he turned to go back upstairs.

  Sitting back in his seat, Cannon sniffed the steam coming through the hole in his cup. Terrell wasn’t as trusted and trained as James, the southbound kitchen attendant, or Gustav, the northbound guy, but Cannon had known him long enough that he didn’t turn down a cup of coffee. If anyone ever did plot against Pasha and her parents enough to poison Cannon or even knock him out for the night, Miss Dee could hold her own against most threats. She was trained in firearms and in self-defense and always had a .357 Smith and Wesson within reach.

  They didn’t mess around at Norland College. Pretty much all of the British royalty employed nannies from Norland, and while the position with Pasha wasn’t as prestigious as the royalty jobs, it paid better. Miss Dee made a lot more than Cannon, and he was in six-figures for his two-day-a-week gig. They both had all of their expenses covered while on duty, and Cannon got unlimited airfare between Seattle and L.A. in between train trips, plus housing in Seattle when he decided to stay there rather than fly back home.

  Cannon sipped his coffee, then set it aside. Even though he trusted Terrell, he always took a sip then let it sit for at least 20 minutes to see if he had any adverse consequences. Tonight he probably didn’t even need the coffee to stay awake since he was already energized by the hours he’d been able to spend with Daisy.

  He pulled out his Bible and it fell open to a passage he’d read enough that he didn’t really need the book. I am not fit to untie the thong of his sandals. That was John the Baptist. Then there was Peter. Depart from me Lord, for I am a sinful man. If those two men weren’t worthy, how could Cannon be worthy?

  He popped his Bluetooth earpiece in and started his audiobook back up. Dead Heat, the seventh Harry Dresden novel.

  Another set of footsteps sounded on the stairs. Cannon paused his book and listened. This one was slower and uneven with the slight jostling of the train. A woman, he guessed, mid-20s. Blonde hair, blue eyes, beautiful. Smile that could light up the room.

  Oh boy, now Daisy was influencing his private little game.

  But it was Daisy who came around the corner of the stairwell. Cannon shook his head to clear it and make sure he wasn’t dreaming. He’d never fallen asleep on duty before, but this was just too good to be true.

  Sure enough, it was Daisy, and she walked slowly toward him. Had Terrell really found her and asked her to come? No, Cannon thought back and he was sure he’d only thought that wish. Maybe God was working in his life and giving him a chance to do what he hadn’t been able to at the end of their last trip.

  Daisy was only a couple of feet away from his doorway when he said quietly, “Halt. Who goes there.”

  She didn’t jump this time, just came slowly to a stop near his door. She was an angel, all pure smile, and good energy. “I was ready for you that time.”

  Grinning widely, he stood and stepped into the hallway. “You
came back for more?”

  “I’ve heard that soldiers get all inspired for their cause by pretty girls.” She fidgeted a little, but pushed onward. “You got a tough job down here, so I thought I’d bring you something to help you through the night.”

  “What is it?” he asked, mind racing for what she could be talking about. Just the fact that she knew that he thought she was a pretty girl, as understated as that was, thrilled him.

  “This,” she said, turning her face to the light and smiling. Just smiling. She had come all the way down here just to bring him a smile.

  Yes, that’s what Cannon needed—a woman who could roll with life and see the joy and goodness in it. He felt all funny inside and had to admit, he was giddy. He almost got down on one knee and proposed marriage right then and there.

  Was there something in the coffee?

  No, he recognized that feeling from Bambi. He was twitterpated and it was a new feeling for him. In a voice low enough that it wouldn’t wake anyone in the nearby rooms, he said, “I feel like I could sail the Seven Seas for a smile like that.” Her dimple alone was worth any amount of treasure.

  “Pirate theme tonight?”

  “Huh? Oh, the halt and the sailing thing?” He really needed to practice talking to girls. Thinking quick he said, “I thought maybe you were editing a book about pirates and I’d help you stay in the mood.”

  “That’s nice of you,” she said. “But I’m editing this really good book, and it’s just two tics off from being bestseller quality.”

  She seemed worried about something. “And?”

  “I don’t know,” said Daisy. Her tone was conversational, in no hurry. “I’m not that far into the book, and I can’t quite put my finger on what’s up with it. It helps to step away and let it all settle in my brain to make sure I give the author the best feedback possible. I love how the bumps and turns of the train are like a mild shaker for my brain, helping the ideas to settle in so I can analyze them more clearly.”

  “Want to sit down?” asked Cannon.