Forget Me Not (Love in the Fleet)

by Ashby, Heather

  Drinkin’ and thinkin’.

  “Hey, Sky, I think there’s something wrong with your cat.”

  That’s how his roommate greeted him at the door and Sky knew he was right. Daisy Mae not only didn’t welcome him, but she barely woke up when he petted her. Her blue eyes were bloodshot, listless, dull, and her nose felt hot to the touch. Did cats run fevers? He didn’t know, but he knew where he was headed as he scooped her up with one hand and grabbed her carrier with the other.

  There was no sweet-talking his way into an exam room today. Lillian understood immediately Daisy Mae was truly sick and sent him right back to an exam room. When Dr. Daisy opened the door, she let out a sigh upon seeing him.

  “Wait—” he said. “There’s something really wrong with her. I think she’s got a fever. Look at her. She’s too sick to even hiss at you.”

  “Okay.” Daisy plugged her stethoscope into her ears, “Let’s have a listen.” She looked up at him, standing there like a worried father. “She does have a lot of congestion. When did this start?”

  Sky’s heart pounded. Some of it was being in Daisy’s presence again, but the rest was concern for his cat. He hadn’t realized how attached he’d become to his furry new best friend. “I don’t know. She seemed fine when I left for the base this morning. Is she going to be okay?”

  “Yes, I’m sure it’s some kind of upper respiratory infection.” Daisy checked the cat’s ears and throat. “Let’s try her on antibiotics for ten days and see what that does. Here.” She pulled out a syringe. “This will get her started. I’ll prescribe some pills to give her at home this week.” As she finished with the shot, she said, “There. That ought to fix the problem.”

  He knew he should just put the cat back in her cage and walk out the door. But just seeing Daisy Schneider again knocked every common sense impulse to leave her alone right out of his head.

  “What?” Daisy asked.

  He hadn’t realized he’d been staring at her. Sky glanced away, eyes flickering around the room before coming back to hers. “Is there anything we can do to fix our problem?”

  “I don’t think so, Brian.” She opened the cage door and Daisy Mae was only too happy to climb back inside to get away from her. “I’m pretty sure I’ve made it clear that seeing each other is not a good idea. I’m sorry if I led you on, but I don’t think things with us are going to work out.”

  Sky’s stomach churned. His heart ached. This was not going as planned. “You can’t deny we had something going before I left town. Are you going to tell me that kiss in the surf meant nothing to you?”

  Daisy grabbed a squirt bottle and sprayed the exam table, wiping it up with a rag, while staring him down. “So this is about sex? I should have guessed.”

  “No, it’s not about sex. Jesus, Daisy.” And then when Daisy looked at him with her bluey-green eyes, it was all over. “Goddammit, Daisy. I don’t know why—the way you send mixed messages—but I’ve fallen hopelessly in love with you.”

  Her mouth dropped open. She huffed out a breath. “You wouldn’t know love if it smacked you in the face, honey.”

  “Not true. I fell in love with you the moment I met you.”

  “You fell in love with my rack the moment you met me.”

  And although he commanded his eyes not to look down, they disobeyed a direct order and swept to her breasts before ricocheting back to her face. A glimmer of a smile on his lips. “Well, that didn’t hurt.” Then turning serious, he added, “The one on your car!”

  “Oh, you are impossible,” Daisy cried. “So now he loves me,” she said to Daisy Mae, who felt well enough to hiss at her now. “I bet he tells that to all the girls to get them into bed.”

  Sky jerked back as if she’d slapped him across the face. He hoped she could see the hurt radiating from him. “You know I may be a lot of things, Daisy Schneider, but I am honest and I have never said that to a woman to get her into bed.”

  “Are you telling me you don’t want to sleep with me?”

  “I didn’t say that.” She had him flustered now. He raked his hand through his hair. “Actually, I’ve never used the ‘L’ word in a sentence with ‘I’ and ‘You’ before with any woman.”

  “What? Are you going to stand there and tell me you’ve never said ‘I love you’ to a woman at all? Ever?”

  He turned his head to mull it over. Rubbed his crew cut, chewed on the inside of his cheek for a second, then looked back at her innocently, “Does my mother count?”

  “No, your mother does not count.”

  Aha. He saw her lip twitch at the corner. “Then I swear I haven’t.”

  Daisy went back to squirting the table. “Brian, you’ve known me what? Two weeks?”

  “Sixteen days and…” He glanced at his watch. “Eleven minutes.”

  He thought he saw another shadow of a smile as Daisy finished wiping the stainless steel surface. But maybe not.

  “I’m sorry, Brian, I think it would be simpler if we didn’t see each other any more.” Then gently, she added, “I mean, maybe you should think about getting another vet.”

  Get another vet? That was the last straw. First she’d thrown his profession of love back in his face but now she was throwing Daisy Mae out on her ass too.

  “Fine, sweetheart!” He gathered up the dregs of his pride, clicked the cage shut, and stormed down the hall.

  He couldn’t believe he’d blurted out he was in love with her. His mantra had always been “Run on anything if there’s already two outs,” so he figured he’d had nothing to lose. But apparently he had.

  Because Sky Crawford had just lost his heart.

  The vet tech was at the desk when he checked out. Her name was Melissa or something. Didn’t matter, since he’d been told to get another vet. “And no, I don’t need a follow-up appointment,” he snapped at her as he slapped his credit card down on the counter. “I won’t be returning.” He noticed Lillian filing records, watching him. Just because Daisy was a bitch didn’t mean he had to be rude. “Lillian.” He nodded his head.

  She nodded back. “Cap’n Crawford.”

  And then he let fly to both of them. He jerked his thumb toward the hall “What is wrong with her?” Neither of them said a word as Melissa handed him a bottle of pills. “Somebody needs to give her a pill. You know what? She is a pill. Jesus.” He continued to glare toward the exam rooms—and her. “Goddamn Ice Queen.”

  The vet tech handed him the credit card receipt. “Dr. Daisy wasn’t always like that. I knew her in high school. She used to be a lot of fun. But, well, she hasn’t been the same since her husband died.”

  A freight train roared through Sky’s head, blasting away his anger. She’d grabbed his attention in a chokehold. “Her husband died?”

  “Yes.” Melissa glanced nervously back at Lillian. Lillian shook her head affirmatively at him. “Sorry, I thought you knew. Jack’s helicopter was shot down in Afghanistan a couple of years ago.”

  Sky reached for the counter to steady himself.

  Jack. He had a name.

  And he flew a helicopter.

  And he was killed in action.

  I don’t date military men, especially pilots.

  What’s the matter? Crashed and burned?

  Something like that.

  Holy Mother of God. Could he have been more of an idiot?

  Daisy lifted Mr. Miller’s Schnauzer to the exam table. Brian had been perfectly serious. There wasn’t any “ain’t I funny” look on his face when he’d said he was in love with her. He looked as innocent as the time he’d stood in that exact spot and asked, “You mean, kill the babies?” She’d been right about him. What-you-see-is-what-you-get.

  And was it really such a bad thing? To have a man in love with her again?

  Daisy turned as the door to the
exam room flew open. Brian strode in and took her in his arms. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  Daisy froze. Dumbstruck.

  “Please forgive me for my stupidity and rudeness, but I didn’t know. Oh, my God, Daisy. I am so sorry,” he whispered into her hair.

  Lillian must have spilled the beans. Daisy tried to apologize to the client with her eyes as Brian continued to rock her stiff body from side to side. Finally, he turned to Mr. Miller and said, “I’m sorry but Dr. Daisy is done for the day. Can you please re-schedule?”

  Daisy extricated herself from his arms. “No, Mr. Miller. Brian, please let me finish with this patient and I promise to talk with you, but please…” she implored him through gritted teeth.

  “No. Your husband died and you need to be held.”

  Mr. Miller’s mouth dropped open. His eyes darted back and forth between the two of them.

  Again beseeching the client with an apologetic look, she gave the dog the rest of its shots. Her gaze flickered back to Brian and she hissed, “It happened two years ago. I don’t need to be held right now.”

  “Yeah, but I just found out two minutes ago, and you haven’t been held by me.”

  “I’ll just come back later for the rest of his exam, Doc,” said a flustered Mr. Miller, as he scooped up his dog and departed.

  “Why didn’t you tell me he was killed in action? I thought you were divorced. Thought he broke your heart or something. Maybe he cheated on you. I didn’t know you were a Gold Star Wife.”

  “It’s none of your business.” Daisy reached for the squirt bottle, but Brian took it out of her hands and set it back down, never taking his eyes from hers.

  “Well I want to make it my business because I want you to be my business. And him being KIA is part of that.”

  “Look, Brian, I have patients scheduled.”

  “I canceled the rest of your day.

  “You what?”

  “And tomorrow too. Lillian is rescheduling them. Come on. Get your things. We’re going home.”

  “You can’t do that.”

  He put his arm around her shoulders and walked her out the door and down the hall to the front desk. Daisy protested all the way. “I am not…let go of…you can’t…” But he wasn’t listening.

  “Okay, girls?” Brian asked the ladies. “You got everything under control?”

  Daisy looked daggers at Lillian, who pointed to herself and shook her head no, then pointed at Melissa and mouthed out: She told him.

  “Dr. Daisy will be back on Monday.” He coughed dramatically. “Lot of nasty bugs going around this time of year. We’ll both take a long weekend and, uh, we’ll be all better.” He coughed again for good measure. “Oh, and Lillian, call the Boys and Girls Club. Tell them she won’t be there today.”

  Daisy looked back at Lillian who was smiling broadly now. “Take your time, doctor. There’s nothing here we can’t handle.”

  “What in the world was that all about?” Daisy demanded in the parking lot as she pummeled his chest. “You can’t do this. You can’t make me leave. How could you cancel my appointments?” But her fists began to lose their fight and so did she.

  “Come on, Daisy. I didn’t know he died. Here I’ve been calling him a jarhead-grunt-asshole-son-of-a-bitch and all along he was killed in action. I am so sorry.” He folded her in his arms, kissing her temple. “Can you ever forgive me?”

  And right then and there in the parking lot with cars whizzing by on Highway A1A, Daisy Schneider let down her guard. She gave in. Gave up.

  And let go.

  It felt so good to be held in Brian’s embrace. She felt safe for the first time in two years. No, make that three years. And for the second time in three years, Daisy Schneider lost control.

  She hadn’t cried like this since the black sedan had pulled up in front of her house on an August morning a little over two years ago. She realized she was sobbing now. Right here in her parking lot. What if a client…? But she didn’t care. This was what letting go was all about. Really letting go. Not worrying about who was watching or how it looked.

  Just. Letting. Go.

  He pulled a box of Kleenex out of his truck and dabbed at her nose. “And I’m sorry for calling you the Ice Queen. Can you ever forgive me for thinking you were uptight and joyless?”

  “The Ice…? Uptight and…?” She almost laughed at the clueless look on his face. Did he ever think before he spoke? Well, she guessed she probably had come across that way. “Let’s get out of here,” she said, looking around the parking lot.

  “Where do you want to go?” Brian asked.

  “I assumed ‘home’ meant your place?”

  “Negative. I have this brain that goes on autopilot when I have a beautiful woman at my apartment. And that’s not what I have in mind.”

  She pulled away to look at him. “What do you have in mind?”

  “I told you. You need holding.”

  “Then what about my place?”

  “Almost as dangerous as mine, but I think it sounds like a plan. I noticed you don’t have the girls with you today, so somebody needs to let your dogs out.”

  Daisy didn’t miss the fact that he appeared more concerned about the welfare of her dogs than the possibility of having sex with her. “Thanks for thinking of them, but I let them out at lunchtime. Too many memories at home. Look, you have to take Daisy Mae home anyway. Can’t we go to your place and talk? A couple of fried eggs and a cold beer is just what I need.”

  Daisy always found it interesting how an animal couldn’t wait to get into its cage after she examined it, yet couldn’t wait to get out of its cage once it arrived home. She guessed the antibiotics were doing their thing, as Daisy Mae scampered under Brian’s bed.

  Brian’s bed.

  She wondered how many women had scampered into Brian’s bed. She’d stake her claim on plenty. But what the heck? Maybe that’s what she needed. He knew pretty much everything there was to know about her now. And he’d admitted he was in love with her, something he supposedly did not say just to get a woman into bed. The look on his face when she’d accused him of that had been genuine.

  And he’d said it before he learned of Jack’s death, so he wasn’t feeling any obligation to her because her husband had died, like he might have for Hallie McCabe. But there was still no question he was only after a romp in the hay. Guys like this didn’t settle down with one woman. And wasn’t that a good thing? She wasn’t planning to settle down with someone again, so why not? Here was the perfect opportunity for her little fling. They’d have some good times, and probably great sex, and when he became tired of her and moved on to the next conquest she’d be free to...what? Go back to filling her days and nights with work and volunteer opportunities?

  Brian pulled a frying pan out of the dishwasher, turned to her, and said, “It’s clean. We store it in there.” He proceeded to take a carton of eggs and two beers from the fridge and open one of the beers for her.

  Daisy smiled over what she’d glimpsed when he’d opened the refrigerator door. He hadn’t been entirely correct. Besides beer, eggs, and cat food there were other vestiges of bachelorhood: ketchup, mustard, barbecue sauce, and any number of Styrofoam take-out containers.

  Daisy Mae peeked around the corner, her blue eyes looking daggers at the dreaded vet. The cat arched her back and crab-walked back out of the doorway.

  Brian stood at the stove, still dressed in his flight suit, casting a glance over his shoulder at Daisy now and then and smiling nervously. Was she seriously considering having sex with this man this afternoon? Even though she’d told her body she was done with relationships, men, and the like, did it listen? Nooooo. It rebelled and continually cried out for love, affection, sex, and maybe even procreation. Like that day they went kayaking and she’d kissed Brian on the island. And that ki
ss in the ocean? Right out there in public. They’d been going at it like some kind of lovesick teenagers.

  She and Jack had talked about having a family someday and despite trying to banish it from her mind, she still occasionally indulged in the fantasy of a soft, blond baby in her arms. But lately she’d pushed all thoughts of babies away when it smiled and she saw the gap between its two tiny front teeth.

  “Over easy?” Brian asked.

  Daisy’s mind was still on the possibility of scampering into Brian’s bed, so the words took her by surprise. Oh, right. Fried eggs. He turned to look at her and take a sip of his beer as he waited for her reply. She realized she’d never seen him remain this quiet for this long. Was he nervous? He usually talked a blue streak, sharing every thought in his head as it appeared.

  “Over easy is fine.” Daisy set the table. Apparently plastic forks and paper towels were the table settings of choice around here. And paper plates.

  Yes, he was nervous about her being here. And she knew he was still feeling guilty for thinking negative thoughts about Jack—and about her. What had he called her? Uptight and joyless? Hmmmm.

  “Look, Daisy,” he began, “I’m sorry.”

  “Relax.” She reached over and touched his cheek. “You didn’t know.”

  “Yeah, but I still feel bad.”

  “It’s okay. I kept it from you for a reason. I didn’t want to involve you. Especially after you told me about feeling obligated to your friend’s fiancée. I’ve been trying to move forward, keep going, stay busy and... And I guess you can see why I didn’t want to date another pilot.”

  “Yeah. I get it now.”

  “And I’m sorry about the mixed messages. Sorry about kissing you and then being an ice queen.” He cringed but she reassured him with her smile. “This hasn’t been easy for me either. Because I do have feelings for you.”