Page 20 of Natalie's Nighthawk

“Yes,” he stated. “I can’t wait until next Friday to see you. Have dinner with me again.”

“Oh … well … okay,” she spluttered.

“Great! When are you free?”

“I could do this Friday if you want.”

“Perfect. Pick you up at six?”

“Okay. See you then.”

Graham smiled as he walked back into the training room. He hadn’t felt this exhilarated for a date in … forever.

Chapter 6

Hedidsayhe’dpick me up at six…right?Natalie paced the floor in front of her fireplace. It was only ten minutes past six, and he was late with no text or call informing her that he was delayed.Maybe I got the time wrong.Or the day?

But then another thought crept into her head. Maybe he’d been hurt on a rescue and couldn’t call her. Maybe he was lying in the hospital right now. Or worse.

Panicked at the direction in which her mind was taking her, she wished she had a phone number for his teammates to find out. Maybe one of them knew about their planned date and would try to contact her. Surely David would. If something had happened, she needed to know.

She shook her head. No, he was fine. Just a few minutes late. No need to panic. He was skilled at his job. Nothing would ever happen to him … right?

It was the unknowns about his job that were messing with her head right now. How dangerous was search and rescue work? Natalie had no clue. She needed to remedy that if this?thing?between them was to go any further.

But even if the job was+ dangerous, would she let that keep her away from building something with him? She wanted to say no … emphatically. But the truth was she didn’t know. It was all so new. His Nighthawk life was so different from anything she’d ever experienced.

She never once thought about the men and women who searched debris for survivors after disasters. The monumental task those rescuers faced at every disaster was mind-boggling. And that was Graham’s world. A world sheneededto learn more about. Otherwise, the unknown would drive her bonkers.

Like it was right now?now that he was fifteen minutes late.

Natalie continued to pace, trying to get images of death and destruction out of her brain. She was reasonably sure they were not a daily part of his life. It was probably most often lost kayakers or lost hikers. Not to mention the training he gave other groups; he was a teacher just like her. Simple. Many disasters happened in a year, but he certainly didn’t charge into all of them.

After thirty minutes, she heard a loud rumble that caused the windows of the house to vibrate. Natalie went out to the porch, wondering what could possibly be making that noise. It sounded far away but grew closer as she stood there. Soon, she could make out the distinctivewhopwhopwhopof a helicopter.

Curious, it wasn’t often a helicopter flew over Lake Haven. Especially not as low as this one was flying. The skids were just barely missing the tops of the trees.

It flew over her house before it reached the elementary school and there, it dropped behind the tree line until Natalie couldn’t see it anymore. Maddie had joined her on the porch by that time.

“That was weird,” Maddie was looking down the street in the direction the helicopter had flown. “Wonder what that was all about?”

Natalie shrugged. “No clue.”

“I hope it wasn’t one of those medical helicopters.”

“I haven’t heard any emergency sirens, so I don’t think it would be.” After a few minutes, the sisters watched as the helicopter rose into the sky, disappearing.

Once the noise had dissipated, Maddie looked at her sister, eyeing the outfit she’d chosen. She’d kept it casual. Dark jeans and a forest green sweater with a wide neckline that allowed it to hang off of one shoulder. Her hair was loose, curling in soft waves over the bare shoulder. “You look nice.”

Natalie nodded, wringing her hands. “I’m so nervous.”

“You don’t need to be nervous. He’s obviously into you if the number of texts and phone calls is any indication. If anybody deserves to have more with someone they click with, it’s definitely you,” Maddie told her, squeezing her hands.

Graham had been calling her every night since she had asked him to come to her school. He’d also sent her an occasional text. Mostly mundane things. A few times, she’d receive a selfie of him either on the climbing wall or at a rescue site. Or a picture of a lovely flower he’d found growing wild while out on a job. It was sweet, the attention he was giving her. She looked forward to his phone call every night. He was easy to talk to, and he wasn’t shy about sharing things about himself with her. It was a nice change from what it had been like with most of the guys she’d dated, especially her ex.

“Just take it one day at a time. And don’t be scared. I’ll be here for you if it doesn’t turn into something; but I have no doubt itwill.” She waggled her eyebrows as she continued. “I bet sex with a body like that would behot!” Maddie fanned herself, making Natalie erupt into a fit of giggles.

Natalie smiled at the woman who meant more to her than anything. She relaxed her grip on her own hands to clasp Maddie’s, unable to deny that sex with himwouldbe hot. If she still remembered a simple kiss from twelve years ago, having a full-blown sexual experience with him would probably be epic. A shiver raced through her at the thought.

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