Page 37 of SEAL's Spitfire
“True that. But I met a woman the other day and her brother is one of the hostages.”
“No fucking way.”
“I wish it wasn’t. When I went to stay with Dawn and the kids, I got stuck in the airport. I’d been watching her for a while but couldn’t decide if I wanted to take the chance that she would be one of those women like we deal with in the bar all the time. But after the flight got canceled and I heard her spout a list of cuss words that would have shocked you, I couldn’t resist.”
“I take it she wasn’t after you for your cute SEAL ass?”
“Hell no. At first, I didn’t think she would even respond. She mellowed as the wait went on.”
“I bet she did.”
“No, it wasn’t like that at all. She didn’t even ask what I did in the Navy. If I hadn’t volunteered it, she wouldn’t have known I was a SEAL.”
“Why did you?”
“Probably because she didn’t ask. She didn’t even ask for my name. I had to volunteer that, and it was only after she’d seen the news about her brother. If that hadn’t happened, I don’t think it would have gone any further.”
Rafe would have gone on but a C-130 came in for a landing. The roar of the engines made it impossible to hear anything and vibrated the ground where they stood. It taxied down the runway and came to a stop on the other side of the airfield, bringing in the next group of troops and replenishing supplies.
“It’s not like you to talk to female strangers. In fact, it’s the exact opposite of you. Cam? Murph? Sure, but you? No fucking way.”
“I know. But there was something about her. She’s a little ball of fire wrapped up in a body to kill for. If she’s five foot it’s a lot, but damn she’s got curves in all the right places. You know? A woman you can hold on to and not worry about breaking.”
Ryan nodded but didn’t respond. There was a gleam in his eyes that warned Rafe that trouble was coming.
“She has long black hair, the most expressive green-blue eyes I’ve ever seen, and the cutest smattering of freckles along her cheekbones.”
“Shit, bro. You’ve got it bad.”
“Right? I don’t know what the fuck happened. It’s like she cast a spell on me.”
“Or you finally met your one. It’s what we’re all inherently craving.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?”
“Philosophy, dude. You know Plato, right?”
“Yeah. What does he have to do with this?”
“In the bookThe Symposium, he wrote that according to Greek Mythology humans were originally created with four arms, four legs, and a head with two faces. But Zeus was afraid of their power and split them into two separate parts. Now we spend our lifetimes searching for our other half so we can be whole again.”
“How the fuck do you know this shit?”
“I read a lot and I happen to love philosophy.”
“So, is that where the soul mate thing comes from?”
“Probably.”
“I guess I learned something new. Go figure.” It made as much sense as anything else in the fucked up world. Ryan was right about one thing, he was the last one of the team to approach a woman. There were plenty who hounded him and the rest of the team, but it wasn’t what he was looking for. He wanted what his parents had, what Dawn had with Bob. Up until he met Meghan, he didn’t think it was possible.
They continued their trek around the airfield at a slower pace so they could continue their conversation.
“She was lucky to have you there when she found out.”
“I’m not sure she thinks so. But I tell you, she didn’t even lose it.”
“No tears?”
