“Sure.” Kerry sat down and slid the stack over, picking up a pen.

The saleswoman scurried quickly away.

Andrew snorted and sat down next to her. “Mah God.”

Kerry giggled. “You’re really funny.”

“That was most certainly not funny, young lady.”

She turned her head. “How old are you?” Kerry watched the blue eyes blink a few times. “Well?”

Andrew sat up straighter. “Ah am forty-eight years old.” He paused. “Why?”

Kerry leaned closer to him. “’Cause I’m almost thirty,” she whispered. “It’s not that far-fetched, Dad.” She went back to signing her papers, getting through half of them before she heard Andrew sigh.

“You’re right, kumquat,” he said. “Mah kid has not one clue as to how lucky she is.”

Kerry felt her face ease into a smile as she finished, putting the pen down and glancing up as the saleswoman came back. “All done.”

“Here you go.” The woman handed her a set of keys and pointed to where the shadowy form of her new car was just pulling up outside the door. “And again, I’m really sorry, sir.”

Andrew sighed and stood. “That’s all right.”

They walked to the door and pushed it open. “You going to kick the tires for me, Dad?” Kerry teased. “Dar wanted me to get a—what are those called? A Hummer.”

Andrew snorted. “Fer what?” He circled the new car curiously.

“Damn things steer like a Greyhound bus, and you can’t park them for nothin’.” He opened a door and peeked inside. “Leather, would you look at that? Mah kid is definitely rubbing off on you.”

Kerry opened the driver side door and sniffed appreciatively. “Oh yes,” she chortled. “C’mon, let’s take it for a test ride. There’s a good restaurant right down the block.”

Andrew slid into the passenger seat, which he adjusted to make room for his long legs. “Ain’t one of them raw fish stores, is it?”

“Um...”

A dark brow cocked. “Tell you what, I’ll go eat them raw fishies if you let me drive on the way back.”

“Oh boy.”


124 Melissa Good

“SONOFABITCH!”

Dar heard the gasping croak behind her as she reached the last wooden wall and lunged forward, crouching down and releasing her body upward to stretch out and grab the top rail, pulling upward before she could crash against the hard surface. Her boots scraped, then caught a purchase, and she powered up and over the top, releasing her hold and letting herself fall down toward a murky, mud-covered surface.

Behind her, she could hear Chuckie grunt as he hit the top of the wall, but then her boots were hitting the ground and she almost sprawled forward, barely catching her balance before she hopped forward and starting running toward the ropes.

Climbing ropes—one of the toughest things for anyone, especially a woman, to do. Dar wiped her palms on her thighs just before she reached them, then took a breath, ruefully acknowledging that she certainly wasn’t a teenager anymore before she leaped and caught the rope, feeling the wet, scratchy hemp bite into her hands. Her legs responded in old memory, curling around the rope beneath her and tightening, supporting her weight as she reached up for a second handhold.

Well. Dar felt the spatters of rain hit her and heard the clank of the rope next to her as Chuckie tried to catch up. It wasn’t as hard as she had feared. She powered up the rope and released one hand to slap the bell on top, then slid neatly down, wincing a little as the rough hemp stung her hands. She hit the ground and ducked around the edge of the climbing pit, bolting across the uneven ground and leaping over the water that separated the obstacles from the last, long hundred yards every tired, sore recruit had to run over at top speed. Dar heard Chuckie finally hit the bell and slither down after her, but she knew she was home free.

Running was something she was very used to, something her body, stressed by this unusual tasking long forgotten, was accustomed to doing on a daily basis. She tucked her fingers into a half fist, leaned forward into a powerful, even stride, and just ran.

“Shit,” she heard Chuckie groan behind her, and it made her laugh; and the hoots of the other men suddenly rolled around her as they spotted her clearing the end of the pits and heading toward the finish.

She tucked her head down and bolted, feeling a crazy surge of energy as the wind brushed her hair back and the rain stung her face.

The trees that marked the end flashed by, and she slowed, bouncing to a halt and into the welcoming arms of the four waiting sailors, who caught her and slapped her back, laughing and razzing Chuckie, who finally made it past with a curse.

Dar could feel her heart pounding from the exertion, and it certainly hadn’t been nearly as good a performance as the last time she’d done it, but... She chuckled as she watched Chuckie lean over, holding his belly, his face a visible crimson even in the low light. “Gotta Red Sky At Morning 125

lay off the damn beer, Chuck.” She put her hands on her hips, glad beyond measure she’d kept up the sessions in the gym, and the running, and the martial arts, if for no other reason than to be able to stand here on this mud-covered patch of ground with a bunch of her old friends and look better than they did.

Erf. Dar winced. That was damned egotistical, wasn’t it?

“Hot damn, Dar.” Mike clapped a long arm over her shoulders.

“You are still one hot mother, y’know that? How about marrying me?”

Dar laughed. “I thought you had a girlfriend?” She poked him. “Or at least that’s what you were bragging about in that bar.”

“Well, I didn’t hear you say you was married,” he joked back. “So I figured I got a chance.”

It was a strange feeling. Dar took a breath and released it. She’d been straightforward and out regarding her sexuality for so long, she’d forgotten what it felt like to be around people who had no idea, and to whom it would matter.

To whom it would matter to her if they knew. Dar felt her euphoric mood evaporate, and she took a mental step back and tried to figure out what to do. Her nature disliked unneeded lies, but a part of her was enjoying this unexpected reacceptance into an old world and resisted the estrangement she knew would be caused by acknowledging her lifestyle.

“Asshole. You ain’t got no chance,” Duds snorted. “Dar’s got way better taste than you.”

Dar managed a smile, then she walked over to where Chuckie was still recovering. “Hey.” She bumped him lightly. “You all right?”

Her old boyfriend straightened, then blew out a breath. “Other than having my goddamned ego dragged over a bed of nails and my bank account emptied? I’m great.” His lips twisted. “Will you take a check?”

“Don’t worry about it.” Dar shook her head slightly. “It was worth the kick just to see if I could still do it.”

“Wench.” Chuckie’s face relaxed a little as he realized Dar was serious. “Just for that, you’re gonna take us out to the steakhouse.” He pointed toward the parking lot. “Now that I proved ship captains do spend too much time sitting on their butts, let’s go.”

The four others strolled ahead, leaving Chuckie and Dar to walk together toward the parked cars. “Wench.” The Naval officer gave her a look. “I’m gonna have to explain to half the base tomorrow why I got Band-Aids all over my hands from that damn course.” He held up his hands, visibly scuffed and scraped in the streetlamp light.

“Me, too,” Dar admitted, holding up her own hands in evidence. “I don’t get much in the way of calluses pounding a keyboard.”

“Ah.” Chuckie sighed. “We’re getting too old for this.”

Dar chuckled. “Yeah.” She flexed her hands, wincing a little.

They were both quiet for a few strides. “Ass kicking or not, it’s 126 Melissa Good good to see you, Dar,” Chuckie finally said softly. “Got some good memories of us.”

“So do I,” Dar replied. “Your letters to me in college used to crack me up.” She reflected on those long past times. “I’m sorry we lost touch.”

Chuckie shrugged one shoulder. “We knew we would. That was two real different worlds we were going off into.” He glanced at Dar. “I knew I didn’t end up doing too bad; always wondered where you ended up. Might have figured you to be some top brass somewhere.”

“I used to wonder if I’d made the right choice.” Dar inhaled, and looked around. “Now I know I did, but...” She shook her head.

“Definitely had second thoughts.” She raised her voice. “Hey, head over to the third row. I’ll drive.”

“Don’t trust Mike?” Chuckie laughed. “He’s not half as bad a driver as your daddy ever was.”

“No. I figure I’m the only one who’s likely to have room for all of us,” she said dryly. “Unless you ended up getting a Suburban. Did you?”

“Hell no,” Chuckie snorted.

“That’s what I thought.” Dar angled her steps toward the Lexus.

“C’mon, I figure it’s going to take my shock absorbers to handle you herd of steers anyway.”

“Ooh...” Her old friend laughed. “I think you hang out with us just so you can feel petite, in that case.” He bumped Dar’s shoulder with his own. “Hey,” his voice dropped a little, “you going with someone right now, Dar?”

The approach came around a blind corner and surprised her.

“Yeah,” she managed to answer, on an uneven breath. “Yeah, I am.

Why?”

He shrugged. “Just asking,” Chuckie said. “I’m between ships, if you catch my drift, and I thought if you were too, maybe we could hook up, for old time’s sake.”

Dar realized she had about ten seconds before they caught up with the four others waiting. She lifted a hand and unlocked her doors. “Not a chance.” She softened the words with a smile. “I’m very taken...and very happy about it.”