Night Hawk

Talon groaned. “Zeke doesn’t know how to play, Cass. You of all people should know that. He’s a trained combat dog. He doesn’t know what it means to relax and play.”

Cass shrugged easily. “So? Un-train him. Get him a puppy playmate. I’ll bet he’s lonely. Or—” he gave Talon a wicked look “—how about a nice female Belgian Malinois girlfriend? I’ll bet Zeke will forget all about scraps at the dinner table. And, hey! How about a litter of puppies?”

The table burst out into good-natured laughter.

Even Gil grinned a little and shook his head. “Cass, you’re a rebel at heart. Always stirring up trouble.”

“Thank you,” he said. Turning, he checked Sandy’s dinner plate. “Now, Sandy, you have to finish off those last two pieces of beef.”

Sandy gave him a stricken look. “I’m just not hungry, Cass. Let’s give them to Zeke.”

Talon gave his mother a panicked look. “Mom...”

“Well, maybe not Zeke,” Sandy said quickly, seeing her son’s consternation. Giving Cass a pleading look, she said, “I’ve finished everything else. Isn’t that good enough?”

“That’s true, you did, and I’m proud of you,” Cass murmured. “But protein is going to build your muscles back, Sandy. You said to me this afternoon you longed to go ride a horse. And I’ll go out and saddle two horses and we’ll do just that after you get that muscle back.” Cass picked up her fork, spearing one piece of meat and holding it up to her lips. “This is the way to do it. Just think of meat as a fast way to throw a leg over that horse you’re dreaming about riding.”

Sandy wrinkled her nose, surrendered and delicately took the proffered meat off the fork he held.

“Great,” Cass praised her, spearing the last one. “Just one more?”

Gil hid his smile. Cass could charm anyone into doing anything. Special Forces operators knew how to manipulate, that was for damned sure. He saw Sandy give him a sour look, pout, but then reluctantly take the last bite of meat from the fork. Cass knew nothing about cancer or the journey she’d been on twice now until Talon had hired him. Gil could starkly see what the treatment of chemo and radiation did to the woman. Sandy was in a very fragile condition and Cass had been a brilliant hire, but then, Talon had worked with him in Afghanistan and knew his stellar qualities. And Cass had been a good choice because Sandy was tired of feeling bad and depressed due to the chemo and radiation treatments. Every time Cass gently cajoled her, Sandy brightened a little because she was one of those women who would turn themselves inside out for a man who had kindness in his soul. And Cass, being a medic, was the perfect foil.

Gil’s heart jolted as his gaze drifted to Kai, who had a concerned look on her face for Sandy. Yeah, she wore her heart on her sleeve, too, even though Kai wasn’t a medic. He remembered she’d rescued an Afghan puppy who was barely six weeks old, found a glass baby bottle with a nipple and fed it milk from the chow hall. She’d loved that little puppy. And then, six months later in a mortar attack, it got killed. He learned about it when he’d sought her out after Rob had died. She’d cried over the loss of the puppy. There was always nothing but loss in Afghanistan, he thought grimly. That country took everything away from everyone. Even his brother. Her husband, Sam. He hated the place.

Just the softness in Kai’s face, how relaxed she looked, grabbed at Gil’s heart. He remembered that look and it was starting to make him ache for her in his arms again.

Kai was easily touched by everything. And it was all there in her expression. He wished he could be like her instead of being so damned emotionally locked up. Kai had sucked the poison out of him, the rabid grief eating him alive after his brother Rob had died in that firefight. Her care, her nurturing, her maternal abilities, had withdrawn those toxic emotions from his soul and she’d healed him with her tenderness, care and love in those five days.

Scowling, Gil felt guilt eating him alive. Kai was at this table. With him. Jesus, he wanted to apologize, to tell her he was sorry for what he’d done to her. But there were no second chances after his actions. That sent a pain so deep into his heart, his soul, that he couldn’t suppress it even if he’d wanted to.

“Talon,” Cat said, “have you paired Kai with Zeke yet?”

“No,” he muttered, finishing everything on his plate. “I’ll do that after dinner.”

“I love dogs,” Kai told them wistfully, turning and giving Zeke a warm gaze.

“Well,” Talon warned her, “he’s not your average, friendly, lick-your-hand dog. He was highly trained for three years before he was given to me to go into combat with. He takes delight in bringing down Taliban, crunching bones and keeping them in one place until we can get there to flex cuff them.”

Cat gave her husband a pleading look. “Darling? We’re at the dinner table?”

Kai saw Talon blush, his cheeks turning ruddy. “My fault,” she told everyone in apology. “I did see combat assault dogs at Bagram from time to time. And you’re right, Talon, they aren’t your next-door neighbor’s dog.”

“Well,” Sandy piped up, “I would love Zeke to have a mate! I’d love having puppies around here. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?”

Groaning, Talon shook his head. “Mom, you don’t know what you’re asking. Zeke’s breeding is as a highly aggressive guard dog. He’d throw puppies just like him and most people don’t know how to deal with that kind of energy and focus. They wouldn’t make good house pets, believe me.”

“Maybe,” Cass suggested, giving Sandy a warm look, “get him a male puppy friend? Someone he can bond with, then?”

Talon shrugged. “I’ve seen combat assault dogs out in the field when another male dog comes around them. They chew the hell out of them and damned near kill them. They’re very territorial. Zeke will be the same way.”

Sandy frowned. “Do you think he’d kill a little male puppy, Talon?”

“I don’t know, Mom. He might. I was never in villages where there were scruffy mutts around he could interact with. Zeke’s focus was on chasing Taliban down in the valleys and up into the mountains.”

Kai gave Sandy a kind look. “Do you want a dog of some kind?”

“We used to have a beautiful golden retriever when Talon was growing up. Goldy was her name. My first husband, Gardener, had bought her as a pup for me on our first wedding anniversary. Goldy just doted on Talon after he was born. And I love all animals, so yes, I think I’d love to get another golden retriever.”

Talon put his head down, paying attention to the food on his plate.

Kai smiled gently and touched Sandy’s hand. “Maybe it will happen someday.”

Cat chimed in, “I’d love to have a second dog around here, Talon. Zeke always goes with you, wherever you are. He’s your dog. Couldn’t we have a general dog that just hangs around, licks our hands and is happy to keep us company? And he could stay with Sandy. I don’t see a dog hurting her recovery.”

Talon gave everyone a distressed glance. “Maybe. It means I have to take time out of my schedule to get Zeke familiarized with another dog in order to see how he reacts to him.”

Cat gave him a happy smile. “That would be wonderful! I’d just love to have an ordinary dog around here, someone you could go riding with.” She glanced at Sandy. “Why, maybe even have that dog stay in your bedroom at night when you sleep. Keep you company.”

Sandy glowed. “I’d like that a lot. Goldy lay on the rug at the end of our bed. And in the morning, she would wake us up by licking our hands or faces or whatever she could reach.” She smiled fondly over those memories.

Gil could tell that Talon had lost the battle and the war. His boss was grimacing as he ate, saying nothing, keeping a low profile. It was obvious Talon wanted to please his excited wife, her eyes shining with the possibility of a puppy in the house. And Talon’s mother looked at her son with the same expectation and joy. Talon was gruff, but the women in his life ruled him. And maybe, Gil thought, that’s what love did to a man. It made him want to keep the woman he loved happy. In this case, Talon had two women to keep smiling, for different reasons.

“Maybe,” Talon grunted, “I’ll get Zeke around some dogs in the coming weeks when I get a chance. I’ll see how he reacts. If he seems okay with them and isn’t too territorial, then Mom, you can have your puppy.” And then he looked at his wife. “One dog,” he warned Cat. “You and Mom are gonna have to share it. Okay?”

Cat grinned happily. “Fine with me. Sandy? You okay with that?”

“More than fine,” Sandy agreed, giving her son a grateful look. “Thank you, Talon.”

* * *

IT WAS GIL’S job to get Kai settled into the ranch routine. On Saturday morning, he got up at six o’clock. He opened his bedroom door and saw Kai’s door still shut across the hall. Usually, on Saturday, everyone was up by seven getting breakfast. He heard some noise out in the kitchen and thought Cass was up, preparing the breakfast for the family and wranglers. As he walked across the living room, his heart shrank. It was Kai. He halted for a moment and stared at her.

Kai was wearing a bright orange long-sleeved tee that complemented her auburn hair. Gil felt his lower body stir as his gaze moved down to her fine butt and those long legs encased in a pair of Levi’s. She had on a pair of work boots, not cowboy boots. And she was busy dumping some cereal into a bowl at the counter. Mouth tightening, he had to make this work. He was her boss, regardless of their jaded past with each other. Last night at the table, she’d patently ignored him. Of course, he’d ignored her, too. Gil didn’t blame her for her reaction to him. He could feel a lot of rage simmering just beneath the surface of Kai and it was all aimed at him.

“Morning,” he growled, long before he reached the kitchen. Gil didn’t want to scare the hell out of Kai. He saw her jerk her head in his direction. Those beautiful dove-gray eyes of hers widened in surprise. And that soft mouth he had never forgotten about compressed. And then her fine, arched brows drew downward.

“Morning,” Kai muttered defensively. She turned her back on him, pouring the cereal into her bowl.

Gil needed to eat something before he started the day. And whether he liked it or not, he headed into the kitchen and worked around Kai. Already, her posture had gone from relaxed to tense. Her shoulders had come up, as if expecting a blow. Pain drifted through him. It was the last kind of reaction he wanted from her. But he’d earned it in spades. Moving past her, he walked over to the cupboard where all the dry cereals were kept and opened it.

“You finding everything you need in here?” he demanded brusquely, hauling down a box.

“Yes.”

Her voice was clipped. Gil winced internally. He set the box on the drain board, a good three feet away from Kai. He saw a dark blue neckerchief around her slender neck. She wore no makeup, but being on a ranch didn’t invite cosmetics and wearing perfume. Still, her profile was clean and beautiful. Grabbing a bowl from another cupboard, he watched her pour milk into the bowl. Her hand trembled ever so slightly. He could feel the tension amping up between them. It was up to him to try to smooth things over the best he could.

“Need sugar?” He pointed above her head toward another cupboard. “Cass keeps a sugar bowl up there.”