Page 20 of Viking

I exhale, watching the way the water laps the fort’s walls. “I’ve thought about you a lot over the last six years.”

Her breath catches slightly, but she doesn’t look away. “You have?”

“Yeah,” I admit. “Vegas is known for meaningless one-night stands and suspect choices. But I’ve never seen what happened between us that way.”

Her gaze softens, and she shifts to face me more fully. After studying me for a long moment, she whispers, “Neither have I.”

Her hand rests near mine, close but not quite touching. I make the first move, my fingers brushing hers lightly. She laces them together.

Maybe this is reckless. Maybe it’ll get complicated.

But sitting here with her, feeling the warmth of her hand in mine, I’m pretty sure it’s worth it.

***

I pull into Lila’s driveway, leaving the truck running so she knows I don’t plan to stay. She locks our fingers together, her other hand resting lightly on my bare forearm, my discarded sport coat thrown onto the backseat after dinner. At full height she comes up to my shoulder.

She tilts her head up at me, a small smile playing at her lips. “This was my favorite date I’ve ever been on. The second best was our night in Vegas.”

I huff a soft laugh before pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

She pulls back, her expression warm. “Thank you, Logan. Really.”

“Can I come see you before we leave Wednesday?” We have back-to-back demos. This coming weekend in Florida and the following weekend in North Carolina. Lila will be at both but I don’t exactly consider work to be quality time together.

“I’d love that,” she says, covering a yawn with the back of her hand.

I chuckle. “Get some sleep. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

I lean in and press a kiss to her cheek. But before I can pull back, she wraps her arms around my neck and kisses me, deep and unhurried.

I want to sink into it. Want to press her against her front door and lose myself in her completely.

But I don’t.

I pull back just enough to regain some semblance of control. “Goodnight, Lila.”

She smiles, her eyes bright. “Goodnight, Logan.”

I step back, watching as she slips inside, the door clicking softly behind her.

I exhale, running a hand through my hair as I walk back to my truck.

Yeah. Definitely worth it.

Langley AFB

April 29,2024

10:22 a.m.

Lila

I exhale in satisfaction as I sit back on my black t-strap heels. As I stand, I straighten the light pink pencil skirt I’ve paired with a cream scoop-neck, sleeveless blouse and throw my curled hair over my shoulder before looking around. My office is finally starting to look less like a hastily assigned workspace and more like somewhere I actually want to spend time.

The desk, a standard-government-issue monstrosity, is still here—but Major Townsend did say he could get it removed if I don’t want it. I don’t. Someone should be here soon to grab it. I’ll bring the antique writing desk—the one I had in my old office—and it will go a long way in making this space feel more like mine. I was able to stuff my oversized brass-and-tan leather desk chair, two blush linen wingback chairs, a round brass end table, and a large moody Oriental rug into my Telluride and a few members of the ground crew helped me carry them in. This room is about the same size as my old office so everything should fit nicely. It’s just much more sterile under the fluorescent lighting.

A large wicker basket sits in the corner, filled with books, my degrees framed since people do that, and frivolous decor I’ll eventually put on the built-ins in here. I brought a few plants that will hopefully get enough light from the one lonely window, but at least I have a window. I still need something for the walls, maybe some photos of the jets in flight? Right now, they’re bare except for a dry-erase board covered in my to-do list and a schedule for upcoming airshows.