Jet Blue (WeHo Book 5) Read online

  Ashley ran back into Jet’s arms eight hours after she’d landed in Seattle. Jet grabbed her up, kissing her and laughing.

  “You’re nuts!” Jet said.

  “I wasn’t kidding,” Ashley said. “I couldn’t see one redeeming thing about him after spending two weeks with you. You know he didn’t even help me with my bags, he popped the trunk and that was the extent of his assistance.”

  Jet looked at her as she loaded Ashley’s suitcases into the back of the Maserati. “Seriously?”

  Ashley held out her leg with bruises on the shin. Jet knelt down, taking her leg and kissing the bruise while Ashley laughed and did her best to balance.

  “Come on,” Jet said, taking her hand to lead her over to the passenger side of the car.

  They were back at Jet’s house an hour later. Jet had made up the guest bedroom closest to hers, per their discussion. In the end, though, they ended up in Jet’s bed making love. Ashley was happy to be back.

  Jet had Ashley with her the next morning when she went into the office, because Ashley was still working on her stories about the department. She wanted to see if she could score a few minutes with Jericho to ask a few more questions. As it turned out, Jet got called to Jericho’s office on an unrelated matter right before lunch.

  “Ah shit, what did I do?” Jet asked, grimacing after she hung up the phone.

  “What?” Ashley asked from behind her. She was working at the small table in Jet’s area.

  “That was Jericho’s secretary, she wants to see me, now…” Jet said, looking a bit worried.

  “What did you do?” Ashley asked, her eyes widening.

  “Thanks!” Jet said, giving her a dirty look.

  Ashley laughed. “Stop it. She’s probably going to give you a medal or a promotion or something.”

  “Yeah, I’m sure that’s it,” Jet said as she stood and stretched.

  Ashley stared at Jet appreciatively; she wore well-fitting faded jeans and a black fitted tank top and lace up boots. At her throat she wore a simple silver byzantine-style chain and small silver and black hoops in her ears. Regardless of the simplicity of the outfit, she looked really good, especially to Ashley.

  “Quit it,” Jet said in an aside, seeing Ashley watching her.

  Ashley chuckled, nodding her head and Jet left the area.

  An hour later, Jet still hadn’t come back, but Sebastian came by.

  He knocked on the side of the cubicle, causing Ashley to turn and look at him. He grinned at her, his gray-green eyes twinkling.

  “I’ve been instructed to take you to lunch,” Sebastian said, smiling.

  “Instructed?” Ashley queried.

  “Yeah,” Sebastian said, leaning casually against the cubicle wall, “by this mean little girl with fiery-green eyes.”

  Ashley chuckled. “You can’t mean Jet…” she said sarcastically.

  “That sweet angel?” Sebastian said, grinning. “Of course not.” He canted his head at her then. “Would you like to have lunch?”

  “Sure,” Ashley said, smiling.

  She stood up, realizing that she was a bit stiff from sitting all morning. She arched her back stretching. Glancing over at Sebastian, she saw that he was smiling and watching her appreciatively. When he saw that she’d caught him ogling her, he closed his eyes in a comical wince.

  “My partner would smack me for doing that,” he said, his tone contrite.

  “Well, it’s probably a good thing she’s not here,” Ashley said, reaching for her purse.

  “How much do I have to pay you for your silence?” Sebastian asked, as he gestured for her to precede him.

  “Oh, I don’t know…” Ashley said, smiling. “I’ll have to get back to you on that one.”

  Sebastian grinned, opening the door to the office for her and holding it until she passed through. They walked out to the parking lot and he led her over to a black Hummer. She canted her head at him.

  “A left over from my Ranger days,” he said, shrugging.

  He opened the passenger door for her, holding out his hand so she could hold it to step up into the vehicle. Ashley smiled, thinking that Rangers had some serious manners.

  He got in on the driver’s side, then looked over at her. “What would you like?” Ashley looked like she was at a loss. Finally, she shook her head. “You pick.”

  “Okay,” he said, narrowing his eyes at her.

  “What?” Ashley asked, self-consciously.

  “Trying to figure out if you’re of the salad set,” he said, a grin playing at his lips.

  “I’ve been known to eat salad too, but I’m more of a beef kind of girl,” Ashley said.

  “Oh, I think I’m in love,” Sebastian said, his smile wide.

  Ashley laughed as he started the vehicle, and put in gear. He reached for his cigarettes, then grimaced, holding up the pack. “Do you mind?”

  “No, go ahead,” Ashley said.

  “Scoring points left and right…” Sebastian muttered as he took out a cigarette. He lit it and then dropped his lighter in the cup holder.

  Ashley reached over and picked it up looking at it. It was a Zippo like Jet’s, but it had a black bereted skull with a knife in its teeth, with a black banner over it that said “Ranger” and lettering on the back that said “Mess with the best, die like the rest.”

  Sebastian glanced over, seeing that Ashley was looking at his lighter. He was curious about this one; he knew she was seeing Jet, but she just didn’t seem like a lesbian to him and he usually had good instincts about that. He’d also heard that she was married to a man, but he knew that never said anything necessarily. Kashena’s wife, Sierra, had been married to a man too, a Marine.

  “You really were an Army Ranger?” Ashley asked, looking over at Sebastian.

  Sebastian grinned. “Yeah,” he said, nodding. “Army for ten years, Ranger for six, Captain for four.”

  “Wow…” Ashley said, her eyes reflecting admiration.

  “You should be getting used to all the ex-military around here,” Sebastian said, grinning.

  “Well, I know that Jet was Army,” Ashley said, narrowing her eyes, “and that Skyler was Army too… Who else?”

  “Kash was a Marine,” Sebastian said.

  “Oh!” Ashley said. “I don’t think I knew that.”

  “I won’t tell her you said that,” Sebastian said, grinning.

  “Damn, there goes my leverage,” Ashley said, snapping her fingers.

  “Oh, I think you probably still have some…” Sebastian said, grinning.

  Ashley laughed. “What leverage could I still have?”

  “Oh, beautiful women always have leverage,” Sebastian said, his tone sure.

  Ashley looked back at him, thinking he was kidding, but she could see that he was serious. She looked out the passenger window, biting her lip. She had to admit it felt good to hear that from someone other than Jet, who she felt was biased.

  At the restaurant, Sebastian got out and walked around to open her door for her, again holding his hand out for her so she could get out without ending up flat on her butt. He even held open the restaurant door for her. He was definitely a gentleman, because Ashley didn’t feel that any of his actions were out of the ordinary for him.

  Once they were seated at the table, and had ordered their lunch, Ashley excused herself to go to the restroom, and Sebastian stood when she did. It was almost jarring to have a man act like that around her. She was used to men like Greg, who didn’t have a gallant bone in his body. In the bathroom, Ashley found herself checking her makeup and her hair, glad she’d taken the time this morning to look nice. She knew it was silly, but she wanted to look good, if nothing else so people didn’t wonder what Jet was wasting her time on her for.

  As she walked back up to the table, Sebastian once again stood, and even held her chair out for her.

  “Thank you,” Ashley said, smiling up at him.

  “No problem,” he said, smiling back at her.

  Aft
er a few minutes, he looked over at her. “So how long have you known Jet?”

  “Since high school,” Ashley said, smiling fondly.

  “Did you have a crush on her then too?” Sebastian asked, smiling.

  Ashley laughed softly. “You know, I really think I did. I just didn’t recognize it.”

  “Well, I’ve only known her for about seven months now, and I gotta say, I love the girl.”

  “She kinda has that way with people,” Ashley said. “In high school she was almost legendary.”

  Sebastian laughed at that, nodding. “I believe that.”

  “Don’t get me wrong, she was a troublemaker too, a little rebel.”

  “No wonder I like her,” Sebastian said, grinning.

  “Oh… were you a rebel too?” Ashley asked.

  “Well, I got into trouble a lot, if that counts,” he said, his look having a hint of seriousness to it.

  Ashley looked at him. “What kind of trouble?”

  Sebastian shrugged slightly. “The kind where you get arrested.”

  “Really?” Ashley said, not able to see that in this man. She shook her head. “I really can’t picture that.”

  Sebastian’s smile was wry. “Oh, trust me. I got arrested for holding a knife to my father’s throat and threatening him.”

  Ashley looked shocked, but then started to shake her head. “He must have done something to warrant that.”

  Sebastian canted his head. “What makes you say that?”

  Ashley looked back at him, seeing the almost amused look in his eyes. She thought about it for a few long moments and finally, she shrugged.

  “I guess because from what I’ve seen of you, you’re this complete gentleman. I also know that Jet likes you, and she’s always a really good judge of character. Besides, you were an Army Ranger, that says a lot.”

  Sebastian found himself grinning by the end of her answer. “All that, huh?”

  Ashley laughed self-consciously. “I’m sorry, I ramble when I’m nervous.”

  “And why are you nervous?” Sebastian asked, his gray-green eyes looking back into hers.

  Ashley bit her lip, knowing she’d just backed herself into a corner and not sure how to answer his question. She dropped her eyes from his, nervously rearranging the silverware in front of her. His hand on hers stopped her. She looked up at him and saw that his look was kind.

  “You don’t need to be nervous around me,” he told her. “I’m fairly harmless.”

  “I don’t know that I believe that for a second,” Ashley said, amusement in her eyes. “But thank you.”

  Sebastian nodded, sitting back in his chair and taking a drink of his beer.

  “Do you know what kind of trouble your girlfriend is up to at this moment?” he asked her then.

  “Jet’s not my girlfriend,” Ashley said, far too quickly. “I mean, she wouldn’t call herself that, she’s a non-relationship type of person.”

  “Her loss…” Sebastian muttered.

  Ashley laughed softly at his comment. “So what kind of trouble is our girl into?”

  “Oh, she’s in the director’s office right now, working on getting her and the Attorney General to send her back to Iraq,” he said, the look on his face indicating what he thought of the idea.

  Ashley looked at him, shocked. “Why would she do that?” she asked, but then quickly realized exactly why. “Because of that family…”

  Sebastian nodded, his look not pleased. “She’s gonna get herself killed.”

  “What do you mean?” Ashley asked.

  “The area she’d need to go into is ISIS controlled right now. They even smell her and they’ll send twenty insurgents to kill her.”

  Ashley drew in a sharp breath. “Certainly they won’t let her go back over there, she’s not even in the Army anymore, is she?”

  “She’s in the reserves.”

  Ashley pressed her lips together, her look worried.

  “I’m sorry, I probably shouldn’t have said anything, if she hasn’t,” Sebastian said.

  “She just told me about when she was injured, the night before last, so…” Ashley said.

  “So she probably hadn’t gotten around to it yet,” he said, grimacing.

  “Or she wasn’t going to tell me.”

  “Maybe not until she knows if it’s a go or not,” Sebastian said. “It’s not going to be easy to get her over there, especially not there. Even the Army steers clear of ISIS controlled territories unless it’s an all-out offensive.”

  Ashley blew her breath out, nodding.

  It took everything Ashley had not to ask Jet about her plans to go back to Iraq, until much later that night. They lay in bed, having just made love.

  “So when were you going to tell me you’re trying to go back to Iraq?” Ashley asked quietly, her eyes looking down.

  Jet pursed her lips, she wondered if Sebastian was going to say something when he took her to lunch. He hadn’t been pleased that Midnight had come to discuss the matter further with Jericho and Jet. That had been why Jet had suggested e that he go take Ashley to lunch, hoping to distract him with a pretty girl. It had half worked.

  “I just don’t know if it’s going to happen at this point or not.”

  “But you were going to tell me?” Ashley asked, her tone cynical.

  “Well,” Jet said, grinning, “I would have said I was leaving.”

  “Uh-huh,” Ashley said, nodding her head. “That’s what I thought.”

  “I just didn’t see the point in worrying you, Ash.”

  Ashley moved to sit up, pulling the sheet up with her. “I don’t understand why you feel like you need to do this.”

  Jet looked back at her for a long moment, trying to think of a way to explain it to Ashley.

  “Let me ask you this,” Jet said. “If tomorrow I saved your life, risking my life to do it, and then you found out a year from now I was in danger, would you do whatever you could to help me?”

  “Well, yes, but…” Ashley said, shaking her head.

  “There’s no but, Ash,” Jet said. “Those people risked their lives to save mine, and I can’t leave them in that place and not try to do something.”

  “What if you’re killed doing that?” Ashley asked.

  “Then maybe I was meant to die then, and I cheated death,” Jet said, her tone reasonable.

  Ashley shook her head, unable to understand what drove these people to risk their lives. She knew it was an admirable quality, but it scared her all the same. The idea of losing Jet to some unseen, evil force in a distant country made her feel sick.

  Chapter 6

  As Jet healed, she got more and more restless.

  “I need to get up,” she said one morning to Fadiyah as she walked into the room.

  “Okay,” Fadiyah replied. “Will you let me help you?”

  Jet grinned, remembering how Fadiyah trying to help her had ended last time.

  “Are you sure you want to repeat that folly?” Jet asked, raising a black eyebrow.

  “I do not want you to hurt yourself again,” Fadiyah said, her tone even.

  “How about you stand there, and if I need you I’ll say so,” Jet said, subduing a grin.

  Fadiyah did not look pleased by this suggestion, but she’d already learned how headstrong this particular woman was, so she didn’t bother to argue.

  Jet carefully shifted her weight to swing her legs over the side of the bed, wincing in pain a few times, but pushing on.

  Fadiyah stood by, looking worried. Jet caught her shifting her weight back and forth nervously.

  “Will you stop that?” Jet asked, her tone cajoling.

  Fadiyah bit her lip instead, doing her best not to pace in agitation.

  When her feet were finally on the floor, Jet pulled off the remnants of her khaki colored t-shirt, fully revealing the black exercise bra that was partially covered by bandages. She sat for a long few moments taking slow deep breaths, both to relieve the pain she was feeling from her
back and her chest and also to gather her strength.

  Finally, using her arms to push herself up, she teetered slightly, and Fadiyah moved to support her. Jet’s hand reached out gripping Fadiyah’s shoulder as gently as she possibly could. She was breathing heavily with the effort of holding herself steady. She was also thanking the daily sit-ups, push-ups and hours of cardio and weight lifting that provided the strong core muscles that supported her now.

  When she finally calmed her breath again, Jet took a step, wincing as the movement shifted still healing wounds on her chest and angered muscles in her back. Gritting her teeth she took another step, forcing herself to keep from groaning at the pains shooting down her body from her chest and back. She couldn’t control the panting that resulted from her body’s effort to deal with the pain.

  Fadiyah looked over at Jet, feeling the way her arm was shaking, and hearing her panting. She knew that Jet was overdoing it, and probably hurting herself a great deal. It worried her.

  She was just about to tell Jet that she needed to stop, when Jet stumbled, starting to fall. Fadiyah cried out, moving to try and catch Jet with her other arm before she crumbled to the floor, but she wasn’t fast enough. Jet lay unmoving for a few moments, gasping in pain, and really wishing she’d been smarter about the whole walking thing.

  “Jet!” Fadiyah queried anxiously, kneeling on the floor, her hands grasping at Jet’s shoulders to try and help her up.

  “Wait, wait…” Jet said, holding up one shaking hand. “Please…” she said, gasping.

  After a couple of minutes, she moved carefully, turning over on her back and looking up at Fadiyah, who still kneeled over her.

  “I’d say this mission was a fail,” Jet said, her breathing still somewhat heavy.

  Fadiyah looked down at her, her look circumspect.

  Jet started to laugh then, a warm raucous laugh that was so contagious that Fadiyah found herself laughing too. When they’d exhausted themselves with their laughter, Jet dropped her head on the wooden floor, closing her eyes.

  “I’m just going to stay down here,” Jet said, her tone tired.