Charlie gestured at both of us. "So how long has this been going on?"
Travis blushed. "Couple of months. We . . . well, we didn't meet at the Navy Ball." His eyes flicked toward me, and his subtle smile brought my body temperature up. "But I think that's kind of when it started." His eyebrows rose. Right?
"Yeah," I said. "Close enough."
He nodded, then turned to Charlie. "And what about you? You been staying out of trouble?"
"Eh." Charlie shrugged. "Maxine might say no, but I think I've been behaving well enough."
More serious now, Travis asked, "How's work going?"
"Well, the graphics work has taken off, especially since I picked up some new contracts last year. Don't think I've worked this many hours in my life."
"Wait." Travis cocked his head. "Aren't you still working down at the shipyard?"
"Nah. I was pulling in enough on my own, so I quit."
Travis's eyes widened. "Oh, I didn't realize you'd gone full-time. That's great."
"Beats the hell out of commuting." Charlie stuck out his tongue. "The traffic in this town is bullshit."
"Well yeah," I said. "It's California. What do you expect?"
"You ain't lying."
"So you do graphics work, you said? What kind?"
"Oh, you know," he said. "Commercial work. Logos, websites, advertisements."
Travis looked at me. "You've got to see some of his work. It's amazing."
"Cool," I said. "I'd definitely love to see some of it."
Charlie gestured dismissively. "Maybe after we've all had a couple of beers. So Travis says you're Navy too, right?"
"Yeah. Transferred to NAS Adams recently. We actually work in the same office."
"And they let you two date?" Charlie's eyebrows jumped. "Really?"
"Well, we're not in the same department," Travis said. "Just the same office. I'm running admin and he oversees the training department."
"Ah, that makes sense." To me, Charlie said, "So where were you before?"
"I was at Nellis Air Force Base before. I, uh, flew remote aircraft."
Charlie's eyes lit up. "Oh, you flew drones?"
I nodded, ignoring the imaginary spiders crawling up my spine. "For a few years, yeah." I cringed inwardly, fully expecting the usual barrage of comments from people who flew real aircraft.
"Which one did you fly?"
"Mostly the MQ-9 Reaper. I trained on the Predator too, but they needed pilots for the Reaper, so . . ."
"Man, I would've loved to get into that." Charlie grinned. "When the drone program started up, I actually made a few calls to see if I could get in. But . . ." He gestured at his legs. "Even drone pilots have to pass physical readiness, so . . ."
"Well, it's not quite as exciting as you might think. The biggest problem we all had was fucking boredom."
Charlie laughed. "Yeah, I guess it wouldn't be quite as exciting as Mach 1."
I shuddered. "I'll take your word for that part."
"Not a flier?" he asked.
"Not when I can help it, no."
"Yeah, flying isn't for everyone. I hate flying commercially."
Travis wrinkled his nose. "Who doesn't? Just getting to our gate this morning was miserable as fuck."
"I know the feeling." Charlie pointed toward his wheelchair. "And believe me, that thing does not simplify things."
"I can imagine." Travis scowled. "Almost makes me want to get my private pilot's license, but I doubt I'll be buying a plane anytime soon."
"On Navy pay?" Charlie threw his head back and laughed. "Good luck with that."
Right then, the front door opened and closed. Footsteps came down the hall, and a second later, a woman with a graying black ponytail stepped into the living room.
"Hey, trouble!" She hugged Travis. As he sat back down, she extended her hand to me. "So you're the infamous Clint we've been hearing all about."
I chuckled as I shook her hand. "Great. My reputation precedes me." I turned to Travis. "You'd better not have been talking shit."
"Doesn't really matter what he said." Maxine gestured dismissively. "Just the fact that you're here with him tells us all we need to know."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Travis and I asked in unison.
She rolled her eyes. "Idiots. Okay, let me grab some coffee, and I'll join you." She headed for the kitchen, and Charlie swatted her on the butt as she walked past.
"Hey!" She wagged a finger at him before continuing into the kitchen.
"Still as feisty as ever," Charlie said, beaming.
"She has to be." Travis shrugged. "She's married to you."
"Hey!"
"Just saying."
A moment later, Maxine came back and sat between her husband and me. "Travis, honey, don't let me forget-we've got a couple of gifts for you to take back to Kimber."
"Oh, cool." Travis smiled. "She also sent something for you guys."
"What? She didn't have to do that."
"If you want to tell her not to, you go right ahead and give her a call."
Charlie and his wife both put up their hands and shook their heads.
"No, I don't think I want to challenge her," she said. To me, she added, "That girl is as stubborn as her father."
"So I've noticed," I said.
"Hey!" Travis shot me a glare.
"What?" I batted my eyes. "Just saying."
"My God." Maxine clicked her tongue. "I see why you two get along."
Oh, if you only knew . . .
"So," Charlie said. "You still liking that base?"
Travis nodded, absently twisting and stretching-his back was probably not thrilled about this morning's flight. "The base is nice. Kind of a small town, but after living here and in Norfolk, I'll take it."
"Yeah," I said. "It's one of the nicer bases I've been stationed at. I thought the weather would be gray and horrible all the time, but it's really not."
"The weather is gorgeous most of the time." Travis put his hand over the top of mine. "I mean, there's gray, shitty days, but when it's not raining, it's amazing."
"We'll have to come up and visit you one of these days," Charlie said. "I've been hearing nothing but good things about that whole area."
Travis nodded. "You should! The guys I work with say the fishing is great."
Charlie's eyes lit up. "Well, looks like we're coming to visit."
Maxine playfully smacked at her husband. "As if you don't do enough fishing here."
He scoffed. "There's no such thing as enough fishing."
"Great." She shook her head. "Well, no one's fishing today. What do you boys say we put together something for dinner?"
"Sounds good to me," we all said.
"Typical military boys." She laughed. "Quickest way to your heart is through your stomach."
We chuckled and followed her into the kitchen.
On the way, Travis took my hand. We exchanged smiles, and he paused to kiss my cheek.
And despite the way the day had started-God, I hated flying-I was glad I'd come along. Travis's friends were great, and hell . . . who was I kidding?
Air travel or not, I just loved being with him.
"My God, Charlie." I sat back in my chair at the dining room table. "I forgot you could cook."
He laughed, spearing a piece of steak with his fork. "Apparently you need to visit more often, then."
"If it means getting steaks like this, you're not going to be able to get rid of me." I turned to Clint. "Wait until you try his salmon."
"Oh." Clint put a hand to his chest. "Yes, please."
"Well, no salmon on this trip unless you guys want to go fishing." Charlie wrinkled his nose. "I don't cook that store bought shit."
Clint's eyes lit up. "Oh, I'm with you. Fresh caught is the only way to go."
"Hell yeah, it is." Charlie grinned. "You been fishing up there in Oregon? Or even up into Washington?"
"Not yet, but I definitely want to."
"Oh lord." Maxine shook her head and rose. "While you two talk fishing, I'm going out for a smoke. You coming, Travis?"
Even though I wasn't drinking, a cigarette did sound good right then, so I got up too. "Sure." I looked at Clint. "You don't mind if I-"
"Nah, go for it." He smiled. "I'm not going anywhere. Pretty sure I won't be able to move after eating that much."
"Get used to it." I patted his shoulder. "These two will not let guests go hungry."
"So I noticed."
I leaned down and kissed him, then followed Maxine outside. On the back porch, we both lit our cigarettes. We smoked for a moment before she finally broke the silence.
"Well, now you've done it, Wilson." She put her smoke between her lips. "You let them start talking about fishing."
I laughed. "Eh, that'll keep 'em busy for a while." I held up my own cigarette. "Maybe we can even sneak two."
"Sneak, hell." She winked. "Unless he's after you to quit?"