Free Conjuring Darkness by Melanie James Page A

this. I guess it makes sense. I never really thought about it like that. You know what the dynamics are of a team, or a partnership, if you will.” Lexi looked up as if she were mulling over what to ask him about. So...umm. Thinking, thinking what the hell am I supposed to ask?
    “First off I have to say that normally, for me, well this would feel completely awkward. But-”
    Ryan interjected, “Well I don’t know why it would be awkward to be wearing nothing but a t-shirt and talking to a complete stranger about your life.” He joked as he tried to keep the mood light.
    “Ha ha! No, I was going to say that in this case I feel pretty comfortable for some reason. Anyway. What would I want to know? Um...” Damn he distracted me . Just ask something generic. She thought.
    “Are you single?” Wait that came out wrong! “I meant-”
    Ryan held up his hands and quickly cut her off as he smiled “Wait I didn’t mean play the dating game!”
    “Okay that WAS awkward. Thanks. You sure have a way of keeping me on my toes. What I meant to ask about was your family, because you live like you’re the last man on earth out here. But I think I’ll wait on that. How about this. When I was getting the instructions from Kurt’s desk he had you listed as ‘The Kid’ with a capital T and just K-I-D. I remembered one time Kurt had mentioned something about a guy he worked with that he referred to as Thee Kid.” 
    She had emphasized The Kid by pronouncing it as thee kid. She chuckled, “Kind of pretentious to refer to yourself as Thee Kidd. So do you have some kind of dual persona going on here? Are you the flamboyant and brazen adventurer? I get the feeling that it’s a charade, because seeing you here in your cozy beach house and your big floppy and spoiled dog...well I don’t think that act suits you at all. Or am I just getting a behind the scenes look at the real Ryan Kidd? Is he the swashbuckling pirate with the ivory handled pistol? Will the real Ryan Kidd please stand up?”
    Ryan laughed. “Fair enough. Oh God I haven’t heard that nickname used in a while. I hate it actually. I guess you have gotten a look at the real me or part of me. Don’t get the wrong idea. I think it’s fair to say that while I may be content to lay around here at the beach, read, cook, play with Buddy...”
    “Cook? Did you say you like to cook? And you haven’t offered to whip up a delicious meal? What kind of host are you?” Lexi winked and smiled at Ryan. “Sorry I can’t cook. Please, do go on with your story.”
    “Okay well first I’ll cook up a nice meal for us tonight. It will be good to get someone else’s opinion on my hobby. Buddy isn’t fussy enough to give me a good critique!”
    “I’ll be more than happy to taste test your...hobby.” She giggled.
    “Well as I was saying,” he continued, “I may have a pretty laid back lifestyle but I also love the thrill of adventure. I always have. I think that when I’m out on a mission I probably reflect that passion by allowing myself to become that swashbuckling pirate that really is a part of me. I’ll admit it. Like most boys I knew growing up that was how we played and how we imagined ourselves to be. The type of lifestyle and the special warfare community are completely unlike the kind of lifestyle a person would find in any other part of the military.” 
    Lexi nodded as she listened to the story he conveyed. She was surprised that he was being this open with her about his life.
    “Of course it’s professional.” He continued after taking a quick drink. “We were in very small groups operating independently and free from the constraints that you would find if you were in a conventional unit. We didn’t have to play by the same rules. To be honest if someone would have pulled me out of the special warfare community and stuck me on a large base with some mundane job, I wouldn’t even know how to act. Other than what I learned in boot camp I have very little