Chapter 1
Dani’s stomach did flips as the plane made contact with the tarmac. It had been a full year since she had seen her father, and she was consumed by nervous excitement. After being separated by countless miles after his deployment, now the only thing between them was customs. She estimated that she’d be in her beloved daddy’s arms in less than two hours.
When her parents were still married, she had loved being a military brat. It had always been just the three of them, traveling around the world together, and Dani thrived on being immersed in new cultures, meeting all kinds of people. After the divorce, all of that had changed. Her mother started building a life in Nebraska and convinced her father that it was in her best interest to settle into one place for high school. He had reluctantly agreed to the arrangement, and Dani’s time as a world traveler had come to an unwelcome end.
Now, she was on the ground in Saudi Arabia, and she had the entire summer with her father in front of her. She had missed him so much, and once college started in the fall, her schedule would be so busy, she didn’t know when she’d have the chance to see him again. She wanted to make the most of every moment.
Once inside the airport, the line through customs moved painfully slowly, and the airport was crowded and stifling hot, but at long last, she was pushed through, and there was her dad, so handsome in his uniform, waiting to greet her. Dani let out a squeal and ran into his arms. He lifted her up and spun her around, just like he had when she was little, and much to her surprise, she saw that her father was misty-eyed. He laughed sheepishly as he put her down and swiped at his eyes. “Sorry, princess. Got a little emotional, there. I’m just so happy to see you. I can’t believe how grown-up you look. I know you’re eighteen now, but I still think of you as my little girl.”
The drive from the airport to the military base was long, but now that Dani was with her father, her hunger and fatigue seemed to vanish as they laughed and talked. Her nervousness had been for nothing; they were as close as they’d always been, and it felt just like old times. By the time they reached the base, she felt almost like she had been living with him here all along.
As they greeted the armed guards at the entrance to the base, Dani was surprised to see that one of the soldiers appeared to be Middle Eastern. He was young, probably not much older than her, and quite attractive. She felt a stirring of arousal as she noticed his deep-brown eyes, the cleft in his chin, along with the perfectly muscled physique, and quickly averted her gaze. She thought to herself that if the soldier was any indication of what the men here looked like, she might have to find herself a summer romance.
Pushing her lusty thoughts away, Dani turned her attention to her father. As they pulled up to his house, she asked, “Daddy, I’m starving. I don’t suppose we can order delivery, huh?”
Her dad laughed, “No, honey. No delivery. But you’re in luck. Your old man finally learned how to cook. I think you’re going to be pleasantly surprised.”
Dinner did not disappoint. Dani thought to herself that there was nothing her father couldn’t do. He was equally at home firing an AK-47 and preparing his daughter a five-star meal. In her eyes, he could do no wrong, and she hoped that someday she’d find a man just like him to marry. She wanted her own children to grow up with the same type of dad she was lucky enough to have. As she stuffed down the last bites of the double chocolate caramel brownies he had made to celebrate her arrival, she said, “I wish I could stay up talking to you all night, dad, but I’m so exhausted… I feel like I’m going to fall over.”
“No worries sweetheart. We’ve got a lot of time together, and you must be beyond tired. Let me show you your room, and you can settle in for the night. That way you’ll be refreshed
Legs McNeil, Jennifer Osborne, Peter Pavia