Free Microsoft Word - AlwaysaWarrior by test

astonished stare from Stacy to Laurie. Obviously, he had never looked at being a Navy SEAL in quite that way. Laurie struggled to contain the amusement that threatened to spill out in laughter. There was nothing like a child’s logic to put things in ALWAYS A WARRIOR Patricia Bruening
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    perspective. He was shocked at anyone seeing his violent profession as a good way to help people.

    His comically stunned expression almost sent Laurie into peels of laughter. But his eyes reflected his struggle to keep things simple so she refrained, barely. He looked at Stacy again, his expression softer.

    “It’s not that simple,” he began and stopped. At his questioning glance, Laurie shook her head. Stacy would not understand war and did not need to at her age.

    “You’re like a cop, right?” Stacy persisted, her eyes bright with curiosity and approval.
    “You catch bad guys.”

    Laurie grimaced at his heavy sigh, sympathizing with his attempts to simplify his work for Stacy’s sake. “Yeah, I catch bad guys.”

    “I’m glad. Somebody needs to catch them,” Stacy declared emphatically.

    Subduing a chuckle, Laurie rescued Damien from her daughter’s inquisitive nature before he overwhelmed her by admitting exactly what he did for a living.

    “Stacy, put your plate in the sink and get ready for bed,” she suggested gently, watching Damien. He was out of his element with a precocious child. Stacy reluctantly obeyed. Seconds later, she disappeared into the loft. Laurie studied Damien across the table. He had children. Why was he uncomfortable? What had happened to his family?

    “I’m sorry,” she said softly. “She’s infinitely curious. When she wants to know something she asks. If she thinks something, she says it.”

    “I’m a Navy SEAL, not a cop,” Damien insisted. “There’s nothing simple about it.”

    “You and I know that.” Laurie eyed him intently. “As far as Stacy is concerned, you’re a hero.”

    “I don’t want hero worship.” His dark eyes narrowed and he scowled. “I don’t always help people.”

    “She only knows what she sees. You’re helping us. Otherwise, she’d be terrified.” Laurie paused, looked into his eyes. “What do you tell your children?”

    He flinched, looked away, and then speared her with his harsh glare. “Nothing.”

    “Do they know?” she persisted, clenching her hands under the table.

    “Drop it,” he ordered coldly. “I’m not a hero—to anyone.”

    Puzzled, trembling from his abrupt change in attitude, Laurie reluctantly abandoned the subject of his children.

    “Not hero worship,” she murmured. “Stacy depends on you to keep her safe. I know it simplifies what you do, but she’s only a child. Please, don’t confuse her more than she already is.”

    The tension radiating from him seemed to ease as understanding softened his expression.
    “She’s handling it remarkably well.”

    “I know. I’m surprised,” Laurie admitted then lowered her voice. “She trusts you, Damien.”

    She watched him through the lingering silence. He looked pole axed, dazed. She let out a weary breath and closed her eyes, wishing with all her heart she had Stacy safely back home.

    * * * *

    The full implication of her statement hit Damien like a sucker punch to the gut. She didn’t say she trusted him, too, but it was there in the way she spoke and in her eyes. Normally he did not care what he did to accomplish a mission. He did whatever necessary, used any means ALWAYS A WARRIOR Patricia Bruening
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    handy, to get the job done. But this time, staring at Laurie across the table in his mountain retreat, the deception stuck in his throat.

    Will the end justify the means , he wondered bitterly? Is catching Crawford worth the hate and betrayal in her eyes when it’s all over? He scowled. Self-doubt was something Damien did not experience, not when it came to his job. He hated it now.

    “What’s wrong?” Laurie’s tentative question broke into