Playboy (The Trident Series II: BRAVO Team #4)

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

It had been a few weeks since Gabby had come home from the hospital, and life felt surprisingly good. The adjustment hadn’t been all smooth sailing, but living with Playboy made it all the better.

The two of them were settling into a rhythm and learning more about each other every day. She loved the quiet moments, like falling asleep beside him and waking up with his arm draped over her, the warmth of his presence making her feel safe in ways she hadn’t realized she needed. They’d even started talking about finding their own place together, something that felt like a promise of a future she was ready for, even though others would probably argue that it was too soon.

Her mom and dad had finally gone back home. It had been nice having them around, especially since it gave them time to get to know Playboy. One night, she and her dad had taken a walk along the beach. He’d turned to her, smiling softly, and said, “I like him, Gabby. Playboy’s a good man. I can see how much he cares about you, and that’s all I’ve ever wanted for you.” Hearing her dad’s approval had filled her heart with a quiet joy. It felt like another piece of the puzzle falling into place.

Physically, she was getting stronger every day. Each morning, she’d get up when Playboy did, slipping into her workout gear and meeting some of her teammates before they reported in. They’d swim and run with her, pushing her just like old times, making her feel like she belonged again. She was adjusting to her prosthetics better than she’d thought she would. There were still challenges, but the determination to prove to herself—and to Alley—that she wasn’t beaten kept her going. The notification about her medical board review hearing had come in the mail. It was still a couple of weeks away. Strangely, she wasn’t worried anymore. Her focus wasn’t on whether she’d stay in the Coast Guard or be medically discharged. She was determined to prove that Alley hadn’t won, that he didn’t get to take away her future. In fact, next week, she was planning on taking the Coast Guard Physical Fitness Test just to make a point.

When she wasn’t training or spending time with Playboy, she had lunch with Selena or caught up with friends like Hannah, Jocelyn, and Clover. Those were the moments that kept her grounded. They were a reminder that even though her life had changed, so much of it remained the same. And there were even moments of humor, like the other night when she forgot, for a split second, that she was missing half of her leg. She’d gotten out of bed in the middle of the night to pee and went down like a sack of bricks, flat on her face. Playboy had jolted awake, his eyes wide in panic until he saw her sprawled on the floor, and then they both burst out laughing. It was a moment of pure absurdity that lightened the seriousness of everything else.

As for her mental health, she was seeing a shrink. And surprisingly, it’s been good for her. Therapy wasn’t something she’d ever imagined needing, but it was helping her unpack everything—the trauma, the fear, and even the hope. Her therapist had suggested she find a hobby, something that wasn’t tied to work or recovery. Gabby had hesitated, not sure what she would do, but then remembered how much she used to love painting. But over time, she never really had the time for it.

The therapist suggested she should find a little time to do it again. And that was how Gabby found herself standing in front of the local craft store.

She entered the store, grabbed a cart, and headed toward the painting aisle.

She grabbed a few canvases in different sizes from the shelf, along with some new paint sets and brushes. She threw a few drop cloths in the cart that she would lay down so the beautiful wood floors in the condo wouldn’t get damaged. She grabbed two easels and put those in the cart. She already had a couple of easels, but they were in the small storage unit she rented to store all her finished paintings and supplies. The facility wasn’t in the best part of town, so maybe after dinner, she would ask Playboy if he wanted to drive her there.

On her way up to the front of the store to pay for everything, she saw a display of Halloween decorations. With the holiday being next week, she picked out a few pieces for the condo. Once she had everything she needed, she headed to the checkout counter.

As she waited in line to pay, her phone pinged. When she looked at the screen, she saw that it was from Tristan.

Tristan: Hey, Gabs. Just checking to see if you were still on for the camping trip this weekend.

Crap. She had completely forgotten about the trip. She and the guys would go camping and hiking a few times a year. They were supposed to go on the weekend when her accident happened. They had been holding off on going until she was healthy enough to go with them. It was fun and, at times, therapeutic being outdoors in the wilderness to clear her head. But what would Playboy think about her going camping with seven guys? Yeah, they were her teammates and would never cross the friendship line. But still, it just didn’t seem like the right thing to do.

Ugh! Why put herself through the painful and stressful guessing game? She would just talk to Playboy about it when he got home from work.

◆◆◆

As Playboy approached the door to the condo, the delicious smell of grilled peppers and onions hit his nose. With his mouth watering, he followed the scent and unlocked the storm door.

As he entered the condo and was taking his boots off, he noticed the many shopping bags filled with what looked like painting supplies near the couch. He wondered what that was all about.

“Hey, you!” Gabby said, walking down the hall from the bedroom. She looked very relaxed dressed in a Coast Guard t-shirt, a pair of gym shorts, and her sneakers. He noticed her favoring her leg a little bit.

He smiled as she approached, looping her arms around his neck and kissed him.

Shit, he could get used to coming home to having her like this every night.

“How are you?” he asked, holding her around the waist. He loved the feel of her body pressed against his. He wanted her so bad. They had fooled around a little bit, but nothing extreme. He knew she was still self-conscious about her leg. So, he was leaving any further intimacy to her pace. But that wasn’t to say that it wasn’t torture.

“I’m good. My leg is achy a little bit. I think I overdid it in the pool this morning. Plus, I’ve been on the go pretty much all day.”

He knew she had been pushing herself a little with the physical fitness test coming up.

“Maybe take it easy tomorrow. You don’t want to hurt yourself before the test.”

She scrunched her nose up. “I know. I plan on taking tomorrow off and just chilling around here.”

She kissed his cheek and then walked into the kitchen. He followed, watching the sway of her hips as she walked.

“I made Italian Sausage sandwiches and fries for dinner.”

He lifted his nose and sniffed the air again. “I was wondering what that delicious smell was.” He looked at all the shopping bags again. “It looks like you did a little shopping,” he said, motioning with his hand toward the bags in the living room.

She flashed him her beautiful smile, which he loved seeing on her. “I did. I splurged on some new painting supplies. And a few Halloween decorations.”

“Painting?” That was new, he thought. He never heard her talking about painting.

Gabby picked up two plates, each with an Italian Sausage sandwich and a mound of French fries, and walked over to the small kitchen table where Playboy stood.

“It’s a hidden hobby of mine. When I get really stressed out and need some calmness in my life, I like to paint. Well, I used to. It’s been forever since I picked up a brush.”

Playboy pictured her doing many hobbies, but painting wasn’t one of them. He was intrigued.

She handed him his plate, and he gave her a quick kiss and thanked her for making dinner. They both took their seats and started eating. He wanted to know more about her painting.

“So, what exactly do you paint?” He asked, taking a bite of his sandwich. Damn, that’s good , he thought to himself as he savored the spicy taste.

She wiped her mouth with her napkin and took a sip of water before she responded.

“I like to paint landscapes. You know, like, the mountains, water scenes, open fields, even jungles. Those sorts of things. Though, when I’m feeling out of sorts and just want to throw something together, I’ll do an abstract. Then it just looks like the paint vomited on the canvas,” she joked.

Playboy smiled, hearing the happiness in her voice as she spoke about her hobby. He could tell she really enjoyed it.

“That’s pretty cool. I don’t think that I know anybody who paints.”

“Well, now you do,” she said, winking at him and then popped a fry into her mouth.

Playboy then thought of something that Bear had mentioned a few weeks ago when they were sitting around talking.

“Have you ever painted walls in a room?”

“You mean, like a mural?”

“Yeah. I guess it would be like a mural.”

She shook her head. “No. I’ve only painted on canvas. But I’d love the opportunity to create a mural. I probably never explored that because, depending on the size of the project, they can take a lot of time. Why do you ask?”

“I was talking to Bear a few weeks ago, and he mentioned Jocelyn was exploring the idea of painting a desert scene on one of the walls in their bedroom.”

“Not that I care what she wants on her walls, but why a desert?”

“Jocelyn and Bear have a long history together.”

“Like how long?”

“Long. We are talking back to when they were kids. Anyway, a lot went down between the two of them when Bear went to the Naval Academy, and Jocelyn went away to college. They hadn’t seen or spoken to each other since the end of college until Clover found herself in her bind, and Jocelyn ended up at Camp David when we were there.”

“That had to have been awkward for both of them.”

“It was a little. They didn’t have a chance to really catch up because things went south with Clover’s situation pretty quickly.”

But weeks later, Jocelyn was sent to Chad to lead a project for the First Lady’s Global Water Initiative, and our team was assigned to protect her.”

Gabby’s eyebrows shot upward. “Oh, wow!”

Playboy chuckled. “Yeah. It was pretty comical at first because Jocelyn had no clue until we showed up to board the plane. But long story short, they kissed and made up. However, it wasn’t all unicorns and rainbows. There were a lot of tears involved, and of course, some added drama.”

“So, she wants a mural to remember where she and Bear reconnected?”

“Yep.”

“That’s cool. So, their kids, Max and Amira.”

“Again, that is all a part of their story from Chad.”

“Interesting.”

“It is. But getting back to the mural. Do you want me to mention to Bear that you might be interested in painting their wall?”

She appeared to be thinking about it. After a few seconds, she nodded.

“Why not? It’s not like I don’t have the time right now. I think it would be fun. If they are definitely interested, I’d love to meet with them and see what they envision for it.”

He smiled. “I’ll let Bear know tomorrow. Maybe we can stop by their place this weekend, and you can take a look at the space.”

◆◆◆

Gabby nodded, but the mention of the weekend stirred a thought in the back of her mind. She swallowed her food and looked up at him.

“Actually, speaking of the weekend, I needed to ask you something.” She hesitated, feeling a little weird about what she was about to say. “My team is going on a camping trip we planned before everything happened. We do these a couple of times a year. And I... I wasn’t sure if you’d be okay with it now that we’re together.” Her voice trailed off, her eyes searching his face for a reaction.

Playboy grew quiet, his fork resting untouched on his plate. Gabby felt a twist of uncertainty in her stomach as the silence stretched between them. What was he thinking? Was he upset?

Finally, he looked up at her, his eyes steady. “Gabby, those guys are like your brothers,” he said, his voice calm and sure. “It wouldn’t bother me if you went because I trust you. And I know those guys will look out for you.”

Relief washed over her at his words.

“Thanks,” she said, offering him a small smile. “I might go. I’m still kind of undecided, especially with the PFT happening next week.”

Playboy nodded, reaching across the table to squeeze her hand. “Whatever you decide, I’m good with it. Just let me know.”

Gabby squeezed his hand back, grateful for his understanding.