Breaking Free

  ****

  With two plates of food, one for him and the other for Zoe,

  Hawk settled in one of the deck chairs next to Marjorie Allen, Derrick Armstrong’s girlfriend. Derrick leaned forward to look around the woman at Hawk. “How’s the knee, LT?”

  “Healing. The doc’s given me permission to do a little lifting with it. I thought I’d start tomorrow.”

  Derrick nodded. “If you need someone to spot you, I’m available in the mornings. I usually start my routine around five.”

  Hawk nodded, his gaze wandering to Zoe as she dried off one of the children at the pool. Her leg might benefit from lifting weights, too, but not if Derrick were around to watch her. “I appreciate the offer Strong Man, but I’ll have to take it easy at first. Sometimes having a partner tempts you into competing. I don’t want to overdo it, and then have to start healing all over again.”

  Derrick waved a hand. “Understood.”

  Zoe limped over to join them, and Hawk rose to move a lawn chair next to his. He watched the quick rise of color in her cheeks as she sat down. God, all that shy, suppressed sexuality was driving him crazy. Especially when every time he looked at her, her eyes were saying everything she was thinking. And everything she was thinking seemed pretty hot. Had Tad not interrupted them, how much further would she have allowed him to go?

  Bowie pulled a chair up next to Zoe and sat down.

  What had he meant by the cryptic remark he had made to Zoe in the kitchen? He had obviously been trying to get her to go out with him.

  Again.

  It had taken all Hawk’s control to keep from ripping into him. Until he drew a firm line in the sand, the other guys in the team would continue to put the move on her.

  Hawk ran a hand down Zoe’s back, and she looked up at him. He was suddenly aware of how often he had avoided touching her. That was going to stop right now. He tucked a short wisp of hair that curled against her cheek behind her ear. “I forgot to get us some drinks. I’ll be right back.”

  When he returned Bowie was leaning close to Zoe, saying something. Hawk placed the drinks on the table and draped a casual arm over her shoulders as he leaned forward to listen to their conversation.

  “How’s Cutter doing?” Strong Man asked.

  Damn the man had no sense of timing at all. He’d hoped Zoe could have one afternoon away from the stress of her brother’s condition. Hawk’s gaze narrowed on him, but Derrick seemed oblivious to the look.

  “He’s about the same.”

  Derrick nodded. “I was thinking about the time we did our first blast. He was the best at skydiving. He had nerves of steel. I swear he could jump out of a plane a foot off the deck and still have time to pull the rip-cord and float to the ground.”

  “He’s going to come back to it,” Zoe said, her features stiff, her gaze locked on Derrick.

  Derrick’s cheeks grew red. His eyes took on a flat look as stony as his features. “Yeah, he is.”

  Tension blanketed the atmosphere at the table like smoke. Bowie jumped into the lull and began describing his first parachute jump.

  “Anyway, my knees are knocking and I’ve got bats in my belly, and I get to the door of the plane. LT’s standing there ready to follow us out once the last man jumps. I’m thinking of everything that can go wrong and going over every moment of my training, hoping I can remember it all if something does. I look out the door, and all I can see is open space, and it looks beautiful. The air is clear and the ground looks like a patchwork quilt. LT motions for me to go, and before I can think of any reason not to, I yell Geronimo and jump.”

  Flash leaned forward to speak down the table. “I thought I was at a remake of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. You know the scene where they jump off the cliff. I heard you yelling all the way down, or at least until you deployed your chute. And it didn’t sound anything like Geronimo to me.”

  Laughter broke out around the table. Bowie narrowed his eyes at the man, though he laughed good-naturedly at his ribbing. “Those were whoops of excitement, you were hearing, Flash. Besides, I’m surprised you could hear anything above your own whimpering. You weren’t exactly icy.”

  A deep flush darkened Flash’s tanned complexion, and for a moment, his features tightened, then he smiled. “Damn straight. Jumping out of a plane three thousand feet in the air still isn’t one of my favorite things to do. Give me a tank of air and drop my ass in the ocean, and I’m ready.”

  “Hooyah.” The word traveled around the table.

  Bowie turned back to Zoe. “On the way down, it was great. Like nothing I’ve ever experienced before. You could see for miles and there was just this high, excitement high, as you deployed your chute and glided down.”

  “I think I’d like to try it one day.” Zoe took a bite of potato salad.

  Surprised by the conviction in her tone, Hawk studied her expression.

  Bowie’s gaze moved from Hawk’s hand resting on her shoulder to his face. “LT would be the one to take you up. He’s probably got more jumps under his belt than the rest of us put together.”

  Zoe’s attention swung to him.

  His insides clenched at the idea of her jumping out of a plane. He had experienced some harrowing moments in the past, not that he’d ever share them with her. “I jump out of planes because it’s part of my job, Zoe. I’ve never thought of doing it for pleasure.”

  “It’s really expensive unless you’re part of a sky diving group,” Marjorie said. “One of the girls I work with is a member of a club. She and her boyfriend do it on the weekends. They spend every dime they can get their hands on to pay for it. Hang gliding might be an option though. You can rent the gliders while you train, and find out if you like it well enough to buy your own.”

  “Or what about parasailing?” Trish said. “You can do that any time and it’s only about eighty dollars.”

  Hawk jumped at the idea. “What do you say, Zoe? We could do that this weekend.”

  Her expression grew shuttered, and she bit her bottom lip.

  The muscles at the back of his neck tightened. He could almost read what was going through her head. She’d have to wear a swimsuit, and he’d be able to see her leg. How would they ever make love if she was afraid of his reaction to the injury? He didn’t give a damn what it looked like. Her leg only made up a small part of who she was. Come on, trust me, Zoe. He wanted to say the words out loud.

  “I’d love to do it.”

  The wistfulness in her tone gave him hope. “You haven’t taken in any of the sights or gone to the beach. We can make a day of it.”

  “I can’t leave Brett all day.”

  “Half a day, then.”

  She smiled.

  Yes! He had her now.

  “All right. Half a day.”

  She’d have five whole days to think about it. Five days to change her mind. Five days to worry about her leg and his reaction to it. Damn! He had to get Zoe out of her pants.