Since he and Mustang had talked about Baker on the plane, the man was fresh in Aleck’s mind. Maybe he’d give him a call and see what, if any, dirt he could dig up on Braun. Get him transferred.
Aleck didn’t feel bad in the least that he was seriously considering fucking with the man’s career. He’d brought it on himself with his constant harassment, and just from being a jealous asshole. Braun wanted to play games? Aleck was all in. The other man would find out the hard way that you don’t mess with a SEAL.
Satisfied with his decision to get rid of the thorn in his side once and for all, and knowing Baker would definitely be able to discretely do what needed to be done to get Braun transferred out of Hawaii, Aleck reached to put his key in the ignition—and had another thought.
Midas and Mustang had immediately called Lexie and Elodie after retrieving their phones. He wouldn’t be surprised if Jag had texted Carly as well.
Shit.
He had no idea if Kenna had done as he’d suggested, getting together with the other women, but if she had, she’d probably be getting a text from one of them, letting her know that the team was home.
And if she heard from someone other than him that he was back, like she’d learned about his condo, Aleck knew he’d be in deep shit. It might embarrass her again, make her feel bad that he hadn’t called her right away like his teammates had.
He was reaching for his phone before he’d even finished his thoughts. He didn’t even consider sending a text. He clicked on her name and held his breath as he brought the cell up to his ear.
It rang twice before she answered. “Marshall?”
“Hey, babe.”
“Oh my God!” she screeched. “Are you back?”
He chuckled. “I’m back,” he confirmed.
Then Kenna shocked the hell out of him by bursting into tears.
Shit!
“Kenna? It’s okay. I’m all right. We all are. Nothing’s wrong, we’re all good.”
“I’m just so h-happy that you’re home,” she hiccupped.
“Breathe, babe. You’re worrying me,” Aleck told her. He heard her take a deep breath, then another. “Better?”
Instead of answering him, she asked, “When can I see you?”
“The sooner the better,” he said honestly.
“Are you at your condo?” Kenna asked.
“Not yet. I’m still on base. I wanted to call and let you know I was back before you got a text from one of the other girls.”
“I appreciate it. Are you going home or do you have to go into work?” she asked.
“Home. We have a meeting tomorrow afternoon, but we’re free until then.”
“Can…would you mind if I came over?”
Aleck felt his heart rate kick up a notch. “You’re not working?”
“I am, but I can call in. Alani will understand.”
Aleck blinked in surprise. “Seriously?”
“Yes. Are you really that surprised?” she asked.
“Kind of,” he said honestly. “You love your job, and you’ve said more than once that you hate people who call in, that the business and managers rely on the servers to be there when they’re scheduled.”
“Marshall, I’ve spent the last six weeks worrying about you and missing you like crazy. If you think I’m gonna be worth a shit at work, knowing you’re finally here but I can’t see you, you’re wrong. If you don’t want me to come over, just tell me. I’ll be disappointed, but I’ll try to understand.”
Fuck, he loved this woman. Flat out. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. How could he not love her when she would drop everything, including the job she enjoyed, to see him?
“Not want to see you? Damn, Kenna, I’ve spent every minute I’ve been gone missing you,” he blurted. “So yes, I want you to come over. I look pretty gnarly right now, and I need to get cleaned up and try to scrape this hair off my face, but I want to see you more than I want to breathe.”
He heard her sniffing and figured she was crying again.
“Don’t cry,” he ordered.
“Then don’t say such nice things,” she retorted.
Aleck realized he was smiling like a crazy man, and anyone watching him would probably think he’d seriously lost it. “Please come over,” he said gently. “I can’t wait to hold you.”
“Same,” she said. “Do you need me to stop at the store on my way? Anything you’ve been craving while you’ve been gone?”
“Yes, but no,” Aleck said. “That would take too long. I just want to see you.”
“Okay. And for the record, you’ve got stuff to eat at your place. You said it was okay for me to stay over there sometimes, so I have been. There’s not a ton of stuff in your fridge, but there’s enough to get you by until you can get to the grocery store.”
Knowing she’d been puttering around his condo, sleeping in his bed, had Aleck’s heart flipping—and his dick going hard. “Drive safely,” he ordered. “Do not get in a wreck driving like a bat out of hell to get to my place.”
“I will. And I never drive crazy,” she retorted.
“Kenna?”
“Yeah?”
“It’s so good to hear your voice. I’ve missed our phone calls and texts.”
“Same,” she said softly.
“I’ll see you soon.”
“Soon,” she echoed. “Bye.”
“Bye.”
Aleck felt like a ton of bricks had been lifted from his shoulders. He started the engine and backed out of the parking space, the note he’d found already forgotten in his glove compartment as he accelerated out of the lot. He needed to at least shower before Kenna arrived. She might be anxious to see him, but she wouldn’t be very impressed with how he smelled if she got there before he had a chance to clean up.
Chapter Seventeen
Kenna couldn’t believe Marshall was actually home. She’d dreamed about this day for so long, and it was finally here. After she hung up with Marshall, she immediately called Alani and explained the situation. Her manager was very understanding, and because Kenna rarely called in when she was supposed to work, she was more than happy to give her the night off. Considering her shift was starting soon, it was even more generous of Alani to be so cool about the request.
She took the time to change out of her Duke’s uniform, putting on a pair of shorts and a T-shirt, not even bothering to do anything with her hair, which she’d put up in a ponytail for work.
While she was changing, her phone began to ding with texts from the girls.
Elodie: They’re back!!!!
Elodie: If you don’t hear from me for a while, don’t be alarmed, I’m just hibernating in bed with my husband!
Lexie: Did you hear? The guys are home!
Lexie: Midas told me Aleck talked about you all the time.
Lexie: Get it, girl!
Carly: I got a text from Jag. He said they’re finally back. I’m so relieved!
Ashlyn: Holy crap! I can’t believe Slate messaged to tell me he’s home. I’m way more excited than I should be about this. He’s kind of a jerk, but it was super nice of him to let me know!