“Rex, I’d like you to meet Zoey Knight. Zoey, this is one of my best friends and teammates, Rex. Otherwise known as Cole Kingston.”
“I’d offer to shake your hand, but I’m sure you prefer to keep it under that nice warm blanket. It’s very nice to meet you, Zoey.”
“Same,” she said softly. “I’ve heard a lot about you from Mark over the last week.”
“All lies,” the SEAL said with a smile.
Zoey couldn’t help but return it.
“Stop flirting with my girl,” Mark growled.
Zoey turned to stare at him. His girl? God, that sounded good. But Zoey knew the real world was about to intrude on whatever bond they’d formed in the last seven days. It was one thing to connect with someone when you had no choice and, in her case, were literally relying on them to keep you alive.
“So that’s how it is?” Rex asked.
“Yes,” Mark confirmed.
She felt him squeeze her hand in reassurance, but he didn’t turn to look at her. Zoey suspected she should feel annoyed at his claiming of her in such a chauvinistic way, but she couldn’t bring herself to care.
“So, want to give me the CliffsNotes version of what happened?” Rex asked Mark. “Where’s the plane? And the pilot?”
“You haven’t found her?” Mark asked in surprise.
Zoey was equally shocked. She thought for sure that’s how the chopper knew where to look for them.
“No.”
“Then how’d you find us? Where were we, anyway?” Mark asked.
It was Rex’s turn to look surprised. “You don’t know?”
“No clue. I was sleeping when the pilot told us there was a problem with the engines. She landed on a lake, and we got out so she could see if she could fix the problem. The second we stepped onto land, she backed the plane up and took off.”
“Fuck!” Rex swore.
“Yeah,” Mark agreed.
“You’re in the middle of the Lake Clark Preserve and Wilderness,” Rex said.
Mark didn’t react, but Zoey inhaled sharply, drawing his attention.
“What? Where’s that?” he asked her.
“It’s west of Anchorage. There’s literally no big towns or cities out here. Eve had to have gone in this direction from the second she took off. I’m so stupid! I didn’t even notice we were going the wrong way.”
“Not your fault,” Rex said, beating Mark to the punch. “And as far as we know, Eve Dane doesn’t exist. We’ve searched every database we can find and there’s no one with that name that’s listed as having a pilot’s license in Alaska, or anywhere else for that matter.”
“Fucking hell,” Mark swore. “So how’d you find us?”
“After looking at just about every mile of land and sea between Anchorage and Juneau, we all agreed to branch out. Rocco and Phantom went north, me and Ace went west, and Gumby stayed in the eastern part, seeing if we’d somehow missed a downed plane. We actually shouldn’t have been out this far, but the troopers got a call for assistance from one of the VPSOs. We were flying lower than normal because of the weather and on our way back to Anchorage when we saw the smoke from your fire.”
“Holy crap,” Zoey whispered.
“What?” Mark asked immediately. “Are you okay? Still cold? Rex, throw me another blanket.”
“No. I mean…yeah, I think I’m going to be cold for another month, but that’s not what I meant.” Zoey realized that she had the attention of all three men in the chopper. The pilot was even turning to look at her between watching where he was going. “It’s just that…today was the first time we made a fire out in the open. Every other night, we were under the trees, in a shelter. If we had turned around today and gone back the way we came, or followed that stream to try to get around it, and if you hadn’t had tried to cross, or we were faster or slower in getting that log across it…if I hadn’t been able to start the fire, or the wood wasn’t as wet…they would’ve flown right over us.”
The other men in the helicopter seemed to fade in the background. She was staring at Mark and couldn’t look away. His gaze was piercing in its intensity and the hold he had on her hand almost hurt, but she didn’t try to pull away. She felt closer to Mark in that moment than she had for the last week, and that was saying something. The realization of how close they’d come to being missed was sinking in.
“I made what I thought was a stupid decision,” Mark said.
Zoey knew everyone in the chopper could hear their conversation, but it still felt as if they were the only two people in the world.
“But as it turns out, it was exactly the right thing to do at the right time. I’ve had some eerie encounters with fate in my line of work, but right now, I’d have to say that there was more than just luck going on.”
“Colin,” Zoey whispered.
Mark nodded. “Pop,” he agreed.
It was hard for Zoey to breathe, thinking about how lucky they’d been. If they’d done just one thing differently, Rex and the troopers would’ve flown right over them and never known they were there. It was a sobering thought.
For the rest of the flight, Zoey vaguely listened as Mark talked to Rex about everything that had happened in the last week. How there’d been no trace of Eve Dane or the plane, how the reading of Colin’s will had been postponed, and how all five of his SEAL teammates had been sleeping only the bare minimum and looking under every rock and stone to find their friend.
She was practically asleep when they finally landed in Anchorage. Everything happened quickly after that. Mark refused to be separated from her, which was a huge relief, and they were both taken by ambulance to the hospital to be checked over.
After they were declared amazingly healthy, Rex stopped and picked up huge hamburgers, French fries, salads, and two pieces of pecan pie. He drove them to the hotel where he and the other SEALs had been staying. Without asking, Mark had happily agreed they would take over the room Rex and Ace had been sharing.
Sighing in relief that she wouldn’t have to say goodbye yet, they entered the hotel room. Mark was wearing a pair of scrubs the staff at the hospital had given him. Zoey was still in her dirty clothes, and was once again wearing her long-sleeve fleece shirt she’d given to Mark after he’d been dunked.
“Shower’s all yours,” Mark said firmly when they’d gotten inside. “Rex went to get you some clothes and should be back by the time you’re done.”
Zoey shook her head. “No, you were the one who went swimming. You should go first.”
Mark put his hands on her shoulders and turned her to face him. She looked up into his eyes. “Go shower, sweetheart. You can stay in there as long as you want, the hot water shouldn’t run out. Rex said there’s extra shampoo and conditioner in the bathroom, feel free to use it all. Rocco also got toothbrushes and toothpaste from the little shop in the lobby. I don’t care if you’re in there for an hour, as long as you’re clean, happy, and warm when you come out. I’ll go next door and shower.” He gestured to the connecting door with his head. “That’s where Rocco, Phantom, and Gumby are staying. If you need anything, just call out. I’ll hear you. Okay?”