Zoey sighed again, and her gaze slipped away from his. “If you’re asking if I’m secretly a triathlete or something, you’re going to be disappointed.”
Bubba didn’t like that he’d embarrassed her. He put a finger on her chin and gently turned her face back to his. “I have a feeling nothing you do could disappoint me.”
When she rolled her eyes again, Bubba internally sighed in relief. He liked her subtle snarkiness.
“To answer your question, I don’t work out regularly. I don’t like the gym, I feel too self-conscious there, working out next to the super-buff men and women who frequent the one in Juneau. But I also don’t have a car, so I walk a lot. The house I was renting from your dad was a few blocks from his own, so when I went over to help him, I walked. When I had to go into town, I rode my bike.”
Bubba nodded in satisfaction. “That’s great.” At her look of disbelief, he went on. “Seriously. Walking in Juneau isn’t exactly easy. Maybe you forgot that I lived there too. Dad’s house is at the top of that huge hill, and I know from firsthand experience that it’s not easy walking up there. And if you biked into town, you had to go up and down several hills. That will help a lot out here.”
Zoey bit her lip and looked around. “Mark, we’re in the middle of nowhere. We don’t even know what direction Anchorage is in. How in the world do you think we’re going to get there? We can’t walk. We were in the air for an hour!”
Bubba could hear her working herself into a frenzy, so he reached into one of the pockets of his cargo pants and pulled something out. He held it in his palm so she could see, and said, “We won’t have to walk all the way. Eventually we’ll run into someone. And I’ve got this.”
Zoey looked down at his hand, then back up at his face. “You have a compass?”
“Yeah.”
“Why?”
“Why not?” he asked flippantly. When she didn’t smile, he got serious. “It’s been beaten into my head to be prepared for just about anything. I might not have my duffle, but I promise that we aren’t going to starve or freeze.”
She swallowed hard. “Do you think we’re really alone out here? What if whoever planned this hid someone out here to make sure we didn’t make it out alive?”
Bubba had already thought about that. “Honestly? I hope like hell they did.”
Her eyes rounded, and she stared at him as if he’d suddenly grown three heads. “What? Why?”
“Because I could capture them and make them tell me who the hell’s behind this. They’d probably have supplies I could pilfer, as well. Maybe even a satellite phone.”
“You sound so sure of yourself,” Zoey said after a beat.
“That’s because I am. Zoey, I’m a Navy SEAL.”
“I know.”
He shook his head. “But I don’t think you really understand what that means. Most of the time our missions include sneaking into foreign countries and either rescuing innocent civilians from the bad guys or killing HVTs.”
“What’s an HVT?”
“High-value target. I’ve been taught how to survive in the hottest deserts and the coldest arctic terrains. I know how to kill with my bare hands, just as I know how to make fire with two sticks, shelter from just about anything, and how to evade capture. I can’t promise this will be all that much fun, but I can promise that I will get you home. Do you believe me?”
Instead of immediately agreeing, Zoey studied him for a long moment. Bubba had no idea what she was looking for or what she saw when she looked at him, but he stayed silent and willed her to trust him.
“So what you’re really saying is that this is nothing more than a normal camping trip or something for you?”
Bubba couldn’t hold back the chuckle. “Well, not quite. When I camped with Dad, we always had a tent and a cooler of beer. But if no one else is out here trying to kill us, then yeah, it’ll be a walk in the park to get us to civilization—no matter how far that walk might be. We might be dirty and smelly by the time we get to where we’re going, but we won’t be starving to death, we won’t be freezing to death—thank goodness it’s not the middle of winter—and we definitely won’t be cowed by whoever thought they could get rid of us.”
“I’m always cold,” Zoey told him matter-of-factly.
“Pardon?”
“I’m always cold,” she repeated. “That’s why, even in September, I’m wearing boots, a long-sleeve shirt, and had my fleece wrapped around my waist. I don’t know why, I just am.”
“I’ll do my best to make sure you’re comfortable.”
Zoey sighed. “I’ve been camping exactly two times, and didn’t really enjoy it.”
“You haven’t been camping with me,” Bubba told her.
As he expected, Zoey rolled her eyes. “I see the navy taught you humility.”
Bubba chuckled again then held his hand out to her in invitation. “Come on, let’s get our bearings and make a preliminary plan.”
She immediately put her fingers in his, and Bubba realized that her hand did feel quite cold. He covered it with his other hand, trying to warm her up.
“Only a preliminary plan?”
“Yup. I’ve been trained to not only create a Plan A, but B, C, D, and E as well.”
“Right. Of course you have,” Zoey said. Then she straightened her shoulders and gestured to their left with her head. “By all means, lead on, oh great Navy SEAL warrior.”
“Has anyone ever told you that you’re a smartass?” he asked as he gripped her hand tighter and led them away from the lake.
“I’m not. At least, I wasn’t until you came along.”
Bubba couldn’t help but smile at that.
This entire situation sucked. More than sucked. But it could’ve been a hundred times worse if he’d been stranded with anyone other than Zoey Knight. The longer he was around her, the more he remembered how much he liked her in high school. And while he was being honest with himself, he was looking forward to getting to know her better as they figured out where the hell they were and how to get back to Anchorage or Juneau. At least there was one perk to this situation.
He honestly wasn’t too worried about roughing it for a while. They’d be uncomfortable, but he had enough confidence in his abilities to be sure they’d eventually make it home.
Whoever had thought to get rid of them had seriously underestimated him. And he hadn’t been kidding when he’d told Zoey that he almost wished someone was out here trying to kill him. He could turn the tables and get more supplies, maybe even a vehicle and a phone. But he had a feeling the pilot had randomly chosen the lake she’d landed in. That it hadn’t been planned out in advance.
He’d thought she was acting a little weird, but it had taken him too long to figure out what was going on.
Suddenly remembering that he’d promised to call Rocco the moment he landed, Bubba smiled. For once, his paranoid teammate’s insistence on checking up on everyone was going to work in his favor. When Rocco didn’t hear from him, he’d definitely try to figure out why. Between him and the rest of his team—and their computer-expert friend, Tex—he and Zoey would be home in no time.