Page 7 of SEAL the Deal
Ali slapped him playfully. “Is that right? You put a ring on my finger and the romance disappears?” She backed away from him adjusting her suit. Then with a wry grin she reached out and stabbed a button on the spa’s control panel.
A cold stream of water shot out of an opening on the roof drilling him between the shoulder blades.
“Cool off, big boy.”
Mike grunted and dropped underwater.
Ali turned off the water and waited for him to surface. A split second later she felt his hands on her hips. They worked their way up her stomach to her breasts and then his face emerged.
“So, cold water and frustration. Is that what I can expect as a married man?”
She kissed him again. “Of course. You knew that, right?”
Glancing over her shoulder he spotted a bright star above the mountains beyond the river. “Look, babe, first star I see tonight.”
Turning she took two glasses of champagne from the tray next to the tub and handed one to him. “Make a wish and toast it.”
He raised the glass then snuggled in behind her so they could both watch the horizon. “Life doesn’t get any better than this.”
“No it doesn’t,” she murmured.
They stared out at the darkening sky, watching as more stars appeared. It was Mike who broke the silence. “So, when do you want to get married?”
She shrugged. “I’m not picky. As long as the people I love are there, I’m happy. I vote for a low-key affair. No stress, just friends, family and Axe.”
“I thought we could all hike up to Mount Otay and–”
“Stop right there. You’re not turning this into some kind of military operation. I passed the Girlfriend Selection Course. No more shenanigans.”
“Babe, I’m so over shenanigans.”
She turned and kissed his cheek. “Me too. I don’t even want a bachelorette party. Just a small ceremony.”
“Well, then I’m not having a bachelor party.”
“Mike, you can’t do that to the boys. Rick will be heartbroken.”
He sipped from his glass. “It’s OK, I’ll tell him it was your idea.”
Ali snorted into hers. “You will not. They know we’re engaged, right?”
“Um, well, TJ kinda does,” he said, referring to his SEAL squad leader.
“You didn’t tell them you were going to propose?” Ali reached out of the tub and found her phone. “We’re going to tell them, now.”
“Really, now?”
“Yes, I want to check on Axe.” She dialed TJ and propped the phone against the bottle of champagne.
As the call connected they ducked down so only their faces were visible on the screen.
“Hello, Ali can you hear me?” TJ’s voice came over the speaker, but the screen was pink. The camera was pointing into his ear.
“TJ, it’s Mike. It’s a video call. You need to take it away from your head.”
The image changed to the inside of the squad’s team room at Coronado in San Diego. They caught a glimpse of a shirtless heavily muscled African American seated on a weights bench, Rick the squad Corpsman. Then the camera revealed the craggy features of Chief ‘TJ’ Lines. “Hey, how are the lovebirds doing?”
“Is that Mike?” Rick bellowed in the background. A moment later he appeared alongside TJ. “Hi, Ali.” Rick frowned. “Are you guys in a hot tub?”
