pain as clearly as if it had been his own. Never allowed in the cockpit again. The idea was unthinkable.
The morbid train of thought made its own kind of sense, he supposed. Helping Cassie study brought up memories of him and his friends. The three of them had been decidedly different yet they’d bonded over their passion for flying. They’d crammed for exams together, pushed each other to be better, stronger, smarter, even when the course load got so tough it would’ve been easy to switch dreams.
Damn it, John had no right to be judging the people at this party, no right to question his own amazing good fortune. Danny had given his life. Sam had soldiered on, willing to become an instructor instead of a pilot, when being a pilot was all he’d lived for.
It was easy to look down his nose at officers like Kevin who drank too much and screwed other officers’ wives. But John was guilty as well of too little gratitude for too much privilege.
Cassie’s tug on his shirt alerted him that he was about to guide them right into the pool. He hadn’t even realized they’d been walking, or where to.
She didn’t seem to mind. She smiled at him the same way she had in the Gold Strike and in her tiny overgrown kitchen. It was the first time in years that he hadn’t specifically sold himself as an air force pilot. That had always been his calling card, and it worked an amazing amount of the time. But Cassie didn’t care. When she looked at him she didn’t see the flight suit, just the man. She’d even promised she wouldn’t hold it against him.
“You’ve been awfully quiet,” she said.
“I apologize. I’m being a terrible date. I should be showing you off—”
“I’d rather talk with you.”
Before he could muster a response to that, a call came from near the house.
“John? Over here.”
He recognized Moony’s wife’s high-pitched voice before he spotted her waving him and Cassie over. But her name escaped him. He motioned that they’d join them, then he squeezed Cassie’s hand. Her lips tilted up at the corners and her eyes sparkled. No drink demands or an open textbook to distract her. She looked happy and relaxed, and he felt better than he had all day.
He wanted to kiss her. Sweep her away to somewhere private. But that would have to wait for a bit. “You’re about to meet two couples. Mike, known as Moony, and Scott, whose call sign is the uninventive Scotty, are in my squadron. Scotty’s wife is Ashley but I can’t remember Mike’s wife’s name so work with me.”
“Got it.”
Inevitably they were stopped twice on their way to the group by the house. The few who hadn’t already gaped at John’s companion made no effort to hide their stares. True, he rarely brought a woman to a party, but these idiots should know better than to be obvious. Cassie had to be aware of what was going on, but she was the picture of grace. She smiled a lot and sipped her tequila sunrise.
“I wondered why you asked me to come,” she whispered once they had a clear shot to Mike and company. “Now I know.”
“How’s that?”
“To save you from all these women.”
“Half of them are married.”
“Trust me,” she said, with a soft laugh. “You have enough to worry about with the other half.”
“Wrong, Freud, there are lots of single guys here.” He grinned at her warning squint, then leaned in until his lips brushed her earlobe. “I brought you because you’re hot.”
“Stop it.” She shook her head, color blossoming in her cheeks. “I’ll give you ten minutes, and that’s it, you have to stop or face the consequences.”
Chuckling, he let go of her hand and slid his arm around her shoulders. She didn’t seem to mind, if her snuggle was anything to go by. His own reaction could turn into a problem if he wasn’t careful. He’d give the party a half hour, and that was it. “Let’s not stay long, huh?”
“That’s fine,” she said. “I can think of a few things we could do instead.”
A few steps from the foursome, he looked down into her oh-so-innocent gaze. “You telling me you don’t have one more test to study for?”
“That’s what I meant. Studying.”
“Like hell.”
“Fine, so I might have been referring to something a little more...naked,” she said under her breath, then turned a bright smile to the others as she approached with an extended hand. “Hi, I’m