Canyon and Jonah would receive further training in diving and underwater rescue close to home at Lake Travis. Zion and Adam were traveling to New Orleans to participate in a lowland search and rescue that would entail covering not only the urban area of the city but also the surrounding swamps. Considering their interests, all four men were pleased with their assignments.
Lastly, Clint and Jensen found out what they’d be doing. “Okay, saving the best for last, we’ve chosen to send you two on a special adventure. You’ll be traveling to Montana. The McCoys own some property near Apgar, Montana, adjacent to Glacier National Park. Be sure to pack some warm clothes. Temps will be low in those high elevations. There could even be snow. You’ll be tracking the property foreman, Conrad Billings, through the park. You should know that he’s been instructed to make the task as difficult for you as possible.” He gave a photo of Conrad to Clint, who looked at it and held it out for Jensen to see.
“Tell him to bring it on.” Clint nodded, giving Jensen a wink. “We’ll find him.”
“I hope you do.” Tanner gave them all a salute. “It’s been fun. We will be monitoring each team and will give you some feedback once it’s over.” He began to walk around the room, passing out envelopes. “These are your itineraries, contact numbers, and anything else we could think to include. This is an all-expense paid trip, but don’t view it as a vacation. This is serious business, folks.”
Excited, Jensen looked through the information. “This is going to be interesting,” she murmured to Clint who was glancing through what he’d been given.
“Yea, looks like it.” He returned everything to the envelope, including the photo, and put it into his backpack. “So, you’re okay with this?”
Shrugging, Jensen gave him a placid smile. “Sure. We’ve made it so far without killing one another, I suspect we’ll be able to make it through one more week.”
Not exactly the level of enthusiasm he was hoping for, but he felt encouraged. “Okay, we need to make some plans.”
“I agree. We only have one day to prepare. I think the best thing we could do is go home, go over all of this information, then talk on the plane about what’s expected of us.”
If he didn’t already have plans to go to Rowan’s with Kyd, he’d suggest they have dinner or drinks. “How about if I pick you up Tuesday morning? There’s no use taking two cars to the airport.”
“That’ll be great. Thank you.” Jensen started to say more, but she hesitated to do so. “There’s several personal issues I need to deal with.”
“Can I do anything?”
His willingness to help warmed her heart. “No, I have everything in hand.” The main thing she needed to do was some soul-searching about Clint. She’d let things go as far as they could without either telling him the truth, making a clean break, or getting creative. She needed to think long and hard about her next step. At this point, her heart was involved, which complicated matters exponentially.
“Okay. I need to deal with a few matters myself. First things first, I’ll have to get someone to look after Rose.”
“Is she going to be an inside skunk? I bet you could train her to a litter box.”
“Possibly. Right now, I think I’ll fix her a spot on the screened-in porch.” He stood when she did. “What time shall I pick you up Tuesday?”
“Our flight is at nine. So…seven-thirty?”
“Sounds perfect.”
“Do you still have my number in case you need to call me?”
She knew he expected her to say no. “Yea, I still have it.”
This surprised him. “You kept it all this time?”
She gave him a look. “I’m organized.”
Clint nodded his head. “I see.” The smile he gave her was one of pleased knowing. Rising, he held out his hand to take her things. “Let me walk you to your car.”
Jensen relinquished her backpack. “Thanks.”
On the way out, they thanked the men who’d put on the program, said goodbye to Desiree, and wished all of the others good luck on their quests. Once they reached her car she unlocked the door and he helped her inside, placing her things on the back seat. “I can’t tell you how excited I am about this, Jensen. I look forward to what this next week will bring.”
His open admission made her heart pound erratically beneath her breast. “Let’s just take one day at a time, Clint. But…for what’s