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When the Dust Settles: A Sweet Romance with A Navy SEAL

Grady Gunderson stretched out on his couch after a long mission. As the Officer in Charge of his platoon, Grady spent most of his time gathering information and intel for the missions his men and he would carry out. However, for the past three weeks, the mission had worn him down…emotionally. They’d taken down Philippe Barnesto, a major player in the war on human trafficking. In all, the SEAL platoons assigned to this mission had released over three hundred and fifty women and children and had dismantled Barnesto’s group using every necessary strategy.

It would be impossible for him to close his eyes any time soon. He’d need to bury the horror of the last three weeks, like he always did after a mission, before he’d sleep normally. It wasn’t a great plan, but it seemed to work for him. Grady never took anything to help him sleep. He’d survived BUDs training in a sleep-deprived state. He refused to give in to any outside help, other than the good Lord’s. Sleep would come when he needed it.

Grady had enlisted in the Navy at eighteen years old and had never regretted his decision. After three years with the Navy, he trained to be a SEAL and began his exclusive fight in the war on human trafficking. Six years ago, he’d been promoted to his current position. At thirty-three, he still fought the demons from his childhood. Carrying them on each mission, he used them to help eliminate the most vile offenders. He justified his actions every time he saw an innocent woman or child in captivity. Some of his missions over the years had involved releasing men and boys from debt bondage or forced labor, but an overwhelming percentage of the rescue missions had been to release women and children from sex trafficking. It made him sick to know that there was enough scum in the world for his and numerous other SEAL platoons to solely dedicate their lives to, protecting others against human trafficking. He’d been fighting this fight nonstop for twelve years, without an end in sight.

His eyelids were heavy sandbags; he was losing the fight against a rushing flood. The doorbell jolted him, and he sprang up whipping his feet to the floor. Who could that be? He thought he’d done a good job being incognito the last few weeks. No one other than a young boy he’d met in the woods behind his rented cabin knew he was here. He’d sent his men on leave; maybe one of them couldn’t get a flight and needed to stay with him for a day or two. Grady and his men had sixty days to recover from this past soul-sucking mission unless another mission popped up, cutting the time short.

Grady had his knife in his pocket and his 9 mm tucked in place behind his back. But neither of those weapons prepared him for what was on the other side of the door.

A beautiful blonde stood holding a dish that he couldn’t will his eyes to look down at. This might not be someone wanting to hurt him, but it was definitely a dangerous situation. Grady and women didn’t go well together. He didn’t know how to act around them. Them? Like women were strange sea creatures. His men liked to set him up on dates, and sometimes he went, but they always ended up the same. They teased him endlessly about his lack of flirting skills, but he’d never felt the need to flirt.

Getting close to a woman had never fit into his life. He’d never be like his dad and leave, but a woman could leave him and take their child away, or leave him to raise a kid alone. All those scenarios were things either he or other boys from the group home had experienced. No, thank you. His SEAL buddies were his family, and that’s all he needed. Now, the idea of leaving a wife behind as a widow left him feeling too guilty to try. Besides, he should have been married six years ago, but he was too much of a coward to go through with it. For one of his late SEAL brothers, he’d agreed to marry a woman he’d never even seen a picture of.

“Can I help you?” he asked, finally finding his voice. But before she could respond, he heard footsteps rushing towards them. He whipped out his Glock 19—the best 9 mm in his opinion—and shielded her with his body. He wrapped an arm behind him holding her there to protect her from the approaching danger.

Panning the area with his eyes, two figures filled his vision. Suddenly, he felt a hot breath on his neck. The woman behind him forcefully whispered, “Those are my children. Please put the gun away before you scare them to death!” The protectiveness of her voice and her close proximity filled his chest with an unfamiliar warmth.

The look of terror in the kids’ eyes made his gun disappear. He released the tension from his shoulders and side stepped, revealing their mother.

“See. I told you he was tough, Avery.” The boy’s words made Grady almost smile.

Avery shrugged.

Thomas took a step toward Grady. “You’re like Rambo, but not as big. Taller, maybe that’s why you seemed bigger.”

Harboring a mischievous smile, Avery mumbled something under her breath that Grady couldn’t hear. A sharp look passed from mother to daughter. Grady was probably better off not knowing.

“How tall are you anyway?” The boy was now at his side, measuring himself against Grady. He almost reached Grady’s shoulder. “Are you in the military?”

“I’m six-three, without shoes, and yes, I am.”

The boy stared at him, worshiping Grady like he was a Greek god. Grady felt uncomfortable and shifted from one foot to the other, rubbing his hand through his hair. The boy continued to stare. He wasn’t anything special. If he was, his dad wouldn’t have left him to endure a fate Grady would never wish on any child.

“How much do you weigh?”

“Thomas, you’re asking some personal questions, and we don’t even know his name,” his mom gently admonished. Her angelic voice sent warm tingles through Grady’s body. Between his gruff foster families growing up, and always having a higher ranking officer to report to, he’d been admonished plenty of times, but it had never sounded like this.

“I don’t mind.” Grady liked that one of the kids was a boy. He could relate to a boy. The beautiful woman, still holding the dish, was way out of his league; he didn't have a clue what to say to her. Even worse was her teenage daughter. Who in all the world knew what to say to a teenage girl? Focus on the boy! a voice directed him. “I weighed in at two forty my last check.”

The boy's eyes widened. “Maybe you are Rambo. He was only five ten; one ninety-seven. You must be way tougher than Rambo!” Looking at his mom, he asked, “Don’t you think so?”

The blonde’s flawless cheeks blushed. What did that mean? What did he want it to mean? He’d been in dangerous situations all his life, but none as alarming as the situation he found himself in now. He couldn’t help but stare at her sea green eyes. They shone bright like the sun, yet there was a haunting look that he’d seen on too many of his SEAL buddies' faces. Still, those beautiful eyes...

She ignored her son’s questions and pushed the dish toward Grady. “My son told me we had a new neighbor in the cabin. Sorry it took me so long to come and welcome you. We live right through the woods on the path if you ever need anything. Unfortunately, we made cookies. I can’t imagine anyone that looks as good as you would eat cookies. I mean SEALs train hard, so I imagine cookies aren’t on your approved food list.” Her face burned with embarrassment.

Grady bit back a grin. A light breeze hit him in the face. Her sweet, fruity scent with a hint of spice left him with a strong desire to move closer to the fit blonde occupying his little porch, and soak in her scent.

“Thomas can be a bit overzealous with military men, you know, something he aspires to be, so if he’s ever…too much…please don’t feel bad telling him to back off a bit.”

“That’s right. I’ve got six more years, then I’ll be off to fight like my dad,” Thomas interrupted.

Grady lifted the plate in acknowledgment. “Thank you.”

“No. Thank you for your service.” The blonde pointed toward the teenage girl. “That’s Avery. She’s always listening to music. She dreams day and night about becoming a singer, so she’s always got her headphones blaring. I think she uses them to shut out the world, but what do I know? I’m just Mom.”

Grady let a small smile escape. He liked her carefree, yet direct manner. Was her rambling an indication of her nervousness? Did he do that? She made his stomach flip flop. He hadn’t experienced that since he turned eighteen and signed his life over to the Navy. He hadn’t thought much about his future when he’d enlisted. His dad had left him and his mom when Grady had turned two. Then his mom had died of a brain aneurysm and left him alone at eight. He’d bounced from one foster home to another for the next ten years.

Thomas pulled Grady from his thoughts. “Our dad died on a mission, and she’s mad at the world; that’s why she’s always listening to her music.”

Grady understood completely. His heart ached for the young girl. It also made him wonder about the beauty who handed him the plate of cookies. How was she dealing with the death of her husband? His gut told him something about this situation seemed eerily familiar, and his gut was never wrong.

No matter how beautiful she was, it wouldn’t matter. His past had made it nearly impossible for him to engage in a romantic relationship, so he’d never tried before and he wouldn’t start now. Besides, he was on a temporary leave further making the unfamiliar tightness in his chest a reason to avoid this woman. His life belonged to protect and serve—a SEAL for about two more years until he retired. Then, he’d probably work private security to save people from, or prevent, human trafficking.

He directed his attention to Thomas’s mother and asked something he shouldn’t have. “I’m so sorry. How long ago?” He never asked questions, keeping to himself to avoid connections with anyone outside of his inner circle of SEAL brothers, but the gnawing ache in his gut couldn’t prevent him from wanting to get to know the woman in front of him.

“Thank you. Six years ago. He was a hero fighting the war on human trafficking.”

Grady steeled himself. “So he was a SEAL?”

The woman shook her head proudly, but her face filled with anguish. Grady had learned to control his body language and his facial expressions. If her husband had died as she said, then he may have known him. First, he had to know this woman’s name. “I’m sorry you got left behind…” He waited for her to fill in her name.

“Olivia.”

He wished she would have given him a last name, but he didn’t blame her for being careful. In fact he appreciated her precaution. He’d seen the effects of careless women too many times, and the thought of having to rescue the group standing in front of him from traffickers made him cringe.

“I’m Grady Gunderson.” He reached out his hand. Olivia’s face turned white, and her jaw dropped before she quickly snapped it shut as she placed her hand in his. “Is everything okay?”

She stumbled on her words. “G-Grady Gunderson?”

His smile faltered. She pulled her hand from his; instantly he longed to feel the warmth of it inside his palm again. Then, as quickly as she had pulled her hand away, she bounded down the steps.

“Come on kids. Leave this SEAL to his cookies, and let him rest. He doesn’t get much time off.”

Grady wondered what caused the woman and her daughter to bolt. They were gone in a flash, but Thomas lingered. He asked Grady if he would share his military training with him so he could prepare himself to follow in his dad’s footsteps.

Before he could answer, Avery appeared with her hand on her hip. “Thomas, Mom said you need to come right now.”

“Go on, Buddy. When I return the plate, we can see what your mom says about that.” Grady would have thought he gave the boy a million bucks by the way he smiled at him.

Stepping back into the house, Grady placed the cookies on the counter. Olivia was right; he didn’t eat cookies very often, but for her, he had an unexplained desire to do just that. He took a bite, and it melted in his mouth. Sensations exploded like he was eight years old again eating Pop Rocks. Either he hadn’t had a cookie in that long, or the thought of taking the plate back to the brilliant baker excited him more than he’d thought.

A pit formed in his stomach. How could this woman affect him so quickly? He wanted to know more about her. She’d started to break through the walls he’d developed long ago to protect himself. Now, with the way Olivia had just reacted, she clearly didn’t like him, This definitely wouldn’t work out in his favor.

I am grateful for every one of you. Thank you for letting me visit your inbox.