A Sense of Duty: A Former Navy SEAL Falls in Love and Begins a New Journey with his Private Consulting Company: Dark Horse Guardians (23 page)

Ben seldom consciously thought of Iraq. But as he left Tayeb and drove back to the
air base to fly out, he took a deep breath and closed his eyes as he made an effort to honor the fallen and wounded in this now abandoned country. Although Iraq was in the past, it was no less important or life-changing for him. Iraq was now in the hands of another government and his only concern was to honor his fallen brothers and to keep Americans safe.

His last stop would be Israel to say goodbye to Moshe, and to off-load his weaponry and disguises and to thank him profusely for the private jet. He would not see his good friend again for several months. As he curled up on the private plane back to Israel, Ben caught a nap and woke up sweating and shaking again. His thoughts drifted to Lara and how far away he felt from her. He wondered what she was doing. Did she miss his daily presence? It would be early afternoon in the states. He dialed her phone number but it went to voicemail.
  He sent her a text, "Hope you're enjoying your Christmas break.  Miss you."

~Lara~

"Merry Christmas, Lara, are you coming for the cocktail hour tonight, at least?" It was Eliot Stone and the night before Christmas Eve. She had hastily answered the phone without looking at it, hoping it would be Ben. "What time should I be there?" She knew Eliot would be greatly disappointed if his prize intern did not show up to be introduced to his most influential circle of friends. "Drinks at 7:00 and dinner at 8:00, and you are welcome to use the Bentley as a car service. In fact, I insist upon it." Lara agreed, but before hanging up the phone she asked if Eric could tag along. "Sure, but make sure he's in dress code. You know what I mean." Lara exhaled softly, "Yes, I do, Eliot." She hung up the phone and called Eric. "Drinks and dinner on me tonight;
it's black tie and show up at my place at 6:45." Eric agreed. Lara selected a green velvet just-above-the-knee cocktail dress that had an asymmetrical cut-out back to the waist. She wore the long dangling vintage diamond earrings and pulled her dark hair into a twist, securing the mass with a few jeweled clips. Eric arrived looking like he just stepped out of GQ in a black tuxedo with a red silk bow tie. As she greeted him at the door, Eric insisted on taking photos. "We never look this good," he laughed. He wanted to put the photo on his Face book page to make his friends envious. Lara went along with the photos. They took a series of selfies as the white Bentley pulled up outside. No leather sack tonight, but Lara took her small clutch and cell phone just in case Ben called.

As Eric slid into the Bentley with Lara he whistled. "Lara, this is amazing! You never
told
me you had
this
at your fingertips. Who is this Eliot Stone guy?" Lara smiled. "You'll meet him tonight, so you can make your own determination." The ride in the Bentley was fun as Eric and Lara polished off a bottle of the finest French champagne. As they arrived at the Tudor mansion, Lara noticed Eric's eyes taking in the details of the place. She was used to the opulence but he was seeing it for the first time. They were escorted inside and Raphael took their coats. There were only a few people there and Eliot appeared quickly to greet them, "My dear, Lara, let me look at you. You are lovely, as always." Lara waited until Eliot was done fawning over her and kissing her cheek; then she introduced Eric. "Ah, Eric, what is your last name?" Eric seemed tongue-tied. "Henderson." Eliot recognized the name, "Yes, your father owns the dojo in Portland?" Eric corrected him, "Actually, that's my uncle Don." Eliot barely paid attention to Eric as he took Lara's arm and moved her into the library.

~Ben: Israel~

In Israel, Ben met with Moshe, touching down just in time for dinner. In disguise
once again, Ben met with Moshe at the safe house. This time they laughed and talked as old friends for the first hour. Ben told Moshe about meeting Lara and shared photos of her with him. "She's a striking beauty," Moshe remarked, "but is she ready to accept your lifestyle?" Ben hesitated for a moment. "She understands me more than any woman I have ever met. There's something about her. She was attacked savagely as a young girl. I think that experience helps her to understand what I am living with, the night terrors and bouts of hyper-vigilance. We share many things in common, shooting, mixed martial arts. But, more importantly, she brings me back to the normal world." Moshe smiled. "She sounds like a unique person. I hope I can meet her someday soon." Ben looked into Moshe's dark black eyes, "Oh you will meet her, as soon as I can arrange it. I feel like I am alone without her, it's as if part of me is missing. I've only known her for three months. It's crazy." Moshe smiled, "I felt the same way when I met Rachel. There was no question. I kissed her and that was it. I could not be away from her. She thought I was a mad man. That's what love feels like, Ben."

All of Ben's weapons and supplies were now in Moshe's hands. Ben got ready for his long commercial flight back to the United States, now empty handed except for the documents and photos he had scanned into his laptop. He had encrypted the documents and carefully packaged the photos separately and sent them back to his office via UPS. Moshe embraced Ben tightly, "Go in peace, my friend, and stay in touch. We have many complex problems to solve. I will pray for your safety."

Ben checked through Israeli security with minimal scrutiny at the airport in Tel Aviv. His face was a familiar one there and Moshe had entered Ben's passport on a list that granted him special privileges in regards to search and seizure. As he boarded the plane, Ben's planning turned to Lara and how excited he was to be going home to her. He sent her a text with his estimated time of arrival. From sheer exhaustion, his eyes were closing. Just before he nodded off, his thoughts returned to Lara. He scrolled through the photographs on his phone. He wished he could have been with her for Christmas Eve. He could not wait to see her tomorrow. He wanted nothing more right now than to call and hear her lovely feminine voice. But it was after midnight in Maine and she would be sleeping. He did not want to disturb her. Although exhausted, Ben was charged with excitement. He had a surprise for Lara and he turned the beautiful item over in his hand observing the exquisite details of the piece. He wanted to make her smile for Christmas and knew the gift would be perfect for her.

~Eric~

Eric was impressed with Eliot Stone, his mansion, and the way he put his arm around Lara as he walked away from him. It was as if Lara was one of his prized possessions and his arm placed around her waist confirmed that. He followed closely observing the body language between the two. And, at the same time his eyes were taking in all of the grandeur and opulence of Eliot Stone
's lifestyle. This is exactly what he wanted to be able to give Lara, but he was a far cry from it. In the pit of his stomach he felt the nausea of jealousy creep in, slowly at first. All the while he thought it was Ben Keegan she was crazy about and it might have been this guy. How could he have been so blind? Eric felt desperately out of his league and decided he would claim Lara after Eliot finished talking with her.

More guests filtered into the beautiful mansion and Eric shook hands and politely introduced himself as they mingled around with hors d'oeuvres and glasses of champagne served on silver platters. Through the crowd he lost sight of Eliot and Lara. He studied the sailing photographs on the wall in the library and noted the cups this guy had won. Newport to Bermuda, the Downeast Regatta, Eggamoggin Reach Regatta, Northeast Harbor Race, the Monhegan Regatta…the cups were prolific as were the photographs.
Eric realized that Eliot Stone's ego matched the magnitude of his fortune.

~Eliot~

Eliot Stone was more than happy that Lara came to his home this evening for his annual holiday soiree. He particularly loved to see her at Christmas when she dressed in a feminine provocative way, for her anyhow. Tonight she chose a green velvet dress that matched her eyes and showed the soft skin of her lovely back. He moved in quickly to bring her to his private sitting room off the master bedroom wing. "I have something to show you in here and want your
professional opinion." Lara was propelled by Eliot's gentle arm at her back. In the privacy of his suite, Eliot showed Lara several newly acquired oil paintings that he scooped up at an auction in Newport Rhode Island. They were beautiful seascapes done by a famous artist. "What do you think of these?" He watched Lara's beautiful green eyes sweep over the details of the spectacular paintings. "These are amazing, Eliot. They're subtle, not over-the-top." Eliot moved closer to her, "Yes, like
you
, subtle but incredibly beautiful." Lara dropped her glass of champagne disturbing his intimate moment with her. "Oh gosh, I'm sorry." She found a towel in the opulent master bathroom and dabbed the expensive Persian carpet.  "I'm so sorry, Eliot." she repeated on her knees now in Eliot's private reading room. Eliot reassured her, "You don't have to do that. It's only champagne. Raphael will take care of it."

He took Lara's hand
and brought her to her feet. She stood directly in front of him, close enough to smell the Ralph Lauren cologne he wore, close enough to see his soft brown eyes as his pupils dilated slightly. Eliot's hands were now holding hers and the towel dropped to the floor. "You're not really
seeing
this Eric guy are you?" She averted his gaze. "He's a friend, that's all." Eliot continued, "And, Ben Keegan?" Lara met his eyes now, "He's returning from a business trip tomorrow." Eliot was now close to her face. He lowered his voice, "Are you
seeing
Keegan?" Lara stated firmly, "If you mean
am I
sleeping with him
, no. I'm waiting for marriage. I have principles and they won't be compromised, Eliot."

Breathless, Eric appeared in the doorway. "Lara, I've been looking everywhere for you. God, this place is huge. Is everything okay?" Lara smiled, "Just fine. Eliot was showing me some new paintings. We were just talking business." She took Eric's arm and walked swiftly out of the room. Eliot Stone was pleased with Lara's response. She had
not
slept with Ben Keegan, but he sensed she was infatuated with the former Navy man. This Eric character didn't seem to play a big role in her life. Eliot felt he still had a chance to win her. He had to be careful, however, he did not want to offend her in any way. And, he also knew the splendor of his mansion filled with potential clients was what interested Lara. She was thirsty with ambition and he watched her carefully work the room shaking hands and smiling. She made good use of the opportunity. The folks attending Eliot's parties were multi-millionaires and exactly the potential client pool she wanted to tap into. As she said goodbye to Eliot, Lara slipped into the Bentley for the ride home with Eric. The rest of the evening was a bore for Eliot Stone. Once she had left the party it lost any sense of excitement for him. The vision of Lara in the green velvet dress with the cut out back was on his mind for the rest of the evening and the next day. He couldn't wait to see her again.

~Lara~

In the back of the Bentley on the ride home, Eric was enthusiastic, "Let's go ice skating tomorrow, it's Christmas Eve." She was hesitant, "Eric, I haven't been ice skating since middle school." His eyes met hers as he spoke softly, "I think it would be fun." Finally she relented. "But I need to get ice skates." Eric smiled, "We can go right now to the sporting goods store and get you a pair of skates. I need some, too. The only ones I have are for ice hockey." Lara looked into his deep set blue eyes, "It is 11 o'clock at night." He looked so young, but his enthusiasm was infectious. "The stores are still open, it's the Christmas shopping season, remember?"

Eric had many appealing attributes, not the least being he was humorous, clean cut, and spontaneous. When they got back to the condo, Lara hopped into the Infiniti and they were off to purchase ice skates. Last minute shoppers crowed the aisles of the store, but Lara and Eric got fitted for ice skates and zoomed back home. "Christmas Eve ice skating, I don't think I have ever done this, Eric." Lara spoke softly. It was getting late and Lara said goodnight to Eric in the entryway. He embraced her gently and whispered in her ear, "It felt like we were a couple tonight. Are you still pining away for Ben?" Lara softly replied, "He wants me to date him, but he isn't divorced yet. I'm not getting into an intimate relationship with a married man, period." Eric looked into Lara's eyes, "I'm not married; would you consider a relationship with me?" There was an awkward moment of silence. Then Eric whispered, "You don't have to answer that. I will take your friendship and be happy. We enjoy the same things and I love just being with you." Always respectful of her wishes, Lara thought Eric was a good friend to keep. "Okay, we remain friends." she declared with a smile.

~Eric~

Eric knew it was important to secure her friendship; a milestone with her actually. She was not an easy person to get close to. He knew ice skating would be a good chance to hold Lara and make her feel comfortable. There was a beautiful skating pond in-town, complete with a park, and a roaring fireplace in a quaint lodge-style building. He planned to take her to lunch at Don and Olivia's after skating. It would be perfect. Eric agreed to pick her up at 9:00 the next morning.
Tonight she was smiling and excited when he drove away in the Infiniti. He planned to make the skating date a chance to get to know Lara better to solidify his relationship with her. Usually, Lara was very reserved but tonight her face was glowing and she laughed at everything he said. At least she agreed to be with him as a friend. The grand plan was to nurture a long term friendship with her, hoping it would blossom into something deeper. All the while, keeping Ben Keegan at arm's length still tangled up in his messy divorce.