I have been so committed to this story and in such a rush to get it published, that I am now noticing mistakes, so I am re-editing the chapters. An update will come soon. Thank you for the reviews and suggestions, much appreciated.

Ty was waiting for Bay on the small wooden bridge that led to the exit of Maui Kansas. He ran his hand through his hair and looked at the sky. There weren't many stars. He thought about the times he used to be on watch through the night in Kabul. How the stars seemed to shine more brightly in that cloudless sky. Why would they shine so brightly in a place of such misery? He closed his eyes briefly and there they were again, the images that haunted him; the dead dog, the dead body, the stuffed animal on the side of the road, the woman in a blue burka being manhandled by the police. He had that so familiar feeling of his chest tightening once again, the feeling of his lungs not being able to breathe in.

He took a deep breath and rubbed his temple. How long would these images haunt him for? What must Justin have seen in that head of his over and over until it killed him? Ty thought about Bay and the evening two days ago when she barged into his room like an Amtrak, full of her apologies and her insecurity. He had felt his heart break in two when she tearfully asked him if he didn't like her anymore. How could she think that? This was the girl he had dated for such a short time two and a half years ago and who had captivated his heart like no other had before.

He was ready to tell her he loved her back then and she didn't let him. He never stopped loving her during those years in Kabul. He remembered her telling him she was with Emmett and his world collapsing around him. How could he blame her? No one knew if they would ever come back alive and he had.

He would be able to fix his head in time, it was minor compared to his buddies who had lost their lives or an arm or a leg. Still, he had planned on being only friends with Bay; he did not want to burden her with his issues.

In the end he had not been able to resist her and he had taken her face in his hands and kissed her.

Oh she tasted so sweet, how he had missed having her in his arms. He never wanted to let go of her again. They had stood there in his room kissing for a long time. After a while they had stopped and just hugged in silence.

Ty had felt tears in his eyes as he held her. He remembered stepping away from her briefly and taking her face in his hands again. He had asked her if she was sure she wanted him, a damaged soldier. She had just smiled at him and nodded. That was all he had needed to know.

Then the phone call with the dreadful news about her father. The happiness that had been stamped on her face for the past half hour suddenly gone as she went white as a sheet. Trembling she had told him about John being taken to hospital, that no one knew the seriousness of his condition. As tears ran down her face he had grabbed her car keys and driven her to the hospital as fast as he could. The last memory he had of her was her face turning to him full of misery as she walked into the hospital doors.

After spending the night tossing and turning he finally got a text from her early in the morning that John had woken up and was stable. She had spent the day at his bedside needing that father-daughter bonding that had been missing for the past weeks.

Ty was jostled from his trip down memory lane by steps approaching rapidly. Bay had spotted him from the distance and was hurrying down the wooden bridge. His little hurricane. She threw herself into his arms and he held her close and inhaled her scent. She smelled of cotton candy and summer nights.