Disclaimer: I don't own the A-Team and I make no money from this.
Chapter 43 Regrouping
Sydney kept her eyes closed, stubbornly resisting the tug of wakefulness that was pulling her out of the heavenly little cocoon she was wrapped in. Snuggling into the warmth of the man beside her, she sighed when HM shifted so he could wrap his arms more securely around her.
Giving in to the urge to see him, Syd opened her eyes. She felt her lips curve up at the sight of his handsome face, still relaxed in slumber. Even asleep, he held her as if he'd never let go. She wished that they could stay here, just like this, for the rest of their lives.
"Mornin', sugar."
She started and then chuckled. "I thought you were asleep."
"I am."
"Liar."
His eyes popped open and he gave her a crooked grin. "Tell me somethin', sugar. You ever find yerself wishin' time would jus' stop so's you could hold onto a moment forever?"
It was disconcerting to have her thought spouted back at her so casually.
"Like right now?" She smirked at him. "Did anyone ever tell you that you're corny?"
"Once or twice," he said. "But you didn't answer my question."
She sighed, deciding that there was no point in lying – to herself or to him.
"Only when I'm with you."
Grin widening, he pulled her tighter against him and kissed her nose. "See there? Ya do love me."
"Did you ever consider the possibility that I might take it as a challenge to resist the admission? To resist you?" She poked at him playfully, her smile teasing.
The rumble of amusement in his chest vibrated through her body, leaving a pleasant tingle of happiness in its wake.
"Thought mighta crossed my mind. But you're here. That's what's important to me."
"Me too."
Squirming closer, she tucked her face into the curve of his neck. Under her lips she could feel the strong pulse of his heart, and the scent of his musk coupled with the ever-present hint of leather was intoxicating. Here in his arms she felt safe… happy… content… this had to be what love was.
Didn't it?
mmmmm
Drifting in and out, Murdock resisted the urge to look at the clock. It didn't matter anyway. Years of telling time by his location and the angle of the sun made him acutely aware of the approach of seven a.m. without the aid of an electric time piece.
Syd was still snuggled into his side and he truly didn't want to let the world intrude. Earlier they had spent some time talking sporadically about everything and nothing. She had finally slipped back into sleep around five-thirty and he had followed suit.
But his sleep was fitful, and he found himself tracking the passage of time between brief, dream-filled bouts of slumber. Most of the dreams were pleasant reflections of the intimacy that he had enjoyed with Sydney during the previous two nights – intimacy that he planned to enjoy with her for the coming five nights as well. But the violence of their past intruded, too, the nightmares reminding him rudely of the reality that awaited both of them back in Nha Trang.
The muffled knock heralding the delivery of breakfast next door made it impossible to ignore the need to get moving. He kissed her lightly.
"Time to wake up, sugar," he murmured, cheek pressed against her forehead.
"I don't wanna."
He chuckled. "Guess I need to remind you that this was your idea."
Groaning, Syd cracked an eye open and looked up at him. "Go ahead. Rub it in."
"I just did."
She stretched, rolling away from him in the process. He sighed and pushed himself to his feet, resigned to getting dressed to go next door. That was when he remembered that he only had his swim trunks with him.
"Dammit."
"What's wrong?"
He turned and looked down at Syd. During the night sometime they had kicked off the sheets, so there was nothing impeding his view. The flush of desire was hard to disregard.
"All I have to wear is my swim suit."
The appraising look she raked him with made him acutely aware of the growing physical evidence of his need.
"Seems a shame to put on even that."
There was a knock at the door.
He glared at it. "Dammit."
Syd rolled to her feet and padded to the bathroom. A moment later his swim trunks came flying out and hit him in the chest.
"Get the door, flyboy."
Pulling on his suit, he shifted to get himself situated into an almost-comfortable position before opening the connecting door. Jak leaned there, and gave him a pained smile.
"Breakfast's here."
Murdock jumped when a hand kneaded his butt. Then Syd ducked past him and through the door.
"Great! I'm starving."
Murdock blew out a frustrated breath, knowing the bulge in the front of his suit was obvious.
"Dammit."
Adjusting himself, Jak grunted in agreement.
"Kate ain't no better," he muttered. "Women don't know how good they got it bein' able to turn it on and off like that."
Murdock smirked at Jakowski as he moved into the room.
"Trust me, kid. They know."
ttttt
Trish shaded her eyes with her hand, watching as her husband went to join his teammates in a game of beach volleyball. Hannibal's idea, the game hadn't really been optional. The naturally competitive nature of the men had ensured full participation, anyway.
"Nice view?"
Sydney's teasing tone made the words sound like something between a statement and a question. Trish chuckled.
"Definitely. Mind if I join you? You have a much better vantage point for the volleyball game than I do."
"Be my guest," Sydney said. "Kate, Anh and I are just enjoying the eye-candy."
Trish spread out her towel and settled next to the three young women. Hannibal was refereeing the game. The men had split into two three-man teams, Ray, BA and Gravy on one side and HM, Jak and Face on the other.
"Where's Mama B?" Trish asked.
"BA said she was checking out a hula class this morning," Kate said. "I'm kind of anxious to hear what she thinks."
"That sounds like fun," Trish said. "Maybe we could take a class together. What do you think?"
"What is hula?" Anh asked.
"It's a native Hawaiian dance that tells a story," Sydney said. "And while it does sound interesting, I was born with two left feet. I couldn't even master the box step. No way am I going to be able to handle the hula."
"Sure you can," Trish said, nudging the younger woman. "Besides I think the guys would get a kick out of it if we danced for them. Come on, Syd, it could be fun."
Sighing, Sydney said, "Let's see what Mrs. B has to say. Something tells me that if she decides it's something we should do, we aren't going to have a lot of choice in the matter."
"Game starting," Anh said.
All eyes turned toward the court. Trish grinned. "Dang. I think I could get used to this."
The seven men preparing to play were all dressed in swim trunks with nothing else on. The variety in the male form was amazing, and Trish found all of them attractive in their own way. Of course, she was partial to Ray, whose solid, muscular build, medium height and affable, handsome features were just about perfect in her eyes.
In contrast, BA was built like a tank, with shoulders broad enough to carry the bulky muscle mass of his ebony body. As intimidating as he appeared, when BA smiled you just couldn't help but smile, too. She had known him longer than any of the others, and he held a special place in her heart, as did his mother.
Gravy jumped in front of BA, capturing Trish's attention next. He was built similarly to Ray, but was shorter and more compact. Unlike BA, his skin was a warm, chocolate color, matching his eyes which always sparked with mischief. His homely face was literally transformed when he smiled, and he tended to smile quite frequently.
Her gaze wandered to Hannibal. Since the game had started, he was the only one standing still at the moment. His feet were planted shoulder-width apart, arms akimbo, icy blue eyes scanning the playing field out of a rugged, bronzed face framed by wavy white-blond hair. The only thing Trish thought was missing to complete the image was a thunderbolt. Hannibal as Zeus, the embodiment of strength, courage and justice, appealed to her.
"Fault!" Hannibal bellowed and then pointed at Face. "Contact with the net. That's a point. You better settle it down, boys, or you're gonna end up giving the game away."
Hannibal waved a hand at Ray's side of the net. "That's two, zip. Gravy's serve."
"I'll take experience over youth any day," Ray taunted.
"Don' pay to get cocky, Ray," HM said just as Gravy served.
HM set and Face spiked the ball, which hit the sand between Ray and BA. The two young men performed a leaping chest bump and then exchanged high fives with Jak.
Hannibal laughed. "Two, one. Jak's serve. Still early in the game, boys. Let's pick it up."
Jak's serve hit back court and Gravy easily returned, setting up a lengthy volley that ended when Jak passed to HM who set for Face's spike. The ball hit the very edge of the net, and then rolled back to their side. Ray guffawed, as HM, Face and Jak stared at the ball rolling to a stop in the middle of their side of the court.
"Nice try."
"Three, one. Ray's serve."
Face returned Ray's serve with ease and then BA set Gravy for a spike, which HM returned with a diving save. This set up an erratic volley that had the ball going short and long and sideways, and ended with a wild out-of-bounds hit by BA. Murdock took off at a jog to retrieve the ball which rolled to a stop near where the women were sitting in the shade of the trees.
Sydney stretched out a leg and kicked it toward him. HM flashed her a tight smile as he scooped it from the sand.
"Thanks, Syd." Glancing around, he asked in general, "Are you ladies enjoying the game?"
"Definitely!" Katie said with a smile.
Leaning over the petite nurse, Murdock said, "How's 'bout a kiss for luck?"
Katie obliged with a peck on the lips before Murdock straightened to jog away, backward.
"Thanks, darlin'."
"Murdock!" Hannibal called. "Get your ass back in the game! It's Face's serve. Three, two. Let's pick it up!"
Trish gave a thoughtful smile as HM spun and ran back to the court. Tall and lean in a gangly sort of way, with sinewy, well-defined muscles, Trish knew that he was deceptively strong. Warm brown eyes, set in angular features and a generous mouth that was quick to quirk up in a smile, HM was the kind of down-home handsome that women often overlooked. Chancing a furtive glance sideways at Syd, it was obvious there was at least one woman who recognized it though.
Murdock tossed the ball to Face for the serve. Murdock's quiet good looks paled next to his best friend, who was drop-dead gorgeous. Face was like the bronzed Adonis to Hannibal's Zeus. Clear blue eyes, chiseled, classically-handsome features, and golden hair, with a smile that could charm a snake, Face was the epitome of the ideal Greek male form. Coupled with a body that was toned and perfectly proportioned, it was no surprise that he managed to get just about any woman he wanted.
Finally there was Jak. She didn't really know him at all. Of course, she had never met Kyle, Jak's predecessor. If she hadn't known better, she would have entertained the possibility that Jak and HM were related. With brown hair, brown eyes, and the same comfortable features and ready smiles, they could easily be mistaken for brothers. Jak was shorter than HM and more heavily muscled, but their general body type wasn't all that different. It was uncanny.
A heavy sigh caught Trish's attention, and she chuckled at the dreamy smile on Kate's face.
"They are all quite handsome in their own ways," Kate said. "We're very lucky women."
"Yes. We are very fortunate," Anh said.
Syd turned to look at her friend. "I heard that you and Gravy are engaged, Anh, but you haven't spoken of it…"
Anh's face tightened. "Gravy did ask for my hand in marriage and my mother consented."
"Really?" Kate squealed. "That is definitely something to celebrate. How wonderful!"
"But we are not engaged. I have not agreed to marry him," Anh said quietly.
"Well, for heaven's sake, why not?" Kate asked in surprise. "You two seem so much in love…"
"Gravy wants to take you back to the States, doesn't he?" Syd asked gently.
Anh nodded. "And I cannot… I cannot leave my family. They need me."
Sydney reached across Kate and squeezed Anh's hand. "It will all work out, Anh."
"I love Gravy. And I love my family. I do not know what to do."
"Aw, sweetie, what a horrible choice," Katie whispered.
Sydney nodded. "You and Gravy need to talk it out, Anh. I'm sure he'll understand."
As the three young women continued to speak in hushed tones, Trish studied them. Anh tended to be very quiet, likely due to the language barrier. She was most animated and communicative with Sydney. Based on what Ray had told her, that was no surprise – the two women had spent quite a bit of time with one another under dangerous, stressful conditions. Trish found it difficult to even imagine what they had been through traveling together in North Vietnam. An experience like that was bound to form a close bond.
In her normalcy, Kate was the true oddball of the group. From a well-to-do background, she came across as kind, caring and sweet, if naive. Ray had mentioned her as HM's new love interest, and left it at that. Though he didn't say it, she suspected that, because of his fondness for Sydney, Ray resented Kate's relationship with HM. Of course, after last night it was obvious that the relationship was a hoax. It made Trish very curious about the woman who was apparently complicit in a subterfuge from which she gained nothing.
That left Sydney. Trish studied the young woman who had become the most recent nonconformist addition to the Team. She felt as if she knew her already through Ray's letters. But what Ray had shared of her most recent adventures chilled Trish to the bone. It seemed difficult to believe that the quietly pretty, petite young woman sitting next to her was a working CIA recon agent in war-torn Vietnam. That she had endured the horror of rape and could still sit there calmly watching a volleyball game and offering heartfelt sympathy to a friend seemed truly amazing to Trish, who had lived her life in a small town sheltered from such harsh realities.
With a start, Trish realized Sydney was looking at her curiously.
"Any words of wisdom, Trish?"
Trish gave Anh a compassionate smile. "I think Sydney's right. You need to talk to Gravy. Together, you'll find a way to make it work."
Anh's smile was tight. "I hope you are right."
"I hope so too," Trish said.
Kate stood up and held out a hand to Anh. "Come on. I'd like to introduce you to my parents."
Standing, Anh said, "I would be honored to meet your parents, Kate."
Linking arms with Anh, Kate said, "And I just know they'll adore you, Anh."
Sydney shook her head as she watched the two young women walk away.
Trish gave her a little smile, head tilted in curiosity. "What is it?"
Hugging her knees to her chest, Syd shrugged. "Kate thinks she can fix everything with her daddy's money. It's sweet, but in the long run it's pretty unrealistic."
"Is that what she did for you and HM? Use her father's money to fix everything for you to be together?"
Snorting, Sydney turned to look directly at Trish. "She hasn't really fixed anything. In fact, in the end, she's probably just made the inevitable that much more difficult."
The intensity in those blue eyes startled Trish. "What's the inevitable?"
Syd stared at Trish for several seconds before answering.
"The inevitable parting of the ways. The reality of my situation back in Nha Trang will not allow the relationship to continue past this week in Hawaii. The fact that you and Ray figured it out so easily clinched it. I don't think we can pull it off back in 'Nam and keep Lew in the dark."
Trish sighed. "Lew – that's your partner, right?"
"Partner. Boss." Sydney turned to watch the game, squinting. "I'm too close to him. He'd know it was a lie. Just like you and Ray knew. Like Hannibal knows."
"Ray and I didn't really know, Sydney, we suspected. There is a difference." Trish looked at her narrowly. "Is that why you were keeping on with the scam here? Ray wondered why…"
"I figured if we could do it with the Team there would be hope for when we got back to 'Nam." Syd sucked in a breath. "Now… well, suffice it to say I have my doubts."
"We'll help, Sydney."
Sydney had turned her head pointedly away to watch the game. Trish imagined that she was only really watching one person. In Syd's unguarded moments, how she felt about HM was as evident as the nose on her face. But those times were rare. She seemed to be pretty well practiced at hiding her true feelings.
Trish figured that was a good thing.
mbmbmb
Stepping out of the hotel, Mama B shaded her eyes to look for her Scooter. He was easy to pick out, playing volleyball with the rest of his team.
Her gaze roamed on up the beach to where Trish and Sydney sat watching the game. As she made her way toward them, she wondered idly where the other girls were. Kate and Anh seemed like real nice girls. And Trish had held a special place in Mama's heart since the day they'd met.
However, she wasn't too sure about Sydney. The girl was a little strange. Scooter seemed to think quite a lot of her, which was normally enough for Mama. She was just having a hard time warming up. But she'd keep trying.
"Hey there, girls! Enjoyin' the game?"
"Hi, Mrs. B. How were the hula lessons?" Sydney asked.
"How many times I gotta tell you to call me Mama like all the other kids, baby?"
Sydney's smile disappeared and she glanced away. "I'm sorry…"
Mama leaned down and put a hand on the young woman's shoulder. "I don't want you to be sorry, baby. I just don't want ya to feel like you have to be all formal with me."
"Mrs. B isn't all that formal," Sydney said quietly.
Mama dropped into the lounge chair by Sydney and looked at her narrowly. "Why don't you want to call me Mama?"
Pressing her lips together, Sydney kept her blue eyes averted. She seemed uncertain and nervous.
"My mother just passed away this past year and I don't feel right calling someone else Mama."
"Well for goodness sakes, baby, why didn't you just say so?" Mama asked. "How's about you call me Adele, then. If'n that makes you more comfortable."
The smile that graced Sydney's face was warm and grateful. "I'd like that, Adele. Thank you for understanding."
Mama smiled and gave her a wink. "We're all family, whatever you call me, Sydney. Don't you forget that."
"Ladies."
Hannibal's voice was close, and Mama looked up at her Scooter's CO with raised eyebrows. The boys were still playing volleyball, so she was surprised to see him.
"Would you like your seat back, Hannibal?" she asked.
"Not at all, Mrs. B," Hannibal said. "The guys aren't willing to concede that they're evenly matched. They're determined to come to a winner. Could be a long afternoon. But I need something to drink. Can I get you anything?"
Mama settled back into the lounge chair with a sigh. "I could stand a great big glass of sweet tea, truth be told."
"Trish? Sydney?" Hannibal asked.
"Iced tea does sound heavenly," Trish said.
Sydney jumped to her feet. "I'll help you, Hannibal."
Mama didn't miss the meaningful look that Hannibal cast at Sydney. He smiled.
"Thanks, Syd. I appreciate the help."
As soon as they were out of earshot, Mama asked, "Tell me, Trish, you think Hannibal's got a handle on that girl?"
Trish chuckled. "No, Mama, I don't. Syd's throwing the whole unit for a bit of a loop. But I have faith in them. They'll figure it out."
"Did you know about her mama bein' gone?"
"Yes. Ray told me. I should have warned you. I didn't even think about it."
"What happened?"
"Apparently her mom had cancer. It was a lengthy illness, and in the end there wasn't anything they could do. I don't know much more than that. HM probably does…"
Mama smirked. "HM, eh?"
"Um, yeah."
"Templeton, too, I imagine," Mama said. "Scooter says those two boys are real protective o' Sydney."
Trish nodded. "I think it goes both ways."
"Thought o' that little girl protecting anybody seems downright silly."
"That little girl is no one to be trifled with," Trish said. "Ray said she's survived two forays deep into North Vietnam, already, not to mention holding her own with one of the most experienced recon agents at Nha Trang. There's more to Sydney than meets the eye, Mama. Don't underestimate her."
Mama looked toward the hotel, catching a glimpse of Sydney as Hannibal held the door open for her to go into the lobby. Next to the colonel's tall, substantial form, Sydney looked like a child.
"Foul! BA, get on your own side of the net!" Murdock's voice choked off toward the end of the sentence.
"You did that on purpose, fool!"
"BA, put Murdock down."
Mama pushed herself to her feet with an amused chuckle.
"Seein' as how Hannibal's gone, I guess I best go get those boys back in line."
"At least save HM," Trish said with a laugh.
"Yeah, I'm rather fond o' that boy myself."
kmc
