gaze narrowed. “Such as?”

      “Spend some time together.”

      Her response clearly startled him.

      “You’re asking me out?” he inquired warily.

      Kelly’s pulse skittered crazily at the idea, but she kept her tone even. “As if I’d date an ill-tempered old man like you,” she taunted.

      He frowned at that. “I’m only three years older than you.”

      She grinned. “I notice you didn’t try to argue with the ill-tempered part.”

      He shrugged. “Didn’t see much point in it. When you’re right, you’re right. I’ll try to stop taking my bad moods out on you.”

      “Thank you.”

      “So, if you weren’t suggesting a date, what were you suggesting?”

      “Just getting out in the world. It’ll give me a chance to evaluate your motor skills in a more realistic setting, and you can ask me whatever questions are on your mind.”

      He regarded her doubtfully. “And you think that will build trust?”

      “Couldn’t hurt,” she said.

      “What do you think your brother will have to say about you and me going out?”

      “Bryan doesn’t interfere in my work. For that matter, though, he’s welcome to come along.” Maybe her brother could smooth things over between them, keep her from saying the wrong thing, or at the very least, keep Michael from misinterpreting what she said and taking offense. “Is it a deal?”

      He seemed to be struggling with the offer, weighing it from every angle to see if he could find a catch. Kelly could almost see the wheels in his head turning. She realized then that this whole trust business was a far larger issue than she’d first assumed. Obviously it had to do with his family background. How on earth could she be expected to overcome that kind of distrust in a few short therapy sessions?

      She looked him in the eye. “Or would you prefer to start over with another therapist.”

      “No,” he said at once.

      She might have found the quick response flattering if she didn’t suspect it had more to do with his dread of wasting time searching for someone new than it did with her.

      “Okay, then,” she said. “Pick a day and we’ll get together.”

      “Friday,” he suggested finally. “I promised my sister-in-law today that I’d go to the pub Friday evening. Why don’t you and Bryan come along?”

      Kelly nodded. “Sounds good. Want us to pick you up? You’re on our way.”

      “Sure,” he said eventually, as if he’d wrestled with that decision, too.

      She grinned at him. “You’re not sacrificing your independence, you know. You really are on our way.”

      He gave her a self-deprecating grin that made Kelly’s heart flip over.

      “I know,” he admitted. “That’s why I finally gave in. I’m stubborn. I’m not an idiot.”

      She laughed then. “A distinction I’ll try to remember.”

      His expression sobered. “So will I. I really am sorry for giving you such a rough time. It’s just that all this is so blasted frustrating.”

      She patted his hand. “Compared to some people I’ve worked with, you’re downright sweet-natured.”

      Michael winced at the description, just as she’d expected him to.

      “Don’t worry,” she reassured him. “I won’t let it get around. I imagine you big, tough SEALs pride yourselves on being as cantankerous as they come.”

      “You’d better believe it,” he agreed, his fierce expression belied by the twinkle in his eyes. After an instant, the sparkle dimmed. “Of course, ex-SEALs are another breed entirely.”

      There was no mistaking the return of bitterness and despair in his tone. Kelly desperately wanted to make things better, but she wasn’t sure if she could find the right words. She made herself try, though.

      “You know, Michael, it seems to me that in some ways it takes as much bravery to face a future all alone without the SEALs as it does to take on some dangerous, covert mission surrounded by an entire team of highly trained experts,” she told him.

      “In other words, if I don’t get over myself and face this whole therapy thing head-on, I’m a coward?” he asked.

      “Your words, not mine,” she said.

      He sighed heavily. “Then maybe that’s exactly what I am,” he conceded, his expression bleak. “Because if I’m no longer a SEAL, then I don’t know who the hell I am.”

      Kelly could have offered a whole string of platitudes that would have meant nothing at all to him, but she didn’t. Instead, she merely touched his shoulder. “But you’ll figure it out,” she said quietly.

      “I wish I were as sure of that as you seem to be.”

      “You’re a smart man, you’ll find your way,” she insisted. “Trust me.”

      His gaze captured hers and held. “Which brings us full circle.”

      She gathered up her things and headed for the door. “I’ll see you Friday night and we’ll work on it,” she said, because suddenly there was nothing on earth more important to her than gaining Michael Devaney’s trust…unless it was giving him back his faith in himself.