“Well then, of course, help yourself… I mean, it’s your food. Do as you wish. Use my pans.”

Use. My. Pans? Okay, stop talking now.

“Would you like anything to eat?” he asks.

“I have something.” I shake the Pringles can.

“Seriously?”

“What? I’m stressed. I don’t eat when I’m stressed.”

His face grows serious. “I’m making you some food. You don’t want it, fine. Try, at least.”

Then he leaves the room.

God, he’s bossy.

Why are his nipples pierced but his ears are not? Is that normal? Maybe his ears normally are, and he took them out to seem more professional? I’m curious, and I know what they say about curiosity and cats, but I don’t care. I grab my iPad, open Google and then I search Samuel… Shit, I don’t know his surname.

Okay, his friend called him Reaper. I write Samuel Reaper into the search bar, not expecting to find anything. My eyes widen as a string of results pop up.

I click on the first one, a news report about a medal ceremony.

Samuel–Reaperman–-Scott is a Navy SEAL and recipient of three medals for bravery. Oh, wow. Then I read on. He’s a sniper. Crap. My eyes scan the words rapidly, not wanting him to walk in on me reading about him. It also says that unlike some other members of the SEALs, he’s kept a low profile since leaving the service, and when asked if a book about his life would ever be forthcoming, he told the reporter to fuck off.

I smile a little at that. The man clearly hasn’t had media training.

The only picture of him is one where he’s wearing so much camo, with a cap pulled down low on his face, it doesn’t tell me much.

Pressing the back arrow, I alter my search to Samuel Scott. Lots of people come up, but none of them are the man in question. I try Samuel Scott, SEAL. But it’s the same articles, with the same basic information.

I try Samuel Reaperman Scott and the same.

Not about to be deterred, I try Samuel Scott, Montana, and bingo. A photograph pops up. It’s accompanied by a link to a local newspaper article, so I click on it. The article is about how Samuel gave an undisclosed amount to an animal sanctuary to save it from closing, and the owners were saying how grateful they were.