I don't date Navy SEALs. Except she would date a Navy SEAL-a former one-if Decker would only ask her. She didn't want to lie.

I don't date children. Except Jay Lopez was older, closer to her own age. She'd have to come up with a separate excuse for when he asked her out. And he would. She had no doubt about that.

Besides, what exactly did the reference to Dimitri have to do with Danny's trust fund-or lack thereof? Was she supposed to conclude that he was looking for more than just a dinner date? Was he implying that he was interested in filling out an application to be Sophia's second husband?

Third husband, really. Even though her sham of a marriage to Padsha Bashir, the warlord who'd killed Dimitri and locked her away in his palace, probably wouldn't be upheld as legal here in the United States, Sophia found those particular months of her life impossible to forget.

Try as she might.

"I just wanted to be honest," Danny continued when she stood there staring at him, mired in her uncertainty as to how to respond. "That's really important to me. Honesty. I like everything out on the table-no secrets, no guessing. At least where I'm coming from. I mean, I like you. A lot. Why shouldn't I be up front about that, right?"

He was like the hero in a Disney movie. Drawn with clean, clear lines-honorable, and upstanding and true.

Sophia didn't want to hurt his feelings, so she started with, "Danny, I like you, too."

He didn't let her get to the but. "Great, let's have dinner. How's tonight? Why wait to get back to-"

She clarified. "I like you as a friend."

He didn't so much as blink. "Even better. Friendship is the perfect place to start. I like you as a friend, too."

"Seriously, there are too many reasons why I really can't-"

He interrupted her. "I can give you just as many reasons-more-why you can and you should." He smiled. "It's the Navy SEAL way. We're not easily scared off."

"I prefer men who are more mature," Sophia chose her words carefully. "I'm sorry, but you're just not my type."

He was undaunted. "I'm very mature."

"I meant older, and you know it."

He looked at his watch, frowning slightly. And when she tried to speak he held up one finger. "Wait...Okay, I'm older now."

The smile he gave her was so mischievous, she laughed, which was a mistake. Because clearly he took it as encouragement. She forced her face into a more serious expression. "I meant, older than me. It's just a preference, please don't take it personally."

"Oh, I don't. I get it. But it's all the more reason to have dinner with me-see if maybe you're wrong."

"I'm not."

"People are known to change their minds. My argument stands."

"I have a ton of baggage," she tried.

"I'm strong," he countered. "I'll carry it for a while, if you want."

Oh, God. He meant it, too. "I won't ever talk about any of it, about where I've been and what I've...been through, and you just said you hated secrets."

Danny shook his head. "You misunderstood. I don't hate them. I just don't like having any myself. You want to know something about me? I'll tell you. Anything. And I'll be honest. You have my word. But if you want to hide yourself from me? That's okay. I'd prefer you didn't, and I like to think you won't." He reached out to touch her, a gentle caress of his thumb down her cheek. He wasn't wearing gloves, and yet his hands were somehow warm. "I'm a nice guy," he told her. "Maybe it's time to make nice guys be your type."

She stepped back, and blurted, "I'm in love with someone else."

That one finally stopped him. He didn't have an immediate comeback. In fact, he just gazed at her for several long seconds.

"I'm sorry," she started, but he cut her off.

"Okay, I'm definitely stupid for saying this, but whoever he is, have you told him? Because I can't think of anyone who wouldn't turn cartwheels at that news. I mean, unless he's married."

"He's not," Sophia said. "He's just...an idiot."

"So he knows? And...Is he, like, gay?"

"No. At least I don't think so." How did this conversation get so completely out of hand?

"Not that it really matters," Danny pointed out. "It doesn't change how you feel. But okay. Okay. What are you going to do? Are you going to sit home alone for the rest of your life? No, right? Say it. No."

"No," she echoed, rolling her eyes.

"Very good." His smile was contagious. "That's step one. Step two's just as easy. Give me one night. Just one. And I'll make you forget you ever met him." The look in his melted-chocolate eyes was now completely non-Disney.

Sophia laughed, even as her heart sank. The Navy SEAL way, he'd called it. She'd seen the Navy SEAL way before, plenty of times, with Tom Paoletti, with Mark Jenkins during their last training op, and with all the other SEALs who'd worked with Troubleshooters Incorporated. They were unstoppable when it came to achieving their goals.

The pathetic truth was that if Decker had truly wanted to overcome the plethora of obstacles between them, if he'd really wanted to establish a relationship with Sophia, he surely would have found a way by now.

"Soph! Sophia!"

That was Dave's voice. She was out of his line of sight, and he was making sure she was okay.

"Here comes your guard dog." Danny took her hand, and pulled her with him into the cabin.

"Don't be disrespectful," Sophia said, freeing her hand. "And don't underestimate Dave-whoa." The roof on the cabin had definitely seen better days. She could see the overcast sky through a gaping hole.

There was only one large room, its corners deep in shadow. The walls were made from logs, their bark roughly removed. Mud and moss had been used to block the cracks between them, but most of it had long since dried up and fallen out. There were no windows, just the door and a massive stone fireplace. There was no true ceiling, just exposed beams that supported the remains of the roof.

"Is it Dave?" Danny asked. "You know, your idiot? We could make him jealous. He could find us in here, making out." He pulled her close, his arms around her, his eyes sparkling.

The floor was wood-wide, rough planks. It was covered with leaves and debris, and it groaned under their combined weight.

"Careful," Sophia said. It came out little louder than a whisper. "I'm not...I don't..."

"I've got you," he said, choosing to interpret her warning as being about the floor. Years of rain had come pouring in through that hole in the roof. The wood beneath their feet was already old and surely decaying. "No worries. There's probably not a basement in a cabin like this. At most there's a twelve-inch space between the dirt and these floorboards."

He smelled good. Even his breath. He must've popped a mint along with that padlock on the door. He was so different from the last man who'd put his heavy hands all over her. He was different, too, from Dimitri, who was actually about the same height, yet not as solidly built.

Sophia didn't move. She couldn't move. She didn't want to move. Because she was the idiot, not Decker. The truth was, she'd never told him how she felt. She hadn't called him up and left a message on his voice mail. Hi, yes, it's Sophia, how are you? I'm fine. In fact, I'm so much better these days. I've started rebuilding my life, but I've realized there's something missing, and I'm pretty sure it's you. I'm in love with you so...call me back, okay?

Because what if he did call her back-or better yet, what if he showed up at her apartment? And what if, during the big romantic moment, when he took her into his arms and declared his undying love for her...what if she froze?

What if the traumas of her past made her start to shake and sweat and need to push him away?

She usually hated being touched by anyone. A hand on her shoulder could make her flinch. Yet here was Danny Gillman, leaning in for a kiss-no doubt because she was standing there gawking up at him, as if she wanted him to kiss her.

For the first time in forever she could imagine that, if he were Decker, she would close her eyes and lift her mouth...

He kissed her so sweetly, his mouth soft and warm, but when she opened her eyes, it was Danny who'd just kissed her.

She pulled free from his arms-not because she was on the verge of panic, but because the look on his face was of having just found heaven. What on earth was she doing? She jumped backwards, and the floor gave, as if she were stepping onto a sponge, and then her foot went through and her leg went even farther down.

"Danny!"

"I've got you!" His mistake was lunging forward to try to grab her.

Sophia felt the entire floor go.

It was not twelve inches to the ground at the most. It was much farther, and she was falling. She heard herself scream, not for Danny who was falling with her, but for Dave.

She hit something-glass?-that shattered upon impact-ice!-then plunged into water with a splash. Deep water-cold water. The shock drove the air from her, and she gasped, but her head was submerged and she felt herself choke.

Which way was up? Her eyes were open, but it was so dark.

She tried to swim toward what had to be the surface, but felt a hand on her jacket, pulling on her. Why was Danny pulling her down? She fought but he didn't let go, and she realized he was somehow hooked to her hood.

He was a deadweight, unmoving, and she knew with a frightening certainty that he must've hit his head.

She couldn't let go of him. If she did, he would die.

If she didn't, she would probably die, too.

She grabbed him under the arms, her lungs nearly exploding with her need for air, and she kicked for what she prayed was the surface.

After hearing Sophia scream, Dave ran, full sprint, for the cabin, Jenkins and Lindsey right behind him.

The door was open and it was dim inside, but he could see well enough to know what had happened. "Don't go in!" The floor had given way. "Sophia!"

Nothing. There was silence, with the exception of the oddest sound. Like water lapping against a seawall.

"What's down there?" Lindsey asked. "Some kind of swimming pool? But why isn't it frozen solid?"

"I don't know." Dave peeled off his coat, handed it to her along with his hat and scarf. There looked to be a set of stairs heading downward, in the gloom of the far corner. How was he going to get over there without going through the floor? "But I'm going to find out."

"Warm springs." Jenk was a fountain of information. He, too, had taken off his jacket and even the sweater he wore. "There are several in this area." He stopped Dave. "I'm going first. I'm lighter."

"Do we have a rope?" Lindsey asked.

"Izzy's carrying the pack," Jenk said as he started around the edge of the cabin's single room. He moved much faster than Dave dared. "There's one in there."

"What we really need is light," Dave said, even as Lindsey started shouting, "Zanella!"

Her voice suddenly seemed to be coming from above them. "Zanella! He's coming," she called to Dave and Jenk. "Lopez, too."

"What are you doing-Be careful!" Jenk was looking up at the roof above them, but he didn't let it slow him down. He was almost near the stairs when his foot slipped and the bit of floor he was standing on gave way. Somehow he managed to cling to the wall. "Don't you fall, too!"

"I'm good," Lindsey told the SEAL, as suddenly there was more light.

She was peeling away the roof, making one of the holes bigger, hacking at the opening.

And then Dave heard it. From below. The sound of splashing, of coughing, of a huge, ragged breath being drawn in.

"Sophia!" he shouted. With the additional light, even dim as the afternoon was, he could see through the broken floor, down a full story beneath them to where, yes, there was water. It was some kind of man-made pool, no doubt constructed on the site of a natural spring, with this structure built around it. He could see Sophia's blond hair, plastered against her head, her face pale as she looked up, searching for him.

"Dave." It was barely a word, more like a gasp. She was holding on to Dan Gillman, his head lolled back, blood on his face.

Dave gripped the log walls with his fingertips. "We're coming! Hold on!" He kept talking to her. He may not have been able to throw her a rope, but he could use his voice as a lifeline. "Jenk's almost at the stairs. We're moving as fast as we can. We're coming. Sophia, hold on. Jenk's almost there."

"It's solid here," Jenkins called. "You should be able to jump over."

Yeah, maybe if he were Spider-Man or a freaking Navy SEAL, then he could jump all that way from a stationary position.

But Dave didn't have time for either a radioactive mutation or BUD/S training, so he just did it. He flung himself forward and miraculously landed without killing himself. He could hear Lindsey shouting orders to Izzy and Lopez. Start a fire. Not in here, in the other structure. Go, go, go!

Yes, there was rope that they could use to pull Sophia and Gillman up, but they were going to need to widen the hole in the floor, remove some of that rotting wood. No, the roof wasn't stable enough to brace the weight of one person, let alone two. Time was of the essence. It was paramount to get Sophia and Gillman dry and warm as quickly as possible.

"I need Lopez!" Jenk shouted from below. Lopez had, among all of them, the most medical training. "Now! Gillman's not breathing!"

The stairs down were made of thicker boards than the floor. Dave stopped testing them in his haste to get down. But then the floor beneath his feet was concrete, and he ran to where Jenkins was pulling Gillman out of the pool.

Sophia had somehow managed to push him halfway out, and she now clung to the side with fingers that were white.

"Lopez!" Jenk shouted again. "Get Sophia," he ordered Dave, who was already doing just that.

"Nuh-nuh-nuh-t..." Sophia was trying to speak, but she gave up and touched her mouth and nose, shaking her head, as Dave grabbed her.

"Gillman's not breathing," he interpreted as he pulled Sophia from the water with one enormous heave. "Jenk knows. He's working on him, Soph."

She was freezing to death. Literally. Her lips were already blue.

"I'm helping Izzy rig the rope," Lopez shouted down to Jenkins. "Check for a pulse, man. You know what to do."

"Come on, come on, Danny," Jenk muttered, already fumbling with the prone SEAL's jacket and scarf, trying to get to his throat. "Got a pulse, thank you, Jesus. Starting mouth to mouth."

"Lindsey, status of that fire!" Dave shouted up to the roof as he tried to peel Sophia's wet clothes off of her.

But Sophia pushed him away. She crawled over to Jenk who was breathing into the mouth of his unconscious teammate. Gillman must've knocked himself out on his way through the floor. He had a nasty gash on his forehead.

"Come on, come on, come on, come on," Jenk muttered in between breaths.

"Watch your heads!" Izzy shouted as, holding on to a rope that was somehow anchored outside the cabin, he used himself as a wrecking ball, stomping in the rest of the rotting floorboards.

Jenk shielded Gillman with his back, as Dave tried to do the same for Sophia. Chunks of wood fell into the water, breaking through the thin sheet of ice that had already formed. Splinters and leaves showered onto them.