Mandy and Jason: Valentine's Day

This is just a fun Jandy Valentine's Day fanfic. No copyright infringement is intended, it's just for entertainment purposes only. 

Happy Valentine's Day to my SEAL Team friends who love Jason and Mandy!

Mandy tucked her hair behind her ear and glanced in the rearview mirror one more time. Jason had been so mysterious on the phone. He’d just gotten back from a mission and she’d expected to meet him at home, but he’d asked to meet up with her at a private shooting range. She pulled into the parking lot and saw his truck sitting near the front.  Parking next to him, she got out and headed to the building perched on a small hill. 

“Hey.” Jason gave her that half-smile she loved as he crossed the lobby. She noticed the cut over his eye and a bruise along his jaw. The mission must have gotten up close and personal, but he was still standing. That’s what mattered. The moment she was in arm’s reach, he pulled her close, his embrace enveloping her. 

She pressed her cheek against his chest and relaxed into him. She needed this.  Him. He centered her. She breathed him in, still smelling a bit of plane exhaust on him. “Hey.” 

He held her for an extra moment, then drew back. “I was worried we wouldn’t make it home in time for Valentine’s Day and I didn't want to miss our first one. I know I should probably be giving you flowers and taking you to a fancy restaurant, but I thought, let’s do something we both love.” He gave her a full out grin.

“For the record, I do love flowers and good food,” Mandy told him, holding back a smile.

“You’ll love this more. I had some shooting stages set for us. You know, for a friendly little shooting competition.”  He took her hand and headed for the far doors that led out to the field next to the club.

She chuckled and shook her head. “Can we have friendly competitions?”

“Of course we can. This will be fun.”  His thumb caressed the back of her hand and butterflies started low in her stomach. Even the smallest touch from him garnered a physical reaction and they’d been apart for two weeks. She bit her lip and slowly let out a breath. If he could wait, so could she. Right now, she had to focus, especially if this was going to be a competition.

They headed to the center field where stages, or wooden props set to look like buildings, corners, and even targets, were set up in different formations. “How many stages are we doing?” she asked him.

“Let’s do all three.” Jason slung an arm around her shoulders. “Unless you’re worried you’re too rusty?”

“I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that.”  She walked toward the staff member waiting for them at the first station, holding their ear protection. A little shiver of excitement ran up her spine as her competitive side reared up inside her. 

“Glocks?” Jason asked.

“Sounds good.”  She picked up the gun and shifted its weight around in her hand for a second until she found her most comfortable grip.  “What sort of competition do you have in mind?”

“Speed and accuracy.  And then we’ll hit MJ’s.”  He smirked, leaning his hip against the table.  He looked every inch like Bravo 1 with well-defined muscles and an air of authority.  Her heart rate picked up the longer she looked at him.

“You want to eat at MJ’s and not the Bulkhead?” She lifted a brow.

“Maybe I want to feed you some great fries.” His gaze pinned her, and her mind immediately went back to the fries he’d fed her in Rehoboth. The need to be alone with him ramped up again. There were a lot of great memories in Rehoboth.

She flushed and looked down at her gun to regain her equilibrium. “Is the winner buying dinner?”

“Well, there are other attractions there.”  He lifted his eyebrows, obviously giving her clues to what he was getting at.   

And then it hit her exactly where he was going with this.  MJ’s had a karaoke bar.  “So, loser has to sing karaoke.” Her chest tightened at the thought and the competition he had in mind jumped to high-stakes.  She hated singing in public. 

His lazy grin was back and her heart tripped a beat. Is he trying to distract me? “Oh, it’s even better than that,” he continued.  “Loser has to sing whatever song the winner chooses.”  He picked up his weapon and nodded toward her.  “Unless you’re not up for it.”

“Oh, I’m up for it.”  Mandy injected her you-better-believe-it tone to make that statement sound true, even though adrenaline was starting to pump through her.  The man was a SEAL. Bravo 1. This might be too easy for him, but even if it was, she’d be sure to give him a run for his money.  She moved toward the first stage and got ready.  “Hope you’ve been practicing singing in the shower or something.  I’ve got a few songs in mind for you.”

“Confident. I like that.”  He moved into position, slightly ahead of her.  “Keep thinking positive.”

She bumped him to the side.  “Ladies first.”

He acquiesced and let her by. “No problem.  Then I’ll know the score to beat.”

“And be sad when you don’t.”  She stepped up to the first wooden target, the thought of standing on the stage to sing in front of people making her fight or flight response zing through her veins.  She had to win.  Up on the balls of her feet, she waited for the signal.  The buzzer went off and she carefully aimed for her first targets.

The first two were easy.  It was automatic as she hit the targets and stepped to the next barrier.  Exhilaration washed over her.  She followed the marked path and slipped to the wooden barrier to get around the corner for her next shot.  She was on her game and hit the three targets dead center, even the hard one that was sort of hidden.  Turning to her left, she took the last two shots before she headed for the second part of the course.  She could feel Jason’s eyes on her, but she couldn’t let him faze her.   

The second stage had eight targets, some close and some far, separated by blue barrels.  The sun was beating down on her and she wished she would’ve taken her jacket off, but she reloaded and went forward, not focusing on anything beyond the course in front of her.  The new stage took a little more concentration, but she made it through, only missing her mark once.  Moving on to the third stage, she dared to glance back at Jason.  His face was a cool, calm mask as he made his shots.  She’d seen him work in the field and it never failed to amaze her how good his instincts were. 

She turned and reloaded, firing at the six targets lined up across the field.  This was the last easy part before the final stage that looked trickier than the others.  This part of the course had a little makeshift wooden area like a room in a house with doorways and windows.  The targets were placed strategically outside.  She headed for the first one, a close target near the door that was easy to get.  The next target was through a window, four targets placed close together with one sort of behind the other.  She was pretty sure she got those, and headed for the back doorway.  This one had one metal target placed further back and two wooden ones, closer to the door.  She squeezed the trigger, feeling a surge of satisfaction as the bullet hit its mark.  She had a healthy respect for guns, especially in her former line of work, but there was just something about being able to control the weapon and hit what she aimed for. 

She shot at the last five targets as quickly as she could, confident she’d made good time and hit her marks.  The range officer next to her instructed her to finish, unload, and clear.  As she did so, he moved closer.  “Slide forward, holster.”  His voice was fast and sounded like an auctioneer.  He must get tired of saying that all day long.

She stepped back into the safe zone and waited for Jason.  He soon came into view.  His form was beautiful when he shot, graceful and easy. This was second nature to him.  It looked like he was hitting most of his targets, too.  Even if she didn’t win, she’d still done a good job.  She took a deep breath. Jason was right, this was a great Valentine’s date.

When he was done, they both waited while the scores were tallied.  “Still feeling confident?” he asked her, nudging her shoulder.

“Oh yeah.”  But really, her stomach was doing little somersaults. Jason was one of the best in the world.  If she lost, it would suck to have to sing, but she wouldn’t let him see an ounce of uncertainty.  Her competitive nature would never let that guard down.

“Did I mention I asked Sonny and Davis to meet us there?” he said, pulling her in and wrapping his arms around her.  “Just to make it more fun.”

She wrapped her arms around him, glad he couldn’t see her face.  If she lost and had to sing in front of them, she’d never live that down. With the team just getting back, maybe they had better things to do. “Hope they like your singing voice.” But even though her words sounded self-assured, she knew her bravado was slipping the longer they waited for their scores.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw the range officer was coming toward them, shaking his head.  That didn’t bode well. She stepped back, shading her eyes.

“How’d it turn out?” Jason asked, straightening to face the man.

“That’s the closest I’ve ever seen a score,” he said, looking up at Jason as he stopped a few feet away from them. “Nearly a tie.”

“Is there a clear winner?” Jason’s voice didn’t sound as confident as it had a minute ago.  Mandy tensed, waiting for the verdict.

The guy scratched his chin.  “Yep.  The lady was just a bit faster and she wins by a half point.”

  Jason threw his head back in mock frustration, his eyes meeting hers.  “Seriously? I demand a recount.”

Mandy laughed, relief lacing through her.  “Sorry. No sore losers here.  The lady won by a half point.  The judge has spoken.”  She stepped forward and took his hand, trying not to show how worried she’d truly been.  Patting his arm, she smiled up at him.  “Don’t worry, I won’t make you sing anything too embarrassing.  Definitely something from the ‘80s though.  There’s just something fun about that decade, you know?”

Jason groaned good-naturedly.  “I never knew you had a mean streak.  The ‘80s? Really?”  He slowly walked her across the field to her car, the sudden silence in the air standing out to her.  For just a second they weren’t at a gun club, they were just strolling outdoors, enjoying each other’s company.  It was so peaceful Mandy wanted to make it last longer, but all too soon they were in the parking lot. 

“I wish I could have picked you up so we didn’t have to go in separate cars, but meeting you here made more sense time-wise.” He stopped and opened her driver side door.

“I’m just glad you’re home and honestly, after karaoke, riding in separate cars might be a blessing.”  She smiled up at him.  “You might not want to be too close to me once you see what I have planned.” 

He didn’t respond, his gaze flicking to her lips. She rose up on her tiptoes at the same moment he reached for her, his hands sliding around her waist. His lips slanted over hers and Mandy closed her eyes, pulling him close. The feeling of belonging she always had when she was with him washed over her. The fire that had been slowly burning between them leaped to life and she deepened the kiss, wishing they were home. It took all her willpower to pull back. Cradling his face between her two hands, she swallowed hard, trying not to kiss him again.

“Happy Valentine’s Day,” he said, his voice low and husky.

She nearly groaned, her entire body leaning toward him, the pull he had on her so strong, but she hastily pulled back. “Now that I know we have people waiting on us, we better get going. I’ll see you at MJ’s, but just so you know, we aren’t staying long,” she told him in her best no-nonsense voice. She ducked into her car and he chuckled before running a hand over his face and sucking in a breath. Mandy loved that he was just as affected as she was. 

Following his truck out of the parking lot, she turned on some music.  She went over some other ‘80s bands in her mind.  Would she really make him do David Lee Roth? Maybe something by Def Leppard? She was trying to imagine him on stage and the thought made her laugh. He’d totally get into though. He always threw himself into everything he did. She’d always thought it was part of living on a dangerous edge. When the job was done, the team came back, did their best to relax, maybe forget a little, and tried to live life to the fullest, glad to still be here.  

Pulling into the karaoke bar parking lot, she watched him get out of his truck and met him halfway. 

“So did you decide on a song?” he asked as he took her hand and they walked into MJ’s.  She loved that he was always touching her in some way with his arm around her or holding her hand.  That closeness was like coming home, the piece of her that had always been missing now back where it belonged. With Jason. 

“You’ll have to wait and see,” she teased, squeezing his hand.

As soon as they walked to the hostess podium, they saw Sonny and Davis waving to them from a nearby table.  “We thought you guys would never get here.  The karaoke is about to start,” Sonny said, when they were close enough to hear.  “So, who won?”

“Do you even need to ask?” Mandy said, buffing her nails on her shoulder as they sat down. 

“That’s my girl,” Davis said with a laugh.  “Pay up, Sonny.”

“You bet against me?” Mandy turned accusing eyes on Sonny.  “Wow. No faith at all.”

“Hey, he’s Bravo 1. I thought he might have some moves, but I guess not when it comes to his girl.” Sonny pulled out a five-dollar bill. "Maybe he's tired after that mission."

“No, no,” Jason held up his hands. “No excuses.  She was faster than me so she won. This time.”  He rested his hand on her shoulder as he sat down in the chair beside her.  “And believe me, Sonny, I have moves, but apparently she has half a point better ones.”

“I’m hoping we’ll see some of your moves up on the stage tonight,” Mandy said sweetly, leaning her elbows on the table.

Everyone laughed.  “Maybe I should have said best out of three,” Jason said, rubbing his hands over his face.

“Hindsight is 20/20.”  Mandy tilted her head toward the stage.  “You better get up there. Maybe ask for the David Lee Roth one I Ain’t Got Nobody.”

Jason raised his eyebrows.  “That’s the song you picked? Doesn’t that one talk about a gigolo or something?”

Davis snorted.  “That’s the one.”

“If it’s not too much, I think you’d want to do your best impression of the guy onstage. You want to make it good, right? Show you’re a good sport.” Mandy could hardly contain her laughter at the look on Jason’s face. “As my Valentine’s present.”

Jason leaned over to Sonny.  “I should have gone with the flowers and fancy dinner. Next time I say the words "friendly competition" and "Mandy" in the same breath, remind me that she doesn’t do friendly competitions, okay?

“Live and learn, buddy.” Sonny shook his head. “And remember―the only easy day was yesterday.”