<strong>Katy in the hot tub</strong><br/><br/>Mike mentioned being shot at and then his fingers tightened around Katy's.  She looked at him, seeing that his gaze was on the ocean that had for so long been his home, and she couldn't help but wonder what was on his mind.  Someday, she might be able to read him, but now it was too soon.  Was he haunted by memories of being targeted in war?  Did he just miss being on a ship?<em>What demons are you fighting, Mike?</em>she wondered.<em>And are you going to let us in to fight them with you?  Will we become your family?</em><br/><br/>The tenseness did not last long; in the grand scheme of things, it was barely a blip on the screen.  Katy didn't even know if Sean or Beth would have noticed.  Mike's body relaxed then as the tension left it, his legs splaying further so that his thigh rested along the length of hers.  She leaned further against him, her head against his shoulder.  It felt very natural, the way she fit against him and the closeness they already seemed to be sharing.  She wanted it with Beth and Sean, too, and knew it was going to take a lot of hard work and good communication to find success, and she wasn't going to shy away from physical contact.  A person like Katy... well, it was a need for her, touching and feeling, and Mike seemed to be willing to indulge that part of her.<br/><br/>And he wasn't the only one.  Beth didn't move her foot away from Katy's contact, either.  The stunning blonde wasn't playing, but neither was she shying away or shunning Katy's touch, and Katy did not move her foot away.  She listened to the wistfulness in Beth's voice, the yearning for adventure and couldn't help but smile.  Her own upbringing had been highly unusual, but it had been far from the sorts of adventure Mike and Sean described.  More than anything, it had just been painfully ordinary for a life that was so unconventional.<br/><br/>"Aren't you on your adventure, Beth?" she asked.  "I mean, what could be bigger than this?  You're in the middle of an ocean and looking for love."  She couldn't help the twinkle in her eye when she added, "Although if you want something a little crazier, maybe you and Mike could go out there and capsize the boat or something."  She had seen one docked at a boathouse when they'd come in.  "He could rescue you.  I'd offer to shoot at you, too, if you want, but you added that disclaimer."