Page 2 of Keeping Zita

His mom was friendly, but it always annoyed Obi-Wan when she felt the need to tell her life story—and his—to everyone she met.

But listening to Zita—he loved her interesting and unusual name—babble on and try to cover up her inappropriate comment about his nickname was hilarious.

“Growing up, some people called me Sage,” he told her. “It’s my middle name, and around fourth grade I got sick of being picked on because of my name, so I decided to start using Sage instead. It took a while to catch on, but after shoving a few kids when they called me Obadiah, they decided for their own well-being to go ahead and call me Sage. I don’t usually condone violence, but changing my name made my life a whole lot easier growing up.”

“Okay. Sage. That’s cool. Great. Um…look, I’m sorry about being inappropriate earlier. I’m used to hanging around other medics and EMTs. We have kind of a warped sense of humor. We use it as a defense mechanism, I guess. When things get intense or go bad on a call, we tend to make jokes rather than fall apart.”

“You’ve seen some bad shit.”

“Yeah. You can’t be a paramedic and go on nine-one-one calls and not see some pretty horrible things. But thankfully, most of our calls are routine. Lift-assists, sick people, falls, things like that. I’m sure you’ve seen your share of bad stuff too.”

Obi-Wan nodded and said simply, “Yeah.”

“Now that I’ve totally embarrassed myself and put my foot in my mouth at the earliest opportunity, how about that tour I’m supposed to be giving you?” She looked at the watch on her wrist. “You’re scheduled to meet Carmen and Logan, the main actors in the movie, which of course you know, at six a.m. That’s in about thirty minutes. Although, we probably have more time than that, since Carmen’s rarely on time for anything. And I’m not gossiping when I say that. Anyone will tell you the same thing. She’s always told anything she’s involved in starts a half hour before it actually does, so she can be on time. Come on, I’ll show you where everything is.”

Obi-Wan found himself grinning. He nodded and fell into step beside the dynamo of a woman who instantly made him feel more comfortable in the unfamiliar surroundings.

As they walked both around the hangar and the areas immediately outside, and she pointed out different things, including the break room full of snacks, the smoking area—unnecessary for him—and trailers where the stars and the director hung out between takes, it wasn’t lost on him how many people greeted Zita. She was friendly and outgoing, and everyone they passed or she stopped to introduce him to seemed genuinely happy to see her.

She was one of those rare people who were universally liked. Obi-Wan assumed some of that was because she wasn’t there to tell others how to do their job or critique them. She was there to help if someone was injured or got sick.

By the time the tour was over, Obi-Wan was struck anew with awe that he was even there. And overwhelmed with the responsibility on his shoulders. He wanted to be sure this movie was as accurate as possible. If he messed up anything, it could reflect poorly on the Army, and the Night Stalkers, and possibly even his own team. Which was unacceptable.

“You ready to meet Carmen and Logan?” Zita asked.

“Sure. Anything I should know before I meet them?”

Obi-Wan could tell Zita wanted to say something, but she simply shrugged.

He respected the fact that she didn’t want to spread gossip or say something out of line. Which was amusing, since the first words out of her mouth were pretty much just that. But Obi-Wan wasn’t a man to take offense easily. He was more amused than offended by her observation of women using his nickname in bed. And honestly, she wasn’t wrong. He wasn’t promiscuous, but the few times someone had actually called out his nickname in the middle of making love, it was definitely weird. And that was saying a lot, since he’d gotten used to everyone using his call sign over his given name years ago.

“Seriously. I don’t want to start out on the wrong foot with either of them. If there’s a topic I should stay away from, please tell me,” he cajoled.

“Okay. Do not compare Logan to Hugh Jackman. He hates the man. I have no idea why. And don’t comment on his name either. Logan Striker is cheesy as hell, and of course it’s made up, but he loves it. So whatever you do, steer away from those two topics.”

“Got it. Don’t mention the Dead Pool and Wolverine movie, and don’t talk about nicknames. Easy enough. What about Carmen?”

If he hadn’t been watching Zita so closely, he would’ve missed the slight wince before she smoothed out her expression.

“I don’t think you need to worry about her. She’s gonna take one look at you and bend over backward to make a good impression.”

“Me? I’m a nobody. She’s Carmen St. James. All of her films have been huge hits.”

“You’re male. A hotshot Night Stalker pilot. Gorgeous. And at the end of the shoot, she’ll go back to Hollywood and you’ll stay here. You’re perfect for her.”

Obi-Wan couldn’t help but feel a jolt of satisfaction that Zita thought he was good-looking. But he pushed the thought down. He wasn’t here to fall into bed with anyone. He wasn’t looking for a fling. No matter how rich and famous a woman was…or how intriguing and cute.

“I’m not here for any kind of relationship,” he said firmly.

“Doesn’t matter. Carmen gets what Carmen wants. And she’s totally gonna want you.”

The last part was said under her breath.

Obi-Wan stopped walking, forcing Zita to turn around and look at him in question.

“Sage?”

He couldn’t deny hearing the name he’d used growing up, that so few people used these days, made him feel…special. He didn’t understand the feeling. But now wasn’t the time or place to figure out why this blunt, say-what-she-was-thinking woman had him so intrigued.