Danger Becomes You

“Why?”

She shook her head and disappeared. A few minutes later she brought them two bowls of stew, went back for two glasses of water, refilled their cups with coffee, then sat down.

“Maybe you’ll feel better once you eat.”

He picked up the spoon. “Oh, I’m feeling fine, just fine.”

She grinned and he noticed she had a dimple in her cheek. “I’m beginning to believe that.”

“That’s the first time I’ve seen you smile. You have a dimple,” he pointed out.

“That’s right,” she replied, chuckling for some reason, and began to eat.

He ate in silence. When he finished she asked, “Would you like some more?”

He shook his head. “Thanks, but no.” When he tried to get up, she immediately took his dishes, along with her own, to the kitchen. With the help of one of the crutches, Jase made it to the big chair and sank down into it. He pushed the bar for the recliner and sighed with pleasure when his legs came up.

A few minutes later, Leslie came out of the kitchen area and looked surprised to see him sprawled in the chair. He waved his hand at the couch. “Here. Sit down. You need to rest.”

She eyed him for a moment, then walked over and sat. “I thought I’d read.”

“Oh. Well, I guess that’s all right, if you don’t want to talk.”

Her lips twitched. “Actually, I’d rather listen to you.”

He nodded agreeably. “Okay.”

“Tell me more about your family.”

His smile slipped. After a moment he said, “I love my family. My mom and dad are my heroes.”

“Do you get along with your brothers?”

“Of course. Once they realized I wasn’t taking anything off them, they learned to respect me. It’s hell being the youngest,” he added thoughtfully.

“I wouldn’t know. I’m an only child.”

“Too bad. Is your dad still alive?”

She shook her head. “He was killed in military action before I was born.”

“Oh, man, that’s rough.”

“It was rougher on Mom. I never knew him, but she grieved for him, even though she worked hard to hide her pain from me.” She deliberately changed the subject. “Are your brothers married or single?”

He burst out laughing. He couldn’t help himself. “Would you believe that all three of my brothers, who swore they’d never get married, got married within a couple of years of each other? The first two were married only a couple of months apart.”

“You’re the lone holdout, I take it.”

“You got that right. Besides, I’ve never had time to work on a relationship. I was determined to finish college in three years and get my commission.”

“Are you saying you don’t like women?”

“Nope. I’m saying I haven’t had any time for women. Until now.”

She stiffened. “What do you mean, now?”

He waved his hand airily. “Well, until my leg’s strong enough to hold me and I go back to my unit, I’ve got all the time in the world to do anything I want.”

“Is that why you’re hiding up here in the woods?”

Hmm. Maybe she had a point. With all the time in the world, why was he staying by himself? Oh, yeah, because he didn’t want his family to see him like this. He didn’t want them to worry about him. He didn’t want to bring his guilt and anger and frustration home to them.

“I didn’t want to see or talk to anybody. I led my squad into an ambush and two men were killed. I should have died with them.”

“Looks like you almost did.”

“I know. Guess it wasn’t in the cards for me.”

“You sound disappointed.”

“I’ve asked to be reassigned. No more combat. They’ll either put me behind a desk or have me train others.”

“Sounds like a way for you to use your skills.”

After several minutes of silence, Jase murmured, “I’m tired.”

“Oh, well, why don’t you try to rest? I’ll just get one of my books and—”

“No, I don’t mean tired right now. I’ve been in the army for nine years, working in special ops. I was good at it. But I screwed up that night. I should have double-checked, hell, triple checked, the info we received to make sure what we had was accurate. I don’t want that kind of responsibility again.”

“I think you’re being a little hard on yourself.”

He shrugged. “Doesn’t matter, anyway.”

“Do you intend to let your family know what happened?”

“Not if I can help it, no. I want to be in good physical condition the next time I see them.” He closed his eyes. “I’m ashamed to face them, all right? I wanted them to be proud of me and what I’ve accomplished. I don’t want them to know that I screwed up.”

“I have a hunch they’ll be too glad you survived to care about anything else and, from what you’ve told me, I doubt they’ll believe you screwed up. I know I don’t.”

He opened his eyes. “You’re a nice person, Leslie O’Brien.”

“Yep. Nice. That’s me.”

“Do you have a boyfriend?”

She laughed. “Why are you so interested in my personal life?”