Groggy, Jake pried his eyes open when he heard a man sing, “Morning, sunshine.”
Confused, he looked around. His room, he recognized. But the fully dressed man lying next to him wasn’t ringing a bell, though he seemed friendly enough. The man rolled toward him, propping his head lightly on his hand and speaking volumes with his glee-filled eyes.
“Julian?” Jake mumbled. “What . . .” He looked down at himself, then the line leading up to a hanging bag of saline. “How long have I been out?”
“Three days,” Julian said, and when Jake shot him a worried look, he rolled his eyes. “Fine. Ten hours. At least, from the time we found you.”
“We? Kathryn.” Jake flung his hand to his face, suddenly noticing the fresh bandages. “Where is she?” he asked, now preoccupied with admiring the coverings of both hands.
“Making a mess of your kitchen with Dana and Laurie.”
Jake peeked below the blanket. “Julian?”
“Yes?” he sang, his tone way too naughty for the occasion.
“I’m naked.”
“Yup.”
“And clean.”
“Right again.”
With trepidation punctuated by a gulp, Jake had to ask, “You?” and then quickly added, “Not that I’m not grateful.”
“Oh?” Julian scooted closer. “How grateful?”
“Easy, tiger. Not that grateful.”
Frowning, Julian hopped off the bed. “Too bad, because we all pitched in. Just four girls washing a tank.”
Jake kept on his game face. It’s just medical. They’re professionals.
“A hot, steamy tank with all the right equipment.”
Okay, hot-blooded professionals.
“Kathryn’s a very, very lucky girl.” Julian winked. “And she kept your jibbly bits hidden the entire time. She insisted on polishing the old beaver-basher herself.”
Shaking his head, Jake laughed. “Wow. I’m not sure I’ll ever look at it again without hearing those words.” Before Julian could leave, Jake said, “Thanks for wrapping my hands.”
Curiosity lifted Julian’s brow. “What makes you think it was me?”
“These,” Jake said as he held out his hands, “were done by someone who works in plastics. And you, my smooth and wrinkle-free friend, have just the perfect skin to mean one thing.”
Julian nodded. “Lead plastic surgery nurse at the best damn clinic in the state. At your service.” He smoothed his hand across his jaw. “Perfect skin, huh? Smart. Charming. Built like a lord of the underworld. No wonder Kathryn loves you.”
Smiling to himself, Jake closed his eyes, overthinking absolutely everything and afraid to believe it. She loves me?
There was barely a knock before Dana and Laurie swarmed him. One took his pulse while the other pressed a hand to his forehead. Hating to point out the obvious, he said, “I’m pretty sure I don’t have a fever.”
Julian jumped in. “Oh, they’re just looking for excuses to touch you.”
Jake threw a concerned look at Kathryn, who set a tray of breakfast on the bed beside him.
“Don’t give me those terrified puppy-dog eyes,” Kathryn said with a warning look. “They saved your life. Letting them paw you is a cheap price to pay.”
The girls each rubbed an arm. Amused, he relaxed his arms behind his head, giving them a better gun display to manhandle.
“All right, all right,” Kathryn said loudly, shooing them away. “The man’s paid his debt. That’s enough.”
“Fine.” Dana huffed, feigning a mighty big eye roll.
“We’re glad you’re all right,” Laurie said with a smile.
Jake held Kathryn’s gaze until the click of the door closing clued them both in that the trio had left.
“I can remove the IV if you like,” she said.
He extended his arm.
With a gentle touch, Kathryn removed the IV, and bandaged him with a soft caress.
He rubbed her hand. “Did you just save my life again?”
Shyly, she shrugged. “Technically, Julian found you.”
“How did Julian find me?”
“It’s a long story.”
Jake slid over, giving her room to sit beside him. “I like long stories.” When she finally sat down, he pulled her tightly to him.
“I like long stories too.” She sighed, snuggling in his hold. “You can tell me anything.”
“I know I can.” Unsure where to begin, Jake started with the name that triggered him. “Dominguez,” he said slowly, trying to hold the name in reverence.
Kathryn nodded against his chest but said nothing.
“He was my commanding officer. We’d become as close as brothers. We always had each other’s backs . . . until that day. The day you saved me was my last day in the Army. Not just because of the medical discharge, but because I couldn’t do it anymore. I thought I saw something, something I couldn’t have seen. In the heat of an attack, adrenaline pumps. Your senses are heightened. Alert. And then I saw it, just before all the gunfire exploded. One of our guys . . . turning his weapon on Dominguez.”
Taking a deep breath, Jake said, “I aimed my rifle right at the man’s heart. Both he and Dominguez turned to me, staring as if they thought I’d snapped. Then the gunfire started. I was still stunned, wasn’t fast enough. I was hit, but I kept firing, taking hit after hit until I couldn’t shoot anymore.”
He squeezed her tighter. “The only thing that kept me going, making me fight to survive, was knowing that Dominguez was fine. He’d survived. But . . . I was right. Wasn’t I?”
Again, she nodded.
“There was a policy on Dominguez. And they weren’t going to let him go. When I didn’t hear from Dominguez after my discharge, I thought he was uncomfortable. Didn’t want the association of a loose cannon. But he’s gone, isn’t he?”
Kathryn’s warm tears dropped onto his chest. “Yes. Combat. He was sent on a back-to-back deployment. Killed in combat.”
“So I could’ve saved his life. If I’d just taken out that cocksucker when I had the chance.”
“And you’d have been dishonorably discharged. And probably jailed.” Kathryn wiped her tears and sat up, staring hard at him. “You couldn’t have known. It was just—”
“A hunch,” he said. Solemn, he stroked her hair. “I could never completely trust my instincts after that, no matter how right I thought I was. And now I . . .” He looked at the bandages around his hands. “Pain has been my go-to for a long time. My escape. A way for me to push myself until I’m numb. It’s a lot to deal with. I understand if it’s too much.”
She lightly stroked the dressing around his hands. “It is a lot to deal with .. . . alone.” She slid her arms around him and gave him a tight hug. “You don’t have to deal with it alone. I’m here. No judgment.”
Skeptical, he asked, “You’d stay? Even knowing this is part of who I am?”
Kathryn sat up and scooted away, giving him a stern look. “For big runs, I’ll strap a CamelBak on you. Dehydration solved. But when you do whatever the hell it is you did to your hands, you’ll let me treat you. I’m a nurse—it’s part of who I am. Okay?”
He looked away, uncertain how to break the news to her. Shaking his head, he said, “I don’t know.”
“You don’t . . . know?”
Holding his hands toward her, he explained. “I sort of got used to Julian’s touch. What can I say? He spoiled me.” He watched her hard gaze melt into a tender laugh. “Can I take these off? And shower?”
“Let’s take a look.” From the nightstand that had become a makeshift nursing station, she reached for the medical shears. After a few snips, she slowly peeled back the bandages. “Wow.”
Prepared to lighten the worst of what she was seeing, he said, “Don’t worry. It’s nothing. I’ve had much worse.”
“Actually, it looks remarkable compared to last night. Fast healing must be your superpower.”
Caressing her cheek, he said, “According to Dana, my kisses are.” His mouth descended on Kathryn’s, grateful for her welcoming lips.
When he finally released her, she bit back a smile. “She’s right.” As she unbandaged the other hand, Kathryn pointedly asked, “Want to tell me what the hell happened, soldier?”
He smirked. “I might’ve had a knock-down, drag-out fight with a tree.”
Wadding up the bandages, she stood. “Did you learn your lesson?”
“Yes, ma’am. My first and last ass-kicking by a Douglas fir. Next time I’ll keep my fighting to river birches.”
She discarded her handful in the bathroom. Upon returning to the bedroom, she found him standing, staring hard at her.
“You’re in the same clothes you were last night.”