By Request Collection April-June 2016. Оливия Гейтс
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you are so freaking transparent,” Chance said, still laughing. “Jenna told me all about your assignment. A pretty, curvy brunette who looked like she wanted to kill Jenna for just talking with you.” He gave Chase a knowing look. “You dog. You put the moves on her, didn’t you? C’mon, you can fool some people with your badass attitude, but not me, bro. I can see the truth. It’s written all over your face. You like this woman.”
He said it as a statement of fact, and not a question. But he was right; Chase had never been able to keep a secret from his twin and there was no point in even trying.
He blew out a hard breath. “Jesus, Chance, I’ve been with her all of three days and she’s so deep under my skin …” He scrubbed a hand over his hair. “But her client, the singer, flies in today, so it’s not like we’re going to have any chance to be alone again. And then in five more days, she leaves.”
Chance considered him for a long moment. “Okay, I tell you what. Jenna already left. She’ll be gone for at least a week. I was going to crash in her unit tonight, but I can always go bunk with the itinerant pilots. Why don’t you and your lady friend use her place tonight? Hell, use it for as long as you’re going to be here. I know Jenna won’t mind.”
The offer was so tempting that Chase was half inclined to retrieve Kate right then and drag her over to Captain Larson’s housing unit just so he could be alone with her. He ached to feel her body pressed against his own, and needed to hear her small cries of pleasure as he made love to her. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so eager to spend time with a woman.
Now he shook his brother’s hand. “Thanks. I appreciate the offer.”
“You bet. Look, I have to run, but it was great to see you.”
“You, too,” Chase said, and gave Chance the key to Captain Larson’s unit. “You take care of yourself, okay?”
He watched as Chance jogged away, then continued walking to the showers feeling lighter and more hopeful. He would be with Kate again that night, even if it was just for a few hours. He’d find someone to keep an eye on Kate’s sister for the time that they would be away from her.
Whistling softly under his breath, he thought the coming day might just be the best one he’d spent in Afghanistan so far.
PULLING ON HER SHOES, Kate decided this was going to be the worst day of her life. Even the prospect of seeing Tenley again didn’t raise her spirits. If anything, she felt exhausted at the idea of looking after her sister for the next several days. She just wanted the tour to be over and to return to the States. She’d spent most of the night lying in her bed thinking about her own future. One that didn’t include Major Chase Rawlins. Just the thought of him brought a painful lump to her chest.
Once the tour was over, she would return to Nashville with Tenley, but she’d decided that it was time to find her own place to live. She would continue to act as Tenley’s publicist, since it was clear that her sister needed her, but there was no reason for them to continue to live together. And then perhaps, in a couple of years, she could persuade Tenley to find another publicist. As for Chase … she would chalk it up as a learning experience and not make the same mistake again.
She gave her laces a hard yank. Did Captain Larson have any idea that Chase wasn’t faithful to her? Maybe they had an open relationship. Kate didn’t know and didn’t care; she only knew that she could never share Chase with another woman. She had a vivid image of him making love to the pilot, and her stomach twisted. “You okay, hon?”
Kate jerked her head up to see Jessica standing in the open door of the housing unit, watching her closely. She nodded and finished tying her other shoe. “Never better. My client comes in today and we can finally get this show on the road. I’m just anxious to get this over with so I can go home.”
“Amen,” Jessica said, leaving the door open as she came in. “We missed you at breakfast this morning, but I brought you a nice pastry.” She held out the offering, neatly folded in a white napkin. “Full of lemon custard. Looks delicious.”
Kate forced a smile and sat up straight on the small sofa. “Thank you, that was very thoughtful.”
“Oh, no bother at all,” Jessica replied, sitting down on the lower bunk, across from Kate. “So how are you really doing? You look a little peaked to me.”
Kate waved a dismissive hand. “No, I’m fine, really. Like I said, I’m just looking forward to going home.” She turned to pick up her watch from the side table. “I’ve decided that as much as I respect and admire what the troops are doing over here, if I never see another uniform in my life, it will be too soon. You might think they’re all hotties, but from what I can tell of the ones I’ve met, they’re just walking testosterone in combat boots.”
The masculine clearing of a throat had her turning guiltily toward the door, where Chase’s broad shoulders nearly blocked the daylight. He looked so strong and commanding in his uniform and his sunglasses that for a moment Kate’s heart leaped. Then the scene from the previous night came rushing back, and she determinedly looked away.
“Hmm,” murmured Jessica with a knowing smile. “You were saying?”
Kate stood up, but didn’t apologize, despite the fact she knew that Chase had overheard her disparaging remarks.
“Good morning,” she said, picking up her shoulder bag.
The sunlight behind him cast his face in shadow, and with his sunglasses on, it was impossible to read his expression. “Good morning,” he said carefully. “If you’re ready, we can head over to the concert site and check it out. Your client’s flight isn’t due to arrive for another two hours, which leaves us plenty of time.”
“Fine,” she said coolly. She turned to Jessica and Marion. “It was really nice meeting both of you. Maybe I’ll see you over at the flight line, but in case I don’t, have a safe trip back to the States.”
Marion gave her a hug. “Just remember that most guys are jerks,” she whispered in Kate’s ear. “Don’t be too hard on him.”
Kate gave her a stiff smile and pulled away.
“Now you listen to me,” Jessica whispered, as she hugged Kate. “I don’t know who this guy is, but I do know that he isn’t deserving of a second look from you. I saw what he was up to last night, too, so don’t you give him the time of day.”
Pulling away, Kate smiled at both women and turned to Chase. He jerked his sunglasses off and frowned, his sharp gaze sweeping her from head to toe and missing nothing.
“Everything okay?” he asked as they walked toward the Humvee that waited for them. “You have shadows under your eyes. Didn’t you sleep?”
“Not really,” she said stiffly. “Looks like you didn’t get much sleep, either.”
“I managed to grab a couple of hours.”
Kate barely suppressed a disdainful snort. She didn’t want to think about what Chase had been doing that prevented him from sleeping, and she certainly didn’t want him to know that she had witnessed him kissing Captain Larson. He was the Special Ops guy; let him figure out why she was in a bitchy mood this morning.
They rode in silence for several long minutes. She could sense his puzzlement and his concern, but refused to look over at him, or speak.
“Are you sure everything is okay?” he finally asked. “Because if there’s anything you need to talk about, I’m here for you.” His voice was so warm and compassionate that Kate’s resolve almost wavered.
Almost.
Instead, she turned and gave Chase a level look, despite the fact her heart was hammering inside her chest.