By Request Collection April-June 2016. Оливия Гейтс
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Those girls spent as much time on our ranch as they did on their own, and I became pretty good at interpreting their moods.”
Kate gave him a tolerant look. “So?”
“So I know that when a woman says things like ‘I’m fine,’ and ‘Really,’ what she’s actually saying is ‘Screw you, I’m pissed at you,’ and ‘Leave me alone.’”
Kate couldn’t prevent her quick smile, but then she sobered. “Well then, if you’ve broken the code, you should heed the hidden message.”
“What’s going on, Kate? You can tell me anything.”
Kate gave a disdainful laugh and turned her attention out the window. “Thanks, but I don’t think so. Why don’t we just go look at the site, okay?”
She sensed his frustration, but he was nothing if not intuitive, and thankfully he didn’t pursue the topic. They drove in silence after that, until they arrived at an enormous parade field with a covered stage at the far end. Both the field and the stage swarmed with soldiers and technicians who were busy running electrical cables and wires, and setting up the amplifiers and speakers. A gigantic American flag provided the backdrop for the performers, and Kate watched as the lighting specialists flicked through all of the possible combinations.
“Wow,” she said, climbing out of the Humvee.
She walked toward the stage, taking note of the work being performed all around her. Along the perimeter of the parade field, food tents had been set up and Kate watched as the soldiers dragged out long tables and prepared enormous grills for what would surely be thousands of burgers and hot dogs over the course of the next two days and nights.
“This is amazing,” she said, turning to Chase. “You really get the sense that these guys have done this before.”
“They have,” Chase assured her. “This is the biggest base in Afghanistan, and hundreds of performers come through here. C’mon, I’ll show you where your client will be able to relax when she’s waiting to go onstage.”
He took her elbow in a gesture that should have been impersonal, but Kate couldn’t prevent herself from stiffening at the contact, and then pulling her arm away. She heard Chase mutter a curse and sensed that he wanted to confront her, but there was no way she could let him do that. She didn’t feel strong enough to get into it with him about Captain Larson, and she absolutely did not want him to see how much it hurt her that he could go from her bed to another woman’s bed.
Ignoring his frustration, she took her time examining the stage and the equipment preparations. She had been around concert performances for most of her life, first with her mother and then with Tenley. Watching the setup was as natural to her as breathing. When she had seen enough, she followed Chase into the building directly behind the stage. The USO had converted a dining facility into a large lounge area, with sofas and food stations, and just about everything the performers could want to either relax or practice before going onstage. There were several small rooms off to the side where they could even catch a quick nap.
Chase came to stand beside her. “The USO has arranged to have massage chairs set up for the performers, and there are some rooms in the back where they can warm up, if they choose to.”
Kate nodded, satisfied with everything she saw. “What time is the first performance?”
Chase pulled a small notepad out of a pocket on his camo pants and quickly scanned through it. “The first performance is tonight, but it’s more of a warm-up, with each group only doing one or two songs. Tomorrow, two groups will each perform three sets during the Independence Day barbecue while the other groups do photo signings and meet and greets. The real show begins early tomorrow evening, with all the groups performing well into the night.”
“So when will Tenley go onstage?”
“I don’t have the order of the performances. If you’d like, we can talk to the USO. They’ll have that information.”
“I know where they’re located,” Kate said quickly. “You don’t need to come with me.”
Chase looked swiftly around, then caught Kate by the wrist and all but dragged her to one of the anterooms. He pushed her up against a wall and trapped her there with a hand on either side of her head. She would have to duck beneath his arm in order to escape, but she could see by the grim expression on his face that even if she succeeded, she wouldn’t get very far.
“What the hell is going on, Kate? When I left you last night, everything seemed fine, and then this morning you begin treating me as if I’m a goddamned leper.” His eyes flashed. “Have I done something to offend you? Tell me what it is, so I can least try to fix it.”
Kate swallowed hard. She’d known he wouldn’t let her behavior go unnoticed, but she hesitated to tell him why she was angry. Too many times, her relationships had ended because the guy she’d been involved with had chosen to leave. She’d had no choice and hadn’t been given an opportunity to try to correct the issue. She found she couldn’t do the same thing to Chase without giving him the satisfaction of an explanation. She knew from experience what that was like, and it sucked.
Raising her chin, she met his eyes squarely. She could see the frustration and concern in their green depths, and something else, too. Heat. He wanted to kiss her, and the knowledge both thrilled and infuriated her, providing her with the courage to speak.
“I saw you last night,” she blurted. “On my way back from the women’s showers.”
He cocked his head and looked expectantly at her. “So …? Why didn’t you let me know? I thought we had an agreement that you wouldn’t walk to the showers alone. You should have called me.”
Kate compressed her lips and stared mutely at him, willing him to come clean with her, and not continue this farce of pretending he had no idea what she was talking about.
“I didn’t call your name because it was clear to me that you were preoccupied with kissing Captain Larson.” She shoved angrily at his chest, but he didn’t budge. “I saw you, Chase! I know you spent the night with her. The least you could have done is told me you were already involved with someone. Do you know how that makes me feel? Do you?”
To her astonishment, he didn’t look guilty or ashamed at having been caught. In fact, his green eyes were alight with what might have been amusement and relief.
“Tell me how it made you feel,” he said softly, crowding her with his body. “I want to know.”
Kate couldn’t believe he could be that cruel. His demand was equivalent to emotional torture. Lifting her chin, she glared at him.
“You want to know how it made me feel? Fine, let me tell you. It made me feel angry. And hurt. And stupid for having believed that you wanted me. And so mad that it took all my strength not to go in after you and scratch that woman’s eyes out!” She stared at Chase, her breathing coming in aggravated gasps. “There, are you happy now? I wasn’t even going to tell you that I saw you. I was just going to leave—go back to the States and pretend I never met you. But you—you—”
She made a sound of extreme frustration and tried to break free, but he clamped his hands on her upper arms and hauled her up against his chest.
“Katie,” he said softly, searching her eyes, “do you really think I could so much as look at another woman after being with you? Do you really have such a low opinion of me?”
“I. Saw. You.” The words came out through gritted teeth.
He considered her for a brief moment, then caught her by the hand and dragged her out of the room. “I want to show you something,” he said over his shoulder. “Then, if you still want to hate me, you can.”
Kate hung back, not wanting to go anywhere with him, but resistance was futile. He hauled her effortlessly in his wake across the parade field and back to the waiting Humvee. “No, wait!” she protested. “Where you taking me?”
“You’ll