FIRE (Elite Forces #2)(41)
“He asked me to keep you safe until he returned. I told him I would. That’s it. Jade. You know we don’t ask questions. We just do as we’re told. You should be used to this by now.”
“This isn’t the Army. He’s not our commanding officer anymore. He’s our f*cking teammate. This is my relationship with the man I love. How am I supposed to stay here, knowing he’s going into some deep shit? I’m losing my mind, thinking about all the possibilities of what can go wrong. What if those guys don’t watch every single f*cking thing, Harris? I can’t do this every day. This is not a life I want to lead. I’m built to fight, not keep f*cking house.”
“Are you seriously walking away from him?” I stop moving and stand silent as I look at Harris still leaning against the doorframe.
“I have to, Harris.” I sit on the edge of the bed again before I realize I’m sitting here only in Kaleb’s t-shirt.
“Damn it. I’m losing my mind. I’m prancing around here in a damn t-shirt in front of you.”
“I’ve seen it all before. I know it’s not like that.” He shrugs like it’s no big deal, but it is to me. This is part of what I mean about being naked and bare. He has my mind f*cked up with worry, and I feel vulnerable to the fact that my whole life could be changed with one wrong move by any of them.
I slide some shorts and have to roll the waist down so they’ll stay up on my hips. Harris never leaves his spot, and I want to yell at him at the same time I want to thank him for always being here.
“No, it’s not.” I grab a brush, running it through my tangled-up hair, gathering it up, and securing it with a few pins into a messy bun while I start to think about what I’m going to do from here.
“Tell me where your head is, Elliott. I need to know the plan before you move on anything.” I busy myself picking up everything on the floor, which isn’t much.
“We’re leaving here. I’ll report in tomorrow and see if they can get me back out there.”
“You really think rushing back out there is going to help you through all of this?”
“It can’t hurt.” He pushes off the wall and moves toward me.
“You’re not ready for that, and you know it.”
“Well, Harris. I’m not going to just sit around and play housewife. That’s not who I am. He obviously wants that from me.” I leave the bedroom to get the last of my stuff gathered. I want Harris to get me out of here before I break down and cry again.
Throwing the last of my stuff in my bag, I flip the lights off and start past him to the door. He steps in front of me, stopping me in my tracks.
“Stop. I’m not going to let you make any rash decisions until we know exactly what’s going on. I’m taking you to the ranch for a few days, so you can chill the f*ck out. I’ve already told our superior where we’ll be. He agreed on the extended R&R for both of us. You have to call him yourself and let him know your whereabouts.” I look at his chest, because honestly, my eyes can’t look into his. His caring demeanor is something that’s easy for me to pull toward when I’m hurting like this. He’s been through so much with me, and I continue to send him on a ride from hell with the chaos in my life. I know him well enough to know he wouldn’t have it any other way, but hell, I need to feel some sense of normalcy soon before I lose my mind.
“I have Mallory packing her bag at my house. She’s coming with us.” I look up. His eyes are soft, and he grins just slightly when I start quizzing him.
“You f*cking my friend, Harris? Because I swear I can’t deal with her heart being broken when I’m dealing with my own shattered mess.”
“We’re just having fun. Now, give me your bag. Call your superior and tell him where you're going.” He reaches for my single bag just like the gentleman he is.
“Fun, huh. So I’m about to be a third wheel on a f*ck fest weekend with the two of you.”
“No, I’ll keep it to a minimum just for you. Now, get your ass in my truck. You need a few days to truly relax, and I’m going to make that happen for you if I have to strap you to a lounge chair myself.” I follow his large stature as I hit the last light in the house. Closing my eyes as I do doesn’t help the hurt. Breathing slowly as I walk the path Harris is leading, I whisper, “Goodbye, Kaleb,” as I close the door to my apartment and any possibility of a future with him.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
KALEB
Fuck. I throw my phone on the floor in front of the passenger seat in frustration. She’s leaving me. I could hear it in her f*cking voice. This is something I can’t compromise on, so I’m left with only one choice. Deal with the fate of us once I get back. I’d rather know I have a for sure chance to have that conversation by keeping her safe over taking her with me and chancing my brother torturing me by ruining her. I could never live with myself if that happened.
Her words echo through my head as I reach the airport and they don’t stop replaying the entire flight to the compound. It’s the longest flight of my life.
I know her well enough to know the end of that conversation was her way of making me feel like there’s going to be something to come back to. Well, I hate to tell her stubborn ass I’m not letting this end us. She can try to walk away from me all she wants, but I will find her with the tracker in her damn leg, and when I do, I know how she’ll react to me. Just like how I’m pulled to her, she’s drawn to me, no matter how hard she tries to fight it. She may as well not even try it. It didn’t work in the desert and it won't work now.