Semper Mine (Sons of War #1)(4)
He ignores me and puts on a knit cap. I’m not sure what his obsession with knit caps is lately, but he wears one every time he leaves the hospital.
“Petr, you have to be careful.” I’m worried about him, have been since I sat by him every day he was in a coma. I never left his side, and I’ve been a wrench in his spokes since then, knowing the doctors can’t influence my stubborn brother the way I can.
“I love you, sis,” he says with a wink. “You can throw as many shoes as you want at me, but I’m going.”
Pursing my lips, I’m about to put my foot down and remind him exactly what the doctor said, when there’s a knock at the door to his room.
“This isn’t over,” I warn him.
I’m hoping it’s the nurse he’s been eyeballing, the only other person who might be able to convince him to wait until the end of the week, after his final round of tests, before he tries to break in the new leg doing something stupid.
Opening the door, I spot the dress uniform of a Marine and frown, then look up at him. Dark hair and eyes, olive complexion, heavy jaw, tapered nose, full lips and a low brow. He smells clean and of some light, sweet cologne that reminds me of coconuts. He’s got the lean physique and wide upper body of a swimmer that I’d drool over, if he were any other man.
“You,” I hiss.
Captain Sawyer Mathis has an intensity and calmness around him that infuriates me, especially when I think of how detached and cold he was at Mikael’s funeral, like saying farewell to my brother was a chore. His brown eyes are on me.
He’s as handsome as he is good at taking out the men of my family. Why Petr and Baba like him, I have no idea.
“Ma’am,” he replies.
“You here to make sure my other brother ends up six feet under?”
“No, ma’am. I’m here to check in on him.”
“These are family only visiting hours.” I slam the door closed, or try to.
His foot is jammed in the door. “With all due respect, ma’am, your brothers saved my life, which makes them more than family in my book.”
“With all due respect, Captain, I think you’ve done enough for my family.”
I swing the door open, realizing his foot isn’t about to budge. Planting my hands on my hips, I’m not about to move from the doorway.
Seeing him reminds me too much of Mikael and how I’ll never see my brother again. I’ll be damned if I’m going to let the man who got Mikael killed come near my Petr.
Captain Mathis’ jaw is clenched. I’m not sure what he can be thinking, but he sure as hell isn’t expressing anything that makes me think he’s more human than he was at Mikael’s funeral. I don’t know why he bothered showing up that day.
“If you want in, you’ll have to move me out of the way,” I tell him.
“You can’t weigh more than one thirty. I’ve carried packs heavier than you.” His gaze sweeps over me. “I’ll be out of your way in five minutes, ma’am,” he adds calmly. “But I won’t leave until I get that five minutes with your brother.”
“Violence and threats are the weapons of choice, I see. Guess it comes naturally to someone who thinks invading some sovereign country over oil and getting innocent people killed is the right thing to do.”
A flare of something crosses his gaze and vanishes quickly. “And I imagine you think saving the whales is more important than funding the equipment people like your brothers needed to stay alive in a hostile environment.”
“There wouldn’t be a hostile environment if we had a policy of peace rather than war,” I point out.
“I didn’t start the war, ma’am, but I will win it so people like you can maintain your way of life.”
“You aren’t going to win if you keep killing off your own men!” God, what an *!
We glare at one another, the air between us charged and thick. I hit a nerve with him and sense it. I’m happy for it. I hate this man, because he came back when my Mikael didn’t. Not even Captain Mathis’ thick biceps and broad chest can make up for him being what he is: the representation of everything I despise about the military and war that took my brother away.
“Step aside, ma’am.” The order is gravelly, low and quiet in the resolute tone of a natural leader. It cuts through my anger. His gaze is piercing.
He’s not like my brothers and father. He’s not backing down.
“Oh, Kitty-Khav, I think I need some … Tylenol.” Petr says from behind me, pain in his voice. “Can you get the nurse?”
At once, my attention shifts to my brother. He’s seated on the bed, forehead in one hand. I panic at the sight of him in pain. There were so many times I thought we were going to lose him … I’d do anything to keep him from going through the misery he’s spent the past four months in.
“Yes, of course!”
Captain Mathis forgotten, I push by him out of the room, intent on finding the nearest nurse I can, even if I have to drag one out of someone else’s room.
Chapter Three: Sawyer
It takes me a moment to recover. I’ve never wanted to put hands on a woman before and talk some sense in her or worse, take her out onto the battlefield and show her what real war is like. I can’t recall the last time someone got under my skin like that. It doesn’t help that it’s impossible to take my eyes off her. Katya Khavalov is stunning, more so when she’s angry, and I hesitated long enough for her to set up the battlefield to her advantage. I gave her enough time to mount a pre-emptive attack and do what no insurgents can: piss me off.