Letters from Home (Love Beyond Reason #1)(18)

“Oh yeah? Well then, let’s go fishing.”

He hedged. He didn’t want to have to choose, but he would. “I can’t promise.”

“Whatever, amigo.” Mike eyed him as they walked up to the church doors then held one open. “See what women do? We’ve never had a woman between us before.”

“Lena’s not a woman-between-us. She’s your sister.”

Mike pointed. “And don’t you forget it.”

Zack about stumbled through the door. Righting himself quickly, he turned to stare at his best friend. “Was that a threat?”

“No. Just a promise.”

He took a deep breath when Mike continued into the church. Things were bound to change. He was ready for it. He’d been waiting for it.

Zack blessed himself before rounding the pews to the left and finding the Rodriguez family near the front. Every Sunday, this he could count on. She was, of course, smack dab in the middle of the bunch.

Desperate times call for desperate measures.

He smiled for Juan, who sat on the end, and pointed toward Lena. “Excuse me,” he whispered, lifting the empty kneeler with his toe and side-stepping into the pew. He bumped into Maria’s knees and then stepped on the edge of Jaime’s shoe. “Sorry.”

Jaime shook his hand in a silent hello, and finally, after squeezing past Cat, Zack was next to Lena.

He waited for everyone to scoot down toward the aisle, then turned and sat, ignoring the warning look he was getting from Mike and the Cheshire grin he was getting from Maria. He nodded to Carlos, who sat at the center aisle with Anabel, a contemplative frown on his face—not unfriendly, but not that amicable, either. Anabel gave him the motherly smile he’d been graced with for the last twenty-two years.

Lena knelt beside him, her long, shiny hair plaited down her back and exposing the long line of her neck. So he knelt, too. And he bowed his head to pray…that she wanted him.

“What are you doing?” she spoke under her breath, leaning into him a little and leaving his heart stuttering from her closeness. “Could you be any more disruptive? People are trying to pray!”

“I wanted to sit next to you.”

This was plan B? His mouth had a mind of its own. He was lucky he hadn’t added, for the rest of my life. There was some sense still swimming around up there.

Lifting her head just enough to catch his eye, her beautifully arched brows furrowed. He liked seeing her confused. He’d never rocked the boat before, but with as little time as he had left, finesse and grace weren’t going to cut it anymore.

…

He’s not my brother.

That was the bottom line. The evidence of something growing between them made her want to hurry back to the safety net of her job in the Army. But that was fickle. And she had never been fickle.

Her longing over the last year for something more, for what had been promised in those letters, called her the liar she would be if she snuck away now. Wishing Zack had written those letters sat at the pit of her stomach like a lead ball.

“Whatcha doin’ there?”

Lena glanced up as Catalina came into the bedroom and waved to the pile of envelopes on the bed. “Sorting.”

“Are these all from your secret admirer?”

Shaking her head, she shoved a pile toward her sister.

“Oh.” Catalina shuffled through a few of them. “I didn’t know Zack had been writing to you.”

“Not much.” Lena shrugged. “I wrote to him before joining. I wanted to hear how it was, ask some questions. He wrote back.”

They were not love letters. They were usually short. More like quick notes typed between tasks. Of course, they’d always made her laugh, the little stories about his unit or a particular night out with the guys. Anecdotes. Encouragement.

Frustration was like sandpaper on her soul. “I needed a friend who knew what it was like. Zack had already been in for five years. Read one.”

His first reply had been short, railing at her for considering the idea. It had hurt a little but made her even more determined to join than ever. Without that letter, she probably would have chickened out. When her anger had subsided—a few months later—she’d written back.

Almost twelve years of letters. Not a single romantic thought in the bunch.

But she still loved him. And now, she had to admit, she loved him as more than a brother or a friend. “Grrr! Seriously? Cat, what am I supposed to do?”

“About what?”

Lena rolled her eyes and picked up the pile of letters from her secret admirer. “The letters. How can I leave this guy hanging?” She bit her lip. “I think I’m in love with Zack.”

“I knew it.” Cat picked up one of the love letters from the pile sitting next to her and turned it over in her hand. “But, you definitely need to meet this guy.”

Catalina tossed the letter to the bed and stretched her legs, leaning back against the headboard. “We all love Zack. He’s like part of the family, even if you are kissing him.” She smirked. “This, though…well, if you don’t meet him, you’ll always wonder, don’t you think?”

Maria showed up in her scrubs after a long night at the hospital. Hair was coming out of her bun and sticking out in all directions, dark circles marred her eyes.

Lena patted the bed. “Tired?”