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Her joining him

He hitched the sweats over his hips "How did you find out about the uing mix of military precision cut by a hint of a sway She stopped beside hiainst the wall as she leaned

"Joker caht physical for immunizations" She hooked a stray hair behind her ear "He thought I knew, so he wasn’t guarded in what he said Once I looked at what he was being given and did soured it out Or at least enough where"

"You had to be briefed in on the rest" Damn He jerked a T-shirt over his head, tried not to wince at the pull to his arm

"Are you okay?"

"Fine"

"Anthrax immunizations hurt, don’t they?"

"A little" A lot He worked his ar his box of Froot Loops, he frowned at the neatly folded bag before tearing it open to toss back a handful

"You can take one dose of Motrin, you knoithout going off flying status"

"Uh-huh," he grunted,

"Damn flyboys, always afraid ofbabies about the pain"

A self-deprecating smile snuck free Yeah, she knew her job and patients well "You’ll be sorry to hear, but I think I’ll live"

He reached for another scoop of cereal

She grabbed his wrist to stop hiardless of e’ve been through, you knoould hurthappened to you"

So Monica still had feelings for hirandma’s Kleistos dances over a si froht?

Only fifteen minutes alone with her and already he’d peeled away all his clothes and half his resolve He didn’t knohat he felt around this woure it out He jerked his hand free and ate his Froot Loops before she could seal his bag closed again And he didn’t doubt for a minute she’d done it the first ti damn deal He crunched

"So, Jack? Do you want to replace one of the other doctors with eon to the roster?"

"Not going to happen Against regs for you to fly with me since we’re erator, top open If she didn’t want to be his wife, she could keep her cereal-sealing hands to herself

"You really underestimate me, don’t you?"

Ambush ahead He scrambled for a recovery but she beat him to the end of the runway

"I’ll be in a different plane" She unzipped the top of herabout the fuzzy edges of conflict of interest, you haven’t said a word about Blake Gardner’s SEAL platoon running one leg of theto unpack and stay in his roo about anyhow? Blake Gardner?

"The boy’s club in action, huh?" She yanked out a clothespin "You can rescue irlfriend But I’m supposed to sit back and hen she’s erous" And Gardner was in his own personal hell over not being able to stop Sydney fro because of Monica

Stalking back to the refrigerator, she snapped the clip on his cereal bag and closed the box lid so dah It sure as shit beat shouting

"Get real, Jack Are you going to follow me around for the rest of my Air Force career--andto work your Korbaes and join the modern world"

Her eyes narrowed, jade depths just as intense and potentially hazardous as those NVG views "What’s really going on here? You’ve never had a problearbage and talk to me"

"We’re married," he repeated

"So? Husbands and wives can’t work together? Sure I’m not supposed to fly over on your plane since we’re married Not that anyone knows to call you on it But I’ll ride on one of the other jets, anyway"

He stepped closer until his dominant Greek nose almost touched the pert tip of hers "I don’t want you there"

Pain flashed for a whole second--a damned tidal wave of emotion from Monica--before she doused the spark Well, fine He hurt, too Not that it stopped hi to wipe away her worry

"I can understand that, Jack, but you kno damned scared I’ve been for my sister these past months"

Ah, shit If she went soft on hiht him much, but his father had been rock-fir my best to end that fear for you"

"I know But I don’t understand why you kept this nugget of hope from me You’ve never been a petty ood ones Like security And not raising her hopes for them to fall

He wouldn’t fail "If it had been as si you, then hell, yeah, I’d have let you know Except you would have insisted on a slot fro now" The truth pushed through, good thing since nothing else gained hias I can’t spend the next week dancing around land mines" He stepped closer "You kno it is whenever we’re in the same room"

She stilled The air conditioner hu the breeze and dulling the edges of pain until the pull between them increased Swelled Demanded attention He could have her He knew it The defensiveness in her eyes broadcast she knew it, too

He couldn’t allow himself to take that step forward, a move that would hurt her, both of them, even more "Don’t push this Plans are in place Don’t Push"

"I have to You’ll figure out hoith e to ith you every day after the divorce is final" Her hand fell to his ar immunization site "Jack, for three and a half months I’ve tried not to think about what could be happening to Sydney But still, possibilities sers tightened "You knohat these people are capable of We all knohat Aest woman he knew leveled his defenses faster than a SCUD er sister had to be there at all blasted everything else inside hi but Monica’s eyes

"I know you’ll get her out of that hellhole, Jack"

Her faith rang clear She ht doubt him in other arenas, but not here at least Of course he couldn’t fault her for questioning him in the relationship depart up ht back between that rock and hard place, wanting ain

"Monica, you’ve said you trust et her So we should put this on hold--"

"Please let er At the very least, she’ll need a basic physical She’ll have to give an accounting of what" Her voice cracked