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"I’ Really Sometimes I can’t think of anyone else to complain to"
"You can always complain to me," he said
She turned around and looked at him; for a moment her eyes flashed "And how am I supposed to do that? I hardly ever talk to you I almost never see you"
"I’ for a while after leaving here It’s complicated, Vanni I can explain"
"Anya husband?" she snapped "Oh God, I’ot into me just now My God, you lost your best friend--I’m sorry Paul, you don’t have to explain…"
"Yeah, I think I do After we buried hirenade with the pin out I hadn’t unloaded, and man, I really needed to I was a little out of ment I had to take a tis, you know? And I didn’t want everything between us to be about grieving over Matt There’s a lot more between us than that"
"There is?" she asked hopefully
"Well, Jesus, we delivered a baby together" He rubbed a thuh"
"No," she said "No Your hands are fine Do you have any idea how much I’ve missed you?"
"Not half as ether, you and me" He reached for her hand He couldn’t tell her now, here, in front of Matt’s grave with the general waiting right inside the house "Go get cleaned up To to take you and your dad out to dinner"
She smiled "Anywhere special?" she asked
"Your favorite bar and grill I eneral, Vanni and baby to the bar, the few custo Tables were pushed together and the usual crowd gathered around The April nights were still cold, so the fire was lit in the hearth Jack divided his time between the tables and his favorite spot behind the bar Paul drifted back there and said, "Look at your wife, ot a kind of wild look about her Her cheeks are awful pink"
"I know," Jack said "We just had a doctor’s visit--John Stone said if we turn her upside doeto go early I’ve been drivingto keep her still I’d like to keep this one inside at least a couple more weeks"
"She’s real animated Kind of like Vanni was that day she made me watch the childbirth h to kno early is too early I thought about calling John…" Then he sht down here Good thinking You ed Paul’s expression "When I drove up to the house today I caught her out at the grave, crying I told you--she’s still on real shaky ground"
"My advice--which, by the way, Mel says I aive--is be sure you’re around when the ground stops shaking"
"Jack, I should talk to you about a couple of things This whole business with Vanni--it just keeps getting , I have some pretty stiff competition…"
"Oh, yeah? Join the club, ht Mel’s husband was a doctor"
"Yeah," he said "An ER doctor A saver of lives who, by all accounts, was also perfect in every other aspect of his life" He sed "He was neat, sod"
"You didn’t stand a chance, intellectually speaking," Paul said
"I know it," Jack said "And yet…"
"I need to talk to you about a couple of things," Paul said "Maybe you’ll point ht direction"
"Paul, you don’t needhis head briefly "I don’t think it’s gonna be that si So we can talk"
"Coet too far away these days I haven’t been co"
When Paul sat beside Vanessa again, she looked at hi aquaht was how he’d probably see those eyes flash in pure rage when he unburdened himself She had a fire in her, and he’d seen a hint of that earlier today, out by the grave It caused a shudder to pass through hiht next to hi it under the table
It was still early when they got back to the general’s house Vanni took a little ti hiht While she was busy, Walt built a fire Then he went down the hall, leaving Paul alone in the great room
Paul wanted a drink, but he didn’t dare He was afraid it would loosen him up, make him either talk too much or do too much Then Vanni joined him She’d brushed out her hair and it fell in silky curves onto her shoulders, glistening in the firelight,him want to scrunch it up in his hands
"Where’s Dad?" she asked, curling up in the big leather chair beside his
"He fixed up the fire and left the room," Paul said "It’s kind of early for hiet you anything? A nightcap?"
"No, thanks," he said a little nervously "So--rumor has it the doctor was here last week…"
She s you want to keep secret, get out of this town!"