“Oh, honey,” Rita said. “I am so sorry about all this. It’s true that I always thought you and Nolan would be so perfect together, and I got a special thrill out of writing up your marriage license, assuming it was never going to be used. But honey, the look on your face right now… you love him, don’t you?”
Her teeth landed on her bottom lip, biting hard to stop the quiver of her chin. Swallowing several times, she gained control and battled the tears away. “I never expected the last couple of days to turn out the way they did, and the idea that a future down the road might be possible. It would be stupid to try to say that I don’t have feelings for Nolan, but right now? Wanting to be with someone who thinks so little of me while he also suspects so much of me? No. I deserve better.” Her body shaking, all she wanted to do was get away. “I’ll see you when I get back.”
Nancy was crying out, “Please don’t do anything hasty—” when Lynn disconnected the call. Closing her laptop, she sat for a moment with her hands clasped tightly together in her lap. A single tear slid down her cheek, and she lifted her hand to dash it away. No! I’ll not waste any tears on him!
She hurried into the bedroom and grabbed her overnight bag. Stuffing her belongings inside, she gave no heed to the jumbled mess of wadded clothes. Inside the bathroom, she did the same with her toiletries. Hurrying back into the living area, she shoved her computer into her slim case. Grabbing the complimentary pad of paper lying on the desk, her heart sunk as she wrote a note. Dropping it onto the coffee table, she scanned the room one last time, started toward the door, then halted.
With her feet cast in lead, she walked back to the coffee table and stood for a moment, looking at her left hand. Slowly, she pulled the wedding band from her finger. It was never real, and yet, my finger now feels bare. She leaned over and placed it next to the note. Not looking back, she left the room.
18
Nolan sat at the bar nursing his second whiskey. The first he’d downed quickly, hoping the fire of the peaty alcohol would help burn off some of his irritation. He had been at the bar for over an hour, each minute seeming to click by slowly while his emotions raced.
The dim lights in the bar occasionally flashed across his hand, dragging his gaze to the wide ring on his finger. When his mother first proclaimed that he and Lynn were married for real, all he felt was disbelief, but that was quickly followed by the choking emotion of being out of control. SEALs are trained to control a situation, and the last thing they want is entrapment. They guard each other’s back, work as a team, and never leave a man behind.
I’m fucking sick of not being in control! Throwing back more of the whiskey, he thought of the last month. Out of commission with emergency surgery. Prolonged recuperation with an infection. His team’s need to continue without him until he could return.
Resting his hands on the bar, his attention was once again snagged by the ring sitting at the base of his finger. He remembered the moment she slid the ring on his finger two days ago. Her hands were shaking and her eyes round with uncertainty. There was no contrivance in her manner, just fear. The ring had felt strange at first, the cold metal against his skin. But somehow, in the past forty-eight hours, it had appeared natural whenever he looked at it.
The bartender caught his eye, but Nolan shook his head. The last thing he needed was more alcohol. That was another thing he was known for with his team—always keeping a cool head.
When on a mission with his SEAL team, intel was not always correct, information was shifting, and they adapted together. He was good at that and others relied on his ability to adapt quickly.
Isn’t that what Lynn and I did? As he replayed their time in the wedding chapel over in his mind, he knew it had not been her suggestion that they go through with the ceremony.
She didn’t trap me… she’s right, I agreed to this plan before she did. The flaming hot sex they had enjoyed in the past two days was as much his idea as hers. Throwing her teenage emotions and actions into her face had been a low blow. And hurtful, by the look on her face. The image of Lynn’s expression just before he walked out was now branded on his brain. He scrubbed his hand over his face and shook his head slightly.
I never planned on getting married, at least not now. I never really thought about it. It’s not that I don’t believe in love… hell, my parents are an example of a long-lasting marriage. While he had watched most of his team fall in love one by one, it had never hit him. Until now.
The past two days had been such an unexpected surprise. Time spent with Lynn had been fun and getting to know her had been interesting. She held his attention with her conversation and made him laugh with her wit. She was part brainy and part goofy. And oh, so beautiful. Hell, even in the middle the night I was wondering if she would consider waiting till I came back to work with Dad.
When that memory struck, he tried to discern why he reacted so badly at finding out they were legally wed. The truth was he could not come up with one reason to not want to be married to Lynn. And one very good reason hit him straight in the heart.
I’m in love with her.
His
