Straightening, Breanna began to undress. The steamy air softened her skin of her cheeks. She felt the poisons and worries that had accumulated in her body beginning to escape. She flattened her hands over her face, pushing her fingers back over her hair and then down over her chest to her hips and thighs, stretching slowly, relaxing after the stressful day.
Breanna slipped into the tub even though the water was still running. The knots in her muscles gave way; her legs slid limp against the side of the narrow tub, the close confines somehow reassuring.
They had showered here together, many times. To be able to that again, just one –
But those were distracting thoughts. She had live in the present, not the past. She still loved Jeff. She might love him more, in fact – he was brave and determined and he could be stubborn, but that was attractive too. He’d nailed the test the best pilot on the base – the next-best pilot on the base – had failed.
Jeff would never walk again. His back was broken. She could deal with that; she could survive that. And as soon as he was sure of that, as soon as he saw that she wasn’t just pitying him, it would get better. She knew it would.
It would.
Breanna lowered her head to the surface of the water, feeling the tingle. She wanted to reduce her consciousness to just that feel, to just the hot tickle on her skin. Her face and breasts and legs fuzzed with the warmth.
Many times before they were married she sat in this very tub like this, thinking of Jeff. She believed she could feel him there will ESP, close her eyes and he would magically appear at the door.
A knock in the hallway startled her.
Imagination?
No, there it was again.
“Jeff?” she called.
“Hey, anyone in there?”
Breanna jumped out of the tub. She grabbed the small towel from the bar, anxious to let him in.
it wasn’t until she started to turn the knob that she realized it hadn’t been his voice.
“No, it’s Mack,” said Major Smith.
Bree pushed the door shut quickly. “I’ll – I was in the bath,” she said. “Wait just a second.”
Smith laughed when she reopened the door a minute later.
“You didn’t have to get dressed for me, Rap,” he told her.
“Major?”
“My, we’re formal today,” said Smith, “Can I come in?”
“Sure,” said Breanna, who’d jumped into her flight suit. As she closed the door behind him she glanced toward the bathroom, noticing her underwear on the floor where she’d left it. She went to close the bathroom door.
“Expecting Jeff?”
“Well, he is my husband,” she told Smith. “Can I get you something? A Coors?”
“Sure.”
Breanna squatted down in front of the fridge, retrieving two beers from the bottom compartment.
“I figured I’d stop by and say good-bye,” Smith told her, taking the beer.
“Good-bye?”
“Assignment came through.”
“Oh?”
Smith shook his head. “Can’t tell you about it.” He grinned, obviously pleased with himself. “If you want, I’ll try and get you transferred too.”
“Thanks, Mack,” she said.
“I’m serious. They’ll be closing this place soon. A few months. Nothing against your dad,” he added, sipping the beer.
Smith was attractive; good-looking and damn smart, he was also obviously bound for bigger and better things. He could play the political game and clearly wanted to be a general. She liked him, even though his ego was bigger than the room they were sitting in.
“How’s the JSF?” she asked.
“An access panel flew off and jammed one of the rods in the leading-edge assembly,” said the pilot. “The panel wasn’t secured properly. Mechanics ought to be shot.”
“That sounds a little harsh.”
“You can’t do your job, there’s no excuse. I could have augured in,” said Smith, who didn’t seemed very concerned. “Anyway, I’m glad to be rid of the F-119. I just wish –”
He let his gaze drift into hers. Breanna felt her heartbeat double.
“I’m not really attracted to you, Mack,” she heard herself say softly. She knew instantly it was a lie, and he
