“You must miss out on a shit load of fun, then.” She didn’t sound acrimonious at all—on the contrary, it almost seemed as though she felt sorry for me.
“I probably do. But I also miss out on a lot of pain.”
“Mmmm.” She ran her fingers through her hair, letting the strands sift over her hand. “Well. I guess if that’s where we both stand, I should say thank you for paying for my car repair. It wasn’t necessary, but I’m not going to fight with you about it. I have a feeling you’re a stubborn son-of-a-bitch.”
“You’d be right about that.” I didn’t try to hide my grin.
She rolled her eyes. “Then I’ll just say good night ... and I guess, have a nice life. The chance of our paths crossing again is probably pretty small, unless you take part in the living history on the battlefield. I don’t have any reason to go onto post, and I’ve lived here nearly a year without meeting you until now. So ...” She stood and held out her hand. “Thanks again.”
I realized I didn’t want to shake her hand, but it wasn’t because I didn’t want to touch her. It was because I was afraid of what would happen when I did. But I couldn’t leave her hanging, either. I manned up and rose to my feet, too, closing my fingers around her much smaller ones.
“You’re welcome.” I worked hard to ignore the zing I felt all the way to my dick. “Uh, good life to you, too.”
“Are we having aCasablancamoment here?” She was trying to lighten the mood, although neither of us had made a move to let go of each other.
“What is that line? About the problems of two people and a hill of beans?” I rubbed my thumb over the back of her hand, thinking distractedly how smooth her skin was.
“Something like that. Are you sure—”
“Hey, Cap! You gotta minute? I think we have a problem down here.” Pete’s voice floated up from the driveway, and Samantha and I jerked our hands apart, like two teenagers caught necking in the back row of the movie theater. Samantha looked more than a little flustered as she hooked her purse over one shoulder and started down the steps of the deck. I trailed behind, feeling just as unsettled as she appeared to be.
“This hose ... it’s shredded.” Mickey was holding a piece of tubing in one hand as we neared my car. “See, you should’ve let us take a look when you first noticed the leak. I might’ve patched it then, but now, it’s going to need a total replacement.”
“Shit.” I shoved my hands into my pockets. “Can we get the part tonight?”
“No way, man.” Pete wagged his head. “I’ll have to order it, and then maybe by late tomorrow afternoon, but more likely on Thursday.”
“And you can’t drive it,” Mickey added. “You’ll have to leave it here until I can get it taken care of.” He scratched his head. “Guess Pete or I can drive you home. Can Captain Braggs or Captain Duncan get you to work tomorrow morning?”
“Probably.” I stared at the offending car part, my eyes narrowing in suspicion. “Hey, can I see that hose?”
“Only problem is, Pete had two beers, so he probably shouldn’t drive. And Cecile has my car at bingo.” Evans dropped the radiator hose into the trash barrel, ignoring my request, which only served to confirm what I suspected.
I frowned at him. “Couldn’t you drive me in Pete’s car?”
“I’ll drive you home.” Samantha’s tone was deceptively casual, even though I detected the slightest tremor. “That way, neither of you has to go out. I didn’t even finish one beer, so I’m good to drive.” She slid me a sideways look. “Besides, I owe Captain Remington a favor after he paid for my new starter.”
“That’s probably a good idea.” Specialist Evans nodded. “Makes the most sense. Okay, Captain, we’ll order the replacement tonight, and I’ll let you know the minute we get it in there.”
“Thanks so much, Evans. Pete.” I drilled them each with a look that spoke volumes, letting them know that they hadn’t fooled me. Neither of the clowns so much as flinched; Pete even smiled bigger. “I won’t forget this.”
“Hey, Cap, it’s nothing. Don’t sweat it.” Pete began herding us down the driveway. “Keeping your car running smooth is our pleasure.”
“Yeah, I’ll just bet.” I paused by the driver’s side and opened the door for Samantha, whose face was inscrutable as she slid behind the wheel. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow, Evans.”
“See you at work, Captain.” He sounded downright merry.
Rounding the car, I took the shotgun position and closed the door behind me. Samantha started up the car, sighing a little in pleasure at the smooth turnover, and began backing down the driveway.
“What was all that about?” Her tone was curious and a tad bit amused.
“Eh.” I waved my hand. “Nothing. They were just being guys.”Guys whom I’m pretty damn sure just sabotaged my car so they could push me into driving home with you.I pointed to the corner. “We’ll need to take a right here.”
“Okay.” We rode in silence for a few minutes, broken only when I had to give her directions to my house.
“Do you like Garth Brooks?” The question was abrupt and came out of the blue, making me frown sharply at her.
“Uh ... yeah, I guess. I like his music. I’ve never been to a concert or anything, but sure. Why do you ask?”
