Back in the Soldier's Bed

Jonas looked up. “Shannyn.”

He was wearing grey shorts, the line of his incision clear and imprecise. His eyes darted away from hers, the twist of his mouth communicating his consternation. She probably wasn’t playing fair. He couldn’t hide his injury from her here.

But he needed to know she accepted him with it, so she stepped into the room and moved ahead to a bench a few feet away.

“We’re just finishing up,” Geneva explained, smiling at Shannyn. By now the staff all pretty much knew that Jonas was Emma’s father; it was difficult to keep very much a secret in such a small group. “You want some privacy?”

Jonas coloured while Shannyn smiled, shaking her head. “No, that’s okay. I just wanted to see how he was making out.”

She turned her attention fully to Jonas. He lengthened out his leg, his foot nearly reaching the end of the mat. “Soooo.” She drew the word out, making him smile again. “How are you?”

“Not bad, besides having a gimp leg,” he grumbled.

“You’re hardly limping anymore.”

“That’s right,” Geneva added. “Your range of motion and strength are really coming along.”

He finished stretching out his quadriceps, and Shannyn heard the small gasp as he reached the point where he could go no further. When Geneva let him relax the pose, she got to her feet. “Good work today, Jonas. I’ll see you next week. Don’t forget to work on those stretches every day.”

She left, leaving Jonas on the mat and Shannyn on the bench beside him.

“Why are you here?” He folded his legs, partially covering the scar with his arm.

“Because here it’s harder for you to hide. You reveal all to your PT but the moment I catch a glimpse of your leg, you run and cover up. I wanted to see it.”

His lips thinned. “Why? It’s just a scar.”

Shannyn tucked her hair behind her ears, then shook her head in disagreement. “It’s more than a scar. It’s more than a physical injury, Jonas, and you know it.”

“But it’s my problem, not yours.”

“What if I said I wanted to help you?”

He’d been avoiding her gentle gaze, but now he faced her head on, frustration a dark

spark in his eyes. “I’d say you’re crazy.”

Shannyn slid off the bench and on to her knees on the mat. Maybe she was crazy. But now they were bound by the link of their daughter. Her lingering feelings for him meant that when he was hurting, she was too. Even if she didn’t understand exactly why. His kiss said he wasn’t immune to her either.

“We have a past, Jonas. And now we have a daughter. That ties us, don’t you see?” She looked straight into his eyes. “We may not be together anymore, but I still care what happens to you.”

Her heart pounded as she put a cool hand on his knee. “Let me help you.”

Verbally she’d denied their attraction, but the touch of her fingers on his skin belayed the message. With her index finger she gently traced the incision line, noticing how the skin felt different there, thrilling as the muscle beneath her finger contracted at her touch. “I want to help you.”

“What if I don’t want you to?”

She stopped her finger and let her palm fall. She realized that the scar was longer than the length of her hand. The fact that he could do as much as he could now was a miracle.

“Are you saying you don’t want me to?”

With her hand braced on his leg, her torso leaned forward, pulling them closer together. He was balanced on his palms, but when he lifted his right hand, the balance shifted, pushing him closer to her. His fingers reached behind her ear, pulling the hair taut and cupping her neck.

“What if I wanted to kiss you and that’s all?”

Her pounding heart shifted into overdrive. The idea was seductive even as she realized that by saying it, he was refusing to let her in for more than a kiss. Still…if kissing him could break down barriers…help her understand…

She didn’t wait but leaned the rest of the way and touched his mouth with hers.