She was glad too. Too glad. At first seeing him had been a shock, then a complication she didn’t want. And then something had changed. She’d stopped resenting him quite so much. Had started thinking of him while she lay in bed at night. More than thinking—fantasizing. Enough that she’d ended up pleasuring herself when the ache became too much.
But there was Emma to consider, and Shannyn had been hurt badly enough that there was some comfort in being friends. It was safer. It was still complicated, maybe even more than it had been in the beginning. But it was because the more she saw him the more she was reminded of how much there had been between them. How much there still was between them. She’d promised herself she’d be strong. It was proving more difficult with each day. She had such a weakness for him. Nothing had changed for her, except now she was unwilling to risk her heart. She’d jumped in recklessly the first time, and it was a lesson well-learned. She’d tested those waters the other day over coffee, and it had reinforced her knowledge that she couldn’t go through a full-fledged break-up with him again. Not ever.
Nothing had changed for Jonas either, and that was the sticking point. He hadn’t cared enough to make a life with her before, and he’d made it clear on Thursday that he still didn’t. Only as Emma’s parents, and that was the sum of their relationship.
But it didn’t stop her from caring, not when he looked at her the way he was looking at her right now.
“I’ll be right out,” she whispered, not trusting herself to say more.
Jonas took Emma to the truck. When Shannyn joined them a few minutes later, she couldn’t help but smile at Emma’s chatter. She threw out questions at a mile a minute. Where were they going to watch from? What sorts of planes would there be? Would it be noisy? Had he flown in any of them? Jonas happily answered all her questions and Shannyn listened to his answers, with Emma sandwiched happily between them.
Emma’s non-stop talking kept the truck from being too quiet and within a few minutes they had crossed the bridge and found parking on the north side of the river.
“I thought the crowd would be smaller on this side,” he explained, reaching behind the bench seat for an army blanket.
“This is fine,” Shannyn answered, and they made their way to an empty space on the grass.
Jonas spread the blanket and Shannyn felt strangely like they were on a regular family outing. It didn’t matter that their family wasn’t a “normal” family unit. Looking around, the scene was much the same. Parents out with children, spreading blankets and handing out water bottles and juice boxes. Others sat in couples, but all waited to see the aircraft fly one by one up the river’s path. Some would perform stunts; others would simply showcase their aeronautical abilities and impressive structures. Sitting down on the blanket, she watched Jonas strip his jacket. He leaned back on his arms and soaked up the summer sun.
“You look rested,” Shannyn commented, assuming a similar pose.
“I feel rested. Better than I have in a long time.”
“Mama! There’s a hot dog cart!” Emma bounded over and tugged on Shannyn’s finger. “Can I get one?”
Jonas sat back up and reached into his jacket for keys. “I can’t believe I forgot. I brought a bag of food and left it in the truck.”
Shannyn put a hand on his arm. “You stay and enjoy the sun. Emma and I will go.” She took the keys from his hand.
He watched them go with a smile. Looking across the green, his eyes fell on a young couple. The man was in combats, like Jonas. He had blond hair and an easy way about him that reminded him of Chris Parker.
The muscles in Jonas’s should
ers tightened. It wasn’t fair that he was here with Shannyn, and their daughter, enjoying a summer’s afternoon. He wanted it both ways. He kept insisting there could be nothing between them, but at the first opportunity he was with her, enjoying her company. He listened to the birds in the elms and maples, his eyes staring up into the cloudless blue sky. What really wasn’t fair was that Parker wouldn’t ever feel the sun on his face again. And yet Jonas was here. Free. Healthy. With a family he never knew he had. It didn’t seem right to him.
Didn’t seem right without his best friend.
Dust. Everywhere, on his skin, in his hair, in his mouth.
“I’ve got him at the door.” Chris’s hushed murmur came from beside him.
“I’ve got him, Park.”
“You’re clear. Take the shot.”
The mid-afternoon sun was unrelenting and he blinked against a bead of sweat that trickled into his eye.
He squeezed the trigger, heard the echo of the shot. Seconds later he saw the body fall through his scope.
“Damn,” Parker murmured, still keeping his voice low. “Over twenty-six hundred. How’s it feel to hold the new record?”
Jonas angled a wry look over his shoulder. “It feels classified.”
He laughed quietly and they slid back down the embankment, efficiently folding their gear and packing it.
“Good job today. Make sure you’ve got your canteen. We’ve got five miles to hike before we’re picked up and we’re already behind.”
Two hours later they were back with the company they’d been assigned to. And thirty minutes after that, they were all heading back to the Air Field where they’d meet up with the platoon.