Absolution (Honor Guard 1)

He kissed her nose before looking down at her in determination. “You’re going to listen to me without talking.”

“No! I don’t want to hear this.” She squirmed, trying to break free. He’d planned his trap well, though. She couldn’t even wiggle a freaking leg. “Let me go!”

“Eva. Listen. The night you found me, I went out drinking with my old unit. We got carried away because we were mourning David’s death. One of my buddies suggested we hit up a strip club. Since we were all drunk, we thought it sounded great.”

“I don’t want to hear anymore! I’m sorry your friend died, but I’m failing to see how this excuses you cheating on me.”

“Shh. Listen. We all got rowdy and came back to our apartment. One of the guys brought a stripper along. I started feeling really sick, so I went to lie down. I’d only had a few drinks. Enough to get buzzed but not thattrashed.” His eyes beseeched hers to believe him. To trust him.

She laughed. She couldn’t help it. “So, I’m supposed to believe you were so drunk you didn’t notice a stripper crawling into your bed? Am I really so gullible?”

“I’m not done yet.” He closed his eyes, seeming to search for the right words. “When I woke up, you were yelling at me, screaming at me to get the hell out, and there was a woman standing next to me. You threw my clothes at my face, and I hauled ass out of there without even really knowing what the hell had happened.”

“Gee, I wonder why I did that,” she snapped, yanking on her wrists. How dare he hold her down and force her to listen to his miserable reasons for cheating on her? Asshole. “I swear to God if you don’t let me up, I’ll kill you.”

“When I stumbled out of the building carrying my clothes since I wasn’t allowed to get dressed,” he continued without hesitation, “I realized I’d lost my wallet and watch. By the time I made it back to base, the puking started.”

“Shut the hell up!” she shouted. Tears came to her eyes as she arched her back.

He finally released her, rolling to the other side of the mattress. She lunged at him, knocking him off the bed.

Tightening her fists, she leaned over the side of the bed and snarled, “You’re lying!”

“No, I’m not.” He hopped back on his feet, grabbing her shoulders. “I’m finally getting a chance to tell you the truth. She didn’t f**k me—she robbed me.”

Against her wishes, images came into her mind, hitting her in the gut full force. The stripper sitting next to Joseph with his watch in her palm. The terrified look on her face as she shoved something into her purse. All along, she’d thought the woman panicked because she’d walked in on them. What if it had been more? What if she’d caught the bitch robbing him—and let her go?

He had looked gaunt on the bed, his breathing shallow. She’d just assumed it was from the alcohol and sex.

“And I’m supposed to believe that?” Her heart raced at the possibility he could be innocent. Could she even begin to imagine the scenario? “So you’re an innocent victim? You never touched her?”

“It’s true. I’ve been told the same story from numerous witnesses. I never touched her. I shouldn’t have allowed a stripper in our home, it’s true, but that’s all I’m guilty of.”

“So you’re telling me, after over a month of me believing you slept with another woman, you were faithful? You were simply mourning a man you cared for? Got carried away with booze? That’s it?”

He nodded. “I didn’t touch her. I swear it. Now, we can move on. We’ve been given a second chance.”

“Why didn’t you try harder?” she whispered. All this time she’d been picturing him as this…this monster. And he hadn’t bothered to tell her the truth? “You’ve had six weeks to tell me the real story.”

“I tried. For three days, I was sick as hell. Puking my guts out. I had a bad reaction to the drug she slipped into my drink. I needed to be hospitalized for dehydration.”

“Wait a second,” she said slowly. Sitting up on her haunches, she frowned. “That bitch drugged you?”

“Yes.” He grabbed her hands, squeezing tight. “That’s why I wasn’t banging down your door right away. And then, when I tried, your—”

“You didn’t try,” she said. Remembered pain echoed through her heart, and she closed her eyes as tears escaped. “You never tried. I waited. You didn’t come.”

“Yes, I did. Every time I got within three feet of the place, or your school, your father had men waiting for me. I tried to fight through them,” he shrugged, “but even I can’t win a match against six guys. Especially not in those days right after.”

“My father didn’t do anything like that!”

“Oh yeah?” he snapped, eyes flashing. “Ask him.”

“What about the rest of the six weeks? What’s your excuse for those?”

“Your father,” he said slowly, “pulled some strings with his buddies in the US, and had me reassigned overseas. With no warning. The only reason he brought me back was because of—”

“Me. I don’t believe this,” she whispered. “I can’t.”

“It’s true. I swear. I’ll make it up to you, but I never cheated on you.” He ran a hand over his head and then gestured at her. “Why would I? Look at you.”

She gritted her teeth. “I don’t really know what to say here. To any of this.”

“Say nothing, then.” He sat beside her, playing with her hair. His touch sent shivers down her spine. He seemed to notice, for he tugged a little harder. “You know the truth now. That’s all that matters.”

“Do I?” She scowled at him, leaning her cheek on her raised knees. “I’m not sure.”

“You do. You know it, too. Why would I cheat on you? Did I give you any signs I wasn’t completely happy with you?”

She scowled deeper, but grudgingly shook her head.

“I love you. You know it.”

“I don’t know who I’m more pissed at. You, her, or my father,” she growled. “But it changes nothing.”

“Yes, it does. It changes everything.” He picked her up, plopped her on his lap, and crushed her lips beneath his. She put up a token resistance, but really, who did she think she was kidding? Certainly not him. His tongue plunged into her mouth, and she clung to his shirt, tugging him closer.