She hooked a finger in his dog tags, tugged him down, closer, until they stood nearly nose to nose. "I gave a demonstration on how to organize cabinets."
"Really?"
"No, you idiot." She released his dog tags to clank against his chest.
He traced the path of her dog tag chain down the side of one breast, up the side of the other. "But I'm an entertaining idiot."
"That you are." She kissed the base of his neck, sipped away a taste of the water with a flick of her tongue. "I needed money for med school. I've always wanted to be a doctor. Always. The military part came later and I'll thank God for the rest of my life for the fact that I ended up in an ROTC recruiting office all because I tripped on the hem of my dress during the evening gown competition. First runner-up only gets enough scholarship money for books along with a one year's supply of beef jerky."
No self-pity for this lady, she always met life head-on, made her own way. A veritable mountain of will.
The damned persistent bogey slid in with a memory of the strain stamping her face back at the luggage hangar. He kissed the side of her brow. "Sorry Yasmine spilled it all out there."
"It's done. And there certainly are worse call signs than Tiara."
"Amen to that. Just ask poor ole Booger."
Her light laugh caressed his neck. His arms looped around her waist, hers around his. If only things could stay this warm and simple, he'd be a happy man.
"I'm sorry about your wife."
Well, hell. So much for wishes. He wasn't going to get away with light and easy any longer, not that Monica had ever let him take the easy way out. His hopes for an uncomplicated relationship like with Tina were as gone as she was.
"Me, too." His chin fell to rest on Monica's damp head and he let the water beat some sense into him. "And for what it's worth now, I'm sorry for not telling you sooner. I could make excuses, but when I line them up now, they all sound lame-ass and I owe you better than that."
"Where do we go from here?''
At the moment he was so damned glad to have her back in his arms again, he didn't want to worry about the rest. Of course, that hadn't worked with Monica in the past. "I still don't understand why the hell we have to make permanent decisions now, but I get that you need a clear plan."
"Progress." She smiled against his chest.
He crooked a finger under her chin to tip her face up to him. "But I'm not going to let you lead me around by the nose for four years like you did with that wimpy-ass Hunter while you make up your mind if you like the plan or not."
Shit. Where had that come from? Probably the same damned place as the jealousy chewing his hide.
"By the nose?" She stilled against him. "Are you trying to make me remember why I want to sign those papers or does being a bastard just come naturally to you sometimes?"
"Naturally. No doubt. And that's something else we'll have to deal with, isn't it?"
He'd had a belly full of deep-water talk for one night. Turning, he shut off the shower.
He swiped aside the plastic curtain, reached to snag two towels, passed one to Monica. Sawing the towel across his back, he forced himself not to look at her, not until he figured out where the hell his jealousy had come from.
"You know that's unfair." Her voice drifted over his shoulder.
"What?" he shot back while retrieving his clothes.
"About Hunter. Every time I postponed the wedding plans I had a TDY. You know we can't always get out of those."
Great. So she really did have a thing for the guy? He yanked on his boxers. "Whatever you want to tell yourself. How many times was it you canceled wedding plans with him? Four or five?"
Her footsteps stalled. "What was her name?"
He should have remembered she didn't fight fair.
"Tina," he answered, yanking his T-shirt over his head. "She was twenty years old, liked sci-fi movies and mushrooms on her pizza, and had just declared her major in electrical engineering before she gave birth to a stillborn son who she never even got to look at."
Monica wrapped the towel around herself, her wet hair clinging to her neck in clumps. "And you loved her. Your son, too."