Page 51 of The Soldier and the Cowboy

The tea kettle whistled, startling them apart.

“Thank you for letting me make the first move today,” he said.

“Took you long enough,” she replied, shaking out of his grasp to turn off the tea before it woke Maggie and Cam. She poured the boiling water over their oats and set the hot teakettle aside.

“Is it okay with you if I make the second move?” she asked.

“I’m going to have to insist on it,” he said.

She drew him to her and kissed him. He picked her up and set her on the counter for easier reach. “Our oatmeal is going to get cold,” she murmured a while later.

“This is where that microwave earns its keep,” he replied.

But eventually he did lift her off the counter. They carried their oatmeal to the table. “How are you doing today?” she asked.

“Okay. It’s hard. It would be hard any way she went, but like this…” he trailed off and shook his head.

“Have you thought about any arrangements?” she asked. She was set to leave on Friday, but maybe she could postpone.No.She was done foisting herself on him. She would only stay if he asked her to.

“Isabel hated stuff like that. We’ll wait until the dust clears and have a celebration of life service in her hometown in California,” he said. “I should call her parents.”

“Did they know about the separation?”

“Yes. She blamed it all on me, and I’m fine with that, but I still owe them a call. It’s only proper. I expect I’m going to get an earful. Isabel has never done any wrong in their eyes.”

One didn’t turn out like Isabel without reason. Bailey couldonly imagine what her parents were like. But she didn’t say so. The woman was dead. There was no reason to bash her or flaunt her dislike.

Cal rested his hand on her knee. “You’re pretty good at this comfort stuff.”

“I only wish I could do more, could ease your suffering in some way.”

“You’ve already done so much more than you could know. To tell you the truth, I was half afraid you’d go on some kind of vigilante revenge raid or something.” He smiled at her. She stared at her coffee. “Bailey.”

Finally she looked up. He scowled. “You’re not planning something like that, are you?”

“I think the less you know, the better,” she said.

“No, absolutely not, no. I forbid it.”

“You forbid it?” she asked. She was smiling, but it was more from irritation than amusement.

“That’s right. I’m your boss, and I forbid it,” he said.

“I’m leaving on Friday. Consider this my two days notice,” she said.

“You can’t.” For a minute her heart leapt, believing he meant she couldn’t leave. But no. “I will not allow you to go off half cocked on some kind of death mission with murderers and rapists.”

“I have never gone off half cocked in my entire life. And I’ve kind of spent the last decade fighting murderers and rapists,” she said, taking a sip of her coffee.

“Don’t be casual when I’m trying to be angry and stern with you,” he said, scowling.

“Don’t be angry and stern with me when I’m busy picturing you shirtless,” she said, earning a laugh from him.

“You stop that.”

“Which part?”

“Which part do you think?” he asked.

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