Staff Sergeant Cade McMann’s skills and cemented his confidence. He should be able to have a simple conversation with his ex-fiancée without trembling in his boots.
When he’d learned Tori James was moving back to their small fishing community, he’d known there’d be adjustments. But she’d been home a month, and pretending they didn’t share a painful history—and attempting to avoid each other despite their families’ close ties—had become a problem. Time to deal with it.
As he approached her place, a gray-and-white Queen Anne home set in a narrow lot, house flags whipped in the wind and chimes clattered a discordant alarm. The sign advertising Tori’s pet-supply shop swayed on creaking chains. The Canine Companion occupied the first floor. The second had been converted into an apartment years ago. A tinkling bell heralded the exit of a customer and her four-legged pet. She was chatting and laughing with a petite blonde woman.
Tori. His gut tightened.
A humid breeze teased the hem of her flirty summer dress, drawing his eyes to her shapely legs and round-toed flats.
The pair continued across the generous covered porch and into the stamp-sized flower garden surrounded by a low brick wall, the dog trotting between them. She hadn’t noticed him yet. Contentment curved her lips as she bent to give the pooch a proper goodbye.
The back of his neck grew hot. The last time he’d been face-to-face with her, she’d ripped his heart from his chest and stomped on it.
It’s now or never. “Hello, Tori.”
Tori popped up, a strangled cry of surprise catching in her throat. “Cade.” Taking in his camouflage uniform and heavy lace-up boots, her brows slammed together. “What are you doing here?”
The other woman’s gaze bouncing between them, she guided her dog toward the exit. Cade moved to unlatch the gate and hold it open for her. Once she was out of earshot, he stepped through and let it shuffle closed behind him.
His keys bit into his palm. “Would you believe I’m here to purchase one of those fancy dog cookies?”
“You don’t own a dog.” Her white-blond hair danced about her face. She’d lopped off several inches, and the pale, straight layers kissed the underside of her jaw. The short style enhanced her delicate bone structure and made her green eyes pop. “Unless you got one and didn’t tell your mother.”
Best friends for decades, their mothers had few secrets. “I’m pet free at the moment.”
“Then I can’t help you.”
“Let me buy you a cup of coffee.”
“It’s ninety degrees.”
“An ice cream, then. Last I heard, Red’s Diner still sells vanilla-and-orange swirl.”
At the mention of the diner they’d frequented, the corners of her mouth turned down. “Maybe another time.”
When she pivoted and started to walk away, he caught her wrist in a light hold. “Your mom’s birthday party is Sunday night.” His mom, Dee, had been planning the event for weeks. She wanted to give Barbara a sixtieth birthday celebration that would hopefully get her mind off of her illness. “Do you really believe our families won’t be evaluating our every move?”
“I’m sure we can manage to be civil.”
“Can we? You aren’t even willing to let me buy you an ice cream.”
He hadn’t been this close to her since she ended their engagement a decade ago. Her perfume, a pleasant blend of oranges and bergamot, transported him to another time, to when they’d been each other’s closest confidantes. Friends since middle school, it wasn’t until their senior year that he’d realized friendship wasn’t enough anymore.
A garbage receptacle toppled over. Tori cringed, her gaze darting around to the neighboring homes.
“Something wrong?”
“I’ve had a weird feeling these past few days...” She grimaced. “It’s nothing. That’s what I get for reading back-to-back murder mysteries.”
He did his own scan of their surroundings and found nothing out of the ordinary. No one stirred outside the mint-green house next door advertising tax services. Directly across the street, three gardeners worked to tidy the double lot belonging to a swanky bed-and-breakfast.
“Don’t dismiss your instincts. If you think—”
“Forget it.” She leveled him a look that reminded him that their days of sharing confidences were long gone. “Look, Cade, if you want to talk, let’s talk about my brother. You have to convince him not to enlist.”
Over the years, Jason had become the little brother Cade never had. When the eighteen-year-old had confided in him about his dreams of a military career, he’d warned him Tori wouldn’t be pleased.
“He’ll be an asset to the Corps. He’s strong, physically and mentally. There are opportunities for advancement, and he can take college courses later on. Your mom gave him her blessing.”
He didn’t have to ask why she wouldn’t. Her experience as a military kid had been characterized by frustration and disappointment. A respected member of Force Recon, her father Thomas James had been involved in secretive missions more often than he was home. His frequent, unexpected absences had put a strain on his marriage and caused his daughter to become disillusioned. After his untimely death—which, to this day, was shrouded in mystery—she used to say that she lost her father to the military long before.
Her eyes flashed. “I know you’re married to the Marines, but that doesn’t have to be Jason’s future.”
Cade wrestled with fresh hurt and disappointment that carried him back to the day she’d cut him out of her life. He’d known she wouldn’t like his decision to enlist, but he hadn’t dreamed she’d refuse to marry him because of it. Their breakup was the reason he’d almost flunked out of boot camp.
The June heat ratcheted up a notch. He tugged off his cover and ran his hand over his hair. “My life may not be perfect, but it’s a good one. I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished. Whether or not Jason joins, it’s ultimately his decision, not yours.”
“Thank you for reminding me how little you value my opinion,” she retorted, hurt glistening in her eyes. “It didn’t matter ten years ago. I see nothing’s changed.”
Tori backed away. He was reviewing the ways he’d messed up when an explosion rocked the ground beneath him. The sound of a nearby lawnmower was eclipsed by the roar of twisting metal. A wave of intense heat billowed toward them. With Tori’s scream ringing in his ears, he lunged for her.
Cade’s big body pressed Tori into the sunbaked earth, his arm heavy across her back and his cheek tucked against her neck, as bits of fiery debris rained down on them. Brittle grass poked her skin. Her right wrist throbbed.
“What happened?” She tried to move, but her human shield wasn’t budging.
“I don’t know.”
His weight shifted above her, and his exclamation spurred her to take advantage of his distraction. She inched out from
