lifted the burger out, inhaling the aroma of grease and fries with delight. She tried not to put too much store in the fact that he remembered how she liked her burger, but she wouldn’t deny the warm spot beneath her breastbone. Focusing her attention on her food, she said, “You’re forgiven,” and tucked into the heart-attack special.
Xander chuckled, unwrapping his own burger to say, “It’s probably a good thing we’re not smashing. There are enough onions on that burger to kill a moose. Your breath will be epic.”
“You’re one to talk about bad breath. You go days without brushing your teeth. You’ve probably got fungus in your mouth from when you were a kid.”
“Brushing isn’t so much important as flossing and I always floss,” Xander said, tossing back a French fry. “A dentist told me that.”
“Your dentist was a quack.”
“Possible. He only took cash and had a lot of stories about the Mexican mafia. I’m not sure he has a license to practice any longer, but he always gave me a good discount.”
“You’re lucky you still have teeth in your head,” Scarlett returned around a big bite. “If we get out of this situation alive, do yourself a favor and see a real dentist before your teeth fall out and you’re left with the need for dentures. Trust me, chicks don’t dig toothless guys.”
Xander waggled his eyebrows. “I don’t know... Could be fun. Imagine what I could do...”
Scarlett threw a fry at him with a laugh. “You’re disgusting,” she said, leaning back in the chair, enjoying the simple pleasure of delicious, greasy food and the company of a fellow soldier.
Tomorrow would happen soon enough and anything could change within a few hours.
So yeah, she’d enjoy a burger and leave everything else at the door.
A beat of companionable silence followed as they finished their dinner. Scarlett changed into something more comfortable to sleep in—cotton shorts and a soft long-sleeved top—and climbed into the bed while Xander spent some time surfing the net, looking for information.
Xander would probably still be boyishly handsome when he was an old geezer—chasing the ladies in his wheelchair and winking as he gummed his applesauce in the old folks’ home—because that’s just who Xander was and always would be.
If Scarlett were to draw her complete opposite, Xander’s face would be the one she drew.
And if she were being honest...she liked that about him.
Xander yawned and finally closed his laptop to disappear into the bathroom. When he reappeared, he was only in his boxer briefs.
She wasn’t going to make a big deal out of it—she’d seen him in less—but her body flushed and she turned on her side away from him as he climbed into the bed.
Closing her eyes, she willed sleep to come but complete silence had always been her enemy. Too much quiet made for easy listening to the noise in her head.
Plus, she wasn’t accustomed to sharing a bed with anyone.
Irritated, she flopped onto her back, trying to find a comfortable position.
“Are you going to do that all night?” Xander asked.
“Sorry. I’m not used to having company in my bed,” she groused. “And you take up more than your share.”
“I promise I don’t have cooties.”
“I know that.”
He chuckled. “Then relax.”
“It’s not that...” She risked a glance toward him. “It’s because...there’s history between us.”
“One time does not history make,” Xander said. “Or so I’m told.”
She wasn’t going to argue the point. Exhaling, she deliberately closed her eyes and rolled to her side, plumping up her pillow and settling once again.
A long beat of silence followed until Xander said, “Do you really regret that much what happened between us?”
That was a loaded question—one she didn’t want to answer. She regretted being messed up in the head, which made it impossible to trust, which in turn made her a nightmare to be in a relationship with. Not that she wanted anything real with Xander.
Or anyone.
Her silence seemed an answer in itself. “I guess so,” Xander replied with a sigh. “That’s an ego-buster.”
Scarlett turned to glare at him. “Did you ever think maybe it has nothing to do with you?” she said, unable to just let him think whatever he liked. For some reason, it mattered with Xander. “Look, aside from the fact that I’m your boss...I’m just not the type to form unnecessary attachments. Trust me, it’s better that way. For everyone involved.”
Every time she’d ignored her instincts and allowed something to happen, it ended badly.
“I’m not cut out for relationships.”
“Me, either.”
His simple agreement coaxed a reluctant chuckle out of her. “Yeah? Two peas in a pod, I guess.”
“Or two broken people with too many sharp edges to be allowed around normal people.”
“Ain’t that the truth,” she agreed, the tension lifting a little. She turned to face him, tucking her arm under her head. “Maybe that’s why we’re so good at what we do... We can compartmentalize like Olympic athletes without blinking an eye.”
“Mental boxes for everything,” Xander returned with a half-grin. They were joking but only sort of. That was the sad reality that they both recognized. “I know why I’m broken, but what’s your story, Rhodes?”
This was around the time she usually shut down. But that feeling of safety had returned and she found herself sharing, even when she didn’t want to. “Jacked-up childhood. When my dad wasn’t beating me...he was doing other things.” She gave a self-deprecating chuckle and added, “He wasn’t exactly in the running for Father of the Year.”
“He ever get caught?”
Scarlett shook her head. “Small town bullshit. No one wanted to get involved. There was no one to rescue me so I rescued myself.” A lump rose in her throat. She hated talking about her past. “Anyway, he’s dead but he was dead to me long before that. His going into the ground was just a formality.”
Xander nodded. She was relieved to see nothing but respect in his eyes at her admission. There was no pity, no “you poor thing” judgment in his expression, just plain respect for having the balls to do what no one else had been able to do for her.
And because of that, she admitted quietly, “I don’t regret what happened between us, Xander. There are just reasons—solid ones—to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
Xander accepted her answer with another nod because he got it, even if he didn’t agree.
