Collateral Damage

You lost him a long time ago, and you know it. You have to let him go. Honor swallowed, struggled to keep her voice even as she said the only thing she could to save her dignity. “Okay. Take care.”

“You too.” He walked away without a backward glance, left her standing there devastated all over again. Her heart ached even more when she saw the slight hitch in his strong, confident gait. Liam moved like he owned the ground he walked on, something she’d always found sexy. Whatever other wounds he’d sustained on that mission last spring, his left leg had definitely been injured.

Honor hated that she didn’t know what happened or that she hadn’t been able to be there for him, but he’d made it abundantly clear even back then that he wanted nothing to do with her. And if this sickening sensation in her stomach at the sight of him was any indication, maybe it was a blessing that they never ran into each other.

The far door shut as Liam stepped out into the brilliant sunshine. Realizing she was still standing there staring after him like a lovesick idiot, Honor pivoted and headed back the way she’d come. Forget the shower, all she wanted was her bunk so she could pull the covers over her head and nurse her battered heart in private. They’d only bumped into each other a handful of times since they’d broken up, and every damn time she laid eyes on him her heart broke all over again.

As she walked away from the building, she couldn’t help thinking about the stark contrast between now and the first time they’d seen each other in-country, when he’d kissed her that first time. A little under two years ago now, mere months before her entire world had come crumbling down around her.

Chapter Two

Kandahar

Twenty-three months earlier

Six days in-country and finally her internal clock was getting with the program. Honor stepped out of the hot, dry morning air and into the relative cool of the shaded hangar. By noon it would be stifling even in here, far hotter than it ever got back at her home base in Washington State. This was the new norm, however, and with a long summer stretching ahead of her, she’d better get used to it.

Her crew was hard at work on a UH-60L Black Hawk they’d brought in to have its rotor blades replaced. Last night the pilot had hit some sort of debris while flying and made an emergency landing fifteen miles away. Honor’s crew had been tapped to retrieve it. They’d gone out in a convoy of armored vehicles in a flatbed to load the helo up and bring it back to base. Far more exciting than the average day as a maintenance tech.

“Brought you guys some water,” she said as she approached the Black Hawk’s belly. Two guys were perched on top of the machine, taking the blade pins out of the rotor grips that attached the blades to the rotor hub assembly. Three others stood on the ground nearby, ready with straps and pulleys in a trapeze configuration to take the load off the end of the rotors so they would release once the bases were freed from the main grips.

She hopped onto its deck and stretched up on her toes to hand two bottles to the private and corporal up top. She’d be checking the engines next, to ensure nothing had been damaged during or after the debris strike. As she was settling back onto her feet on the deck, someone called out behind her.

“Sarn’t Girard.”

She turned around to find an unfamiliar corporal standing in the hangar doorway. “Yes?”

“Some guy’s looking for you, ma’am.”

Frowning, she bent to set the other two bottles of water on the deck and stepped down to walk toward him. “Who and where?” A reporter maybe? One of her commanders had mentioned someone being interested in interviewing her for an article about female soldiers serving here at Kandahar.

The corporal shrugged. “Didn’t tell me his name but he asked me to find you and said he’d wait for you by Green Beans. Big guy, dressed in civvies.”

“Okay, thanks.” She had no idea who it could be, but if he’d asked for her by name then he must know her. She swung her head around and located her staff sergeant over by one of the equipment lockers. “Sarn’t, there’s—”

“Yeah, go ahead,” he said, waving her away with one hand without looking up from the wrenches he was gathering, intent on his task.

Glancing back at the helo, she called out to the rest of her crew. “Be back in a few.” When they nodded and resumed their work she slid on her shades and pulled the brim of her soft cap lower on her forehead to keep the sun off her face.

Her boots crunched over the dusty gravel as she headed to the Boardwalk, a covered, wooden-constructed walkway lined with shops and restaurants. As she approached the coffee shop she glanced around, looking for a man in civvies.

She spotted a man in khakis and a polo shirt coming toward her with another soldier but the guy didn’t so much as glance her way when she stopped just ahead of him. Sca

She kept going, had just passed Green Beans coffee when a familiar deep voice sounded behind her.

“Hey, Sarn’t.”

Honor gasped and whirled around, part of her convinced she was imagining that voice. But nope, Liam stood there gri

“Oh my God!” Without thinking she rushed over and threw her arms around him.

His soft chuckle ruffled the hair at her temple as his heavy arms engulfed her and squeezed tight, pressing her against that long, hard body she’d been fantasizing about for months. And the way he held her, so close, like she was precious to him, made her melt.

Honor closed her eyes and clung for a long moment while her heart tried to pound its way out of her chest. She couldn’t believe he was actually here, holding her this way, definitely more than friends. He smelled like soap and warm, spicy male.

Though she could have stayed in his embrace forever, they likely had an audience. After a long moment she forced herself to ease her grip long enough to pull away and look into his gorgeous face. His bright green eyes were full of amusement. “What are you doing here?” she asked breathlessly.

He shrugged those broad shoulders, the muscles bunching deliciously beneath her hands. She knew he’d be like that all over, couldn’t wait to explore his body once she finally got him naked. She’d been dreaming about it for so long. “Got a few unexpected hours off and decided to catch a transport down to see you.” His teeth flashed in the midst of his five o’clock shadow as he gri

He’d hopped a transport from Bagram just to see her for a few hours? Best surprise ever. Part of her was still convinced she was dreaming though. He’d already been deployed when she’d received her orders to come here, so it had been weeks since they’d last seen each other. “It’s great to see you.” He looked amazing as always. Strong enough to take on the world, and capable enough to do it.

Smiling, she released his shoulders then started to step back to put a little space between them and tried not to melt when he didn’t release her right away. Instead he kept his hands at her waist, his fingers stroking over the small of her back. The deliberate touch was a discreet caress, and charged with the same possessiveness she read in his eyes. Before now, Liam had only ever looked at her like that in her wildest imaginings.

Her mouth went dry as tingles erupted across her skin and her nipples tightened against her bra. Was he finally going to kiss her?