Broken Soldier: A Novel by Clara Frost Read Free Book Online Page B

bite of her sandwich.
    Another pang of jealousy speared Emily. She jabbed a piece of lettuce with her fork and dipped just the barest edge of it into her fat-free ranch--on the side, thank you very much. “I hope so. He’s having trouble at school because of his size. And unfortunately, his mother isn’t doing much to help.”
    “What about his dad?”
    “I’m not sure what he does, but his dad isn’t around very much.”
    Christa shrugged. “Well, good thing he has you, huh?”
    She made it sound so easy. So flippant. Eating disorders and body issues were harder problems than anyone really gave credit, and Emily knew it better than most. She glanced down at the napkin spread over her lap. Those thunder thighs were proof of that. Rub those babies together long enough, and you’d get fire.
    “Hey space cadet, come back down to Earth.” Christa grinned at her. “No pity parties today.”
    “I’m not having a pity party,” Emily said. “Just thinking about my client. He’s a good boy and he deserves better.”
    “Yeah, I know someone like that.” Christa gave her a look that left no doubt who she meant. “So tell me about Rafa. You haven’t scared him away yet, have you?”
    “Not yet. He was pretty weird the last time I saw him, though.”
    Christa’s easy grin tightened up into actual concern. “What’s that mean?”
    “He’s getting out of the Army. Probably. And so he’s trying to find a new job. In South Carolina.”
    “Oh. Shit.” The meat and tomato slid out of Christa’s sandwich, plopping onto her plate.
    “Yeah.”
    “So he just announced this to you as a done deal?”
    “Not quite.”
    “What do you mean? It matters, Em. If he hasn’t actually decided, it may mean that he wants to stay here.”
    “I don’t know what I mean. Why would he even want to stay? It’s Boulder. We have block parties for drunken college kids--”
    “It wasn’t so long ago that we were those college kids,” Christa interjected.
    “Yeah? Well, we’re not exactly carefree, anymore. And anyway, he doesn’t have anything to keep him here. I think he wants to go. He always talks about how the mountains remind him of Afghanistan.” Emily jammed the lettuce into her mouth and chewed furiously. Even with the dressing, it was bland.
    “And you’re worried you’re going to lose him.”
    “Of course I am!” The lady at the table beside them looked over, frowning. Emily covered her mouth, embarrassed that she’d actually yelled. “Sorry.” She turned back to Christa. “So yes, I’m worried that I’m going to lose him. He’s tender and caring and smart and--”
    “Handsome,” Christa said.
    “Extremely handsome. I think he still thinks I’m trying to analyze him. That I view him as some kind of project because of his physical differences.”
    “So you view him as a project because of his mental differences?”
    “No!”
    Christa laughed. “Just playing with you, Em. So it sounds to me like you two need to actually sit down and talk about this.”
    “Talk about what? We’ve only been seeing each other a month.”
    “So? I’m not saying you need to get engaged or go elope or something, but maybe you should try actually communicating and not turning this into a soap opera?”
    Emily sighed. “I know I should, but it’s a whole lot easier to talk about it with you than it is to actually go and do it.”
    “That’s called life, hon.”
    “I know. I think it would be easier if he were actually my patient. I wouldn’t be so emotionally attached.”
    Christa shook her head. “That’s not true. You can’t help but get attached, even to your patients. It’s who you are, Em. It’s why I love you. Hey, I have an idea for you, if you’re interested.”
    Emily scooted back slightly. Christa’s big ideas had a tendency to blow up in her face. Even Rafa, as amazing as he’d turned out, was tying her heart up in knots more often than not.
    “Alright, hit me.”
    “You know how my parents