Joint Forces by Catherine Mann Read Free Book Online Page A

as powerfully now. Pain he'd caused.
    He needed to regroup. Now. He turned his back, reached for the water pitcher, pouring a cup for himself, another for Rena.
    "J.T.? It was an accident."
    "Of course it was." He jerked around to face her, passed her a water glass. "I never thought otherwise."
    Did she really think so little of him that she expected recriminations? Jesus. He might have hurt her, but never like that.
    Brown eyes wary, she took the cup from him without touching. "You are not moving home because of the baby. Let's get that straight right now. Our reasons for splitting still stand."
    He leaned back against the wall, crossing one booted foot over the other. "What were those reasons again?"
    "Don't be an ass."
    "Ah, reason number one." He drank half the cup of water in one swallow, icy cold along heated anger.
    She'd called him a major ass during their fight six months ago about the number-two strain on their marriage. Money.
    "I'm sorry." Rena's voice softened. She rolled the cup between her palms. "My temper is right up there on the reason list. I drive you crazy. I know that."
    "Oh yeah, babe—" a slow smile crept over his face "—you've definitely always driven me crazy."
    Well, hell. So much for smart strategies. But the unstoppable spark between them always had messed with their minds. Apparently still did.
    "J.T., damn it." She slammed her cup down on the end table beside a basket of flowers. "That's what got us into this mess before. And again now."
    His smile faded. "Don't worry. I'm not planning to pressure you about getting back together." No pressure about it. Slow and steady won the day with his wife.
    "You're not?"
    "No." Think strategy, not how much easier it would be to kiss her quiet. Not about how tight the knot twisted in his stomach over the thought that even if he made it home, they weren't any better off than before. "You made yourself clear when you pitched my barbells and books out on the lawn six months ago."
    And the reason for that final fight? They'd argued over the flipping family Christmas vacation, for God's sake. She'd insisted his lengthy deployments were taking a toll, making growing apart too easy. His fault.
    He knew it.
    So he'd offered to take leave. Not good enough. She'd wanted to rent a cabin in the mountains, something she insisted they could afford now that she was working.
    Hell. As if he needed it thrown in his face that he couldn't provide for his family on his own. As if he needed reminding of all the things she'd had growing up. Things he couldn't come close to giving her.
    A fact that had been stewing in his gut for twenty-two years.
    "Well, J.T., tossing those possessions on the lawn was just the start of venting problems years in the making. Three months ago proved that." She gripped the length of her hair in her hands and began twisting it into a knot on the back of her head. "We'll just draw up a new set of divorce papers."
    His eyes tracked the moves of her hands against her glossy curls. He'd always wondered how the hell she did that trick with her hair, had watched her hundreds of times, the memory of those strands gliding through his fingers never failing to make him hard.
    He finished his water, pitched his cup in the trash. "Not until you're up and moving again. The doc said you need to stay off your feet for at least two weeks."
    She paused midtwist. "What happened to doctor-patient confidentiality?"
    "We're married." For better or worse, they'd vowed. Vows that were about to be broken if he didn't ignore the chemistry and put a stop to this. "I already logged in a call to my commander for a lighter schedule while you recover."
    "J.T.," she warned, arms reaching up as she finished securing her hair. "Remember that you left the last time. I'm not the only one who said we don't have a chance."
    And that's what he got for talking. All the more reason to guard his words, so she couldn't throw them back in his face later.
    He plowed ahead. "I can't be away