Not yet?He wanted to say that more confidently. But he knew this routine from others on the SEAL teams. There were some truths, some horrors you didn’tbringhome.
He could practically hear her thoughts.I’ve seen things, Grady. I know more than the averagecivilian.
Sheprobablydid.
That didn’t changeanything.
“I deployed,” he finally said ashe hauled himself out of the water. His voice was rough and flat.Compressed.
“Something you’ve done dozens of timesbefore.”
“What’s yourpoint?”
They both knew what her point was. She’d figured out that this last tour hadn’t gone the same as theothers.
When had he given her that inkling? He’d barely allowed himself to have that kind ofthought.
She shook herhead. “If you don’t see it, then I’m not going to spell it out for you.Let’sgo.”
He shoved his feet into his flip-flops. Shouldn’t she yell at him? Demand heopenup?
Do you need her to demand that?Even if she did, he might not beableto.
This was the entire plan crashing down around him. She saw him, really saw him, and instead of softening her heart, she’d judged himand found himlacking.
He’d gotten swept up in a fantasy of showing up on her doorstep and waltzing her into thesunset.
Was thirty-two years old too early to have a mid-lifecrisis?
He didn’t know where he was going to be in three months, six months, a year. How could he drag her into his life when he might abandon her again? That was her fear, after all. He knew it. Shedidn’t need to spellthatout.
Maybe there had been a reason why he’d gone dark on her. Maybe he wasn’t cut out for arelationship.
