“What’s on your mind?” I asked, sweeping the hair from her face to tuck it behind her ear.
Mercy raised her head and stared at me. “I’m glad you were there to help Ben today. I don’t know what we would have done without you.”
I squeezed her. “Yeah, me too.”
Her lips fell into a frown and she dropped her head back to my chest.
“What?” I prodded.
She sighed. “Eight more days.”
I felt the weight of my impending departure as well. I kissed her forehead. “We’re going to have to make them extra special.”
“But then what?” She blew out a breath. “I’ve been trying not to be all girly and crazy about this… thought I could just enjoy our time together and let you go… but I’m freaking out inside. You’re not going to wait seven more years to come home, are you?”
The thought of being away from Mercy for seven days hurt. Seven years? That was out of the question. “No.”
“But when will you come back? Next Christmas? Any other holidays? Will I get a schedule? God, I sound so needy, but Ben’s leaving as soon as you clear him to fly and you’ll be leaving soon after, and a bullet whizzed by my head this afternoon, and I’m having a really shitty day.”
“Agreed. You’re entitled to sound needy right now, but you need to stop reminding me that you could have been shot. It does bad things to my blood pressure.”
“That’s not fair, since in the Army you can pretty much be shot at every day of the week. Not just on a random Wednesday.”
I nodded. “Good point.”
She huffed out another breath as her soft fingers doodled on my chest. I realized she was writing something. After watching her scribble out her message, I asked, “What are you writing?”
She stopped, her hand slapping flat against my skin. “Nothing.”
I’d seen the message, but I wanted her to admit it. “Tell me.”
“Maybe later.”
“Why are you being so cagey?” I asked. “You’re usually so open and blunt.”
“I don’t want to make things weird.”
I laughed. “Babe, that’s never stopped you before.” My laughter died away, and my tone grew series. “I love that about you.”
Mercy’s voice hitched. She pushed herself up again, so she could look me in the eyes. “You saw it.”
Naked, staring at me with those intense blue eyes, blonde curls framing her gorgeous face, she was so damn stunning she took my breath away. I understood what Havoc had said about finding his calm. Amidst this crazy shitstorm called life, Mercy was my serenity.
She was my pardon.
She was… well, my mercy.
“I love you, too,” I said, admitting I knew what she’d written.
Her eyes grew round and her lips formed a perfect little “o.”
“I’m not gonna be gone for seven years, babe. I’m pretty sure neither one of us could handle that. I’ll be gone until June. I won’t reenlist. I’m coming home.”
Seemingly stunned, she watched me as if waiting for the ‘but.’
“For good,” I added.
“Really?” she asked. “And you’ll live here?”
