Neil had.
A couple lifetimes ago, back when it had been Jules doing Anna the favor.
Anna stood. “Shirley had a good lawyer. Talk to her.”
“Where are you going? You have to work this afternoon.”
“I’ll get a ride.”
Jules flounced away. “Don’t be late,” she snapped.
Anna’s phone dinged again. Jackson was slouched as much as he ever slouched in uniform, phone in hand, watching her.
She didn’t check the message, but gave him a single nod. A minute later, he was walking her out to his truck.
“Thanks,” she said. She rubbed her arms over her jacket. But her teeth chattered and the quivering in her stomach had nothing to do with hunger.
“Looked like a big mess.”
“Makes my divorce look like a prance through the daisies.”
He slid an arm around her shoulders. “Not too glad he hurt you, but I appreciate that the idiot gave me a chance to get to know you.”
“You just want to get laid.”
“Anna Grace, that’s no way for a proper young lady to talk.”
“Can I ask you something?”
“Yep.”
“If one of your troops was having personal problems, what would you do?”
They stopped at his truck. He gave her the wary eye. “You know someone needing some counseling?”
“He separated over the summer.” She brushed a strand of hair from her eyes. “But he’s not doing well.”
Jackson handed her his phone. “Name and address, if you’ve got it.”
“Forget who you’re talking to?” she asked with as much cheek as she could muster.
“Never, Anna Grace.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead, right there, in uniform and everything, then boosted her up into the truck. “Thought you needed reminding.”
She needed reminding all right.
Or, more appropriately, her heart needed reminding.
This one had an expiration date.
Mamie was right.He’d met someone, and she’d kicked him in the collard greens. That was the only explanation he had for calling his commander to ask for a personal afternoon so he could kick a guy in the tulips because a woman asked him to.
Not that he was that up front with his commander. He’d told the colonel he needed to be a good wingman.
He swung by home, gave Radish some bonus attention, and changed out of uniform. Then he drove a couple of miles up the road to the address Anna had given him in the land of the cookie-cutter mini-mansions.
Anna had been sparse with the details. Today, anyway. She’d told him enough about her friend at work the past couple of months for him to fill in a few pieces.
Friend’s husband lost a brother to the war, fell to pieces. Never a Southern gentleman, but a real something else now.
