He gnashed his teeth together and rounded on her, a knife of helpless hurt slicing through his heart. “Why didn’t you tellme?”
“Tell youwhat?”
“That this wasn’t a normalranch.”
“What’s wrong withit?”
“You know my CO made me come here. He’s trying to get me to forget what happened with my men. That it was my fault!” Cord took a step forward and then stopped, balling his hands into fists at his side. She was purposefully dancing around his questions. And in his mind, that meant she was guilty. “How long have you all been planning to get me outhere?”
Sam edged closer as if to touch him. He recoiled on instinct. Her cheeks flushed and she sucked in a breath. “I called Clint about a week ago, asking for his help. I already told you about the cows and thesheets.”
His lips tugged up in a sneer. “You implied you’ve been having trouble for three weeks. Why are you changing yourtimeline?”
“I’m not changing my timeline. I just waited to contact him. Why are you acting likethis?”
His vision tunneled, and suddenly Samantha wasn’t herself anymore. She was just another counselor like the one back at the hospital, trying to make him admit to problems he didn’thave.
“Cord, whatever happened when you were overseas, it’s okay. I know it’s not your fault. Why don’t we sit down and talk about this?” She gestured toward thebed.
“Is that how you planned to get me to talk about my leg? With sex?” He flung the words out. “Is that what last night was about foryou?”
Samantha sucked in a breath, her hands trembling at her sides. “Last night was wonderful. The only reason I slept with you was because I wantedto.”
Cord felt his neurons firing, but this was no slow, steady stream of logical thought. The images flashed through his mind in rapid fire. The attack. Waking up without a leg. Being told he might never serve again. The hospital. Fury’s visit. The weirdness with the guys in histeam.
“Or because you wanted to loosen me up and get me to take about how it’s my fault my men were killed?” Maybe that’s why he lashed out. Or a thousand other reasons, one being that Samantha was the only one standing in front of him at the time and suddenly his chest felt like he’d been hit with a nine-pound sledge hammer of guilt. “Or maybe it was to satisfy some pathetic fantasy you had of bagging your high school crush. I hope you got it out of your system, because I didn’t want you then, and I don’t want younow.”
Sam’s shoulders hunched in on herself, her blue eyes turned bright and brittle. And in that instant, Cord wished he could take every cruel word back. It was like his daddy had spoken through him, and he couldn’t think of anything worse thanthat.
He even opened his mouth to apologize, but all the energy had been sucked out ofhim.
Sam’s sweet lips trembled and then she pressed them together in a hard line, lifting her chin in defiance. “I might be pathetic, and I might even be a little bit desperate, but at least I’m willing to admit the truth and fight for what I want. What have you done besides hide fromit?”
Sam turned and stalked out of the room, the sound of her boots clomping down the hallway fading as she crossed through the living room and slammed her way out of the frontdoor.
Shit, he was doing a piss poor job of taking care ofher.
It took Cord about five seconds to realize his mistake. He took off after her, but by the time he reached the front door she was already in the side-by-side Ryder had parked outside this morning. “Sam!”
If she heard him, she ignored him. She yanked the wheel around to the right and sped away from the house, spewinggravel.
He had to go after her. He had to apologize. He made it to the top of the ramp, but Matt wheeled into view, blocking his path. “What did you do toher?”
Cord glared down at the angry soldier. “None of your business.” He tried to step around Matt, but the guy was surprisingly fast. He sliced in front of him oncemore.
“Stay away fromher.”
It was on the tip of his tongue to ask Matt what he was going to do if Cord didn’t. “Can’t do that.” Cord tried to step around him again, only to have his path blocked a secondtime.
“She doesn’t want you. Can’t you tell?” Matt leaned forward in his chair, his eyes bloodshot andnarrowed.
“Where did Samantha go?” Ryder came striding around the front porch. “Did she take ourATV?”
Matt pointed an accusatory finger at Cord. “I heard him yelling at her. She tore out of herecrying.”
“Is that true?” Ryder asked in a completely reasonabletone.
Cord shoved his hands through his hair, his frustration mounting. “Yes, it’s true. But I didn’t mean to. I need to talk to her, but your friend here keeps getting in myway.”
