“Look, I just want to see her,” I say roughly. “He won’t even let me see her.”
“Can you blame him?”
My jaw tenses. “Not really.”
“Listen, I’m saying this because I care about you: falling in love with a girl like that wouldn’t just be stupid, it would be dangerous. You have to be careful. If you keep acting like this in front of other soldiers, publicly defending her against the judgment of their own general, you’ll put Warner in an impossible situation—”
“Yeah, look, I realize—”
“And you really need to cut him some slack. You think Warner’s being hard on you but he’s trying so hard to protect you from the consequences of your own actions—”
“Believe it or not,” I say, cutting her off. “I know this.”
Nazeera freezes. “You do?”
“Yes. I do. I’m not an idiot.”
She lifts her eyebrows. “If that’s true, you might want to be a little more obvious about it.”
I shoot her a look, then sit back in my seat, rubbing my hands on my jeans. I feel like my chest is caving in. “I’m not falling in love,” I say thickly. “I’m just—I just want to know if she’s okay.”
“That’s good,” Nazeera says. “That’s a good start. Denial is a powerful tool.”
“You would know.” I glance at her. “You’re the expert.”
“Okay, I’m done being nice to you.” She flattens her hands on the table. “You’ve used up all your goodwill for the day. If you’re looking for compassion, try again tomorrow.”
I flash her a smile.
She flips me off.
“Nice,” I say. “Mature.”
“Says the guy who can’t chop a potato.”
“Hey, when are you leaving again?” I ask. “I really need something to look forward to right now.”
She flips me off with both hands.
Her hood has shifted back a little, a few strands of dark hair escaping her ponytail, framing her striking face. She scowls at me, and I can’t help but laugh.
The first time I met Nazeera was the day she saved my life.
I was ten.
I’d been abducted by my own psychopathic father and left to rot in prison until the day he decided to use me asleverage. My affectionate dad was holding a knife to my throat, threatening to kill me, and then—
Nazeera.
A miracle.
She literally flew me out of there. I remember staring at her in that dumbstruck way of children; understanding, without really understanding, that I was looking at something beautiful.
When I see her now, I remember feeling safe.
My lifted spirits diminish at the memory, displaced by a sudden, weightier thought.
“Hey, seriously, though, when are you going to put him out of his misery? You two are soulmates. We all know it. I knowyouknow it.”
