Casualties of Love Read Free Page B

because she knew that was what he would do. But after a while, it was too hard to ignore her need for him. It was too hard to turn him away. So, she stopped answering the calls. She ceased all communication. She ignored him while promising herself that everything would work out in the end. It was a promise that failed to keep.
     
    Present Time; Military Hospital in Afghanistan
                  Tyson let out a low moan. The sound broke Jessica from her thoughts. She put the supplies that she was holding down and picked up a damp cloth on the table beside his bed. She dipped the towel into the cool water and, after squeezing it out, she wiped Tyson’s furrowed brow. She would talk to the PA, the Physician’s Assistant, about his pain meds. He didn’t need to be in any pain in the first few days. He needed to rest easy. Without thinking, she laid the towel down and continued to brush her hand along Tyson’s forehead and over his soft dark hair. She closed her eyes at the familiar feel of the silky stuff beneath her fingertips. She softly traced his arched brows with her thumb, smoothing the lines on his forehead until he quieted. By memory, Jessica traced the line of his strong, chiseled jaw and his squared chin. She let her fingers drift over his. She didn’t know how long she stood there with him like that, gently caressing him, but she opened her eyes and pulled back as soon as she realized what she was doing. She took another look at Tyson, picked up the supplies, and walked away to check on another patient. She never saw the eyes watching her from across the room.
     
    Chapter 3
                  Tyson felt like…like he’d been blown the hell up. If his memory of his last mission served him correctly, that was literally the truth. He remembered the IED going off and blowing the wheels off of a vehicle that was at the checkpoint and pitching it onto its side. Before they could ascertain what had happened, they were fully engaged and hustling to counter the attack. There had been no intelligence indicating potential problems.  But, with insurgents around every bend and Islamic extremists in many of the households, an explosive device could be placed within a matter of minutes. Impromptu attacks, while not as frequent as they had been in the last year, were not completely uncommon.
    Knowing all of that didn’t go very far in helping his current state of discomfort. I hurt like hell. Looking around, he realized he was in the military hospital. Somebody around here’s gotta have some pain meds, he thought. Then, he forgot about the meds and wondered where his men were. The last thing he saw was Lassiter and Jones going down. He’d never even gotten a chance to get eyes on Collins and the rest of his team. He shifted his eyes and saw a woman standing near the door.
    “Ma’am,” his started. His voice was scratchy, his throat dry. Swallowing and clearing his throat he tried again. “Ma’am.” That attempt was a bit better and the woman turned. She was pretty, looked familiar to him, but he couldn’t place her. At her expression, he gathered she was surprised he had spoken. She moved over to him and he took note of her insignia.
    “Welcome back, sir,” she stated. “Good to see you with your eyes open.” She moved a small cup with a straw in it toward Tyson. He took a sip of the water that was in the cup. She looked at him expectantly, but Tyson didn’t know what she was looking for. Should he know?
    “Yeah? How long was I out?”
    “In and out for three days. I’ll get the doctor for you.”
              “No. I mean, sure do that, but tell me something first. Where’s my team? The men that were brought in with me. We were hit hard; I can’t be only one in here.” God, he couldn’t be the only one to make it out.
              “I don’t know. I’m sorry. I wasn’t here when you were brought in.  But, J.C. went out on the MEDEVAC and came back