Page 19 of In Love with a Ranger

6

* * *

GIDEON

Oh my gosh, Gideon, you are such a dork, he thought wretchedly, staring at his reflection in the mirror and wincing. He hadn’t shaved in a few days, giving him a scruff on his face that would make his commanding officer foam at the mouth like Cujo. His hair was getting long, and standing there, he was starting to look like a civilian instead of a soldier – or at least in his own critical eyes, that was the case. He rested both hands on either side of the sink and hung his head.

And Christina?

My goodness, could anyone be any more vibrant or spectacular?

She was gentle, and he could see it in her expression or the way she moved, but when she got to talking, there was a fire in her gaze that told him she would take over a conversation if allowed. Her eyes had caught his attention, but her pale golden skin had held it. The woman had a vitality that seemed to just exude from her, and he was here for it.

That big smile of hers just made his knees weak – and it had nothing to do with a pinched nerve. He didn’t want some vapid, dolled-up prima donna, but give him a down-to-earth actual woman, and he was in heaven. Curves, curves, and more curves, along with intelligence, kindness, that vibrant smile, and the way she looked at him. Yeah, she really checked off every box for him, and they were going to be ‘friends’?

“Heaven help me,” he muttered, turning on the water and briskly washing his hands as he stared at his reflection. “She wants to be friends, and I, in my blood deprived brain, said we were going to be ‘barn buddies’. What in the heck is a ‘barn buddy’ anyhow, you moron? Meet you under the sheets? Really?”

Now he was going to have to join his ‘barn buddy’ at the table, try to act normal and completely unaffected when he most certainly was. Christina was appealing, and if he was honest with himself – he was lonely. The fact that he was suddenly sharing a cabin with a very attractive woman had hit him hard. The knowledge that she wasn’t interested in anything but friendship, well, that hit a lot harder – and directly below the belt.

Yeah, he was going to have to think about this and come up with a plan, he mused as he slowly walked into the dining area. Seeing everyone sitting at the table and a woman directly beside Christina, he fought the urge to tell the blonde to get up and move. Instead, he felt eyes on him as he sat down quietly beside Houghton at the end of the table.

“Babe,” Jill began, nodding. “Can you say Grace for us?”

“Always,” Houghton replied.

Without hesitation, everyone moved easily and clasped hands, bowing their heads. He used to do this all the time at home and on base. His squad always said their prayers before a meal, giving thanks, and this really hit home for him. Gideon felt tears of regret sting his eyes because he was no longer a part of the team. He felt almost brutally severed from his work family, and his own had slowly parted ways as they married or moved on. No, he was here, alone, in the middle of nowhere and…

He felt a tap on his cast, causing him to look up into Christina’s knowing eyes. She was watching him and looked concerned, causing him to press his lips together tightly in a grimace. Yeah, he hated someone noticing a soft spot in him, much less her, and just looked away, swallowing. He was okay and just being emotional probably because he was tired. It had been a long day, and he just wanted to lie down.

This would bring about more problems.

Bigger problems.

Bed problems.

We’re barn buddies he grimaced, before whispering ‘Amen’ with everyone else, who was digging into their plates, except Christina. He could still feel her eyes on him, watching and analyzing his every move. The woman sensed something about him and was wary and had every right to be. He was attracted to her, and this was going to end up being a mess before it was all over with.

* * *

Gideon made small talk with Houghton throughout dinner, feeling extremely weird that he was the only other guy here currently. Houghton informed him that another person was headed this way. A soldier from Afghanistanwho was being discharged from the hospital soon, and surprisingly, would be followed by yet another. The third man was currently in Germany being looked at, but according to his source, he was pretty sure that the other guy was coming here as well.

What was this place that just took in injured soldiers like it was nothing – and paired them with women? When he asked Houghton about it, the man didn’t say a word and just looked at him before shrugging.

He shrugged.

Gideon was paired with a gorgeous woman, and the man shrugged? Was that bro-code for ‘Go for it’ – or was that a silent ‘Do what you think is best and we’ll see who is alive at the end of everything’ warning? He hated mind games and preferred the direct approach, but Houghton was giving him nothing to work with.

Startled out of his thoughts, he saw Christina was practically shooed out of the kitchen by Jill and moving toward the back door to put on her coat. If she was leaving, then he was going too.

“Excuse me,” he said abruptly to Houghton, getting up from his seat awkwardly and getting his crutches under his arms. Hurrying toward the back door where all the coats were hung on pegs, he saw her open the door to leave and almost called out. Instead, he grabbed his coat, scrambled out behind her, and nearly fell.

Gideon cursed as he caught himself against the cabin, shoving a splinter into his palm painfully only to see Christina turn around. Her eyes met his, and he saw those perfect lips make a small ‘O’ in surprise before she hurried to his side.

“You need your coat,” she chided. “It’s cold out here.”

“I wanted to walk with you.”

“Then you should have said something.”

---