Page 14 of Operation: Chosen

She rubbed the bruise on her hip, contemplating telling him about Cliff and how he didn’t appreciate that, with age, she didn’t listen to him like she used to. He’d pushed her into a counter and called her ungrateful, along with a few other choice names.

“What’s wrong?” Eric’s demeanor changed immediately.

“Nothing. I just had to think through my answer. You know me.” She laughed, deflecting his concern. She always covered for Cliff. Where else could she go if the law got involved? She was far too close to eighteen for foster care.

“You sure?” He reached for the bottle, opened it for her, and handed it back.

“I am.” She had always felt safe with Eric—safe from her uncle and safe from herself and her need for perfection from herself.

Reality came back when Ali realized she was standing in front of her own cabin door, unmoving and distracted. Who knew how long she’d actually been standing there staring at the numbers before her eyes.

Safety and love had no place in her life now. They didn’t really help in the long run. Money did. Money had bought her freedom from Uncle Cliff when she’d gotten a scholarship to go along with her GI Bill and was able to move away to college.

By then she’d already refused Eric, and he’d transferred as soon as he’d finished basic training. She’d convinced herself that they would’ve followed separate paths. They never would’ve stayed together. She would’ve been unhappy with his choices.

As she pushed open her front door, she knew there was no way she could’ve been happy if this was where Eric would’ve eventually ended up anyway. But he’d never had all of the comforts she’d had. He’d only had what the army provided and then what he’d earned wherever he’d been between then and now.

Since he showed no signs of wealth or appreciating the finer things, she could only assume he’d never had them. That might be the key to turning his eye toward her. Frank had said she didn’t have what it took at her age to keep his attention. Maybe the same could be said of Eric. Her face wasn’t what it had been before, when she was twenty-one.

She rushed to the bathroom and screwed off the top of her expensive skin cream. Twice a day. Three times if she worked out really hard and needed to refresh her skin from an extra hot shower. The expense and effort were worth it. All of it was worth it. Wrinkles were within her control if she just kept on top of the routine.

Back in the kitchen, she tugged her laptop from its leather case and opened it. She quickly linked to the spotty Wi-Fi and searched for her favorite wine. The bottle would cost almost four hundred dollars with shipping, but the cost would be worth it to show Eric a little taste of the finer things. Start small, then slowly show him what he could have with her. Maybeshewasn’t enough to catch his eye, but her lifestyle had to be.

After putting in her payment information, she closed her laptop and set it aside. Sitting here wishing and daydreaming wasn’t going to get her results. If she wanted the man of her dreams, she’d have to go out and get him just like she did with everything else in her life. One bullet point at a time.

* * *

The few windowseats in the dining room weren’t Eric’s usual first choice for eating supper. He generally sat with the rest of the guys along with Lacy and Gabby at a hugely long table set right in front of the fireplace. He hadn’t stopped to think how having all of them at one table might detract Ali and the three boys from coming to the dining room, but now that he was apart and alone, he understood why the boys hadn’t come and why Ali might be missing. Sitting alone wasn’t much fun.

Where was she? He hadn’t seen her since the previous morning when Sam had carried her back to her cabin. Sam had found him later to tell him the particulars and didn’t seem all that convinced Eric didn’t care if other guys wanted to hold Ali. Sam didn’t realize it wouldn’t be any different for Eric than the last twenty-one years. Someone else had held the woman he’d loved.

Eric pushed his food around his plate, keeping watch out the window for any sign of Ali. He didn’t really want to talk to her, but he wanted to make sure she was fine. Connor had mentioned some situation she’d found herself in that could’ve been dangerous, and Eric had been worried. Just seeing she wasn’t hurt was enough.

After eating the longest meal he’d had in the history of forever, he brought his tray over to Victoria at the counter.

“Eric, what’s going on? Are you having a disagreement with the guys?” She glanced at the table full of the other Wayside men, then back at him.

“No argument. I just wanted to make sure Ali was all right and thought I’d see her coming if I sat by the window.” He saw no reason to be less than honest about his intentions. Other than the disaster that was his relationship with Ali, honesty had always been the best policy for him.

Victoria smiled. “Good, I’m glad to hear y’all are getting along better than I first thought. I’ll happily be wrong in this case.”

Victoria cared about everyone there and often joked with the men, especially Teddy since he worked with her in the kitchen when he wasn’t working security. Her concern wasn’t warranted though, and he didn’t want her having any. “It’s not like that. I just heard she’d gotten into a sticky situation. That’s all.” He held up his hand to show his feelings were at a full stop. There was no room for discussion.

Victoria’s gaze danced to his right for a bare second before she grinned at him. “Well, you don’t have to look anymore because she’s right behind you.”

His stomach dropped. Had Ali heard him? He slowly turned and took her in from head to toe. She had on a shirt that was feminine and soft, making her look more approachable and even relaxed. Instead of her usual trousers and heels, she wore a pair of running shoes and wide-legged linen pants that gave her a look of being on vacation. But what got to him the most was the sudden vulnerability in her eyes. That hadn’t been there since she’d arrived at Wayside and reminded him of the woman he’d known so long ago, the one who’d turned him down for her career.

“Eric, I know you don’t want to have much to do with me, but I was wondering if we could just walk and talk? No expectations. Just talking. Please?” She glanced up at him with her beautiful brown eyes.

Ali was five foot eight without her heels, but he hadn’t seen her without them in so long he’d forgotten she wasn’t his height. That contributed to her sudden vulnerability that made him want to accommodate her request. He glanced around the room, suddenly feeling less than sure of himself. Turning Ali away was easy when she was being snooty or chilly. This soft and feminine Ali was a lot harder to send on her way.

“Sure. I know the perfect place.” It was out in the open where they belonged, but quiet so no one would hear their conversation. The less people knew about what had happened between them, the better.

She smiled and stepped to the side, letting him lead the way.

“Thank you, Victoria.” He took a moment to make sure she knew he appreciated her hard work.

Victoria laughed pleasantly and waved him on his way. He headed for the door, keeping an eye out for the three boys. They still hadn’t come to a single meal. He was pretty sure Connor had caved and allowed Lacy or someone to bring them meals in their cabin. He wanted to encourage them to follow the rules but more than that, he wanted them to get out of their cabin. While there was no part of the ten rules that said eating in the cafeteria was a must, trust was one of the rules, and they couldn’t build trust if the boys were hiding all the time.

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